Wicked Road to Hell
Juliana Stone
Avon, Apr 24 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9780062022646

Bill the Seraphim rescues sorcerer Declan O’Hara from hell. In remittance to his being saved from eternal torment, Declan pledged to be a loyal Seraph solider obedient to Bill’s orders.

Two years later Bill sends Declan and Ransom the werewolf to New Orleans to find the vampire and the ward the Undead protects. He meets Ana DeLacrux the vampire who was staked two years ago in front of his eyes and Kaden the teenage sorcerer who heaven will kill to keep the demons from getting him; she works for Bill too. Ana and Declan were already in heat before each took a tour of Hell, but now that desire ignites at a time when neither wants it as what to do with the sixteen years old boy must precede their attraction.

Spinning from the Jaguar Warrior sage, the League of Guardians (see the novella Wrong Side of Hell; not read by me) is a terrific romantic urban fantasy starring two dedicated individuals with a history between them. Action-packed yet character driven as Declan feels betrayed by Ana and Bill while Ana thirsts for avenging her murderer but protecting Kaden is her priority. Filled with twists and strange bedfellows, readers will appreciate this action-packed second chance at love and redemption paranormal romantic thriller.

Harriet Klausner

Under A Vampire Moon
Lynsay Sands
Avon, Apr 24 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9780062100207

Forty something divorcee Carolyn Connor vacations with her best friend Bethany on St. Lucia. Also there are life mates Julius and Marguerite Argeneau-Notte. When Marguerite sees Carolyn, she knows the mortal is her son Christian’s life mate.

Marguerite asks Christian to come to St. Lucia. They realize that Carolyn has relationship phobia issues as she still hurts from her divorce and besides she refuses to date a much younger man like Christian. She is unaware that instead of being in his twenties as he looks, he is a several century old vampire. The vamps agree he must go slowly to keep his beloved from bolting. To buy time his cousin Gia comes up with a preposterous plan for Christian to pretend to be gay so she can ask Carolyn to pretend to be his lover allegedly to keep his sexual preference from his family. The only flaw in the scheme is Christian cannot conceal his attraction to Carolyn.

The latest Argeneau vampire romance (see The Reluctant Vampire and The Bite Before Christmas) is a fun tale that has a 1930s madcap comedy (including the dream sex) feeling to the plot. Although Carolyn’s reticence is explained way too late to appreciate why she hesitates through most of the storyline, fans of the saga will enjoy this fast-paced comedy of errors.

Harriet Klausner

The Prophet
Amanda Stevens
Mira, Apr 24 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9780778313397

Amelia “Graveyard Queen” Gray is renowned for her talent to restore lost respect to neglected cemeteries. A prime reason she is adept at what she does is her secret skill, seeing ghosts. As a child her dad gave her four rules to strictly adhere to when dealing with ghosts; but during her travels Amelia has smashed each of them (see The Restorer and The Kingdom).

She vows to obey her father’s admonition. However, this proves difficult when the dead cop pleads with her to find his killer. Clues take Amelia to the darkest evilest sector of Charleston and to haunted police detective John Devlin who haunts her heart. Soon Amelia’s good intentions to undo any damage she may have caused between the realms of the living and dead forces her to choose between her love and her dad’s rules.

This is a superb dark urban fantasy as readers learn more about who Amelia Gray is. Action-packed but character driven, fans will relish the trek into Stevens’ world as a beleaguered heroine finds mending what she wrought a seemingly impossible task even without considering her feelings towards Devlin as Amelia’s soul is at risk if she does nothing, fails or succeeds.

Harriet Klausner

Lost Everything
Brian Francis Slattery
Tor, Apr 10 2012, $14.99
ISBN: 9780765329127

Sailing up the Susquehanna River towards Harrisburg, filled with remorse for his actions and regret for not being there for his son Aaron, Sunny Jim searches for his offspring with little hope of finding him. He thinks about his sister Merry siting by a window in the family home with a gun wondering if she is alive and he wonders about Aline. Everywhere he and his companion Reverend Bauxite, whom he met in devastated Baltimore, look, they see destruction like the collapse of the Market Street Bridge and corpses. The violent storms brought America to its knees with pandemic destruction. Those with power cling to it at any cost while those without join a side or die immediately as civil war is heading everywhere.

No one including Sunny Jim escapes the militia. They are following him up the Susquehanna ravaging the land and killing or scripting anyone in their way. Sunny Jim and Reverend Bauxite steal supplies from the army. Whereas the two weary travelers continue their watery road trip, they see death wherever they go; the army brings death wherever they go. If they catch him and the Reverend they will kill them.

This ultra-dark apocalyptic future thriller is fast-paced with an America no longer on the Eve of Destruction (P. F. Sloan). There are three prime settings (The River, The Highway and The House) that rotate perspective but share in common the death of the Unites States. Although the names of characters seem too whimsical with all the doom and gloom and musical lyrics distracting, fans will appreciate this grim saga mindful of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road.

Harriet Klausner

Siege
Rhiannon Frater
Tor, Apr 24 2012, $14.99
ISBN 9780765331281

In Ashley Oaks, Texas the residents have built a human oasis amidst a wasteland of zombies. Each of those living inside the fortress has come a long way while still Fighting to Survive because outside As The World Dies not with a whimper or a bang but with a zombie bite. Katie is pregnant carrying her mate Mayor Travis’ baby. Her BFF since they met while fleeing the zombie horde (see The First Days) Jenni is married to Juan as they raise her stepson Jason.

Unbeknownst to either family the U.S. government has declared martial law. They have ambitious plans for those living in Ashley Oaks while the zombies have dining plans for those inside the fort also.

This is an exciting zombie thriller as the two human female fighters suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder but have no time to deal with their psychological fatigue as the undead horde is arriving in vast numbers. The entertaining storyline take an odd late spin with the arrival of ghosts that come across as genuine but detracts from the dwindling us vs. the growing zombie horde (I wonder what happens to the undead when their food supply runs out) and the insidious Feds.

Harriet Klausner

Wishful Thinking
Gabi Stevens
Tor, Apr 24 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9780765365057

The Council condemned the three Godmothers (Aunts Lily, Hyacinth and Rose) as traitors. Meanwhile the trio continues their transition quest to find new godmothers (see The Wish List and As You Wish). They select weaver Stormy Jones-Smythe of Carlsbad, California, raised by wizards but uninterested in her talent.

The Council orders Hunter Merrick to allegedly protect the newest godmother, but his job is to watch her to insure she does not act seditiously. They are attracted to one another, but their loyalties are divided as she owes her allegiance to the Godmothers and him to the Council. Stormy believes the only way for her have the godmothers and Hunter in her life is to expose the insidious plot against her mentors. However, her beloved is pledged to prevent her from investigating who has framed the godmothers.

The final Time of Transition fantasy is a terrific timely thriller starring an intrepid heroine who may not want to be a godmother (just like her predecessors in the previous novels), but seeks to expose those behind the war on fairy godmothers. Hunter is caught between his heart and his pledge as he must prevent his beloved from her inquiry while he wants to help her with her probe.

Harriet Klausner

Banner of the Damned
Sherwood Smith
Daw, Apr 3 2012, $25.95
ISBN: 9780756406776

Emras the Scribe always adhered to the three rules of her profession: do not interfere; keep the peace; and tell the truth. Now she writes her defense as she stands before the judges who determine whether she lives or dies. She scribes that she tried not to interfere; meant to keep the peace; and tells the absolute truth. She begins her story when she was fourteen working as a kitchen servant when a scribe teacher invited her to test for the Fundamentals.

Childless Queen Alian the Second of Colend names her sister Princess Lasthavais as heir to the throne. However, Princess Lasva’s euphoria ends with the announcement that her sibling is carrying the heir. Despondent over her loss and with no future at home, Princess Lasva leaves the kingdom. She meets Prince Ivandred of Marloven Hesea whose kingdom’s royal mage has dealings with Colendi’s enemy, magical Norsunder. Attracted to Marloven, Lasva also is in awe of what he and his subjects can do especially with magic. They marry. Queen Alian, worried about her sister, sends well-regarded Emras to protect Lasva, but the scribe arrives too late.

Four centuries after the fantastic Inda fantasy (see INDA, THE FOX, KING’S SHIELD and TREASON’S SHORE), Sherwood Smith returns with another superb complex thriller. Filled with action, the story line is told from the point of view of the scribe who strictly makes a case that she tells the truth with this document though she may have crossed the line re rules one and two. Readers learn of Sherwood Smith’s theory of relativity as new perspectives on previous key events (scribed in the Inda fantasy) surface. Fast-paced yet profound, Banner of the Damned is a terrific tale.

Harriet Klausner

Shadow’s Master
Jon Sprunk
PYR, Mar 27 2012, $17.95
ISBN: 9781616146054

Caim knows the answers he seeks lies inside the dangerous Northlands. After burying his father’s word, feeling compelled Caim leaves behind the place where his dad was assassinated and his mother abducted as he begins his quest into the wastelands to learn who he really is.

In Othir, Empress Josephine, escorted by soldiers, pursues Caim to inform him she is pregnant. Josey finds the journey difficult and how tough a life her people live outside the capital. However, Josey vows to be a good empress to all Eregoth subjects.

Like Josey, Caim finds the journey hard but for different reasons. Each step northward makes him feel sicker and he has lost contact with the shadows. Finally he loses control and kills like has not done in a long time. However Caim thinks he regained control.

Kit knows she and Caim love each other, but cannot ever be together as they cannot touch. Her heart broken, Kit resolves to find a way for them to be together even as she worries about her beloved heading into the Northlands to encounter his destiny, Lord of the Shadows.

The final Shadow Saga (see Shadow’s Son and Shadow’s Lure) is an excellent action-packed sword sorcery fantasy. Readers follow the escapades of the lead triangle whose adventures occur in three fabulous subplots before merging into a powerful finish. Wondering who Caim will choose if he survives his ordeal, fans will enjoy trekking with him and the two females in his life as all roads lead north.

Harriet Klausner

Spellcaster
Cara Lynn Shultz
Harlequin Teen, Mar 27 2012, $9.99
ISBN: 9780373210503

Four months ago in Manhattan, Vincent Academy students Emma Connor and Brendan Salinger broke a centuries-old curse that haunted them when he risked his life to save her from an evil student (see Spellbound). They have become a happy couple.

However, their little Upper east Side Eden has serpents. Emma’s witch mentor Angelique seems upset whenever she hears Brendan’s name. His mother pressures him to end his relationship with the Jersey orphan. Finally Angelique senses an unknown adversary stalks Emma while somehow revealing inner secrets of the couple in order to force a wedge in her relationship with Brendan. This foe plans to dine on her blood to gain her untapped power unless Brendan and Angelique can put aside their differences to keep her safe.

Spellcaster is an exciting teen romantic urban fantasy with a strong cast who makes the paranormal seemingly normal. Initially breezy with cute (don’t say that world to Brendan) young love, the storyline turns dark as a nasty powerful malevolence begins preying on the lead couple. Readers will enjoy Cara Lynn Shultz’s sensational Spellbound story.

Harriet Klausner

The Kingdom
Amanda Stevens
Mira, Mar 27 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9780778312772

Amelia “Graveyard Queen” Gray is renowned for her talent to restore lost respect to neglected cemeteries. Luna Kemper hires her to repair Thorngate Cemetery in Asher Falls, South Carolina at the foothills of the Blue Ridge. She soon learns there are two Thorngate cemeteries. The original one is below locally named Bell Lake, found on maps as the Asher Reservoir; the other was once called Asher Cemetery.

Amelia also feels drawn to a remote concealed but reverently kept grave in woods near a cave. She senses evil throughout the dying rural town that lost everything when prominent Pell Asher sold his soul for the reservoir. However, Amelia is uncertain whether what she feels is caused by the irreverence towards the dead or by her growing consciousness of her past. One thing she decides is to help the dead rest easy and mend the broken souls of the town; but first the Restorer needs to know what has caused the slow death of Asher Falls.

The second chilling Graveyard Queen thriller (see The Restorer) is a great urban fantasy that makes ghosts feel real alongside of predatory breathers. The story line is fast-paced and loaded with action that grips the reader from the moment she meets the grandson of still living Pell, Thane Asher, who says the dead want to not be forgotten. Sub-genre fans will appreciate this dark yet somehow hopeful tale.

Harriet Klausner