Locked in Silence: Grimm's Circle #5

❝ Do you have dark hungers, Vanya? ❞

Locked in Silence
Shiloh Walker
Grimm’s Circle, book five
Kindle Edition
Published September 20th 2011 by Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
ASIN B0057WU6T6

Dying is hard enough.
Coming back to life is brutal.

Vanya has been hunting and killing demons ever since one of them scarred her face and killed her sister. Correction—since she was forced to kill the demon possessing her sister. Then some sort of angel offers her a deal she can’t refuse—that if she becomes one of them, she gets to kill even more demons. Tonight, she’s made that choice. The death she smells on the air will be her own—and she welcomes it.

Silence feels a darkness is looming. Change—something he has every reason not to welcome. The deeply hidden memories that robbed him of his past, of his own name, render him unfit to teach anyone the ways of the Grimm. Yet here he is in the dankest sex club in town, waiting to assume his charge—after he stands by and watches her die.

When Vanya awakes, their complicated, dangerous dance begins. And so does something else—a searing need that blisters along their unexpected mental connection. Silence shouldn’t be drawn to his student, but once they touch, he can’t think of a reason to stop. Even though acting out their darkest desires puts them in more danger than they realize.

Warning: This book contains sex-starved demons, lonely angels, demon-angel sandwiches, blood, violence, death and a happy-ever-after.

This cover is far too pink for its dark, and smoking hot!, contents.

I have been loving me some Grimm's Circle books (although, admittedly, I didn't have the room to fit in book four). Book five, despite all, managed to squeeze itself in and helladamn! it's my favorite of the series!

Silence possesses the gift of illusion-control of the shadows-and a fetish for axes. What he lacks, however, is a voice. Cast away by his parents for his 'demonic powers' and eventually betrayed yet again thereafter, he has learned from the world that he is better off alone. He left that life with a promise of a purpose that Will made before he brought him back through the doors of death and remade him into a guardian angel. Even with this new existence, though, he remains mute and ever lonesome.

Vanya has been battling demons for a while now. Even killed her sister to vanquish one. When death finally comes for her, the memory of the deal Will offered her is forefront in her mind. She doesn't fear the transition itself, but being alone through it has her beaten. But Silence is brought to her in time, and sees her though the pain. And her training.

The story of Silence and Vanya, with all its yummy intricacies, is the most beautiful of this series for me. Not to mention it was way, way hotter. Finally, a guardian into voyeurism and rape-fantasy. Vanya's my kind of angel. 4 out of 5 stars

A Forever Kind of Love

❝  Blindly, she reached up and he caught her hand, twined their fingers.

"My girl," he teased. ❞

A Forever Kind of Love
Shiloh Walker
ebook, 101 pages
Published April 29th 2011 by Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
ISBN 9781609284312

You can always come home. Second chances come a little harder.

Chase and Zoe were the high school golden couple. Football captain, cheerleader, prom royalty. After graduation, though, Chase couldn’t resist the urge to experience life outside their small town. He didn’t exactly expect Zoe to wait twelve years for him, but now that he’s back, he finds some small part of him hoping she did.

It’s no big surprise she’s married. The kick in the face is she married his best friend.

Zoe was devastated when Chase left, but she’s filed those bittersweet memories under “Moved On”. She loves her life, and loves her husband. She has all she needs. And Chase keeps an honorable distance.

One cold, wet, miserable day, tragedy turns Zoe’s world upside down. Chase never expected her to simply fall into his arms, but a man can dream. Except his dream doesn’t include the fact that this time, she’s the one hitting the road…and he’s the one left behind.

Product Warnings: This story contains heartbreak, heartache and one last chance for two lovers to find each other.

Fifteen years ago, just after graduation, Chase escaped his small town home and ran away to see the world. He left behind a loving father, and a brokenhearted girlfriend. What he took with him was a golden necklace that held a charm-the letter Z. Zoe moved on, ended up dating Chase's best friend, Roger, and the two were married soon after.

Chase never expected Zoe to wait for him, but he never in his wildest nightmares imagined she'd marry his best friend. His heart shattered upon hearing that revelation.

And months pass.

Roger is diagnosed with a brain tumor and once more Zoe's world begins to fall apart.

I knew, from the theme of this book, that something was going to happen with Roger. I didn't expect a tumor. And I certainly didn't plan on Walker making me like the guy before ripping him from the pages. Should have though. Walker is wicked like that. She delves not just into the reality of brain tumors, but into the poison that eats away at the victim and their loved ones. Not just the despair, but the rage.

And into the unparalleled power of love.

Sixteen years... Unfathomable. Such a stirring, beautiful story, I can't begin to list the many emotions I sailed through with this one. The cover, much to my surprise and glee, captures the essence of Chase and Zoe so very well. 5 out of 5 stars.

Every Last Fantasy

Every Last Fantasy
Shiloh Walker
ebook
ISBN 9781419900938
Published December 15th 2004 by Ellora's Cave Publishing Inc.

Vikky is discontented. She is tired of her vanilla life and the bumbling lovers who inhabit it. She wants—needs—a strong man to take charge and lead the way to her wild side.

She has dreams… She dreams of a man who makes all the other men in her life pale in comparison, a man who knows exactly what she wants, and he wants nothing more than to give it to her.

But such a guy, to her knowledge, doesn't exist in reality. So what else can a woman do at Christmastime to help that dream along? She can ask Santa for one. And my, oh my, does Santa listen...

When Erik agreed to help out an old friend by wearing a goofy costume and playing Santa for a weekend at a local mall, he had no idea that a sleek, sexy woman from his past would show up and whisper her dark, sexy daydreams into his ear. But he wasted no time in making her fantasies come true.

But something odd is going on. There is a connection between them that neither could have prepared for. A compulsion that drives them to risk all for the other's touch. Memories of a life lived in another era. Heartbreak and yearning for an enduring love that was destroyed by bitter hatred.

To overcome the anguish of their dark past, these lovers must relive the pain and horror of the events that shattered their lives so long ago. They must discover the reason for the otherworldly connection that enthralls them. Only then can they find happiness in this life.

Together, as they were always meant to be.

Even though the blurb is ridiculously long, so much so that I was tempted to it cut off and force into a link back to Goodreads, I just couldn't. This is a lot more than a lighthearted tale about a Christmas list and a woman looking for an alpha in the bedroom-reincarnation is at play.

When Vikky inherits a collection of treasures from her deceased aunt, she finds a mirror that triggers memories of a former life, simultaneously awakening the same in Erik.

When their current lives collide as Erik plays Santa at the local mall, they're given another chance to be together. But first, Erik embarks on a very daring, rather explosive, quest of seduction in which Vikky gets to experience her long kept secret fantasies. There's a heaviness found in this story that normally isn't woven into these light Christmastime smut stories, definitely marking it as a Shiloh Walker work of art. Definitely wished it had been longer though. 3 out of 5 stars.

Declan & Tori: Hunters #1

Declan & Tori
Shiloh Walker
The Hunters, book one
ebook, 127 pages
Published October 16th 2003 by Ellora's Cave Publishing Inc.
ISBN 9781843606635

She was just doing her job, tracking down a nutcase who was stalking a young dancer. And then the unspeakable and impossible happened. She was bitten.

A newly turned vampire, Tori is alone and starving and she doesn't know what to do. But she knows who to turn to-gorgeous, mouthwatering Declan-a police detective who has a few secrets of his own.

I am not, by any means, a fan of vampires. Whether they sparkle, burst into dust, explode into light, or any other of the imaginative twists forced upon the folkloric race. So I made a huge mistake by prematurely committing myself to reading this series. It proves -yet again- that just before I absolutely adore an author, it doesn't mean I can tolerate everything he/she puts out.

This was just the oh-so-wrong book for me, so my review -0 out of 5 stars- has nothing to do with the writing or anything of that nature but directed moreso to the substance therein. I was determined to finish but by the end I was left growly, pissed off, disgusted, and in desperate need of a palette cleanser.

What's the worst death possible for a shifter? Cuz I'm dealing that out to Declan. Tenfold.

First of all, I don't care for wolf shifters that like to be fed from. Secondly, there is no talking out your muzzle when in wolf form. And thirdly, there is no damn sharing! Declan went from 1) She's mine. Don't touch -to- 2)Okay, I'll share, but her ass is mine -to- 3)Okay, you can have her ass now -to finally- 4) You fuck her. I'll watch.

Are you freaking kidding me!? No. No. No. Share your wives all you want. There is no sharing mates!

Despite the things I did like... the vulgarity and the teaching that for the sake of the world some people do in fact deserve to die... there was way too much that left me reeling. Near the middle I thought sure, I could read this. It's tolerable. Wrong! It completely spiraled downhill from there.

And yet, if you like menage, paranormal exhibitionism/voyeurism, casual sex, borderline bestiality, and a wolf who claims 'Mine' but doesn't do a damn thing about proving it... then this is a book for you. Me? I have no interest whatsoever in continuing the series and even less interest in ever reading another word about Eli.

As I said, 0 out of 5 stars.

One of the Guys

One of the Guys
Shiloh Walker
ebook, 111 pages
Published December 2007 by Ellora's Cave
ISBN 1419913611 (ISBN13: 9781419913617)

Jaynie knew that her fiancé had some serious ménage fantasies going on, but she never expected to catch him acting them out. As if that pain isn't enough, he tells her she couldn't be a real woman if she tried. Reeling from the double blow, confidence shattered, Jaynie turns to Brian, her sexy partner at work. One night, she tells him. She wants one night with him, no strings attached.

Brian feels plenty of strings and it's as if all of them are pulling him toward Jaynie. She's sexy, she's funny and she haunts his dreams. Memories of that one night keep him awake and he's dying for another taste of her.

But Jaynie doesn't seem at all interested. What's a man to do?

After Jaynie's fiance completely destroys her self confidence as a woman, she turns to Brian, her best friend's older brother, in the heat of the moment in order to prove to herself that she's both feminine and sexy. Mission accomplished, she moves on with her life without her cheating bastard of an ex and starts over.

Four months later, Brian is still going through the motions of that night. His sister's friend, whom he's known all of her life, has taken up space in the forefront of his mind. Now he can't look back on the past without remembering her in vivid detail, or wanting her in his bed again.

Brian is so smexy. I love the torture he puts himself through, first thinking he can't have Jaynie and then, lastly, when he thinks he's lost her. The ending was the highlight of the story for me. Rampant tempers and emotions colliding this way and that. It's another pretty damn good read from Shiloh Walker. 5 out of 5 stars.

Beautiful Girl

Beautiful Girl
Kindle Edition
Published January 29th 2008 by Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
ISBN 1599989891 (ISBN13: 9781599989891)

Sometimes getting to heaven requires a trip through hell. Twelve years ago, it looked like Del Prescott had it all. The wealthy family, the car, the looks and charm, and the perfect boyfriend. Then, mysteriously, she disappeared to "study abroad." Now she's back, and it's not merely to attend a high school reunion. She's here to face her demons-and Blake, the man she has never stopped loving.

Blake Mitchell is a changed man, thanks to surviving twelve long years of difficulties that began after Del dropped out of his life. Now she's back, and she's nothing like the polished, stylish world traveler he imagined she'd be. There's a darkness about her, and a grim expression in her eyes that says she's prepared for fight or flight. Blake's concern for her breaks down the walls Del has built around her heart and she finally begins to heal from the abuse she suffered at the hands of her own family. But the betrayal goes deeper than either of them ever imagined-and it's about to come back to haunt them.

This title contains the following: explicit sex, graphic language and violence.

There's nothing quite like returning home to the greatest love of your life.

Del has come home after twelve years of running away after being raped by her stepfather. She left behind everything, including a boyfriend she would never forget.

Blake hasn't forgotten Del either. But after surviving a car crash and enduring years of chemo against the cancer they'd found soon after, he's not the same person he was when Del up and disappeared from his life. But that hasn't stopping him from dreaming about her. And despite the fact that everything, from appearance to actions, has changed about his old girlfriend, he still wants to kill whoever it was that hurt *his* girl.

I had a raging headache when I started this book and I still couldn't put it down. Del and Blake's what-ifs that tackle their minds within minutes of seeing each other again start the bonding process to these characters right out of the gate. From there, Blake's need to protect and soothe Del melts the heart. Delilah still clings to her secrets but the scars on her body from long ago suicide attempts only drive Blake further. He's very much what every girl wants in her first, and only, love. A patient avenger, gentle and devoted. And so much more.

The rest of the cast is made up of cliche small town people where there's a conspiracy involved and yet it's a plus in this situation as it only adds to the surreal feeling surrounding a very dear romance. Blake tugged at my heartstrings as did Del as she fought to leave behind her past. 4 out of 5 stars.

Broken: Rafferty #2

Broken
Rafferty, #2
Trade Paperback, 327 pages
Published March 2nd 2010 by Berkley Sensation
(first published January 19th 2010)
ISBN 0425232417 (ISBN13: 9780425232415)


SHATTERED
Quinn Rafferty is working as a bounty hunter and bail bondsman in St. Louis when a new neighbor catches his eye. He’s tempted by her beauty—but he knows from experience that anyone desperate enough to live in his building is damaged goods. Besides, he has his own soul to mend before he can worry about anyone else.

DESPERATE
Sarah Davis is on the run, but not for the usual reasons a woman goes on the lam. She’s not an abused wife, and she’s not a criminal. But she does have a plan for her future. And as much as she finds herself attracted to her gruff, tough neighbor, she can’t risk telling him the secrets she’s hiding. There’s just too much at stake.

DRIVEN TO DESIRE...
But Quinn must get closer to Sara when she turns out to be the target of his new missing persons case, and he discovers that there is something more complex and dangerous to her than he thought. Now, both Quinn and Sara will have to expose their true feelings—as well as their fragile hearts—if they hope their love will survive…

I've seen the ratings, heard the offhand comments, so I knew this book was being praised like God's gift to literacy. The reviews, though, I kept away from. Wanted nothing to ruin this one for me. No details at all. Not even the characters. And I've yet to read, Fragile, book one in the series.

Broken opens up in the world of a young Quinn and his drug addicted mother, reminding me so much of another of Shiloh Walker's stories- Talking With The Dead.

Twenty years later he's burying a woman he only now realizes he loved and working as a bounty hunter. The devastation experienced in his youth still haunts him, despite the salvation found with his natural father and twin brother, Luke. There is still a part of him that's well... broken.

It's not difficult to see the obvious charm that has seduced so many readers. Quinn's a cutie. A lost, wounded warrior who is completely blindsided by the fact that he finds himself wanting small talk with his new neighbor, Sara Davis. And flirting, well he yearns to do that too, among some other more graphic, adult pastimes.

Sara, meanwhile, is on the run from a man who wants her dead so he can move on to his next victim and it wasn't until she had to run again -and believe me, you can't possibly guess why she's running- that this story actually picked up for me. When Quinn opened up that file, it was then that the story actually turned captivating. Up until then the juvenile relationship between he and Sara was just *interesting* at best. Must be something about a man, bleeding from his heart and soul, as he confronts the only woman ever able to really hurt him that just hits a nerve with me. 5 out of 5 stars. The ending really makes the story.

"Lights out, door down," he muttered. "Now lift your hips."

Last note- There are numerous references to Fragile so I wouldn't recommend reading them out of order like I am. Definitely looking forward to a taste of Luke though. =)

Other books in the series

One Night With You

One Night With You
ebook
Published by Ellora's Cave (first published November 1st 2009)
ISBN13 9781419910791


Logan knew from the first time he saw Bo Martin that she was the one for him. They were just teenagers then, but he knew. He spent years quietly waiting for her to grow up and when he finally made his move, he moved too fast and scared Bo away. She stayed away for four years but circumstances outside his control kept him from going to her when she finally returned.

Now it's too late. Bo's engaged to one of Logan's best friends. But he'll be damned if he lets that wedding happen. All he needs is a little bit of luck, and one night to convince Bo that she belongs with him.

Logan's life is one big wait on Bo Martin, waiting for her to become a woman and then waiting four years for her to come home after disappearing to another county after two dates (and one night of passion) that they managed to share.

Then there's waiting for his case to end so he can go see her. Waiting again for her to talk to him. And then, bam, she's dating his cousin and after five freaking months, the two are getting married.

He scrubbed a hand over his face and turned away from the window. He caught sight of a picture on his desk. It was the only picture on the desk, one of the very few he had in the house.
It was Bo.

Time running out, and desperation setting in, Logan grabs up some chloroform and a cloth and puts a plan of kidnapping into action.

Another great read from Shiloh Walker. What more can I say... The plot itself was simple enough. After Bo lost her mother and watched her father fall apart, she became terrified of strong emotions. Love, of course, being the strongest of all.

Can't hate Logan for what he did as wrong as it may be to break up someone's relationship. And kidnapping a girl. Oh well. The price one pays for happily ever after. 4 out of 5 stars.

Belonging

Being a vampire sucks. Just ask Cori Lewis. The "Change" didn't change her enough. She's still shy, quiet and she never feels as though she belongs anywhere. Not even with the people who took her in after the vampire attack that left her near death. But other things have changed a lot. Cori needs sex — now!

She goes in search of a one-night stand — hot sex with an anonymous man in a dark alley — and her life changes yet again. He's a connection to the past she thought was lost and he's everything she's ever dreamed. But when he finds out who she is, he might never be able to forgive her.

There probably isn't a logical reason for this but I was fighting back tears as I opened up the second chapter of this book. I knew Cori was a vampire and she certainly had a pulse in chapter one so why the shock and pain of chapter two hit me so hard I can't give you a reason.

Oh wait. I can- Shiloh Walker.

No writer should be this good. Able to inflict such a lethal amount of emotion with so few pages.

The story begins in the aftermath of Cori breaking off her engagement to Owen. She's not in love with him and she can't pretend to be happy with him anymore. She finds comfort from Levi, Owen's cousin and best friend. But it's a bittersweet comfort. Because it was his kiss beneath the mistletoe one Christmas that brought the painful truth of her unhappiness barreling down on her.

That kiss changed Levi, too. As he now found himself wanting a woman that didn't belong to him.

Levi really didn’t need to see her face as he humiliated himself. “I didn’t like seeing you look that miserable. All I wanted to do was make you smile a little. Maybe make you laugh. You always laughed when I teased you, even while you blushed and tried to hide it. That was the only thing I wanted to do. But then I kissed you, and you moved…everything changed for me that day. Everything. But it didn’t change for anybody else. Just me. You were still Owen’s lady, and you never really talked to me unless I started a conversation. You never looked at me unless you had to. I was nonexistent. The day you broke things off with Owen, I felt like a fucking asshole because all I could think about was the fact that since you didn’t belong to Owen anymore, I might have a chance.”

Time passes in this book. First three weeks. Then four years. And fate does not stop screwing with them. Corinne's one decision catapults into a series of events that controls the next four plus years of her, Levi, and Owen's lives.

The corniest part of this book was the school for Others. God help me, I was waiting for Wolverine or Cyclops to show up and just end the stupidity. Everything else though, pure Shiloh goodness. Which blew away all the bad. Being unfamiliar with the Hunter's series by SW which this is related to, I can only assume the supporting characters hail from there. If so, it's definitely checking it out. Grady was hawt. 4.9 out of 5 stars. Yes, I'm calling it like that. =)

Crazed Hearts: Grimm's Circle #3

Crazed Hearts
Grimm's Circle, book 3
ebook
Published July 13th 2010 by Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
ISBN13: 9781609280796

Ren has always danced along the fine line between being a little bit crazy and being overcome by a darkness that’s haunted him since his mortal days. As an empath, he prefers to live far from people who would leak their emotions all over him, so he’s not expecting the woman who drives right into the heart of his wood. She has a cursed book with her and demons hot on her heels. Even more surprising are her abilities and the reaction Ren has to her.

Aileas is on the run. She just isn’t certain if she’s running from something real or imagined. One thing is for sure, her brother is dead and she’s certain the book she found has something to do with his death. She really starts to doubt her sanity when she meets a hot but somewhat crazed man in the middle of nowhere.

He calls himself Ren, and although he doesn’t seem to be out to hurt her, he definitely seems to want something. She just doesn’t understand what. She does know what she wants though. She wants him, and the shadows and darkness she glimpses inside him don’t matter. At least, right up until he claims to be a guardian angel.

And she thought she was going crazy.

Ren is said to have suffered the most of all the Grimm. He's lived over a century with the pains of his former life. Even Will, the Grimm's leader, has lost much of his faith that Ren will ever find peace.

Ren's one comfort, especially now that he has lost Elle, is animals. Which made him even more of a riddle to me. Searched every corner of my mind and could not come up with any Ren from any fairytale. Ren and Stimpy maybe, but he's definitely not him. The only clue given is constant referral to Ren as Thomas. Still... no bells are ringing.

Books one and two come together in the third book where Mandy, from book one, is apprenticing under Ren, from book two. The plot itself is much closer to the first in the series as well. Aileas finds herself as the new owner of a demon tome after her brother dies. Soon the book is calling to her and demons are on her heel. Her path crosses with Ren and Mandy outside Ren's cabin and the old Grimm is instantly besotted. Quite a new experience for the crazy fool.

Even after Ren's true name was revealed I had no idea who he was. No spoilers here, but this was a good ending for Ren.


Other books from the series
- Candy Houses, book one
- No Prince Charming, book two

No Prince Charming: Grimm's Circle #2

Book one of Grimm's Circle, Candy Houses, was reviewed by myself in a previous post.

No Prince Charming
Grimm's Circle, book 2
ebook
Published January 26th 2010 by Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
ISBN13: 9781605048864

Elle spent years trying to get over her so-called Prince Charming, and she’s finally getting the hang of it. A Grimm—a guardian angel with unique gifts—she spends her nights trolling for demons and kicking ass, and lately, her days have been spent with her on-and-off-again lover, Ren, a fellow Grimm. But fate has other plans in store for Elle, plans that include Michael, the prince from her youth who broke her heart.

“What do you choose…live for her? Or would you rather die?” That was the choice Michael was given all those years ago. Although he knew she’d never forgive him, when Michael was given the chance to become a Grimm, he took it. Still, he isn’t so sure Elle needs him in her life. With a lover at her side and a mission before her, Elle looks like she’s doing just fine without him.

But the not-so-charming prince isn’t going to back off that easily…not if there’s a chance she might need him again. He’d do anything to save her. Kill for her, live for her, die for her…

In these twists of Shiloh Walker's on the Grimm fairy tales, where even Disney's princesses are playing a part, things are dark. Elle, or Giselle (or Cinderella mind you), never got her happy ending with her Prince Charming, Michael. Turns out, he was engaged to her stepsister. And when he offered to make her his mistress, for he couldn't bear to lose her, and threatened her when she refused, Elle's life hit bottom. She ran. Was subsequently raped. And eventually was offered another life, as a Grimm.

Ren is Elle's lover. *cringe* He's actually more like the other half of her friends-with-benefits arrangement, and while he brings her pleasure the real reason she's with him is because he's safe. He's the complete opposite of Michael.

Now Ren wants to be more than Elle's friend but since his story comes in the next book, I didn't give a damn what Ren wanted right now. And thank the gods for Will. I don't think I could have handled Ren's presence the entire book. That fact, and because menage does nothing for me, is why I'm skipping I Though It Was You which is basically tying up the loose ends between Ren and Elle.

This one has some three-way play though the love story is strictly m/f. The opening of the book instantly brings empathy for Michael. I loved that boy. And who can resist a Prince Charming?

I Thought It Was You, book 2.5 in the Grimm's Circle series,
is available for free from Shiloh Walker here.

Tarnished Knight excerpt

Tarnished Knight, book four in the Grimm's Circle series.

Think you know fairy tales… guess again…

One look at Jack Wallace and Perci knows he’s going to be trouble. Even surrounded by soul stealers, he’s a one-man wrecking crew. What does he need Grimm training for? He’s already hell on earth, a warrior bent on destruction. And something…more.

He’s too strong and fast to be a mere mortal. Even covered in blood, he makes her forget she’s only here to do a job and get out. It’s twisted. Sick. She hasn’t felt this alive in three centuries.

Born with a natural talent for killing unnatural things, Jack has always known things he shouldn’t. The fact that Perci is one of them glows all over her. Giving him an unholy urge to see just how far he can push her before don’t touch me melts into touch me there.

When they come together, it isn’t careful or cautious. It’s heaven and hell, exposing all their raw and wounded places to healing heat, resurrecting memories of a destined love from the distant past. But the evil that destroyed them once before has tracked them here, threatening their second and last chance at forever. Demanding a sacrifice no one—Grimm or human—should ever be asked to make…

Find the excerpt here.



Other books in the series, including I Thought it Was You #2.5.

Talking With The Dead

Surrounded by death, a man with a terrible gift reaches for life.

A horrific tragedy blasted open a door in young Michael O'Rourke's mind-cursing him with the ability to talk with the Dead. Nearly two decades later, Michael has moved from victim to survivor, using his abilities to seek out those who would go unjudged.

With his gift, he talks to those who've died violently and seeks out their killers. Only once he's found the murderer, can the victims be at rest. After his last case, the only thing he wants is peace and he hopes to find it in the small town of Mitchell, Indiana.
But something is horribly wrong-the dead are waiting for him there, as well.

Michael has had a rather shitty childhood. His mother is a drug-addicted, scam artist and a bad one at that. His only solace comes from his big brother, Lucas, whom his mother adores. Of course, that doesn't stop her from trying to prostitute Lucas every chance she gets.

Despite the constant horrors brought on by their mother's twisted ways, Lucas and Michawl survive as only they can, plotting that one day they would get away from her. But the day comes when their mother's debts are high enough that her drug dealer is looking for greater payment than cash and takes Lucas away.

Michaels flees. Safe, away from his mother, he calls upon a special bond he and his older brother share. A kind of telepathy. Instantly, Michaels feels the pain his brother has been inflicted, tastes the blood, and then sees the gun. Lucas howls for him to run just before the shot's fire and everything goes black.

My eyes were wet before I left the prologue. I love the darkness of Walker's writing. That pitch black history where each of her characters have spawned from. Yes. The devastation.

Years have passed. Michael finds himself in a small town in Indiana trying to escape the death that follows him. Since that night, sharing in the connection as his brother breathed his last, Mike and death have formed their own bond. He sees dead people. He talks with them.

One bright light amidst it all though- his brother is right there with him.

Throughout the story we follow Michael's POV as well as Daisy's, the killer's, and even a prior victim's. When the victim starts haunting the killer things really get wild. And I didn't expect the quick peek through the dog's eyes. Weird.

The best quote is simple, but deep, and was said by Lucas near the end:

Give up your ghosts, Michael.

Candy Houses: Grimm's Circle #1

Not sure what to think about myself when a sex scene actually brings tears to my eyes.

Reaching down, I wrapped my fingers around his wrists. “Faster,” I said, staring down at him. “Harder.”

Rip’s lashes lowered. “I don’t want to hurt you. I don’t want to scare you.”

“You wouldn’t ever hurt me. You couldn’t ever scare me.”

As I said it, the dream shifted around me and we were no longer the beach, but in a bed. A big, soft bed that cradled me like a dream as Rip moved over me.

“Say my name,” he whispered. “Let me hear it.”

“Rip…”

“Tell me you’ve missed me,” he ordered, kissing me hard and rough. His voice was just this side of desperate, something I wasn’t prepared for, not with him. “Give me something, damn it.”

But I couldn’t ignore that plea—it was just an echo of my own need, anyway…right? That’s all dreams were.

“I’ve missed you,” I told him. Then his mouth came down on mine and he was kissing me like he could drown in me.

One second I was dreaming, lost in Rip’s arms, lost in his kiss and hovering on the edge of climax, and the next second I was awake, brutally awake and all too aware of the fact that I was being watched. I jerked up in bed, clutching the sheets and blankets to my chest.

Rip was standing in the doorway with one shoulder propped against the door jam. He had a look in his eyes that sent my skin to tingling all over. I mean all over—I felt it in my lips, my toes and every square inch in between.

“Hey,” I said. My voice cracked.

He continued to stare at me.

And where it went from there was only more... everything.

Candy Houses tells the story of the "real" Greta from the tale of Hansel and Gretel and Rip from Rip Van Winkle. Now a Grimm (fighter against the many kinds of demons in the world), Greta finds herself the savior and mentor to Mandy, a young girl who gets her hands on a book that could open the door to a demon taking over her soul.

At the same time, her path crosses once again with Rip who's on the hunt of a Grimm gone bad.

The best part of the story was the interactions between Greta and Rip. Two people who can't read each other very well until all masks are dropped. Suddenly every emotion is painted in pink and neon yellow poka dots across their faces.

I loved Rip. Actually, if I could be any character I've ever read, I'd want to *be* Rip. Just... without the blond hair.

★★★★☆

Through The Veil (pt 2)

"Whaddya know… a man looking at me really can rock my world."

Through the Veil... (spoilers)

It is the story of a land at war. In part, it is the story of man's love for a woman. A brother's love for a brother. And a father's love for his daughter.

What can I say? It was good. It was deep. It provoked thought and consideration.

Not quite as climactic as I expected going in though. Not so much as shocking as just.. every life coming together, sorting themselves out, until there was just a little more peace left to the survivors.

When Lee died... when the men had to pull Kalen away from her, grabbing and wrenching at his limbs to keep him back... it was emotional. A lot of questions were answered at the end- just how Lee, aka Lelia, aka Lelena, was able to keep crossing through the Veil those twenty years. How she got to 'our' world. What happened to her parents.

It was fulfilling to have Lee remember the times shared with Kalen as he, too, was growing up.

All the bases covered.

Yays for another book well written!



Even Kalen had a little wolf in him...

He bounced back from the disbelief, to the irrational fury. He swung back around to her and closed the distance between them. Fisting one hand in the soft, silky shirt she wore under her cavinir, he jerked her up onto her toes. "Why did he touch you? What did he want?"

Her soft blue eyes weren't so soft as she glared at him. They blazed like blue flame, and fury flushed her face a delicate pink. She closed her hand around his wrist and tugged in an attempt to dislodge his grip. "I don't know what he wanted. And would you quit acting like you found us rolling naked on the ground?"

Oh, now, that was the completely wrong thing to say. That image exploded in Kalen's mind and he jerked Lee forward. Her soft, strong body crashed into his as he lowered his mouth to hers. "Don't let him touch you again, Lee. You hear me?"

Any answer she might have made, he smothered with his lips. She wouldn't open for him. He angled her chin and squeezed her jaw until her mouth opened. The taste of her hit his system like a lightning bolt, electrifying and breath-stealing. Lee's hands pushed at his shoulders and she twisted in his arms even though her lips clung to his. He lifted her body in his arms and turned, pressing her against the wall. "You can't understand what it does to me, thinking about somebody else touching you," he murmured against her lips. He fisted his hand in the silky strands of her hair and jerked her neck to the side.

"Let go, Kalen." Then she moaned as he raked his teeth down the arch of her neck. Her hands fisted in his shirt and she pulled him closer, arching her hips and pumping against him. She circled her pelvis against his in a mad little shimmy, and those rocking, teasing gyrations had him gritting his teeth.

"Let go?" he repeated. He slid a hand down her side, over her hip, along her thigh, until he could cup her knee and bring it up high. Then he stepped between her thighs and pressed against her. She was wet and hot, he could feel it through the layers of their clothes, and he could smell her hunger in the air, wrapping around him. He could feel her own need in the way she moved against him, the way her hands clung to him even as she tried to push him back. "You don't seem to want me to let go."

"Bastard," she muttered. He nipped her earlobe and then lifted his head, watching as she slammed her head back against the wall and glared at him. Her face was flushed, color riding high on her cheeks, and under the fringe of her lashes, her soft blue eyes glittered hot as flame.

Lee squirmed against him and then brought up her other leg, hooking her ankles together at the small of his back. Kalen snarled as need blistered and burned through him. It was a demanding scream in his brain, and he couldn't think of anything but getting her naked. Didn't she understand she was his?

"I have been waiting for you," he muttered against her mouth. "For years. For this." He tangled a hand in the silky blond tresses and pulled, arching her head back and baring her neck. He scraped his teeth down the smooth white flesh and bit down lightly where neck and shoulder joined. "Just waiting for this. Can you understand that?"

He didn't wait for an answer, just kissed her hard and rough before continuing. "Then you let another man touch you. I don't want another man touching you. Not for anything."

Vicious

They called her vicious.
They called her vindictive.
They called her violent, volatile…
But Graeme Lawson, arrogant bastard he was, he had simply called her his…

If there was a better way to wake up, Graeme wasn’t so sure he wanted to know.

Three years ago, Graeme Lawson was killed by the woman he loved. A knife to the back. Since then, he's been in Purgatory.

But now, he's been given a chance at redemption by going back, and giving Vixen, his love and murderer, a chance at salvation. With a different body, shorter and thinner, but the same neon blue eyes, it doesn't take long for Graeme to find her, but he's not prepared for the air of grief that surrounds her.

Vixen is an assassin. She spent her life on the streets as the daughter of a drug addicted mother who finally overdosed and Vixen was left to stealing to survive. That's how she first met Graeme, who loved her the moment he slapped eyes on her.

Graeme is what nearly every woman wants, and what no assassin needs - a guy that can read your every move. In his new existence, it's even worse. Every sense he has is heightened. He can hear her every word. Even some inside her mind. But the powers that be didn't send him back completely uncontrolled. They'll only let him do so much.

I had my hesitations starting out this one. I mean, the guy's already dead, what kind of happy ending are we looking at here? For the first half of the book we're basically reliving their lives and their life together. I must say, the sexy stuff is top notch.

Near the end, I was flabbergasted as I experienced that moment when a slow smile stretches your face and you find yourself mouthing the words 'no way' as everything comes together so beautifully. If you've ever seen even one Saw movie then you know what I mean. All I wanted to do was crawl into a big blanket, wrap myself in its warmth, and sigh. Yes. Hell yes. The book was good.

The very end? I won't spoil it. It's too unexpected. Not all that huge a deal... just unexpected. You won't see it coming. So I hate the cover, have a mild dislike for the title, but absolutely love love love the story.

“Don’t look away,” he whispered. “You gave me this…and I want all of it.”
The pain was just a whisper at first, but as he pressed deep, deeper, it grew, hot and vicious, spreading through her. She cried out and closed her eyes.

His voice cut through the hot wash of pain. “Look at me!”

She did…and she found herself lost in his gaze.

“I want it all,” he repeated. “I want the tears. I want to feel it as your body tries to accept me, accept this…and I want to watch you as it happens. You gave me this—you can’t hold anything back. Not from me.”

“It hurts.” She hated the whimpering, pleading tone of her voice, but she couldn’t stop it. Nor could she look away from him as he forged deeper and deeper, claiming her one slow inch at a time.

“I know it hurts.” He dipped his head and nuzzled her neck. “And bastard that I am, I can’t even say I’m sorry. I’m glad it hurts, glad this is the first time for you…glad I’m the man having this, having you…and damn it, Vixen, I’m keeping you.”

The in-print cover, shared with Talking With the Dead. Much better!