Lee Roland

It says UF romance on the side and it fits. Sure it is a kick-ass urban fantasy but it does have a bit more romance than other books, only a bit though. And another thing that surprised me was that this was a stand alone novel. The book ends, with a HEA none the less. Of course that does not mean it is the end. Nope evil is still around but it seems that the next book will have a new heroine.

But this book is about Cassandra. When she was 18 the Earth Mother came to her and said she was her huntress and would rescue kids. That is now what she does. To her help she has an earth mother priestess, Abby who has saved her broken body more than once. She also has three pets, two snakes and a cat. Why are they important? Well, they can kick ass and take numbers too.

The Earth Mother is a "pagan" demi-god who cares for the Earth and her children. Because in this city it is needed. There is The Darkness that has engulfed a part of the city and reigns there. There are monsters in the sewers and bad humans on the streets. What is amazing about this world is that people forget about that part of the city. They think a bog starts there and even people living there pretends there are no monsters, but they still know. You can't even see the place on maps.

And Cass, do not even get me started about how kick-ass she is. She is violent and she will not hesitate pulling the trigger or cracking a rib on a bad guy. She does everything is takes to save kids. She felt raw and real. A total bad-ass. Oh and I loved her relationship with her pets, snakes scare me to death but her pets were just wonderful and friendly.

The romance then, well there is this cop named Flynn who needs her to rescue his sister who has gone to the Barrows. And things will heat up. And then there is Michael, yes, I know, but the mysterious bad/good guy is just so irresistible. He is yummy.

When the book ended I felt sad, I am not used to getting results so quickly and I really liked this heroine. But I am sure the next one will carry the torch and kick more ass in the Barrows.

Conclusion:

A good start to an urban fantasy series. It has action, it has romance and a new exciting world. I'd recommend it. Hard to put down too.

rating:

Good… (altro)

There is something that I have found to be fairly rare in my book reading experiences lately: reading a book that is just solid storytelling pleasure. I found that in "Vengeance Moon" by Roland Lee. Much like the first installment in the series, "Vengeance Moon" is a witty, intense, paranormal adventure headed by an empathetic, witty, and very likeable kick-butt heroine. Madeline has been living with a curse on her cheek, a gift from her mother as she (and Madeline's father) died a violent death. Why would a mother who loved her daughter so much, place her daughter with a curse that forces Madeline to avenge her parent's murders? She must find and kill each of the three men responsible before the curse will lift. Unfortunately her attempts to finish the curse attracts the attention of police and Madeline is quickly arrested and sentenced. She is eventually sent to the Sister of Justice, a group that trains her for combat. She is given a task to complete and with agreeing to the task comes her freedom. Madeline must find the portal, an artifact that wields unimaginable power. She is to find it and return it to the Sisters. She is sent to Duivel MO to an area called the Borrows, where something evil is locked away from the rest of the town and magical creatures abound.

I was originally disappointed to learn that this book wasn't going to follow the same heroine as the first book "Viper Moon". I loved Cass and I thought she had the potential for many original future adventures. I can say after reading "Vengeance Moon" that I think the author made a strong decision by changing her narrator. Madeline is different from Cass but they are both great characters with somewhat different motivations. I loved how Madeline interacted with all the supernatural beings, including angel Michael. Michael was introduced in the first book and I liked him there as well but in this volume we get to know so much more about him and his background. I am not a fan of insta-love and that is my one and only gripe with this book. I will say it is really hard to have a one volume romance without some bit of insta-love creeping in. But, that said, the relationship was enjoyable. I really liked the addition of the Sisters of Justice as well. Eunice was a hoot! In fact, Roland weaves humor and quirkiness throughout her novels.

This book is just wonderful. It features wonderful characters in a wonderfully creepy setting faced with a wonderfully intense challenges. This is the type of book where I can forget everything and just savor each page. I didn't want this book to end and I was thrilled to see the author is working on a third installment.… (altro)

Did Not Finish

What really turned me off of this book were its characters. They were very underdeveloped and cliched. In addition, their interactions and conversations with each other were shallow and at times outright silly. Furthermore, this book read more like a paranormal romance than an urban fantasy. This I could have excused if the romance was actually interesting and added exciting tension to the story, but it pretty much sucked. It was another case of insta-love with a complete lack of chemistry and substance.… (altro)