13 TO LIFE has been one of my favorite YA paranormal romance series since the first book. Its one of the few series I could turn to and say 'Risks! Author took risks!' because Delany does take some risks. None of her characters are what you'd consider to be stand up role models much of the time--half of the first two books Jessie is either plotting ways to keep Pietr from his girlfriend or helping to break into highly secure government facilities. The Rusakovas, despite being the right most of the time, were part of the Russian mafia. Alexi lied so much it hurts the brain to think, Max is (at best) a terrible flirt and at worst a womanizer.

This isn't to say none of that was for a good reason--some of it was beyond their control, some of it was in service of a higher purpose (saving their mother for instance) and some of it was just lack of foresight or logical thinking. They weren't bad people. And most of what happens to Jessie can be blamed squarely on her inability to recognize what is right in front of her. A lot. Not a little bit. Not a tiny bit. But a lot. By the end of Book 2 I sincerely doubted her ability to discern the difference between a wise action and an impulsive one.

So going into Book 3 I was a bit apprehensive. The end of Book 2 was...upsetting to say the least. Not only because I realized Jessie came by her inability to see the obvious genetically (from her father, who I lost some respect for honestly). And the end of this book is just as upsetting, though differently. In a lot of ways this felt like it was the build up to the fourth book, which has earmarks of making up for lost action time in this book.

Seeing Jessie and Pietr apart, truly apart, for a good chunk of book made me really look at them as individuals. Most of their thoughts were consumed with each other, but without having the other so close by it made them seem more lost and disjointed. Without Alexi's viewpoint (the book cycles between Jessie and Alexi) I would have missed a lot simply because he has an outsider's view. His sole purpose is to protect his siblings and he is a very dedicated individual. Despite how they treat him (rightly or otherwise), despite the difficulties they present (hard to corral a bunch of teen werewolves when you're just human) and despite the impending danger. The younger Rusakovas are very impetuous. They come up with a plan and that's all there is to it. The plan will work because they will MAKE it work. Alexi meanwhile tries to get them to understand they can't just rush off, force doesn't always win the day.

While I'm enjoying the deepening of the plot and the edge its begun to take, I'm wistful for the first book where the main problems revolved around Jessie being a dope and too trusting and Pietr attempting to just be as normal as possible. As we go further into the series they're beginning to seem less like teenagers and more like adults and I mourn the loss (even if they still manage to hold onto the angst). ( )

I was heavily annoyed with formatting of the book so that drew me out of the story. It was a fairly good plot, but ugh, don't break up paragraphs and such like that. it's dumb. ( )

Am I going to give every book in this series three stars? This was another good one. This series has been a lot of fun so far. Although with an abusive boyfriend in the last book and someone getting raped in this one, it’s getting pretty serious. Though I will admit that I think it was handled a bit better in this one.

It’s getting to the point where I just don’t know what to say in these reviews because I’m coming out of each book thinking the same thing. It was a good read and was really funny. Max is the best. I can’t wait to pick up the next one to see what happens. That is pretty much it. Sometimes three star books are the hardest to review. They are good books, but since they aren’t amazing I don’t really have anything to gush about. If they were two stars or less I would have more to complain about. However, they are three stars. They are good books. I guess I will just pick up the next book, Destiny and Deception, and see if this series continues to be good. ( )

The third book in the "13 to Life" series, "Bargains and Betrayals", did not disappoint (except for the awfully small font in my paperback copy, talk about eye strain!). This entire series is so much more than I initially thought it was going to be. It is not just a "werewolf" story, it is so much more. There are several paranormal aspects/people in this story, including zombies!!! Yes-- I said ZOMBIES! I can't even tell you how delighted I was by this. There's also the mafia, scientists and a secret government agency. Not to mention the author is single-handedly teaching me Russian, due to the amount of the character's usage of the language in the book. I totally dig it! Russian is sexy. ;)

In this book, in addition to the story being told from Jessica's POV, we have Alexi's POV as well. At first, I was slightly annoyed by this only because I felt like things were too back and forth, and unsteady. But eventually it grew on me and I got over it. I see now why his perspective was necessary to the story, and I developed more of a liking for his character. In addition to Alexi, Amy's character was more involved in this book. I liked her from the beginning and I love how good of a friend she is to Jessica.

Pietr's character definitely progresses in this book and he matures while having to make some tough decisions for the sake of Jessica and his family. He is definitely one of my favorite male characters of all time. I like the way Shannon Delany portrays him-- from the many ways she describes his piercing blue eyes to the description of his Russian accent. I also like the dynamic between him and Jessica. This is a couple I want things to work out for. On a side note, let me just say that whoa buddy was there a lot of sexual tension between them in this book! It almost made me uncomfortable......almost. Haha.

I found that this book had some more mature situations in it than the previous ones did. While there were still several funny and sarcastic moments present (which I love, because Jessica's character is quite amusing), this third installment of "13 to Life" provides some pretty serious and sometimes awful situations.

All in all, I enjoyed this book and I am quite excited for the next one. I think that we are going to get to see a lot more of Sophie's character next time around and I look forward to it, because she is awesome! I can only imagine what's going to happen in the next book after reading the dramatic ending of this one. =) ( )

The 13 to Life series has never been the best YA paranormal out there, but it's always been a notch above the crowd thanks to likeable characters and a winking sense of its own absurdity. Bargains and Betrayals is therefore a disappointment of the highest caliber. It's a pity, too, because the problem with the first two books -- namely, that not much happened during them -- has finally been overcome. It its place, however, we have a new, more serious problem, one that destroys any potential in the story.

Read the full review at http://luplun.blogspot.com