[Review] The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh

Title: The Wrath and the Dawn

Author: Renee Ahdieh
Series: The Wrath and the Dawn #1

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Published: May 12th, 2015

Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

Format: Hardcover, 388 pages

One Life to One Dawn.
In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king, each dawn brings heartache to a new family. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a monster. Each night he takes a new bride only to have a silk cord wrapped around her throat come morning. When sixteen-year-old Shahrzad's dearest friend falls victim to Khalid, Shahrzad vows vengeance and volunteers to be his next bride. Shahrzad is determined not only to stay alive, but to end the caliph's reign of terror once and for all.
Night after night, Shahrzad beguiles Khalid, weaving stories that enchant, ensuring her survival, though she knows each dawn could be her last. But something she never expected begins to happen: Khalid is nothing like what she'd imagined him to be. This monster is a boy with a tormented heart. Incredibly, Shahrzad finds herself falling in love. How is this possible? It's an unforgivable betrayal. Still, Shahrzad has come to understand all is not as it seems in this palace of marble and stone. She resolves to uncover whatever secrets lurk and, despite her love, be ready to take Khalid's life as retribution for the many lives he's stolen. Can their love survive this world of stories and secrets?
Inspired by A Thousand and One Nights, The Wrath and the Dawn is a sumptuous and enthralling read from beginning to end.

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Review

My thoughts:

This book was a hype-monster! Everyone and their mother had read it and loved it by the time I picked it up, so my expectations going into it were pretty high. 

Perhaps it was precisely for that reason that I felt a little disappointed going into it. I found the beginning to be quite slow and I had a hard time trying to connect with the characters. To be completely honest I think I didn't get the world at first... the cultural ambience was new for me and I felt overwhelmed by it at the start; the names drove me insane because I couldn't remember them and then there were too many names and roles starting with K and J for me to actually keep track of who was who or what. 

So I actually had to stop and go read something else before I started hating on the book just because I wasn't getting it. Thankfully, when I came back to it, things started to pick up and after two or three chapters I went from not caring to being unable to put the book down. 

The story is about a girl named Shahrzad whose best friend, Shiva, had to marry and then was killed by the king of Khorasan. But Shiva is only one of many brides that the king has taken and killed merely a night after the wedding, so Shahrzad takes it upon herself to end this cycle of death and find out why the king is killing his wives and hopefully, find a way to make him pay for all the pained he's caused. But in order to do that, she has to volunteer as the next bride and do whatever it takes to stay alive every dawn. 

I loved Shahrzad strategy for staying alive: telling the king a never ending story so he would let her live each night in order to finish it. I've never read the original A Thousand and One Nights, but I more or less know what it's about and I really enjoyed Ahdieh's take on it. At first I thought it was going to be like the center of the story as if it were a retelling, but it wasn't the case. The plot had a mind of its own and it moved forward without the help of the stories after a while. 

Once I got past the initial confusion, it was quite clear for me that the characters were complex, especially Khalid and Shazi. Both of them were multidimensional and had light and shadow within them, which made it hard for me to make up my mind about them. Mot of the time I was reading, I didn't know if I actually liked them or not,  or if I wanted them to fall in love and be together or if I would rather for Shazi to stick to her original plan, but in the end I was rooting for them.

The secondary characters were interesting too. I loved Jalal, with his lightheartedness and ready sarcasm at every occasion, no matter if he was talking to an inferior or to the Caliph himself. I didn't care for Tariq all that much, but I liked his friend, Rahim. 

The one thing I never quite got in the story was the way magic worked. Who had the magic? Was it something you inherited? Was it something you could learn? Was its existence common knowledge or only people from certain circles knew about it? I would've liked to learn more about it since it seemed to matter a great deal to the story.

Overall, I liked it and I would like to read the next one, but it was a tough one to get into. I wish the amazingness that went down near the end could've lasted more. I felt like when I was finally coming to terms with the way of things and I thought that everything was right with the world, the whole thing just exploded on my face, and truly, the ending kind of broke my heart. I'm really hoping that in the next book we'll get back somehow, to that perfect place where we  were before everything went to hell. Fingers crossed!

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About the author

Renee Ahdieh lives in North Carolina (Go Heels!) with her husband Victor and their dog Mushu. Her YA fantasy novel, THE WRATH AND THE DAWN, is available wherever books are sold. In her spare time, she likes to cook, dance salsa, and wreak havoc on the lives of her characters.

She's also a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, as well as an active member of the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America.

[Review] The Heart of Betrayal by Mary E. Pearson

Title: The Heart of Betrayal

Author: Mary E. Pearson

Series: The Remnant Chronicles #2

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Published: July 7th, 2015

Publisher: Henry Holt

Format: Hardcover, 470 pages

Held captive in the barbarian kingdom of Venda, Lia and Rafe have little chance of escape. Desperate to save Lia's life, her erstwhile assassin, Kaden, has told the Vendan Komizar that she has the gift, and the Komizar's interest in Lia is greater than anyone could have foreseen.
Meanwhile, nothing is straightforward: There's Rafe, who lied to Lia but has sacrificed his freedom to protect her; Kaden, who meant to assassinate her but has now saved her life; and the Vendans, whom Lia always believed to be savages. Now that she lives among them, however, she realizes that may be far from the truth. Wrestling with her upbringing, her gift, and her sense of self, Lia must make powerful choices that will affect her country... and her own destiny.

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Review

My thoughts:

This is the sequel to The Kiss of Deception and I'm pleased to say that I enjoyed it more than the first book. This book picks up right where the previous one left off and it's set entirely on Venda, the enemy territory.

Lia has been taken captive and now she's being held prisoner by the Komizar. Rafe, in an attempt to save her, makes up a story about being an emissary for the prince of Dalbrech looking for an alliance with Venda and gets himself taken into Venda too. Kaden is falling for Lia and having trouble deciding where his loyalties lie, with the girl of his dreams or with the man who saved his life. Essentially and put simply: everything is a big fat mess for our characters.

Venda is such a captivating place and here the writing was excellent at painting a picture for me. I could see it so clearly with all its colors and different kinds of people. It was really well done in my opinion. The funny thing is that I went into it expecting to hate it as much as Lia, so I was pleasantly surprised to find it to be such a mesmerizing location.

Against all odds, Lia starts making a few friends and allies in Venda and with their help plus a whole lot of determination on her part, she's becoming a force to be reckoned with. She's starting to grasp the meaning of her gift, which just adds to her resourcefulness. In this book, we see her make use of all her talents, especially the ones that help her make others believe she's playing by the rules, when in reality, she's making up a completely different game as she goes along.

The problem with Venda is that you have the good kind of people and the awful kind of people like in any place, but here, the bad are the ones that provide for all the rest, so that makes the good people do terrible things in order to survive. Enter here the whole political drama! There's a shit-ton of political intrigue in this book and I finally got to understand what the hell was going on with the war between Venda and Morrighan, and Dalbrech by extension.  Thankfully, in this book, we get a lot of backstories for the Komizar, Kaden, and Venda as a country of sorts, which helps round up the whole story as a whole a lot better. 

The so-called love triangle is more like a love square (?) now that the Komizar has taken a particular interest in Lia and wants her for himself, so he can add to his already considerable power. We knew from the first book that Lia's heart belongs to Rafe, but in this one, Lia's life depends on her being able to convince everyone that she loves Kaden and holds no interest for Rafe, because the assassin is the only one who can do anything big enough to help her situation. And in all that convincing she does, I actually started to doubt her, either she's very good at deceiving others or she's very good at deceiving herself. You'll have to judge for yourself!

Overall, I think this was a great second installment, it helped me to understand the complexity of the world and it gave me a lot more perspective on its characters while building up the action and letting every piece fall into place and setting up for the next book to be explosive. I'm really excited about this series' finale!

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About the author

Mary E. Pearson is the award-winning author of The Jenna Fox Chronicles, The Miles Between, A Room on Lorelei, and Scribbler of Dreams. She writes full-time from her home office in California where she lives with her husband and two golden retrievers.

[Review] Velvet Undercover by Teri Brown

Title: Velvet Undercover

Author: Teri Brown

Genre: Young Adult Historical Thriller

Published: October 20th, 2015

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Format: Kindle Edition, 336 pages

Samantha Donaldson’s family has always done its duty for the British Crown. In the midst of World War I, seventeen-year-old Sam follows in their footsteps, serving her country from the homefront as a Girl Guide and messenger for the intelligence organization MI5. After her father disappears on a diplomatic mission, she continues their studies of languages, high-level mathematics, and complex puzzles and codes, hoping to make him proud.When Sam is asked to join the famed women’s spy group La Dame Blanche she’s torn—this could be the adventure she’s dreamed of, but how can she abandon her mother, who has already lost a husband to the war? But when her handlers reveal shocking news, Sam realizes there’s no way she can refuse the exciting and dangerous opportunity.Her acceptance leads her straight into the heart of enemy territory on a mission to extract the most valuable British spy embedded in Germany, known to the members of LDB only as Velvet. Deep undercover within the court of Kaiser Wilhelm II, Samantha must navigate the labyrinthine palace and its many glamorous—and secretive—residents to complete her assignment. To make matters worse she finds herself forming a forbidden attraction to the enemy-a dangerously handsome German guard. In a place where personal politics are treacherously entangled in wartime policy, can Samantha discover the truth and find Velvet before it’s too late…for them both?From author Teri Brown comes the thrilling story of one girl’s journey into a deadly world of spycraft and betrayal—with unforgettable consequences.

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Review

My thoughts:

This book kind of blew me away to be completely honest. I've never read anything like it. I didn't even expect to enjoy it as much as I did because I generally don't like historical fiction, but this was pretty amazing!

I loved the historical setting for a change... It was really atmospheric and mesmerizing. I enjoyed the plot too and I have to say I didn't see the many twists at the end coming.

Samantha has recently graduated with honors from a special and selective group that educates young women. She has a special talent with languages and codes so she's been approached by a governmental organization, the MI6 trying to recruit her for a dangerous mission as a war spy for England, as a part of the LDB, a group of female spies that work mostly as undercover agents.

Sam's father has been missing for a while and is presumed dead by the government, but she is not satisfied with that answer, so she accepts joining the LDB in exchange for information of her father whereabouts.

Miss Tickford is appointed as Sam's handler and she's the one who'll provide her training and first assignment. Sam has to go undercover as a governess and immerse herself in the German royal family no less. Her mission is to find another undercover agent whose code name is Velvet.

But the mission seems to get more and more difficult as the time goes by and Sam starts to doubt herself at every turn. She will have to choose very carefully who she trusts and will have to keep all her wits about her if she's going to make it out alive.

The whole premise is fascinating. I have only basic knowledge about World War I, so I didn't know much about MI6 and the whole espionage going on, so I don't know if what's going on in this story is historically accurate, but I enjoyed it immensely. There's so much at stake for the protagonist and every tiny bit of information she receives changes everything in her plans, which is definitely a great way to keep a reader on the edge of her seat, thank you very much...

I kept waiting for that dull moment that would make me put the book down and then never return to it again, as it happens often when I pick up historical fiction, but the truth is I couldn't let go of the goddamn book.

The characters the protagonist meets are really interesting and most of them really mysterious too which makes you doubt everyone. I kept yelling at the book like "That's gotta be Velvet!" every time a new character popped up. 

Overall, I think this was a great book and I would love to read more about what happened after everything went down. It has an epilogue and you more or less know what happened at the end so don't get me wrong, you get resolution, but still, the world and characters were so fascinating that I wouldn't mind reading a sequel. I'm glad I gave it a chance!

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About the author

Well behaved women rarely make history. Teri Brown lived that quote way before she ever even heard it. The two things she is most proud of, (besides her children), is that she jumped out of an airplane once and she beat the original Legend of Zelda video game. She is a novel writer, head banger, pet keeper, math hater, cocktail drinker, booty shaker, book reader, city slicker, food fixer, French kisser, rule breaker, wine sipper and word scribbler. She loves her husband, kitties and chocolate.

[Review] Fourth Grave Beneath My Feet by Darynda Jones

Title: Fourth Grave Beneath My Feet

Author: Darynda Jones

Series: Charley Davidson #4

Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy

Published: October 30th, 2012

Publisher: Piatkus

Format: Paperback, 308 pages

Welcome to the world of grim reaper extraordinaire Charley Davidson. Try as she might, there’s no avoiding her destiny.Sometimes being the grim reaper really is, well, grim. And since Charley’s last case went so awry, she has taken a couple of months off to wallow in the wonders of self-pity. But when a woman shows up on her doorstep convinced someone is trying to kill her, Charley has to force herself to rise above...or at least get dressed. It becomes clear something is amiss when everyone the woman knows swears she’s insane. But the more they refute the woman’s story, the more Charley believes it.
In the meantime, the sexy, sultry son of Satan, Reyes Farrow, is out of prison and out of Charley’s life, as per her wishes and several perfectly timed death threats. But his absence has put a serious crimp in her sex life. While there are other things to consider, like the fact that the city of Albuquerque has been taken hostage by an arsonist, Charley is having a difficult time staying away. Especially when it looks like Reyes may be involved.
Just when life was returning to normal, Charley is thrust back into the world of crime, punishment, and the devil in blue jeans in this hilarious fourth installment in the New York Times bestselling series.

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Review

My thoughts:

I can’t even with this series… Darynda Jones freaking read my mind, I could swear it! Just when I finished the third book, I was saying: “It’s kind of suspicious that after going through so much, Charley’s mind is still in one piece. If I were her I wouldn’t step out of my house again, not even for a million dollars”. And it would be kind of annoying and unrealistic of her to just get back on her feet and keep going as if nothing had happened… So, she doesn’t.

In this installment, Charley is kind of depressed, suffering from PTS after Earl’s attack. She won’t go out of her house and has been hoarding boxes of mostly useless things she’s been impulsively buying. She’s almost broke and hasn’t taken on a case for two months.

Her family and friends planned an intervention and try to get her out of the house, but she’s not making much progress until she meets Harper, a young woman who’s been terrorized her whole life and whom everyone thinks is just trying to get her parents attention. When Charley decides to take on her case, we get some of the old Charley back, this badass heroine ready to save the day and cause some trouble, but there’s still some part of her that will never be the same.

Of course, Charley finds herself in several tricky situations throughout the book and she’ll have to learn and learn fast about the power within her because there’s something wicked coming her way.

I loved this book even more than the others. It just felt so real to me. Charley has so many layers as a character that I’m always amazed at every new glimpse of her that I get.

Then we have Reyes who is hotter than ever –if that’s even possible- in this installment and I just don’t know if I can handle him anymore. 

This one, I think is my favorite book from the whole series. It’s just right on point. I went straight for the next book as I've done with the other ones in this series. I don't know what I'm going to do when I'm fully caught up or when the series is over.

Again, if you -for some reason; any reason- haven’t read this series yet, please give it a try. It’s so good I wouldn’t want you to miss it.

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About the author

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier. As a born storyteller, she grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. She currently has two series with St. Martin's Press, the Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com.

[Mini-Review] The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall

Title: The Conspiracy of Us

Author: Maggie Hall

Series: The Conspiracy of Us #1

Genre: YA Contemporary Mystery/Thriller

Published: January 13th, 2015

Publisher: Putnman Juvenile

Format: Hardcover, 336 pages

A fast-paced international escapade, laced with adrenaline, glamour, and romance--perfect for fans of Ally CarterAvery West's newfound family can shut down Prada when they want to shop in peace, and can just as easily order a bombing when they want to start a war. Part of a powerful and dangerous secret society called the Circle, they believe Avery is the key to an ancient prophecy. Some want to use her as a pawn. Some want her dead.To unravel the mystery putting her life in danger, Avery must follow a trail of clues from the monuments of Paris to the back alleys of Istanbul with two boys who work for the Circle—beautiful, volatile Stellan and mysterious, magnetic Jack. But as the clues expose a stunning conspiracy that might plunge the world into World War 3, she discovers that both boys are hiding secrets of their own. Now she will have to choose not only between freedom and family--but between the boy who might help her save the world, and the one she's falling in love with.

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Review

My thoughts:

This is Maggie Hall's debut novel and the first installment in a series and I thought it was pretty great overall. It's marketed as a mixture between Dan Brown and Ally Carter, both of them authors that I love so kind of big shoes to fill in. I could see some elements of both authors, sure, but the plot wasn't as thick as Dan Brown's books and the main character is not as bad-ass as Ally Carter's characters usually are. 

But even if it wasn't absolutely perfect, it was a really fun read and it kept me on the edge of my seat with anticipation throughout. The plot is well-done and the clues and revelations move it forward flawlessly.

The main character, Avery, was not my favorite, she was a little too erratic for my taste, and the love interest wasn't my cup of tea either, but they make kind of nice pairing. What made the characters department, at least for me, were the interesting secondary characters, like Stellan and Luc. I'm really looking forward to seeing more of Stellan in the next book!

Another aspect of this book that I enjoyed were the romantic scenes, they were really well-paced and you could feel the sexual tension while reading them, without them being too forward or feeling rushed. 

Overall, this was a great debut novel for the author nd I'll be sure to pick up the next one on this series.

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About the author

Maggie Hall is a traveling, decorating, champagne-drinking, USC-football-watching YA author. She is currently traveling the world for an indefinite amount of time with her husband, which means right at this moment, she might be on a beach in Thailand, drinking wine in Paris, or anywhere in between.
Her debut novel, a YA international thriller, was released from Putnam/Penguin in 2015.She is represented by Claudia Ballard at William Morris Endeavor.

[Review] Third Grave Dead Ahead by Darynda Jones

Title: Third Grave Dead Ahead

Author: Darynda Jones

Series: Charley Davidson #3

Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy

Published: January 31st, 2012

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Format: Paperback, UK edition, 310 pages

Paranormal private eye. Grim reaper extraordinaire. Whatever. Charley Davidson is back! And she's drinking copious amounts of caffeine to stay awake because every time she closes her eyes she sees him: Reyes Farrow, the part-human, part-supermodel son of Satan.
Granted she did imprison Reyes for all eternity, but how is she supposed to solve a missing-persons case, deal with an ego-driven doctor, calm her curmudgeonly dad, and take on a motorcycle gang hell-bent on murder when the devil's son just won't give up on his plan of seduction..... and revenge?

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Review

My thoughts:

Gosh! I think Charley’s life has hit a new low point. Jesus! You can’t help but admire her determination, though. If half the things she had happened to her would have happened to me, there would be no way in hell you could talk me into taking a case ever again. Seriously.

In this installment, Charley is trying to find a missing wife and helping Reyes with his current situation. She hasn’t had any sleep for two weeks; she’s carjacked and kidnapped; she gets beaten up at least three times; betrayed by someone she loves at least two times; someone slashes her tires; someone breaks into her apartment; and the list goes on and on. And somehow those haven’t been the worst couple of weeks of her life… You gotta love her spirit.

Reyes is being a complete asshole during this whole book and I don’t care how hot he is, right now he's not making it to anyone's favorite lists. Especially not Charley's and certainly not mine. 

I have to admit, I’m always a little afraid of what’s coming next, afraid for Charley, that is… Everything seems to be aligning for absolute chaos, but that just builds up the excitement for the next book on the series. 

Darynda Jones did not disappoint in the third installment of the Charley Davidson series, her characters are beautifully developed and the plot never lets up. 

I went straight for the next one after finishing this book, and if you haven’t read this series yet, I strongly recommend it to you, you won’t regret picking it up!

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About the author

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier. As a born storyteller, she grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. She currently has two series with St. Martin's Press, the Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com.

[Review] Second Grave on the Left by Darynda Jones

Title: Second Grave on the Left

Author: Darynda Jones

Series: Charley Davidson #2

Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy

Published: August 16th, 2011

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Format: Hardcover, 307 pages

If you hang around with dead people, life can get pretty complicated. Take it from Charley Davidson, part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper. Complicated is her middle name. The deceased find her very sparkly. Demons find her irresistible. And one entity in particular wants to seduce her in every way possible.
When Charley and Cookie (her best friend/receptionist) have to track down a missing woman, the case is not quite as open and shut as they anticipate. Cookie's friend Mimi disappeared five days earlier. Mimi then sends Cookie a cryptic message telling Cookie to meet her at a nearby coffee shop. The coffee is brewing, but Mimi's still missing. There is, however, a clue Mimi left on the bathroom wall: a woman's name. Mimi's husband explains to them that his wife had been acting strange since she found out an old high school friend had been murdered. The same woman whose name Mimi had scribbled on the bathroom wall.
Meanwhile, Reyes Alexander Farrow (otherwise known as the Son of Satan. Yes. Literally) has left his corporeal body and is haunting Charley. He's left his body because he's being tortured by demons who want to lure Charley closer. But Reyes can't let that happen. Because if the demons get to Charley, they'll have a portal to heaven...well, let's just say it wouldn't be pretty.
Can Charley handle hot nights with Reyes and even hotter days tracking down a missing woman? Can she keep those she loves out of harm's way? And is there enough coffee and chocolate in the world to fuel her as she does?
Here is your signpost for the most hilarious read of the year: Second Grave on the Left.

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Review

My thoughts:

OMG! I went to pick up the next one as soon as I finished this review. I really liked the first book in this series, but this one just won me over completely.

This was one of the best books I read in 2014. It’s still one of the best I’ve read so far, ever. Yes, I enjoyed it that much!

The writing is a dream… Fast-paced and action-packed, with details where needed and a witty dialogue that had me cracking up at 2 a.m. like a crazy person.

The whole cast of characters is awesome! Charley Davidson is one the best female characters ever. She’s tough, badass, sexy, feisty, funny and just an all-around fantastic heroine.

Reyes could have been taken directly from my wildest dreams if the amount of swooning I did throughout the book is any indicator. He’s just the perfect paranormal love interest: a bad boy, dangerous, seductive and mysterious but who somehow has a soft side. He’s very protective of the ones he cares about and I just fell for him so hard in this sequel.

The rest of the characters are great, colorful and full of life. In this book, for some reason, I got to appreciate them even more than the first time around.

I loved the chaos that was Charley’s world in this book. There were a hundred things going on, but the author somehow finds a way to give each storyline its place. There was never a dull moment, there was always something just waiting around the corner and it was really exciting. I even loved how the new case Charley was working on surprise me at the end.

This one is a must-read for all paranormal lovers! If you’ve read the first book and you’re still on the fence about continuing the series, I encourage you to do so, because this one is definitely better.

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About the author

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier. As a born storyteller, she grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. She currently has two series with St. Martin's Press, the Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com.

[Mini-Review] First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones

Title: First Grave on the Right

Author: Darynda Jones

Series: Charley Davidson #1

Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy

Published: January 1st, 2011

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Format: Paperback, 338 pages.

First Grave on the Right is the smashing, award-winning debut novel that introduces Charley Davidson: part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper.
Charley sees dead people. That's right, she sees dead people. And it's her job to convince them to "go into the light." But when these very dead people have died under less than ideal circumstances (i.e., murder), sometimes they want Charley to bring the bad guys to justice. Complicating matters are the intensely hot dreams she's been having about an Entity who has been following her all her life...and it turns out he might not be dead after all. In fact, he might be something else entirely.
This is a thrilling debut novel from Darynda Jones, an exciting newcomer to the world of paranormal romantic suspense.
First Grave on the Right is the winner of the 2012 Rita Award for Best First Book.

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Review

My thoughts:

This was a great debut novel for the author. The main character, Charley, is as dynamic as it gets, the world is well thought out and the multiple plot lines are intertwined perfectly. 

I'd never read a book about the Grim Reaper before, but this one put it near the top of my most fascinating supernatural creatures list. 

The idea that the Grim Reaper is this unbelievably funny and sarcastic chick who barely knows what she's doing most of the time, works as a PI and has supernatural sex with a powerful, dark entity is just so out of the box that you wouldn't think it would work. But it does, amazingly. And there's a great balance between Charley's personal life, her Grim Reaper work, and her PI work, even when it all seems to come together rather abruptly. 

The secondary characters are interesting and full of quirks too, which makes this whole universe much more appealing and captivating. 

Overall, I think this a fantastic first installment for a promising series. 

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About the author

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier. As a born storyteller, she grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. She currently has two series with St. Martin's Press, the Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com.