Green-Eyed Demon – the Sabina Kane series, Book 3

Books:

    1.     Red-headed Stepchild (April 1, 2009)

    2.     Mage in Black (April 2, 2010) – 3 out of 5

    3.     Green-Eyed Demon (March 1, 2011) – 3.5 out of 5

“Exhale. Squeeze. Explosion. Chaos.”

Author: Jaye Wells
Narrator:  Cynthia Holloway – 3.5 out of 5
Length: 11:12 hours, purchased on audible 

 

Summary:

Sabina Kane, a rare half-vampire half-mage assassin, spent the first 53 years of her life living in L.A., doing the dirty work of the Dominae, the governing body for vampires led by her maternal grandmother.  Her world is turned upside-down after her twin, a Mage Oracle, announces to the dark races her prophecy – that Sabina will unite the dark races.  But not everyone wants peace.  The Dominae want war, so that they can resurrect to gods of the past.  Now, as Halloween draws closer,  time is running out.

At the beginning of Green-Eyed Demon, Sabina’s twin has been kidnapped by the Dominae, and the only way Sabina can save her life is to either trade in her own or to kill everyone responsible.  Sabina travels to New Orleans to save her twin, stop a war, confront the gods, and come to terms with her past. 

Sabina Kane’s To Do List:

1.         Perform voodoo ritual on evil owl;

2.         Find out who sold us out to the anachronistic  
      cast vampires;

3.         Make amends with lesbian werewolf;

4.         Rescue twin; 

5.         Murder grandmother.

Dangerous Plot Curves Ahead:

I’ve previously reviewed second book here. Jaye Wells keeps the best parts of Mage in Black in this third audiobook, from her fast-paced “from the frying pan into the fryer” plot twists, to the loveable Giguhl taking another bullet in the tush.  There are also new elements in this book that build and improve on the previous ones.  For example, Jaye Wells adds a bit more depth in her humorous characters.  Specifically, we are introduced to a fairy – in more ways than one - named Brooks/Pussy Willow.  I won’t spoil it for those who haven’t listened to the audiobook yet, but this character grows in complexity.  For me, however, both Sabina and Adam remained static throughout the three novels.  Also, Jaye Wells builds on those lovely plot twists that make the listener come back for more. Green-Eyed Demon has an honest-to-goodness mystery plot, where Sabina must figure out who among her new community in New Orleans is a traitor to the Dominae.  Mage in Black had a mystery plot with regard to which mage was trying to kill Sabina in New York City, but in my opinion it wasn’t a very successful mystery because the listener sees it coming.  Not so in Green-Eyed Demon. The resolution to the mystery in this audiobook is what I call an “Oh!” moment.  That’s when the audiobook presents enough suspects with enough motives that you don’t see it coming, but there is also enough foreshadowing specific to the perpetrator that you kind of should have.  The result is that when the book reveals who’s responsible, you actually, audibly, say “Oh!”  

On Narration:

I’ve previously reviewed Cynthia Holloway’s reading of this series here. There’s not much to add.  I still feel that Cynthia Holloway’s voice is great for this series, although not as spot-on as with a few other popular series in the genre.  I also think that the voice is young and feminine enough to makes the Sabina Kane series appeal more to a younger audience than the one probably targeted, which is not necessarily a bad thing.

A Penny for Molly Harper's Thoughts

A Brief Interview with Molly Harper, the Author of the Jane Jameson & Naked Werewolf series.

Bio:  Raised in Mississippi and Kentucky, Molly Harper graduated from Western Kentucky University with a bachelor's degree in print journalism. She worked for six years as a reporter and humor columnist; her reporting duties included covering courts, school board meetings, quilt shows, and once, the arrest of a Florida man who faked his suicide by shark attack and spent the next few months tossing pies at a local pizzeria. Molly lives in western Kentucky with her husband and daughter.



A Penny for Your Thoughts is a new feature on Lost Art Audio. It is similar to an author interview, except it is short, sweet, and focused on the audiobook.The first Penny for Your Thought comes from the author of recently reviewed How to Flirt with a Werewolf.  Muchos gracias to Molly Harper for taking to time to indulge my curiosity!

Read Lost Art Audio's review of How to Flirt with a Naked Werewolf.

Q.   Have you given audiobooks a try? How about e-books and the like? Any preference? 

I adore listening to audiobooks. Here lately, the only way I can "read" is to listen to them on my morning and afternoon commutes. And I do listen to my own. I can experience the book in a way that makes it new to me, too. Other than print, it's my favorite format. I'm still getting used to e-books. 

Q.   The audiobook of How to Flirt With a Naked Werewolf is narrated by Amanda Ronconi, as are the three Jane Jameson novels. Even the non-preternatural And One Last Thing is narrated by Amanda Roncini. Are you acquainted with the actress? Have you ever met Ms. Roncini? 

I love Amanda Ronconi. She really "gets" my voice. I've never met her, though. I live in Paducah, KY, which is pretty much as far from the publishing world as you can get. If not for the internet and email, I'm not sure if I would be published!  

Q.   I'm sure you get this a lot, but your writing is hilarious. Have you ever done any stand-up comedy? Where did you develop your comedic style? Who are your favorite comedians?

Thanks! and no, I've never done stand up. I love it if I could, but I do not participate in any endeavors that involve public speaking. I panic in front of large crowds. (Because they're looking at me!) I become barely intelligible.

My comedic style can be blamed on my family. My parents have a very dry, sarcastic wit. And my writing voice is very much like my speaking voice. Some of my favorite comedians are Christopher Titus and Mitch Hedberg. Favorite Hedberg joke ever. "I wrote a screenplay and my friend read it and said I should re-write it. I said, 'F--- that, I'll just make a copy."

Q.    A little birdy told me that not only is there a 4th Jane Jameson book in the making, but two spin-offs with Half-Moon Hollow characters. Which characters? Any spoilers/teasers you're free to share? 

There WILL be a fourth Jane book published in March 2012. It's still untitled, and I can't tell you much beyond the fact that Jane and Gabriel will be planning their wedding... and you know that's not going to go smoothly. There will be two Half-Moon Hollow spin-off books, but I can't reveal anything about the plots. I can say that the characters will know Jane and she will appear in the books. But only as a background character.

 

Q.   I already mentioned that your preternatural books are hilarious, and I'm sure you know how rare that is. What gave you the idea of doing an urban fantasy comedy?

I've always been interested in the paranormal. I checked those "Mysteries of the Paranormal" non-fiction books out of the school library so many times that the librarian sent a concerned note home to my mom. I loved Buffy and Angel, any show that mixed humor and horror won my undying loyalty. So when I decided to write, it was a natural fit that I would write about the supernatural.  

This Side of the Grave – The Night Huntress Series, Book 5

"A delicate balance stood centuries between vampires and ghouls. Along came the Red Reaper, who tipped that balance on little Cat feet."

 

Books:  Latest book in the series.

1. Halfway to the Grave (2007)
2. One Foot in the Grave (2008)
3. At Grave's End  (2008)
4. Destined for an Early Grave (2009)
5. This Side of the Grave (2011) - 3 out of 5

Author:  Jeaniene Frost  
Narrator:   Tavia Gilbert - 4 out of 5

Summary: 

Cat “Red Reaper” Crawfield was always special and she always hated it.  In Halfway to the Grave, we first meet Cat, a half-vampire (an offspring of a human woman and a vampire so recently turned his sperm still swims) who spent her college nights killing vampires for fun.  In One Foot in the Grave, Cat traded in her amateur status for a professional one, becoming a special agent secretly killing rogue vampires for the government.  At the end of Destined for an Early Grave, Cat hoped allowing her husband, master vampire Bones, to turn her into a full vampire would bring her into the fold, make peace, ease tensions.  How wrong she was.  Now, officially turned, Cat must hide an even bigger secret from the preternatural community.  The Red Reaper drinks blood.  Vampire blood.  And with that blood, she shares the powers of the most powerful among them.  In This Side of the Grave, Cat’s very existence tips the delicate balance of power between the vampires and ghouls.  Cat and Bones fight to take down a dangerous zealot before he incites a preternatural war.  

 

Forever and Always:

I can sum up the entire Night Huntress in this sentence: This is a love story. If you’re new to the series, go right for the first audiobook, Halfway to the Grave.  There Bones, the guy, clubs Cat, the girl, over the head and drags her to his cave where he chains her up, beats her up, and keeps her there until she learns to like him.  I’m not kidding. That’s a summary of the first few chapters and, my feminist sensibilities aside, it’s down-right romantic.

Enduring romance is something Jeaniene Frost does better than almost any author I can think of.  Most urban fantasy novels – heck, most any romance novels – center on the chase, the tension, the possibility, between the protagonist and the love interest actually coming together.  Rightfully so.  Think of The Nanny.  As long as there was the chase, there was a show.  Once the nanny became the wife, the show got canceled. In this series, marriage - however fanged - is the story.  Here, Cat and Bones hook up early and stay together.  See supra my caveman summary of the first book. It’s compelling, it’s possessive, and it’s immortal.  Oh, and it’s also pretty hot.  Jeaniene Frost knows how to write a sex scene, and Tavia Gilbert knows how to read one.  If you’re looking for a typical vampire love novel This Side of the Grave will not disappoint.  If you like your sex scenes with some fangs and a little blood, check out this audiobook after you’re done watching True Blood.

Other Comments:

I hate to say it, but there was something missing.  This Night Huntress book read more like one of the Night Huntress World books, the two spin-offs.  As I mention above, the love is there – it’s always there.  If that’s what you’re looking for, look no further.  But that’s not quite what I’m looking for.  I love this series for its suspense and action as well as for the romance.  In this book, there was a lack of real danger to anyone the listener cares about.  Cat & Bones must stop a war from happening, but no one the listener cares about is in danger of imminent death if they fail.  I know that a lot of vampires will die, and a lot of ghouls are getting hurt, but I don’t know these vampires, I don’t know these ghouls.  Overall, I enjoyed the story, but not quite as much as the earlier books in the series.

On Narration:

If you’ve never heard Tavia Gilbert read, you probably aren’t an avid audiobooks listener.  She has a young feminine voice that at-home for young adult novels.  Although this isn’t a YA novel, Tavia’s voice rings true for Cat.  Also, her Cockney accent is spot-on for Bones.  I mentioned already that she knows how to read a sex scene, and it bares repeating for an audiobook that is at times as graphic as this one.