Bloodfever by Karen Marie Moning (Fever #2)

Genres: Adult, Urban Fantasy
Publication Date: October 16th 2007
POV: Female - First-person, Past tense
Smut-O-Meter: 2 out of 10
My Rating: 2 out of 5

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I used to think my sister and I were just two nice southern girls who’d get married in a few years and settle down to a quiet life. Then I discovered that Alina and I descend, not from good wholesome southern stock, but from an ancient Celtic bloodline of powerful sidhe-seers, people who can see the Fae. Not only can I see the terrifying otherworldly race, but I can sense the sacred Fae relics that hold the deadliest of their magic.

When my sister was found dead in a trash-filled alley in Dublin, I came over to get answers. Now all I want is revenge. And after everything I’ve learned about myself, I know I have the power to get it….

MacKayla Lane’s ordinary life underwent a complete makeover when she landed on Ireland’s shores and was plunged into a world of deadly sorcery and ancient secrets.

In her fight to stay alive, Mac must find the Sinsar Dubh–a million-year-old book of the blackest magic imaginable, which holds the key to power over both the worlds of the Fae and of Man. Pursued by Fae assassins, surrounded by mysterious figures she knows she cannot trust, Mac finds herself torn between two deadly and irresistible men: V’lane, the insatiable Fae who can turn sensual arousal into an obsession for any woman, and the ever-inscrutable Jericho Barrons, a man as alluring as he is mysterious.

For centuries the shadowy realm of the Fae has coexisted with that of humans. Now the walls between the two are coming down, and Mac is the only thing that stands between them.

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I was already annoyed after book 1 that not enough had happened. Mac had made no progress on any of the things she was trying to accomplish. And now, after the second book, she still has not accomplished anything. She hasn't discovered her sister's killer. She hasn't found the Sinsar Dubh. She hasn't discovered who she can trust. And now I am F%#@ING furious!

I still love Mac and think she has only become more interesting as she becomes practically a different person. If only the story was different. If only the things that she is forced to go through were more relevant and that things would move faster, this would be great. The world and protag are good, and the writing has gotten better. Although Mac's stupid "rightie-leftie" ridiculousness was really starting to grate on me.

I just don't care about the story or Barrons at all. I don't find anything about Barrons attractive, and the unbelievably slow pace at which we get to know him is beyond unacceptable. As far as I am concerned he is a jackass. I just couldn't give a damn at this point and I will not read who knows how many more books just to find out what happens.

I said in my review for book 1 that there was zero romance. Z.E.R.O. There wasn't really in this one either. Mac never thinks of Barrons in a romantic way and never even shows any sign of being attracted to him, except once when she said he looked hot when he laughed. It was the first time she had ever seen him laugh so it had surprised her. There is also one part later in the book when Mac is sort of freaking out and high on violence and Barrons kisses her and she kissed him back. I think the violence had turned him on. This still does not cause Mac to have any sort of romantic thoughts about him. Afterwards its like it never happened. It doesn't change their relationship at all. So if you are looking for romance I really suggest you look somewhere else. I looked into what happens later in the series and none of it sounds very promising. This series seems to be way more story-driven than romance or character driven. Too bad I don't think the story is good enough to carry the series. But a lot of people clearly do, so I think fans of Urban Fantasy are the best bet for enjoying this.

This is the second majorly popular adult PNR series I have read and not gotten past book 2. The other was Night Huntress. I am not really sure which was worse since the things I hated about them were different. I am not sure how they would balance out in the end. I hated the hero in both fairly evenly, but I also hated the heroine in Night Huntress. More than the hero. But I did enjoy the story somewhat. A lot more than the story of Fever. I think they balance out pretty closely. I feel like I am playing Russian roulette when I read a popular series. Do I want to risk it again? I do. I know I will do it again. I still need to read Dark Lover and Night Pleasures. I am a glutton for punishment.

“One day you will kiss a man you can't breathe without, and find that breath is of little consequence.”

Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning (Fever #1)

Genres: Adult, Urban Fantasy
Publication Date: October 26th 2006
POV: Female - First-person, Past tense
Smut-O-Meter: 3 out of 10
My Rating: 3 out of 5

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MacKayla Lane’s life is good. She has great friends, a decent job, and a car that breaks down only every other week or so. In other words, she’s your perfectly ordinary twenty-first-century woman. Or so she thinks…until something extraordinary happens.

When her sister is murdered, leaving a single clue to her death–a cryptic message on Mac’s cell phone–Mac journeys to Ireland in search of answers. The quest to find her sister’s killer draws her into a shadowy realm where nothing is as it seems, where good and evil wear the same treacherously seductive mask. She is soon faced with an even greater challenge: staying alive long enough to learn how to handle a power she had no idea she possessed–a gift that allows her to see beyond the world of man, into the dangerous realm of the Fae….

As Mac delves deeper into the mystery of her sister’s death, her every move is shadowed by the dark, mysterious Jericho, a man with no past and only mockery for a future. As she begins to close in on the truth, the ruthless Vlane–an alpha Fae who makes sex an addiction for human women–closes in on her. And as the boundary between worlds begins to crumble, Mac’s true mission becomes clear: find the elusive Sinsar Dubh before someone else claims the all-powerful Dark Book–because whoever gets to it first holds nothing less than complete control of the very fabric of both worlds in their hands...

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This wasn't really what I had been expecting. Its way more Urban Fantasy than Paranormal Romance. The story was interesting and the world easy to get into and understand. But I can tell that it is merely the introduction. The story didn't get too deep and didn't progress too far. Really, I am disappointed by the fact that this had no conclusion whatsoever. I am always a little upset by books that don't have the five-stage story structure. This book didn't solve anything. They didn't find the Sinsar Dubh. They didn't find Alina's killer. We didn't even learn a single thing about Barron. I don't think a main character should remain a mystery past the first book. It makes it hard to really care when you don't know who it is you're supposed to care about.

I really enjoyed MacKayla's character. She was amusing and lively, fun, honest, loyal, brave, and a girl. A girlie-girl, and I liked that. I am a girlie-girl. I like to look nice and I like to wear pink. My friends even half-heartedly make fun of me for always making them look bad. I always dress up even when we aren't going anywhere. I love how MacKayla proved that just because you like to look nice does not mean that you are a damsel or a wuss. Barrons was ok. He was definitely domineering, but that in itself is not hot. I know I hardly know him at this point so I cannot judge until I have read the next book. But at this point he is pretty dull, and if I have to wait longer than two books to get to know a character I will most definitely hold it against the series. I have already ordered book 2 and then after I finish that one I will reassess whether or not I will continue the series.

The cover on this book is extremely misleading. There are two seemingly naked people on the cover but there was zero romance in this book. Z. E. R. O. I gave this a 3/10 on the Smut-O-Meter only because one of the fey tried to rape MacKayla, not because of anything that happened between her and Barrons. This book has an average rating of 4.19 out of 76 000 readers, and I know that they can't all be wrong, but at this point I am doubtful. I rated this 3/5 because it had an interesting Urban Fantasy type story, but I was disappointed in everything that I was led to expect it to be. If I had heard nothing about this series before reading this I don't think I would have bothered continuing it. Sure, book 1 was interesting, but I don't like things that are drawn out too much, and with no conclusion to this one I may not have bothered. It makes me wonder how this became popular when it was new and no one knew that it would be worth waiting for.

"Why, Ms. Lane, do you look like a perky rainbow?”