Tag Archives: Dates From Hell

Dates From Hell by Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Kelley Armstrong & Lori Handeland

Book Review, , , , , , ,
Overview
Image result for dates from hell book cover

Title: Dates From Hell
Author: Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Kelley Armstrong & Lori Handeland
In: Dates From Hell (Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Kelley Armstrong & Lori Handeland)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Short story collections, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 22nd June – 11th July 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Novella
Publisher: Avon Fiction
Year: 2006
5th sentence, 74th page: Jerking in sudden decision, she dropped the pen and pulled out the Yellow Pages, looking for the biggest insurance ad that wasn’t connected to one of Cincinnati’s older vamp families.

Synopsis

She thought her date was out of this world. Acutally, he was not of this world…

We’ve all been on bad dates, dreadful experiences that turned out to be uniquely memorable in the very worst way. But at least our partners for these detestable evenings were more or less… human!

Now Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Kelley Armstrong, and Lori Handeland – four of the very best writers currently exploring the dangerous seduction of the supernatural – offer up dating disasters (and unexpected delights) of a completely different sort: dark, wicked, paranormally sensual assignations with werewolves, demon lovers, and the romantically challenged undead. Sexy, witty, chilling, and altogether remarkable, here is proof positive that some love matches are made someplace other than heaven.

Thoughts

Normally I love collections like this because you can read one novella, finish it, put it down and walk away. I did manage to do this… but it was quite a bit more difficult than I had anticipated. I had already read something by every one of these authors, and so I knew that what was just around the corner was going to be fantastic. And it was this knowledge that made it nigh on impossible to stop thinking about this storyline.

There is something about stories of horrible dates that I kind of love. Not because I’ve ever been on one (I met my other half when I was seventeen and have been stupid in love since). But I can imagine the horrors of what pretty much everyone must go through. It’s a way to live vicariously through something. Adding in the extra aspect of fantasy and the supernatural just made it all the more fun. And a little bit more alien than even a first date is to me.

Anybody who loves paranormal fantasy or romance is going to love this collection of novellas. If you also enjoy heroines who are strong and independent and more than likely to get themselves into trouble… then this is even more likely to make you deliriously happy. Like it did me… now I need another collection like this to while the nights away…

 <- Dead Man DatingUndead in the Garden of Good and Evil ->

Image source: Harper Collins Publishers

Dead Man Dating by Lori Handeland

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for dates from hell book cover

Title: Dead Man Dating
Author: Lori Handeland
In: Dates From Hell (Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Kelley Armstrong & Lori Handeland)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Demons, Paranormal romance, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 11th July 2019
Pace: Fast
Format: Novella
Publisher: Avon Fiction
Year: 2006
5th sentence, 74th page: His face was fierce, his eyes dark, intense as they stared into mine.

Synopsis

On their first date, Kit goes too far with Eric, shot by bystander Chávez, then wakes to no blood, no body.

Thoughts

You know a story’s going to be good when it starts out stating that she was on a date with a dead man. Literally. Completely, totally and utterly, stone cold. Dead. The fact that a mysterious, Latino man dives in to save the day and the woman is stubborn enough not to let him escape. Well, it was going to be a fantastic story from the very beginning.

Handeland seems to have a way that is both witty and serious with her writing. As Kit struggles to escape the seductive demon chasing her and sort out her feelings for the demon hunter in her life, she also manages to be a little bit pithy about the world around her. The tragedy of her past, the terrifying circumstances of her present, nothing dulls Kit’s ability to find humour in everything and a way to move forward. Which of course, made this story completely impossible to put down. I even walked into the edge of the doorway, I was so desperate to finish this and make my dinner at the same time.

The construction of the world in this novella is fantastic. I love the layering of real world issues and realities (calling a twenty-something year old virgin rare for starters) with a demon hunting reality. Many of us often claim that the world is kind of going to shit, and Handeland seamlessly takes this idea one step further with the discussions of a coming apocalypse. Now I just have to find some more works by her to fill up my happy little, addicted brain.

 <- ChaoticDates From Hell ->

Image source: Harper Collins Publishers

The Claire Switch Project by Lynsay Sands

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for dates from hell book cover

Title: The Claire Switch Project
Author: Lynsay Sands
In: Dates From Hell (Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Kelley Armstrong & Lori Handeland)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Shapeshifters
Dates read: 4th July 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Novella
Publisher: Avon Fiction
Year: 2006
5th sentence, 74th page: Her boobs were…well…her boobs.

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Synopsis

Claire, new shapeshifter, accepts dates for school reunion with crush Kyle and his sister Jill.

Thoughts

It only took me two pages to recognise something in this novella that links the story to Run, Rudolph, Run. Partly it was the mention of Jill, but mostly it was the creepy man zapping an unsuspecting woman with a ray and turning her into a shapeshifter… it’s basically what happens to Jill. Just five years later than the activities in this novella.

I love the romance and the cuteness of this novella. It’s ultimately about a couple who have been in love since high school, but unable or unwilling to do much about it. And then, when they finally decide to take that first step, supernatural complications get in the way to make things a lot more difficult…and a whole lot more fun.

What I loved most about this tale was the fact that it was not just about the romance, but also the high school reunion. My ten year reunion is due to happen next year, and I honestly don’t know if I want to go. I just didn’t like high school. But reading about one in which everything ends on a positive and karma seems to take part in the activities… it makes me wonder whether it might be worth going, even if I can’t shapeshift…

 <- Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil ReviewChaotic Review ->
Image source: Harper Collins Publishers

Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil by Kim Harrison

Book Review, , , , ,
Overview
Image result for dates from hell book cover

Title: Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil
Author: Kim Harrison
Series: The Hollows #2.5
In: Dates From Hell (Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Kelley Armstrong & Lori Handeland)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal fantasy, Strong women, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 22nd – 27th June 2019
Pace: Fast
Format: Novella
Publisher: Avon Fiction
Year: 2006
5th sentence, 74th page: Jerking in sudden decision, she dropped the pen and pulled out the Yellow Pages, looking for the biggest insurance ad that wasn’t connected to one of Cincinnati’s older vamp families.

Buy The Book Now at The Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

Synopsis

Ivy and vampire Art are partners on homicide case for Inderland Security.

Thoughts

Ivy’s framing of Art is mentioned a number of times in the Hollows graphic novels, and Dead Witch Walking. Enough so that I was intensely interested in the why, the how and the every single moment of why she would do such a thing. Especially considering it is so at odds with the character that I’m steadily falling in love with as I read my first full length novel in the series. This novella explains her motives absolutely perfectly.

Normally I will read a novella in less than an hour. One sitting that will leave me with a smile on my face. Because this tale dealt with the darker side of Ivy and her bloodlust, I didn’t just read it cover to cover. Rather, I found that I’d read two chapters, then have to put it down. Harrison’s ability to bring her characters to shocking reality made my heart ache every moment that I spent in this world. In the best way possible.

One of the aspects of vampirism that seems to continuously come up in the stories that I read is their love of politics. Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil shows the depths and complexity of this. In a quite brutal manner. But, since I’m not the kind of person who generally feels comfortable with politics, it also drew me in completely – no consequences.

 <- The Good, the Bad, and the UndeadEvery Which Way But Dead ->
Image source: Harper Collins Publishers

Chaotic by Kelley Armstrong

Book Review, , , , , ,
Overview
Chaotic

Title: Chaotic
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Series: Women of the Otherworld #5.2
In: Otherworld Chills (Kelley Armstrong) & Dates from Hell (Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Kelley Armstrong & Lori Handeland)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Dark fantasy, Paranormal fantasy, Strong women
Pace: Fast
Format: Novella
Publisher: Orbit
Year: 2016
5th sentence, 74th page: The fire.

Buy The Book Now at The Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

Synopsis

Kelley Armstrong returns to the Otherworld with “Chaotic,” where a half-demon tabloid journalist’s boring date is saved…by a supernatural explosion? She’s off to save the day—if only her less-than-stellar date wouldn’t tag along! Luckily, the intriguing, infuriating, and just plain sexy werewolf/jewel thief Karl Marsten also appears.

Thoughts

I always wondered how Hope and Karl met each other – and, more importantly, why their relationship continued after their abnormal first meeting. Chaotic not only answered this question, but it also showed how Hope’s first forays into the supernatural world went. The intricate relationships between the characters of the Women of the Otherworld series is shown in Hope’s embroilment with the Cabals, the supernatural council, and ultimately, with the jewellery-thief werewolf.

Ultimately, we all want to find a place in the world that accepts us and a family of our own making. Basically, we just want somewhere where we belong. Hope’s desperation for this is compounded by her special skills, and it is this that makes her so easy to prey upon. Although in the beginning she is incredibly naïve and gullible, she is able to rectify her mistakes and admit where she was wrong. A trait that many people are lacking in.

As we grow up, we are constantly forced to reinvent ourselves, and Hope’s willingness to do so twice within this novella is a reminder of this. Since I’m going through a similar moment in my life, it was nice to see that a character with far heavier burdens than mine is able to roll with the punches and come out stronger than ever. Knowing that she really finds her pace (and happiness) in Personal Demon and again in Living with the Dead gives me hope that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

<- AdventurerBargain ->

Image source: HarperCollins