Tag Archives: Melissa Marr

Unbound by Kim Harrison, Melissa Marr, Jeaniene Frost, Vicki Pettersson & Jocelynn Drake

Book Review, , , , , , , ,
Overview
Image result for unbound book cover kim harrison

Title: Unbound
Author: Kim Harrison, Melissa Marr, Jeaniene Frost, Vicki Pettersson & Jocelynn Drake
In: Unbound (Kim Harrison, Melissa Marr, Jeaniene Frost, Vicki Pettersson & Jocelyn Drake)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Short story collections, Strong women, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 29th March – 7th May 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Anthology
Publisher: EOS
Year: 2009
5th sentence, 74th page: Startled, Jenks turned in the air even as Daryl caught her breath only to start coughing.

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Synopsis

Five master of dark fantasy cross the borders between our world and others.

Not all huntersa are bound by human laws…

Revisiting the paranormal realms they’ve made famous in their wildly popular fiction, New York Times bestselling authors Kim Harrison, Jeaniene Frost, Vicki Pettersson and Jocelynn Drake – plus New York Times bestselling YA author Melissa Marr with her first adult supernatural thriller – unleash their full arsenal of dark talents, plunging us into the shadows where the supernatural stalk the unsuspecting… and every soul is a target. 88 Get ready for the ride of your life – because the wildest magic has just been unleashed…. and evil is about to have its day.

Thoughts

This was a great collection of urban fantasy novellas. Not only did it introduce me to a few new worlds (that are now sitting impatiently on my To Buy List), but it also swept me away into a couple of worlds that I already love, and can’t wait to sink my teeth into again and again. The great balance of known worlds and new ones made me incredibly excited to crack the pages of this collection, and I’m mostly just disappointed that it took me so long to do so…

The stories in Unbound run across a series of paranormal settings and creatures. Yet, they all have powerful women as their core. There is something that always draws me back again and again when the woman is the powerful lead, when she is independent and strong. Even if things tend to go a little haywire when they try to do the right thing…

It took me a little while to read this book. It wasn’t because I didn’t want to dive into the stories, but rather the opposite. I was a little concerned about the depths of my obsession with the stories. I didn’t want to go out and buy a heap of other novels when I still have so many to read. But, honestly, if I wasn’t concerned about spending too much money… I probably would have read all five of these novellas in a day or two. They were all completely amazing!

 <- Two Lines ReviewLey Line Drifter Review ->
Image source: Harper Collins Publisher

Two Lines by Melissa Marr

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for unbound book cover kim harrison

Title: Two Lines
Author: Melissa Marr
In: Unbound (Kim Harrison, Melissa Marr, Jeaniene Frost, Vicki Pettersson & Jocelyn Drake)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Dark fantasy, Paranormal fantasy, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 7th May 2019
Pace: Fast
Format: Novella
Publisher: EOS
Year: 2009
5th sentence, 74th page: I’ve done everything I could to avoid this moment.

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

Eavan resists sex and murder that morph her into a glaistig until Daniel Brennan, sex slaver, tempts her into both.

Thoughts

I’m incredibly disappointed that this novella wasn’t part of a bigger series. I loved the idea of these fae women who rely on sex and death to live. That one of the children of the family refuses to continue in the line that is accepted by all of her family. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely loved this as a standalone, but I quite possibly would have loved it even more if I knew I had a whole new series to sink my literary teeth into.

In some of the older literature women are often demonised when they are strong and sexual. It’s a recurring theme throughout a lot of the stories that I read. And although I really don’t like the routes of the theme, I do love reading about it. Strong, independent women that are not exactly pure and innocent. That are sexual and powerful in their own rights. Eve manages to encompass this, but still have that beautiful, human vulnerability that is sometimes lacking a little in the characterisation of such women.

There is a love interest in this story, but it is a teasing one. And, unlike many other stories which have a love interest, I didn’t actually mind that their relationship was left open-ended. Normally I like the couple to get together in the end of the story. To have a bit of the “ride off into the sunset” feeling to it. There was no such thing in this story and I completely revelled in it. After all, this story really wasn’t about a romantic entanglement, it was about temptation and choosing your own path.

 <- The Dead, the Damned and the Forgotten ReviewUnbound Review ->
Image source: Harper Collins Publisher

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Wicked Lovely

Title: Wicked Lovely
Author: Melissa Marr
Series: Wicked Lovely #1
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Dark fantasy, Fae, Paranormal fantasy
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Harper Teen
Year: 2007
5th sentence, 74th page: Seth came up behind her.

Synopsis

Rule #3: Don’t stare at invisible faeries.

Rule #2: Don’t speak to invisible faeries.

Rule #1: Don’t ever attract their attention.

Aislinn has always seen faeries. Powerful and dangerous, they walk hidden in the mortal world. When the rules that have kept Aislinn safe from them stop working, everything is suddenly on the line: her freedom; her best friend, Seth; her life; everything.

Faery intrigue, mortal love, and the clash of ancient rules and modern expectations swirl together in Melissa Marr’s stunning twenty-first century faery tale.

Thoughts

I loved this book when I first read it, and I love it today. There is something so completely captivating about this kind of dark faery tale that makes it impossible to put down. Something that seems to draw me in again and again and again. I like when retellings of old paranormal creatures, such as the fae are told in a way that sticks true to past tellings – that they are not good. They are not romantic. They are wicked. And lovely.

Although Aislinn is obviously different from every other girl that has been pursued by the Summer King (otherwise why would there be this story?), she is completely independent of him. And I love how she attempts to retain this independence throughout the entire story. Even when she is overwhelmed by fear, and well, overwhelming odds, she doesn’t succumb or relent. I love this independence and the modern-take on how faeries work in today’s society. That, and the fact that the female lead isn’t easy to take control of and push around.

I’m not sure that this is a good book to read when you want to be productive elsewhere. It has just enough of a pace that if you want to put it down, you can. But it is still fast enough that you really won’t want to. I read it in 2 days, and this is when I was supposed to be working on some fairly important things – it was just too good to stop. Even though I’ve read it a few times before…

 <- Cold Iron HeartInk Exchange ->

Image source: Goodreads