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Book Review of Nocturnal: The Phoenix Project / Crystal Dreams / Spark of Temptation / My Soul to Take

Nocturnal: The Phoenix Project / Crystal Dreams / Spark of Temptation / My Soul to Take
habrewer avatar reviewed on + 43 more book reviews


Nocturnal Anthology
* I received this ARC/book free from the author in exchange for an honest review*

This was a very good anthology. I enjoyed all 4 stories but my favorites were The Phoenix Project and Crystal Dreams. I also found two new to me authors in Jess Haines and Clare Willis.

In The Phoenix Project you have a little bit of everything: love, sex, death and an evil scientist. The female lead Amara is strong, beautiful (she refused to cut her hair off) and very defiant. She had pulled herself out of the Hell she called childhood and was surviving on her own, until she was kidnapped. She is determined that she is going to do what she can to survive but every day it gets harder for her.

Nick is/was an undercover cop investigating missing children until he was captured by the mad scientist. He is now part of the experiments he was trying to rescue the children from. He is a strong alpha male character and he refuses to give in to them and they are having trouble controlling him.

Both Amara and Nick are the perfect alpha couple to lead this group of Morphates into the future. They are forced to deal with their new nature and everything that goes with it, including mating heat and alpha challenges. They realize they are going to have to organize the rescue on their own and that they are going to have to police themselves because no one else will be able to.

The story was interesting and action packed. It had plenty of details but didnt over state anything. The characters were strong and well developed. As I read the story it incited a range of emotions in me from worry to excitement and the sex scenes were pretty HOT. I wanted them to have their HEA and was pleased with the ending.

In Crystal Dreams the war with the demons continues. Each day they are gaining form and becoming more sentient. Something is drawing the demons to Crystal Dreams and the portal wont stay closed.

We are introduced to new characters that join the fight against demons. Darius is one of the four Lemurian guards that carry a crystal sword. He is charged with keeping the demons out of Lemurian at all cost. He takes his job seriously and follows the demons to Evergreen where he is attacked by Mari by mistake.

Mari is home to help her parents while her dad recovers from surgery. She moved away but now that she is home, she realizes what she has missed. She doesnt know what to think when she is attacked by the stray cat her mother has been feeding. The cat isnt supposed to have red glowing eyes and a double row of teeth. A strange man waving a sword comes in and she takes him down.

One of the things I love about this series is that in each book the females are strong and able to take care of themselves. They fall in love with immortal warriors and each female gains her immortality in a different way. It keeps the stories fresh and new.

With each story I cant wait to see whats going to happen. The books are getting better with each one. We are learning more about the Lemurian history in bits and pieces that leave you wanting more. What happened to all the female warriors? I cant wait to find out. I am looking forward to Starfire when it is released in April 2011.

In Spark of Temptation we are transported into a world where vampires, mages and shifters co-exist with humans. The lead character, Sara is a PI that normally stays in the office doing trace work on the computer. Her partner was injured on their last case dealing with an evil mage so now Sara has found herself out in the field, trying to stay alive.

She is a strong female lead that is capable of taking caring for herself but isnt afraid to accept help when she needs it. She will do anything to keep her sister safe and ends up in a war between the vampires and the Anti Others Alliance because of this.

The characters are complex and the world is interesting. I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading other books in this series.

In My Soul to Take Maggie is chief resident at a psychiatric hospital. She is used to seeing all kinds of people come through their doors, until she meets Derek. There is something different about his diagnosis; he is possessed, not mentally ill. She is determined to do whatever she can to save him, even if it means calling her sister in New Orleans.

This story was a little slow getting started but about halfway through, I was hooked. The lead character is caring and compassionate but she is hiding something. As the story progresses you see that there is more to her than meets the eye. I really liked the characters; they were well written and had depth to them. The descriptions allow you to imagine the scenery and put yourself there.

Overall I really enjoyed the stories in this anthology and give it 4 flaming hearts.