REVIEW: NIGHT BETRAYED By. JOSS WARE

REVIEWER: HEIDI CHERAMIE
TITLE: NIGHT BETRAYED
AUTHOR: JOSS WARE

BLURB

The Change that devastated the earth made Theo Waxnicki something more than human-eternally young and beautiful...but not immortal. When he dies on a mission against the Strangers, he is lost to the darkness...until a miraculous healer brings him back.



Born as the world fell to ruins, Selena has dedicated her life to easing others' pain. Her tender touch awakens new life in Theo-and new desire. But joined together in a world of terrors, the lovers' secret pasts make them vulnerable to danger. And love is the deadliest trap of all


NIGHT BETRAYED REVIEW


Night Betrayed is the fourth book in the Envy Series. I love this series by Joss Ware and this book does not disappoint. I would recommend reading the first three books in the series first. It is such fun reading about the characters we love from the earlier books as secondary characters in this book.

This is the story of Theo, a computer genius and one of the leaders of the Resistance against the Leaders who destroyed the world seventy-eight years age. Theo lived through the near apocalypse, a changed man. A man who doesn’t age with a special ability. At the end of Book three, Theo was fatally shot while fighting the Leaders.

This book begins with Theo dying and being helped by Selena to “cross over.” Selena is a woman who guides souls to the other side. She sees their guardian angels or “death guides” who assist people to the afterlife. Surprisingly, Theo’s “death guides” tell her to touch him with her crystal and he survives.

Selena is fifty years old and she sees Theo as a younger man of thirty and is uncomfortable with her attraction to him. Theo is in fact seventy-eight years old. I really enjoyed reading about a more mature heroine. Selena is sexy with strong beliefs and is very empathetic and warm. This is a hot romance with two mature characters. Their love story is believable because it is about two grown ups with strong beliefs. They learn to understand each other emotionally and intellectually. It is not a romance just about physical attraction. However, there is plenty of hot sex! Theo struggles with being seventy eight in mind but thirty in body and having twenty year old girls throwing themselves at him. And having nothing in common with them.

In Night Betrayed, readers begin to see the post apocalyptic world of Joss Ware a little differently. The zombies that kill and maim the survivors, we begin to see in a whole new light. The Leaders become even more evil. Theo, while recuperating finds a cache of computers and learns more about the “Change” and why it occurred.

Joss Ware is such an excellent writer. Her world building is fantastic and her characters are real. Her dialogue is a wonderful combination of deep emotion, humor and zippiness. The secondary story about Remington Truth is just as good as the main characters. I hope her next book is Remy’s story! Also all the family and friends in Selena’s life are great fun and interesting. Theo’s relationship with his twin, Lou is heart warming as well.

Joss Ware’s plots are well written with many twists and turns. There is sadness, an unexpected tragedy, a horrible abduction and rape but also much hope and love. Selena and Theo are a great couple that you will root for and feel for. I can’t wait until Book five in the Envy Chronicles!! I give this book 4 STARS! Happy Reading!

Product Details


Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: Avon; Original edition (January 25, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0062018639
ISBN-13: 978-0062018632
Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.2 inches

Review: Demon From The Dark by. Kresley Cole

Heidi Cheramie
Review: Demon From The Dark
Author: Kresley Cole

DEMON FROM THE DARK REVIEW

I must confess Kresley Cole’s The Immortals After Dark Series is my favorite paranormal series ever! I adore these books. Her women are super tough and the men are HOT! Lots of action, violent fights, sultry, steamy love scenes, modern humor and wit, and tender sweet emotions. These novels are well written with intricate plots that are building to the Accession. An all out apocalyptic war of immortals. This is a world full of incredible mystical creatures, demons, vampires, ghosts, witches, valkyrie. You never know what you are going to find in a Kresley Cole book

Demon From The Dark is her newest book. It is the story of Malkom Slaine. A demon that is poisoned by vampire blood and is now a Scarba, also known as a Vemon. They are the strongest of sentiant beings but are considered abominations by most other immortals. Malkolm is the most tortured hero I have ever read. He has a very sordid, abusive past that many might find hard to read. Can he overcome this past?

Carrow Graie is a witch. A very powerful witch that readers of the IAD series know well as the frivolous, party girl. Carrow is arrested for disorderly conduct and spending another night in the Orleans Parish Jail when she is abducted with several other immortal beings. She wakes up to find a collar on her neck that makes it impossible for her to use her magic. She is imprisoned with other immortals on a cloaked island that is hidden from the world. They are tortured and experimented upon. Carrow is told she can win her freedom if she brings her kidnappers, Malkom Slaine from Oblivion, a demon hell plane.

When Carrow first meets Malkolm they can’t communicate. He speaks Demonish and she speaks English. How they communicate with each other was great fun. It reminded me of Jane meeting Tarzan for the first time. It just shows how wonderful Kresley Cole writes that she makes these scenes so exciting and alive though the two main characters cannot speak the same language.

Carrow and Malkolm’s love story is beautifully written and their relationship to a little seven year old cutie named Ruby is tender and sweet. Ruby is Carrow’s adorable witch cousin that they must protect and save from the island. The action is exciting and the fight scenes brutal. It keeps you on the edge of your seat rooting for these wonderful, complex characters.

Demon From the Dark sets up several exciting books in the future. Many of IAD’s favorite secondary characters are still trapped on the island of HELL! I can’t wait for Kresley’s next book!! I give Demon From The Dark **** 4 1/2 STARS!!!! Fantastic book! Happy Reading!

Product Details


Mass Market Paperback: 448 pages
Publisher: Pocket (August 24, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1439123128
ISBN-13: 978-1439123126
Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 1 inches

Announcement: Heidi's a permanent addition!

I am so happy to announce that my good friend Heidi Cheramie will have a permanent place here at Wicked Readings. If you follow my blog regularly then you will recognize her from Heidi's Weekly Review. We haven't worked out a schedule yet, but we will definitely be reading and posting reviews regularly. I hope you all will love Heidi as much as I do, and appreciate what she brings to Wicked Readings.
Happy Reading!

Heidi Cheramie's Weekly Review.. This week Heidi reviews..Envy series by Joss Ware

Heidi Cheramie

Beyond the Night Review
Embrace the Night Review
Abandon the Night Review

ENVY SERIES BY JOSS WARE
Author-Joss Ware
Publisher-Avon



BOOK ONE: BEYOND THE NIGHT
BOOK TWO: EMBRACE THE NIGHT ETERNAL
BOOK THREE: ABANDON THE NIGHT

Joss Ware has written three urban fantasy/paranormal romance adventure books in the Envy series and I love them! These stories are set in a post apocalyptic world which is complex, original and current with all the 2012 concerns. A few extremely wealthy people who are now called the strangers caused the devastation and also gained immortality.

Five men trapped in a cave in Sedona when the world was destroyed emerge five decades later with some unusual individual powers and without aging. Dr. Elliot, Simon, Quentin, Wyatt and Fence are these diverse men who wake up with their old lives gone. Book one takes place when the men are trying to adapt to this devastated world where everything is destroyed and their family and friends from their old life are long dead. Mentioned briefly is the fact that Wyatt was happily married with small children. So each man has his own demons to deal with after losing everything they have worked for and loved.

Many people now live in a compound called Envy in New Vegas which was previously Las Vegas but is now next to the ocean and humid. Joss Ware does a great job with the setting and this new futuristic world. The characters are trying to restore some order to their lives and trying to survive on a daily basis. They must fight the mysterious strangers, bounty hunters and zombie like creatures called gangas. Book One is Dr. Elliot and Jade’s story. Jade was a prisoner of the immortals and is scarred by that experience and fearful of bounty hunters. Elliot is trying to deal with his new “gift” which has the power to heal but also has deadly consequences. Now Elliot is in a world where there is no such thing as a doctor. The sexual tension is hot! And these are two wonderful characters with much psychological damage. Can they heal each other?

Book Two is Simon and Sage’s story. Simon is a dark, dangerous, incredibly sexy hero with an intriguing past. He also has a new “power” that is very super hero. Sage was born after the change of course and has never known the modern world. She is extremely intelligent and working with the Waxnicki twins to restore some type of computer system. We will be seeing more of Lou and Theo Waxnixki in future books. Simon and Sage’s romance is unexpected and smoldering. Sage has two very sexy men in love with her and it makes the story quite delicious.

Book Three is Quentin and Zoe’s story. Zoe is my favorite heroine. She is a kick ass archer, a woman warrior and quite the loner. Quent and Zoe burn up the pages!! Hot! Hot! Hot! Joss Ware’s characters are never predictable. Quent was a rich playboy with an abusive, sadistic father and he feels he has nothing to offer this new civilization. Without his money, he feels he has no skills, no resources, and his story is wonderfully written.

All the Envy characters are flawed and complex. The stories have some cool twists and as in real life it is often surprising who the different characters fall in love with. This is urban fantasy at its best. Great adventure stories with danger and cool battles. And kudos to Joss Ware for having diverse characters! Zoe is Indian, Fence is African American and Simon is Hispanic. Finally books with different cultures like in real life!

This is my new favorite paranormal series and author. I can’t wait until Book Four! Write fast Joss!

I give these books 41/2 stars and recommend them to everyone. Enjoy and Happy reading!

Guest Reviewer Heidi Charamie's Weekly Review... This week Heidi reviews Bloodroot by. Amy Greene

Heidi Cheramie


Boodroot Review



Bloodroot is Amy Greene’s multi-generational tale of life in the Appalachian Mountains. It is also Amy Greene’s debut novel and it is haunting. Like her characters Ms Greene has lived most of her life in the Tennessee mountains and the setting is a main character in this book.


This novel soaked into me. While not reading it I thought about the characters and found myself looking around my own Kentucky hills with a deeper appreciation for their beauty and serenity.


The rural, isolated life of Bloodroot Mountain seems timeless. A place that time doesn’t quite touch where people live simple though not uncomplicated lives. The folk cures, beliefs and faith of the mountain people reminded me of the Cajun folk of Grand Isle where my husband was born and raised. The speech, the way the people live on what nature provides, the generosity of neighbors, the old-fashioned roles of men and women, and the seeming disinterest in school-taught education speak of rural lives all over the world.


The story is told in many voices through several generations. Byrdie is the grandmother who raises the mysterious Myra. Myra who loves Bloodroot Mountain but later realizes how the choices she made took her away from her beloved mountain and grandmother.


Choices is a main theme that runs throughout the story. Choices that don’t only effect the characters but spread out like roots and touch everyone in their life.


This is a haunting novel that contains several colorful characters and their narratives. Byrdie and Macon’s love story, Doug’s unrequited love, Myra and John and the most compelling story Johnny and Laura, the twins.


Bloodroot is about love. Love that can be wonderful and warm or love that can scar and maim. It is about nature versus nurture. Are we destined by our blood to repeat the same mistakes of our parents and grandparents.? Or can we change inside and bloom into something new and different.


Bloodroot is an epic family drama with touches of folk magic sprinkled throughout. These characters will live inside you long after you finish the book. I give this book a 4 1/2 and encourage everyone to read it. Happy Reading!



Hardcover: 304 pages
Author: Amy Greene  

Publisher: Knopf; 1 edition (January 12, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0307269868
ISBN-13: 978-0307269867
Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.6 x 1.2 inches

Guest Reviewer Heidi Charamie's Weekly Review... This week Heidi reviews Harlan Coben's thriller Caught.

Heidi Cheramie

Caught Review


Author-Harlan Coben


Publisher-Dutton/Penguin Group







CAUGHT BY HARLAN COBEN REVIEW


Wendy Tynes is the reporter of a sting show called Caught In The Act that identifies and shames sexual predators.


Dan Mercer is a social worker who works with troubled teens that becomes Wendy’s next target.


Haley McWard is a seventeen year old good girl. The pride of her New Jersey family, captain of her high school lacrosse team and excellent student. Her mother goes to her room to wake her one morning and Haley’s bed has not been slept in. Haley has vanished.


Harlan Coben’s newest thriller, Caught is skillfully plotted. The many twists and turns keeps the reader riveted and often shocked. You won’t figure this one out until the very end.


But it is the wonderful characters-real, everyday normal people that deal with horrifying events that make this book special. We, the readers could be these people. Realistically we could find ourselves in situations that could turn our life from normal to torturous in a split second.


Harlon Coben writes a fast paced, dialogue driven story that wrenches your gut. One moment you believe in a character, the next moment you doubt him or her.


A special treat for hard core Coben fans are the several brief appearances of the super cool Winn. Winn is Harlan’s favorite detective, Myron Bolitar’s enigmatic, billionaire best friend. For me Winn provided a few moments of fun, light energy in an otherwise dark thriller.


This book’s main theme is forgiveness. Should we or shouldn’t we forgive terrible wrongs?? Read Caught and you decide? I give this book a strong 4 1/2. Enjoy and Happy Reading!


Thanks for that fantastic review, Heidi!

Don't forget to enter my Saturdays Matters Days Giveaway. Just click on the link at the top on my left sidebar.

Guest Reviewer Heidi Cheramie... Reviews Fantasy In Death By:J.D. Robb

Heidi Cheramie

Fantasy In Death

J.D.Robb-author
G.P.Putnam and sons-publisher
(Hardcover - Feb 23, 2010)



FANTASY IN DEATH REVIEW


Bart Minnock, co-owner of U-Play, a hugely succesful gaming firm is brutally murdered in his private holo-room. Lieutenant Eve Dallas is assigned to the baffling case. How did Bart end up decapitated in a locked room that no one else entered? Furthermore, everyone loved Bart. His three best friends co own the company with him and are closer than family. His girlfriend adored him. Even Eve’s gorgeous husband the fantastic Rourke respected and liked Bart. Who would want him dead?


This is the thirtieth book in the J.D.Robb Death series and it is as good and riveting as the first book about Eve and Rourke. This book is about friendship. The friendships between Bart and his childhood friends who later became his partners. The friendship between Eve and Peabody, her partner. And Eve and Nadine, a TV reporter she has become friends with throughout the series. Also Rourke and Eve’s friendship. Their relationship never remains static. They are always growing and learning what it means to love each other. This time Eve is strong for Rourke who is very saddened by Bart’s death. This couple loves and fights better than any characters written today. No one is sexier than the ex- criminal, billionaire Rourke with his irish accent and incredible smarts. Eve is strong and heroic but also badly damaged by a very traumatic childhood. Rourke battles his own demons from his brutal past. How these two characters continue to change and evolve is fun to watch. Eve and Rourke make me happy. I look forward to each new book in the series.


The mystery is intriquing and the gaming industry background is cool! This series does take place in the future and Robb makes the holo-rooms and virtual games believable and exciting. The mystery kept me guessing to the very end and the murderer is a surprise.


You can’t go wrong with a J.D. Robb book and I have loved all thirty books! Some more than others. This book gets 41/2 stars because I give 5 stars to the J.D. Robb books that focus a little more on Rourke and Eve’s complex relationship. If you haven’t read a J.D. Robb before please start with book one and read them in order. The first book is when Eve and Rourke meet and he is her suspect in a murder. This series has everything! Sex, love, friendships, mystery, futuristic NYC and two of the most exciting characters in fiction today. Happy reading!
















Great review, Heidi! Thanks for being here with us today, Please come back anytime and review for us again... Happy Reading... :)