Customer Reviews

Crouching Vampire, Hidden Fang: A Dark Ones Novel

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Zen and the Art of Vampires:

In Zen and the Art of Vampires Pia is in search of her dreams. She has always wanted the husband, kids and the house in the suburbs but as she is turning forty she is losing hope. So Pia gives herself the present of a singles tour through romantic Europe as a present. The only thing is the guys on the trip leave a lot to be desired. But the two men she sees on the Icelandic street are different; they are handsome, mysterious and dangerous. But, they are obviously not for her. So she is surprised when things take a turn and she ends up involved with Alec, then married to Kristoff. If that was the extent of her issues it wouldn't be bad but someone is mysteriously killed in her bathroom and now she seems to be a Zorya (and just what the heck is that), and has spirits following her around. Oh and her husband apparently is a Vampire, who would have guessed.



Crouching Vampire, Hidden Fang picks up after Pia is back in the states. She is alone and is torn between both her new job as Zorya and her husband Kristoff (who doesn't seem to want anything to do with her). So while Pia in one way has finally got what she has wanted out of life - being married, her husband not only doesn't want her but the vampire council thinks they have conspired against the Dark Ones and now she is going to have to see Kristoff face to face.

Things change when Kristoff and Pia meet face to face again and she is determined to make things work with him, even if it kills him. How did one woman end up with ghostly charges, a vampire husband and people out to kill her? More importantly can she make the best out of the situation and possibly keep the new husband and new friends?

These two stories have been reviewed as a pair as at the end of Zen and the Art of Vampires, Pia does not have her happy ever after ending, as a matter of fact most of the characters won't be happy until everything works out at the end of Crouching Vampire, Hidden Fang. That being said, I think this is a fantastic duo of stories from Katie MacAlister. I have loved her work from reading her first historical romance to her contemporaries and now her dragons and vampires, and have never been let down. She continues to write strong and super spunky characters that women will love to read about. If you are a fan of Mary Janice Davidson's Betsy series than I think you will definitely enjoy Zen and the Art of Vampires and Crouching Vampire, Hidden Fang.


Tanya
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

Pia Thomason has got a little dilemma. She's torn between two men - actually, two vampires. Excuse me, Dark ones - and is not exactly sure what to do. Her mate Kristoff thinks she has ties to the group who's trying to destroy his people and Alec is heartbroken over finding out Pia's Kristoff's beloved, not his. So she's in a bit of a pickle and has gone back to her boring life in Seattle, determined to forget about both of them. But of course, things just go that smoothly and Alec is now missing, and next thing you know she's right in the middle of a investigation to see who's killing ghosts and hunting the vampire community. And Kristoff is back.

At first, I was a little lost because this book follows the story line of Zen and the Art of Dragons and I hadn't read that one yet. Fortunately, there was enough background for me to not completely lost and actually enjoy the story. While I think my reading experience with this book would have been better had I read the other one first, I really did enjoyed Crouching Vampire, Hidden Fang - I love the name!

There's the great zany humor that Ms. MacAlister's books is known for and a great romance between two people who are trying to get past their differences because they do have feelings for each other, they have obstacle to overpass, including evil vampires and centuries-old mummies!

Crouching Vampire, Hidden Fang is a laugh-out-loud funny, with wonderful characters and a great plot. The romance between Pia and Kristoff is hot and seeing them get to know each other better under some stressful conditions is a great thing to watch.

Pia Thomas has landed herself in the oddest situation. She is now the wife or, as the vampires say, the beloved of a vampire named Kristoff. She never planned to be his beloved, she planned on being the beloved of his best friend Alec but accidentally got Kristoff instead. Now she finds herself adjusting to life with a vampire husband. One that is deliberately keeping away from her and one that had a lover before her that he still mourning. So, Pia goes back to her life in Seattle determined to forget Kristoff but, of course, fate has other plans - deadly plans and plans to get Kristoff and Pia back together perhaps for good or at least before the bad guys kill them. With time running out can Pia find who wants to frame her for murder before time runs out?

What began in the Zen and the Art of Vampires continues in Katie MacAlister's Crouching Vampire, Hidden Fang. I love the fast-paced action in this novel. The humorous blend of romance and danger makes this novel a real page turner. Pia is confused still, she is growing into her powers and finding all kinds of things are not what she thought. Who knew one singles cruise could cause this much trouble? Kristoff is still mysterious and broody but Pia has cure for this. But the heat level he brings to a story is just breathless. Crouching Vampire, Hidden Fang is not however a stand alone, I really enjoyed this novel more by reading Zen and that Art of Vampires first and I think you will too. Knowing the back story helps this novel make sense and both novels are amazing reads you will not forget. I look forward to the next Katie MacAlister novel in the future - they are keeper shelf worthy!

CROUCHING VAMPIRE HIDDEN FANG
KATIE MacALISTER
Paranormal Romance
NAL

Rating: 4.5 Enchantments

Pia Thompson now knows she is the beloved of Kristoff. Problem is, is that she's still technically married to Mattias from the brotherhood and she is still a Zorya. Pia also knows that Kristoff does not want anything to do with her and He has shut off their telepathic link leaving her alone with her thoughts, and her heartache.

Pia is back in the United States trying to get her life back to some sort of order. Her good friend Magda and her boy toy Ray are flying to visit her in the hopes that they can cheer her up. They are not the only ones who come visiting Pia. The Brotherhood is trying to get her to act like the Zorya she is and the Dark Ones keep sending a messenger. Pia realizes the way to stop all her unwanted visitors is to travel back to Kristoff and clear up things once and for all. If she can free some of the captured Brotherhood members then the Brotherhood will release her from her Zorya duties. When she shows up at the meeting of the Dark Ones she realizes things are not as she imagines. Her and Kristoff are being accused of kidnapping and possibly murdering Alec her ex-Dark One lover. So now Pia must find Alec or who took him so she can clear her and Kristoff's name and maybe finally things can go back to normal. But when you are beloved to a Dark One things are never normal.

CROUCHING VAMPIRE HIDDEN FANG is the fantastic follow up to ZEN AND THE ART OF VAMPIRES! Mrs. MacAlister leaves us with the unknown fate with Pia and Kristoff, at the end of ZEN AND THE ART OF VAMPIRES and CROUCHING VAMPIRE HIDDEN FANG picks that fate up. Pia is my favorite heroine out of all of Mrs. MacAlister's stories. I find she is the most likable because she is not the kind of gal that just goes along with things because she is told to. She has an opinion and vocalizes it. She is also not very far from one of the best sidekicks, Magda and her beloved Ray. The two of them are a hoot.
My only complaint is the interaction between Pia and Kristoff. In the first book the two of them seemed very awkward around each other and almost seemed to dislike each other. And while I understand that is not the case anymore I think it was still a bit early to have them be all lovey dovey. I wish they still had some of that stubborn attitude. I think that this series is not going to follow the normal Dark Ones series and be one book per couple but I think that this will be an ongoing series like the Aisling Grey series, which is just perfect in my opinion!
Although the concept of the Dark Ones is very easy to understand and the books do not really need to be read in order, I do say that readers should first read ZEN AND THE ART OF VAMPIRES because that is specifically about these characters in the book. I am keeping my fingers crossed that Mrs. MacAlister will write a number three to this series as it is one of my favorites so far. CROUCHING VAMPIRE HIDDEN FANG is not a book to be missed by lovers of paranormal romance. One of the best I have read so far.

Katie MacAlister is the fantastic author of several different series including the Dark Ones, Aisling Grey, Silver Dragons, and many more. She even has a YA series that she writes. To find out more about her and her amazing books please visit her website at [...]

Jennifer
Enchanting Reviews
April 2009

This book was exactly what I've come to expect from Katie MacAlister. Funny and hot, with a touch of angst. I don't like to give spoilers in reviews, so I won't here. I'll just say that if you like Katie Mac, you'll like this book. If you don't like her, what the heck's wrong with you??

First off, when I read the plot summary, it intrigued me to pre-order this book because I love that the heroine has a husband and she had a brief romance with her husband's best friend. I always like that rather than the guy has two girls fighting over him. Anyways, I checked the reviews on the first book -Zen- and am glad I didn't read that one first. I would have been upset over no happy ending. Thankfully, this decision to pre-order this book did not come to a disappointment. I enjoyed Pia and Kristoff's story very much. And to spoil it for others, it does have a happy ending!

I have been a fan of Katie MacAlister but her books seem to be taking a turn down hill. This latest one was so lame I tried twice and just could not even make it half way through the book.

I have to say that I was very disappointed in this story, the previous book with Pia as the main character was marginally better. This story had a disappointing plot and poor character development. granted I'm no writer but I read a lot and i genuinely enjoy everything else written by Katie MacAlister but this book felt rushed and I feel like i wasted my money

Spoilers!

I thought this book was suppose to answer all the questions left over from the previous book. I am left with a ton more questions. What is the deal with Kristoff's ring? Who is the ilargi (where is poor Ulfur?? - wasn't Pia suppose to rescue him??) and Kristoff is a sacristan??? I did enjoy the read and there were several parts where I laughed out loud - but it just doesn't mesh with the previous book. Really, how could Kristoff's brother and close friends let him starve himself??

I don't think I'm happy with this series in general -- this being the Pia/Kristoff series, not the Dark Ones series. I'm not terribly fond of Pia, and the "dark" "secrets" that Kristoff harbors are... well... anticlimactic to say the least. For a troubled Dark One hero, I much prefer Adrian from Sex, Lies and Vampires. I'd rather see a series about them. Or Christian and Allie. But Pia is too whiny and too apt to let things happen to her than taking charge of her own destiny.

Without giving out every spoiler in the whole dang world like other reviewers, I'll simply say that I, too, was not happy with the unanswered questions and the seeming plot mistakes. This book was sorely missing something that I love from this author: the snarky, clever, or sweet supernatural characters (like ghosts, mummies or demons). Characters like that (paranormal or not) are what makes Katie MacAlister a better author than most, and simply their abscence is enough to reduce this book to average.

There were some funny moments. I laughed out loud a few times, and there were a couple genuinely memorable quotes. That's always a good sign. But those perks weren't enough to bring this book up to KM's usual standards. The fact that this is not a stand alone book, or even the finale of the prior book (Zen and the Art of Vampires), is not the problem. It's that the books are sub-par for what I've come to expect from KM, and the main characters not likeable enough to carry their own series.

Unlike other reviewers I am not upset by the somewhat rehashed plot lines (the flawed heroines and the perfect heroes, the cutesy love names, etc). The books may not be wholly original, but compared to some of the drivel that's being published, they're still much better. Also, while I don't mind reading of a flawed heroine (who wants to read about a woman that we can't relate to?), I really don't want my Vamps "flawed" in more than their inner torment. I do agree, however, that Pia's "flaw" (ie her obsession with her weight and size) got REALLY old, REALLY quickly. It was quite clear that whether Kristoff wanted her emotionally or not, he clearly found her physically attractive.

Which leads me to my last... complaint is the wrong word. Basically, this author can write steaming hot sex scenes. Some of them in this book were fairly hot. But on a whole I felt ho-hum about them. Kristoff had promise. Pia not as much, but it was there. But none of that promise was pulled on to make this a hot book. It wasn't quite lukewarm, but I sure wasn't getting burnt.

So... It's not the worst read. Might as well read it if you like the author. I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend it, but I wouldn't necessarily discourage someone from reading it. I would probably warn them in advance of some of the flaws, though. I'd do so without giving blatant spoilers like others, though.