Customer Reviews

Dancing with the Devil (Nikki & Michael, Book 1)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I loved this book, it is about a psychic private detective and her trek through the dangerous vampire filled streets of Lyndhurst. As a former orphan and, street smart kid Nikki James is used to the trouble filled streets, so when she follows a girl(someone she is tracking for her job) into the town's "Haunted house", she thinks she knows what to expect.
Nikki is in for an unwanted surprise when she finds out that she really doesn't know everything about what goes bump in the night.

Because of her psychic abilities she is a high prize for two feuding vampires who have chosen the town of Lyndhurst as their battle ground. But before she knows what has hit her she finds herself on more than friendly terms with one of the vampires. As the story progresses you, the reader, with find yourself face to face with a sociopathic vampire and a strangely erotic vampire romance.

This book is a must read for all vampire lovers. Five stars!
I loved

First of all, I LOVED this book. I bought it on a whim and I am soooooooooo glad that I did.

Nikki James is a private investigator who possesses physic ability. She believes that there is nothing in this world that would shock her. She has seen it all or so she believes . . .

One night, she trails a young girl into a mansion whose history is steeped in evil. She senses the menace hoovering in the dark shadows. The evil waiting to be unleashed. She has no conceivable idea of what is waiting in the deep shadows.

Nikki becomes a pawn caught between two different vampires. Jasper is supremely evil possessing a madness that threatens her own sanity. Michael has tracked his long time enemy to Lyndhurst, determined to destroy him yet Nikki isn't sure if he is on the side of the angels. Can she trust him?

The deadly cat and mouse game between Jasper and Michael was incredible and kept me on the edge of my seat. Both are trying to outwit the other. The scenes were so realistic, I was drawn into their world. Not too mention all of the other supernatural creatures that wait in the shadows!

This story wasn't so much of a lovestory. Oh, there was romance between Nikki and Michael but it didn't overtake the story. Both of them have secrets they are keeping from each other. Both are afraid to love . . .

From the start of page one until the very end, the action was non stop and intense. I could not put this book down. What a supernatural ride!!!

This is Keri Arthur's first published book.. and in my mind excellent. The story is fast moving and leaves you sitting on the edge of your seat.. I read this book in one sitting and was not amused with anyone who interrupted me. The Story.. is of a psychic Detective.. and her colleague.. The case involves a missing rich girl... once found she leads them to a situation that will mean changing their beliefs in everything.. Enter vampires one good, one evil... a load of yukky zombies and you have a fastpace gripping novel... Romance develops with Michael but both have some serious baggage... this is a story that the more sentimental of us..will need a good mansize box of tissues... Very emotional in places.. I loved this book and I believe that those who love a good Vampire Romance with enjoy this book.. so give it a go.. I think its worth it... I can't wait for the sequel... My congratulations to Keri on an excellent story and very enjoyable to read... and I imagine books always have such interesting covers and the print is nice and easy on the eyes

This first book in the series is GREAT! If you like the Anita Blake Vampire books you will like this author.

Keri Arthur builds the characters of Nikki, Jake and Michael extremely well and keeps you interested from start to finish. Nikki was a "street kid" with psychic/kenetic abilities that had seen too much death and betrayal in her live. She bonds with her current client (yes, she too is a private eye) and gets pulled into a battle between two enemy vampires.

Too bad there aren't any more books by her yet!

Where I do not think Dancing with the Devil can be put on the same shelf as Laurell K. Hamilton and Tanya Huff's Blood series, it was still very good. The action - where definitely not as graphic as Hamilton's books - kept you reading - unable to say "I'll read just one more chapter and put it down for the night". After reading the last sentence I was glad to see in the next paragraph that there will be a continuation of Niki and Michael's story coming in December. A lot of things were settled, but there were a lot of things left dangling. I am looking forward to continuing the story to find out what happens with Niki and Michael.

It seems I've been looking for too long for a book that's going to keep my interest from beginning to end, but this book did it. Michael is suitably dark & tortured, and Nikki takes no prisoners, while maintaining a believeable vulnerability. The action *moves*, thanks to the author's atmospheric phrasing.

I liked this book over Laurel Hamilton's for a very simple reason--I didn't fell 'teased' by having the heroine go back & forth between two men. While that worked for the first few Anita Blake books, I started to get sick of it. With 'Dancing With The Devil', it was obvious that Michael & Nikki had a true connection--can't wait to read the sequel!

Back when I enjoyed Laurell K. Hamilton's books, several people highly recommended this one as a read-alike. It took me a while to track it down, but it's been sitting in my TBR pile ever since.

Psychic private investigator Nikki James has been hired to find a missing teenage girl. She finds her, but she also finds herself in the middle of someone else's hunt: vampire Michael Kelly is hunting the evil vampire that the teenager's in thrall to.

It's a great conflict: that vampire had killed his brother, and Michael intends to stop him at any cost, even if it costs the teenager her life--she'd made her choice, and she's probably too far gone, anyway.

Nikki has lost one person to the monsters, however, and she's not about to lose another, even if it makes the fight harder.

Because of her psychic powers, Nikki isn't as susceptible to vampires, and between that and her strength and goodness, Michael finds her irresistible.

I absolutely loved the first half of the book. Then it kind of fizzled. Michael, rather than being an equal partner, became more ineffectual, with Nikki as his savior. I don't like the alpha-male-saving-the-helpless-female plots, but I don't like the reverse, either. He wasn't a wimp, but he didn't hold his own, either. And then there was the ending...

This book is a perfect illustration of what I mean when I say that I don't require romance in my books (which really should be obvious), but that if there is a romance, I expect it to make sense. The ending (I'm not going to get into details, but I'm not going to sidestep the issue, either--I think the warning is more important than completely avoiding spoilers here) feels artificial and abrupt, as if it were designed either to thumb its nose at romance readers, or to entice readers to pick up the next book. If it was the latter, it failed--with this reader, at least. It's not the lack of a happy ending. I've loved plenty of books without HEA endings. And it's not that the ending was a surprise--I love surprise endings. It's that the book made a promise, and waited until the very end to reverse direction. There are good surprise endings--you're surprised, but it makes sense, and if you look back, you can see the hints in that direction even if you didn't notice them at the time. That wasn't the case here.

So, instead of discovering a new series I expected I'd love, I got annoyed, and I won't be looking for more.

I was very disappointed with the book. I was expecting something along the lines of her 'Riley Jenson series.'
I kept waiting for the characters to spark.
I did not buy the sequel but I did move on to another series that she wrote.
I love her style of writting and like the heat the books produce.

Nikki James is a private investigator with psychic powers. She is trying to track down the daughter of a powerful man. That daughter is in the power of a vampire. Michael Kelly is tracing that vampire Jasper, who is the killer of his brother. Michael is also a vampire and he is drawn to Nikki. Nikki is not the most trusting person in the world and can you really trust a vampire?

This was a very fast moving story, no down time at all. The characters are vivid and the story line twists and turns more than enough to keep it interesting.

Keri Arthur's Dancing with The Devil is a story about the supernatural, and not just vampires. It's intense, real--well sort of <grin>, and so believable I was scared, fascinated and definitely enthralled.

Nikki James, a private investigator, is on a new case. A rich and troubled teenager needs to be followed and rescued. But evil is waiting! The unlikely protector comes in the shape of Michael Kelly. Michael is a hunter and a vampire... Sounds good? You bet!

Dancing With The Devil is scary as hell, not for its gory details but for the extremely passionate and very often threatening atmosphere so aptly created by Keri Arthur. I was kept on my toes with fear and was intrigued by how willing I was to accept the characters supernatural abilities as given and normal.

I felt completely and utterly mesmerized by the story and its author's voice and I can "only" highly recommend it! I fell in love, cried, laughed, and I ended up heaving a big sigh of longing for its happy ending. Thank you Keri Arthur for reintroducing me to the vampire novel genre.