Customer Reviews

Dates From Hell

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

If you're a fan of vampire, werewolf and other such paranormal fiction, you do not want to miss this anthology! All four are masters in their genres and none fail to entertain the reader. If you've never read any of the authors, prepare to suspend your belief system (that means let loose, fellow readers--it makes for much more fun reading) and hang on for a great thrill of a reading ride.

"Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil" by Kim Harrison--A very exciting story as it is a prequel to Harrison's Rachel Morgan series (Dead Witch Walking). This one is told from Ivy's point of view. She's trying to climb the corporate ladder in her office, but must do so on her boss's terms. Art is a "dead" vampire, as opposed to Ivy, who is a living one with the vampire virus. He wants Ivy to feed off of. When she discover's Art is covering up a serious crime, she takes measures to put a stop to his interference in her job.--Loved this one as we get a more intimate view of Ivy's character, one I didn't fully understand, or like, till reading this short. If you're a fan of Harrison's books, pick this one up and enjoy. You'll be sorry you missed it otherwise. Five stars.

"The Claire Switch Project" by Lynsay Sands--Claire Beckett and Kyle Lockhart are scientists experimenting with and perfecting a molecular destabilizer. A rogue employee, impatient to test the device on humans, tricks Claire and zaps her with the device's beam. Concerned, Kyle takes her home with him to watch for any harmful effects. What neither knows is that teach of them has cared for one another for quite some time. Claire sees an opportunity to get close to Kevin, and Kevin wants the same. When the destabalizer's beam ends up effecting Claire after all, they're in for an interesting night when they go to their high school reunion.--A very humerous story that flowed well, despite some silly moments. Of course there's going to be some silly moments--the heroine is zapped with a destabilizer!! It makes for some hilarious scenes, as only Sands can write them. Four stars for the lighthearted read of the four.

"Chaotic" by Kelly Armstrong--Hope is half demon, her ability to see and feel chaos magic both a help and a hindrance at times. When her mother sets her up on a blind date, chaos jumps up and runs amock in the form of jewel thief and werewolf, Marsten. An enigmatic man, to say the least, her boss wants something from Marsten and she's to make sure he stays put till the boss arrives. When she realizes she's being used, she and Marsten throw in together to ensure their survival.--I've heard such wonderful things about Armstrong's books, never picked them up though. This short was an excellent intro to her kick-butt, no-nonsense style and I definitely plan on picking up her books in the future. Hope and Marsten were an interesting pair I would love to see in a full-length book. Four Stars.

"Dead Man Dating" by Lori Handeland--A must buy author for paranormal fans!! This short is no exception. Kit Morelli, plain jane and bored literary agent, has a hot date, which she knows is fishy since she's not hot. What she doesn't realize is that her date is dead. He's seeking something from her that only she can give. It becomes obvious on their date what that is, but in comes demon hunter, Chavez to the rescue. He's hunted every kind of monster and demon there is, but he doesn't know what is hunting Rachel. He's determined to find out though, at any cost--to himself, to Kit and to the world. I loved this tale by Handeland!! I'm very much in love with her werewolf series (Moon series) and this tale was a great switch to see what else she can produce. A great five star read.

Though fairly short in length, all four stories came across as very satisfying. As a fan of most of these authors it was a delight to experience their styles in the short story format, and anyone else who is a fan of these authors will know what I mean. If you've never read any of them before, these are a great intro into what each is capable of--then go get their fuul-length books! Great weekend, week-night or any other time reading. Very highly recommended!!

What a great anthology! Every story held my interest. Kim Harrison's "Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil" is actually a prequel to her novel, DEAD WITCH WALKING, although the story is about Ivy Tamwood rather than Rachel Morgan. Ivy wants to advance in Inderland Security (I.S.) but her supervisor, Art, is holding her back. Ivy is a living vampire whereas Art is a dead vampire and Art wants sex and blood in exchange for a positive evaluation. Ivy finds her way out from under Art when she discovers he is using his position to cover up a crime; Art finds a banshee tear at a homicide scene but Ivy learns that the banshee has been dead for 3 years and thus the tear has no power and was actually in the evidence room. The story is intriguing and ends with Ivy getting an intern- the intern is not named but is presumably Rachel Morgan.

"The Claire Switch Project" by Lynsay Sands is humorous despite some fairly predictable scenes. Claire Beckett and Kyle Lockhart are working together on a molecular destabilizer when another scientist, John Heathcliffe, decides to speed up the human trials by zapping Claire with the ray. No side effects are noticed until Kyle leaves Claire at home with his sister, Jill (her best friend from high school), and Claire realizes she can look at a picture of anyone and morph into that person. Jill has just been dumped by her boyfriend who is now going to their high school reunion with the bane of Jill and Claire's high school years, Magda. Jill convinces Claire to go as her date in the guise of movie star, Brad Cruise, only Kyle also invites her as his date to the reunion. Claire attempts to shift between both dates and the results are what one would expect- and yet it worked as I found myself laughing out loud.

I haven't read anything by Kelley Armstrong before (a mistake I definitely plan to correct!) but her entry, "Chaotic" was my favorite one in the anthology. In "Chaotic", Hope is half-demon with the ability to sense chaos (i.e. trouble of a supernatural sort). While stuck on a blind date her mother set her up on, she runs into jewel thief/werewolf, Marsten. She contacts Tristan Robard, her employer through the interracial council, who tells her to keep Marsten until he arrives. However, things get interesting then as Hope realizes she has been deceived all along.

The final story is Lori Handeland's "Dead Man Dating" in which literary agent, Kit Morelli, finds herself being pursued by a demon/incubus. What starts as a harmless blind date turns into a nightmare as Satan's latest demon creation tries to have sex with her to maintain his power. She is rescued by rogue demon hunter, Chavez, and together they have to figure out how to keep her alive.

Overall, this was an excellent anthology. Highly recommended!

As others have mentioned, I like anthologies because it's a great way to discover new authors that may interest me, along with reading other offerings from authors I know I already enjoy. In the case of Dates From Hell, I purchased it because I'm already a big fan of both Kim Harrison and Kelley Armstrong.

They did not disappoint in Dates From Hell. I thoroughly enjoyed both stories by these authors. But the big winner for me was the Ivy story by Kim Harrison. I've been fascinated by Ivy in the Rachel Morgan series, but she's such an enigma. "Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil" did a lot to help fill in the blanks and explain more about who she is and what makes her tick. For me, that story was worth the price of the book alone and is a valuable addition (as prequel) to that series. It's also what helped rate this book a four stars.

Lynsay Sands is new to me and I was disappointed by her "Claire Switch Project." Though I do love the title's clever play on words. While the concept had potential and the story was quite humorous at times, it was also highly forgettable. I think part of why it didn't resonate with me was because of the weird mix of science fiction with what is normally a paranormal feature, that of shapeshifting. I'm a fan of both genres, but the SF context was really out of place in this collection. If she had kept it a pure paranormal story, it would have been better. The zapped with a ray thing came across as really stupid and the writing was rather bland.

Lori Handeland, on the other hand, was a nice little surprise. I very much enjoyed "Dead Man Dating." Part of what made it so appealing was the fact that the female lead wasn't some hottie in a short skirt and impossibly high heels, but instead was a rather dumpy and ordinary woman. With a wonderful sarcastic bite. I'm a sucker for sarcastic female characters I guess. The story itself had a few weak points, but was a very enjoyable read and more than made up for the lackluster Sands story.

So three out of four goodies in a four story anthology ain't so bad. Overall, Dates from Hell definitely was worth my money and time spent reading.

I really enjoyed Dates From Hell. The authors chosen and the stories selected are a nice variety; you get a sense of their style and talent. I think that the stories and authors presented in this anthology show how very wide the label `paranormal romance' is. To me, the tales by Lynsay Sands and Lori Handeland are `lighter' than the ones by Armstrong and Harrison, but the diverseness makes it a good anthology in my opinion.

I liked all of the stories, but if I had to pick my favorites, it would be those by Kelley Armstrong and Kim Harrison. Reading "Chaotic" made me want to learn more about the characters; there's a good amount of humor and snark too, which I appreciate. I've read most of Ms. Armstrong's books and am a fan of her talent and imagination. I can also appreciate the fashion disaster feelings that Hope, the main female charcter in "Chaotic" has as well as her problems with `food fallouts', lol; I have to add the Karl Marsten is one fine werewolf. ;-)

"Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil" presents a back-story of two of the Rachel Morgan series' main characters; I think that the tale also works as a stand-alone and gives you a taste of how detailed and involved the world of The Hollows is. If you've read any of the series, this story shows Ivy and Kisten in a new light and presents a whole other `side' to these two and to some of the main themes. I think that makes it ideal for those who are already fans of her work as well as for those who are looking for a new, good author.

Lynsay Sands' "The Claire Switch Project" had some very funny lines and several about fandoms in general that are true. While the basic premise of shape-shifting isn't novel, I found the humor and story-line to be fun and a good read. Lori Handeland's "Dead Man Dating" was entertaining and fun too. The lines "Now back to the date - if not from hell, at least from a place very nearby. Manhattan." gave me a chuckle and set the tone for her story.

Over-all, I found "Dates from Hell" to be well worth the purchase price and several of the stories worth reading more than once.

Once again I'll state that I'm not a huge fan of anthologies because usually atleast one of the authors is dissapointing. And for the second time this year I was pleasingly proved wrong! Dates from Hell is well put together and I say this even after two of the authors are ones who have put out work I've not enjoyed in the past. However they both had incredibly good stories in this book!

Undead in the Garden of Good & Evil - Kim Harrison could slap her name on a piece of lettuce at this point and we'd all sit around oohing & awing at it. The woman is that enthralling. For fans of her series, don't expect this short tale to further that storyline. But it does give us more incite into the lives of both vampires, Ivy & Kisten. It helps you associate with why certain choices are then made in the series.

The Claire Switch Project- I love Lynsay Sands. In fact if I could trade my own dear husband in for a few of her hero's I would! This was very light & entertaining if a tad predictable. The ending was very intrigueing though. If she ever gets tired of her vampire series ( please no, never)she could start this theme for a new one. Think Mystique from X-Men!

Chaotic- Very good story by Kelly Armstrong! A half demon would be spy thinks she's using her powers to detect chaos to bust the bad guy & help the world. However she finds that the real bad guys have been using her & she must help jewel thief Karl Marston save the day. Warning: Our jewel loving werewolf doesn't neccisarily get the girl. But the author does set them up very interestingly to continue with further stories...

Dead Man Dating- Alright I wil admit that I HATED the Moon series by Lori Handeland, it's no secret. But I think her short may have been the most memorable & exciting of the great stories in this book! A somewhat mousy librarian becomes a hunted conquest for a new breed of sexual demon unleashed in New York. Sort of Like a Succubbus with out the frailties, this demon needs a virgin sacrifice. That's hard to find in the big city. Enter a reclusive demon hunter with possesion secrets of his own to save the day. I felt there was a lot of chemistry in this story. With believable tidbits of modern terror in the big apple, I was blown away by the ending which surely must be setting us up for a new series by Handeland. Shockingly, I'd buy it as well!

Undead In The Garden Of Good And Evil by Kim Harrison

To protect Ivy from the vampire that her family owes allegiance to, she is sent away at 16 until the time that she is old enough to handle herself with Piscary. Although sending a living vampire child away is almost unheard of, Piscary's fixation on Ivy made it necessary. Now 7 years later Ivy is working at Inderland Security (the police force for those not human) and is fast-tracking her way to upper management. The only thing holding her back is Art.
Ivy accepts a date with Art. He thinks he'll not only get the blood he's been after for the past 6 months, but her body as well, but Ivy has other plans. Although Ivy is expecting things to go her way, she knows it's still going to be a date from hell.

I've read and loved all of Kim Harrison's Hollow series, and was excited to get Ivy's story in Undead In The Garden Of Good And Evil. Undead In The Garden Of Good And Evil is fast paced and exciting, and now I can see how and why Ivy became a runner for Inderland Security. I totally loved Undead In The Garden Of Good And Evil from the first word to the last and very much look forward to Ms. Harrison's next story in this series.

The Claire Switch Project by Lynsay Sands

Claire has wanted Kyle since they were twelve but was too shy to let him know. Now, several years later, they're both working as scientists on the same project, and she still wants him.

An accident in the lab has Claire getting hit with a destabilizer beam and Kyle rushing in to save her. Claire appears to have no adverse effects, but just to be on the safe side Kyle takes her to his home so he can keep an eye on her. Claire and Kyle's sister, Jill, discover that there are some effects from the beam and due to Jill's prodding; Claire agrees to be her date at their high school reunion tonight. One problem...shortly after Claire agrees to go with Jill, Kyle asks her to go and since she's yearned to go out with Kyle in what seems like forever, she can't turn him down. Now Claire has two dates on the same night with two different people. With her new `enhancements', Kyle will never know... will he? This could be the night that Claire has been dreaming of for years, or will it be the date from hell?

The Claire Switch Project is hilarious! I felt so bad for Claire when she got into the messes that she did because of the side effects of the destabilizer beam, especially with her being so shy that it's almost painful, but I couldn't help but laugh at some of the situations. Lynsay Sands has another winner with The Claire Switch Project, her sense of humor hits my funny bone hard every time!

Chaotic by Kelly Armstrong

Hope has always felt `different' than the other people around her. By the time she hit eighteen, she had found out just how different she was; her powers became active and she found out that she was half demon...thanks to her absentee father.

Hope's mom was at it again, trying to get her into a relationship. It didn't matter how nice this prospective date would be, good looking, or interesting, it was a waste of time because she could never let a human know about her other life; the life of a secret agent for the Interracial Council. Well, perhaps Douglas will turn out to be a decent date and she could enjoy the evening...or with the introduction of another man, it could turn out to be another date from hell.

The sparks flew from the time that Hope and Karl met, of course it didn't help that they were on different sides of the law or the fact that Karl had just stolen some antique jewelry from a museum display. Chaotic is filled with action, tension and more than a few hilarious moments that kept me so involved that I couldn't put it down. I loved the way that Karl and Hope interacted; the heat was present from the first meeting and just built as quickly as the danger.

Dead Man Dating by Lori Handeland

[...] Eric was rich, blonde and handsome, every plain girl's dream and he was even a surgeon *sigh* but he had a little drawback, he had no soul...literally.

Enter Chavez. He throws salt on and shoots her date in the head with a silver bullet, and because Kit couldn't leave well enough alone after he tried to convince her that she had imagined Eric's existence, he kidnaps Kit and at gunpoint, makes her take him to her place. Talk about the date from hell, literally.

I really loved the paranormal aspects of Dead Man Dating. A psychic that not only channels Satan, but becomes a temporary vessel for him, a demon hybrid that's set on claiming and killing Kit with pleasure and then there's Chavez...a demon hunter bound and determined to protect her. The attraction that Kit has for Chavez is strong and only becomes stronger with every hour that she spends with him, and Chavez? Kit can't tell whether he feels the same or if she's just another innocent that he needs to protect. Dead Man Dating enveloped me and brought me into the lives of Kit and Zac so well that I didn't notice time marching by. I thoroughly enjoyed Dead Man Dating from beginning to end!

Dates From Hell is a spectacular collection of stories that engrossed me to the point that my kids had to literally shake me to get my attention. I highly recommend Dates From Hell; I laughed, held my breath, tensed up and sighed throughout. Reading Dates From Hell was definitely time very well spent.

Lyonene
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

I love every one of these authors, and each of these stories was a good one. Unlike many anthologies, which have one story I like, maybe some that are okay, this was "all good". I recommend it to anyone who reads LK Hamilton, MJ Davidson, and of course, these authors. Let's have more like this, please.

I picked up this book because I like Kelley Armstrong's writing. (And her story is the best of the bunch)

This story collection introduced me to Kim Harrison and I picked up her first Rachel Morgan book which I loved. The books are much better than the short story included here, so if you enjoy her story you might want to give her novels a try.

The other two stories/writers were so/so (not bad, but not spectactular) and brought the over-all book rating down to 3 stars. I just couldn't care about the school reunion story, but it was well written. The demon hunter story left me feeling un-satisfied - the ending was supposed to be a twist, but it fell flat.

So, if you've never read Kelly Armstrong or Kim Harrison this book is a great introduction to these authors and I highly recommend it.

I found Kim Harrison's story to be a little confusing even though I've read her other books. As I read, I recalled more and more details and it became a bit less confusing. While I enjoyed learning more about Ivy I thought Harrison jumped into the story assuming the reader knew everything about the world she had created. Never assume. I think readers who have never read her before would have been totally confused. 3 1/2 stars.

Sand's offering was the lightest and most fun. It was a stand-alone story and an interesting idea. I'd like her to expand on it. 4 stars.

Armstrong's story was a continuation of her "Otherworld" women and I was very happy to find out what happened to Karl Marston. Armstrong has not dropped the ball yet. I'm thrilled with her series and hopefully she continues. 4 stars.

I had never read Handeland and her novella convinced me I have been missing out. Interesting and entertaining story. I wish she would tell Chavez's whole story in a full-length novel. I'll be reading more of her for sure. 4 stars.

In summary - two of the stories are stand alones, two are from a series. You will probably get a kick out of the stand alones and only appreciate the series ones if you already read the authors' previous novels.

I have to admit that I purchased this book for the Kim Harrison story. Her Hollows series is absolutely fabulous and I highly recommend starting from the beginning with "Dead Witch Walking" even if you didn't like her entry in this collection. I did appreciate learning more about Ivy and her time pre-Rachel, but I think I might have been lost had I not already read the first three installments of the series.

I read Sands' and Handeland's stories, but didn't find them much to my liking. They were both a little too heavy on the romance and too light on believable substance.

The pleasant surprise for me in this collection was the very well written and completely engrossing story, "Chaotic," by Kelley Armstrong. I had never read anything by Armstrong prior to reading this story, yet I was able to not only follow the plot, but also become absolutely enthralled with the world she has created. The first novel in her "Women of the Otherworld" series, "Bitten," has been popping up in my Amazon recommendations list for some time now (if you don't visit your recommendations, I highly recommend you do so--I have found many little gems that way that I might never have unearthed). I am embarrassed to say it took reading "Chaotic" to get me to try the series, but now that I have, I am hooked.

I give 4 stars to Harrison, 5 stars to Armstrong, and 2 stars to the other two. As much as I adore Kim Harrison, I have to admit that Armstrong's story was my clear favorite in this collection.