Deadly Desire (Riley Jensen, Guardian, Book 7) (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: vamp murders, wolf soul, moon heat, Hanna Mein, King Street, Man Hard (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Seduction that kills. Pleasure to die for.
She just can’t resist . . .


Guardian Riley Jenson always seems to face the worst villains. And this time’s no different. For it’s no ordinary sorceress who can raise the dead to do her killing. But that’s exactly what Riley expects to find at the end of a trail of female corpses used—and discarded—in a bizarre ritual of evil. With pressure mounting to catch one fiend, another series of brutal slayings shocks the vampire world of her lover, Quinn. So the last thing Riley needs is the heat of the upcoming full moon bringing her werewolf hormones to a boil—or the reappearance of a sexy bounty hunter, the rogue wolf Kye Murphy.

Riley has threatened Murphy with arrest if he doesn’t back off the investigation, but it’s Riley who feels handcuffed by Kye’s lupine charm. Torn between her vamp and wolf natures, between her love for Quinn and her hots for Kye, Riley knows she’s courting danger and indulging the deadliest desires. For her hunt through the supernatural underworld will bring her face-to-face with what lurks in a darkness where even monsters fear to tread.

About the Author

Keri Arthur received a "Perfect 10" from Romance Reviews Today and was nominated for Best Shapeshifter in PNR's PEARL Awards and in the best Contemporary Paranormal category of the Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Awards. She lives with her daughter in Melbourne, Australia.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (March 24, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553591150
• ISBN-13: 978-0553591156
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #7,371 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 7 in The Riley Jensen, Guardian Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Deadly Desire, April 11, 2009

By	C. CROSS (Columbia, SC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

It took me a little while to get into this book, maybe because it had been so long since I read the last Riley book that I just felt disconnected from the world, or because Riley just isn't out there almost getting killed every two seconds in this one. Whatever the reason, it may read a bit slow to some in comparison to the others in the series. BUT, oh lordy, Ms Arthur makes up for it in the end!

Riley is investigating not just a series of vampire killings (its the vamps being offed) but a series of zombie killings (the zombies are doing the offing). All of it smack dab in the middle of the full moon. Needless to say Riley gets herself into a spot of trouble. She is trying to juggle time with her super hawt vampire lover Quinn into her case load, and is actually doing a pretty good job, but is distracted by the appearance of bounty hunter Kye into the mix. This unlikeable (or so Riley tries to tell herself) werewolf keeps turning up, setting Riley into a hormonal twist.

I definitely recommend this book, while not as action packed as previous books, this one has a few emotional and personal discoveries for Riley that will have you hopping up and down waiting for the next installment!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Keri Arthur knows how to keep a series alive., April 10, 2009

By	A Customer - See all my reviews

I've been following the series from the first book. I must say they are fun, entertaining, and deliciously sinful. If love strong, powerful and sexy women as the hero, with men that have flirty and dangerous sides read these books. This one will leave you dieing for the next book. It is too easy to fall into the world of Riley Jenson. You are hooked from page one. If you love the paranormal that is.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Deadly Disappointment, April 2, 2009

By	A. Williamson "williaak" (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The Riley Jenson, Guardian novels cross the fantasy genre with paranormal romance, and Deadly Desire somehow gets lost in the translation.

The premise of Riley's world is unique and interesting, set in modern-day Australia where supernaturals live among humans and are policed by a Directorate of Guardians (a combination James Bond/Navy SEAL squad comprised of supernatural races including vampires and werewolves). Unfortunately, the protagonist Riley Jenson, who is a rare werewolf-vampire hybrid with expanding psychic talents, has a host of annoying personality traits that make it very difficult for readers to take her seriously as a skilled investigator.

Riley's promiscuity is written into the core story as a preoccupation of werewolves due to "moon heat" and often dominates her limited investigatory skills. Additionally, every male character with the exception of her boss Jack and her twin brother Rhoan and his partner Liander, are essentially interchangeable: stereotypical hunks with different hair and eye color. With few exceptions, all of these physically perfect men eventually or immediately become Riley's lovers in the context of each new investigation. Often, the prose is literally recycled in each book with phrases like "kaleidoscope of sensations" and "happy hormones" that make repetitive appearances in all 7 books to date! Riley's investigations largely consist of wisecracking with CSU workers at murder scenes, chasing suspects around the city, and going undercover at exotic locations, which often serve to further her expanding collection of lovers.

Deadly Desire opens with Riley pursing a murder suspect while grousing to herself about the interruption to her sex life with on-again off-again vampire lover Quinn. Riley tails the suspect to an abandoned warehouse where she bumps into Kye, a werewolf bounty hunter paid to find the killer by a victim's parents. Their suspect turns out to be a zombie reanimated by magic who is controlled by a black crow--a shapeshifter who gets away--and who looses a pack of hellhounds on Riley and Kye. Thus begins the investigation of why vampires are being murdered in Melbourne.

Riley's case is constantly thwarted by Kye, who also frustrates her personal life, as their mutual attraction interferes with Riley's intention to remain faithful to Quinn. When a prominent vampire and friend of the head of the Directorate is murdered and a witness fingers a stripper as a possible suspect, Riley goes undercover at (where else?) a strip club. Kye shows up to conduct his own investigation which includes a lap dance from Riley and hints that this werewolf is not all he seems.

While the story itself could serve as a stand-alone in the series, Riley's preoccupation with men and her attractions to her workmates overwhelm her investigation, and the prose in relation to the ever-present love scenes (at times) reaches the level of soft-core porn as opposed to mainstream fiction, or even mainstream romance. Riley's continuing quest for her soulmate becomes a major factor in this story by book's end.

Readers who enjoy erotica will be delighted by the steamy content of Deadly Desire, but for those who prefer more of a focus on police procedural urban fantasy may want to look elsewhere.