Customer Reviews

Derik's Bane (Berkley Sensation)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

If you are a fan of this very talented author than make sure that you pick up her latest paranormal romance which finally showcases Derik Gardner of the Wyndham Werewolf's. This story has been long awaited and she has finally come through for her fans!

Derik has a problem. He has just turned alpha which is a bad thing when there is someone in charge of the pack already, and that someone is his best friend Michael. He has been scrapping it up and has come to realize that he may just have to move on, or face a fight to the death. Not something that appeals since he would be fighting...Michael. Well, he doesn't have to worry long, he has been given a mission of great importance. He must find the re-incarnted Morgan Le Fey and kill her before she has a chance to destroy the world. No problem. He'll just hope into a convertible, and head out for sunny California. Monterey, California to be exact. Well, once he arrives he goes to 6 Fairy Tale Ln. but the woman he is suppose to kill is just too...ditzy, crazy...scatterbrained. Oh, yeah...she's also real cute with that curly red hair. Can he really kill her or can he re-work things and keep her for himself? Something to think about...

Sara Gunn has no idea who she is and why she has such incredible luck. So she is of course surprised when a yummy...I mean yummy guy shows up at her house and then tries to kill her. What on earth is going on? Then he springs it on her that not only is he a werewolf, but she is really Morgan Le Fey. Yeah right...all the time in her world. Now she finds herself traveling across the country with Yummy man trying to come to grips with the fact that she now must kill Arthur's minions in order to save the world (yes, the storyline changes but that's part of the fun...trust me). But can she and Derik find a happy ending as well?

This was a very fast read with all of Ms. Davidson's trademark humor and wit. Derik and Sara are great charecter's and the byplay is really part of the whole courtship. This is one read that I highly recommend especially if you have been following the Wyndham Werewolf Tales. If you are new to this series...fear not this is a stand alone read, that will only lead you to the others in the series.

Official Reviewer for www.romancedesigns.com

Take a trip with a werewolf, a powerful sorceress, and a wonderful group of supporting characters. Maryjanice Davidson returns to the wacky world of the Wyndham Werewolves in this novel. Don't worry, if you haven't read the previous installments, this novel stands on it's own four feet and howls at the moon. A quirky, humorous walk on the wildside. The only problem is that when you have finished reading it, you want the next installment of lycanthrope lunacy immediately.

Having enjoyed the previous 2 tales from Secrets Vol 6, "Love's Prisoner" and Secrets Vol 8, "Jared's Wolf" so much that I won't even allow Secrets Volume 6 out of the house, I was regularly checking the release date for Derik's Bane in case it came out early. I even went so far as to pay full retail, something I avoid whenever possible. Heck, I've read Love's Prisoner so many times I could almost recite it word for word, its an excellent choice when I want some decadent escapism.

Let me say that Derik's Bane WAS very enjoyable. Ms. Davidson is beyond talented with the dialogue in her stories, I simply love how she includes inner dialogue of the characters along with the dialogue between the characters. It seems so real. Don't we all have those internal conversations with ourselves while we're talking with other people? You can't help but laugh out loud.

As stated in a previous review, the story starts out very Wyndham Werewolf style, in the confrontation between Michael,the alpha male and pack leader and Derik, his best friend but also very possibly his rival. Derik doesn't want the pack, he doesn't want Michael's wife Jeannie and though he loves their daughter Lara like his own, he doesn't "want" her either. So he takes on a mission to save the world. And its from here things get away from the usual vein of the Wyndham clan.

If you've read the previous stories, you know that these werewolves are far from incompetent. However, Derik almost comes across as goofy. I realize that his failure to kill Sara is part of her "magic" but Derik seems to take it far to well. Skip along to when Derik goes through his change during the full moon and its almost an afterthought.

I read this in one afternoon, the day after I bought it. I'll keep it because I love the author's style and I love the Wyndham Werewolves, and because I love the genre. However, it doesn't come close to Love's Prisoner or even Jared's Wolf for plot development or sensuality. Which is too bad, because I think both Derik and Sara deserved it. I liked their characters, and I think the story had a lot of potential. So if you're going to read this, and haven't read the previous 2, you'll probably enjoy it more. If you have read the first 2, go into knowing that this story while very entertaining,is not the same style as the first two.

Could my three year love affair with MJD's books be on the skids? Well, it needs some counciling or therapy at the very least. I was really disappointed in this book, which I had been looking forward to for over a year. It's plot is thin and silly and though Derik is totally lovable, Sara is the same cookie cutter heroine that has become standard in MJD's books. Yes, it's full of her trademark snarky humour and pop culture references (especially Food Network's annoyingly perky and extremely over-exposed Rachael Ray), but those alone can't carry a book. After the terrific first Wyndham Werewolves story, Love's Prisoner from Secrets Volume 6 as well as others including Jared's Wolf from Secrets 8, I had expected the same mix of werewolf lore, steamy sex and suspense. I found little of any of that in this book, however.

The basic storyline is that Derik Gardner, who had grown up within the Wyndham werewolf pack, has begun to show signs of turning alpha, picking fights with his packleader and best friend Michael Wyndham for no good reason. Derik does not want to fight or challenge Michael for leadership of the pack and so he jumps at a mission to kill one Sara Gunn who is supposedly the reincarnation of Morgan Le Fay and whose presence signals that the end of the world is coming - and soon.

Derik sets out for California to complete his mission, but when he meets Sara he cannot bring himself to kill her. She's just too pretty and she smells too good! Together they decide to confront the evil that plans to use Sara for it's own ends and to save the world. Along the way Sara and Derik share snarky banter and a little steamy sex and eventually fall in love. But can they save the world?

I don't get this latest trend that has King Arthur, his knights and Camelot as some paranormal plot device (I didn't particularly care for it in Angela Knight's Master of the Night either). Here we get some convoluted story of Arthur's followers trying to bring him back to life or some such thing and I just found it a bit silly is all. Usually I grab MJD's books and devour them immediately, but after this one, I find that I'm not doing that. As a matter of fact I still haven't read Hello, Gorgeous! and I've had that for over a month. Not a good sign for me. I can only hope that this is a temporary slump and that forthcoming MJD books will be up to the standard of books like Undead and Unwed, Thief of Hearts, Love Lies, etc.

I especially look forward to her three story anthology Really Unusual Bad Boys (10/05) which includes a reissue of short story Canis Royal: Bridefight and two more shorts about shapeshifters in a place called the Sandlands.

The hero is really funny and you just have to laugh through the whole book. I recommend this book to anyone with a yen for funny romances.

Derik is one of the Wyndham werewolves and is becoming or has become an alpha, meaning he'll have to find a new home. His alpha sends him away on a mission to a kill a woman he's never even met. This bad #$@ is a fan of Rachel Ray and is convinced if he could smell her up close he'd have confirmation that she's really a werewolf. Supposedly the reincarnation of the evil Morgan Le Fey has no idea that she's supposed to be evil. The novel just sort of chugged along and didn't have too much zip. I guess if I'd read the other books in the series, I might have felt differently. Maybe I should have taken it more lightheartedly. It's too cutesy to be a book about a werewolf and a sorceress. I like my novels with more substance and definitely more of a bite!

I was hoping that "Derik's Bane" would have the same charisma as the werewolf stories in Davison's "Secrets" books. And it did start out that way, with Derik's provocation of Michael setting off a fight, possibly to the death. However, so much of this book was unbelievable that it was like chewing cheap gum that won't hold together. For example, the deadly attackers who fail to assassinate the heroine--they fall over, etc.--make no impression not only on her, but apparently also on the rest of the hospital staff. No one seems even upset. In fact, no one in the hospital seems even to notice the deadly attempt. No one calls the police. It's as if a group of rowdy boys have misbehaved. The characterization was very uneven and "jerky," not smooth. Yes, the dialogue is funny--Davidson is rightfully famous for that. I laughed often. The hero and heroine fall in love and I just didn't care. You might, But then again, you probably won't.

Derik is a drop dead gorgeous werewolf who's unintentionally become an Alpha. He's bound for a challenge with his best friend and Pack Leader, Micheal. This would be disastrous. He takes off with a multiple purpose---save the World and save his Pack at the same time.

Sara Gunn is the reincarnation of Morgan Le Fay and she's destined to destroy the world. She doesn't have an idea of this til some red robed assassins and then Derik try to kill her.

As long as you suspend belief, the story's funny. However, neither Derik nor Sara would qualify as 'the brains of the outfit.' Any success they have is due to dumb luck--with the emphasis on the first word.

Still, Davidson's humor kept me laughing. The book was a light and quick read. This was MUCH more of a romance than a fantasy. Most of the pages were dedicated to Derik and Sara's romance. The erotica is monogamous and no one gets hurt, which I definitely approve of.

I'm not sure I will read more of Davidson's books. I tend to read more for the plot and the fantasy angle and this just wasn't much part of "Derik's Bane."

I loved MaryJanice Davidson's Wyndham Werewolf novellas in the Secrets anthologies and had looked forward to reading Derik's Bane. This is a full-length novel of a great series and I loved it! Derik Gardner has discovered that he is an alpha werewolf and has the urge to fight with the true Wyndham alpha -- his best friend Michael -- to the death. But then he gets a strange prediction from one of the werewolves. No one would consider the task of killing a sorceress and saving the world a relief, but it gives Derik an excuse to forget about his alpha issues, at least until the mission is complete. However, he hadn't anticipated the fact that the powerful sorceress -- her former life was King Arthur's sister Morgan Le Fay -- is ditzy, loud-mouthed Dr. Sara Gunn. Unable to kill her, he decides to travel to Salem, Massachusetts, with her to get some answers. He tries ways to get her to sleep with him throughout the journey, making the scenes extremely funny.

Derik's Bane is full of Davidson's signature humor and memorable quips. The dialogue is sharp, witty and crisp and kept me laughing till the final pages. The dialogue in the last few pages of the novel is especially hilarious. Derik is everything I thought he'd be when I read him in Love's Prisoner and Jared's Wolf. And Sara is the typical Davidson smart-mouth, sarcastic heroine. I love her female characters! They are a great departure from all of the docile women in romantic fiction. I have three complaints regarding this novel though. The first one is that the novel is too short -- 292 pages. I wish Davidson's novels were longer because I absolutely love them. The second thing is that this novel is not as edgy as the first two parts of the Wyndham Werewolf series. Love's Prisoner and Jared's Wolf are dark and erotic. This one has its dark edges, most of them centered on Derik's bad boy behavior, but the novel in general is... cuter than the first two installments. My third complaint is that Derik's Bane seems rushed and incomplete. Some things are resolved in abrupt ways. As said earlier, it would have been great if this novel had been longer. Other than that, I love this novel. Davidson's humor is second to none. I read it in one sitting. I enjoyed Derik's Bane and I cannot wait to read the next installment. I think it'll be based on the werewolf-slash-psychic character Antonia.

I've not previously read a Wyndhma Werewolf Tale, so I came into DERIK'S BANE with no preconceptions. I enjoyed the story, the characters, and the typical MaryJanice Davidson wit, although I did find the ending (which happened in about two pages) a wee bit far-fetched.

Derik Gardner, hottie and member of the Wyndham Pack, has recently been feeling a little out of sorts. When he loses control one morning and gets into it with alpha Michael Wyndham (his leader and best friend since childhood), he realizes that something has to change.

And change they do. Derik has been informed that the reincarnation of Morgan La Fay, great sorceress and sister to King Arthur, not to mention historically believed to be a betrayer of a nation, has now taken the body of spunky, cute nurse with a doctorate Sara Gunn. His mission? "Take care of" Ms. Gunn, and prevent her from destroying the world.

Sara is a little perturbed by Derik's arrival on her doorstep, but no more so than she was by the guys in red monk's robes who tried to kill her at the hospital where she works later that day. It seems strange things are always happening to her, but her "luck", as she calls it, in turn causes weird things to happen to the bad guys.

As Derik attempts to take care of Sara by killing her, he realizes that he, superior body be damned, can't hurt her. So if you can't beat 'em, you join 'em, right? Sara and Derik set off cross-country to Salem, Massachusetts, where the sect of King Arthur resides, determined to save the world from destruction.

DERIK'S BANE is a fun, enjoyable read. In typical MJD style it's got passion, hilarious dialogue, a yummy hero, and a spunky heroine. What it lacks is a try believable ending (Sara KICKS the baddie to destroy it), but overall this is a fun way to spend an afternoon.