Customer Reviews

Out of This World

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Out of This World" is a series of four vignettes whose only connection is that they each have a futuristic theme. The four are very cleverly packaged by the publisher: J.D. Robb (aka Nora Roberts) guarantees instant sales, as Eve and Roarke fanatics like me are severely addicted and cannot pass up ANY new book that offers more of these characters. Therefore, hers is the first story in the book.

"Interlude in Death" is a quick hit of Robb's futuristic world of murder, mystery, on-the-edge business dealings, and the always intriguing, always sensual marriage of hardboiled cop Eve Dallas and equally hardboiled (and gorgeous) billionaire businessman Roarke. There is method to the publisher's madness, and Robb's as well. For hard-core fans, Robb offers an intriguing, heretofore unmentioned secret from Roarke's past. For Eve-and-Roarke newbies, there is enough standard fare to lead them straight to Robb's "In-Death" series.

"Kinsman," by Susan Krinard, is an equally brief but interesting tale about telepaths in a very structured futuristic society. Because I do not read many novels in this genre, I was amazed by the attention to detail, and the author's ability to bring the reader easily and deeply into the world of Kinsmen, shaauri, and humans. The story itself, which involves a deception that threatens the entire society, was a bit slow, but the glimpse into the author's imagination was fascinating. "Kinsman" did not hook me into reading more Krinard, because the slowness of her style would not suit this impatient reader. Nevertheless, it was fun to sample her work.

"Immortality," by Maggie Shayne, is a quick read with a pat and improbable ending, again, entertaining but not a grabber. It's the story of an ancient witch whose human form is that of a beautiful and sexy young woman. The story features a fire, a drowning, a hurricane and more--all in this brief novelette. One can hardly, therefore, call the story slow or boring, but--I didn't like the witch. When Nora Roberts writes about witches, I am completely absorbed into their worlds. I believe every word, every spell, every bit of magic. With Shayne, I was well aware that I was reading a creative piece of fluff. I was never engaged.

That's OK, however, because OH MY the Laurell K. Hamilton vignette was worth the price of the book and then some. I had never heard of Ms. Hamilton before a few weeks ago. Now I am a fanatic. She drew me effortlessly into the world of vampire hunter Anita Blake. "Magic Like Heat Across My Skin" is a dark, dangerous, deeply erotic tale of vampires, werewolves, wereLEOPARDS (an idea of which I heartily approve)--and in this story, a werehyena or two. Reading this small Hamilton offering is like dressing in black velvet and drinking a smoky dark wine. It feels dangerous. It definitely stirs one's senses. And...it does exactly what it is supposed to do, it makes one want more.

I gave "Out of This World" 3 stars because of the two middle stories; otherwise, I would have given Robb a 4 and Hamilton a 20! What? Only 5 starts maximum? That positively ruptures my aura, as Blake says.

I bought this book for "Interlude in Death," J.D. Robb's short story. It has a complete story, starting with murder at the Martian resort where the cops are gathering for a conference. Robb adds to the building of her characters with this short story and fills under a hundred pages to make the story complete.
I was introduced to Laurell Hamilton. This was a little disappointing at first since it was obviously an excerpt from her new novel but it was so great I want to read all the Anita Blake novels
Sue Krinard's story just might be the beginning of a romance series. This one was predictable, but very intriguing, not the best story but worth the read!
Maggie Shayne's story was the weakest of the four stories. I was not impressed with her style and the story had no interest for me at all.
All and all I enjoyed this book even through two were only excerpts. I never miss an Eve Dallas tale, short story of novel and I love to be introduced to new authors!

(...)I would like to add a huge WARNING though. For 3 out of the 4 books, if you have never read the books in the series preceding this anthology, you will probably not enjoy these stories. I have read all of the authors and thought this a pretty good book, thus the 4 stars, but if this is your first experience with Hamilton, Shayne or Robb, move ahead cautiously.

J D Robb's (aka Nora Roberts) story was a good short story keeping in line with her ...In Death series. The characters are mostly all there and the plot is a good one. I suppose if you have never read her books, you could enjoy this story, but there is so much previous baggage from the relationships that it would seem to me that coming in on this story would be like watching the Return of the Jedi without watching Star Wars or The Empire Strikes Back first.

I could not even begin to imagine following Maggie Shanye's novel if I had not read at least Destiny, and probably Infinity and Eternity as well. Puabi was so evil in Destiny that it was quite hard for me to get into this book. If I had no previous knowledge of her earlier history, this book would not make much sense. So much revolves on how utterly evil she was and the lengths and time she spent trying to get her way.

I felt VERY cheated with Laurell Hamilton's portion of the book. As stated elsewhere, this is just a segment of Narcissus in Chains. I am a huge fan and would have bought her book anyway. I wanted something different, why pay for this if I am going to pay for the whole book anyway? VERY bad judgment call, whoever made it, the author or the publisher. If I had never read the Anita Blake series, this is not the way to be introduced into it. SO much has happened before this point (what 9 or 10 books worth?) that I do not think someone new to Ms. Hamilton would enjoy this story (or part of the story). The fact that this is just a few chapters with no beginning and no end, no real purpose besides sensual images, bothered me too.

I liked Susan Krinard's book very, very much. Maybe not quite as sensual at the other stories, but the ONLY story that was a stand-alone. I like Ms. Krinard's older books, and the imagination in this story reminds me of the originality found in them. We had the development of both a relationship and a fictional world that was done without relying on previous books. Kudos Ms. Krinard!

I bought this because I am a fan of Laurell K. Hamilton. However, I only read the editorial reviews, as opposed to the customer reviews (which I should have done). If I had, I would have realized that the portion written by Hamilton is identical to her book Narcissus in Chains (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Book 10) which I have already read. I would have appreciated it if the editorial reviews said this.

This is just a warning to anyone who is buying the book because they saw the name LKH. Save your money here and buy "Narcissus In Chains" instead, where you can read this excerpt and the rest of the story for the same price as this book.

Unless you are dying to read a JD Robb short story, don't buy this book. It is a hodge podge of non related advertisements for these authors. Two stories are exerpts from upcoming books. I found this very frustrating and unsatisfying. Skip it.

I bought this book because I am a very big fan of Laurell K. Hamilton, and preternatural romance in general. Her contribution to the anthology is found last, preceded by Nora Roberts writing as J.D. Robb, Susan Krinard and Maggie Shayne. Before purchasing this novel I was familiar with all the writers but one, Susan Krinard. Having never read anything of hers prior to her short story, "Kinsman", I was impressed. Albeit hard to follow in the begining it did have an interesting concept and the leading charecters were dynamic if not a little predictable. The authors I have already been introduced to did not dissapoint. J.D. Robb kicks it off with another Lieutenant Eve Dallas story. You do not need to be familiar with Eve and Roarke from the "In Death" series to enjoy this story. Eve is a strong and capable leading lady, one you are sure to enjoy. The story follows along the lines of a police mystery with a little drama, sci-fi and romance thrown in. A good read. Another of my favorite writers contributes to this colaboration. Maggie Shayne, writter of "Eternity" and "Infinity"(Some of my favorites), adds a story of magic and romance. Along the lines of her previous novels she takes us into the life of Puabi, an Imortal High Witch, who is reincarnated to fix an an ancient wrong. If you enjoyed this story, I highly recomened her other works. As I said earlier, I purchased this story for Anita and the boys. As I read the synopsis I came to realize that the story, "Magic Like Heat Across My Skin", is mearly a preview to her forthcoming book "Narcissus In Chains". I admit that I was grateful for the first few chapters featuring Anita since January of last year, but I was expecting an original short story apart from the new book. Besides that fact, I did enjoy the story, if not the atmosphere it took place in, a great deal, especially seeing Anita and the boys back together again. Narcissus will prove to be an interesting addition to the Anitaverse, if not a royal pain in the behind! I look forward to reading the conclusion to that dilemma in October(Ms. Hamilton, if you are reading this, please no delays!). Though I did enjoy this collection of stories I must issue a disclaimer to he public. If you are buying this book only for Ms. Hamilton's work, wait for "Narcissus In Chains" to come out. If not, enjoy the read.

Yes, that is how much I love Ms. Robb's stories. I bought a whole book just to get a short story. Having said that, the short story was worth the price I paid - it was one of the best JD Robb stories I've read.

Quick summary: Eve goes to a US police conference on Roarke's Olympus Resort, and there meets the old police chief who wants her to help him take down Roarke. When someone sets up a murder, trying to make it look like Roarke did it, Eve must quickly find out why the ex-policeman wants Roarke so badly.

This anthology of four paranormal romance stories totally rocked! Laurell K. Hamilton and J.D. Robb are my two favorite authors, but I've never read books by Krinard or Shayne before.

J.D. Robb, aka Nora Roberts, contributed 'Interlude in Death.' This mystery/romance story follows her bestselling In Death series, as NYPD Lieutenant Eve Dallas and her billionaire husband, Roarke, chase an esteemed *rogue ex-cop* at an intergalatic conference. The cop harbors a personal vendetta against Roarke because of his mysterious past. All in all, the story stands well alone, and will prove satisfying whether you're a long-time Robb fan or a new reader to the series.

Susan Krinard's story 'Kinsman' is a futuristic/romantic thriller. When her brother's ship disappears during a secret space mission, a young princess of a small planet asks a 'Kinsman,' (a member of a special human *race* that possess certain telepathic powers) for aid. Along their journey to find the missing prince and his crew, the two discover a conspiracy brewing among the Kinsman's own people. They also discover that they're falling in love. I find this the weakest of the four stories, mostly because there were a lot of names and species that I didn't understand.

Maggie Shayne's 'Immortality' continues her Witch series. Puabi is an Immortal High Dark Witch who finds, after 4,000 years of existence, that she doesn't want to continue her old, evil ways. After being rescued by an unsuspecting human man and getting stranded on his island, Puabi rediscovers the zest to her life, as she and Matthew grow ever closer. However, Puabi's powers are slowly but surely diminishing. And there is unknown danger on the island. Tied into all this is the memory of Gabriella, Matthew's dead wife, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Puabi, although the two women are polar opposites. The ending is very poignant, with a wonderful plot twist. I really loved this story, and I'll definitely pick up her other books now!

'Magic Like Heat Across My Skin' is a sizzling, six-chapter preview of Laurell K. Hamilton's long-awaited NARCISSUS IN CHAINS, the 10th book in her bestselling Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series. After six months of celibacy, our heroine comes back to St. Louis and finds out that her wereleopards have been kidnapped by a rival group of shapeshifters. To get them back, she seeks her old lover, the sexy vampire Jean-Claude, for help. Jean-Claude agrees, but only if Anita will *marry the marks* so that she has a chance to fight and live. At the S&M club Narcissus in Chains, Anita, Jean-Claude, and Richard (Anita's werewolf lover) merge their energies, completing their triumvirate of power. Anita may be an animator, vampire hunter, necromancer, lupa of Richard's pack, and Nimir-Ra of the wereleopards, but she is human nevertheless. The line between humans and monsters is all-too-thin sometimes, and by consumating the marks, Anita may have become irrevocably changed now. Also, the story tends to lean toward the romance side, which will no doubt create mixed feelings among Hamilton's loyal fans. New readers will most likely find this story difficult to follow, but very, very sensual. I found Laurell's writing style a bit 'off,' but I still can't wait for NARCISSUS IN CHAINS in October!

I bought this book simply because I am an Anita Blake junkie and couldn't wait to get my next fix. So you can imagine my surprise at how much I really enjoyed the other stories.

Now, before we continue with the review, let me just admit that, yes, apparently I have been living under a rock. I say this because I had never heard of J.D. Robb and the 'In Death' series before buying this book. The story 'Interlude in Death' starts off the quartet of stories and it made me an instant Eve Dallas fan. "Wow!" is all I can say. I had never met any of these characters before, but by the end of the story I felt I knew them and wanted to spend more time getting to know them. (I immediately went out and bought every book in the series.) The fact that Ms. Roberts could make a new reader like me care so much about these characters in a little over 100 pages just amazes me. That is truly a sign of a great author.

The final story is an excerpt from Laurell K. Hamilton, from her then new novel, "Narcissus in Chains". I was disappointed only because it was not original and by now, I had already read the full "Narcissus in Chains" novel. But even rereading an Anita Blake story is better than a lot of what is out there.

The middle two stories, "Kinsman" by Susan Krinard and "Immortality" by Maggie Shayne have the misfortune of being sandwiched between two really outstanding stories. I think if I read these two first, or as part of a separate collection I would have a much higher opinion of them. Both are good. Both are entertaining. They just didn't reach out and grab me like Robb's or Hamilton's stories do.

Basically, if you are only familiar with only one or two of the authors I would really recommend this book to get a taste of similar, but very distinct, writers -- I think you will be as pleasantly surprised as I was.

"Out of This World" contains four short stories by four unique and talented authors. I read the reviewer warnings which stated that if the reader has not read any of the previous books by three of these authors, that the corresponding stories will not make sense. I decided to give it a try anyway and I truly enjoyed every single one, never once feeling confused or lost!

I bought this book for the J.D. Robb story, as I am completely addicted to her "In Death" series. "Interlude in Death" is a fantastic read. We meet up with Lieutenant Eve Dallas and her billionaire husband Roarke at an off-planet police and security conference. After a brutal murder occurs, Eve finds herself trying to track down a rogue ex-cop, before he can get his way and destroy Roarke! The passion between Eve and Roarke is intense and steamy as always, and the suspense builds effectively, even in such a short piece. Fans of Robb and first time readers alike will be completely captivated by this story. Upon reaching the end, readers will surely want to see more of Eve and Roarke!

The second story in the book, "Kinsman" by Susan Krinard is a great read. I was completely absorbed into the world of shauuri, kinsmen, and humans. At times the story was bogged down by having to explain this complex new world, but for the most part it was well-written and enjoyable. The main characters, Kori Galetéa Challinor and Jonas Kane VelArhan, are both telepaths, who join forces to search for a lost ship. They uncover a terrible conspiracy and vow to stop those responsible. Jonas and Kori have a very special connection, and the love that they share will be put to the ultimate test in their fight for justice!

Third is Maggie Shayne's "Immortality", which is excellent. We meet Puabi, a Dark Immortal High Witch on the verge of death. Matthew finds her floating in the ocean and saves her life, bringing her back to his island. Puabi, who has spent 4000 years using her evil ways, finds something changing inside of her. Matthew is also getting over his own tragedy, and these two begin to heal each other. Puabi puzzles over the strange and tender new emotions she is feeling, and her romance with Matthew is fresh and passionate. But things are not as they seem, and a dark force is looming close, waiting to destroy them. Now Puabi and Matthew must pull together and fight for their newfound love! I really enjoyed this story, and never once felt confused, even though it is the first piece by Shayne I have ever read.

Finally is Laurell Hamilton's "Magic Like Heat Across My Skin", which is merely an excerpt from her newest book. I think I enjoyed this the least. I really liked Anita Blake, the necromancer, and her lovers Jean-Claude, the Master Vampire, and Richard the Alpha Werewolf. I thought the dynamics between these three were great and that the magic of "merging auras" was fascinating. However, at times Hamilton seemed to be more interested in describing the dominance and submission, sadism and masochism than in telling the story. Perhaps this is supposed to be an important part of vampire/shape-shifter culture, and since I haven't read any of her books, I can't be sure, but it seemed excessive. I was also highly frustrated by the way the story ended, with no resolution at all. But then, I suppose that was the point, hoping that we will rush out and buy "Narcissus in Chains". Overall, the characters were interesting and well-written, and I found them very compelling, but I was irritated by the story's lack of resolution and its emphasis on disturbing sexual practices.

All-in-all, I really enjoyed "Out of This World". Robb's story was my favourite, and Krinard's and Shayne's stories really caught my interest. Hamilton's 'excerpt' had some intriguing aspects, and though I will not buy "Narcissus...", I may have a look at some of her earlier works, which are reputed to be much better. Of course, my opinions won't be shared by all, due to the diverse range of genres included in this anthology. This book provides a wonderful opportunity for readers to sample new authors, and I believe it is most definitely worth the read!