16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Seductive and Comical First-Person Narrative, November 10, 2007
This review is from: The Road to Hell (Hell on Earth, Book 2) (Paperback)
THE ROAD TO HELL is newbie author Jackie Kessler's second foray into the paranormal romance field that's just burgeoning with vampires, werewolves, witches, and other supernatural things. Kessler has played a trump card that's going to be hard to beat. Her heroine, known in the mortal world - translation, our world, as Jesse Harris was actually a demon named Jezebel. From Hell. Yep, Hell - with a capital H. For four thousand years.
The story of how she became human - well, mostly - is told in the first novel, HELL'S BELLES. This one just came out and people should know it's out there. I've read both books. Couldn't help myself. The devil - or, at least, Jesse - made me do it.
In the mortal world, Jesse's main squeeze is vice detective Paul Hamilton, who has no clue about Jesse's otherworldly origins. To him, she's the most wonderful woman he's ever known. Except for that little faux pas she has of being a stripper at a gentlemen's club. And trust me, the gentlemen at that club don't exactly act gentlemanly, as the opening pages of the novel reveal.
And Jesse hasn't forgotten she was once a succubus of seduction. She enjoys sex in all forms. Stripping just kind of takes the edge off of no longer being a practicing demon. Or maybe it builds her appetite for when Paul comes home. After reading the books, I think it's probably a mixture of both.
What I can tell you with all certainty is that Kessler has created a spunky, foul-mouthed, straight-shooting, character that still maintains an endearing innocence even after four thousand years of sin. Jesse/Jezebel is a hoot. I should be ashamed for enjoying her ribald adventures so thoroughly. Probably I am. But Jesse (and Kessler) is a supreme provocateur and seductress. I claim being bespelled as my defense.
Kessler's prose and pacing are engrossing. Readers aren't going to be able to pick her books up and read casually. They're going to be hooked by the cleverness, whipped into a frenzy by the blatant eroticism and honesty, and left in a lather when the last page of a book is turned.
She reads like an old hand. She admits on her website to enjoying comic books and writing fan fiction. Still, you can sharpen your craft there, but Kessler writes like she's been through the finishing school for fiction writers.
Perhaps some of the characters don't come across on the page as strongly as they might, but there's no need. With Kessler holding the reins and the novel bolting like a thoroughbred with its tail on fire, you're simply not going to have time to give them that kind of consideration. They work. They have problems, goals, dreams, and desires (most of them sinful or sexual, of course).
And Jesse/Jezebel is a honest and appealing (in oh-so-many ways), that anyone who is even modestly intrigued by this kind of fiction is going to be swept away and dropkicked into a functionally realized world that makes its own macabre sense. The mythology, the way she redeemed demons - mostly, was intriguing. The background isn't why someone probably picks paranormal romance up, but those writers that pay attention to it really stand out in the field. Kessler is fast becoming one of those.
Though she hasn't given up all her demonic thoughts, Jesse strives to live life as a mortal woman because she loves Paul. The problem is that she escaped Hell (her job classification had been changed from Seductress to Betrayer and that didn't suit her nature at all). And now Hell has come looking for her.
Jesse's best friends try to bait her into returning to Hell. First through guilt (after all, her one-time best friend Meg - one of the Greek Erinyes, also called the Furies) has gone missing. And anything strong enough to make a Fury disappear has got to be considerable. These attempts are hilarious. I found myself laughing out loud several times. Don't do this in public, because trying to explain the erotically-laden plot, quips, puns, and jokes isn't meant for the public transport or water cooler crowd. Unless you're in an especially permissive public transport or water cooler crowd.
Then Dauuan, her one-time casual lover for thousands of years who knew best what she really wanted and craved, tries to seduce her into losing her newly-won soul. That, at times, had me in tears as I laughed at both of them dancing around their changed relationship.
Jesse decides that things in Hell must have truly gone to Hell with all of these things going wrong. But she avoids guilt, sympathy, and clever traps with aplomb.
Then, when nothing else has worked, Meg's sister Fury seduces Paul and strips his soul from him. She takes it to Hell. And Jesse now has no choice but to go there to rescue him.
The book, as long as it is, will be one of the quickest reads you've ever had. The events basically take place in one day, but it's a day that progresses at breakneck speed and with twists and turns and loops that a prize-winning rollercoaster would envy.
Read one of Kessler's books and she'll seduce you into her private fandom.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Delightfully Entertaining, October 31, 2007
This review is from: The Road to Hell (Hell on Earth, Book 2) (Paperback)
I'll admit that I almost didn't buy Jackie Kessler's second book in her Hell on Earth series. I really enjoyed the first one, Hell's Belles, but it had been a while since I read it and my interest had waned a bit. I'm just glad I gave this one a try because The Road to Hell is definitely as good as the first.
In fact, it may be even better. Reading about Jezebel, or Jesse, was like reading about an old friend. After only one book I already felt a sense of kinship and familiarity with her character- from her quirky, bawdy sense of humor to her witty dialogue and courage (and occasionally, her complete lack thereof)- that it really surprised me. The more I learned about Jesse, and the demons and other creatures from Hell, the more I wanted to read. I was truly disappointed when I finished the last page, it was just that entertaining.
In the Road to Hell, Jesse's troubles only seem to get worse. She no longer has a price on her head, but that doesn't seem to matter to the frighteningly powerful Fury who wants her help, the seductive incubus who wants her in his bed, and the vindictive Queen who wants her dead. Jesse also continues to struggle with adjusting to her new soul, her new human life and her relationship with her boyfriend, Paul. Did she make the right choice? Does Paul really love her? Should she go back to hell? Was it all worth it?
The Road to Hell kept me guessing and turning each page as fast as I could. Ms. Kessler's second novel is just as fun and delightfully entertaining as the first, and I definitely recommend it.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Jesse is back with just as much spunk and sass as she had the first time we met her, November 23, 2007
This review is from: The Road to Hell (Hell on Earth, Book 2) (Paperback)
Courtesy of CK2S Kwips and Kritiques
Former succubus, now human with a soul, Jesse is settling into her mortal life with her new love, Paul. She has the perfect job for a former seducer demon - she's an exotic dancer - and is madly in love with Paul. But life is far from simple.
Alecto the Fury comes to Jesse, begging her to return to hell to rescue Megaera, Alecto's sister Fury and best friend of Jesse in her succubus life. Incubus Daun wants Jesse to return to Hell so they can continue their former torrid sexual affair. Lilith, former Seducer queen, now assigned nightmare duty, has not forgiven Jesse/Jezebel for shooting her with iron bullets in their last encounter and vows to get revenge, using Paul's soul as leverage.
Then there is Angel, the wannabe Seraphim. All Angel ever desired was to be a member of the heavenly Choir. Now she has been forced to work as a succubus by the new King of Hell, who is nothing like Lucifer, and is turning things upside down. Jesse has taken Angel under her wing to teach her the sensual arts.
What's a former demon to do?
I got such a kick out of Jackie's first book, Hell's Belles, that I was not about to pass up an opportunity to read The Road to Hell. Jesse is back with just as much spunk and sass as she had the first time we met her. You have to love her wicked (in every sense of the word) sense of humor. She is, naturally, a very passionate woman and the depth of her love for Paul surprises even her. She's always been very compassionate, which put a damper on her fiendish duties in her time as a demon. Now that's she's gained a heart and soul, that compassion is even stronger and has a tendency to get her into trouble. Jesse is one of the most fascinating characters I've come across in a long time and I thoroughly enjoy her escapades.
As with Hell's Belles, we meet all manner of supernatural creatures in The Road to Hell, even adding a few new ones into the mix. This time while meeting still more demons, we also get to see angels, archangels, Furies, Dwarves, lost souls, and all manner of nasty creatures making Hell their home. We even get to visit with a witch and a Goddess between the covers of this delightful book. Every fan of paranormal romance will find some reason to love The Road to Hell.
Of course, being a former succubus, Jesse has a very healthy sexual appetite so be prepared for some sizzling love scenes. There are only a few of them since Jesse is too busy to "get busy" much, but don't let that fool you. The tension is blazing hot, putting even put the Lake of Fire to shame.
As the title, The Road to Hell, indicates, much of this book takes place in the underworld. One of the best quirks about this series is the complete role reversal of good and evil in Jesse's mind. Our visit to the Netherworld provides ample opportunity for us to see that attitude come into play. It also was interesting to revisit the Kingdom of Hell and see all of the changes the new king has instituted. I know the king's identity was revealed in book 1, but just in case someone should happen across this book first, I don't want to ruin their surprise to find out who's in charge down there. Interestingly enough, this new king is even more ruthless than Lucifer himself and will knock readers' opinions asunder as we see the world through demon eyes.
I loved The Road to Hell and I can't wait to see where Jesse will end up next!
© Kelley A. Hartsell, October 2007. All rights reserved.
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