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Third Grave Dead Ahead

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Third Grave Ahead - Darynda Jones
If you think you may like to try this book, and are wondering if you could read this as a standalone I would strongly suggest you don't try it. I have read all three and still need to look back over the first 2 to refresh my memory sometimes. There is a lot going on at all times in Charley's world.

Charley has bound Reye's spirit to his human body and he really seems to hate her for it. Every time Charley goes to sleep he appears in her dreams and ravishes her and while that sounds like a yummy thing , the dream sex is just as draining on her than not sleeping is. Now Charley finds herself hunting down a supposed wife killer, making sure the Son of Satan finds his human (foster?)father whom he supposedly killed ten years ago. In addition, she has to learn how to use her power as a Grim Reaper...ALL of her power. At least that is what Reyes keeps telling her. There is a war coming and she needs to fight the good fight.

I don't know how Darynda is doing it, but this book is even better than the first 2. Having Charley not sleep (you may have to really push hard to suspend your disbelief that anyone can go two weeks without sleep, but then Charley isn't really human is she?) and the less sleep she gets the funnier she is. Her sarcastic and irreverent humor is spot on yet again. Cookie is there lending her support and excellent sidekick skills to Charley as well as numerous cups of coffee. Who knew the Grim Reaper had such a coffee habit?

In this book, Charley is eventually getting a Guardian and it sure didn't end up being who I thought it should be- it is even better than I thought. There is at least one very graphic bloody scene towards the end of the book and if you don't have a strong stomach you may be tempted to skim over it...try not to as I believe it is a very important scene
Darynda can make you laugh and get you hot and bothered. You will become furious with some people and weep over others.
The writing is just perfect, the characters are multi-layered and even for this type of book they are very realistic. The characters are wonderfully written and come off as people I would really love to be friends with, if they were only real. The narrative is quirky and engaging, with no brooding inner-dialogue to depress you.

Tumultuous! Intense! Third Grave Dead Ahead is a caffeine laced journey into a world only Charley can lay claim to. Non stop intrigue and detective work drives Charley as she tries to unravel the multitude of cases before her, in order to save lives. As always you will find her trusted friend, Cookie, by her side, doing what she does best. Once again we are gifted the with the presence of Reyes. His anger and need for Charley to set him free will send this ongoing story into a completely different direction. We will finally be able to place a face to those elusive characters we've only heard about and could not wait to meet. Warnings of an impending war and torture will be foretold by the unexpected. As events unfold, Charley will unearth secrets long ago buried, yet still powerful enough to destroy lives. Yet, to make matters worse Charley will face a predator, a monster, that must be vanquished.

Just when thought you knew all there was, TGDA throws you for a loop!

Darynda's power in manifesting Charley's grief was superbly done. We watched in dismal awe as Charley experienced anger, guilt, helplessness, sadness, shock, numbing, yearning, and self-blame. Betrayal will violate Charley, and it will wear many names. All I could do was shout, "Reyes, do something, make her see reason, she didn't trust you either, fix this!" The writing was so well done, the anguish was palpable. We've been on this caffeine induced madness with her since the beginning, we went from 100 to 0 and were left reeling. Third Grave Dead Ahead was brilliant, and at the same traumatizing. It has left us marked, by way of questions and fear. Will we see Reyes and Charley unite, or will their suffering and pain be for not?

The author continues to delight in the third book in the series with a new cast of characters that I feel we will be seeing more of - after all, doesn't everyone need a gang of bikers to add a little spice to your daily routine?

The relationship between Charley and Reyes heats up the pages but quite frankly, while I enjoy that plot line, which of course is the main underlining theme, I actually like the interaction between Charley, Cookie, her Uncle, Garrett, and the new players more. The comedic lines that come from the mental fog that comes from basically not having slept for three weeks (every time she falls asleep, a very "annoyed" Reyes pops up for a little "happy time" and angst and then disappears again) are beyond hilarious. I was smiling for most, laughing out loud for some, and reading others out loud for my husband, which I am sure that he would rather I hadn't since he was trying to sleep at the time..

If you haven't read the first two books, GO BUY THEM!! You are missing out on a great thing! Then I would highly recommend you read them before this one as you will lose out on understanding much of the back story. Kind of spoilers - we get to meet "Mistress Marigold" and she was NOT what I was expecting and her little quirk was the most imaginative that I have read. It takes a lot to surprise me with a twist and the author did exactly that! She tells Charley that she is going to get a guardian angel and I can say that storyline had me worried and I was guessing all over the place - great shock as to who it ended up being...

I read another reviewer who said that they didn't like the "cases" that Charley was solving and just wanted to hear more about Reyes and what is going on it the war to come. I have to politely disagree because after all, Charley IS a private investigator and without her cases, we wouldn't be introduced to the new set of characters and the series would turn more into the "good vs evil" books that are published by every other author. Not that I have anything against those as I am buying them too but it is refreshing to have a battle that isn't the only thing going on in the book which gets old after a
while.

I don't know what more to say except that if you don't purchase this book, you are truly missing out on a great thing - that, and the T shirt sayings that start each chapter are great. I had jury duty yesterday so the one that said "The Police never find it as funny as you do" was spot on! It also led to some great memories from college which was a nice side effect that I am sure that the author didn't intend but my friends and I enjoyed remembering.. those though I won't be sharing :-)

I love, Love, LOVE this series! Charley Davidson makes me laugh. She brightens my day. She gives my soul a much needed rest. Truly, her books are the perfect brain candy; the books you read when nothing else sounds good, or other books take too much effort to start. And THIRD GRAVE DEAD AHEAD (book 3 in Charley's series) is no exception. In fact, it may be the best of the bunch!

Charley Davidson is wacky, off-beat, and very naughty; she is also THE Grim Reaper. And a PI. In THIRD GRAVE DEAD AHEAD, we also learn that she is so much more. While the first two books introduced us to Charley, her world, and her unique problems, THIRD GRAVE DEAD AHEAD is the book that gives us hints of what is come. We see Charley changing, maturing a bit (but not too much!), and her abilities growing stronger...much stronger.

THIRD GRAVE DEAD AHEAD is an oddly brilliant combination of chic lit, detective suspense, and urban paranormal genres. Charlotte "Charley" Davidson is a strong, sarcastic, take no prisoners, my way or the highway kinda girl. She knows what she needs to do, and she does it, not really caring what other people think. Her character is delightful, endearing, and zany - but, she feels REAL, like someone I would like to get to know. She loves her family, her friends, her job, coffee, and "brown edibles." Her spunky, devil-may-care attitude may get her in a world of trouble, but she always bounces back, and her heart is always in the right place. She solves crimes, rescues innocents, helps the dead, and saves the world. Oh, and of course she is dating (or something) the literally hot and oh so sexy son-of-Satan (who it turns out, may not the bad guy that he is supposed to be).

THIRD GRAVE DEAD AHEAD is an action-packed, well-written, incredibly clever, fast-paced page turner that I just couldn't put down. I read THIRD GRAVE DEAD AHEAD straight through and cannot wait for more!

OK, FINALLY got finished with Third Grave Dead Ahead and for once a book was exactly as good as I thought it would be. The big difference with this book and most others (even the ones I love0 is that this one keeps you entertained all throughout the novel unlike most which drag in places to give you tons of background and details like the colors of every damn thing in sight. The dialog and banter was what made this a grerat book instead of a good one and I cannot wait for the next one (and it had your requisite torture and mayhem for you dark ladies) and a sorta HEA (not really/exactly but you would have to read it to get it). Everyone of of this series has been a 4.5+ read for me just due to the entertainment value. Now I can't wait until the 4th grave.

Bottom Line: This is a series I gotta think everybody can love, it is light and dark at the same time. I can't think of anyone else that has pulled that off with any success, get this series.

I am so glad that I stumbled on this series. Its awesome. I can't decide what I like most about it. I think its Charley. I love her comebacks. I kept my husband up because I kept cracking up laughing. If your thinking of reading this book do it. The characters are great and I really like her writing style. I would suggest reading from the first book though.

I cannot say enough great things about this series. I won't go into detail about the plot since other reviewers before me have done a way better job than I could. I just felt compelled to at least write a review to say how amazing this book is!! I love the fun and snarky dialogue, the relationships, the action and drama. Most of all, I loved how the ending made me feel. There was no major cliffhanger, and I felt the way things turned out was way better than I expected. I actually smiled at the end. It is so rare that a book makes me feel good at the end that I just have to get that out there. Yet, I still cannot wait for the next book! I have read literally hundreds of books, primarily paranormal romance by authors such as Kelley Armstrong, Lara Adrian, Amanda Hocking, JR Ward, Kresley Cole, etc. I have to say this series is in my top 5 of all time best reads!

I can not get enough of Charley Davidson and her crew. By the end of the book, I laughed, I cried, I laughed until I cried, and I can not think of one thing I don't like about this series. MY GOODNESS the emotions that Darynda is able to bring forth are fantastic. It has quickly become a must have on my book shelf.

Charley is beyond hilarious. She could be in the most dire situation and still make a smart ass comment about something. Charley and Reyes' chemistry has always been off the wall but we see an unflattering side of Reyes in book 3. They have so much to work through but I hope that they are able to come back together after the events that happen in THIRD GRAVE DEAD AHEAD. I absolutely enjoy every single character in this series. Garrett has quickly climbed up the ladder on my faves list. He is a pain in the ass but I cant imagine him not being a part of Charley's life and their bickering helps keep me doubly entertained. We got a lot of information revealed to us and Charley had a rougher time then in previous installments this go round. By the end of the book she is feeling betrayed, depressed and all around pissed off at the male species. I cant begin to guess what will come next for Charley but you can bet I will be the first in the pre-order line to find out.

I cant imagine anyone not loving this series. If you have not started it yet I must say you are missing out on when of the best series out there.

This book was amazing. I seriously could not put it down. I read it one sitting and stayed to 3am to finish it. Like I said I just could not put it down.

Charley is still amazingly funny. I seriously love her. She is my newest girl crush.lol She is just always sarcastic always making jokes and is pretty kick ass. Then there is that dark mysterious Reyes and well he just drop dead sexy, he is also pissed off as all hell in this book. Now that Reyes is bound everytime Charley falls asleep he is there and not happy at all. Which makes Charley try and not sleep. She is staying awake, trying to find a missing women, trying to find a man who is suppose to be dead and also making some new friends with a biker gang.

Charley also learns a lot more about herself. A nun comes and visits her with a surprising message. Oh and Cookie is also hilarious too. We can not leave her out. Her and Charleys banter is just as fun as her and Reyes getting it on. (okay maybe not as fun but its fun in its own way.lol) Charleys Dad also drops a bomb shell on her and I do not think this one is going to go over well at all. And yes her life is also in danger.

I love this series. If you haven't yet then please start with book one and read them. And if you have read the others then you are going to want to read this one ASAP! The ending leaves us needing to know what is going to happen next. There are a few twists, some sexy scenes, laugh out loud moments, jaw dropping moments, action, mystery, suspense, heart ache and surprises. Darynda Jones really knows how to hook her readers in and you won't be able to stop once you start this book!!

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The story picks up a few weeks from where the last novel left off. We discover that our protagonist; the insatiable, snarky, loyal, butt- kicking, fearless, Charley Davidson, hasn't slept in almost two weeks. Why? Because every time she closes her eyes the smoking hot, son of Satan, Reyes Farrow enters her dreams; and he is mad. In the last novel, she bound Reyes to his human form and he wants to be released. Charley is confused because he keeps coming to her and Reyes tells her she is summoning him. This freaks Charley out, but she is soon on a case for a missing woman. The husband seeks her help in finding his wife and he stinks, like guilt, and Charley is convinced he killed her. When she discovers, the wife is still alive, the tale twists and turns with danger. While on the case, she is carjacked and discovers Reyes has escaped from prison. While forcing her to drive him to friends, he explains that the very man he was convicted of killing is alive. He asks Charley to help investigate. She desperately wants to trust Reyes, but he's the son of Satan. As she searches for Reye's father, her questions and investigation suddenly put her in danger. She is questioned by the police, and fears for the safety of her friends. As if all of this isn't enough she is dealing with a mafia biker gang and a father who wants her to retire and become a plumber. The mysterious email sender looking for the grim reaper appears. A strange ghost child with a big old knife is following Charley. Souls need to pass through her and the banter between Charley and her friend/assistant Cookie is totally hilarious. In my mind Cookie reminds me of actress Anne Potts in her role as, Mary Jo on Designing Women. Reyes and Charley's inability to trust each other, while dancing around mega feelings,(that neither will admit too) puts them both in danger. We get to see the human side of Reyes and quite frankly; son of Satan or not I am smitten.