This Side of the Grave (Night Huntress, Book 5) [Mass Market Paperback]

Jeaniene Frost (Author)

Book Description

Release date: February 22, 2011

The highly anticipated continuation of Jeaniene Frost's New York Times and USA Today bestselling Night Huntress series, in which Cat and Bones face an enemy unlike any they've met before.

Danger waits on both sides of the grave. 

Half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her vampire husband Bones have fought for their lives, as well as for their relationship. But just when they've triumphed over the latest battle, Cat's new and unexpected abilities threaten to upset a long-standing balance...

With the mysterious disappearance of vampires, rumors abound that a species war is brewing.  A zealot is inciting tensions between the vampires and ghouls, and if these two powerful groups clash, innocent mortals could become collateral damage. Now Cat and Bones are forced to seek help from a dangerous "ally"--the ghoul queen of New Orleans herself. But the price of her assistance may prove more treacherous than even the threat of a supernatural war. ...to say nothing of the repercussions Cat never imagined.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Cat and Bones are combustible together.” (Charlaine Harris)

From the Back Cover

Danger waits on both sides of the grave.

Half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her vampire husband Bones have fought for their lives, as well as for their relationship. But just when they've triumphed over the latest battle, Cat's new and unexpected abilities threaten to upset a long-standing balance . . .

With the mysterious disappearance of vampires, rumors abound that a species war is brewing. A zealot is inciting tensions between the vampires and ghouls, and if these two powerful groups clash, innocent mortals could become collateral damage. Now Cat and Bones are forced to seek help from a dangerous "ally"—the ghoul queen of New Orleans herself. But the price of her assistance may prove more treacherous than even the threat of a supernatural war . . . to say nothing of the repercussions Cat never imagined.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Avon; First Edition edition (February 22, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061783188
• ISBN-13: 978-0061783180
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 1.1 x 4.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (189 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #67,257 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jeaniene Frost is the New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author of the Night Huntress series and the Night Huntress World novels. To date, foreign rights for her novels have sold to nineteen different countries. Jeaniene lives in North Carolina with her husband Matthew, who long ago accepted that she rarely cooks and always sleeps in on the weekends. Aside from writing, Jeaniene enjoys reading, poetry, watching movies with her husband, exploring old cemeteries, spelunking and traveling - by car. Airplanes, children, and cook books frighten her.

For more information on Jeaniene's books, including reading the first 20% of her novels, deleted scenes, creature mythology, and more, go to: http://www.jeanienefrost.com/

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#4 in Books > Romance > Fantasy & Futuristic

#31 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#46 in Books > Romance

#85 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Romance

#90 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

#4 in Books > Romance > Fantasy & Futuristic

#31 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#46 in Books > Romance

#85 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Romance

#90 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 55 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Bones all the way...... February 22, 2011

By Jessie Potts TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Mass Market Paperback

First off I would suggest going back and skimming through the summaries of the last four books, or at least the reviews, a lot has happened since our dear Cat tried to kill (unsuccessfully) Bones. Now Bones is her husband, she's a full vampire, learning new abilities, making friends, making enemies, killing enemies, exc. When we last met up with Cat she discovered certain disconcerting things about her abilities as well as her diet. Bones of course still loves her and adores the ground she walks on. Since she's been turned Cat and Bone's relationship has been going strong and they no longer doubt one another.

Now Cat and Bones have a worse problem, the leader of the ghouls is rising up to bring Cat down. This causes them to seek out Marie (Undead Queen of New Orleans, crazy woman) who has her own reason for `helping' Cat. Most of this book centers on the quest to find Apollyon as well as trying to discover just where the Undead Queen stands. While book four was full of war, angst and terror, this one is more subtle. I have to say I loved book one and two, three I could have done without, and four was better, I liked this installment, and especially that Cat is finally coming into her own. I know that's funny to say since she's already gained a ton of powers, she's teamed up with leaders and armies, but in this book she's finally growing up. She trusts Bones, she no longer is led by fiery emotion, but thinks things through. She also is a little more likable for those of you who found her oftentimes angsty whining annoying. A lot of the time it's hard to grow a couple together over the course of a series, that's why most authors center each installment on a different couple, Frost has done a great job, one I was hoping but not expecting to continue. I really like Bones and Cat's interaction with each other in this one and am looking forward to the next. Enjoy!

40 of 47 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars This series has been set on a whole new trajectory... February 23, 2011

By Dee18 TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

A war is brewing . . . one that could potentially wreak havoc and destruction across the supernatural playing field.

Vampire VS. Ghoul

Undead VS Undead

And Cat is at the centre of it all. Her new vampiric powers are potentially all-consuming and powerful, and she has the ghoulish world running scared.

`This Side of the Grade' is the fifth book in Jeaniene Frost's `Night Huntress' series.

The new `Night Huntress' book is always a much-anticipated release. Fans salivate in anticipation of the new Cat and Bones instalment and countdown months, weeks and days until they can get their hands on this hot little paranormal. Unfortunately, I wasn't in love with this book.

It's really hard to pin-point precisely what didn't work for me, but I think it has to do with lack of romantic tension.

One of the great things about this series is the cemented romance between Cat and Bones. `Night Huntress' is unique for the fact that Frost put the `will-they-or-won't-they' technique to bed and gave fans an ongoing, committed relationship between her protagonists. Now, don't get me wrong, I love Cat and Bones being together and loved up. Heck, I have re-read Chapter 32 hundreds of times (who hasn't?) but I like it when there's tension between these two. I love it when Frost places a hurdle before their relationship - because even though Cat and Bones are together, and their love is the only sure thing in the `Night Huntress' series, I loves me some tension between them! In the past Cat and Bones have been torn apart by a secret government organization, Cat's jealousy over Annette and Gregor's obsession with Cat. But in `This Side of the Grave' Cat and Bones are (unfortunately) stable and in a good place, romantically. There's no real strain on their romance, no outside parties igniting jealousy or inner-demons inciting discontent. They're just happy. And that's great . . . but a little boring to read. I didn't even find Chapter 21 to be overly steamy, despite many a reviewer comparing it to 32 of `One Foot in the Grave'. I'm sorry; I just needed a little more spark between Cat and Bones; I would have appreciated an appearance from Annette, or more flirting from Tate. Anything!

A big focus in `This Side of the Grave' is on the changes Cat has undergone since being turned into a full vampire by Bones. Frost has written some very complicated changes for Cat to overcome and keep under wraps - to mention them would be to give away some big spoilers . . . suffice to say, these physical advancements will have a big impact on Cat and the entire trajectory of the series. I can't wait!

I appreciated reading some old fan favourites in this fifth book. Tate and Juan haven't really been a big presence for a few books now - but I was thrilled to read them come back into Cat's life. It was also nice to read a `guest-appearance' from Kira and Mencheres, fresh from their book `Eternal Kiss of Darkness'. I'm a big Mencheres fan, and I loved reading him being loved up and gushy! But best of all was Vlad. He has a fairly big role in this book, and some brilliant interactions with Cat. I think Frost is gearing up for her two Vlad spin-off books . . . and after reading his appearance in `This Side', I can't wait for Vlad to take centre stage! Of course, I still have my fingers crossed for Ian, Tate and Juan spin-off books too...

`This Side of the Grave' was an enjoyable (and much anticipated) `Night Huntress' addition. It wasn't my favourite, but I like where Frost has taken Cat's character and the reappearance of fan favourites to the storyline. I would have liked more romantic tension between Cat and Bones, to keep things spicy, but I realize that it's an odd complaint when the protagonist's cemented relationship is one of the big pluses of this series. Go figure.

3.5/5

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Cat & Bones: Still Great on Their Worst Day February 22, 2011

By Jen TOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Mass Market Paperback

It's been a long wait for a new Cat & Bones book. And though I was glad to be back with two of my favorite characters, it didn't quite enthrall me as much as the previous installments. Don't get me wrong, the Night Huntress series on a bad day, is still leaps and bounds ahead of most books on their best days. Some of the dialogue was laugh-out-loud funny. I love our characters and the great world Jeaniene Frost has built around them. But noticeably absent in this installment is any tension between Cat and Bones. Of course, at a certain point it is laughable to think anything can come between these two. But the tension present in every book before this one helped make them explosive. Here, we had one memorable sex scene, which frankly had me more distracted by the practicality of the abundant use of hot wax, than allowing me to really get into the moment.

The premise for this story is that the ghouls are still pushing the idea of war against the vampires. And Cat is their rallying point, with the unusual talents she has manifested. She and Bones go back to New Orleans to consult with Marie Laveau who boosts Cat with some black magic mojo. In the meantime, Cat reaches out to her network of friends to try to stop the war from happening.

To me, the threat just didn't seem as in-your-face as in times past. I never felt real danger. I was only really moved with the surprising storyline surrounding Don. And other than with him, I didn't feel the same connection I usually do with the supporting characters.

I don't want to sound like I'm disparaging the book, because I did enjoy it.... just not as much as the ones that came before. I look forward to our next installment. 4 stars.