Customer Reviews

When Darkness Falls: Kiss Of The Wolf\Shadow Kissing\The Devil She Knew

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Looking for a cure for insomnia? Try this book. Works like a dream.

Seriously, I bought this book because I love romance and also enjoy some elements of the supernatural, such as vampires. The book seemed to offer the right sort of combination - or so I thought. I was wrong.

Susan Krinard's Kiss of the Wolf started vaguely promisingly, but I quickly found it increasingly difficult to turn the pages. LA plastic surgeon trying to find herself goes to the Louisiana bayou - well, naturally, where else would she go? - and stumbles into a mystery involving a dead distant relative to whom she bears an uncanny resemblance. Like you do. And, of course, she also encounters a couple of werewolves and a murdering thug in nice-guy clothing. Falls into bed with Werewolf 1 not long after, despite his surly behaviour, and promptly falls in love with him and realises how much she loves the bayou despite there being not a lot of need for plastic surgeons in deepest Louisiana. Yeah, right. Yawn.

Novella 2 appeared to offer a little more promise. Tanith Lee's Shadow Kissing was apparently about a haunted apartment, yet it wasn't really. Though there was a seemingly self-propelling statue, also bearing a striking resemblance to a character in the novella. Between irritating minor characters (including one with the unlikely name of Cinnamon) and a so-called hero who was a complete jerk, I don't know what there was to like about this. Plus, although Lee got some of the English nuances correct, there were several references that jarred given the setting was London and the characters English.

And finally - yes, finally I got close to the end! - there was Novella 3. The Devil She Knew, by Evelyn Vaughan. Mercy of mercies, this one was about 40 pages shorter than the other two. Woman finds a strange fire in her walk-in closet. Like you do. Woman figures out within about ten seconds that she's got a portal to hell in her bedroom. Of course! Naturally, that's the first conclusion one would jump to. And when she calls her friendly maintenance man - whom we progressively discover manages, and in fact owns, her building - he naturally jumps to the same conclusion. This one went on and on, despite being shorter. But once the author got over wasting pages and pages on irrelevant, boring stuff (such as lunch with the heroine's family) and they suddenly, by amazing coincidence, figure out who's behind it and go visit the guy (hey, did you curse me with the fires of hell? Um... maybe), everything is skimmed over so quickly that it's completely unclear what actually happened.

Don't waste your money. This one is going straight to the recycling pile, and all three authors are on my `forget it!' list!

wmr-uk

I actually have this collection on my very small keeper shelf, and I take out Evelyn Vaughan's story The Devil She Knew as a cure-all for crabbiness or depression. Its a wonderfully sly and silly spoof of, as another reviewer said, a cheesy horror flick. Honestly, it may be the funniest story I've ever read!

And, of course, you can't go wrong with Susan Krinard's magnificent stories. I especially love her werewolf tales, because she knows her wolves and incorporates the realities of wolf pack behaviors and drives into her stories.

Tanith Lee is not my cup of tea normally, but hers really was a haunting and unforgettable story.

Take my word for it! Everyone else must have been having a bad day when they read this one. I've made the same mistake myself, and discovered later that a book I dis'sed was something to treasure!

my review, short and sweet and to the point-The Krinard story was just interesting enough to be good, but I couldn't finish either the Lee or Vaughn story. Like another reviewer stated- both were boring and inplausible.

My suggestion-save your money and get it from the library, or just skip it.

3 stars for Krinard's story.

This is the annual Harlequin Halloween romance anthology. The stories in the book are written by two of the top paranormal romance writers in the genre ( Evelyn Vaughn and Susan Krinard) and one is by fantasy writer Tanith Lee.

These are romances with paranormal themes. The emphasis in these novellas is on strong sexual tension in the midst of otherworldly happenings......

Susan Krinard's werewolf tale is fast, sexy and dangerous- the heroine is drawn to her dark lover even though she does not trust him. Great gothic elements make this one stay with you long after reading.

Tanith Lee introduces us to a man in stone who watches over his garden..... this one has a good suspense story mixed with supernatural hauntings and a ghostly mystery. The romance is complicated and the conflict not readily dismissed. Well written- I look forward to more in the new LUNA line by Ms. Lee!

Evelyn Vaughn has written an outrageous supernatural tale with all the elements of a good and cheesy horror movie! I love the portal to hell opening in her closet and how she asks the sexy super in her building to help her get rid of it! Together they track down the source of her problems and exterminate them- sharing an intense attraction and some steamy sex along the way.... This one is actually pretty tongue in cheek- flies by!

For more paranormal books- I recommend THE CIRCLE series by Evelyn Vaughn, The Immortal Witches series by Maggie SHayne ( don't miss the 4th in that series- you need to pick up OUT OF THIS WORLD another anthology to complete it!)Also recommended- The Vampire Viscount by Karen Harbaugh.

There are three stories here, all of which are self-contained. That's a rarity these days, for this kind of compendium.

I'm not a fan of werewolf books, so the Krinard, though lushly evokative of the Louisiana bayou, didn't intrigue me as much as the other two stories.

The Vaughn story was a little too silly for my taste. A portal to hell, and only the bad boy can save you from it? And a gorgeous landlord? Heavens, that IS fantasy. The story itself is very light, but quite fun.

The tale worth reading the book for, though is the Lee. Her writing brings the magic eerily alive. The heroine comes to life, and her situation and choices draw the reader in. The romance is also very differently written than most romance, and is a real breath of fresh air.

The other two stories, though, are just average. So I'm giving an average mark (would give 3.5 if I could).

(*)>

"Kiss of the Wolf" by Susan Krinard. Dr. Dana St. Cyr left California to return to her hometown, Big Marsh, Louisiana in the bayou backwaters to learn what happened to her identically looking cousin who vanished. Remy Arcenaux tells her to leave before she suffers the same fate as her relative, but Dana refuses though he frightens her, but not because she believes he will harm her. She fears her attraction to Remy, who rumors insist howls at night with murder in his heart.

"Shadow Kissing: by Tanith Lee. While Addie Preece travels abroad, artist Vivian Gray flat-sits her nineteenth century converted house apartment. In the garden Vivian sees a beautiful male statue that she needs to sketch. Not long afterward, the lonely Vivian meets Cinnamon Boyle-Martin and her partner Connor Sinclair, antique scavengers who want to buy some of Addie's stuff. However, Connor could have posed for the statue that has attracted Vivian.

"The Devil She Knew" by Evelyn Vaughn. Marcy Bridges opens up her walk-in closet only to find flames that are not burning down her apartment, but instead seem to be laughing at her. Her thoughts are the inferno looks like they are inside a portal to Hell making her wonder how her first spell could go so wrong. She calls the building maintenance man Tomas Martinez for help even as she wonders if he may be the more dangerous devil to her.

These three supernatural romantic novellas are fun tales that make for a fine Halloween treat though a longer format would have enhanced lead character relationships that occur too fast.

Harriet Klausner

The first story by one of my favourite authors, Susan Krinard is by far the best of the three stories. Dana, a successful plastic surgeon from the West Coast travels to Big Marsh in Louisiana to escape her hectic life. There she meets Remy, a man clothed in mystery, avoided and feared by the locals, who lives on a boat out in the backwaters. Dana becomes embroiled in the search for the answers to the disappearance of her cousin. Can she trust Remy or is he a danger to her? The more time she spends with Remy, the more she becomes attracted to him. The atmosphere and the tension between Remy and Dana is electric. This is a good little story full of excitement and danger with romance thrown in aswell.

The second story is by Tanith Lee. Vivien agrees to look after her friends flat in London whilst the friend goes away on holiday. In the garden, Vivien sees the most beautiful man she have ever set her eyes on but he is a stone statue. The following day Vivien meets of the owner of the statue, Connor, a spitting image of the statue. The statue of the beautiful man is an ancestor of Connor. Strange things start happening in the flat, empty champagne flutes appear, roses with no petals are found in the kitchen. Are there paranormal happenings taking place in the flat and what is the connection with the statue or is there a more simple explanation? More of a mystery rather than romance but the story has charm.

The third story is by Evelyn Vaughn. Marcy opens the door to her a wardrobe and is greeted by flames, a portal to hell. She calls on the help of her gorgeous landlord, Tomas. Together they try to solve the problem of the wardrobe, calling the help of a priest who they lose in the portal and finally tracking down the culprit. This is an enjoyable saucy romp of a story, very fun and tongue in cheek but again but don't expect too much romance.

Lealing

Whoops! I swear I didn't know this was a romance novel when I picked it up! I definitely started to suspect it though, once I reached, (very early on) the gratuitous lust and [love] scenes in the introductory story by Susan Krinard, "Kiss of the Wolf". I'm not saying I'm opposed to [this] in my book, but, really, I think it goes not just too far, but uncomfortably far here. I felt like I was privy to a very private, (and not very smoothly enacted) moment for two people who should have been allowed a little dignity.
Besides that initial complaint, I found the characters vanilla. Each was a caricature of type, the successful plastic surgeon Dana St. Cyr, who drives into the swamps of Louisiana wearing Prada mules. Duh. The Man-About -Town, Chad Lacoste,(for heaven's sake!). And finally, the swamp monster, (ok, werewolf) Remy Arceneaux, with his tendency to speak untranslated French at people. Sure it's a romantic language, but not if we don't know what he's saying!
The characters seem ultimately false, though the plot is alright. Final analysis: I would have skipped this story.
Tanith Lee is the reason I originally chose the book. I have read her stories in several other collections, and have always enjoyed her writing. Again, this was the case, for more than the charming tale. I was so pleased to see that "Romance" can be written with style, and imagination. I feel that these characteristics set "Shadow Kissing" far out of the realm of the ordinary Harlequin offering.
It's a lovely story beginning with the main character Vivien Gray finding herself falling in love with a statue of an Adonis-like man. The plot turns when a ringer for the statue shows up in the person of Connor Sinclair, a moody and darkly handsome young man. As the characters develop, and begin to fall in love, they become more and more compelling. I was forced to stay up reading until 5:00 in the morning to find out what became of them! What I most enjoyed however, was the low-key, sweet conversation between the two. They seemed genuine and kind. Only one objection to this story could I find, and I suppose it's a necessity of the romance genre. The perfection and strength of Connor seemed all the more trite next to the 5ft. 4in. frame of Vivien, which I felt to be very unhealthy. Otherwise, it's a beauty of a story.
The final story, "The Devil She Knew", by Evelyn Vaughn, was both amusing, and surprising... The lead character, Marcy Bridges is even found to be, well say, unacceptable to the devil in her closet who desires her for his bride. The [story has] an interesting plot twist, and its definitely worth a read.

I bought this book because I am a fan of (most of) Tanith Lee's fantasies (an exception is her vampire series, which shares some of the same problems). I don't like romance as a genre, but was willing to stretch a point for the Lee story.

But--Lee's story is really a romance despite a few fantasy trappings such as ghosts. Or perhaps reincarnations--I wasn't quite sure what was going on. It seems written for women who want relationships to entertain detailed fantasies of same. Complete with a mysterious, temperamental, dominant hero (he's a jerk) and lengthy kisses so ecstatic as to be absurd (it is just a kiss, after all).

I read most of the third story, and realized it was just another romance in the same predictable mold. Even though I almost always finish books, I gave up on the rest of this one--I never read the first story.

So, if you're primarily a romance reader, you'll probably like this book. If you're primarily a fantasy reader, probably not.

Another Susan Krinard, yeah! Which is all there is to cheer about in this anthology. I can certainly see why Susan Krinard was asked to contribute to this anthology...they had a couple stories laying around with no place to put them so they invited Susan.

I tried reading "Kissing Shadows" by Tanith Lee, but I couldn't figure out if the good guy was the bad guy or vice versa. Even the love scenes didn't seem like love scenes, but more like psychological babble signifying nothing. I thought about reading the third offering "The Devil She Knew" by Evelyn Vaughn, and just decided it wasn't worth my time.

The only story in the group that was worth the time and the money to purchase the book was Susan Krinard's "Kiss of the Wolf." As always Susan Krinard introduces us to solid characters who seem real and not fictional. They breath the same air I do and feel the same things I do, to me they are real people. The bad guy is bad. The good guy is good, although he is a little rough around the edges.

My rating would have been a solid 5 if the other two stories had been left out, but because they weren't, I can only give this a 3. But Susan Krinard is still a 5 in my book.