Series: Monsters and Lovers, Book #2 Author: Sam Makenzi Genre: Paranormal, vampire
Length: Novella (145 pages)
Publisher: Silver Publishing (July 13th, 2013)
Heat Level: Explicit
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥4Hearts
Blurb:Halcyon (“Hal”) is in love with Derek, the nurse at the local clinic. He’s open about his attraction to the other man, but is afraid to profess his real feelings. When he does, Hal will also have to come clean about his alternate identity as the killer-for-hire Kingfisher and about his unwitting role in the death of Derek’s parents ten years prior.
Review: There sure is a lot of action packed into this short novella! Snipers, hot lovers, angst, and tragedy all combine to form a great fast-paced read. I was hooked into the plot immediately, and was cheering for Hal all the way through. Hal or Kingfisher as he’s otherwise known is one badass vamp with a sensitive side and I always enjoy that combination in a main character. My only complaint, which really is a compliment, is that I want more. The author plants many seeds of interest in the other characters so I can’t wait for the next installment in this series.
Blurb: After a shape-shifter named Shadow kills Lukas’s friend, he vows revenge and goes after the bounty on Shadow’s head. But Shadow proves different than expected and Lukas is forced to fight an attraction to the man on top of everything.
When a shape-shifting mercenary named Shadow kills Lukas’s friend, he goes after the criminal for revenge and to claim the bounty on Shadow’s head. Lukas doesn’t expect Shadow to get the drop on him or to find the shifter so attractive. After a brief sexual encounter in an alleyway, Lukas is forced to admit a fascination for a man he really shouldn’t want. He tries to maintain his distance, but it disappears when Shadow barges into Lukas’s life. When Shadow asks Lukas to help clear the bounty on his head, Lukas agrees despite his initial misgivings.
Review: An assassin shifter named Shadow is Lukas’ current job. He’s taken to kill the assassin and claim the bounty, but it runs deeper than that. Revenging his friend’s death by Shadow’s hand is something Lukas needs to do. Unfortunately, things don’t go as smoothly as he wanted and now instead of the predator he is the prey.
Finding himself in a terrible situation, captured and pinned in an alley brick wall and facing death, Lukas should not be thinking of how attractive his killer is. Nor should he be aroused by the way Shadows body and presence completely control him. And he most certainly shouldn’t like it so much when Shadow forces himself on Lukas. But, it happens and in the blink of an eye things start changing. The roles of predator and prey losing meaning and little hopes of things never dared dreamed before start blooming.
With the lines now blurred and the balance upturned, Lukas will try to help the once-thought criminal clear the bounty from his head. The hardest part though and the most terrifying is the fact that Lukas wants more. How to get it? Can he get it? Can there be something more with this creature that consumes him so completely?
So in all honesty I’m torn with this book. I loved the romance part. I adored both characters in their interaction and their chemistry had me enthralled. Normally, I really dislike fast relationships and “I love you-s” that are sprouted like magic beans, BUT, and it’s a big but, it really fitted here and made their connection even better.
The action part though on the other hand was disappointing. Any hard-core lover of assassin-related stories would probably abandon this at sight. Lukas is not the killer he claims to be, not the best, not even mediocre. He fails that part from the very start of the story and continues to do so till the end. If there was one scene that I felt held something remotely realistic, that was the part when he had the gun on his back, very close description of Krav-Maga technique. Other than that though, the “assassin” role failed.
Shadow was much better, his entire character so very enticing. I loved the fact that his shifting abilities weren’t over-used. I loved the mystery behind the creature. I hated the fact that I didn’t get to learn more about him and the story ended with me wanting more. I really hope the next book in the series gives us more about Lukas and Shadow. I’d hate it if it was another story simply placed in the same world.
That being said I’d love to recommend this one to all fans of the genre, it was quite interesting and a fascinating romantic read.
Title: Kingfisher