Romance Books

Ceremony in Death gives us a far deeper look into Peabody, Eve's aide. She starts to loosen up more around Eve, showing us some of her wisecracking self. We get to see some of the ways in which her 'Free-Ager' family has affected her, and we see some of the occult scene through her eyes and experience. We also delve into something that hasn't really been explored in the series yet: the question of psychic abilities, which, although not universally accepted, have apparently been studied and, to some extent, measured in this future time.

The question of identity as a tug-of-war between genetics, family influence, and self-determination is continued in this book (it's a powerful motif in the series). Peabody might seem the opposite of her Free-Ager family on the surface, but she isn't entirely. Roarke seems the epitome of the smooth businessman, but he still possesses the dark strength of his street upbringing. Eve still wonders if her father's brutality might express itself through her, and she finds this fear reflected in one of her suspects, a man she thinks may have taken up his father's love of ritualistic murder.

The 'white witches' are an interesting bunch, with some fascinating characters among them. They almost make up for the Satanists, who are a one-dimensional band of lunatics and hedonists. Those flat characters are pretty much the book's one flaw. On the other hand, sometimes you need a good old-fashioned lunatic when enjoying a deliberately melodramatic detective series, so this isn't a large flaw.

Adult material warning: we have our usual Eve/Roarke sizzling sex, but there's also some darker sexual matter in this plot that some might be uncomfortable with.

Lieutenant Eve Dallas may be facing one of the toughest investigations of her career. As Ceremony in Death opens, Eve is attending the funeral of colleague Frank Wojinski. Friends and family are distraught over the kind natured cop's death. Frank's mysterious granddaughter, Alice, slips a note into Eve's pocket indicating she is in danger, and Eve realizes she is being watched.

Alice reveals to Eve she is partly responsible for her grandfather's death. During her involvement with a local Satanic cult, she was witness to the ritual sacrifice of a child. Abused, raped, and tormented by what she had seen, Alice fled to the safety of a Wiccan coven and cut ties with Selena and her followers. Selena was not so eager to let Alice go, however. Believing that Selena was trying to silence her, Alice confided to her grandfather, who launched his own private investigation into Selena's sinister cult. Shortly after, Frank was dead.

All of this hocus pocus stuff is a little more than the logical, grounded Eve wants to entertain. But the more involved in the case she becomes, she discovers those close to her may have their own magical tendencies. And if Alice really did witness the murder of a child, she has every reason to fear Selena Cross, superstitions aside.

Robb keeps the reader in suspense, never quite knowing what is magic and what is trickery. The book closes with the reader still in doubt as to the spell casters' authenticity. Though it delves into some controversial theologies, it isn't a philosophical journey--it's a crime drama. Robb clearly delineates the line between good and evil.

Ceremony in Death is the fifth "In Death" book in a series of over thirty, with several to be released in 2008. The characters frequently reminisce about events that occurred in previous novels, and these mini flashbacks serve as excellent teasers. There is just enough information to build the reader's interest without confusion. It is the type of series that can be taken up at any point, but after the first book, Lieutenant Eve Dallas will become a regular in the reading queue.

The novel flows at a good pace, tying up all loose ends. The true killer isn't evident until the last scene, which keeps the suspense high. There are many points where the author could have fallen into proselytizing for one side or the other, which she avoided, making the story appeal to a wider audience. This is an impressive novel for such a "mass produced" author.

Another winner in the "...IN DEATH" series, CEREMONY IN DEATH finds Eve Dallas dealing with things that mere science can't explain. Although Dallas believes that evil comes in the form of men, you'll get a little surprise when you find out exactly how other characters from the series, including Roarke and Dr. Mira, feel about it.

Another great read, with high emotion, action, suspense, and romance.

This is an awesome series!

one of many in the eve dallas series. good prmise but draggy at times

I love this series... you must read it to understand. It's all about a homicide detective named Lt. Eve Dallas and how she goes about solving a case which always seems imposibble to solve at first.

This continues the Cassandra Palmer plot line rather nicely. I'm looking forward to the next book.

If you haven't started reading this series yet, what the heck is stopping you??!! This has been the one of the best, most original and cohesive series in the last few years. Each of the three installments has delivered excellent story for the money and shows plenty of future promise. It reminds me of the early Anita Blake and Dark Hunter series before they lost the spark of ingenuity that lured in their first and most avid readers.

Chance's series has everything from vampires, the mob, ghosts, fairies, mages, magical tattoos, and famous historical personages all set amidst Vegas's seedy casinos. Trust me, try it and you'll ask for another!

Cassie is the next Pythia, leading clairvoyant, who has more groups and people out to kill her than you could keep count of. Luckily, she also has some pretty kick-a** friends to back her up. Her primary goal in this novel is to retrieve the Codex, which contains a spell that will hopefully break the geis that connects her to a very powerful master vampire. Not that she doesn't care for said vampire, it's just that she would prefer to not see him go insane by it. Unfortunately, the Codex also contains another very powerful spell that many groups would like to get their hands on and other groups would prefer NO ONE gets their hands on. Cassie's not sure who she can trust anymore and it is a race through time as well as against time to find, retrieve, and battle for the Codex.

Very action packed. Fans will like to know that many mysteries are solved in this one. Especially background information on both John Pritkin as well as Mircea. Mircea--yum! This one is a definite recommended read.

I love this series! In my opinion, it's the best in the genre. This book was action packed and exciting from the first word to the last, with a sparkling wit and a great plotline. I think my favorite thing in Chance's world are the characters. Books to me rise or fall on whether or not I connect with the characters, and hers just seem so real. This book gave a LOT of backstory on some of my faves, which made me very happy, and introduced some fun new ones as well. I especially liked Radella, the warrior Fae with attitude. The series just continues to build momentum, and I'm glad I'm along for the ride!

I read all 3 books in this series last weekend. The third novel evolves Cassandra Palmer into a character with humor and an inner dialog of snappy remarks.

John Pritkin, War Mage, has become the reliable side-kick. Who would've thought? And still on the Team, a ghost who was killed over cheating at cards.

In this sequel, Cassandra Palmer, clairvoyant, is the Pythia (based on Greek mythology, the story of Apollo and the Oracle.) Cassie hasn't had the training to know all her powers. One of Cassie's powers is the ability to shift through time and space, within limits, and the ability to bring one or two friends along for the ride.

A geis spell, connects her sexually to a Master Vampire. She searches for the counter-spell, before the geis destroys the Master Vampire and his dependents.

She continues the hunt for Tony, a Vampire mobster, who has captured the soul of Cassandra's Dad.

Cassie's to-do list is complicated by Pixies, Gargoyles, War Mages, Rasputin, Dark Circle Mages, Light Circle Mages, Incubi, Satyrs, Incubi-Satyr hybrids, shrunken heads. Etc.

This book offers a new perspective on the Vampire genre.

There were a couple of reveals in the plot I didn't see coming.

I finished this book several days ago and have yet to open another book. Normally when I finish a book, I immediately start on another. However, these characters got into my heart, and I can't stop thinking about them. I want to go back and check on them. I want to peek into their lives again and see how they are doing, what they are doing... I am an avid reader like so many, and this story is the one I now carry with me. I have read other Hilderbrand books and loved them all. However, this is the one that touched me the most.

Elin Hilderbrand's, The Blue Bistro, was a fun book to read in the summer. The story takes place in Nantucket which is always a great location to read about in the summer months.

The Blue Bistro is a fine dining restaurant located directly on the beach of Nantucket. The author presents inticing images of Nantucket.
The owners of this magnificient restuarant are Thatcher Smith and Fiona Kemp. They are long-time friends from childhood and they have a powerful bond to one another. Thatcher, a very conflicted character in the novel, loves Fiona deeply, as a friend, but his love runs so deep that this unique friendship has interfered with his love interests. Girlfriends cannot compete with Thatcher and Fiona's friendship -- it can be isolating and infuriating to others. Fiona suffers, since childhood, with Cystic Fibrosis. An outsider cannot compete with Thatcher and Fiona's relationship nor with Fiona's illness.

Fiona, although small in stature, is a tough, strong-minded individual. Fiona is the exceptionally talented chef at the Blue Bistro and Thatcher is her business partner, and this is the final year for the restaurant. Fiona's health is suffering; she is on the list for a lung transplant, and she and Thatcher both need a rest.

Adrienne Dealy, escaping from a drug addicted boyfriend who stole her life savings, arrives in Nantucket with the sole purpose of making money and paying off her debts. Her mom died from Pancreatic Cancer when she was a young girl and she and her dad (a very loveable character) have been running ever since. Adrienne has been working all over the world in the hotel industry. She has made numerous poor choices in men, her last boyfriend being the last straw.

It is really Adrienne's story, even though there are many stories taking place at the same time. Adrienne is hired by Thatch to run the front of the restaurant. There also is a love interest between them, and Adrienne has to cope with this unusual friendship between Thatcher and Fiona.

There are many varied characters in the book. Each has a very interesting story to tell.

It was so interesting learning about the restaurant business and being part of all of the hustle and bustle. Additionally, the food is described so deliciously -- the reader longs for a sampling. The author clearly shows her love of Nantucket. You want to make the trip there, if only for the descriptions of the food and the sunsets on the beach.

I loved the book, but found the ending flat. There were story-lines left hanging. Adrienne needed to be given more of a voice. I don't need endings tied up in a bow, but it felt as though the story was leading to a big climatic ending, but it never materlized. It is hard to end a book that way.

This was my first EH book. I loved it...could not put it down. The relationship dynamics are deep and complicated. However, the ending was rushed. I felt cheated at the end...there should have been...more.

I absolutely loved this book! I have never read Hilderbrand before and will definitely be reading more of her books. I have passed the book on to 3 friends already and they loved it as much as I did.....highly recommended!

The Blue Bistro is the first novel I've read by Elin Hilderbrand, and now I can't wait to pick up her other books. I couldn't put this one down!

The book I bought had 3 sheets slightly torn, fortunately on the edges.
My son and I bought over 100 books from Amazon during the last few months, all from Amazon France except one (Women Who Love Too Much)from the US, for which I had to pay transport cost equivalent to the price of the book. I wanted to cancel the US order five minutes after I had realized the error, so that I could make the same order with Amazon France, but the lady on the phone said it was too late to cancel.Big company like Amazon should not have acted like that. Can you imagine a little book like that costed almost 12 euros! I hope Amazon can improve in this respect. Wishing you all the success. An Nhon NGUYEN

This book saved my life. I was a woman who loved too much. This book led me to Al-Anon and a sane way of live. I highly recommend this book to anyone seeking recovery.

This book was a life saver for me. I was in an abuse marriage and the insight from the book was very valuable. I highly recommend it.

Ruth

I read this book about 25 years ago and learned so much. It opened up my eyes. Now, in 2008, I just purchased it for my 21 year old niece. She is shocked by how much this book is "her". I told her "it's all of us women".
Fran S.

One of the very best, if not the best, books on why women seek out inappropriate relationships time and again. This book is valuable because it's not just for women who "act out" with men or behave in ways that might be labeled codependent. Some women may not act out with men to any significant degree, but may develop intense and unhealthy attachments to food, sex, alcohol, work, shopping, or any other external "thing" or behavior as a way to relieve deep emotional pain. If that sounds like you, it's likely you will find comfort in this book. Norwood identifies the behaviors, describes the patterns and underlying reasons, and then offers compassionate guidance and concrete steps for women who are ready to move beyond these behaviors to a more healthy way of living. If you can find a copy of the audiobook, I highly recommend getting it.

I'll be brief. Don't waste your money. I don't know what's happened to EDJ but some of his lastest books have been disappointing. But none as dissapointing as "Pleasure". It's the worst he's written thus far. I could only get through 1/4 of the book and then I gave up. It was so boring, even the pleasure was painful! I just couldn't connect with Nia. Thankfully, I was able to return this aweful book and get a full refund! Now that's PLEASURE!

As usual, in a somewhat friendly, yet mildly annoyed tone, Eric Jerome Dickey reminds his readers that this work is just fiction. Really, it is a work of fiction. But with Dickey's frank prose scripting real truths, real revelations and real euphoria around real world locations, and with precise and stunning accuracy, his brand of fiction feels, well, uncannily real.

In PLEASURE, Dickey paints a beautiful portrait onto a modern real world canvas, and delves generously into sensuality and sex in its truest form. Author and ghostwriter Nia Simone Bijou yields to her sexual curiosity, longing to extinguish her internal flame and understand herself in the process. Her learning tools are identical twin male wonders, not bound by sexual conventions or expectations. There is no such thing, however, as tantalizing erotic stimulation beyond normal boundaries without confused emotion. Despite the characters initial appearance of sexual freedom, jealousy, possession, competition and love become twisted complications throughout this tale.

Though jaw-dropping, this is no standard erotic fare. Nia's profession allows Dickey to examine erotica, express disgust at its literary plummet, at its lack of ingenuity and its failed expression of the sensual. According to Nia, "...true erotica, at its best, is more than sex. It is a study in human behavior, in the complications of existing." Nia's love of Anais Nin's writings set the foundation of her lustful search, identifying with Nin's choices, loves and hurts. Nia's every action is meditated, carefully weighed against her convictions, idea of self and her intimate search, creating a maze of thoughts and emotions to wade through before she succumbs to her desire.

PLEASURE is a rare type of indulgent and stimulating erotica that sweeps the reader into the narrow tunnel of intrinsic self-examination and inquisitiveness, and the illusive search for fulfillment. Upon understanding Nia's definition of the genre, it soon becomes apparent that PLEASURE is the true expression of erotica: the detailed and delightful examination of sensual human behavior and the tangled complications that sexual overindulgence creates.

Reviewed by a. Kai
for The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

Pleasure is a book about a woman's desire for more sexual fulfillment. Sensitized by Anais Nin's writings, Nia Simone Bijou is intrigued to find two men who fascinate and excite her. She climbs aboard to see how far the ride will take her.

Curiously, although this book is supposed to be from a woman's perspective, I continually felt that I was reading a book from a man's perspective, translated into a woman's perspective by changing the sexes of the various characters. Many men are fascinated by having sexual relationships with two attractive women at the same time, but I'm not sure that very many women feel the same way about having two men.

If you like erotic fiction, you'll probably enjoy this book more than I did. The book became all too predictable after a while, and I didn't really care if I finished it or not. The story wasn't taking me anywhere I wanted to go . . . or to find out about.

In addition, many of the sequences felt more like fantasy that reality. As such, it was hard to identify with the characters or the story.

Eric Jerome Dickey is a talented writer, but he usually puts a little more content into his stories. This one was more sensation than substance.

I love EJD but this book was a big disappointment compared to his other books. It focused on way too much sex and had no substance to it at all. The book should have been titled "Only Sex" because it wasn't really about anything else. I finished it with the hopes that it would get better but it never did. I am still a fan and look forward to his next book.

I have every book that EJD has written and I have to say that this is the first book of his that I wasn't really feeling. It was sexually charged, moreso than his other books, but it was not his best. I am looking forward to his next book regarding Gideon and others. I am an avid fan of EJD, but I thought the storyline was flat. It had it's moments where I laughed or smiled, but again, it was not his norm.

My only complaint is that Sinclair didn't play a large role in this particular book. Which is unfortunate because Betsy as a character is a little bit too self-involved...to the point that Sinclair is needed because he balances her out and makes her self involvement appear cute. When he's not there to balance her out it's more irritating. This isn't a jibe at MJD but one particular trait of the Betsy character. I think MJD writes very entertaining books and this was no exception, I just find Betsy a hard pill to swallow without being able to see her through Sinclair's eyes. (Although the books are told in 1st person, when he's around you definitely view Betsy through his eyes and he adores her.)

Betsy and Sinclair also play very well off each other. He brings out her softer edges and you see that a lot of her self involvement is bluster to hide a kinder and slightly less self absorbed heart underneath (She's kind of like a Cordelia from Buffy.) She seems like all she cares about is her manicure, but it's not completely true. She cares about her friends) What Sinclair does, IMO is bring that Betsy to the surface, but when he's not central to the plot it gets easy to forget that.

One thing that was very cool about this particular book was that it joined together the Betsy series with the werewolves. MJD wrote a novella that I LOVED that appeared in one volume of the "Secrets" anthology about a werewolf that gets trapped in an elevator with a woman who's ovulating...mayhem ensues. I loved it. And it was really cool to get a glimpse of that couple a few years down the road.

Considering the fact that I was about to give up on this series and immediately after finishing this book I ran out to get my hot little hands on Undead and Unworthy (Queen Betsy, Book 7), I'd say this book did it's job nicely.
What's a Queen without her posse? This book answers that question as Betsy is pretty much left alone. you get brief cameos from the supporting cast, but that's pretty much it.
I like this book. I enjoyed being treated to a darker, more introspective Queen.
The only problem I had with this book was Laura's bizarre behavior? Am I missing something? Because the way she acted seemed completely out of character and weird to me.
Oh, and an almost beef. I had thought Betsy had lost a great foil in !@#$%. I'm not going to spoil things, but way to go MJD!

Have you ever wondered what goes on in the brain (or place where one should be) of a ditsy blond? Who's dead? Whose sister is the daughter of the Devil? And who has a whole lot more power than anyone that crazy about designer shoes should have?
Betsy Taylor has the IQ of Tweety Bird. Alive or dead, human or vampire, her blithe materialism, dizzy logic, solid integrity, heroic defense of her BFFs and hilarious adventures are a delightful sendup of supernatural romance, material girls, haute couture, and the clueless and inexplicable triumphs of the unfairly beautiful.
Betsy Taylor is adorable.
The best part of this delicious series is being inside Betsy's head and seeing things from her point of view, which means trying like hell to follow the labyrinthian tangles that pass for thought in her pure and slightly off-kilter psyche.
Both as a reader and a librarian, I think this series is charming and wonderfully engaging and I hope Davidson writes many more.

I liked this book because I like all the books in this series, but I did not think this was the strongest one of the bunch. I thought it could be a little longer with a slightly more indepth plot line. I thought a few things were not explained fully in this book. Hopefully the next will be as good if not better then the first couple of the series...Ms. Davidson will hopefully regain her stride, because it was a bit off with this book.

MaryJanice Delivers another installment of her Queen Betsy stories.
I really liked this book. I loved when the werewolves came, and how she talked to them "Dildo breath." and other catchy lines. I laughed out loud a few times.

I liked that Betsy and Sinclair finally tied the knot.
Jessica being cured was really cool. I didn' think she'd die--but how she was cured was unpredictable.

I can't wait until undead and unworthy.

Okay, I finished the book so that says something. The story was just okay, and the characters were good, not great...but it didn't make me want to read the rest of the series.
It felt a little, predictable, and a little corny. The book didn't make me laugh out loud or cry or cheer on the main characters. It was just okay. There was nothing incredibly unique or fascinating.
Perhaps because I just didn't connect enough with either the characters or the story? Or maybe it was the style of writing?

Dante was too much like every other vampire. Abby was too much like every other romance female with little to distinguish her except at the end.

On a scale 1 to 5, Five is Best:

Villian: 3.5
Plot: 3.5
Creativity: 3
Uniqueness: 3
Humor: 2
Bringing the sexy: 3
Passion: 3 stars
Laughs & Amusement factor: 1
Silly Whiners female character who get on your nerves: 3.5

....I must first admit I have always been a historical Romance reader, until I recently read Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series, and loved it so much, that I thought I would try other Romance novels with Vampires.

Well, so far, no luck for me. I will say the love scenes are really steamy and fun, right up my alley....but it was not enough to carry me thru this book with the rest of what goes on. I think I will stick to what I know and love.

This book is amazing. Is a "dark" story, with vampires, witches and what-not, but it also has a nice sense of humor and irony, coming from the mouths of the two main characters, Abby and Dante. I also like Viper, a very prominent secondary character (who's going to be the main character of the following book, yay!), who's a dark and powerful vampire.

The plot is a nice inventive, which I very much liked because it's very good and well-written, and I found it refreshing and new. And also the pasion between the two main characters is scorching!!!

Someone recommended this series to me as I was looking for something new to read. I read the reviews and said why not? Well, I am so glad I ordered this book as it is a new twist on the "vampire romance". Love the plot and the heros are to "die" for! Dante is well, every vampire romance junkies dream with his long black hair and warrior body...yum! And Abby is a good mate to him..
Can't wait to read Viper's book, he is my kind of vamp.
You will not be unhappy with this series, pick it up and enjoy. I did!

Very insightful, a quick read with lots of "real life" scenarios. I think all can benefit from reading this book in some way.

I learned about "The Five Love Languages" from a former coworker who found it incredibly helpful in his marriage. Not being married myself, I purchased this version for singles.

I have recommed this book (or the original) to just about everyone I know and a many I don't!

The concepts are so simple but yet profound. Understanding the primary love languages of my friends, family and even coworkers has been very helpful and has strengthened our relationships.

The only negative feedback I would give is in regards to the Physical Touch chapter... it isn't until then that you truly realize this is a Christian book! I deeply respect Mr. Chapman but think he should know that people have pre-marital sex and it is not a sin! Aside from that, this (or the original) is a MUST READ!!!

I enjoyed the book. It was light, easy to read, apply, and understand. I plan to use it for all relationships in the future

Tiffiney R. Bradley
Author of Shine and Inspirations

I thought this book was very helpful. While some of the information seems like common sense, there are some valuable lessons to be learned. It really helps you understand other people and the way they both express and need love. It has allowed me to see certain things people do as expressions of love, rather than hum-drum everyday deeds or comments. I have a new perspective on how to express love to my friends and family in a way that they will see it as love. You may only find certain chapters or stories applicable, but either way, this book is worth skimming and it is an enjoyable easy read!

Okay first of all, I read this entire book in about 3 hours. This was part of a study we were doing at a bible study group; and I have to say I'm cynical about this book even from a Christian's perspective.

First, take a look at the cover. See those ridiculously happy nicely dressed perfect looking people? Well if you're not one of them, this book isn't for you. It's full of superficial and contrived mini-stories. To me
they just don't seem to fit in with real life situations that people have with all the hurting and complicated lives we go through. The stories remind me of those how-to educational films from the 40's

The basic message of the book is this: learn what makes people in your life feel loved, follow the golden rule, etc. etc. It's pretty much intuition. I don't think however that it will lead to some miraculous change in how you deal with people nor will it do anything to help you establish new relationships.

Alright. So let me point this out to everyone: Yes, there is incest in this book. No, I don't mind it. Yes, there is homosexuality in this book. Again, I don't mind it.

For all of those people who are like: 'Omg! it's terrible because of what's going on with the characters!'Please, keep in mind that the author started out writing fanfiction. Incest and Homosexuality is fairly common in Fanfictions.Honestly though, I really like this book because it's so different then other books that I've read because the characters ARE so different. Really, I have never really read a book with a homosexual character, or have the main hero and heroine be in love yet are siblings. It's unique, in a mildly creepy way. I am a huge fan of the books, not only because the characters are often times witty and sarcastic, but because many of the aspects are unique.

I don't know how many times when I've read about 'orphan tries to find place in world, and saves the world!' books, or 'girl wants to break mold and runs off to join the army!', or 'destiny has chosen [characternamehere] to save the world!' type of books. The plot lines are over used, dull, and really repetitive. This book though totally broke the mold for me. And when I mean 'break the mold' I mean, seriously, breaking the mold.

I went onto about a two year reading hiatus (because no books really interested me) and I just picked up the first book in the series and could not put it down. It's not about a little orphan, or a princess running away from an arranged marriage. It is truly, truly an amazing book that I really do adore. I can't wait to see how the series ends honestly. The books, as far as I'm concerned, are very consistent so far.
It's not like the Twilight series, where the first one was just amazing, then drops off in quality after that, or really the Harry Potter series where it gets better and better. These books are amazing, and I really don't know how else she could improve them, so they're consistent in the whole 'amazing' factor.

-De

When I first picked up City of Bones, I wasn't sure what to make of it. As I was reading, I fell in love. No, it's definitely not heavy reading, and yes, there is better quality prose, but the book was just so fun and made me laugh out loud (which is rare), and the writing, while not amazingly spectacular, works perfectly for the story and is far from bad.

City of Ashes was even better. The characters are the kind of people you wish you knew, but don't; yet they're also just the kids next door. They bridge the gap between the ordinary and extraordinary, and you love them all for their weaknesses and strengths.

If you love fantasy, if you love sarcastic, witty conversations, if you love star-crossed lovers...READ THIS BOOK!

This book seemed like much less of a mush of other books than the first one in the series did, which was a relief. It picks up shortly after the first book left off, with all the main characters just recovering from the wounds they sustained in the big fight against Valentine's Forsaken. Which brings me to my only major problem with this book: the timeline. Although we're told that it was August during the events of City of Bones, in this book it seems to be late fall (there's always a chill in the air). Clary wakes up and eats a doughnut on her way to meet Simon, and then suddenly it's late afternoon. And a few more occasions of missing time...

If you can ignore those inconsistencies, though, this is a good read. Plenty of twists and turns, and unexpected action. A few characters wind up not being dead a few too many times (an author can only pull that trick so many times before all the tension leaks away). And, although the book dragged in a few scenes (ok, Inquisitor, we get your point), I'll be waiting with a fair degree of anticipation of the (hopefully, since I don't think this story-line can last for more than one more book) last book in the trilogy.

The past few weeks have been hectic for Clary Fray to say the least, and they only seem to get even more so in the sequel to Cassandra Clare's popular debut City of Bones. Clary's mother still hasn't awoken from her strange sleep induced by Jace and Clary's father, Valentine, and Jace is having troubles coming to terms with his true parentage.

Things only get more complicated when an Inquisitor is sent to the Institute to question Jace's loyalty to the Clave, and he doesn't make a good impression. Suspicion is further aroused when children of magical descent are found dead all over the city, making everyone suspect that Valentine is up to something more sinister than they have anticipated.

The second book in the Mortal Instruments series is full of fast paced action and twists and turns that you won't see coming. Clary gets more and more involved in the supernatural world as she and Jace struggle to accept their relationship, while at the same time fending off attacks from all sides. In between it all is exhilarating excitement, the awkwardness of being a teenager, and intriguing mysteries. Readers looking for more breathless adventure and a spectacular battle against evil will delight in City of Ashes.

I was surprised by the number of negative reviews because I found this to be an original and exciting series. Despite some of the dialogue trying too hard to be "kewl" at times, I thought the plot was excellent, the world well developed and intriguing, and the writing to be first rate. Clare's descriptions of places and characters are terrific and sometimes beautiful, particularly in this installment (it was more uneven in the first). I really like all the characters, I care about them, despite some of them occasionally being annoying - but that's like real people. And I'm impressed with the chance she has taken with the main love story (I don't want to put a spoiler here) - it takes some courage to promote a love story like that. I like the chances that Clare takes and can't wait to read City of Glass!