Jane and the Damned by Janet Mullany

Published September 28, 2010.

Author website.

Jane Austen 

Novelist . . . gentlewoman . . . Damned, Fanged, and Dangerous to know. 

Aspiring writer Jane Austen knows that respectable young ladies like herself are supposed to shun the Damned--the beautiful, fashionable, exquisitely seductive vampires who are all the rage in Georgian England in 1797. So when an innocent (she believes) flirtation results in her being turned--by an absolute cad of a bloodsucker--she acquiesces to her family's wishes and departs for Bath to take the waters, the only known cure. 

But what she encounters there is completely unexpected: perilous jealousies and further betrayals, a new friendship and a possible love. Yet all that must be put aside when the warring French invade unsuspecting Bath--and the streets run red with good English blood. Suddenly only the staunchly British Damned can defend the nation they love . . . with Jane Austen leading the charge at the battle's forefront.  (goodreads.com)

I was a little apprehensive to read JANE AND THE DAMNED after my failed attempt at EMMA AND THE VAMPIRES.  One, I hadn't read the blurb in a while so I was under the impression that it was a JANE EYRE remake and two, I haven't been thrilled with the writing style of books set in this era so it was setting itself up to fail for me.  It ultimately didn't and I enjoyed the plot but it had its faults and a lot of that hinged on the writing itself.

I didn't know why this story was about Jane Austen.  You'd think there'd be some kind of relevance to it but it rightly could have been some made-up character created strictly for the book and it wouldn't have made a bit of different.  So I was haunted by the question, "Why the hell is this Jane Austen?" throughout, making it a touch distracting.

That's not to say I didn't like Jane.  I did.  She was a very strong woman that, although reluctantly, embraced her vampirism and used it to fight the French when they invaded (a point to be dealt with in a moment).  She stood her own as a fighter and even as her fellow Damned looked down upon her as not only a fledgling but an orphaned one (her maker having abandoned her and she was adopted by another) she stood tall, pulling off feats that eventually made them proud.

The writing didn't really lend itself to telling the story well, though.  I felt the progression was jerky and I often found myself shoved out of the story due to a ragged transition from one scene to the next.  The language was trying a bit too hard and while I never found it stilted it lent to the crappy transitions that kept pulling me out of the story.

That's not to mention that as I was reading I had a niggling feeling that Napoleon's army invading Britain just didn't sound right.  Did it make for some good drama?  Of course.  Jane wouldn't have been able to become the fighter she did without someone to fight so steadfastly against.  But it didn't seem right.  Love the interwebs as it verified my unsettled thoughts: Napoleon was never actually able to get past the Royal Navy to fight on British land.  Talk about taking gross liberties with history to serve the plot.  It only puffs up the question as to why it had to be Jane Austen as the lead in this story.  I have a big problem with that.  Adding vampires to Jane Austen's life is one thing.  I was entertained by all of that.  But why bastardize history so much?  I don't get it.  Wait, I do get it: it served the plot.  And yes, this book is a work of fiction.  But holy crap Napoleon's army never invaded Bath nor took London.  It's a contrivance of epic proportions that I still just don't understand.  Too many questions and not enough answers.

I did finish JANE AND THE DAMNED, much to my surprise.  I enjoyed it and I ultimately came to like Jane and Luke together but Jane is a little too bi-polar for me.  She changed her mind about accepting her vampirism as often as she changed dresses and it was rough going trying to keep track of where her brain was in terms of not only her vampirism but her love of Luke.  It wavered too much for my liking.  She turned out to be a really strong heroine in terms of fighting capabilities and standing on her own but she ultimately had too much negative about her that, for the most part, cancelled it out.

I was entertained so the book served its purpose in that regard but it's incredibly historically inaccurate, I still have no idea why Jane Austen was the focusing character and the writing leaves a bit to be desired.  If you're looking for a light, entertaining read reminiscent of Austenian works with a bit more fangs and blood and don't have much else to read JANE AND THE DAMNED will probably whet your appetite.  Just don't expect it to do much else.

Ban Factor: High - Vampires and they're shown as hedonistically as possible to make it all the worse.  But our dear Jane has arguments with conscience that might appease the banners, however slightly.

The Black Isle by Sandi Tan

Pub date: August 7, 2012.

Author website.

Uprooted from Shanghai with her father and twin brother, young Cassandra finds the Black Isle's bustling, immigrant-filled seaport, swampy jungle, and grand rubber plantations a sharp contrast to the city of her childhood. And she soon makes another discovery: the Black Isle is swarming with ghosts.

Haunted and lonely, Cassandra at first tries to ignore her ability to see the restless apparitions that drift down the street and crouch in cold corners at school. Yet despite her struggles with these spirits, Cassandra comes to love her troubled new home. And soon, she attracts the notice of a dangerously charismatic man.

Even as she becomes a fearless young woman, the Isle's dark forces won't let her go. War is looming, and Cassandra wonders if her unique gift might be her beloved island's only chance for salvation . . .  (netgalley.com)

I was floored with THE BLACK ISLE from the second I started reading it.  Written in a voice that's so incredibly engaging that you can't take your eyes from the page, it sucks you into an old world China where women are barely second class citizens and, depending on your status, superstition rules your life.

Cassandra goes through an epic transformation throughout the book.  The story starts with Cassandra as an old woman both running from and to her past.  She relives the world of her island through an out-of-print book at the library.  When she find that "her" book has been desecrated, her world gets rocked.  And infiltrated, by a less-than-welcome guest that wants Cassandra's story.  The plot flips back to the present a few times throughout the book, reminding the reader that Cassandra is narrating the story to someone, that there's a reason for this recounting.

When the greater story begins, Cassandra is Ling, twin of Li, the latter the more favored child because of his male status and the fact that Cassandra hogged the goods in the womb.  So while she came out nice and healthy Li was a bit starved.  To see the dynamic between brother and sister based on the parents' behavior was, at times, horrifying to watch.  They're twins so they share the same birthday except Cassandra didn't get gifts.  Those were reserved for the favored son.  It's a cultural aspect that I had a hard time getting over and it really bothered me to read.

I'll admit, Chinese culture isn't something I'm crazy about but the ghost story aspect of THE BLACK ISLE drew me in and I actually learned quite a few things about the culture.  And it even answered a few of my questions about the people in general.  I'd like to believe that a story so rich in Chinese culture would, in the same breath, be accurate as well.  I believed everything I read without a blink but you'll have to ask someone better versed in Chinese culture just how close it all is.  Right now I have no reason to doubt any of it.

It's not too long into the story that things take a turn for the strange and Cassandra starts being able to see ghosts.  It actually coincides with an incident in the park involving Li and their subsequent distancing.  That incident, though, I don't think is very realized.  It serves as a catalyst to get the twins apart (they were pretty much inseparable until that point) and then it comes back in at the end.  But it doesn't do much for character-building.  I thought it was going to have some greater impact on Li other than just a personality shift but there wasn't much.  He got cranky for a little while but that was about it.

When they up and moved to the Isle you get the full realization of just how incompetent Cassandra's father is and how reliant he is on his children to do his job.  I was flabbergasted by this and how long both of them actually put up with his ineptitude.  And it wasn't he just didn't have the smarts for it.  He just had better things to do with his time and it really angered his kids, especially when it was entirely their doing that got the plantation they moved to up and running and the workers in order.  Of course their job was thankless.

There was a tryst between Cassandra and Li that really bothered me and it's another aspect of the story that I'm not sure how relevant it is to the greater plot.  Like I said I'm unfamiliar with Chinese culture but the ease with which the siblings entered into a sexual relationship really took me aback.  Was this okay because they're twins?  They hid it from their father so there was some level of shame there; just not a lot.  I was bothered by it, by its casual attitude and then it's relevance was gone.  It served its purpose for the plot at the moment but, like the incident in the park, I don't think it served it's purpose to the greater story.

Cassandra is a character trying desperately to be her own person.  She breaks off from her father and brother and gets a job on her own after finishing her schooling.  That job brings her to her fiancee, the son of her school's proprietor, and she's elevated into a social strata that she wouldn't otherwise be in.  Of course the male members of her family resent her for it.  She's supposed to be subservient to her father and brother, not rise above them.  But she was determined to make her own way, albeit on the backs of wealthier others.  It's because of this that she officially changes her name from Ling to Cassandra.

As time progressed in the story itself it does come across, a bit, as Cassandra effectively whoring her way into the best possible scenarios for herself.  She does appear to have feelings for two of the three suitors in the story but their positions in society sway my feelings about her a bit and make her look a bit like a gold digger.  These were opportune matches.  She just happened to have feelings for them as well.  But I don't believe she would have entered into those relationships simply for the status.  I do believe she loved two of the three.  I just think the author wrote it in such a way as to make the reader see, just slightly, what other people might see in Cassandra.  She is not a woman that actually worked her way up from the dredges.  She was well-placed, well-timed and well-suited.  Not her fault but it is convenient.

The second suitor?  Well he's not really a suitor.  He was one of the occupying soldiers when Japan invaded and kept Cassandra locked in her fiance's house and raped her repeatedly and referred to her as his wife.  It was a very weird situation and Taro absolutely took advantage of everything he could about her.  He kept her compliant to his whims by dangling her would-be family and friends in front of her.  It was a horrible situation and throughout, since it's in first person, you know that she's doing it for other people, for Daniel and her brother although I don't doubt some level of self-preservation.  No one wants to die, not really.  So I don't begrudge her that.

It takes Cassandra a while to come into accepting her abilities.  Issa, a shaman of sorts, tries to teach her but she bails, afraid of what she's getting into.  Years later she realizes that there is a benefit to working with the damned, at a heavy price, of course.  The ghosts of the Isle become tools for everyone to use, from Cassandra to prove a point, to suitor number three to get the island where he wants it to be.  It's not until she's much older that she fully realizes the total repercussions of what she can do, what she can see and how it affects not just her but everyone.

THE BLACK ISLE is a story about growth fueled by ghosts.  Ling/Cassandra denies her true self for a long time but slowly she comes into her own, taking hold of who she really is and embracing it, at times not fully understanding what it is she's undertaking.  The ghosts are a prominent aspect of the story but I wouldn't necessarily call THE BLACK ISLE a ghost story.  It's a coming-of-age and moving past it.  It's accepting your past and knowing when revenge has already been paid.  I can't say enough good things about it.  The voice is PHENOMENAL, balancing an elegant prose with a relatable one resulting in a story that anyone can love and get drawn into.  I'm so glad I opted to read this.  It called out to me from the NetGalley list and for good reason.  There are some books in your life that will leave a lasting impression for any number of reasons.  THE BLACK ISLE is one of mine.

Ban Factor: High - A foreign culture and religion and ghosts.  Oh noes!

YAckers Review: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Published June 7, 2011.

Author website.

A mysterious island.


An abandoned orphanage.


A strange collection of very curious photographs.


It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.  (goodreads.com)

'Twas I that was Keeper of the Book this month for the dear YAckers and out of the choices I provided MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN was the ticket.  This book was always a draw for me because, really, anything with creepy ass children on the cover has GOT to be good.  I mean it takes some serious balls to use such a horrifyingly repelling yet car crash-level intriguing book cover.  Truly these are the photos of nightmares.  Especially the children in white wrestler masks with the string.  Goo.  Nightmares.

But it didn't end up going where I thought it was going to go.  That didn't mean it was bad but it was far more fantastical than it was horror.  Here, just take a look at the discussion.

Donna: Almost finished with Miss Peregrine's and it's not what I thought. I was thinking more creepy children-ish but it's far more whimsical than what I was anticipating. Not a bad thing. It's really well-written and I'm enjoying the story but when you show me fucked up photos of old timey-children I'm expecting a fucked up story. Or have I seen one too many horror movies?

Sya: It's a strange book - I loved it and thought it was quite refreshing that he didn't overload the creep/horror factor - the pictures were enough for me.

Donna: See I'm a masochist. I LOVE creep factor. But those clown children are truly horrifying.

Donna: And I'm a little creeper out that the MC is messing around with his grandpa's ex-girlfriend. Keeping it in the family, huh, Emma?

Donna: NOW it's time to Bueller this topic. Since I realized that, for once, I read the book head of my normal four seconds before it's due schedule.

Donna: Bueller? Don't make me talk to myself, guys . . .

Sya: Sorry, I'm only just back from holiday and started a new job and have a big wedding to attend and so HAVE NO BRAIN LEFT! Anyhoo... I really enjoyed this book. The hardback copy (which was stolen from me on a book tour... sob) was gorgeous to hold and look at and the pictures absolutely fascinated me. The story itself was compelling and I particularly liked how the author juxtaposed the more fantastical aspects with very real historical events. Jacob was a good protagonist but I felt that the character I consistently wanted to know more about was Abe, who seemed to haunt the book throughout (which, I suppose, was exactly the point). I read it a while ago and still haven't found anything quite like it since. I also interviewed the (HOT!) author - you can read that (if you wish) here.

Sya: As you will see, I seem to be quite fond of using the word juxtaposition, which is hilarious as I have only the vaguest idea what it actually means.

Steph: I'm with you Donna. I did enjoy it and thought it was brilliantly written but feel slightly misled re. distinct lack of creepy fucked-up old timey kid horror. Beautiful looking book aswell, thought the inclusion of the photos to illustrate specific points in the plot was very clever

Donna: Sya, I only caught a single use of juxtaposition. I think you kept it in check nicely. I too like how he wove his made up elements in with actual aspects of history, his grandfather running from monsters, that kind of thing. It saddened the story a little bit, the historical part but it firmed it up in reality a little more. Not to mention the photographs ground it down yet again. Damn, those kids are creepy. I like how we're on the same page, Steph. If you're going to give me creepy-looking kids there better be some heinously creepy elements to the book as well. I wouldn't say it was whimsical but it definitely wasn't Children of the Cornish either. Yeah they were shut-ins but they weren't feeding people to their corn god. Is it weird that I'm a little disappointed by that?

Sandy: I'm still reading it but I'm enjoying it so far....Jacob's a smart narrator. I was sad when I read what happened to the grandfather :(

Donna: War-wise or beginning of the book-wise? Either way but you're bound to have someone go rogue. I think he was the only person that had to run to that effect though. I liked that he broke away. I can understand how he wouldn't want to be a prisoner yet again even if it was a safehouse.

Sandy: beginning of the book wise. I'm only on chapter five? six? Nowhere near the end. v.v

Donna: Oh, okay. Yeah, it was pretty sad to see him die the way he did and to have everyone think he was totally batty.

Sandy: Yeah...but Jacob figures it out eventually and I'm glad he does. I like that his dad was present too; parents being around are rare nowadays. And I agree with you Donna: I find Jacob making out with Emma kind of gross. Even if she's still "young". It actually reminded me of Rose's relationship with what's-his-face and HIS grandson from A Long Long Sleep.

Sya: Yep. On the sliding scale of Ick, it certainly tickled my gag reflex. Yet key it really didn't detract from the overall storytelling which I thought was accomplished. And not just because the author was hot.

Donna: I'm wondering where authors are getting relationship ideas from. I think they may be reading/watching too much Game of Thrones.

Donna: Any other words of wisdom for MISS PEREGRINE'S?

Laura: This book kept popping up as YA...you know...one of those titles that they randomly throw into the YA category because the book 1) has young people in it and 2) YA is so hawt right now and I've found this amusing from the start because honestly, throwing this book on a table covered in black covered vampire books and books with slutty girls in ball gowns IS FUNNY. It's too good for the association. Don't get me wrong...I love YA and there ARE some good YA writers, but on the whole...well, you know. I'm drawn to YA for lots of reasons, but I can admit that excellent writing isn't one of my expectations. This was a nice break for me. It reminded me that every now and then, it's nice to sit down and read a book with a good story, told by an excellent writer who knows what the hell he's doing. GOD, sometimes it's just nice to READ REAL WORDS.

Donna: Your contribution is appreciated.

Laura: "Stars, too, were time travelers. How many of those ancient points of light were the last echoes of suns now dead? How many had been born but their light not yet come this far? If all the suns but ours collapsed tonight, how many lifetimes would it take us to realize that we were alone? I had always known the sky was full of mysteries—but not until now had I realized how full of them the earth was."

Laura: I MEAN HELL. WORDS.

Laura: My physical treatment of this book was nearly criminal. I dog-ear a page whenever there is a passage I like. This book looks like some sort of origami chicken.

Donna: Truly, MISS PEREGRINE'S should be a standard for YA. I wouldn't be so disappointed all the time if that were so.

Sya: It is beautifully written - here's hoping it heralds more in the way of, well, awesome words in YA.

So generally speaking we loved it.  It stands out from the rest of the YA crowd not only in premise but in sheer awesomesauce writing.  There is a standard here that isn't too far-reaching but blows so much else out of the water that once you finish reading you can't help but declare "YOU'VE SUNK MY BATTLESHIP!"

So it didn't turn out like I thought.  I'm okay with that.  The creepy photos of small children are still epically horrifying and the story was pretty damn good too.  I'm glad MISS PEREGRINE'S lived up to its hype.  In a reading world where where I'm exceedingly hesitant to latch onto anything hype-like I'm glad I did it with this one.  Funky, chilling and at times something resembling whimsical, MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN is a definite must-read for anyone dying for something GOOD.  Just damn good.

Participating YAckers -

Yours truly
Sya at The Mountains of Instead
Steph at The Mountains of Instead (contributing reviewer)
Sandy at Pirate Penguin's Reads
Laura at A Jane of All Reads

Ban Factor: High - A somewhat fairy world where children get to live as children forever because they have special powers except monsters lurking in the shadows are trying to murder them.  Yeah, I think some banner just shat him/herself somewhere.

YAckers Review: Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

Published March 2, 2010.

Author website.

Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It's gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie's estranged father--an elusive European warlock--only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it's her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters. 

By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire student on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect. 

As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.  (goodreads.com)

I went into this one a little apprehensively.  A boarding school book???  I screeched to my fellow YAckers.  Surely you hate me so.  Alas, not true and I was pleasantly surprised at the lightheartedness HEX HALL spits forth.  Almost in the vein of Mari Mancusi with her BLOOD COVEN series, just not nearly as satirical.  Sophie has a great, spunky little voice, the bitches are extra bitchy and there's a dude named Archer.  I'm pretty sure he was born with suede patches grafted onto elbows.  Cal was my guy.  If there's more of him that's a pretty surefire way of getting me to read on in the series.

Find out what the rest of us YAckers had to say over at Melissa's blog, Book Nut, as she was our Keeper of the Book for this past month.

Ban Factor: High - Magic, demons and teen-level sexy times in a musty basement.  I can hear the squealing already.

The Stein & Candle Detective Agency, Volume 1: American Nightmares by Michael Panush

Published March 9, 2012.

Author website.

Morton Candle is a tough guy. He grew up on the streets of Brooklyn, dodging from mobster-ruled neighborhoods to reform school before the army snapped him up and sent him to Europe to fight Hitler.

That’s where he met Weatherby Stein, the scion to one of the greatest occult families of Europe. Weatherby and his parents were being held prisoner by the Nazis, forced to use their supernatural knowledge to aid the Third Reich’s war effort.
Morton Candle got Weatherby to safety, but the kid’s parents didn’t make it.

Now it’s the 1950s. Weatherby’s a teenager, with his father’s knowledge and a chip on his shoulder from the indignities of the modern world. Morton bumps into him again and they decide to go into the only business they can – paranormal private detectives.

This time, Weatherby and Mort have cases that will take them from a vampire’s decaying mansion to the mob-controlled streets of Havana. They’ll take on roadside attractions gone wrong, hordes of the living dead, and ride against the devil in a high speed car race to the death.

Between them, Weatherby and Mort have a small arsenal and a deep knowledge of matters arcane and bizarre. They’ll need brains and brawn to survive in a world where horror, action and hardboiled noir come together in a cataclysmic mix. (netgalley.com)

OMG I loved STEIN & CANDLE so much I can't even tell you. It had the perfect amounts of cheese, campiness and noir all mixed in together. I can't tell you what it was specifically that I loved about this book but I can say it hit me just right in the cockle area that it made me a little giddy. Seriously, it was wonderful.

I will say the one thing that did irk me a bit was Candle's constant PTSD flashbacks/mentions to his war days. Those became a little much. I understand it was a part of Candle but for the most part I don't believe that's how most veterans go around thinking. For Candle everything reminded him of bullets or explosions or tanks or something. I'd imagine that kind of thinking would drive someone insane because they wouldn't be able to leave the battlefield. And Candle wasn't all that crazy compared so some of his former military buddies he came across in the stories. So I'd have to say that'd be my one complaint.

Everything else? LOVED IT! Weatherby Stein was, of course, my favorite. He is the Brain to Candle's Pinky. Well, no, not really. Candle's actually a pretty smart guy but it's obvious he's the muscle and Weatherby's the smarts. He's just 14 I believe but he has the air or someone that could be his father. You get a look at him in his own story's section when he was little, maybe 8, and he was like that even then. Just far smarter and more mature than his age dictated. But he wasn't annoying about it. He was constantly endearing, especially when it came to one boy he rescued a couple of times. He felt an affinity for him and had a need to constantly protect him (a by-product of not being able to product those around him whom he loved, I would imagine) when he's near. The kid, for the most part, always has his head about him and Candle really relies on him as much as he wants to protect him as his own. He's a great character; possibly one of the best I've come across in my reading ventures.

Candle is another great guy. Like genuinely just a good guy that happens to break some kneecaps if the situation calls for it. He's a bit of a hardass on the outside but since all of the stories are in his POV you get to see just how he feels about things, the soft spot he has for Weatherby and even for some of the people in the cases he works. He's far more intelligent than his outward demeanor would otherwise say and I just loved being in his head. I was never bored and he told a damn good story.

STEIN & CANDLE is a series of individual stories set apart as chapters but loosely linked together through minute mentions of previous stories. For instance mentioning Havana when they come across a couple of the same characters in Las Vegas or Candle's new car when he previous lost it in Vegas. Outside of those small mentions there isn't much stringing the chapters together. They can rightly stand on their own as their own individual stories and, for the most part, they do. The best part about them, though, is their feel. Panush has done a great job of capturing that cusp feel of a society switching from a war-geared gangster-fueled era into one greater led by the Mary Tyler Moores of the world. There's a crime-fighting noir about it reminiscent of Dick Tracy just with vampires and zombies and hoodoo. Loved the hoodoo, by the way. It's not an element seen very often and I just squeal a little every time I do see it.

Anyway, each story had it's particular feel led, of course, by Candle's voice. Aside from the flashback thingy I mentioned earlier, it has a little bit of wise guy attitude fresh off the battle field but without being overly obnoxious. Everywhere they go I can feel the time in which they're in. Havana in the early 50s, pre-revolution. If you know anything about it you'll be able to picture it in your mind. Or a drag race with the devil in a hot ass muscle car in California when cars still had real muscles. Or even the smartly-dressed aristocratic vamps wanting to get their money back. My favorite was Weatherby's story, about what happened to him and his parents in Castle Stein with the Nazis. It was a great departure from the tone of the rest of the stories but one that needed to be told just to give Weatherby some more depth, although he already had plenty.

Seriously, I can't say enough good things about THE STEIN & CANDLE DETECTIVE AGENCY. I'd love to see it as a comic because, well, that would just be epic. It has the feel for it and I really hope that's a possibility in the future. But between the most excellent characters, the settings to vivid you'll see them in your dreams and all of the crazy paranormal shenanigannery Stein and Candle get into, there's not much left to NOT love. It's campy, it's crazy and most of all it's fun. You really can't beat that. It's not to often I find a genuinely fun read; one that riles me up and makes me want to get up and do something. STEIN & CANDLE is a different incarnation of Sam and Dean, when Dean can go all Untouchable to his heart's content. Yeah, I can see it. And I love it.

Ban Factor: High - There's a prostitute in one of these stories. It doesn't matter what else is in there (zombies, vampires, hillbillies). The pro will make them go con.

Werewolves: The Occult Truth by Konstantinos

Published September 8, 2010.

Author website.

How does one become—or kill—a werewolf? Where do our modern shapeshifting stories come from? Are werewolves real? The truth is much stranger than fiction.

Werewolves investigates the centuries-old myths and compelling evidence surrounding these enigmatic beasts of literary fame. Explore four types of werewolves—involuntary, voluntary, other-dimensional beings, and astral—plus Native American beliefs, ancient legends from cultures worldwide, true stories of sightings, and scientific theories. From shamanistic practices and curses to drug-induced hallucinations and serial-killer werewolves, this book will tantalize readers. Also includes authentic rituals for werewolf transformation! (goodreads.com)

I reviewed another of Konstaninos's books, VAMPIRES: THE OCCULT TRUTH, a couple years ago and I just re-read it to see what I felt of that title against what I feel about WEREWOLVES.

The tone is the same, which I really liked. Konstantinos approaches the subject as a skeptic and isn't ashamed about it. He brushes aside the more frivolous, Hollywood aspects of werewolf lore and delves pretty deeply the hardcore legends from a bunch of different cultures, including European, Native American and some Asian cultures. It was interesting reading about werewolf aspects that I didn't know much, if anything at all, about before. He has a definite sway as to which werewolf mythos he believes in which is fine. In reality it's the one that makes the most sense but it's a point that he brings home, however subtly, from the beginning.

Konstantinos's voice didn't have any of that dryness I mentioned in the VAMPIRES book, another good thing. I think WEREWOLVES was more succinct and to the point than its predecessor and didn't spend as much time dwelling on the technical. That might also be because there wasn't too much technical to delve into since werewolves are even more mythical than vampires.

As with VAMPIRES, WEREWOLVES does contain letters from his readers detailing their "experiences" either with or as werewolves but they're pretty much as clear as footage of Bigfoot or an acid trip. They really only lent further credit to Konstantinos's theory that werewolf experiences are more psychological than anything.

What really bothered me about WEREWOLVES, though, and it doesn't appear that I had this issue with VAMPIRES, was Konstantinos's constant name-dropping of his own books. That got really grating. It felt like it was at least once a chapter he was mentioning another of his titles, VAMPIRES especially. It just seemed . . . tacky. And a cheap way to advertise and try to hook people into his other books. I've only read the one and I did like it but I was put off by WEREWOLVES by his advertising.

Overall another good reference book for people on the more serious track of werewolf myths and legends. There's nothing TWILIGHT-ish about this one; it's just a journey into myth history. But it's enlightening all the same. As someone that really isn't into werewolves all that much, it was interesting reading about all the different types and their histories. It all goes so far beyond what Hollywood has taken upon itself to show us that it's barely recognizable. But just beware of his name-dropping. It happened enough that it really started to grate on me.

Deviant by Adrian McKinty

Published October 1, 2011.

Danny Lopez is new in town. He made a mistake back home in Las Vegas, and now he has landed at an experimental school in Colorado for "tough cases." At the Cobalt Charter School, everything is scripted-what the teachers say, what the students reply-and no other speaking is allowed. This supercontrolled environment gives kids a second chance to make something of themselves. But with few freedoms, the students become sitting ducks for a killer determined to "clean up" Colorado Springs. (netgalley.com)

DNF.

I tried. I didn't succeed. I found the opening chapter exceptionally disturbing and thankfully the rest of the story didn't carry on from that POV because I don't know if I would have been able to get through it. It's about an unknown boy (not Danny) about to kill and mutilate a cat. Pretty gross. But it's written succinctly. It roiled up a pretty strong reaction in me. So the writing did it's job. But that's where it left me.

After that, it snaps into Danny's head but it doesn't stay there. The whole story reads kind of schizophrenic in that it's kind of limited third but it's talking in an almost stilted, highly educated voice that is not befitting Danny at all. And then it head-hops something awful. It's jarring to switch POVs from one sentence to the next. Very few authors can do it and have it flow. McKinty isn't one of them. It just felt all over the place, I couldn't get a grip on any of the characters and from what I was seeing, I didn't like most of them.

Danny's a bit of a jerk, not bailing out his step-dad simply because he didn't want to (the thing with the cops was all a misunderstanding, easily solved should Danny have opened his mouth). His step-dad is the token hippy guy with some of the most cliched dialogue I've ever come across. Danny's mom is just as cliched and is barely a presence in the story up to the point where I stopped reading (about 100 pages in). The interaction between these three is something out of a paint-by-numbers lesson on parental dialogue. It was painful at times to read.

Info-dumps are set up through awkward dialogue (everyone's guilty of this) and there's far too much name-dropping going on. And then the interjections with the mystery boy and his cat obsession were really weird and didn't seem to be going where. I get it. It's funky and mysterious. Get on with it.

Just the whole thing felt forced and it eventually became a burden to read. It got to a point where I was begrudging having to read it. That's usually a good time to stop. The plot had great potential and the set-up for the school was well-played. It's definitely a bit of a creepy place. But the overall execution fell short for me. I just felt the writing wasn't up to snuff and the emphasis was usually in places it didn't really need to be, and was grossly lacking where it should have been. Maybe the story got more intriguing but I couldn't tough it out.

Ban Factor: High - Just judging by the beginning of this one and it's potential cat mutilation, that would be enough to make it highly offensive to baby eyes.

The Girl's Guide to Werewolves by Barb Karg

Published September 18, 2009.

The good news is: He's tall, dark, and handsome.

The bad news is: He's short-tempered, a bit hairy, and has a tendency to howl at the full moon.

. . . Which makes bringing him home to meet mom and dad a bit difficult. How do you expect him to meet the family when he's shedding on the furniture and sharpening his nails? Will he have more in common with the family dog than you? Will he leave you for a hairy hottie? No worries-in this guide, you will learn everything you need to know about these wild boys, including:

• How to spot a werewolf
• What to do when he changes shape
• How to avoid his animalistic mood swings
• How to destroy the savage beast (before he destroys you!)
• The best-and worst-werewolf books and filmsWith this book, all ladies in love with lycanthropes learn how to tame their creatures of the night!

If you find yourself crushing on these beastly bad boys, The Girl's Guide to Werewolves will teach you how to train and tame your creature of the night! (book back blurb)

See, that blurb is a bit misleading but ultimately in a good way: it's not as cutesy as it's made out to be. Thanks to the likes of certain glittering vampire movies, Karg's book is trying to cater to a particular female pubescent clientele that may or may not have an affinity for a particular shirtless "werewolf," of which she mentions constantly throughout the book. But THE GIRL'S GUIDE is actually a really good cliff notes source for all things werewolf, without pictures. Chagrin, Team Jacob. Chagrin.

From their very beginnings in legends and lore to their current cinematic manifestations, Karg covers them all in quick succession. If you're a writer looking for an easy way out but not willing to go all SMeyer-lazy, THE GIRL'S GUIDE is a great tool to use for those quick and easy look-ups. From how the varieties transform, to what they look like, to how they're killed and the celluloid offspring they spawned, you can find it here. Are there more comprehensive guides out there? Of course. But I'm sure none have the spunk of THE GIRL'S GUIDE.

So don't be fooled by the title, the cover or the book blurb. THE GIRL'S GUIDE is a good book to have when you're just getting into the werewolf lore. Don't be turned off at the notion that it actually plays into the same scheme as the likes of THE VAMPIRE IS JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU does. It doesn't. Like I said, the kitch is a ploy to bring in the Twihards. There's genuine information between these covers that you don't want to miss, especially if werewolves are your thing.

It just kind of saddens me that publishers think they need to strum the heartstrings of Twihards everywhere in order to get this to sell. Marketing it for the information bloom it is should have been enough, in my opinion. Sure it's snazzy and quirky and plays pretend really well. But it would be a shame for THE GIRL'S GUIDE to get thrown aside by the same market that actually wants to know how to bag a werewolf. Because girlies, this one doesn't actually do that.

So when you pick up THE GIRL'S GUIDE, just remember you'll get a fill of werewolf information when you read and you'll be fine. Then, if this has piqued your interest enough, move on to the meatier stuff. Just remember where you started.

Ban Factor: High - The supernatural always does it in. And since this one is talking about getting with a werewolf, they'd be salivating to kill it.

Your Neighborhood Gives Me the Creeps by Adam Selzer

First published in 2009.

Do ghosts really exist, or is "ghostly phenomena" just strange stuff that gets blamed on dead people? Giving you the real story, professional ghostbuster and skeptic Adam Selzer of Weird Chicago Tours delves into a mysterious death at a former funeral parlor, nightly ghost sightings at Hull House, and more. Proving that not all ghost hunters are kooks (some are just geeks gone wild), Selzer showcases true spooky tales worldwide, a history of hauntings, the art of ghost hunting, and cool evidence of the supernatural. These stories will make you want to investigate that cemetery down the road to see if it's haunted - or just dark and creepy. (book back blurb)

Adam Selzer is my guy. Totally. There's nothing floofy or flippy about this book. Selzer isn't some dude that smells like incense and wears MC Hammer pants as a ruse to look like a dime store Romani. He's just a guy that happened to be in the right place at the right time and found himself giving ghost tours and wandering around supposedly haunted houses. Now that's my idea of timing.

The only slightly negative thing I had to say about this book was the writing itself. Not that it was really bad, it just felt rambling in some parts, kind of redundant in others. Other than that, Selzer told a pretty compelling story about his ordinary-turned-creepy life.

What really got me hooked on this book was that Selzer is just like me. Despite all of my run-ins with ethereal beings and my psychic tendencies (including but not limited to seeing people die, one, very unfortunately, came true while the other I was capable of saving), I'm still a skeptic. Yeah, I have orb pictures, which are some of the most fallacious pieces of ghostly evidence out there. Yeah, it could be dust. But how do you have mountains of dust or water droplets on one side of a room and not the other with people walking all around? Yeah, I have a photo of a ghost standing in an abandoned building in broad daylight. Yeah, it could be something reflecting from the inside (although it was dark in there) or it could have been something on the negative (but not really) but it certainly looked like a white-formed faceless woman in a corseted bustle dress to me.

What's cool about this is the debunking and the phenomena within all of Selzer's debunking. Yes, 90% of ghostly occurrences can be explained away by something but the rest . . . it leaves people coming up short. That squeaking is a cat or the door opening on its own is hanging unevenly. Total buzz kill but it makes those few moments of unexplainable phenomena all the more fantastic.

Selzer doesn't pretend. He doesn't blow smoke, he doesn't sugar-coat anything, he just tells it like it is - for the most part, not ghostly. Rightly in history, maybe, and that could be leaving the vibe. But ghostly? Probably not.

That's why I liked this book so much. Because of the skepticism. It grounded the fantastical. It made it seem more realistic, if that makes any sense. It's like how Tim O'Brien wrote in The Things They Carried that the soldiers had to make up the more mundane stuff in order to balance out the real shit they had to go through. A book full of floofy ghostly spooky gets kind of "alright, enough" but a book full of skepticism sprinkled with stories that shake even the skeptic's resolve makes believing in the supernatural all the more real. There is something there that we can't explain. Maybe science doesn't have an explanation for it yet. Maybe it's something beyond our scope of reasoning. Whatever it is, it sure is cool!

Don't hold your breath for seeing Selzer or any of his co-workers joining the ranks of show hunters on TV. They don't do it for the spectacle or the money (since they really don't make any). They do it for the history. This is a book about some of the most grounded and realistically-based ghost hunters I've ever seen. No demons. No portals to Hell. No Warrens. No show-offisms. It just is and it's worth the read because Selzer has some good stories to tell. It'll also make you look at your own experiences in a different light and help you to explain something that might not have been explained before. The pseudo-science they dabble in is also interesting.

Really, don't miss any of it!

The Devil's Kiss by Sarwat Chadda + Contest!

Pub date - September 1, 2009

Bilqis Sangreal always knew that being a Knight Templar required the complete sacrifice of normalcy. Instead of hanging out with friends or flirting with boys, she spends her time in the darkest corners of London's underworld, battling the Unholy in a centuries-old war for mankind's soul.

Even though she's been solitary for years, Billi's lone-wolf attitude is challenged when her childhood friend and fellow knight, Kay, returns from Jerusalem with a new radiance and a dangerous chip on his shoulder. Kay is ready to reclaim his place by Billi's side, but she's skeptical. While Billi was risking her neck fighting werewolves and vampires, Kay was reading auras in the lap of luxury. Now he spends his time showing off his new powers, cultivating the admiration of the other knights, and teasing Billi. It's all too much to bear . . . until Billi meets Michael, a disturbingly handsome guy who understands her like no one else, effortlessly staking a claim on her heart.

Kay wastes no time in complicating Billi's life just as it's starting to improve. In a moment of bravado, Kay uses the last of the Templars' treasures, King Solomon's Cursed Mirror, to look into the Ethereal Realm, drawing the attention of the Angel of Death. Even though Kay is the most powerful psychic the Templars have seen in centuries, he's no match for the dark angel responsible for the plague that killed every firstborn child in Egypt so long ago.

The Knights know that the angel needs the mirror in order to unleash the Tenth Plague again, but keeping it from him will be nearly impossible. To win this battle and save the lives of millions of children, the Templars will have to find renewed strength, and Billi will have to make sacrifices greater than she'd ever imagined. (book back blurb)

That has got to be the longest blurb ever to grace the back of a book. Personally I don't think it being that long is all that necessary but that's just me.

Anyway, it was alright. I didn't dislike it but I wasn't ecstatic about it either. The writing was good. Nothing really to complain about there but just the overall effect of the book . . . eh, I wasn't thrilled with it. I read it once and I'm good for a while. Might read a sequel if there is one.

I liked Billi a lot. Nothing says awesome author like one who can kick the crap out of his characters to make them who they are. The dynamic between Billi and her father is, for most of the book, "WTF is his problem?" but in the end, it rips your heart out a little. I really liked that relationship, for all the problems that are there. And that's not to mention the shit that gets kicked out of Billi on every freaking page. It's awesome! Well, not for her but I like seeing authors not be gentle with their characters. And yay for it not being her with the Special Child Syndrome which automatically negates such a syndrome.

I don't want to give it away but there are two twists in the book. One I think is fairly obvious from the second it appears on the page. I knew there was something not right - I just couldn't pinpoint what kind of not right it was. And the second one I figured out not too long before it actually happened. So that doesn't really count but that second twist is by far more convincing as twisting than the first.

I liked mixing the Old Testament type of stuff in the modern world. Not exactly original but I liked the way it played out in this book. I liked how the Knights Templar weren't defenders of the Holy Grail but of the people from otherworldly beings. It makes for a more exciting story! At least this one had fangs. I also liked being able to see the sickness for what it really was although that's not a pretty sight at all. Downright gross is more like it. But again, it shows that Chadda is not shy about what he writes, which is always a good thing.

I wasn't too fond of the protection that Billi got at the end. Granted she'd suffered more than enough and could have used a little bit of help, but it allowed her to pass through all of the sickness to fulfill the prophesy set out for her (ok, so she has some Special Child Syndrome but it's really watered down and really palatable). I could have lived without that. Or seen a little more struggle. What can I say, I'm a sadist.

Yeah, there are a lot of good things about this book but at the end of the day, it's one of those that just didn't tickle me the right way, or in the right spot. I'm not going to deny it the praise it deserves but I'm just not going to rave about it either. I didn't feel that way about the book. Really no good explanation or excuse for it. It just is. But I would definitely recommend this to people to read, especially if you're into the whole Knights Templar business and London. I loved how London was woven into the storyline and became part of the story. I've been to Temple Church and I could picture everything Billi was talking about.

So aside from the fact that the girl on the cover doesn't match the ethnicity of the girl in the book (white versus Pakistani), which isn't the author's fault, I liked it but wasn't in love with it. But I'm sure many people will be.

CONTEST TIME!!!

I have two ARCs of this book to give away. You want one? Just read the directions and enter in.

Leave a comment with your email address answering this question to enter -

"Which supernatural being do you think you'd stand a chance against in a fight?"

You MUST (hopefully I made that big enough) answer the question in order for your entry to count. If you don't, none of the extra stuff will count and your entry will be disqualified. I can't stress that enough.

+1 for new followers
+2 for current followers
+2 for linking (up to 3 links for 2 points each to equal 6 extra points)

Contest will end August 24th and midnight EST and open to US residents only. Good luck!