Cursed to Death (Crimson Moon, Book 4)

Sasha Trudeau, shadow wolf and military agent and her team return to New Orleans for the fae's Midsummers Night Ball. Instead of having romantic dinners with Hunter and enjoying New Orleans nightlife, Sasha is assisting the fae with a trail of grizzly murders. New Orleans has been cursed by black magic that only seems to have effect on the supernatural community. The Seelie fae have been stripped of their magic (which means no glamouring humans, who can now see their cute pointy ears), werewolves are pitted against each other, the demon doors have been reopened, the fairies are hiding and starving for food since they can now be seen when tending to their gardens; the supernatural community in New Orleans is in chaos. Sexual tensions and dominance plays are high between Sasha, Hunter and Shogun. Even Sasha's familiars and her dad are affected by the curse; anyone with a sprinkle of magical beings in their blood is affected. The only escape seems to be the Shadowlands; however the unseen sorcerer's trap has made it impossible for any shadow wolf to enter Shadowlands. Without the supernatural community's natural cloaking mechanism to remain hidden within plain sight, humans are starting to take notice and ask questions, now everyone is at risk of exposure. I really enjoyed this installment. It was full of action, mystery and lots and lots of fae. I love the strength of Sasha's alpha she-wolf, however I was a bit irritated at the way Sasha treated Hunter every time Shogun was around. Also, regardless of how intriguing the plot was, there was a bit more predictability and coincidental events than previous installments. All-in-all this book was bewitching, engrossing and hypnotic. I would've loved to have seen more voodoo priest included, the story did take place in New Orleans after all; however, I did love that the Unseelie fae were included in this installment, I'm a huge Unseelies fan. I highly recommend this book and series to dark urban fantasy readers and also look forward to the next book in the series Never Cry Wolf due out 3/30/2010. I also recommend: They Call Me Death Night Life (Nocturne City, Book 1) Street Magic (Black London Novels) Moon Called (Mercy Thompson, Book 1) City of Souls (Sign of the Zodiac, Book 4)

Banks does it again! Cursed to Death is the 4th book in the Crimson Moon series. In this book Sasha and Hunter return to New Orleans for rest & the Seelie King's Ball given by their ally King Sir Rodney. But there is something in the Air making everyone on edge. Sasha and Hunter are unusually irritated with each other and they can't figure out why. Then they are also asked by Sir Rodney to assist with a murder investigation and that's when Sasha and Hunter figure out dark magic is in the air. The magic plays on each person weakness and in Hunter's case it is Sasha. In Sasha's case it is her feelings for Shogun & possibly Sir Rodney (Have to read for story details). Sasha, Hunter, her team and Sir Rodney all work together to solve the mystery of the dark magic & discover what is needed to break the curse around them. This book is action packed, full of surprises and loaded with all her paranormal characters from her previous books. I loved it but I would not recommend reading this if you have not read the previous 3 books.

GREAT READ! This book kept me glued from start to finish. I am looking forward to reading more of Banks, I think Banks may have just become my favorite author.

Sasha Trudeau just can't catch a break! Back in New Orleans for some quiet time with her mate, Max Hunter, they are immediately caught up in a murder mystery involving supernatural beings they had befriended on their last trip. Powerful magic is afoot and is affecting all supernatural beings. A dark curse is affecting everyone's judgement. Beloved creatures are murdered, and any of the supernaturals can be next to succumb to the dark magic clouding everyone's judgement. Can Sasha, Max and Shogun figure out who's behind the mayhem while keeping their passions in check, or will they be included in the collateral damage? Ms. Banks again weaves a tale full of political intrigue, revenge and passion. Brother is pitted against brother for Sasha, who must keep her own passions in check to avoid potential bloodshed and remain clear-minded enough to prevent all hell from breaking loose. High praise for Ms. Banks, who continues to keep us on our toes with every literary journey she takes us on.

Black Ops agent Sasha Trudeau is a shadow wolf who unlike werewolves can change at any time. She uses the shadows to go to the Shadowlands and from there to any point on earth in an instant. Currently, she and her mate Max Hunter are in New Orleans to attend the Seelie King Sir Rodney's's full moon Midsummer Night Ball. Instead of having fun, Sasha investigates the death of a phoenix who after the flame burned out she sayed as ash instead of turningd into a beautiful human woman; her sister died in the same way including the identical black magic signature. Sasha and Max pick up a sexual wolf scent at the site of the killings, but always lose the trail. A pixie tells them that the glamour of the Fae is faltering and members of the Shadow Wolf Federation sense the dark anomalies negatively affecting them and of course Sasha and Max. The Fae dark sorcery spell is becoming increasingly stronger while seemingly sapping the essence of everyone; if it is not stopped by the ball, war will explode. The forth Crimson Moon urban fantasy (see BAD MOON, BITE THE MOON and UNDEAD ON ARRIVAL) is as strong, evocative and action-packed as its predecessors are. L.A. Banks combines various genres to create a unique paranormal vision that grips readers from the opening corpse and never slows down as the inquiry affirms all hell is coming during the next full moon especially since it appears the vampires, the Unseelie, renegade werewolves and rogue shadow wolves might be temporally uniting to throw over the current order before infighting with one another. Ms. Banks makes each species different but believable as Sasha feels CURSED TO DEATH by all of them. Harriet Klausner