Dates from Hell

Undead In The Garden Of Good And Evil by Kim Harrison To protect Ivy from the vampire that her family owes allegiance to, she is sent away at 16 until the time that she is old enough to handle herself with Piscary. Although sending a living vampire child away is almost unheard of, Piscary's fixation on Ivy made it necessary. Now 7 years later Ivy is working at Inderland Security (the police force for those not human) and is fast-tracking her way to upper management. The only thing holding her back is Art. Ivy accepts a date with Art. He thinks he'll not only get the blood he's been after for the past 6 months, but her body as well, but Ivy has other plans. Although Ivy is expecting things to go her way, she knows it's still going to be a date from hell. I've read and loved all of Kim Harrison's Hollow series, and was excited to get Ivy's story in Undead In The Garden Of Good And Evil. Undead In The Garden Of Good And Evil is fast paced and exciting, and now I can see how and why Ivy became a runner for Inderland Security. I totally loved Undead In The Garden Of Good And Evil from the first word to the last and very much look forward to Ms. Harrison's next story in this series. The Claire Switch Project by Lynsay Sands Claire has wanted Kyle since they were twelve but was too shy to let him know. Now, several years later, they're both working as scientists on the same project, and she still wants him. An accident in the lab has Claire getting hit with a destabilizer beam and Kyle rushing in to save her. Claire appears to have no adverse effects, but just to be on the safe side Kyle takes her to his home so he can keep an eye on her. Claire and Kyle's sister, Jill, discover that there are some effects from the beam and due to Jill's prodding; Claire agrees to be her date at their high school reunion tonight. One problem...shortly after Claire agrees to go with Jill, Kyle asks her to go and since she's yearned to go out with Kyle in what seems like forever, she can't turn him down. Now Claire has two dates on the same night with two different people. With her new `enhancements', Kyle will never know... will he? This could be the night that Claire has been dreaming of for years, or will it be the date from hell? The Claire Switch Project is hilarious! I felt so bad for Claire when she got into the messes that she did because of the side effects of the destabilizer beam, especially with her being so shy that it's almost painful, but I couldn't help but laugh at some of the situations. Lynsay Sands has another winner with The Claire Switch Project, her sense of humor hits my funny bone hard every time! Chaotic by Kelly Armstrong Hope has always felt `different' than the other people around her. By the time she hit eighteen, she had found out just how different she was; her powers became active and she found out that she was half demon...thanks to her absentee father. Hope's mom was at it again, trying to get her into a

Once again I'll state that I'm not a huge fan of anthologies because usually atleast one of the authors is dissapointing. And for the second time this year I was pleasingly proved wrong! Dates from Hell is well put together and I say this even after two of the authors are ones who have put out work I've not enjoyed in the past. However they both had incredibly good stories in this book! Undead in the Garden of Good & Evil - Kim Harrison could slap her name on a piece of lettuce at this point and we'd all sit around oohing & awing at it. The woman is that enthralling. For fans of her series, don't expect this short tale to further that storyline. But it does give us more incite into the lives of both vampires, Ivy & Kisten. It helps you associate with why certain choices are then made in the series. The Claire Switch Project- I love Lynsay Sands. In fact if I could trade my own dear husband in for a few of her hero's I would! This was very light & entertaining if a tad predictable. The ending was very intrigueing though. If she ever gets tired of her vampire series ( please no, never)she could start this theme for a new one. Think Mystique from X-Men! Chaotic- Very good story by Kelly Armstrong! A half demon would be spy thinks she's using her powers to detect chaos to bust the bad guy & help the world. However she finds that the real bad guys have been using her & she must help jewel thief Karl Marston save the day. Warning: Our jewel loving werewolf doesn't neccisarily get the girl. But the author does set them up very interestingly to continue with further stories... Dead Man Dating- Alright I wil admit that I HATED the Moon series by Lori Handeland, it's no secret. But I think her short may have been the most memorable & exciting of the great stories in this book! A somewhat mousy librarian becomes a hunted conquest for a new breed of sexual demon unleashed in New York. Sort of Like a Succubbus with out the frailties, this demon needs a virgin sacrifice. That's hard to find in the big city. Enter a reclusive demon hunter with possesion secrets of his own to save the day. I felt there was a lot of chemistry in this story. With believable tidbits of modern terror in the big apple, I was blown away by the ending which surely must be setting us up for a new series by Handeland. Shockingly, I'd buy it as well!

I really enjoyed Dates From Hell. The authors chosen and the stories selected are a nice variety; you get a sense of their style and talent. I think that the stories and authors presented in this anthology show how very wide the label `paranormal romance' is. To me, the tales by Lynsay Sands and Lori Handeland are `lighter' than the ones by Armstrong and Harrison, but the diverseness makes it a good anthology in my opinion. I liked all of the stories, but if I had to pick my favorites, it would be those by Kelley Armstrong and Kim Harrison. Reading "Chaotic" made me want to learn more about the characters; there's a good amount of humor and snark too, which I appreciate. I've read most of Ms. Armstrong's books and am a fan of her talent and imagination. I can also appreciate the fashion disaster feelings that Hope, the main female charcter in "Chaotic" has as well as her problems with `food fallouts', lol; I have to add the Karl Marsten is one fine werewolf. ;-) "Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil" presents a back-story of two of the Rachel Morgan series' main characters; I think that the tale also works as a stand-alone and gives you a taste of how detailed and involved the world of The Hollows is. If you've read any of the series, this story shows Ivy and Kisten in a new light and presents a whole other `side' to these two and to some of the main themes. I think that makes it ideal for those who are already fans of her work as well as for those who are looking for a new, good author. Lynsay Sands' "The Claire Switch Project" had some very funny lines and several about fandoms in general that are true. While the basic premise of shape-shifting isn't novel, I found the humor and story-line to be fun and a good read. Lori Handeland's "Dead Man Dating" was entertaining and fun too. The lines "Now back to the date - if not from hell, at least from a place very nearby. Manhattan." gave me a chuckle and set the tone for her story. Over-all, I found "Dates from Hell" to be well worth the purchase price and several of the stories worth reading more than once.

If you're a fan of vampire, werewolf and other such paranormal fiction, you do not want to miss this anthology! All four are masters in their genres and none fail to entertain the reader. If you've never read any of the authors, prepare to suspend your belief system (that means let loose, fellow readers--it makes for much more fun reading) and hang on for a great thrill of a reading ride. "Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil" by Kim Harrison--A very exciting story as it is a prequel to Harrison's Rachel Morgan series (Dead Witch Walking). This one is told from Ivy's point of view. She's trying to climb the corporate ladder in her office, but must do so on her boss's terms. Art is a "dead" vampire, as opposed to Ivy, who is a living one with the vampire virus. He wants Ivy to feed off of. When she discover's Art is covering up a serious crime, she takes measures to put a stop to his interference in her job.--Loved this one as we get a more intimate view of Ivy's character, one I didn't fully understand, or like, till reading this short. If you're a fan of Harrison's books, pick this one up and enjoy. You'll be sorry you missed it otherwise. Five stars. "The Claire Switch Project" by Lynsay Sands--Claire Beckett and Kyle Lockhart are scientists experimenting with and perfecting a molecular destabilizer. A rogue employee, impatient to test the device on humans, tricks Claire and zaps her with the device's beam. Concerned, Kyle takes her home with him to watch for any harmful effects. What neither knows is that teach of them has cared for one another for quite some time. Claire sees an opportunity to get close to Kevin, and Kevin wants the same. When the destabalizer's beam ends up effecting Claire after all, they're in for an interesting night when they go to their high school reunion.--A very humerous story that flowed well, despite some silly moments. Of course there's going to be some silly moments--the heroine is zapped with a destabilizer!! It makes for some hilarious scenes, as only Sands can write them. Four stars for the lighthearted read of the four. "Chaotic" by Kelly Armstrong--Hope is half demon, her ability to see and feel chaos magic both a help and a hindrance at times. When her mother sets her up on a blind date, chaos jumps up and runs amock in the form of jewel thief and werewolf, Marsten. An enigmatic man, to say the least, her boss wants something from Marsten and she's to make sure he stays put till the boss arrives. When she realizes she's being used, she and Marsten throw in together to ensure their survival.--I've heard such wonderful things about Armstrong's books, never picked them up though. This short was an excellent intro to her kick-butt, no-nonsense style and I definitely plan on picking up her books in the future. Hope and Marsten were an interesting pair I would love to see in a full-length book. Four Stars. "Dead Man Dating" by Lori Handeland--A must buy author for paranormal fans!! This short is no excepti

What a great anthology! Every story held my interest. Kim Harrison's "Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil" is actually a prequel to her novel, DEAD WITCH WALKING, although the story is about Ivy Tamwood rather than Rachel Morgan. Ivy wants to advance in Inderland Security (I.S.) but her supervisor, Art, is holding her back. Ivy is a living vampire whereas Art is a dead vampire and Art wants sex and blood in exchange for a positive evaluation. Ivy finds her way out from under Art when she discovers he is using his position to cover up a crime; Art finds a banshee tear at a homicide scene but Ivy learns that the banshee has been dead for 3 years and thus the tear has no power and was actually in the evidence room. The story is intriguing and ends with Ivy getting an intern- the intern is not named but is presumably Rachel Morgan. "The Claire Switch Project" by Lynsay Sands is humorous despite some fairly predictable scenes. Claire Beckett and Kyle Lockhart are working together on a molecular destabilizer when another scientist, John Heathcliffe, decides to speed up the human trials by zapping Claire with the ray. No side effects are noticed until Kyle leaves Claire at home with his sister, Jill (her best friend from high school), and Claire realizes she can look at a picture of anyone and morph into that person. Jill has just been dumped by her boyfriend who is now going to their high school reunion with the bane of Jill and Claire's high school years, Magda. Jill convinces Claire to go as her date in the guise of movie star, Brad Cruise, only Kyle also invites her as his date to the reunion. Claire attempts to shift between both dates and the results are what one would expect- and yet it worked as I found myself laughing out loud. I haven't read anything by Kelley Armstrong before (a mistake I definitely plan to correct!) but her entry, "Chaotic" was my favorite one in the anthology. In "Chaotic", Hope is half-demon with the ability to sense chaos (i.e. trouble of a supernatural sort). While stuck on a blind date her mother set her up on, she runs into jewel thief/werewolf, Marsten. She contacts Tristan Robard, her employer through the interracial council, who tells her to keep Marsten until he arrives. However, things get interesting then as Hope realizes she has been deceived all along. The final story is Lori Handeland's "Dead Man Dating" in which literary agent, Kit Morelli, finds herself being pursued by a demon/incubus. What starts as a harmless blind date turns into a nightmare as Satan's latest demon creation tries to have sex with her to maintain his power. She is rescued by rogue demon hunter, Chavez, and together they have to figure out how to keep her alive. Overall, this was an excellent anthology. Highly recommended!