Fire Me Up (Aisling Grey, Guardian, Book 2)

It's a part of my favorite books I Katie MacAlister!

It's official! Katie MacAlister is a total tease! I hadn't thought it was possible to improve upon "You slay me" but this book totally hit me sideways. Oh, the fireworks! The chemistry! The utter pizzazz! This book is an embodiment of the phrase "addictive read"! I haven't been so dedicated to a book like I was to this one! Wow! Words cannot fully express just how fun, sexy, and exhilarating reading this book was! My word? Get a copy, read it, and never get rid of it! On cold days, I go back to my Aisling Grays and review them, they'll make you laugh out loud even when you try so hard not to. I absolutely, positively couldn't wait till the sequel.

Aisling Grey: "Courier", "Demon Lord", "Dragon's Mate" and "Guardian", what an interesting combination of career choices but that's who Aisling is and believe me Aisling's experiencing a few difficulties being all four. In this second outing, Aisling is once again delivering an item to a client in Budapest and while there will also be attending a conference for the "GODTAM", i.e., "Guardians, Oracles, Diviners, Theurgist and Mages" for the Otherworld or as they say "L'au-delà", so that she can horn her skills as a Guardian by hopefully becoming an apprentice to a full-fledged Guardian as she was meant to be. Upon Aisling's arrival to Budapest she runs into the one person she would most rather not see, the man she left behind once before as she could not handle being a Demon's Mate, the "dragon" who sets her heart, mind and body on fire, Drake Vireo. Little does Aisling know but Drake's presence in Budapest is not a coincidence, he's there to claim his mate, by any means necessary and not necessarily to Aisling's liking. During Aisling's visit at the conference, other "Guardians" start turning up dead and once again the fingers of justice point to Aisling as the culprit and she must once again prove her innocence or be banded from what she is most determined to become and what she is meant to be, a true "Guardian" which she had denied herself by hiding what she is after the accidental death of her friend mentioned in "You Slay Me". With almost no training Aisling makes a few wrong turns but she always finds her way back and with her underlying talents, which she has yet to realize, she is unquestionably going to be one hell of a "Guardian" (actually her skills are already beyond some) one day. Although Drake understands what being a Guardian means to Aisling, he deems it as "foolish". Drake feels he and his "Sept" should be uppermost in her mind and in her life and therein lies the conflict. Compromise can be a difficult dish to serve but the way I see it, if he doesn't compromise just a little, he will lose Aisling and that I cannot foresee happening as the big picture is Drake loves Aisling no matter what she does or where she goes, he's gonna be a part of her life, so he will have to find a way around this. Can't wait to see how he resolves this. Katie MacAlister has once again weaved an intriguing story of magic, lust, love and betrayal and I loved "Fire Me Up" as much as, if not more than, "You Slay Me" and I am impatiently waiting for the release of "Blow Me Down" as I can't wait to see what happens next to my favorite couple, Aisling and Drake and of course, my favorite demon, Jim. Ms. MacAlister keep this novels coming, as in my eyes you can do no wrong!!!!

Well, Katie Mac is at it again. What do they feed her? I don't know of any writer who is as prolific or as much fun. Humor is hard to write, harder for reader to often catch. What has one person laughing hysterically, will see another stone-faced. Well, a few get stone-faced when they read Katie Macalister. They complains about the story line being unbelievable or a farce. Well, not for one moment do I think Ms. Macalister every expected anyone to take her books serious. She wants you to read for simple pleasure and to laugh till your ribs hurt. As usual, Katie Mac delivers with both - simple pleasures and laughing till your ribs hurt. People can huff and say I won't buy her again because she is silly. Well, guess what, we do buy her for that very reason. She is a FUN read. Period. She is not offering earthshaking discussions on the perils of life. She is taking you an a rollercoaster ride into - well, who knows where she will take us next! I always arrive at the end feeling happy for having enjoyed myself so! I utterly adored Aisling Grey in You Slay Me. I mean who would not adore her boyfriend Drake who is a dragon...hum wyvern? I think that Drake is a dragon...hum...wyvern was a clue the book was not going to be serious! The next in the series of dragon tales...wyvern tales...sees Aisling fulfilling her role as Guardian. It's not easy being a person suddenly in charge of portals straight to Hell. With these new demanding chores for her Guardian role, she thinks it wise to bone up and decides to check up on the necessary skills by checking in to a Guardian convention held in Budapest (and here we thought it was just another Trekkie...hum..Trekker gathering!). Her former job was curious for her uncle, what landed her in the lap of Drake in the first tale. Since she is heading in the right direction she agrees to courier another item of antiquity. Okay, Aisling, didn't you learn about this in You Slay Me? Thankfully, not!! The romance between Drake Vireo and Aisling is still in WIP stage, since this book follows only a month after You Slay Me. Drake for those who missed the first book (Go read the first book!!!) is the leader of the Green Dragons. However sexy Drake is in, whether in Dragon form or human form, Aisling is till adjusting to the idea of having a dragon...hum...wyvern for a steady beau. There are various things causing the road to romance to be bumpy, such as thieves other's of Drakes Ilk on the prowl, murder and mayhem. There are more books in the Aisling series coming, though not as fast as Katie Mac usually puts them out. Hey, ease up people. The woman has been doing a book a month (well, all most) for nearly two years. Let her have a well earned vacation. I will be there waiting for more wyvern tales when they arrive. This made the New York Times Best Sellers list. It only shows the popularity of this fascinating and fun writer.

Well, Ms. MacAlister is at again and she's given us a hot new entry in the life of Aisling Grey. This book is great, maybe a smidge less explosive than You Slay Me, the first book in the series, but still addictive. Aisling is a Gaurdian, a person born to use magic to seal portals to Hell which are spread throughout the world. She's new to this, infact she only found out about the entirety of the "Otherworld" about a month ago and has decided to study up at a Guardian convention being held in Budapest. She figures she can kill two birds with one stone and agrees to courrier another antiquity for her uncle, just as in the previous book. Many roadblocks will stand in her way though and one of them will be her impossible to live with smolderingly sexy wyvern mate ( or dragon wanna be husband for those of you not in the know). Drake Vireo, leader of the green dragons, is sex in scales( but yummier in his human form) and Aisling can't help her attraction to him even though there are definite unresolved issues between them. Also trying to muck up her field trip are thieves, the three othe dragon wyvern's, a bakers dozen naked & horny Incubi, the Otherworld heirarchy, her pet demon Jim in Newfie dog form nearly dying, several murders, that little business of the challenge with Drake in the previous book, & a partridge in a pear tree. (OK the last was an exageration, but there is a pigeon) [...]. I was thrilled to see that she plans atleast 6 more books to Aislings story. Yeah! HOWEVER, I am left steaming and nearly irate as I found out that there will be A YEAR BETWEEN RELEASE DATES! A YEAR! Come on! You've made us obsessed with your writing, we have money, give it to us now! I can understand MAYBE 6 months, she is a busy auther, but an entire year! And the next full book in her Dark One's Series won't be out till March 2006!!!! Come on, if you think we are going to wait with this much enthuisiasm for that long you're crazier than some of your characters! (And not in the fun way we love!)

This was a great follow-up book that left me ready for more of Aisling Grey. From learning more about guardians and dragons to solving a new mystery. Aisling is a great character, we get to find out more of who she is and what she as a guardian can do,her relationship with Drake gets more exiting and her demon/dog had me laughing to the end. I can't wait for the next novel.