When Darkness Falls: Kiss of the Wolf\Shadow Kissing\The Devil She Knew

This is the annual Harlequin Halloween romance anthology. The stories in the book are written by two of the top paranormal romance writers in the genre ( Evelyn Vaughn and Susan Krinard) and one is by fantasy writer Tanith Lee. These are romances with paranormal themes. The emphasis in these novellas is on strong sexual tension in the midst of otherworldly happenings...... Susan Krinard's werewolf tale is fast, sexy and dangerous- the heroine is drawn to her dark lover even though she does not trust him. Great gothic elements make this one stay with you long after reading. Tanith Lee introduces us to a man in stone who watches over his garden..... this one has a good suspense story mixed with supernatural hauntings and a ghostly mystery. The romance is complicated and the conflict not readily dismissed. Well written- I look forward to more in the new LUNA line by Ms. Lee! Evelyn Vaughn has written an outrageous supernatural tale with all the elements of a good and cheesy horror movie! I love the portal to hell opening in her closet and how she asks the sexy super in her building to help her get rid of it! Together they track down the source of her problems and exterminate them- sharing an intense attraction and some steamy sex along the way.... This one is actually pretty tongue in cheek- flies by! For more paranormal books- I recommend THE CIRCLE series by Evelyn Vaughn, The Immortal Witches series by Maggie SHayne ( don't miss the 4th in that series- you need to pick up OUT OF THIS WORLD another anthology to complete it!)Also recommended- The Vampire Viscount by Karen Harbaugh.

The first story by one of my favourite authors, Susan Krinard is by far the best of the three stories. Dana, a successful plastic surgeon from the West Coast travels to Big Marsh in Louisiana to escape her hectic life. There she meets Remy, a man clothed in mystery, avoided and feared by the locals, who lives on a boat out in the backwaters. Dana becomes embroiled in the search for the answers to the disappearance of her cousin. Can she trust Remy or is he a danger to her? The more time she spends with Remy, the more she becomes attracted to him. The atmosphere and the tension between Remy and Dana is electric. This is a good little story full of excitement and danger with romance thrown in aswell. The second story is by Tanith Lee. Vivien agrees to look after her friends flat in London whilst the friend goes away on holiday. In the garden, Vivien sees the most beautiful man she have ever set her eyes on but he is a stone statue. The following day Vivien meets of the owner of the statue, Connor, a spitting image of the statue. The statue of the beautiful man is an ancestor of Connor. Strange things start happening in the flat, empty champagne flutes appear, roses with no petals are found in the kitchen. Are there paranormal happenings taking place in the flat and what is the connection with the statue or is there a more simple explanation? More of a mystery rather than romance but the story has charm. The third story is by Evelyn Vaughn. Marcy opens the door to her a wardrobe and is greeted by flames, a portal to hell. She calls on the help of her gorgeous landlord, Tomas. Together they try to solve the problem of the wardrobe, calling the help of a priest who they lose in the portal and finally tracking down the culprit. This is an enjoyable saucy romp of a story, very fun and tongue in cheek but again but don't expect too much romance. Lealing

"Kiss of the Wolf" by Susan Krinard. Dr. Dana St. Cyr left California to return to her hometown, Big Marsh, Louisiana in the bayou backwaters to learn what happened to her identically looking cousin who vanished. Remy Arcenaux tells her to leave before she suffers the same fate as her relative, but Dana refuses though he frightens her, but not because she believes he will harm her. She fears her attraction to Remy, who rumors insist howls at night with murder in his heart."Shadow Kissing: by Tanith Lee. While Addie Preece travels abroad, artist Vivian Gray flat-sits her nineteenth century converted house apartment. In the garden Vivian sees a beautiful male statue that she needs to sketch. Not long afterward, the lonely Vivian meets Cinnamon Boyle-Martin and her partner Connor Sinclair, antique scavengers who want to buy some of Addie's stuff. However, Connor could have posed for the statue that has attracted Vivian."The Devil She Knew" by Evelyn Vaughn. Marcy Bridges opens up her walk-in closet only to find flames that are not burning down her apartment, but instead seem to be laughing at her. Her thoughts are the inferno looks like they are inside a portal to Hell making her wonder how her first spell could go so wrong. She calls the building maintenance man Tomas Martinez for help even as she wonders if he may be the more dangerous devil to her.These three supernatural romantic novellas are fun tales that make for a fine Halloween treat though a longer format would have enhanced lead character relationships that occur too fast.Harriet Klausner