Her deadly dreams leave her in grave danger
Since
half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her undead lover Bones met six years
ago, they've fought against the rogue undead, battled a vengeful Master
vampire, and pledged their devotion with a blood bond. Now it's time for
a vacation. But their hopes for a perfect Paris holiday are dashed when
Cat awakes one night in terror. She's having visions of a vampire named
Gregor who's more powerful than Bones and has ties to her past that
even Cat herself didn't know about.
Gregor believes Cat is his
and he won't stop until he has her. As the battle begins between the
vamp who haunts her nightmares and the one who holds her heart, only Cat
can break Gregor's hold over her. She'll need all the power she can
summon in order to bring down the baddest bloodsucker she's ever faced .
. . even if getting that power will result in an early grave.
My Review:
Cat has quit her job with Homeland Security and gone on vacation with
Bones, but she is finding it hard to sleep because she has vivid dreams
about another vampire. Gregor claims that Cat belongs to him, not Bones
and the dreams are enough to have a worried Mencheres waiting in Paris
with a team of vampires to protect her. Gregor is a Dreamsnatcher and if
he catches Cat in a dream he can pull her out. Gregor is determined to
win Cat back and sends teams of vampires and ghouls to retrieve her.
The
plot is more serious in this book as Cat has to face up to being with
another vampire when she was a teenager and possibly being married to
him, making her union with Bones void. She has no memory of these
events, thanks to Mencheres and this causes strain between them. I liked
the idea of Mencheres getting visions of Cat and Bones being destined
for each other and being determined to do whatever it took to manipulate
Cat to ensure it happened. Cat is wondering if she actually did belong
to Gregor and isn't sure if she really wants to find out what her
missing memories could tell her. Her anger and frustration create strain
in her relationship with Bones. Don tries to help with dream
suppressing drugs but Gregor still seems able to track her with ease,
causing untold problems for their security.
We meet a new
character in this book as well. Fabian is a ghost and he is going to be
very useful to Cat in their new friendship. But it is the characters we
know who are doing bad things in this book. Tate is using every trick he
can to persuade Cat to finish with Bones so he can have her. I wanted
to shoot him, I really did. I never really took to him because of his
attitude. He just has that 'I want you so you should be mine and I don't
care what you say about it'. Caveman! Bones is pissed at Cat for not
trusting him to deal with Gregor and their relationship hits rock
bottom, which was so worrying! I wanted to hit Bones at various times in
this book. I was also pretty hacked off at Mencheres.
I wanted
Gregor to die so badly. He was a really interesting bad guy and I liked
the plot of this book, even though it was much darker. Gregor does
something really terrible in this book and it leads to scenes that were
pretty upsetting. These things were great for the plot but so hard for
poor readers like me to cope with!
Good things about this book?
Vlad. I love that guy! Cat's decision to become a full vampire and the
consequences of that idea. It was a great plot twist. The action scenes
were well written as always and there are some really emotional scenes
as well. Gregor and Cat's story and the plotting of Mencheres. The
battles and the kidnappings. I won't say more as I don't want to spoil
it.
The author keeps me glued to this book and I can't wait to
see what she does with the characters next. The great writing continues
in this fourth book.
I first read this book back in 2010.
U.N. Special Ambassador
Waris Dirie was born to a family of tribal nomads in Somalia. She told
her story—enduring female circumcision, fleeing through the desert, and,
improbably, becoming a top model—in her first book, Desert Flower. In Desert Dawn,
she wrote about her return to Somalia and her work as a U.N. Special
Ambassador against FGM (female genital mutilation). Her latest book
recounts her investigations into the practice of FGM in Europe—it is
estimated that as many as 500,000 women and girls have undergone FGM or
are at risk. Here are the voices of women who have felt emboldened by
Waris Dirie’s courage.
My Review:
I was a great admirer of the work that Waris did and I very much enjoyed
her first two books which I certainly recommend to readers. When I
heard about a third book on FGM I was interested in reading it. Sadly I
ended up angry and frustrated by the attitudes of Waris to Western
people which bordered on racism. Not impressed at all by her now.
First
thing is, I am totally opposed to FGM and I can't imagine the trauma of
what these girls go through. I'm not against giving them medical help
here in the UK and providing trauma therapy for their ordeal. I feel in
cases where FGM is discovered, punishments need to be given. On this I
agree with Waris. But I do not agree with the amount of blame that she
unleashes on western governments and its people during her crusade.
Lets
start with her attitude of 'do as I say, not as I do'. She talks about
having a relaxed attitude to timekeeping and appointments, turning up
whenever she feels like it. However, when the woman she is meeting is
late, Waris makes a big fuss about there being no apology or reason
given. So it is ok for Waris to do what she wants and be late but
everyone else has to be on time to meet her. A bit of hypocrisy there.
Still, that is a niggle and not part of my real complaints.
Waris
clearly has it in for Western governments, blaming them for cases of
FGM, blaming them for not doing enough. Funny, when we do intervene in
African affairs we are told to mind our own business and that we don't
understand African culture. If we don't intervene we are suddenly
responsible for FGM and genocide and every other problem in Africa. We
can't win. We give a lot of money for things like famine relief and
medical care in Africa...where does that money go? It goes to government
officials to buy private planes for its leaders instead of helping
ordinary people. I suppose THAT is our fault as well.
Getting
back to the point, I was getting pretty angry as I read on. Waris starts
pointing the finger at western people for things like FGM. It seems
that because we don't integrate African people into our society, they
cling to traditions like FGM so it's our fault that girls are still
being cut! That Waris, is a pile of steaming bullshit! A lot of African
migrants don't speak English and don't WANT to be part of the local
community, preferring to stick with a community of their own people. So
how the hell am I meant to make friends and make them feel welcome when
most aren't interested??? How is it MY fault that these families take
the horrific step of mutilating their daughters??? How am I meant to
know who is doing it and who to report them to? That is a bloody
ridiculous thing to say!
Waris also blames us for not putting
enough money towards FGM and other issues. Right. The people in Africa
are the ones who are mutilating their daughters. Let Africa pay the
money to re-educate people and pay for corrective surgery and other
procedures! Let them police this! Most FGM is still happening in Africa
itself with girls being sent home to stay with relatives where they can
be cut, safe from western justice. So I say again, how is this all our
fault Waris??? Are we meant to send troops into Africa to examine every
girl and arrest countless parents? Oh please!
We are also not
doing enough to stop FGM in our western countries. Right. These families
pay women from their community to come and do the cutting. They don't
tend to seek treatment in western hospitals for fear of the results of
FGM being seen. They keep this secret in their own community. They don't
cooperate with the police, social workers or health professionals .
They don't shop others in their community. Yet Waris thinks we are doing
nothing. She wants girls to be examined in schools for evidence of FGM!
Are you serious??? Can you imagine the outrage it would cause if you
take every girl who does not have white skin out of class for an
examination like that??? Parents would go mental! And I expect the
British taxpayer is expected to pay for it too.
Waris also
complains about people not integrating in the community because they
have no papers, living in grotty bedsits and are hiding like criminals,
making them cling to the old traditions. They are ILLEGALS for fuck's
sake! What are we meant to do, put them up in The Dorchester??? It's not
our fault that they sneak into Britain and hide away and cut their
daughters! We didn't put them there!
Waris needs to get her head
out of her arse and point the finger in the right direction. It is the
elders in the tribes and towns who tell parents that this tradition
needs to be upheld. It is African governments who are not making FGM
illegal or enforcing punishment. It is African communities in western
countries who keep having their daughters cut and hushing it up. It is
African people who are not telling the authorities about girls they know
who are in danger. Perhaps Waris should concentrate on going to Africa
and telling the people there to change their ways instead of blaming the
countries who have taken in so many African refugees and given them a
chance at a new life.
If they are all at grateful as Waris, maybe we shouldn't bother.
My name is Peter Grant.
Until January I was just another probationary constable in the Metropolitan
Police Service. My only concerns in
life were how to avoid a transfer to the Case Progression Unit - We do paperwork so real coppers don't have to
- and finding a way to climb into the panties of the outrageously perky
WPC Leslie May. Then one night, in pursuance of a murder inquiry, I
tried to take a witness statement from a man who was dead, but
disturbingly voluble, and that brought me to the attention of Chief
Inspector Nightingale, the last wizard in England. And that, as they
say, is where the story begins.
Now I'm a Detective Constable and
a trainee wizard, the first apprentice in fifty years, and my world has
become somewhat more complicated. I'm dealing with nests of vampires in
Purley, negotiating a truce between the warring god and goddess of the
Thames, and digging up graves in Covent Garden - and that's just
routine. There's something festering at the heart of the city I love, a
malicious, vengeful spirit that takes ordinary Londoners and twists them
into grotesque mannequins to act out its drama of violence and despair.
The
spirit of riot and rebellion has awakened in the city, and it's falling
to me to bring order out of chaos - or die trying. Which, I don't mind
telling you, would involve a hell of a lot of paperwork.
My Review:
I was in two minds about reading this book based on the blurb. I liked
the sound of the story and where Peter was working but I just wasn't
sure about whether I'd like it. As it happens it didn't work out great
for me but this is more due to my taste than any issue with the book.
I
read a lot of American based books in the urban fantasy realm and one
problem I have with them at times is the way authors try to be funny and
fail. Some authors are trying to grab you and say 'LAUGH HERE, it's
funny!' and I end up rolling my eyes at whatever it is and not laughing
at all. It's too forceful and I find that annoying to read. They are
trying to impose what they find funny onto the reader and I don't enjoy
that kind of writing much.
There are plenty books, American and
British written, that go for more subtle humour and this is one of them.
The author presents Peter's ironic observations about life as his own
thoughts, and I found myself smiling at a few of them. The author isn't
trying to force you to laugh at anything, he is presenting quirky humour
in a low key way and it is much more entertaining to read. Peter
doesn't think much of the British people or his police duties and I
enjoyed a lot of his grumblings. It just works well.
"Nothing builds character like being abused, spat at and being vomited on by members of the public'.
Peter
as a character is someone you could like. I've worked with guys like
him who are a bit grumpy and sarky so I can relate to him! He is smart,
witty and amusing as an MC.
So why did I give the book 2 stars?
Well basically, I felt as if I was reading a crime novel and not an
urban fantasy novel. By page 70 we had seen one ghost and a spell to
silence a barking dog. Most of the story was exploring crime scenes and
talking to witnesses, and I wasn't really excited by the slowness of the
plot. I don't like crime novels because long drawn out investigations
and asking a group of suspects the same questions does not greatly
interest me. So having this book follow that pattern disappointed me.
There
is nothing really wrong with this book. If you like crime novels and
like a bit of paranormal, I think you would probably enjoy this book as
there is a lot to like about it.
Welcome to Chuckles Corrie Mania! I
watched Coronation Street all through the late 70's, 80's and early 90's
but lost touch with it by 1999 due to work. So discovering that kind
Corrie viewers have uploaded a ton of classic episodes on YouTube was
great! I've spent two years gathering as many as I can, ready to get
watching, and as I work my way through them, I'll be reviewing what I
watch and sharing my thoughts. Would love to hear the thoughts on these
episodes from other fans.
Thank you to Auntie Corrie(1976-1994), Mr
Magister(1961,1995-2000), Classicsoap(2001+),
CLKfanvideos(2006,2010,2011), corriestuff(various), OZZY45100(1960's,
1970's), FullEps(2009), XCorrieClassicsX(2006-2009),
albiondean(2012-present), Sevin Alsoylar(2006,2011), Soap Fan
2013(various), JonathanOpenshaw(various) and everyone else who has
supplied episodes online.
Where better to start than at the very
beginning! The 1960 disk of the 1960's dvd box set from Network features
the first 8 episodes of the soap in order, and here I am talking about
the latest episodes I've watched.
Episode 6: December 28th 1960 
Dennis won't talk to Elsie about the police visits, annoyed that everyone thinks he is guilty of the robbery but he is happy when Harry is able to give him an alibi. Ena is refusing to talk to Martha (right) over the job stealing and decides that she is going to come home to die in her own bed, sneaking out late. Christine has a date with Malcolm which May approves off though Lucille almost ruins everything by damaging the dress for the date. May is complaining of severe headaches but Christine ignores her.
Lucille drives me crazy! She is annoying and never does what she is told. It's no wonder Harry sent her to an orphanage! Ena is not PC in this episode with her comments-I can imagine the complaints about this episode if it was screened today. I did laugh when the nurse discovers the escape, saying the missing patient is the one that calls her specky four eyes!
Episode 7: December 30th 1960
Christine accuses May (left) of making up the headaches for attention and storms out of the house. Ena refuses to go back to hospital and is secretly pleased when her doctor refuses to let her bully him. Florrie is embarrassed that her fine for selling after hours is in the papers. Dennis gets a job in a club and he reports to Elsie that his father was there. May tries to seek help as she collapses in pain and Florrie and Elsie go to investigate the noise, finding May dead at the foot of the stairs. She has died of a brain tumour.
Christine is a pretty cold character who I never liked, but of course May never sought help from a doctor when the crippling headaches began. This was the first death in the Street and I felt sorry for poor May.
Episode 8: January 4th 1961
Martha and Ena have words in the shop and Elsie is putting up with Linda moaning non stop. Ida is not impressed when Ken and his posh friends use her home as a meeting place to make Ban the Bomb signs, knowing how Frank will react. Malcolm turns up after leaving Christine (right) alone in the aftermath of May's death and is surprised when she wants nothing to do with him. Arnold Tanner comes to see Elsie to ask for a divorce and she refuses. Ena spreads gossip that Elsie has a new man when she sees Arnold leave the house. Harry is promoted.
Linda is another one who drives me nuts with all her whining and moaning. I feel sorry for Elsie and Ivan, putting up with her. Ken and his friends are so snotty and irritating in this episode. I can see why Frank gets annoyed with Ken all the time!
My tbr has managed to sneak up over 600 books again and action must be taken!!! So I am setting myself a pretty tough challenge-to get that tbr from 612 as it stands today, down to 500 books by December 31st. Yes it is an impossible sounding task but not everything on the tbr is full length reading-there are short stories, novellas and novels to be devoured! Even if I don't get to the target, I'll be pleased if I get close. It would be the first time in 5 years that my tbr was 500 or less! My updates on my progress won't be weekly, just whenever I have something to report! Anyone who wants to try and reduce their tbr is welcome to post on my update posts about their progress!
Wish me luck, I'm going to need it!!!
