Wednesday, April 13, 2011

A Book Review: Vampire Mine by Kerrelyn Sparks

As always, whenever we come across something that we think might spark your interest (and/or libido) we feel this need to share it with you. Sharing is caring when it comes to mature reading material. And since it's a pretty safe that most of you (okay, all of you) have a "thing" for vampires and the supernatural, I'm going to step out on a limb and tell you about my newest discovery.

I recently had the opportunity to read the tenth novel in a series of supernatural romances. I was instantly intrigued by the premise: an angel of death falls in love with one of the undead. The angel, Marielle, has been stripped of her wings and cast down from heaven for her disobedience. She meets a rakish, kilt-wearing Scottish vampire named Connor. (I realize I just lost at least half of you to Amazon or your nearest bookstore.)


I wasn't sure how well I'd be able to follow the storyline as I hadn't read the previous nine books. It wasn't a problem whatsoever. The characters were instantly likable and engaging; the setting familiar, yet unique. The typical vampire lore was there, but included a few uncommon twists. The Undead worked hand-in-hand with werewolves and shape-shifters. Not only were there werewolves, but werepanthers, tigers and bears, oh my!

As for the main characters, Marielle the angel is so adorable I want to carry her around in my pocket. She still retains some of her powers as a Deliverer, or angel of death. Her touch will kill any mortal. Ergo, the only beings she can safely make physical contact with are ones who are already dead. It's a match made in... somewhere south of heaven for the angel and vampire yearning for redemption.

The Undead Scotsman, Connor, could do nothing other than walk around in a kilt all night and I would still like his character. He has a painful history that he keeps hidden from the world. Unfortunately for Connor, Marielle can see into his soul when she touches him. It's an interesting commentary on contrition, redemption and the weaknesses that bind the human race.

All in all, this book was a fun read and a nice way to pass the time while we wait for more Breaking Dawn pictures to be leaked. It does have some mature themes as Connor must teach Marielle all about her new human body. Ahem.

Here's the official summary:

Nothing on earth can make this vampire fall in love . . .

After 499 years of existence, Connor Buchanan has arrived at an inescapable conclusion: he is a cold-hearted SOB. He's been watching his friends—those poor romantic fools—plummet off the cliff into love like a dazed herd of sheep. But not Connor. He knows that love leads to nothing but heartache.

Until Marielle . . .

She is an angel cast down from heaven for disobedience. Trapped in mortal form, she finds a protector in Connor, a Scottish vampire haunted by a dark past. Marielle hopes to heal his broken heart and earn her way back home, but suddenly she has these . . . feelings. This strange yet pleasant physical yearning—for a vampire! Is this the work of a demon luring her into hell, or has this angel found heavenly bliss?

Did I mention he wears a kilt?

Since sharing is caring, please share what you are reading now. Have you read anything lately that you would recommend? Please discuss in the comments and let the h00rbaggery begin.

43 comments:

  1. That sounds tasty!

    I've been reading the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich. My SIL calls them "the number books". They're light and funny. Not at all like what I normally read, but a nice change of pace to lighten up.

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  2. The best book I've read in a while - Anna and the French Kiss... not a naughty read, but I swooned over Etienne St. Clair. also...no vampires lol

    Just finished the Fever series and am reading the wicked lovely series, tho the 2nd book really was blah. I'm hoping it picks up at the 3rd.

    Also just downloaded Hex Hall and Wither to the Nook and looking forward to them!

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  3. Good to know you don't need to read all 9 & you can just jump in anywhere! Although nice to find an author with some back-catalog to keep us all entertained with vampy good times.

    : )

    @RugbyMom - i have fallen off track with them (hmmm - wonder what book series derailed me???) but i used to really enjoy "the number books" and "the letter books" (sue grafton). maybe time to ease back in to something like that. plus i miss Ranger - lol...

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  4. I've read the first book of the series by her and I really didn't want to finish it. It seemed a little true blood and any other romance i might have read.

    I LOVE JR Ward though and the black dagger brotherhood series. You cannot read these out of order though. The last one just came out, but it wasn't as good as the last few. The seventh one though, Lover Mine, would be the best book next to Twilight. READ IT.

    And of course I'm waiting for True Blood. She better keep Eric and Sookie together. If she doesn't, I'm just going to read all 4 Twilight books again for a year straight.

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  5. I'm in love with Richelle Mead's Succubus series. I mean, who wouldn't want to be a shape-shifting succubus stealing souls of men through sex?!

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  6. OMG TK, I've just finished reading the 19th book in The Dark Hunter Series by Sherrilyn Kenyon. The Dark-Hunters are immortal warriors dedicated to defending mankind against the soul sucking Daimons (vampires) and other assorted enemies including a couple of rogue gods and goddesses. The series is filled with Were-Hunters, Dream Hunters and Demons as well as loads of mind blowing sex! Yeeeeeeesssssss!!! As with most books in a series you'll have your fab ones and some are so so, but I still enjoyed the read.

    I'm going to start on a different series (JR Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood) which is supposed to be fantastic while I wait for SK's next instalment.

    Here's the link should you want to find out more on the dark hunters and co :)

    http://www.sherrilynkenyon.com/series.php?id=7

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  7. Wow, "Ina May's Guide to Childbirth" seems so dull compared to what you h00rs are reading. Sure, there's sex and even photographic nudity, but it's not *quite* the same.

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  8. TK & everyone else, thanks for the recs! I'll second what some of the gals said above - I loved the Dark Hunter series by Sherrilyn Kenyon & the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by JR Ward (also her other books are good too). The Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood books are a fun, easy read but not enough sex (I'm a h00r, what can I say?). Currently I'm zipping through some great paranormal romance by Gena Showalter. She has a couple different series' and I'm totally hooked.

    Also Water for Elephants is a great story if you haven't read it yet. I tried Cosmopolis, but just couldn't get into it. I'm giving it to ZAnyMouse this weekend and she promised to mark all the good parts for me :)

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  9. ....Is there sex? I need to know if there is sex.

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  10. @TwiloveSue So happy to read your comment about Cosmopolis! I did finish it, but didn't enjoy at all. I was left with a WTF was that feeling.

    Black Dagger Brotherhood for the win!

    @STY I miss Ranger, too! Imagine if he were a vampire.......

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  11. Well, I'm about to start Mockingjay, the third book in The Hunger Games series. No vampires there... Just some pretty nasty shit going down (I don't wanna spoil...) You have to read the first two books but they are more than worth it. Suzanne Collins does an amazing job in them.

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  12. If you want some sexy kilt wearing books, you all need to read the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. No other books can compare to hers. I have got about 7 other people reading them and they are loving them just as much as me. It's not vampires but it does have some other awesome stuff in it that is soo not typical. Lots of sex in them too, you will want your own red headed Highlander!!!

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  13. @Lindsey Rae--Yes, there is sex. :)

    I guess I should share what I'm reading now. Mao II by Don DeLillo. I'm really enjoying it. I love how it's character-driven, yet the characters have little to do with the story. Very interesting.

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  14. Just read the Hunger Games trilogy--no sex or vampires, but they still manage to be amazing.

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  15. I am all over the place on my reading - every thing from sappy, old romances where you know how it will end (Virgin River series by Robyn Carr) to heart-wrenching life novels about lost loves, losing children or being terminally diagnosed with something which make me cry for hours ("Goodnight Beautiful"/"Love you more") to animal stories ("Oogy").

    As far as vampire/creature stories go other than "Twilight"-I can't recommend enough the Black Dagger Brotherhood series (which you must start from the beginning) - romance, action and SEX!!! and another series called the Darkyn Series by Lynn Viehl - these are excellent books about vampires, most have been around since medieval times and living in today's world-Also full of action and sex and suspense. These you don't have to read from the start but they do make more sense if you do.

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  16. I just finished A Discovery of Witches. LOVED. IT. There are witches (duh), vampires and daemons. I adored all the characters and it's left somewhat open-ended, I wouldn't be surprised if more books follow at some point. Here's a synopsis:

    It all begins with a lost manuscript, a reluctant witch, and 1,500-year-old vampire. Dr. Diana Bishop has a really good reason for refusing to do magic: she is a direct descendant of the first woman executed in the Salem Witch Trials, and her parents cautioned her be discreet about her talents before they were murdered, presumably for having "too much power." So it is purely by accident that Diana unlocks an enchanted long-lost manuscript (a book that all manner of supernatural creatures believe to hold the story of all origins and the secret of immortality) at the Bodleian Library at Oxford, and finds herself in a race to prevent an interspecies war. A sparkling debut written by a historian and self-proclaimed oenophile, A Discovery of Witches is heady mix of history and magic, mythology and love (cue the aforementioned vampire!), making for a luxurious, intoxicating, one-sitting read.

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  17. @ Jacksonstat: I just finished the Discovery of Witches too and really liked it. There are supposed to be 2 more books to come, but we have to wait a year for the next one!

    I am almost done with the first book in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series (Dark Lover) and I really like them. Lots of good juicy parts for the hoors like us ;)

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  18. Shelly laurenston is a great read she's funny and her books have hot guys who shapeshift and plenty of smut.

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  19. Just started the Hunger Games last night and I finished WFE last week . I, along with most people here today , absolutely LOVE the Black Dagger Brotherhood. I haven't read the newest one but the all the previous ones are fuckawesome!

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  20. Black Dagger Brotherhood by JR Ward. I love this series! I started reading it right after I finished Twilight. LOL! When I started reading this series there was 5 books out already & I read the last book first. Soooo...it's better if you read them in order but I guess you don't HAVE to.

    Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunters is good, Psy-Changeling Series by Nalini Singh, and Kresley Cole's Immortals After Dark Series. :-) Have fun & I hope this helps someone. HAHA!

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  21. I know I've mentioned it here before but I really love the Women of the Underworld series by Kelley Armstrong. It's a really interesting spin on everything - witches, werewolves, vampires, etc. And she's s great story-teller. There are some sex scenes in the books but nothing terribly graphic. And the stories are so fucking good you won't even care anyway.

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  22. Sorry, I just can't help but comment again cause you guys mentioned some great books. Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon is my favorite series ever, the Kresley Cole Immortal series is great, also Larissa Ione has a similar set that's really good. I also loved the Hunger Games and Mortal Instruments series. They were tame (a la Twilight), but addicting stories! I love all the recs and feel like I need to get on Amazon right now!!!

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  23. I forgot one...

    The Mercy Thompson series and also The Alpha & Omega series. They are both written by Patricia Briggs and they intertwine with eachother. Really good & also the stories are based in Eastern WA. LOL!

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  24. I haven't read all the other comments so I don't know if anyone else suggested these but they are fan-fucking-tastic :) 1. The Lords of the Underworld series by Gena Showalter - very good and lemony! No vampires, but supernatural creatues abound!
    2. The Trylle Series and the My Blood approves Series by Amanda Hocking - supernatural goodness! Not as lemony as most things I read, but great! 3. Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr. Again supernatural goodness! There are several books but I just finished the first one. Enjoyy!!

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  25. I don't typically read fantasy (Twilight's different - it's real, right?) so I don't have a lot to offer here, and my feelings on the Black Dagger boys are not of the positive nature. (Typo on page 3?? Really?) I've decided not to drink the Hunger Games koolaid until just before the movie comes out so I don't get obsessed. One addiction is enough in my life. (Three if you count twitter and TexasKatherine.)

    If anyone reads murder mysteries and thrillers - let me know and I'll share my favorites;) Read on, h00rs, read on!

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  26. Hey all... Since I work at a public library I have access to as many books as I want. Which comes in handy for an avid reader. Also, we offer Interlibrary Loans for books we don't have. And being the nerd that I am, I have an excel spreadsheet of books I have read or if they are an ongoing series. Kerralyn Sparks is on there, as well as many other authors who write smutty vamp/ paranormal books. If anyone is interested I am more than happy to share what I have read and the series that goes along with them. You may not like all of them, but I'm sure some will pique your interest.
    Right now I'm reading A Discovery of Witches, which I saw was mentioned above. Can't wait to finish it!

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  27. Just another thought... I have a bookshelf filled with paranormal books. I don't have full series of most, but a lot can be stand alones such as the Kerralyn Sparks series. I'm sure others out there might have the same thing. Wouldn't it be kind of neat to share these books with our fellow twitards? Our own lending system. Just a thought.

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  28. The Vampire Huntress Legends by L.A. Banks, f*cking awesome books. There are about 15 of them and you have to start with book one. But its about a woman destined to hunt vampires that falls in love with one. Theres an interesting religious undertone to it. I cant say enough good things about this series. Must read!

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  29. Emma Holly's Fairyville and the Sydney Croft Series are great reads, too! If you like Sherrilynn Kenyon & JR Ward (Love the BDBrothers!)you will enjoy these as well. Also, Lara Adrian's Midnight Breed Series. All worthy of reading many times over for lots of smut!

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  30. HOLY FUCK! I'm totally going to have to go back through these comments and take notes! I think I'm definitely going to give Black Dagger Brotherhood a try! If only I could finish Mockingjay. Between a lack of time, and not wanting it to end... I've been very slow getting through it.

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  31. @ Royalwe1 (How hot did you imagine Matthew to be?!?) Thanks for the info, I'm glad to know more books are on the way! Too bad about the wait, the downside of jumping on a series in the beginning versus the end. I didn't start reading the Twilight series until Breaking Dawn came out, so no waiting!

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  32. I have just finished reading the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by J.R. Ward (there are nine books so far in the series). I very highly recommend this series .... that is if you like your vampires LUSTY (I do! I do!). A seriously good read! She (J.R. Ward) also has a series - Novels of the Fallen Angel ... very good! Waiting for Charlaine Harris' next Sookie Stackhouse book (Dead Reckoning) and the next book in Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series (Smokin' Seventeen). Definitely going to check out this book you are recommending. Gotta find something to do to occupy myself waiting for Water for Elephants, Bel Ami and Breaking Dawn I and II to come out! :-)

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  33. Whoops! Also finished all three books of Steig Larsen (The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest) and all three of books in The Hunger Games series. No vampires -- just damned good stories!!!

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  34. I've read ALL of the Kerrelyn Sparks books and, yes, they do have lots of sex. They are not literature, but they are fun. Kind of like the Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vampire Mysteries, but without the continuing story.

    The Diana Gabaldon series is my favorite series (sorry, Twilight). One James Alexander Malcom MacKenzie Fraser is the Edward for adults. All the honor, but more realistic and definitely all man. Claire, the heroine, is a very strong character and works hard for what she wants.

    I recommend both series for completely different reasons.

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  35. @ Vicki - I started the Girl with The Dragon Tattoo, but could NOT get into it. Maybe I'll give it another try.
    I recently finished the Hunger Games trilogy - LOVED them (did you know they are going to make them into movies?). I also recently read the Trylle series (about Trolls, but not like you would think) & REALLY liked those as well. I believe the first one is called 'Switched'. BTW, these books were like, $2 on my kindle. I am CURRENTLY reading the latest Black Dagger Brotherhood book (thanks to my kindle which I FLOVE, I couldn't tell you the title since I never see it).
    Thanks for the recs....I NEED them like Bella needs to be an ungrateful whiner.

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  36. The Fever Series by Karen Marie Moning. I have yet to talk to someone who has not only loved it but became obsessed with the books. They are adult books, so yes, there are hot shmexy times. Moning's characters will suck you in. The fifth book just came out a couple months ago and I thought it was incredible!

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  37. I recommend The Brotherhood of Blood series by Kathryn Smith. Very sexy and the violence wasn't as hard to take as that of the Black Dagger series, which got almost stomach-churningly gross at times IMO.

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  38. You mean you people are reading something OTHER than the new Twilight Guide?

    Well, actually... finally (after 30 years) the last book of the Clan of the Cavebear series finally came out so right now I'm reading that one. I have to admit... it's a bit slow and I'm 1/2 way through the book and she's only talked about the sex ONCE! Some of the old pet peeves are back for me too (repeatedly over explaining things from previous books and describing things in a BIT too much detail) but I just can't miss reading the last book after all of this time.

    Also, is anyone else watching the TV show "Being Human"? The vampire is pretty cute and the wearwolf is funny in a dorky kind of way.

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  39. I'm another fan of the black dagger brotherhood series. These guys are big, buff, bad ass, and horny! At least especially when they find their mate. There's plenty of swearing too.

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  40. Sabrina - give The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo another chance. I think you'll be glad you did. The first half if very slow but is very necessary to the rest of the book/story and the two that follow. (I almost gave up on it, too, but am sooo glad I didn't.) I actually watched the three movies that were made in Sweden and OMG! even with watching the dubbed versions, they were awesome. (Europeans aren't as hung up on nudity and violence as "we" are so the movies were VERY true to the books. They've casted here in the U.S. to make at least "Dragon" but I'm really afraid it will be very homogenized!)

    Re: Hunger Games, they've casted Katniss, Peta and Gale already (according to Entertainment Weekly) but that's about all I know about that.)

    Re: Latest BDB book -- it's titled "Lover Unleashed" -- just getting ready to start it ...... you should try J.R. Ward's latest, Novels of the Fallen Angels (Covet and Crave -- read them in that order!)

    Thanks for the recommendation .... I will definitely check them out!

    P.S. Love, love, love your comment, "I need them like Bella needs to be an ungrateful whiner!" Priceless!

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  41. A vampire that wears a kilt? Hell yes!! I was looking for a ff specifically with a kilt wearing Edward. This will do nicely!!!! Thanks for the recs ladies.

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  42. AnStephanie Plum and Black Daggar Brotherhood. I love them both.

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  43. Anyone on Goodreads? That would make it so much easier to share book recs.

    I have to ditto the recs for Cassandra Clare (no smut but good), Outlander series (LOVE!), the L.A. Banks huntress series (I found the dialog really difficult at first since I don't talk like that but the story is good), Fever series by Karen M. Moning (my #1 all time favorite series over even Twilight), Dark Hunter Series by Sherilyn Kenyon (great snark!) and BDD was good but not great imo.

    I'm currently reading the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson. Its really good so far but young adult so no smut.

    Good vamp smut and fun story try Cassandra Palmer and Dorina Basarab series by Karen Chance.

    Just read Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater. It was excellent. Werewolves and unlike Twilight they do it in the first book.

    If you really like smut then you definitely want the Anita Blake and Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton. Anita takes a few books to break the cherry but her current books she has more sex than story. I think there are about 20 of them.

    Jeaniene Frosts, Night Huntress series has a awesome sexy, snarky vampire named Bones. Love him!

    And if you want to try something a little different Rachel Caine has a weather warden series where the characters have special powers manipulating the weather and they deal with sexy hot dijinns.

    And lastly - a series that I haven't read anything like before but really love The Signs of the Zodiac series by Vicki Petterrsson. A kick ass female lead with a great story.

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