Lover Beware [Mass Market Paperback]

Hot August Moon (Katherine Sutcliffe)...Anna Travelli was a special profiler of the FBI. Moved into the depths of the Behavioral Science Unit of the FBI, no one understood why Anna had to be at the scene of the crime to profile the killer. Anna knew though, she knew that she would see through the eyes of the killer and sometimes even the victim. Her current case brings her back to New Orleans and the lover and love of her life that she left behind. Jerry Costos never forgot Anna, not even in the years they spent apart. Now they are working together to solve the murder of the family of a good friend of them both. In the midst of it all, Anna knows that it could never work out. This is a prequel to Bad Moon Rising, which I already read and loved. If you haven't read Bad Moon Rising, you will not like how this book ends and you will be very dissapointed.

After Midnight (Fiona Brand)...Jane O'Reilly went from city girl to country wife when she married her husband, Patrick. When Patrick died of cancer, leaving Jane behind, she was determined to go on and keep the farm running. She hadn't seen her volitale neighbor, Michael Rider, in nearly seven years since the day his startling confession ruined any chance she would have at happiness with her husband. After standing by Patrick, Jane is now determined to find out if what she felt for Michael all those years ago was real. The day that Michael met Jane, it ruined his marriage and almost his life. Determined to give her time, he left for seven years. Now he's back, and adament on claiming her. But there is evil lurking in the shadows, and all Michael and Jane have are each other. I really enjoyed this book. It was short and sweet and held everything you would be looking for in a romance.

Only Human (Eileen Wilks)...Lily Wu was promoted to a detective in the homicide division of the San Diego Police Department because of her determination to find justice. When horrible murders start taking place, she is forced to work with Rule Turner, who may be the only one who could help find the murderer. Descended from a species that was not quite human, Rule's clan didn't believe in fidelity or faithfulness. Lily didn't think that would be a problem early on, afterall he was only a means to an end. Rule knew exactly who Lily was, all he had to do was get her to see it. Together they embark on a journey of discovery, from finding a murderer as well as a traitor, to discovering what it is like to find your soulmate. A definetly different book, I nevertheless really enjoyed it.

DON'T MISS IT!

Christine Feehan's "Magic in the Wind" is really toooooo much of a setup for a new series. She crams too much information about the 7 sisters into this one short novelella. Readers can definitely see a new series of books coming - and it appears to be like the series Norah Roberts did recently. She could have possibly made it more interesting by having Sarah handle the situation only with Damon's assistance. Then he could be amazed by the fact that there are 7, yes 7 of them and that one of the 7 will have seven daughters. Will it be Sarah and Damon? No suspense there, we've already been told which sister will have the 7 daughters. Yes, it is enjoyable but not up to her 5 star standards. I would give it 4 stars; but 4 stars from Feehan is still better than a lot of 5 stars from others. Give me Carpathians! I love those Carpathians!

Katharine Sutcliffe's "Hot August Moon" pullls an FBI profiler back to her hometown to work on a case with an old lover. We learn the details of the killings, we know all about the old lover but NOTHING is solved in the book. It is a complete setup for another novel. Yeah, FBI profiler books are big right now but.... I would give it 2 stars for being a complete tease.

Fiona Brand's "After Midnight" is really about two old want-to-be-lovers who were star-crossed because they had been married to others. We are told there has been a murder/rape and that Michael is a suspect. We learn that Jane is being stalked by the bad guy, who interestingly enough picks the night Michael is in bed with Jane to come after her. Dumb, huh? I would give it 2 stars only because of the steamy sex.

Eileen Wilks "Only Human" gets four stars from me. Investigating a series of murders, a beautiful detective of Chinese ancestry meets the "prince" of the local werewolf clan. Their different backgrounds and their possible conflict of interest in the case complicate matters. Ms. Wilks offers an interesting difference to the usual werewolf offerings. If it had been longer and more fleshed out, I would have given it 5 stars. If this is a "tease" for a book, I'll definitely buy that book. In fact, I am looking forward to seeing it in the stores.

Katherine Sutcliffe's Hot August Moon was a bit of a let down. I haven't read anything from this author before, and I won't go out of my way to find more of her work. It's very possible that my attitude stems from the ending of this story - it was not resolved and I'm a person who needs closure :) However, with more work, this plot could be intriguing. Perhaps the conclusion will be more intriguing.

Fiona Brand's After Midnight is part of the reason I bought this series (other than the fact that I'm a rabid Feehan fan). I have enjoyed all of Brand's other works; and yes, I have them all :) The only drawback again was that due to the constraints inherent in anthologies, this story wasn't quite what it could be. That said, if you are a fan of alpha males and hot sex scenes, you may enjoy this story. I'm impatiently waiting for future releases of Brand's work.

Eileen Wilk's Only Human was a huge surprise. I love paranormals, and werewolf stories in particular. As a huge fan of LKH's work, I really enjoy the novelty of stories in which myths/legends such as vampires and werewolves are part of the everday world. I found the hero, Rule to be sexy and fascinating; the heroine, Lily, to be plucky and competent. One thing in particular that I really enjoyed was the comparison of familial and social interactions between the two characters. "The respect for tradition, the importance of family, work and honor, the duty owed to one's elders - that's all very chinese, you know."(Wilks, 336) All of these are aspects that other paranormal authors have associated with the mythical werewolf clans as well, having based them on the wolf pack in nature. I found it fascinating the similarities the author drew between two otherwise *completely* different cultures.

If not for Sutcliffe's Hot August Moon this would have been a five star anthology.