Review: Dreamfever by Karen Marie Moning (Fever #4)

Publisher - Gollancz
Publication Date - 8th December 2001
Genre - Urban Fantasy

Source - Purchased

Rating - 3.5 out of 5: I liked it

Book Info - When the walls between Man and Fae come crashing down, freeing the insatiable, immortal Unseelie from their icy prison, MacKayla Lane is caught in a deadly trap. Captured by the Fae Lord Master, she is left with no memory of who or what she is. Clawing her way back from oblivion is only the first step Mac must take down a perilous path, from the battle-filled streets of Dublin to the treacherous politics of an ancient, secret sect, through the tangled lies of men who claim to be her allies into the illusory world of the Fae themselves, where nothing is as it seems - and Mac is forced to face a soul-shattering truth.

My Thoughts - For those of you who've read my reviews of the previous books in this series, you'll know that I have had mixed feelings about it. I loved the first book and felt it was a very promising start to the series, whereas books two and three felt more like fillers. At the start of Dreamfever, I could feel my excitement for the series start to build again. Finally, Mac seemed to be back on her quest for the Sinsar Dubh, whilst battling against all kinds of fae and forming alliances with the people around her in the lead up to what promises to be an amazing showdown. However about three quarters of the way through, the author seemed to lose her way again and I had trouble understanding why the last quarter of the book was even there. Again, it felt purely like something to fill the pages, drawing out the inevitable into more books than this series really needed to be. But, at least most of the book did push the storyline along towards its conclusion, which is an improvement on books two and three.

Again, there are a huge array of supporting characters and I love how none of them seem to be purely good or purely bad. They all have their own agenda and Mac has to really work hard to find out who is on her side and who is working against her. Of course, my favourite out of all the characters is Barrons. The reader still doesn't know much at all about him and this just increases his appeal for me. The hope that I might find out just a little something about him is what has kept me reading this series despite my reservations about it. V'lane, another of my favourite characters, isn't in this book quite so much so I found that slightly disappointing, but I'm sure he'll be back in full force in the final installment in the series.

One of the issues I had with previous books in the series was the author using Mac to constantly make reference to things that happen in the future. I'm sure it was to provide a feeling of suspense, but to me it just made the narrative jerky and kept on distracting me from the things that were happening. But luckily, that doesn't seem to happen all that much in Dreamfever. I'm guessing that's because as we get nearer the end of the series there's not quite so much to talk about.

The one thing that I am liking more and more as the series progresses is Mac, the main character. She starts off in book one as being shallow and selfish and I am enjoying watching her grow as a character. Now she is strong, feisty, always putting the safety of others before her own, and is about to embark on a major showdown between good and evil and, although she's not exactly overjoyed at her role in it all, she knows it is her destiny to fight this battle and she's not going to back down. I love the new edgy and kick-ass Mac.

Summary - Although I do have some reservations about this fourth installment in the Fever series, I did enjoy it a lot more than the previous two books. And I know that after the cliffhanger at the end of Dreamfever I will most definitely be picking up Shadowfever very soon. I am very much looking forward to finding out how this series will end.

Other books in this series:
1. Darkfever
2. Bloodfever
3. Faefever
4. Dreamfever
5. Shadowfever

Review: Faefever by Karen Marie Moning (Fever #3)

Publisher - Gollancz
Publication Date - 10th November 2011
Paperback - 416 pages
Genre - Urban Fantasy

Source - Purchased

Rating - 3 out of 5: I liked it.

Reviewed by - Chrissie

Book Info - When MacKayla Lane receives a page torn from her dead sister's journal, she is stunned by Alina's desperate words. And now MacKayla knows that her sister's killer is close. But evil is closer. And suddenly the sidhe-seer is on the hunt: For answers. For revenge. And for an ancient book of dark magic so evil that it corrupts anyone who touches it. Mac's quest for the Sinsar Dubh takes her into the mean, shapeshifting streets of Dublin, with a suspicious cop on her tail. Forced into a dangerous triangle of alliance with V'lane, a lethal Fae prince, and Jericho Barrons, a man of deadly secrets, Mac is soon locked in a battle for her body, mind, and soul.

My Thoughts - I must admit that after the great cliff hanger from the last book I had very high hopes for Faefever. But unfortunately, my hopes were dashed with this book. On the whole I am enjoying the series but there are still a few things about the books that are making me have some mixed feelings.

First of all, I feel as though both Bloodfever and Faefever have followed a bit of a pattern - they start off slow, often leaving me bored for a large proportion of the book with all of the scene-setting that takes place, then some great big thing happens near the end that leads to a big cliff-hanger that will make you want to pick up the next book straight away. And as much as I love the big climatic events at the end of the book, I also want something that really holds my attention for the first two thirds of the book.

The overall plot arc of the series is great, and that is one of the things that is keeping me going with these books. But I feel as though there is a lot of 'filling' going on. I would have been perfectly happy for Bloodfever and Faefever to be squashed together into one amazing book with a lot of the filling taken out. That being said though, I can't wait to find out what is in store next for Mac - especially after the way Faefever ended!

The major plus point in this book for me was Barrons - I know, you're shocked right? *cheeky grin*. I am still completely intrigued and can't wait to find out more about him! I love the sexual chemistry between him and Mac and I'm really hoping something happens between the two of them as I think that would be explosive! I am also more than a little bit fascinated by V'lane - I think he cares about Mac (as much as he is able to care about anything) and I love the way tries to do all he can to help her.

Summary - This is a series that has a promising storyline but that is let down somewhat by the amount of 'filling' and scene-setting that is going on. I am hoping that this will decrease as the series progresses and that the pace will pick up as it heads towards it's finale.

Other books in this series:
1. Darkfever
2. Bloodfever
3. Faefever
4. Dreamfever
5. Shadowfever

Other reviews of this book:
Dark Faerie Tales / Love Vampires / Saz 101

This book counts towards the following challenges:
Book #8 for 2012 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
Book #28  for 2012 Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

Review: Bloodfever by Karen Marie Moning (Fever #2)

Publisher - Gollancz
Publication Date - 13th October 2011
Paperback - 336 pages
Genre - Urban Fantasy

Source - Purchased

Rating - 3 out of 5: I liked it.

Reviewed by - Chrissie

Book Info - I used to be your average, everyday girl but all that changed one night in Dublin when I saw my first Fae, and got dragged into a world of deadly immortals and ancient secrets.

In her fight to stay alive, MacKayla must find the Sinsar Dubh - a million-year-old book of the blackest magic imaginable, which holds the key to power over the worlds of both the Fae and Man. Pursued by assassins, surrounded by mysterious figures she knows she can't trust, Mac finds herself torn between two deadly and powerful men: V'lane, the immortal Fae Prince, and Jericho Barrons, a man as irresistible as he is dangerous. For centuries the shadowy realm of the Fae has coexisted with that of humans. Now the walls between the two are coming down, and Mac is the only thing that stands between them.

My Thoughts - After really enjoying the first book in the series I was very excited to start Bloodfever, and for the most part I wasn't disappointed.

I didn't really like Mac in the first book but she is definitely starting to grow on me now. She has matured a lot and has lost a lot of her shallowness. Instead it has been replaced with a much darker, grittier Mac who I respect a lot more. I also like the way she doesn't allow hormones to control her decisions in the deadly world she has found herself in. She is caught between V'lane and Barrons, both of whom are incredibly sexy, but she doesn't allow her attraction to these men cloud her judgement. She manages to keep a cool head around them (most of the time!) and knows them for what they are - deadly and untrustworthy.

And as for Barrons - well, I think I may be becoming slightly obsessed with him. He is dark, dangerous, mysterious and carnal and I keep turning the pages hoping that I will find out something about who/what he is. Those of you who have read this series, please tell me we find out what he is! I can imagine him being mysterious enough to still be a complete enigma at the end of the series - in which case I will be incredibly frustrated!

However, I didn't enjoy Bloodfever as much as I did Darkfever, and the reason for that is that I felt as though this book was a bit of a filler in the series. Although I was hooked and couldn't put the book down (which is due to the author's amazing writing ability) I didn't really feel as though the story moved along at all - until, of course, we got to the cliffhanger at the end! Instead, the author is just lining up all the major players in the story and giving us hints about where the series will go. But it did get me intrigued enough to start the third book in the series straight away.

Summary - An enjoyable instalment to the Fever series that has definitely whet my appetite for more Mac and Barrons - well, mostly Barrons really! I can't wait to see how their story continues.

Other books in this series:
1. Darkfever
2. Bloodfever
3. Faefever
4. Dreamfever
5. Shadowfever

Other reviews of this book:
Dark Faerie Tales / Saz101 / Vampire Book Club

This book counts towards the following challenges:
Book #7 for 2012 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
Book #25  for 2012 Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

Review: Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning (Fever #1)

Publisher - Gollancz
Publication Date - 8th September 2011
Paperback - 368 pages
Genre - Urban Fantasy

Source - Purchased

Rating - 4 out of 5: I really liked it

Book Info - MacKayla Lane’s life is good. She has great friends, a decent job, and a car that breaks down only every other week or so. In other words, she’s your perfectly ordinary twenty-first-century woman. Or so she thinks... until something extraordinary happens.

When her sister is murdered, leaving a single clue to her death – a cryptic message on Mac’s cell phone – Mac journeys to Ireland in search of answers. The quest to find her sister’s killer draws her into a shadowy realm where nothing is as it seems, where good and evil wear the same treacherously seductive mask. She is soon faced with an even greater challenge: staying alive long enough to learn how to handle a power she had no idea she possessed – a gift that allows her to see beyond the world of man, into the dangerous realm of the Fae...

As Mac delves deeper into the mystery of her sister’s death, her every move is shadowed by the dark, mysterious Jericho, a man with no past and only mockery for a future. As she begins to close in on the truth, the ruthless Vlane – an alpha Fae who makes sex an addiction for human women – closes in on her. And as the boundary between worlds begins to crumble, Mac’s true mission becomes clear: find the elusive Sinsar Dubh before someone else claims the all-powerful Dark Book – because whoever gets to it first holds nothing less than complete control of the very fabric of both worlds in their hands...

My Thoughts - I have been hearing so many great things about this series for so long that I finally decided it was time to give it a go. And I certainly was not disappointed by Darkfever!

The best thing about the book for me was Barrons. He's dark, dangerous and mysterious and I found myself hooked on his every word hoping to find out something about him. I am very much looking forward to reading more about him as I continue on with the series.

And the author has created a perfect setting for Barrons in the dark, dark world she has created. The streets of Ireland are a scary place and certainly not a world I would like to visit. There are all types of paranormal creatures and none of them play nice.

My one problem with the book was Mac. I didn't find her particularly likeable at the start. She is incredibly shallow and I found it very hard to relate to her. Even when she is in Ireland tracking down her sister's killer, being chased by fae and vampires and who-knows-what-else, and she still insists on wearing her favourite pink outfit as it makes her happy. I just can't help but feel like her attire should be the least of her worries. Also, throughout her narrative, the author seems to be in the present describing the events that happened in the past, so there is a lot of 'If I had known about [insert dark, dangerous type situation] at the time then I would have done [insert brave kick-ass type action] but I didn't know so I [insert not-so-brave type action that normally involves a lot of tears and acting like a child]'. This technique was used too many times for my liking and I did find it frustrating at times. I found myself wishing the author would just get on with telling the story - a story that had me completely hooked and wishing there weren't little distractions like these.

Summary - A great start to a series that promises to deliver much in the way of danger, intriguing storylines and sexy alpha males. I can't wait to get my hands on book two!

Other books in this series:
1. Darkfever
2. Bloodfever
3. Faefever
4. Dreamfever
5. Shadowfever

Other reviews of this book:
Feeling Fictional / Love Vampires / Saz101

This book counts towards the following challenges:
Book #2 for 2012 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
Book #6 for 2012 Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

Series of the Week: Fever by Karen Marie Moning

Each Sunday I will be highlighting a series that I have been wanting to read for a while, and that I hope to read very soon! This week my pick is the Fever series by Karen Marie Moning. I know that I am probably the last blogger in the world to have read this series, so let me know what you thought of it and whether you think it needs to be moved to the top of my TBR pile straight away!

Darkfever
MacKayla Lane's life is good. She has great friends, a decent job, and a car that breaks down only every other week or so. In other words, she's your perfectly ordinary twenty-first-century woman. Or so she thinks…until something extraordinary happens.

When her sister is murdered, leaving a single clue to her death - a cryptic message on Mac's cell phone - Mac journeys to Ireland in search of answers. The quest to find her sister's killer draws her into a shadowy realm where nothing is as it seems, where good and evil wear the same treacherously seductive mask. She is soon faced with an even greater challenge: staying alive long enough to learn how to handle a power she had no idea she possessed - a gift that allows her to see beyond the world of man, into the dangerous realm of the Fae….

As Mac delves deeper into the mystery of her sister's death, her every move is shadowed by the dark, mysterious Jericho, a man with no past and only mockery for a future. As she begins to close in on the truth, the ruthless Vlane - an alpha Fae who makes sex an addiction for human women - closes in on her. And as the boundary between worlds begins to crumble, Mac's true mission becomes clear: find the elusive Sinsar Dubh before someone else claims the all-powerful Dark Book - because whoever gets to it first holds nothing less than complete control of the very fabric of both worlds in their hands….

Bloodfever
MacKayla Lane's ordinary life underwent a complete makeover when she landed on Ireland's shores and was plunged into a world of deadly sorcery and ancient secrets.

In her fight to stay alive, Mac must find the Sinsar Dubh - a million-year-old book of the blackest magic imaginable, which holds the key to power over both the worlds of the Fae and of Man. Pursued by Fae assassins, surrounded by mysterious figures she knows she cannot trust, Mac finds herself torn between two deadly and irresistible men: V'lane, the insatiable Fae who can turn sensual arousal into an obsession for any woman, and the ever-inscrutable Jericho Barrons, a man as alluring as he is mysterious.

For centuries the shadowy realm of the Fae has coexisted with that of humans. Now the walls between the two are coming down, and Mac is the only thing that stands between them.…

Faefever
Changed by the choices she made in order to survive, Mac no longer is the naïve, idealistic, and glamorous girl newly arrived in Dublin. Now, on a quest to find her sister's killer, she is a major player in a deadly game, but with one great advantage: she knows how to find the one thing Fae and human alike are willing to kill for - the Sinsar Dubh, an ancient book of magic so dark it corrupts anyone who touches it.

What Mac soon discovers, however, is worse than she had imagined. Surrounded by treachery, her enemies indistinguishable from her allies, she can be certain of only one thing - as All Hallows' Eve approaches, her time is running out.

Dreamfever
He has stolen her past, but MacKayla will never allow her sister's murderer to take her future. Yet even the uniquely gifted sidhe-seer is no match for the Lord Master, who has unleashed an insatiable sexual craving that consumes Mac's every thought - and thrusts her into the seductive realm of two very dangerous men, both of whom she desires but dares not trust.

As the enigmatic Jericho Barrons and the sensual Fae prince V'lane vie for her body and soul, as cryptic entries from her sister's diary mysteriously appear and the power of the Dark Book weaves its annihilating path through the city, Mac's greatest enemy delivers a final challenge...

It's an invitation Mac cannot refuse, one that sends her racing home to Georgia, where an even darker threat awaits. With her parents missing and the lives of her loved ones under siege, Mac is about to come face-to-face with a soul-shattering truth - about herself and her sister, about Jericho Barrons.and about the world she thought she knew.

Shadowfever
In an epic battle between humans and Fae, the hunter becomes the hunted when the Sinsar Dubh turns on Mac and begins mowing a deadly path through those she loves.

Who can she turn to? Who can she trust? Who is the woman haunting her dreams? More important, who is Mac herself and what is the destiny she glimpses in the black and crimson designs of an ancient tarot card?

From the luxury of the Lord Master's penthouse to the sordid depths of an Unseelie nightclub, from the erotic bed of her lover to the terrifying bed of the Unseelie King, Mac's journey will force her to face the truth of her exile, and to make a choice that will either save the world . . . or destroy it.