Hold Me Closer Necromancer by Lish MicBride

Sam is going about his life as a fast food worker with a couple of pals who share his apartment and a girlfriend when he has a chance meeting with a very bad man. His life rapidly changes with people insisting he knows all about his powers. He didn't know he had any. He gets captured and thrown into a cage with a hybrid werewolf (female) who is being tested to determine her strength and her threat. In fact, that is exactly why Sam is there. You see Douglas is a very powerful necromancer who wishes to rule the world. Douglas is none too easy on the pair and it is clear they need to escape his grasp. They are surrounded by protections which seems to make that impossible. But with a little help from a cast of wonderful, quirky characters they get it done. There's a lot of humor in this book. Douglas beheads Sam's girl then reanimates just her head which is carried around in a bowling ball bag. Sam has a quick wit and sharp tongue. Ashley, a ghost of sorts, loves waffles and so it goes. The uncomplicated version of this story is that Sam meets and kills a very very bad man and meets a kick ass girlfriend. There is lots of action, nail biting scenes, excitement here. I highly recommend this to anyone at least 14 years old ( there is a little sexy scene in the story). JDW 3/3/12

Strange Angels - Lili St. Crow

Dru and her dad have moved around quite a bit. The reason for this is that her dad hunts monsters (zombie, vampire, and various otherworldlies). Dru also has this ability where she can sense danger coming. One day her dad leaves on a mission, and after a few days he comes back, but he's a zombie. She kills him and then goes on the run. Dru hides out in the mall with her friend Graves. They come under attack by werewulfs and Graves is bitten by one. Dru decides to head back to the house to try and figure out what is behind her dad being turned into a zombie and the attack on her and Graves. As she's going through her dad's things she finds a phone number of someone who might have answers. She calls and meets him, and it turns out the guy is a djamphir, a half-human, half-vampire. She also finds her dad's wallet and locket along with his truck. Christophe comes to the house and tells her she's in danger from the thing her dad was hunting and she needs to leave immediately.

This was a good opening book to this series. I liked how Lili St. Crow lays out the groundwork and the characters for the series. As I was reading this book, I kept seeing similarities to Buffy The Vampire Slayer, which is probably why I enjoyed it. The character of Dru is similar to the character of Buffy. They are both strong and independent and know what they have to do in any situation, even if it means sacrificing someone they love for the greater good. I'm looking forward to reading the next book, which is called Betrayals, and out in bookstores now.

T.B. 1/7/10