You Only Get One Shot Kennedy & Michael Horror/Crime
What would you do if someone demanded you write the best story of your life, to be judged online? That your life depended on it.
Four well-known authors receive an email telling them they are responsible for a suicide. Their antagonist makes it clear she is out for revenge and they have no option but to comply. Their task is to post the best story they can imagine online and await judgement. Filled with guilt, anxiety, and even a few murderous tendencies, each writer weaves their tale and hopes for the best. It’ll be the competition of their lives. Who’s story will win? Will anyone survive?
Uncaged Review: What an intriguing novella this, and you get the benefit of extra short stories within the novella, that the authors that are targeted have to write. Four authors recieve a letter, letting them know they will die if they don’t post a short story online, if the killer likes the story, the author will live. The anxiety levels are high – will their story make the cut and keep them alive?
A short, on-the-edge-of-your-seat thriller – that is short enough to read in one sitting, and just long enough to keep a great pace. You probably won’t guess the ending. Reviewed by Cyrene
The Witches of November Gloria Garner Haynes Crime/Murder
A horrifying discovery, a murder investigation, and events from more than fifty years before lead Sophia Rosenwein into the darkest month of her life as The Witches of November bring a gale of dark secrets, hidden love, and the battle of her life to save the only person she’s ever truly loved. Enter a determined detective with a charming personality, and the game is on!
Uncaged Review: A dark tale of love, loss, and betrayal. A devoted granddaughter finds a shocking discovery while cleaning her elderly grandmothers house. She learns a whole side to her family she never know existed. I rather liked this book as it was a tale of dark woven secrets and home truths. It also took a rather unexpected twist I didn’t see coming. This author has my attention now i would rather like to read some of other books. Reviewed by Jennifer
For an interview with the author, please see the October issue of Uncaged Book Reviews!
Day of the Spiders Brian O’Gorman Horror Preorder available Releases, Oct. 31, 2017 – Pre-order available
Five years after Newtown went up in flames, everything has returned to an uneasy calm, until a little girl by the name of Lottie Richmond is killed in her back garden. Braden Benson has been on the frontline of journalism for most of his adult life. He has enjoyed some success, but that one big headline payoff has always eluded him. He decides to hang up his notepad in favour of spending more time with his neglected family, that is until a spate of grisly events in the nearby town of Layton makes him suspect that there is something fundamentally wrong. The events unfolding in Layton attract the attention of D.C.I Gerald Thompson and his partner John Wells. Their investigation takes them to a house on Corsica Road and the terrible certainty that what happened in Newtown is far from over. Day of the Spiders is the terrifying sequel to the international best seller Dawn of the Spiders.
Excerpt
Wells began to relax the moment that they stepped out of the station. Thompson hated to dampen his apparent good mood by telling him the subject of their latest case. He could see Wells’ face falling as he relayed the story of Lottie Richmond to him. He knew this case could hit Wells pretty hard because he had a young family. His sons were only eight and four years old. It must have been a tough thing for him to have to do in his line of duty and he guessed that it never got any easier the more that you did it. Thompson had no idea exactly how it felt because he had never been blessed with children. They had wanted a family all along but for some reason Cindy had never been caught. She had gone to the doctors and there had been test after test, which showed no abnormalities. He had been tested too, having to endure the indignity of pulling himself a hand shandy in a little room and leaving his deposit in a little plastic cup. Cindy had teased him endlessly about it over the course of the following two weeks, accusing him of having a passionate affair with a cup and stopping him every time he put the kettle on just to make sure he was shagging one of the coffee mugs. By the time the joking had worn off he had come close to yelling at her. Everything had come back normal; his swimmers were in fine shape. They had put it down to, what they had called, unexplained infertility. They had talked about adopting, but they had never approached the subject with any real purpose. It was almost as if Cindy had resigned herself to never having kids, and as time went by they appreciated the fact that they had their lives all to themselves. A lot of their couple friends would always cancel on them because of a child being ill, or not being able to find a babysitter. They had none of these problems, and eventually they started to enjoy the fact that there was nothing really tying them down. Their talks began to steer towards things like exotic holidays whenever he could get the time off and the long-term plans for when he hung up his badge for the last time. He had all of that to look forward to, if he could stay in one piece in the meantime.
“I hate these weird ones,” said Wells, snapping him out of his thoughts.
“Yeah, me too. Let’s try and get this one out of the way as quickly as possible and then we can go back to our usual drink induced crimes,” said Thompson
The drove on in silence for a moment until Wells snapped on the radio. It was the top of the hour and the news was just starting. The top story was all about the dead child that they were on their way to investigate.
“Jesus, how did they get a hold of this already?” said Wells.
“I’m guessing that someone must have told them,” said Thompson.
“Do you think the press will be at the site?”
“Oh yes, they’ll be there alright. Don’t worry, we’ll set uniform on them, that’ll keep them off our backs whilst we try find out what happened.”
Thompson was an old veteran when it came to handling the press. They had been a thorn in his side for as long as he had been a D.C.I. He handled their questions the same way each time, with a cheeky smile and a ‘no comment.’ It drove them nuts and he took great pleasure in it. To him, the press were nothing but vultures swooping in to pick over the bones of broken lives, he had no time for them at all. As they approached the turning for Corsica Road, Thompson could already see the news vans lining the streets, right on the doorstep of the crime scene. He was going to have to flex a little muscle here. He usually didn’t like to throw his weight around, but with these jackals, he was only too happy to make an exception. Wells pulled the car over a few doors down from the house. There were two uniforms outside the door and the ginnel that ran down the side of the house had yellow tape pulled across it. The uniforms had done their job pretty well from what Thompson could see. They got out of the car and Wells immediately lit a cigarette. The change in the law that prevented him from smoking in the car had kept him in moans for at least six months. Thompson could almost recite his moans word for word he had heard them so often. Whilst Wells smoked, Thompson went over to the news vans one by one and told them to go to the top end of the street. Some of them protested, citing the freedom of the press, but Thompson gently reminded them that a child had died which shut them right up. They begrudgingly packed their cameras up and started to move up to the top of the road. Thompson went over to one of the uniformed officers that were standing outside the house and told them to set up a road block at the top of the road. He nodded and gave him a polite ‘Yes sir’ and began to talk into his radio. Thompson waved Wells over, who pitched his cigarette into the gutter.
“Let’s get on with it, shall we?” said Thompson.
Wells shrugged, “Can’t put it off forever.”
They headed to the ginnel down the side of the house. Thompson lifted the yellow tape so that they could both duck under it and they made their way towards the back of the house. For Thompson, the feeling he got of walking into a scene where someone had died never changed, no matter how many times he had done it. It felt to him almost like the place was unreal, as if it was a film set that had been set up for him and he was an actor, meant to say the right lines at the right time. Perhaps he should have been wearing a long overcoat, a Trilby and have a smoke hanging out of the corner of his mouth. Oh, and the hip flask full of booze so that he could blot out the horror of it all. Perhaps he would change his name to Jack Daniels, right Chief? He thought not. He had yet to meet a D.C.I that fitted that description, although he knew a fair few that would shake hands with Mr. Daniels after a long shift. The reality was that an investigation like this was as far removed from the almost romanticised version that you would see in a film or a television show, but if you didn’t harden to it quickly then Mr. Daniels would start to set up shop.
The garden looked like any other average garden. He scanned it, looking for something to jump out at him to indicate what the hell had gone on. But, everything looked quiet and normal. He walked forwards slowly, Wells following just behind him also looking around for anything obvious.
“What do you think boss?” said Wells.
Thompson shrugged. “Nothing out of place here.”
“Shall we take a look inside?” said Wells.
“Sure,” said Thompson and they started to walk towards the back door. They were nearly at the door when Thompson felt something pop under his foot. He stopped in his tracks and lifted his shoe from the floor. On the floor was a crunched-up spider. It looked like a pretty impressive house spider, the sort of spider that would send Cindy screaming from the room. The mashed body was lying in a small pool of yellowing goo that had burst from its body when Gerald’s foot came down on it.
“That’s gross,” said Wells, peering over his shoulder. “I hate spiders, I fuckin’ hate them.”
“They don’t speak too highly of you either,” said Gerald. He wiped his foot on the grass and then he turned back towards the back door. He started to move forwards again and something caught his eye. He stopped in his tracks and turned to look at the manhole to his left. The cover looked as though it had been displaced, only slightly, but Thompson saw it. Curiosity began to pinch at the back of his mind. What this had to do with their investigation, he had no idea, but….
Just a hunch….
“We should get forensics in here,” said Wells.
“We will,” said Gerald. He was fumbling a pack of latex gloves from his pocket. “But I want to see what’s under that manhole before we do. Get your phone camera out, I want you to document everything. Got to keep our necks covered.”
Wells brought out his mobile phone and tapped the screen. “Ready when you are,” he said.
Thompson worked his fingers around the recessed handles on the manhole cover and he pulled, expecting it to be heavier than it was. It pulled up easily, almost causing Thompson to throw the damn thing over his head. He nearly lost his balance too but he managed to steady himself and he set the lid to one side. When he saw what was down the manhole, he jumped to his feet almost knocking the phone out of Wells’ hand. “Jesus,” he said.
“Goddammit,” said Wells, fumbling the phone and accidently taking a picture of himself in the process.
Down the manhole, dotted around the deep grooves that made up the waste channels, were the bodies of dead spiders similar to the one that Thompson had stood on a moment before.
“Did you get some shots?” he said. There was silence from Wells. He gave him a dig in the shoulder.
“Shit,” said Wells. He pointed the phone in the right direction and began to push the button. He caught half a dozen shots of the drain below them.
“You got it?”
“Yeah, I got it,” said Wells. His face was wrinkled up in disgust. The smell of shit emanating from the drain wasn’t helping matters at all. Thompson hesitated a moment and then he went to his pocket again. This time he brought out a plastic evidence bag.
“I need to get one of those spiders,” he said.
“What in the hell for?” said Wells, although deep down he knew the answer. It was for a reason that people around here didn’t like to talk about. Thompson gave him a look.
“You know the reason as well as I do, and you know the rules too. Unusual activity? That’s what I would call this,” said Thompson. He squatted beside the drain. “Are you going to volunteer?”
“Not a chance,” said Wells.
Thompson positioned himself on the edge of the drain and then he lowered himself in, his feet straddling the sides of the channels. He bent down to one of the spiders and picked it up using the bag as a glove. Wells looked on, his phone still in his hand.
“Careful boss,” said Wells suddenly, causing Thompson to almost jump out of his skin. The spider dropped out of his hand and fell into the sloppy, damp mess at the bottom of the drain.
“Christ on a bike,” roared Thompson, and shot Wells a disapproving look.
“Sorry boss,” said Wells.
Thompson reached down again and pinched the limp spider by its leg. He lifted it halfway out of the drain and pulled the bag inside out so that the spider was caught inside. He sealed it up before it could get out of his grasp again and then he clambered out of the drain. He wiped a sweat off his forehead with his sleeve.
“Are we going inside?” said Wells.
“No, I don’t think we need to. We should call this one in and get our little friend in here sent off for analysis. Do you want to give him a kiss before he goes?” said Thompson waving the bag in front of Wells. John took a couple of steps backwards and his heels caught the edge of the low wall that was behind him. He sat down on it hard and his phone fell from his hand and clattered to the floor.
“Shit on it,” said Wells.
Thompson laughed, “No kiss?” he said. Wells gave him the finger and then he reached down to get his phone. He paused for a moment, because there was another spider sprawled out on the concrete next to it. He went to snatch the phone up and just as his hand went near, the spider suddenly sprang into life and ran with incredible speed towards him. It managed to climb onto the back of Wells’ hand before he had a chance to draw it away. He uttered a high-pitched and very unmanly shriek and flailed his hand around to try and get the spider off. The spider lost its grip and flew away into the grass behind him. He jumped up and down for a moment bellowing curses and then he held out his hand in front of him.
“It bit me. I swear to God, the little bastard bit me,” he exclaimed in a voice that was reedy and close to cracking.
Thompson looked at Wells’ hand. There were two small pin pricks, both of them oozing a tiny amount of blood, just below the knuckles. “I think we should get out of here, and you need to have that looked at.”
Wells rubbed at the bite with his other hand. “I’ll be fine, don’t you worry about me,” he said.
Thompson barely heard him. He was looking out over the garden towards the garish plastic climbing frame in the middle of the garden. Lottie had been playing on it when the accident (Incident)
happened.
Something began to churn in his guts and tickle the back of his mind. He had a hunch. He had an idea of what had happened here, but he needed more to go on. If he spread word of his hunch, even to Wells, then the whole thing could blow up right in his face. He was about to nudge Wells and start heading back for the front of the house again when he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. The spider that Wells had launched off his hand and into the grass was emerging from the edge of the lawn. It scuttled towards them.
“Watch out,” said Thompson, pulling Wells backwards by his sleeve. Wells caught sight of the spider and let out another curse. Thompson stepped forwards and stamped on the spider as hard as he could. The spider was obliterated under the weight of his foot. He pulled his leg backwards and the rolled-up corpse of the spider came out from under the front of his shoe. It was followed by a nasty trail of bloody pus from the spiders’ innards.
“Come on, let’s get the hell out of here,” said Wells
“I think you’re right,” said Thompson
They walked quickly across the back yard and down the side of the house. By the time they made it back to the front, they were both out of breath.
[symple_box color=”black” fade_in=”false” float=”center” text_align=”left” width=””]Brian O’Gorman was born in Ormskirk Lancashire in 1974. He moved to Macclesfield Cheshire at a young age and grew up in the town. He began story writing whilst at primary school and won many gold star awards from his teachers for his creativity. When he left school at 16 he began working at Tesco’s stacking shelves in the frozen food department. Soon, he took a job in a printing factory and spent 8 years learning the trade. He decided to change career and trained to be a primary school teacher. After he left the profession, he began to write his debut novel “Pharmacon” after reading an article on genetic modification. He soon followed it up with ‘Dawn of the Spiders,’ which has gone on to great success over in America. He normally writes in the horror genre, but he has tried his hand at children’s books with No Dogs Land and Cheat Mode and more recently tried his hand at a contemporary novel The Final Wish of Maggie Bosworth. Brian currently resided in Stockport, Greater Manchester with his wife Zoe and three children.[/symple_box]
Uncaged Review: A follow up to the fabulous Dawn of the Spiders. Just when you thought those damn spiders were gone, they pop up again out of the blue. This time they have had five years to regroup and get stronger, and so the body count rises and rises. Even scientist Briggs is back to help. A dark tale of humor and horror that will have you checking every corner for eensy weensy spiders. For fans of dark horror and humor. Reviewed by Jennifer
My Soul to Give Magali A. Fréchette Paranormal/Erotica
When Celina Leviet escapes the brutal home invasion that kills her husband, she’s left with a bullet in her gut and vengeance in her heart. An alluring demon, Mekaisto, offers an irresistible deal—in exchange for her soul, he’ll let her live long enough to get her revenge, but she must hunt and kill the murderers herself.
After sealing the contract, Celina digs into her husband’s past for clues about his murder, and what she uncovers makes her question everything she thought she knew about him.
His company never existed. His family history was a lie.
And he was involved with The Lumen, a shadowy religious order whose members know too much about demons. As the life she thought she knew crumbles around her, Mekaisto’s charms become harder to resist. Forced to face a horrible truth, Celina struggles against her late husband’s betrayal and the dark seduction of the devil she knows.
Uncaged Review: Is it wrong to fall in love with a demon? Because I did. And he’s not a good demon, he’s violent and cruel. But he’s also sarcastic, hilarious and can you believe – likable? But Kai is gentle, and cruel and sarcastic and sweet with Celina, but for all the right reasons. This is a story about betrayal, truths and yes, it’s a love story.
Celina’s husband is brutally killed and when she runs away from the house and the murderers who are racing after her, she’s shot and on her way to dying also. Along comes Kai, the dark shadow that Celina has seen all her life, morphing into a human-like figure with red eyes. Kai offers Celina revenge for her husband, in exchange for her soul and her life. Already knowing she is dying, Celina accepts the offer.
I’m not giving any more spoilers, but I loved this book. I loved Kai, and a very strong Celina. And the twists and turns that the author takes you on while delving for the truth was so much fun. Do be warned though, there is a lot of violence – but it all makes sense. Reviewed by Cyrene
Angels and demons are not what you think. They are aliens, and the Midworlders are their representatives on Earth. Heath is an Angelic Midworlder with a tortured past where he could not save the woman he loved. Evie is a woman haunted by a dark presence in her mind that allows her to see the angels and demons around her. Heath saves her when she is attacked by Demonic Midworlders but will he fail her like he has others before? These two tortured souls are connected by the past, a past that has left an evil lurking inside Evie that could kill them both.
Uncaged Review: The world building done with this series is very original, with angels and demons actually being aliens, some with angelic qualities and the others demonic. The ones sent to earth to protect the humans from the demonic group are midworlder’s, or half-breeds – with the angelic ones. This story revolves around Heath and Evie, Heath feels as if he failed in his past, and Evie has a darkness inside – that is threatening to destroy them both.
This is an intriguing tale and the world building is spot-on, and the characters are well flushed out. This is the second book in the trilogy, and even though I didn’t read the first book, I was never lost or confused, but I’ve definitely put the other two books on my radar. Reviewed by Cyrene
Only the Dead Don’t Die A.D. Popovich Horror/Dystopian
Scarlett Lewis, an ordinary grade school teacher, is so absorbed in hopelessness after being jilted by her fiancé that she doesn’t realize the United States is succumbing to a horrific pandemic. The Super-Summer Flu is sweeping the nation; meanwhile, Scarlett mopes around her condo.
Until . . . she begins noticing the bizarre events unraveling around her.
During her desperate search to find her sister and the rest of civilization, she meets other survivors who may not have her best interests at heart. With hope as her last weapon of defense, Scarlett must learn how to survive in the Creeper-infested world without sacrificing her own humanity as she discovers the dark fate of the human race.
Uncaged Review: We start out with heading right into the beginning of the apocalypse, with two of the main characters, and their two different perspectives – but both will come together as we go along. First off we have Scarlett, a school teacher, and after a trip to the oral surgeon to get her wisdoms pulled, she starts popping the pain meds and is out of it for around five days where she’s barely functioning. When she finally does come back to reality, the reality she’s facing is like a nightmare come to life. The other main character is Dean, a man who is “unplugged” for the most part, doesn’t watch a lot of TV, doesn’t have a cell phone, doesn’t use the Internet and likes to spend most of his time on his boat. Imagine his surprise after a couple days out on his boat, when he comes in and finds out the world has gone to hell. The Super Summer Flu virus has wiped out a huge percentage of the population and the pockets and groups of survivors are not necessarily going to help you out.
I like the originality, the zombies in this book can learn and evolve, which makes life a bit more tense than other apocalypse books. The author does a good job fleshing out the main characters, but also makes them a bit unbelievable in places. I couldn’t see Scarlett, a sort of whimpy school teacher become a strong survivor, I feel in reality, she would have been a creeper in the first few hours – probably like me. Reviewed by Cyrene
To read an interview with the author, please see the October issue of Uncaged Book Reviews.
Releasing the Demons L.D. Rose Urban Fantasy
Blaze Knight has been through hell and back, but the nightmares aren’t over yet.
Five years after Blaze was maimed by Cyrus Chimola, a powerful vampire with a penchant for torture, he’s still trying to pick up the pieces of his shattered life. As a genetically engineered mercenary with the ability to bend fire to his will and to see in infrared, Blaze’s mission is to protect what’s left of humanity. When Chimola and his crew return to the Bronx gunning for Blaze’s blood, Blaze is forced to face the demons of his past. Hell-bent on revenge, he seeks the help of Valerie Medeiros, an NYPD detective who manages to steal his heart and save his life in more ways than one.
Motivated by her sister’s gruesome death, Valerie has made it her life’s goal to bury every vampire in the ground where they belong. When she brings in Blaze Knight for suspected murder, she discovers he’s not only innocent, he isn’t a man at all—he’s a half-vampire hybrid working with a band of brothers for the U.S. military. Valerie has a hard time trusting anything with fangs, yet she quickly falls headlong into Blaze’s life, a life full of darkness and horror she can’t even begin to fathom. The bodies are stacking up, but Valerie can’t seem to let go of this hybrid, a beautiful monster filled with pain, rage, and passion unlike anything she’s ever known.
In a world where the line between good and evil is blurred, Blaze and Valerie will find danger at every turn, risking everything they’ve come to know and love, including one another.
Excerpt
Valerie kept her eyes locked on the glass windows covered with cigarette prices and beer ads, watching Tattoos pay up at the cash register. Once she reached the side of the building, she pressed her back against the warm brick wall. Sweat trickled down her spine and she wiped her clammy hands on her jeans before she drew her Beretta. She listened for the bell hanging above the store entrance, and when it jingled, she peered past the corner of the building.
There he is.
Holding a pack of Marlboros, he slipped it into his back pocket along with a silver money clip. He walked back toward the Chevelle, scanning the area one more time as he stepped off the concrete elevation.
This is it. Do it. Now!
With her gun pointed at the ground in a two-handed grip, Valerie pushed off the wall and turned the corner, staring at his back. Her voice was loud and clear as she called, “Blaze.”
He stopped and pivoted around. A fleeting expression of confusion filled his face, but it quickly turned into shock as she lifted her gun and shouted, “Freeze, NYPD!”
Gasps and shouts resounded as everyone turned their attention on her. Some people ducked while others gawked, and she wished they would just climb into their cars and get the hell out of here. She did her best to ignore them, keeping her focus solely on the man before her as she carefully approached him. He didn’t make any sudden movements, his brow furrowing as a muscle in his jaw ticked.
Valerie flashed her badge to prove she wasn’t bullshitting. “Get your hands in the air where I can see them.”
He slowly lifted his arms and spread his hands out wide. Then spoke with a voice like black gravel, matching his appearance all too well. “What’s going on here?”
She closed in on him, his presence becoming more and more overwhelming. Sirens resonated in the distance, sending a trickle of relief through her. He didn’t appear armed but that didn’t mean jack.
“Turn around and get down on the ground. Now!”
Anger consumed the confusion on his face but he surprisingly complied, giving her his back again before dropping to his knees with his hands above his head.
She kept her gun aimed and her mind submerged in the well of her calm. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d arrested someone; she usually shot to kill. “Cross your ankles,” she ordered, and he did so, crossing his booted ankles as if he’d done this before.
Valerie placed her foot in the space between his legs, so if he attempted to stand he would end up flat on his face. People finally backed away as she removed her tungsten carbide handcuffs from her utility belt, gripping the Beretta with knuckles white as chalk. Tungsten carbide was the only metal strong enough to hold a vampire, but she used it on everyone, regardless of species. Two New Rochelle cruisers whipped into the gas station, blocking off both exits before four officers leapt out of their respective vehicles. Valerie put the gun up and cuffed Blaze’s dominant hand, swinging his right arm around before latching onto the left.
He didn’t put up a fight. He didn’t even flinch. But he balled his big hands into fists at his back. She read him his Miranda rights as she cinched the cuffs around both of his thick wrists.
“You have the right to remain silent—”
“I have the right to know what’s going on,” he growled, showing her his savage profile.
“Anything you do or say can be used against you in a court of law.”
“What are you arresting me for?”
“You have the right to an attorney.”
“F**k the attorney—”
She yanked the chain of his cuffs, bringing his solid body against her as the faint scent of cologne tickled her nose. She leaned into his ear, anger flashing through her as she thought of bloody grass and charred flesh.
“You’re under arrest for the murder of Elena Delgado. Now get the f**k up and move.”
EXCERPT TWO (sexy):
His body hardened, his heart thudding in his chest. If that wasn’t enough, the stirring low in his belly sure as hell was.
He wanted her. Badly.
And so did the leech inside him.
“Blaze?” She peered at him with concern, taking a step closer.
He snapped out of it, realizing she’d asked him something he completely missed. “Huh?”
“Do you want some coffee? Something to drink? Eat?”
Yeah, you. He swallowed his saliva, straightening. “I should get going.”
“Oh.” She tried to hide her disappointment but she was bad at it. She wants you to stay. “Where are you heading?”
“Probably home for a few hours. Rest up a bit.” And drink about a gallon of blood while thinking of you. “You know.”
Valerie set what he assumed was the bag of coffee on the counter. She took another step toward him as a wave of jasmine swept over him, tugging him in places he shouldn’t be tugged.
He took a reflexive step back. Goddamn it, he was fine. He’d been fine right up until now. What the hell just happened?
Bad idea, Blaze. Bad f**king idea to starve yourself and walk into her apartment at dusk, with that body, and that face, and those eyes, and that smell . . .
“I’ll show myself out.”
She looked entirely confused as he turned away and headed for the door. Christ, he was acting like he’d never been in a woman’s apartment before, and God knew he’d been in many. But he’d never been this hungry around a woman before—at least, not in ordinary circumstances. And he wasn’t famous for his control.
He could feel it, that ugly darkness inside him spreading through his veins, making his lips and toes tingle. The leech opened its jaws and yawned, sucking down what was left of his civility. His gums tightened, squeezing his canines, urging them to grow, to elongate.
To spring free.
“Blaze—”
He needed to get out. Now.
“I’ll see you in the morning,” he ground out, his voice a near growl. “Good night, Val.”
He slammed the door behind him and managed to stagger ten paces down the hall before his limbs stopped working. Sweat dripped down the sides of his face and trickled down his spine. His hands shook and he clenched them into fists. He stood there, chest heaving, heart pounding, fangs pulsing, cock throbbing. He closed his eyes and lifted his face toward the ceiling, trying to wrestle the monster down, trying to beat it back into submission.
But it was already too late.
Through the din in his head, Blaze heard a door click behind him, disengaging from its frame. It creaked open slowly as jasmine slithered through the hallway toward him, rising up and striking at his senses, delivering the final blow. He craned his neck and spotted her.
Valerie’s blond hair fell in a curtain as she peeked out, looking for him. Her eyes widened when she found him, still standing in the corridor, and she quickly retreated.
“Sorry,” she murmured, but before she could close the door, he was already there, his hand propped against it.
She looked at him in pleasant surprise. “Blaze, I—”
He didn’t give her a chance to finish. He seized her mouth with his before he slammed the door behind him and locked it shut.
Uncaged Review:
L.D. Rose has created a dark, gritty world with an alternate history of New York, and vampires or leeches are the rulers of the night, with human body counts way too high each night. Detective Valerie and her partner Deron are two of the brave on the force that go on patrol at night, when most people are holed up in their homes. When they are called to a murder scene for a girl whose body was bitten and burned from the inside out, the black and white world that Val knows becomes many shades of grey…
Blaze is a hybrid, a genetic science experiment, half human, half vampire. During these experiments, each hybrid developed a special talent, unique to them. Blaze, as his name implies, has the ability to control fire. Captured and tortured for 7 months, Blaze is a walking time bomb – and has become a person of interest to Valerie and her team after the murder of the charred girl.
This is as gritty as they get, and when I hit about the 30% mark, it ramped up, and at 50%, I could not put this book down. Emotional and action-packed – it will have you anxiously turning pages. One series that will go on my to-read-again list as I’m sure in all my excitement, I missed something the first go around. Reviewed by Cyrene
5 Stars
Black Bullet L.D. Rose Urban Fantasy
Fledgling vampire Jonathan Kerr has just met his match.
Not even his past life as a former marine and FBI agent could prepare him for the battle against the monster inside him, struggling to take hold. After an old nemesis of the Senary surfaces in Brooklyn, unleashing chaos and terror in the battered borough, Jon sets out to take him down. Instead, he ends up with far more than he bargained for when he clashes with the beautiful half-vampire hybrid, Lawan Knight…
Uncaged Review: In book two, we follow Jon and Lawan’s story. In this series, when a vampire is turned, they lose their soul and all of their humanity. When Jon died, and the Senary saved him by turning him, Rome was able to keep Jon’s soul within his body. Unfortunately, Jon’s also sharing his body with Taylon, the vampire that was killed.
Lawan is a female hybrid, living on the edges on her own, killing leeches. But after the torture of her past, she trusts no one, getting through to her is not going to be a piece of cake.
Again, the story is well written with a brilliant well thought out world. Most of New York City is owned by the leeches, and with them gaining ground – the Senary is stretched too thin as it is. The action scenes and the storyline is spot on, and the romance only enhances the story. It will pull all your emotions through the wringer and give the ending it deserves. This is a book you can’t read fast as you don’t want to miss a thing. Reviewed by Cyrene
5 Stars
L.D. Rose
[symple_box color=”black” fade_in=”false” float=”center” text_align=”left” width=””]L.D. Rose is a neurotic physician by day, crazed writer by night, and all around wannabe superhero. She writes paranormal romance and urban fantasy, but she’s been known to delve into horror, sci-fi, and medical suspense on occasion. L.D. Rose is a PAN member of the RWA, FF&P, NEC-RWA and CoLoNY. She currently lives in Rhode Island with her studly hubby, her hyperactive boxer, and her two devious cats. Sign up for her newsletter for the latest on the Senary, sneak peeks, giveaways, and other fun stuff: http://eepurl.com/bKvuXD You’ll receive a free horror short story with sign-up! You can also join her reader group on FB for more shenanigans. 😉 DEVOUR THE NIGHT: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1544747369161573/[/symple_box]
Dark Lord of the Night S.K. Ryder Dark Fantasy/Vampire
The only thing standing between a new vampire and eternal darkness is the mortal woman who claims his heart. Youngling vampire Dominic Marchant struggles to master his deadly instincts as he hunts the urban jungles of South Florida. He keeps his hunger confined to the blood of the guilty with help from Cassidy Chandler, a human woman who can literally touch his soul. Their love is his last remaining tether to humanity, which is tested beyond endurance when powerful forces from his past introduce him to terrifying new appetites he could never have imagined.
His efforts to protect Cassidy from the depravity overtaking him push their relationship to the brink of shattering. Refusing to give up on the man who is her heart, she takes an unthinkable gamble to save him. But is she fulfilling an ominous prophecy that ensnares them both? Or has she become just another pawn in a cunning game played by the five-thousand-year-old vampire who claims Dominic as his own?
Desperate to rescue her from a fate worse than death, Dominic strikes a perilous bargain with his greatest enemies only to face an impossible choice–embrace his darkest self . . . or destroy the woman he cannot live without.
Uncaged Review: Several months ago I had the privilege to review the first book in this series, Dark Heart of the Sun, where we meet Dominic and Cassidy. So it was nice to return to the characters in part two. This book is much darker than the first one, and it’s not easy going for Dominic and Cassidy, Dominic is still struggling with his beast and Cassidy has fears of losing him. But the danger is only just beginning with Dominic’s sire and Cassidy will make a huge gamble to save Dominic.
A lot of action, nice sequences and very little downtime for the couple in this book, but you definitely won’t doubt that these two belong together, and even though this book wraps up its own storyline and doesn’t leave you on a cliffhanger, the series is still wide open for more. Reviewed by Cyrene
Being a Guardian for the Black Mesa Wolf Pack meant everything to Lily Bardou. Until the night she made a fatal mistake. Since then, she’s kept her wild side tightly leashed, denying her responsibilities to both her pack and her own sensual needs.
Then Kieran Rendall stalks into her life.
Kieran’s wanted Lily for two long years, and he’s finally done waiting. Convinced she’s part of his destiny, he’s back in town with a plan: to help Lily let go of the past–and to unlock her caged passions.
Uncaged Review: A short novella, introduction into the Black Mesa Wolves series. This short read actually gives just enough information to spark your interest in this series, as it was meant to. Lily is a Guardian for her pack, but she’s been off her duties since she had to kill her human lover, whom she bit during sex, which is against pack laws. Enter Kieran, an alpha from a pack up north, observing the pack as it is with tradition, and he’s been watching Lily for the past tow years. Will Kieran be the one to unlock the passion in Lily to bring her back to her true self, or will the rogue wolves that come into their territory deny her a chance to bring back her Guardian status?
A hot and sexy romance, and well worth the read. Definitely looking forward to book two. Reviewed by Cyrene
You Only Get One Shot
[symple_box color=”black” fade_in=”false” float=”center” text_align=”left” width=””]Brian O’Gorman was born in Ormskirk Lancashire in 1974. He moved to Macclesfield Cheshire at a young age and grew up in the town. He began story writing whilst at primary school and won many gold star awards from his teachers for his creativity. When he left school at 16 he began working at Tesco’s stacking shelves in the frozen food department. Soon, he took a job in a printing factory and spent 8 years learning the trade. He decided to change career and trained to be a primary school teacher. After he left the profession, he began to write his debut novel “Pharmacon” after reading an article on genetic modification. He soon followed it up with ‘Dawn of the Spiders,’ which has gone on to great success over in America. He normally writes in the horror genre, but he has tried his hand at children’s books with No Dogs Land and Cheat Mode and more recently tried his hand at a contemporary novel The Final Wish of Maggie Bosworth. Brian currently resided in Stockport, Greater Manchester with his wife Zoe and three children.[/symple_box]
