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Cassandra Palmer #3
Embrace the Night
Recently named the world’s chief clairvoyant, Cassandra Palmer still has a thorn in her side. As long as Cassie and a certain master vampire - the sizzling-hot Mircea - are magically bound to each other, her life will never be her own …
The spell that binds them can only be broken with an incantation found in the Codex Merlini, an ancient grimoire. The Codex’s location has been lost in the present day, so Cassie will have to seek it out in the only place it can still be found - the past.
But Cassie soon realizes the Codex has been lost for a reason. The book is rumored to contain dangerous spells, and retrieving it may help Cassie to deal with Mircea, but it could also endanger the world…
The spell that binds them can only be broken with an incantation found in the Codex Merlini, an ancient grimoire. The Codex’s location has been lost in the present day, so Cassie will have to seek it out in the only place it can still be found - the past.
But Cassie soon realizes the Codex has been lost for a reason. The book is rumored to contain dangerous spells, and retrieving it may help Cassie to deal with Mircea, but it could also endanger the world…
378 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 1, 2008
324 people are currently reading
6533 people want to read
About the author
Karen Chance
62 books5,244 followersKaren Chance is the author of two New York Times bestselling series, plus a number of novellas and short stories, all set in the Cassandra Palmer universe. A full-time writer since 2008, she was previously a university history teacher, which comes in handy when writing the time-travel aspect of Cassie’s crazy adventures. She loves Las Vegas, the main setting for her novels, but currently lives in Florida near her family home. Visit her website or connect with her on Facebook here.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 592 reviews
June 4, 2017
Here's an ouroboros for all you Karen Chance fans.
I'm too lazy to summarize the book or even really share in-depth thoughts right now, so I'll say this: I'm blowing through this series book after book and the reason why it's so highly entertaining is the huge amount of vivid personality each character has.
Clear favorite and perfect example: Pritkin.
A shock of pale hair, which as usual was making taunting gestures in the face of gravity, a square jaw, a slightly overlarge nose and furious green eyes. The Circle's most famous renegade and my reluctant partner, John Pritkin.a.k.a. my one true love
Constantly angry and uptight, ridiculously secretive, and somehow such a deep and massively attractive person. Damn. I'd like to be on his team.
And let's not forget how unintentionally hilarious he is when he's riled up:
I said as much and Pritkin made a noise that in anyone else would have signaled an incipient heart attack.
And the casual way he handles murder attempts:
Pritkin gave me his old impatient look. "You never listen to me!"
"That's not the point!"
Someone put a fist through five inches of Romanian oak and almost grabbed him before he could skip away. "We can discuss this later," he said.
Can you tell I'm infatuated?
I'm too lazy to summarize the book or even really share in-depth thoughts right now, so I'll say this: I'm blowing through this series book after book and the reason why it's so highly entertaining is the huge amount of vivid personality each character has.
Clear favorite and perfect example: Pritkin.
A shock of pale hair, which as usual was making taunting gestures in the face of gravity, a square jaw, a slightly overlarge nose and furious green eyes. The Circle's most famous renegade and my reluctant partner, John Pritkin.
Constantly angry and uptight, ridiculously secretive, and somehow such a deep and massively attractive person. Damn. I'd like to be on his team.
And let's not forget how unintentionally hilarious he is when he's riled up:
I said as much and Pritkin made a noise that in anyone else would have signaled an incipient heart attack.
And the casual way he handles murder attempts:
Pritkin gave me his old impatient look. "You never listen to me!"
"That's not the point!"
Someone put a fist through five inches of Romanian oak and almost grabbed him before he could skip away. "We can discuss this later," he said.
Can you tell I'm infatuated?
February 1, 2020
"We have a problem."
Pritkin snorted. "Only one? That would be a change."
The Story
The plot revolves around Cassie’s efforts to break the geis without fulfilling the bond with Mircea. First Cassie is the one who doesn’t want to consummate it, later Mircea, but their reasons are the same.
The counterspell is said to be found in the Codex Merlini, the book disappeared centuries ago. So Cassie runs through time, space and ley lines to have it. Making the quest more complicated and dangerous, everyone wants that book. Those who don’t, are willing to do anything to ensure that the codex won’t be found ever.
Characters
Though she is exhausted both physically, magically, and emotionally, Cassie proves that she is upright, collected, and has a strong sense of responsibility. She is a smart negotiator and great strategist. Now you get the answer to Agnes’ prophecy with no doubt whether Cassie is the best Pythia ever or the worst.
Mircea. Finally you get to know him better as his past is revealed. As before, he is perceptive, powerful, elegant, and luxuriously hot, so still he is my favorite.
Mircea in black looked like sin.
But, Pritkin is becoming more and more enticing to me. So much so, I’m starting to lean towards him. Pritkin is such a complex character, but in a consistent way. He is still mysterious, but finally you get lots of details about his life, past, and surprising origins.
Some people thought he had only one mode—pissed off. In reality, he had plenty of them. Over the past few weeks, I’d learned to tell the difference between real pissed off, impatient pissed off and scared pissed off.
He still makes it difficult for Cassie to trust him, and still generates ambivalent feelings in her.
Many steamy scenes, but no real romance in this book. What Cassie feels for Mircea is attraction, of course, enlarged by the geis, and also intimacy, and familiarity.
...he was murmuring low, musical Romanian against my shoulder, and I understood every word down to my bones.
It was all too easy to imagine loving Mircea. It was even easier to imagine the problems it could cause.
What she feels for Pritkin seems more real to me: she hates him and is attracted to him on some basic level at the same time.
It was almost like there were two of me, one who heartily approved of the mage and one who would have dearly loved to see him dead.
Secondary characters
Casanova and Billy Joe are still fun...
There are, so tradition says, four main reasons for a ghost to appear to mortals: to reproach, to warn, to recall and to advise. I could add a few more: to annoy, to obstruct or, in Billy Joe’s case, to seriously piss off.
Françoise has become a kind of friend of Cassie...
I glanced at Françoise. "I could use a diversion."
"’Ow beeg?" she asked casually.
"Beeg."
"D’accord."
Cassie’s new allies, Alphonse and Sal are really amusing.
Rosier. So far I don’t understand his character. He doesn’t want the Codex Merlini found: So for me, he is a weak antagonist.
Tami and the Misfit Mafia. I can’t see their significance regarding the plot. But Tami is an interesting addition to Cassie’s past.
All in all
I’m impressed by the variety and colorfulness of magic again. Anything can be charmed, even a dress.
It is hilarious when Pritkin casts a spell on Cassie’s dress making it transparent, and I loved Augustine’s dress-creations! I especially would love to have that spider-web embroidery design that constantly weaves itself into different patterns.
Although I felt descriptions too long here and there, the story is not only exciting, magical, humorous, and adventurous, as the previous books are, but erotic and emotional as well. The first three books of the series cover merely two weeks altogether, so I feel this book is the final part of the beginning of Cassie’s adventures. I hope now that Cassie is free of the geis, she can step out of the trap of her own problems need to be solved immediately, and some real Pythia reign will start.
My favorite quotes.
December 26, 2022
Actual Rating 3.5 stars
Entertaining.
I read the 4 first books of the series in a row. Then, I reread them in a row again so I had them fresh to read the 5th one. That means that I have them all scrambled in my mind right now, which is why I can’t review each of them separately. This is more a general opinion of the combination of the 5.
This series have many elements that make it an entertaining and interesting read. It has compelling plots, action, miseries to solve, enemies, romantic tension, magic, friendship, humor, a strong female lead, deaths, attractive men, fantastic creatures, time travel, vampires, and much much more.
Nevertheless, I had a few problems with the books, which prevented me from giving them a higher rating:
To me these books have way too much action and the scenes are way too long. The books are a succession of action after action without rest, no pause to collect our thoughts. Due to this huge amount of action the information is dropped in the middle of it, which elongates the scenes. As a result, this can be a bit tiresome at times. With all that activity and turmoil, there is obviously no time for musings, there barely are any reflections; we only know what the characters are thinking because of what they do in each moment while affronting the situation in the middle of the action. I truly believe there is a serious need for more dialogue and thoughts communication here, it needs deepness.
The romance need to be explored further. There is just enough of it as well as enough sexual tension to keep you interested, but not enough to trap you. And after 5 books, it has become annoying to always be left wanting.
Mircea is your typical sexy vampire type. In fact, he is so stereotypical that there are exact copies of him on many other Urban Fantasy books. But I can’t fault the writer much for this since it seems to work every time for most female readers.
Despite my issues with the series, all and all, these books are ok, stimulating and intriguing . And, if I recall correctly, I liked the third one a bit more than the others.
I will continue reading this series.
Entertaining.
I read the 4 first books of the series in a row. Then, I reread them in a row again so I had them fresh to read the 5th one. That means that I have them all scrambled in my mind right now, which is why I can’t review each of them separately. This is more a general opinion of the combination of the 5.
This series have many elements that make it an entertaining and interesting read. It has compelling plots, action, miseries to solve, enemies, romantic tension, magic, friendship, humor, a strong female lead, deaths, attractive men, fantastic creatures, time travel, vampires, and much much more.
Nevertheless, I had a few problems with the books, which prevented me from giving them a higher rating:
To me these books have way too much action and the scenes are way too long. The books are a succession of action after action without rest, no pause to collect our thoughts. Due to this huge amount of action the information is dropped in the middle of it, which elongates the scenes. As a result, this can be a bit tiresome at times. With all that activity and turmoil, there is obviously no time for musings, there barely are any reflections; we only know what the characters are thinking because of what they do in each moment while affronting the situation in the middle of the action. I truly believe there is a serious need for more dialogue and thoughts communication here, it needs deepness.
The romance need to be explored further. There is just enough of it as well as enough sexual tension to keep you interested, but not enough to trap you. And after 5 books, it has become annoying to always be left wanting.
Mircea is your typical sexy vampire type. In fact, he is so stereotypical that there are exact copies of him on many other Urban Fantasy books. But I can’t fault the writer much for this since it seems to work every time for most female readers.
Despite my issues with the series, all and all, these books are ok, stimulating and intriguing . And, if I recall correctly, I liked the third one a bit more than the others.
I will continue reading this series.
January 26, 2010
All right. This one annoyed me enough to earn a review. After reading enough urban fantasy, a reader learns to give leeway to the first book in a series. Embrace the Night was the third, and after a promising start in the catacombs of Paris, the narrative rapidly dwindles to sideshows and comedy acts until around chapter 13.
Yup, you read right. I don't mind humor in a UF novel, but if I want to read chick lit, I'll read chick lit. Or perhaps more rightly it would be the Lives and Times of a Casino Manager. This novel came to a complete halt for what must have been almost two hundred pages, and as if that wasn't enough, the book was littered with the same rookie mistakes we saw from the author in book one.
I read entire dialogues devoted to magical trivia like this gem:
Well, gee, that'll sure come in handy the next time I need to travel through space and time! Thanks a whole bunch, Ms. Chance! /sarcasm
I think aside from assuming that her audience knows nothing, Karen Chance also unfortunately assumes that they are all OCD.
I read UF for certain reasons. Learning imaginary magic is not one of them. In depth world-building is an asset to a fantasy writer, but it is the writer that ultimately needs to know every facet of her universe, not her reader. Sadly or not, the author's knowledge will not necessarily all come to use in the actual text. Thanks for small mercies.
That wasn't even the whole conversation, and there are more boring snippets, usually following something that might be construed as exciting were the momentum not immediately smashed to bits by Chance's Hammer of Infinite Tedium (unlike Chance, I'll assume you are not oblivious to context and can guess what that is).
Apart from that, I'm also not a fan of magic as the only motivator for a heroine's sexual encounters or attractions, which is in use here yet again. I'm putting this author on hold for now. Au revoir, Chance!
Yup, you read right. I don't mind humor in a UF novel, but if I want to read chick lit, I'll read chick lit. Or perhaps more rightly it would be the Lives and Times of a Casino Manager. This novel came to a complete halt for what must have been almost two hundred pages, and as if that wasn't enough, the book was littered with the same rookie mistakes we saw from the author in book one.
I read entire dialogues devoted to magical trivia like this gem:
"Then it should have been easy to locate," Radella groused. "The power output alone—"
"Come again?"
She gave me a disgusted look. "Portals don’t run on batteries! They’re rare not only because they’re regulated but because few people have a power source capable of handling one."
"What kind of power are we talking about?"
"A lot. A ley-line sink is usually required, although there are talismans capable of opening a short-term gateway. But they’re rare. I doubt that vampire had one."
"A ley-line what?"
"Where two lines cross and pool their energy," Radella said impatiently. I blinked at her. "Ley. Lines," she said, very slowly and distinctly. "You do know what those are, right?"
I had heard of them, but the memory was vague. Just something about a lot of ancient monuments being constructed on parallel lines. "Assume I know nothing," I told her.
She smirked. "I always do." Françoise said something in a language I didn’t know and Radella flushed bright red. She slapped her tiny hand down, making the whole cabinet shudder beneath her. "Quiet, slave! Remember to whom you’re speaking!"
"I always do," Françoise told her sweetly.
"Ladies!" I looked back and forth between the two of them, but nobody was going for weapons, which made it a pretty congenial conversation for those two.
"To put it really, really simply," Radella said icily, her eyes still on Françoise, "ley lines are borders between worlds: yours, mine, the demon realms, whatever. When those borders collide, you get stress, like when two of your tectonic plates rub together. And stress creates energy."
"Like magical fault lines."
"That’s what I said!" Radella snapped. "Only in this case, there’s no land to move, only magical energy getting hurled about. Therefore, instead of earthquakes or tsunamis, you get power, which can be used for various applications by those who know how."
"Like running portals."
"Under certain circumstances. If two particularly strong ley lines cross, they might generate that kind of energy, but it doesn’t happen often."
"Then all we have to do is look for this sink thing," I said excitedly. "If it’s putting off that kind of power, it should be easy to find!"
Radella sighed and muttered something I was just as glad I couldn’t understand. "There are ley lines all around Vegas," she finally said. "But none cross anywhere near here. The closest area where they do is the MAGIC enclave, which is why it was built where it is."
Well, gee, that'll sure come in handy the next time I need to travel through space and time! Thanks a whole bunch, Ms. Chance! /sarcasm
I think aside from assuming that her audience knows nothing, Karen Chance also unfortunately assumes that they are all OCD.
I read UF for certain reasons. Learning imaginary magic is not one of them. In depth world-building is an asset to a fantasy writer, but it is the writer that ultimately needs to know every facet of her universe, not her reader. Sadly or not, the author's knowledge will not necessarily all come to use in the actual text. Thanks for small mercies.
That wasn't even the whole conversation, and there are more boring snippets, usually following something that might be construed as exciting were the momentum not immediately smashed to bits by Chance's Hammer of Infinite Tedium (unlike Chance, I'll assume you are not oblivious to context and can guess what that is).
Apart from that, I'm also not a fan of magic as the only motivator for a heroine's sexual encounters or attractions, which is in use here yet again. I'm putting this author on hold for now. Au revoir, Chance!
June 1, 2017
4,5 stars!
Cassie's adventures according to Billy the ghost:
"Every time you get involved with the vamps, it's a bad thing." Billy held up three translucent fingers. "Tomas. 'Oh, Billy, he's just a sweet street kid who needs a home.' A sweet street kid who happened to be a master vampire in disguise, who betrayed you and almost got you killed!" A finger went down. "Mircea. 'Oh, Billy, I've known him forever, he's nothing to worry about.' Until he placed that damn geis on you and maneuvered you into the Pythia thing, that is." Another finger folded under, leaving me staring at a rude gesture. "See why I'm a little worried here?"
Now that he said it, Cass has the worst taste in men. I love Mircea but that geis thing wasn't cool. It serves him right that it backfired on him.
So to lift the geis Cassie needs to go back in time to find the famous lost book of spells that everyone else wants. While doing that try to avoid being eaten by the incubus king or vaporized by the mages, rescue an old friend, play mother den for a bunch of street kids, and oh yeah meet Merlin. Fun week.
"That demon attacked me. He only went after Pritkin when he tried to protect me." "Protect you? That's like sending Pancho Villa to keep Che Guevara out of trouble!"
That Billy, he cracks me up every time. Pritkin though, I'm kinda tired of getting back and forth between trusting him or not. I would've been ok with it if we had that problem only now and then every few books, but it's been like that in every one so far and it's getting boring.
I think I liked this book the most so far. The resolution to the geis problem was hilarious and I wondered till the very end if they would go for "that". I honestly would've been ok with it. I'm a perv like that, not even gonna deny that.
Over and out
Cassie's adventures according to Billy the ghost:
"Every time you get involved with the vamps, it's a bad thing." Billy held up three translucent fingers. "Tomas. 'Oh, Billy, he's just a sweet street kid who needs a home.' A sweet street kid who happened to be a master vampire in disguise, who betrayed you and almost got you killed!" A finger went down. "Mircea. 'Oh, Billy, I've known him forever, he's nothing to worry about.' Until he placed that damn geis on you and maneuvered you into the Pythia thing, that is." Another finger folded under, leaving me staring at a rude gesture. "See why I'm a little worried here?"
Now that he said it, Cass has the worst taste in men. I love Mircea but that geis thing wasn't cool. It serves him right that it backfired on him.
So to lift the geis Cassie needs to go back in time to find the famous lost book of spells that everyone else wants. While doing that try to avoid being eaten by the incubus king or vaporized by the mages, rescue an old friend, play mother den for a bunch of street kids, and oh yeah meet Merlin. Fun week.
"That demon attacked me. He only went after Pritkin when he tried to protect me." "Protect you? That's like sending Pancho Villa to keep Che Guevara out of trouble!"
That Billy, he cracks me up every time. Pritkin though, I'm kinda tired of getting back and forth between trusting him or not. I would've been ok with it if we had that problem only now and then every few books, but it's been like that in every one so far and it's getting boring.
I think I liked this book the most so far. The resolution to the geis problem was hilarious and I wondered till the very end if they would go for "that". I honestly would've been ok with it. I'm a perv like that, not even gonna deny that.
Over and out
February 11, 2024
Me encantaaaaa! Me encantaaaa!. Universo original, humor a raudales, heroína torpe a puñetazos, saltos en el tiempo, personajes en diferentes momentos de su dilatadísimo ciclo vital, dándonos una visión e información sorprendentes, personajes que tras ciertos saltos se ven o se huelen a sí mismos desde perspectivas extrañas, secretos imprevisibles sobre la naturaleza de algunos, pillarte siempre, siempre, siempre por sorpresa, universos paralelos con leyes naturales distintas, líneas ley y tal cantidad de acción que acabo la novela físicamente agotada, son algunos de los ingredientes que hace que esta saga me esté encantando con mayúsculas. Genial.
May 30, 2011
4.5 stars
I am really enjoying this series. Karen Chance starts out every book by tossing you onto a roller coaster somewhere in the middle of the ride. There's no sitting down, waiting for the safety bar to be lowered, and then slowly being taken to the top of the first peak. You're tossed in right in the midst of the action. She then lets you ride it through several peaks, valleys, twists and turns, flipping you upside down, then sideways, then right side up again, and then abruptly tosses you out before the end, and says "see you in the next one!" Leaving you dizzy and a little breathless.
But it's a great ride, full of great characters in a whimsical, imaginative setting. It's funny, and it's serious. It's sexy, and it requires you to pay attention. It's near perfect.
There is only one thing I don't really like about the series, and it's kind of odd to say I don't like it because it's pretty much what the whole series is about... but I'm not the biggest fan of this particular theory of time travel. I grew comfortable with the time travel that I read about in the Outlander series, or in The Time Traveler's Wife, or that we've been learning about during the 5th season of Lost, namely: "What Happened, Happened." You can't change the past and if you go back in time and do something, then that was what always happened.
In Chance's books, you can change the past, and it's Cassie's job as Pythia to protect the timeline from meddlers. This leads to a lot of confusion, I think. I mean, we've all heard of the butterfly effect. I have to imagine if you went back in time and merely spoke to one person, that could change the timeline in gigantic ways you never would have anticipated. I have a hard time wrapping my mind around it, and how Cassie hasn't somehow prevented her own birth by now or caused a world war or something, with all the mucking around she's done in the past.
But if you don't think about it too hard and just go along with it, it's a really great ride. And Chance has definitely done a fantastic job of building up a very compelling potential love triangle... Mircea or Pritkin??? I know I have my preference, but I honestly can't see where Chance is going to go with it, and I can't wait to find out.
ETA - Re-read, completed 5/30/11.
I am really enjoying this series. Karen Chance starts out every book by tossing you onto a roller coaster somewhere in the middle of the ride. There's no sitting down, waiting for the safety bar to be lowered, and then slowly being taken to the top of the first peak. You're tossed in right in the midst of the action. She then lets you ride it through several peaks, valleys, twists and turns, flipping you upside down, then sideways, then right side up again, and then abruptly tosses you out before the end, and says "see you in the next one!" Leaving you dizzy and a little breathless.
But it's a great ride, full of great characters in a whimsical, imaginative setting. It's funny, and it's serious. It's sexy, and it requires you to pay attention. It's near perfect.
There is only one thing I don't really like about the series, and it's kind of odd to say I don't like it because it's pretty much what the whole series is about... but I'm not the biggest fan of this particular theory of time travel. I grew comfortable with the time travel that I read about in the Outlander series, or in The Time Traveler's Wife, or that we've been learning about during the 5th season of Lost, namely: "What Happened, Happened." You can't change the past and if you go back in time and do something, then that was what always happened.
In Chance's books, you can change the past, and it's Cassie's job as Pythia to protect the timeline from meddlers. This leads to a lot of confusion, I think. I mean, we've all heard of the butterfly effect. I have to imagine if you went back in time and merely spoke to one person, that could change the timeline in gigantic ways you never would have anticipated. I have a hard time wrapping my mind around it, and how Cassie hasn't somehow prevented her own birth by now or caused a world war or something, with all the mucking around she's done in the past.
But if you don't think about it too hard and just go along with it, it's a really great ride. And Chance has definitely done a fantastic job of building up a very compelling potential love triangle... Mircea or Pritkin??? I know I have my preference, but I honestly can't see where Chance is going to go with it, and I can't wait to find out.
ETA - Re-read, completed 5/30/11.
July 28, 2013
Wow. I think I have whiplash after this one. This time-travel thing has officially tipped the scales onto the side of too-much-for-my-brain. In fact, a few things moved into the realm of too-much for me in this book. But I have to say, I liked it anyway.
When the story begins, Cassie is training with Pritkin, trying to learn how to better protect herself from her growing pool of enemies. But her number one priority is finding the Codex of Merlin, which may have a counterspell to the geis affecting her and Mircea.
The most interesting thing in this book, for me, was the development of the relationship between Cassie and Pritkin. They grow closer; they move apart; she trusts him; she loses that trust; and it all comes full circle again. I think this is the guy that is becoming my front-runner for Cassie's HEA. But I have to say that his backstory is completely over the top. I can't decide which is worse: what he is supposed to be or who he is supposed to be. Both seem utterly out of left-field.
The only thing more distressing, is the issue of paradoxes brought on by Cassie's constant trips to the past. For instance, WHY does the Mircea of "two weeks ago" not recognize Cassie of the present day from her visits to him back in the 1700s? And beyond that, I found that keeping straight the events surrounding the time period of book one, was just too confusing. And I only read that book two days ago. I can only imagine what a din of confusion it would create for someone who read it months or years before.
And nothing was as over-the-top as Cassie's last idea on how to break the geis. I swear, if that threesome would have happened, I might have had to give up on the series.
But... Even with all this, I still liked it in a guilty pleasure sort of way. The love scenes were very, very hot. And I love Pritkin, even if he has some questionable parentage. God only knows what will happen next in the series. I guess the only way to find out is to keep reading. 4 stars.
When the story begins, Cassie is training with Pritkin, trying to learn how to better protect herself from her growing pool of enemies. But her number one priority is finding the Codex of Merlin, which may have a counterspell to the geis affecting her and Mircea.
The most interesting thing in this book, for me, was the development of the relationship between Cassie and Pritkin. They grow closer; they move apart; she trusts him; she loses that trust; and it all comes full circle again. I think this is the guy that is becoming my front-runner for Cassie's HEA. But I have to say that his backstory is completely over the top. I can't decide which is worse: what he is supposed to be or who he is supposed to be. Both seem utterly out of left-field.
The only thing more distressing, is the issue of paradoxes brought on by Cassie's constant trips to the past. For instance, WHY does the Mircea of "two weeks ago" not recognize Cassie of the present day from her visits to him back in the 1700s? And beyond that, I found that keeping straight the events surrounding the time period of book one, was just too confusing. And I only read that book two days ago. I can only imagine what a din of confusion it would create for someone who read it months or years before.
And nothing was as over-the-top as Cassie's last idea on how to break the geis. I swear, if that threesome would have happened, I might have had to give up on the series.
But... Even with all this, I still liked it in a guilty pleasure sort of way. The love scenes were very, very hot. And I love Pritkin, even if he has some questionable parentage. God only knows what will happen next in the series. I guess the only way to find out is to keep reading. 4 stars.
April 25, 2013
Listened to the audio...please excuse spelling errors!
So...Cassie is after the Codex Merlini with Pritkin in order to find the spell to break her bond with the sexy master vampire Mircea. While there is still no resolution to this strange love triangle thing these three have going on, there are definitely more sexy times than in the previous two books.
My issue with these books is that although I understand what the plot is, the whole book still feels directionless. I know Cass is trying to break the geis with Mircea. I know that Pritkin is helping/protecting her. But I never, ever understand why she makes the moves that she does. Why does she have to go back in time/forward in time/backward in time/fight this guy/that guy? Maybe it's just me, and maybe it's the audiobook versions that are confusing, but at each stopping point, I couldn't tell you what the heck was actually going on in the story other than vague points. I could never pick the story back up and remember where I left off.
I do enjoy the relationship between Cassie/Mircea/Pritkin. They have a really neat dynamic in that none of them are easy to figure out. It's been quite the process for Cass to even know what each guy is after.
I will continue with the series, but it's definitely never going to be a fave UF series for me. I just never fully understand the point to it all.
So...Cassie is after the Codex Merlini with Pritkin in order to find the spell to break her bond with the sexy master vampire Mircea. While there is still no resolution to this strange love triangle thing these three have going on, there are definitely more sexy times than in the previous two books.
My issue with these books is that although I understand what the plot is, the whole book still feels directionless. I know Cass is trying to break the geis with Mircea. I know that Pritkin is helping/protecting her. But I never, ever understand why she makes the moves that she does. Why does she have to go back in time/forward in time/backward in time/fight this guy/that guy? Maybe it's just me, and maybe it's the audiobook versions that are confusing, but at each stopping point, I couldn't tell you what the heck was actually going on in the story other than vague points. I could never pick the story back up and remember where I left off.
I do enjoy the relationship between Cassie/Mircea/Pritkin. They have a really neat dynamic in that none of them are easy to figure out. It's been quite the process for Cass to even know what each guy is after.
I will continue with the series, but it's definitely never going to be a fave UF series for me. I just never fully understand the point to it all.
March 12, 2015
“A weeping angel shattered in a crack of gray dust, sending its wings flying off in two directions. It took a second for me to realize I wasn't dead, and then I dove for the side of a nearby obelisk.” - Cassandra PalmerMy favorite entry yet! Sure I say that about each new addition to this series, but the thing is when I reread the series this title always makes me extra giddy. Probably because this is the title that shows just how epic the time travel is. Things from the first book flawlessly tie in. My. Mind. Boom!
Then the sexual tension. Ka-boom! Boom! Excuse me while I pick up my brain matter. Normally I hate it when authors use the whole, the magic makes them need each other crap! Force them to lust!!! Or we only slept with each other because of the spell. Blah. Blah-blah. Sure it's part of the geas here, but Chance does an expert job showing that there are some emotions below the surface of the geas that could very well be authentic.
What I love about a Cassie Palmer book is that there is so much plot! You have to pay attention. And when you reread them there are so many tidbits you pick up. From “Gods” with secret agendas, Dark Mages, Light Mages (AKA the Silver Circle which seems just like a bunch of evil mages), kidnapped kids, a vigilante, a geas gone totally wrong, and soooooooo much more. Some plot threads get tied up, some start, and some keep going. However, Chance has a gift to know when to end certain plots so that readers don't become tired.
Cassie is slowly growing. She's been a woman alone all her life, everyone she's ever loved dies. While many readers who have disliked the books find her winey and cold, I don't! Cassie is witty and very sarcastic. Which is funny because sarcasm is pretty much a requirement for Urban Fantasy. Cassie despite having great survival skills puts herself on the line again and again for those she loves. Even though being responsible for others scares the living daylights out of her, it's clear she already has the wits to lead. If not the confidence or courage quite yet.
The cast of characters in Embrace the Night, no in the whole Cassie Palmer series, are amazing. Everyone from villains to good guys, and the ones we can't label, are fleshed out expertly. It's amazing to feel so invested and interested in characters that will clearly be there for the long haul, or even ones that will briefly be present. This is not a beach read, where readers can zone in and out. You need to be paying attention from the first book. The insanity of this book—well crafted insanity mind you—is why the Cassandra Palmer series is one of my top favorite series in the Urban Fantasy department.
Sexual Content: Yummy, yummy sex. Sexual humor . . . this is for adults.
5/5- Fabulous, a beautiful obsession!
Originally posted at Book Whispers.
September 8, 2016
Cassie is becoming less inept and seemingly more apt at using her powers + the whole is she or isn't she the Pythia is gone, thankfully. The rival Pythia adept storyline was annoying to me. Anyway. This one is all about finding the Codex Merlini because the geis put on Cassie by Mircea and then doubled accidentally by Cassie is now a spell out of control that's driving both parties mad. The Codex has the counterspell and Cassie has to go romping around back in time to find it. Happily to me, she takes Mircea along with her to help. I'm Team Mircea.
July 26, 2011
I feel good about this. I like that Cassie (the narrator herself), voiced her confusion at the whole confusing time line thing. Because man that's one thing I always have trouble following. Ok, that being said, I'm enjoying these books, although I believe that I actually liked the last one a little better, although there is more Pritkin and I do like him. I'm glad they resolved the whole geis storyline because it was starting to get tedious. You can only read about people trying to suppress their urges but then deciding maybe they didn't have to but then it's for the greater good if they do, but maybe it's better if they don't, for so long before you kind of want to yell at them to make a decision and stick to it!
I had a lot of crazy theories during this book and was certain I'd figured it all out and was COMPLETELY wrong, which was cool. Usually I'm pretty close when I come up with theories during a book. Usually continuing to read just proves that I'm pretty good at guessing. This was not the case.
I love Billy-- who doesn't love a wise cracking but loyal and sentimental ghost? And I love Pritkin-- always running in guns blazing to try his best to save the day, what's not to love there? I'm not so fond of Mircea- handsome yes, but all charm no substance, in my opinion.
In this story no matter that I am stuck inside Cassie's head, I always give Pritkin, the benefit of the doubt, I always believe that even if it seems he has done something awful there is a good explanation for it, because I trust him and trust that he is working for the greater good first, then for the best interests of Cassie and his personal interests and safety come last... even though that is exactly the opposite of how Cassie seems to regard him.. And in contrast, I never trust Mircea, even when Cassie does, I just don't think that he's truthful and I always feel like no matter how honest he seems, he is always serving his best interests. It's not always how she seems to feel, but that is where we disagree.
If I had a complaint it would be that sometimes the jumps between chapters make me feel like I turned too many pages. Like at the end of a chapter Cassie decides to go get food. Then at the top of the next chapter she's in a closet hiding (obviously those are bad for examples that didn't actually happen in the book, but I didn't want to give anything specific away) and you wonder what happened and it takes a bit before she backtracks and tells you. Plus the books practically end mid-sentence or at least they feel very abrupt. For example let's say the main story line was to break in to a bank and rob it. So by the end they have broken into the bank and robbed it and then it ends with everyone standing in the vault and you're thinking how will they get out of this? Then the book ends. And you keep staring at that page advertising other books hoping it will turn into the last chapter that was clearly accidentally left out of your book. Then you get to the next book and they got out of the vault. But you don't really know how. I don't mind right now because I have all the books at the ready, but I don't know how I'll feel once I have to wait. But I guess time will tell, since I am starting the last of the 4 now...
I had a lot of crazy theories during this book and was certain I'd figured it all out and was COMPLETELY wrong, which was cool. Usually I'm pretty close when I come up with theories during a book. Usually continuing to read just proves that I'm pretty good at guessing. This was not the case.
I love Billy-- who doesn't love a wise cracking but loyal and sentimental ghost? And I love Pritkin-- always running in guns blazing to try his best to save the day, what's not to love there? I'm not so fond of Mircea- handsome yes, but all charm no substance, in my opinion.
In this story no matter that I am stuck inside Cassie's head, I always give Pritkin, the benefit of the doubt, I always believe that even if it seems he has done something awful there is a good explanation for it, because I trust him and trust that he is working for the greater good first, then for the best interests of Cassie and his personal interests and safety come last... even though that is exactly the opposite of how Cassie seems to regard him.. And in contrast, I never trust Mircea, even when Cassie does, I just don't think that he's truthful and I always feel like no matter how honest he seems, he is always serving his best interests. It's not always how she seems to feel, but that is where we disagree.
If I had a complaint it would be that sometimes the jumps between chapters make me feel like I turned too many pages. Like at the end of a chapter Cassie decides to go get food. Then at the top of the next chapter she's in a closet hiding (obviously those are bad for examples that didn't actually happen in the book, but I didn't want to give anything specific away) and you wonder what happened and it takes a bit before she backtracks and tells you. Plus the books practically end mid-sentence or at least they feel very abrupt. For example let's say the main story line was to break in to a bank and rob it. So by the end they have broken into the bank and robbed it and then it ends with everyone standing in the vault and you're thinking how will they get out of this? Then the book ends. And you keep staring at that page advertising other books hoping it will turn into the last chapter that was clearly accidentally left out of your book. Then you get to the next book and they got out of the vault. But you don't really know how. I don't mind right now because I have all the books at the ready, but I don't know how I'll feel once I have to wait. But I guess time will tell, since I am starting the last of the 4 now...
August 13, 2016
3 Stars for as yet unmet potential
I think this book was nice, just that, nice.
There was nothing amazing about it or the previous books. It's been three books now and I keep seeing potential but it's not getting fulfilled. I usually give a series two books to wow me but this one hasn't yet. While the premise of this book is not generic, it still reads like it is. The time travel thing could have been cool but its execution in this book is just confusing. Like I said, it's been three books, you think by now the heroine would be coming into her own, her power and position, but she's not. While the books themselves are fast-paced, nothing ever seems to happen. It takes too long to solve problems that should have been solved two books ago. It took the heroine two books to become Pythia, three and counting to accept that she is Pythia, and looks like it's going to take even more books for her to really start learning what she's capable of. There are so many times when the problems she has could be solved easily but she complicates them even more until you stop caring about the problem or its solution. I swear if I have to read about that stupid geis one more time... It was interesting when it was introduced but by the time I was halfway through this book, I was so sick of that them geis and how every solution they find for it ends up causing different and bigger problems. Every time I read a book in this series, two word keep coming to my mind, MESSY and CLUTTERED. This book is just messy, it has its good parts but it's all so jumbled together and adding confusing time travel, which is already a difficult concept to properly execute, and you have a mess of a book and a mess of a series. It's been three books and while I like Cassie, I'm not really attached to her, I've read better heroines in series far better than this. While I like Mircea, I'm not getting attached to him either or their potential relationship because they only seem to get together not because they want to but because of that damn geis. Every time they do get together, she just keeps thinking of how the relationship will end and how she's not going there without even giving it a chance (pun intended).
Basically, the problem with this series is that the author tries to do too much in one book and never seems to solves the problems she creates in one book. I would have given this book 4 stars if the author hadn't chickened out on chapter 19 (you'll see what I mean) which would have been a risk but still something different and shocking enough to make the book at least mildly interesting. The only reason I am still reading this series is because all the books are already out and I don' have to wait to see what happens. If I had to wait a year for the next book in this series, I would have stopped at book 2. But I'll give the author the benefit of the doubt and keep reading the series, maybe she'll find a way to relieve the clutter and improve the next books in the series.
I think this book was nice, just that, nice.
There was nothing amazing about it or the previous books. It's been three books now and I keep seeing potential but it's not getting fulfilled. I usually give a series two books to wow me but this one hasn't yet. While the premise of this book is not generic, it still reads like it is. The time travel thing could have been cool but its execution in this book is just confusing. Like I said, it's been three books, you think by now the heroine would be coming into her own, her power and position, but she's not. While the books themselves are fast-paced, nothing ever seems to happen. It takes too long to solve problems that should have been solved two books ago. It took the heroine two books to become Pythia, three and counting to accept that she is Pythia, and looks like it's going to take even more books for her to really start learning what she's capable of. There are so many times when the problems she has could be solved easily but she complicates them even more until you stop caring about the problem or its solution. I swear if I have to read about that stupid geis one more time... It was interesting when it was introduced but by the time I was halfway through this book, I was so sick of that them geis and how every solution they find for it ends up causing different and bigger problems. Every time I read a book in this series, two word keep coming to my mind, MESSY and CLUTTERED. This book is just messy, it has its good parts but it's all so jumbled together and adding confusing time travel, which is already a difficult concept to properly execute, and you have a mess of a book and a mess of a series. It's been three books and while I like Cassie, I'm not really attached to her, I've read better heroines in series far better than this. While I like Mircea, I'm not getting attached to him either or their potential relationship because they only seem to get together not because they want to but because of that damn geis. Every time they do get together, she just keeps thinking of how the relationship will end and how she's not going there without even giving it a chance (pun intended).
Basically, the problem with this series is that the author tries to do too much in one book and never seems to solves the problems she creates in one book. I would have given this book 4 stars if the author hadn't chickened out on chapter 19 (you'll see what I mean) which would have been a risk but still something different and shocking enough to make the book at least mildly interesting. The only reason I am still reading this series is because all the books are already out and I don' have to wait to see what happens. If I had to wait a year for the next book in this series, I would have stopped at book 2. But I'll give the author the benefit of the doubt and keep reading the series, maybe she'll find a way to relieve the clutter and improve the next books in the series.
June 7, 2011
Come check out Under the Covers for my review!
Cassie is still in a bind. The geis is driving Mircea mad, and if she doesn't find a way to get it removed soon then he will die; but there is a spell that will remove the geis. Only it is in a ancient text that has long been lost, possibly destroyed and also contains a spell that could potentially destroy the world. But that isn't the only catastrophe that is on Cassie's rather long to-do list; she now is not only the enemy of the fae, the vampires and the mages, but also a demon lord desparate for a piece of her. And what exactly is it that the mysterious Pritkin hiding?
These books just keep getting better, if only I could award more stars, this book definately deserves it. So if you haven't started reading this series already, there here are three reasons to start:
1. The world, it is dangerous, unpredicatable, intricate, mages and vampires, faeries and demons they all fight it out making it a fascinating setting for the Cassie's adventures.
2. Cassie herself! She is one of my favourite heroines, tough and smart yet very sympathetic. Most the time she is running frantically to solve problems, save the world and keep all her allies from killing eachother, and sometimes her!
3. THE HOT MEN! Now this series doesn't have that much sex in it in typical UF fashion. However, there is plenty of potential, intially you have Tomas the angsty master vampire, then you move on to better things in the form of Mircea the beautiful and dangerous member of the vampire senate, and my personal favourite Pritkin the deranged and aggressive war mage, who is waaay more then he seems!
No I haven't actually said that much in this review about this book itself, but what can I say that I haven't in the other reviews? The action is, as usual, fast paced and exciting as the plot lines in the previous books climax (hehe pun intended) and evolve and grow into more complex issues. The sexual tension between Cassie and Pritkin and Cassie and Mircea ups a notch and you learn some new and unexpected revalations about each character.
In conclusion I really enjoyed this book and the series in general and can not wait to get on to the next book!
Cassie is still in a bind. The geis is driving Mircea mad, and if she doesn't find a way to get it removed soon then he will die; but there is a spell that will remove the geis. Only it is in a ancient text that has long been lost, possibly destroyed and also contains a spell that could potentially destroy the world. But that isn't the only catastrophe that is on Cassie's rather long to-do list; she now is not only the enemy of the fae, the vampires and the mages, but also a demon lord desparate for a piece of her. And what exactly is it that the mysterious Pritkin hiding?
These books just keep getting better, if only I could award more stars, this book definately deserves it. So if you haven't started reading this series already, there here are three reasons to start:
1. The world, it is dangerous, unpredicatable, intricate, mages and vampires, faeries and demons they all fight it out making it a fascinating setting for the Cassie's adventures.
2. Cassie herself! She is one of my favourite heroines, tough and smart yet very sympathetic. Most the time she is running frantically to solve problems, save the world and keep all her allies from killing eachother, and sometimes her!
3. THE HOT MEN! Now this series doesn't have that much sex in it in typical UF fashion. However, there is plenty of potential, intially you have Tomas the angsty master vampire, then you move on to better things in the form of Mircea the beautiful and dangerous member of the vampire senate, and my personal favourite Pritkin the deranged and aggressive war mage, who is waaay more then he seems!
No I haven't actually said that much in this review about this book itself, but what can I say that I haven't in the other reviews? The action is, as usual, fast paced and exciting as the plot lines in the previous books climax (hehe pun intended) and evolve and grow into more complex issues. The sexual tension between Cassie and Pritkin and Cassie and Mircea ups a notch and you learn some new and unexpected revalations about each character.
In conclusion I really enjoyed this book and the series in general and can not wait to get on to the next book!
September 12, 2012
I really love this series! I didn’t think I would, hence the starting late part, but now I can’t put it down! I like KC’s writing style and the way she constructed her world.
In this one Cassie is trying to find a very valuable book, the Codex Merlini, and has some… shocks along the way. We find a lot of info about Pritkin and why he is as he is(I still like Mircea a lot more btw). On a different note: you won’t believe who he is! An what! I was “Say again?! Didn’t register well the first time. Oh damn, I DID read it like that.”
Pritkin’s solution to stress:
The time jumps are great and you can see a bit of KC’s historical degree, they seem very accurate and, thanks to her, I started to read some history articles, but I digress. This book has everything that I start to expect from KC, the only thing that I wish was different is Mircea’s appearances. I want more of him damn it!
Cassie’s reaction to her clothes problem :D
In this one Cassie is trying to find a very valuable book, the Codex Merlini, and has some… shocks along the way. We find a lot of info about Pritkin and why he is as he is(I still like Mircea a lot more btw). On a different note: you won’t believe who he is! An what! I was “Say again?! Didn’t register well the first time. Oh damn, I DID read it like that.”
Pritkin’s solution to stress:
The time jumps are great and you can see a bit of KC’s historical degree, they seem very accurate and, thanks to her, I started to read some history articles, but I digress. This book has everything that I start to expect from KC, the only thing that I wish was different is Mircea’s appearances. I want more of him damn it!
Cassie’s reaction to her clothes problem :D
June 4, 2009
You could go down a paranormal cliche checklist.Heroine has unexpected powers. Check. Heroine is bound to hot, mysterious, powerful, vampire. Check. Despite relationship with vampire, heroine has an attraction to another male, a powerful stern mage. Check. Heroine holds the fate of the world in her hands. Check. Heroine makes unlikely alliance with dangerous foes. Check.
Chance takes some pretty tired out paranormal cliches and make it fresh and new. What I love about this series is the fast paced action. This third book in the series is just as action packed as the first two. Cassandra is the blonde bimbo that everyone underestimates, including her friends. Cassandra must find an ancient book of spells or else Mircea will die from the effects of the greas. Unfortunately, the book has been missing for centuries. Even more unfortunate, Cassandra is not the only being looking for it. Chance solves some issues and reveals more secrets in this book. As satisfying as the ending was, I was left eager for the next book in this series.
Chance takes some pretty tired out paranormal cliches and make it fresh and new. What I love about this series is the fast paced action. This third book in the series is just as action packed as the first two. Cassandra is the blonde bimbo that everyone underestimates, including her friends. Cassandra must find an ancient book of spells or else Mircea will die from the effects of the greas. Unfortunately, the book has been missing for centuries. Even more unfortunate, Cassandra is not the only being looking for it. Chance solves some issues and reveals more secrets in this book. As satisfying as the ending was, I was left eager for the next book in this series.
December 21, 2010
Talk about a roller-coaster ride. The action never stops, and by the time the book is done, I felt tired and worn-out.
The book opens with Cassie on the search for the Codex Merlini which supposedly contains a spell that can undo the geis. She is on a time crunch, and she needs the solution before Mircea goes mad with the suffering brought about by the incomplete binding. Assisted and opposed (depending on which time-period he is from) by the war mage, Pritkin, who also has his own agenda and his own dark secret, Cassie's journey is crazy and convoluted as a labyrinth, and it is easy to loose sight of the many threads woven in this tale. Still, Chance skillfully held on to her storyline, and in the end, was able to close it with a satisfying enough ending.
It might be a while before I pick up the next book, but if I do, it will definitely be in audiobook format. Holloway's voice will be Cassie for me and that is how I want the next story to be read to me.
The book opens with Cassie on the search for the Codex Merlini which supposedly contains a spell that can undo the geis. She is on a time crunch, and she needs the solution before Mircea goes mad with the suffering brought about by the incomplete binding. Assisted and opposed (depending on which time-period he is from) by the war mage, Pritkin, who also has his own agenda and his own dark secret, Cassie's journey is crazy and convoluted as a labyrinth, and it is easy to loose sight of the many threads woven in this tale. Still, Chance skillfully held on to her storyline, and in the end, was able to close it with a satisfying enough ending.
It might be a while before I pick up the next book, but if I do, it will definitely be in audiobook format. Holloway's voice will be Cassie for me and that is how I want the next story to be read to me.
April 17, 2008
AGGHHH!! i didn't think this series could get any better, but it manages to--it's been so long since i've had characters that can enchant me even when i'm dead tired. coming fresh off finishing this, i feel like i can almost not bear to return this copy to the library. it's soo fucking good, i just want to reread specific scenes over and over again. the sexual tension in here is so well written i found myself holding my breath from time to time. specific thoughts on specific characters:
pritkin: FINALLY got some action going. and he really isn't who he appears to be. the little nude (or almost nude) scenes of him and cassie were the best, and hilarious in one instance. despite the fact that nothing really happens between them, it's surprising that their scenes were written with so much steam. i really hope something will happen between cassie and pritkin. because god is he the best. i especially loved the scene where mircea questions her where she got her boots. xD
mircea: still sounds attractive.. and i like him enough, but strangely, not as much as pritkin. mircea is usually my type of male protagonist, all cool and unwavering suave, but the fact that his ambition could war with his affection for cassie is a bit of a damper. of course, ultimately his future self goes crazy enough over her to not care about power plays, but his past self still sort of ticked me off. the "mine mine mine" chant going on in the end sort of reminded me of a dog marking territory.. i don't know. there's just something i can't describe. and so for me, pritkin reigns.
because cassie even said it, that she knew that things will never last, because the objectives they work toward are too different. i also wonder how tomas will fare once the dark fey king realizes that cassie hasn't kept her promise. and will they ever get to tony now? he would always be in hiding as far as anyone cared. some people claimed this would be the last book, but since there are still plenty of loose ends to work around, i highly doubt that (and am extremely glad of it). unfortunately, from now until next april or may seems too long a time to wait, but i have no doubt it will be worth every second. in the meantime i can go back and reread all of them instead :D
EDIT: by the way, i never realized the "kit" marlowe in this book was THE marlowe. and once i realized it, i just kept thinking, holy crap! every time the character popped up. is that weird? and is the consul supposed to symbolize *ahem* any specific english royalty? i have to wonder. there is also the case of the fact that both cassie's prominent lovers are immortal, of a sort. cassie isn't. a way to remedy that, maybe? so that another pythia can't come into power and can't bring apollo back? just a thought. it'd solve a lot of problems.
pritkin: FINALLY got some action going. and he really isn't who he appears to be. the little nude (or almost nude) scenes of him and cassie were the best, and hilarious in one instance. despite the fact that nothing really happens between them, it's surprising that their scenes were written with so much steam. i really hope something will happen between cassie and pritkin. because god is he the best. i especially loved the scene where mircea questions her where she got her boots. xD
mircea: still sounds attractive.. and i like him enough, but strangely, not as much as pritkin. mircea is usually my type of male protagonist, all cool and unwavering suave, but the fact that his ambition could war with his affection for cassie is a bit of a damper. of course, ultimately his future self goes crazy enough over her to not care about power plays, but his past self still sort of ticked me off. the "mine mine mine" chant going on in the end sort of reminded me of a dog marking territory.. i don't know. there's just something i can't describe. and so for me, pritkin reigns.
because cassie even said it, that she knew that things will never last, because the objectives they work toward are too different. i also wonder how tomas will fare once the dark fey king realizes that cassie hasn't kept her promise. and will they ever get to tony now? he would always be in hiding as far as anyone cared. some people claimed this would be the last book, but since there are still plenty of loose ends to work around, i highly doubt that (and am extremely glad of it). unfortunately, from now until next april or may seems too long a time to wait, but i have no doubt it will be worth every second. in the meantime i can go back and reread all of them instead :D
EDIT: by the way, i never realized the "kit" marlowe in this book was THE marlowe. and once i realized it, i just kept thinking, holy crap! every time the character popped up. is that weird? and is the consul supposed to symbolize *ahem* any specific english royalty? i have to wonder. there is also the case of the fact that both cassie's prominent lovers are immortal, of a sort. cassie isn't. a way to remedy that, maybe? so that another pythia can't come into power and can't bring apollo back? just a thought. it'd solve a lot of problems.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 16, 2010
Ok It had been over a year since I read the second Cassie book and to be honset I was a little bit lost, but the last book had me lost anyway so its by the by, but saying that I enjoyed being lost with this book.
I was as in the dark about the goings on with Cassie, Pritkin, Mircea and the search for the codex and to be honest it made the book more enjoyable. I literaly was going along for the ride with Cassie.
There was considerable plot development here and some nice twists in the whole storyline that were unexpected.
I'm still not 100% in the Pritkin camp, but I would say I'm about 90% there and I do prefer him to Mircea in this series. He is one of the more intresting charaters and even though I distrusted him and wanted to punch him more than a few times, but he was really intresting. Now this could be because he had more screen time than Mircea.
It would have been a five star but I had issues with some of the pacing, especailly near the middle of the book.
Overall I really liked it and I am intrested in seeing where the story goes.
I was as in the dark about the goings on with Cassie, Pritkin, Mircea and the search for the codex and to be honest it made the book more enjoyable. I literaly was going along for the ride with Cassie.
There was considerable plot development here and some nice twists in the whole storyline that were unexpected.
I'm still not 100% in the Pritkin camp, but I would say I'm about 90% there and I do prefer him to Mircea in this series. He is one of the more intresting charaters and even though I distrusted him and wanted to punch him more than a few times, but he was really intresting. Now this could be because he had more screen time than Mircea.
It would have been a five star but I had issues with some of the pacing, especailly near the middle of the book.
Overall I really liked it and I am intrested in seeing where the story goes.
May 28, 2009
A little confusing at times, as we work through the jigsaw puzzle pieces of a tale fraught with time-travel, but awesome overall.
This installment was just as fast-paced as the previous two, with lots of twists and turns to drive Cassie mad with frustration and feelings of helplessness. After all, what would Cassie's life be without looming uncertainties? But our girl is nothing if not determined, despite the fact that most everyone wants her snuffed out.
I like that Chance has wrapped up certain storylines-not falling into the trap of dragging them out long past their purpose (Anita Blake and the arduer, anyone?). At the end of this, we're left feeling that Cassie is truly coming into her own, slowly but surely.
She'll have a whole host of complications to work out come the next novel, and I look forward to seeing how she handles herself. As she says at the conclusion of Embrace, this is only the beginning!
P.S. I still love Mircea!
This installment was just as fast-paced as the previous two, with lots of twists and turns to drive Cassie mad with frustration and feelings of helplessness. After all, what would Cassie's life be without looming uncertainties? But our girl is nothing if not determined, despite the fact that most everyone wants her snuffed out.
I like that Chance has wrapped up certain storylines-not falling into the trap of dragging them out long past their purpose (Anita Blake and the arduer, anyone?). At the end of this, we're left feeling that Cassie is truly coming into her own, slowly but surely.
She'll have a whole host of complications to work out come the next novel, and I look forward to seeing how she handles herself. As she says at the conclusion of Embrace, this is only the beginning!
P.S. I still love Mircea!
January 2, 2017
Have you ever come across a heroine where you just want to haul off and slap her? And then slap her again? Cassie, the h, in this book is that heroine for me. Stumbling around, clueless, unable to understand her powers but using them anyway, to create even more havoc. This girl just never stops and thinks, plans, instead she throws herself into ridiculous situation after ridiculous situation and thanks to blind dumb luck survives.
The whining continues, everyone is trying to kill me... boo-hoo. No one will tell me what is going on... boo-hoo. No one will take me seriously... boo-hoo. And then the dumb cow doesn't do a thing to change any of that except throw herself into yet another perilous, not very well thought through situation.
Slap... slap... slap. And then I should slap myself - why did I think bringing this series on holiday was a good idea?
The whining continues, everyone is trying to kill me... boo-hoo. No one will tell me what is going on... boo-hoo. No one will take me seriously... boo-hoo. And then the dumb cow doesn't do a thing to change any of that except throw herself into yet another perilous, not very well thought through situation.
Slap... slap... slap. And then I should slap myself - why did I think bringing this series on holiday was a good idea?
May 18, 2016
5 stars
Nice to see Cassie, Mircea, and Pritkin again. Glad they finally got the geis removed.
Can't wait to read Curse of the Dawn!!!!
Nice to see Cassie, Mircea, and Pritkin again. Glad they finally got the geis removed.
Can't wait to read Curse of the Dawn!!!!
November 21, 2015
3 1/2 stars
So this one just wasn't as good for me as the first two. At the very end, I was getting really angered because I thought that it would end in a cliffhanger. It didn't but that means that it ended abruptly. Not that it wasn't good, at points it was great but others it was just a little too tedious to get through the sections. Some of the world, magic, building she just goes into too much detail, or during certain scenes, it is just overly described. This started in the beginning of the book and here and there was scatter within. With this 3rd book, I just wanted to zone out more. Still the story was very good overall, though a little too convoluted in places with the time travel and then the answer to the geis problem.
So I listen to most of this and it was for the most part a pretty good narrator. My only real qualm was every time she read "Dulceață", sweetness, it made me cringe. He says literally one word in Romanian in all the books. How hard is it to learn the pronunciation of one word? She gets the 'ch' right, put the s sound and uh. I know this is minor, especially since I thought she did pretty well with all the characters and... well every time I hear it, it takes me out of the story. I can't help my mind.
Great addition though I wish she would cut out some of the explaining. Maybe it is my problem because I remember the last books seeing as I read them right before this one and didn't read them a year before waiting for the next publication. I came to this series late, but I've seen other have this complaint and nothing else, so I'm not alone here. I'll go on to the next right away, though I think maybe I should step away and let time pass so the repetition becomes helpful instead of annoying. Still the drawn out scenes were not repetition. I think the Dorina Basarab spin off starts here so I might go to that instead.
So this one just wasn't as good for me as the first two. At the very end, I was getting really angered because I thought that it would end in a cliffhanger. It didn't but that means that it ended abruptly. Not that it wasn't good, at points it was great but others it was just a little too tedious to get through the sections. Some of the world, magic, building she just goes into too much detail, or during certain scenes, it is just overly described. This started in the beginning of the book and here and there was scatter within. With this 3rd book, I just wanted to zone out more. Still the story was very good overall, though a little too convoluted in places with the time travel and then the answer to the geis problem.
So I listen to most of this and it was for the most part a pretty good narrator. My only real qualm was every time she read "Dulceață", sweetness, it made me cringe. He says literally one word in Romanian in all the books. How hard is it to learn the pronunciation of one word? She gets the 'ch' right, put the s sound and uh. I know this is minor, especially since I thought she did pretty well with all the characters and... well every time I hear it, it takes me out of the story. I can't help my mind.
Great addition though I wish she would cut out some of the explaining. Maybe it is my problem because I remember the last books seeing as I read them right before this one and didn't read them a year before waiting for the next publication. I came to this series late, but I've seen other have this complaint and nothing else, so I'm not alone here. I'll go on to the next right away, though I think maybe I should step away and let time pass so the repetition becomes helpful instead of annoying. Still the drawn out scenes were not repetition. I think the Dorina Basarab spin off starts here so I might go to that instead.
March 17, 2010
This is book #3 and I’m still a bit stunned that I’m finally reading a series in order. The story starts out with Cassie and Pritkin getting into some dark cave action. Don’t get too excited, they’re only dealing with some ghosts and mages while looking for the magical book that will release Cassie from her ties to Mircea, the very sexy Jean Claude-like vampire. A spell has been placed on them both but in the last book Cassie accidentally doubled Mircea’s dose of it and it’s making him deathly ill. I don’t know any of this for sure because my mind has drifted already and I’ll have to rewind . . . Oh no, this does not bode well.
Ok, after the rewind I’m somewhat satisfied that the above is correct. I’ve stuck with this series because I really do like a lot of things about these books. They feature interesting characters and fun ideas and I keep hoping author Chance will just chill out and let the characters tell the story but so far this book has been very similar to the previous two. It confuses me and it’s too busy, so busy there is barely time to comprehend it all before Cassie is in another dangerous situation. I have to constantly rewind because either I missed something earlier and things aren’t making sense or I have completely drifted away because I got a bit bored by too much action or extraneous explanation of things I really don’t care to learn more about.
Still, I will continue because the relationships are developing, we’re learning much more about Pritkin who is morphing into quite a delectable (if still a bit grumpy) character and I feel if I give up I will miss out on a whole bunch of paranormal goodness.
Later: I finished though it was a bit of a struggle there in the beginning and middle. The bulk of the book features Cassie in a mad search to find the magical book and end the geis. The time jumps are still leaving me a bit bewildered but I did enjoy this enough, especially the interesting bits about Mircea and the revelations about Pritkin, so I will pop an Advil and continue on with the next one.
Ok, after the rewind I’m somewhat satisfied that the above is correct. I’ve stuck with this series because I really do like a lot of things about these books. They feature interesting characters and fun ideas and I keep hoping author Chance will just chill out and let the characters tell the story but so far this book has been very similar to the previous two. It confuses me and it’s too busy, so busy there is barely time to comprehend it all before Cassie is in another dangerous situation. I have to constantly rewind because either I missed something earlier and things aren’t making sense or I have completely drifted away because I got a bit bored by too much action or extraneous explanation of things I really don’t care to learn more about.
Still, I will continue because the relationships are developing, we’re learning much more about Pritkin who is morphing into quite a delectable (if still a bit grumpy) character and I feel if I give up I will miss out on a whole bunch of paranormal goodness.
Later: I finished though it was a bit of a struggle there in the beginning and middle. The bulk of the book features Cassie in a mad search to find the magical book and end the geis. The time jumps are still leaving me a bit bewildered but I did enjoy this enough, especially the interesting bits about Mircea and the revelations about Pritkin, so I will pop an Advil and continue on with the next one.
July 2, 2010
This is the 3rd installment in Karen Chance’s Cassandra Palmer series. It follows Cassie as the newly anointed “Pythia”, also known as the world’s most powerful clairvoyant, as she searches for a counter spell to a curse placed on her when she was a child. I won’t go any further into the plot in this book because without fully explaining the first two books, it would just be too confusing. It suffices to say that there are a lot of people working against Cassie in one way or another and she has trouble knowing who to trust.
As I mentioned above, these books are extremely intricate plots involving no less than thirty or so involved characters, with more appearing around every bend in Cassie’s confusing journey. This has been my chief complaint about these books since I started reading them.
That being said, I love the way the relationship between Cassie and Pritkin has developed as Cassie has chipped away at his defenses. Pritkin is a terribly complex character and Chance has been slowly peeling back his layers like a really stinky onion, complete with the watery eyes.
Chance writes male characters really well. She makes them sexy and tough, but with a vulnerability that only Cassie seems to bring out. Mircea is no exception. It is refreshing to read a book where there are two equally likely potential suitors, yet the love triangle is not overtly obvious.
Overall, this is another enjoyable read from Chance. I look forward to the next installment of the Cassie Palmer series.
As I mentioned above, these books are extremely intricate plots involving no less than thirty or so involved characters, with more appearing around every bend in Cassie’s confusing journey. This has been my chief complaint about these books since I started reading them.
That being said, I love the way the relationship between Cassie and Pritkin has developed as Cassie has chipped away at his defenses. Pritkin is a terribly complex character and Chance has been slowly peeling back his layers like a really stinky onion, complete with the watery eyes.
Chance writes male characters really well. She makes them sexy and tough, but with a vulnerability that only Cassie seems to bring out. Mircea is no exception. It is refreshing to read a book where there are two equally likely potential suitors, yet the love triangle is not overtly obvious.
Overall, this is another enjoyable read from Chance. I look forward to the next installment of the Cassie Palmer series.
April 1, 2008
The 3rd (final?) book in the Cassie Palmer series from Karen Chance.
Cassandra thought she'd just been in the wrong place at the wrong time...turns out tho, that her being made Pythia was actually the culmination of some truly long-range planning. I really enjoyed the first two books in this series and was waiting anxiously for this one. I enjoyed the book and must give kudos to the author for weaving a complex tale. She did a great job of weaving together the threads that had been cast in the first two books. I was breathless when I finished.
Cassie, as Pythia, can travel through time. Unfortunately, she never got any training and if there was a manual...well, let's just say that apparently nobody wants her to have one. Instead, it seems that all the people she meets just want her to trust them to tell her what she needs to do. The problem with that is she's not sure who, if anyone, she can trust. Cassie is involved with vampires, demons, faeries, talking skulls, magic books...well, the list is really endless.
But this is not a mindless tale of love. Everything is not laid out plainly--the intricacies of actions taken while traveling back in time are brought home in this final book. I can't say much else without giving away too much. I will say that I'm not sorry I read these three books and I hope the author will give us future glimpses into Cassie's world.
Cassandra thought she'd just been in the wrong place at the wrong time...turns out tho, that her being made Pythia was actually the culmination of some truly long-range planning. I really enjoyed the first two books in this series and was waiting anxiously for this one. I enjoyed the book and must give kudos to the author for weaving a complex tale. She did a great job of weaving together the threads that had been cast in the first two books. I was breathless when I finished.
Cassie, as Pythia, can travel through time. Unfortunately, she never got any training and if there was a manual...well, let's just say that apparently nobody wants her to have one. Instead, it seems that all the people she meets just want her to trust them to tell her what she needs to do. The problem with that is she's not sure who, if anyone, she can trust. Cassie is involved with vampires, demons, faeries, talking skulls, magic books...well, the list is really endless.
But this is not a mindless tale of love. Everything is not laid out plainly--the intricacies of actions taken while traveling back in time are brought home in this final book. I can't say much else without giving away too much. I will say that I'm not sorry I read these three books and I hope the author will give us future glimpses into Cassie's world.
February 24, 2018
WOOOOOW! I don't know if this series can get any better,
this was by far my favorite of the 3 I've read.
The whole book focuses in Cassie trying to find the spell book
called CODEX MERLINI (you guess that right, it was written by Merlin himself)
because it contains the counterspell for the geis, a magical bond that's been
placed on her by Mircea, and that was accidentaly double by her.
Now it's a life or death situation, because they geis is driving Mircea mad,
and the Consul (the most powerful vampire) has threaten to kill him if
the geis isn't removed quickly. So Cassie goes out of her way to find the codex,
with Pritkin's help, he wouldn't say his reasons to help her though.
The whole journey is action filled, and HILLARIOUS!
I'm impressed! the author has managed to create a SUPER EXTRA entretaining book.
I loved it, and I loved that we learned a bit more of two of the main characters,
like how did Mircea ended up a vampire, and ...
*SPOILER AHEAD*
Well, turns out Pritkin is half demon!, also HE IS MERLIN HIMSELF! *dies* just when I thought I couldn't love him more.
Now I understand the mad scientist hair.
I'm getting the impression Cassie's in love with Mircea, but I don't think he's in love with her,
on the other hand Pritkin seems to be in love with her, and she definitely has feelings for him,
so WHATCHA WAITIN' FOR, CASSIE?!?!? GET TOGETHER WITH PRITKIN!
GREAT BOOK,
CAN'T WAIT TO READ MORE.
this was by far my favorite of the 3 I've read.
The whole book focuses in Cassie trying to find the spell book
called CODEX MERLINI (you guess that right, it was written by Merlin himself)
because it contains the counterspell for the geis, a magical bond that's been
placed on her by Mircea, and that was accidentaly double by her.
Now it's a life or death situation, because they geis is driving Mircea mad,
and the Consul (the most powerful vampire) has threaten to kill him if
the geis isn't removed quickly. So Cassie goes out of her way to find the codex,
with Pritkin's help, he wouldn't say his reasons to help her though.
The whole journey is action filled, and HILLARIOUS!
I'm impressed! the author has managed to create a SUPER EXTRA entretaining book.
I loved it, and I loved that we learned a bit more of two of the main characters,
like how did Mircea ended up a vampire, and ...
*SPOILER AHEAD*
Well, turns out Pritkin is half demon!, also HE IS MERLIN HIMSELF! *dies* just when I thought I couldn't love him more.
Now I understand the mad scientist hair.
I'm getting the impression Cassie's in love with Mircea, but I don't think he's in love with her,
on the other hand Pritkin seems to be in love with her, and she definitely has feelings for him,
so WHATCHA WAITIN' FOR, CASSIE?!?!? GET TOGETHER WITH PRITKIN!
GREAT BOOK,
CAN'T WAIT TO READ MORE.
August 8, 2013
I like this series, but there are a few things that irratate me and stop me from loving it.
1. Mircea's character. After reading the Dorina Basarab series I thought he was amazing and wanted to read his and cassies story. But it just doesnt seem like the same character, hes so much more developed in the other series and hes only a secondary character there. Also, I cant stand the geis thing and his relationship with cassie. Pritkin all the way. And mircea should end up with someone else, whos strong enough to stand up for herself. Please let there be a spin off series with him at the center of it, caus in this one he still feels like a secondary character.
2. The time travel thing is a bit confusing, I think ive figured it out and then Chance changes the rules again.
3. The way Cassie literally stumbles from one crazy situation to another. I love a breakneck pace in a book but this is just ridiculous, it didnt really feel like it made a lot of sense. Plus the way shes just thrown from one situation to the next makes it seem like she doesnt actually try and do anything, and that shes just on the defensive all the time.
4. Shes had the power long enough, please let her get some training! Or at least realise how to use it.
Other than that good series. Cassie and Pritkin forever ;) and Mircea and some other vampire chick. (maybe the consul?)
1. Mircea's character. After reading the Dorina Basarab series I thought he was amazing and wanted to read his and cassies story. But it just doesnt seem like the same character, hes so much more developed in the other series and hes only a secondary character there. Also, I cant stand the geis thing and his relationship with cassie. Pritkin all the way. And mircea should end up with someone else, whos strong enough to stand up for herself. Please let there be a spin off series with him at the center of it, caus in this one he still feels like a secondary character.
2. The time travel thing is a bit confusing, I think ive figured it out and then Chance changes the rules again.
3. The way Cassie literally stumbles from one crazy situation to another. I love a breakneck pace in a book but this is just ridiculous, it didnt really feel like it made a lot of sense. Plus the way shes just thrown from one situation to the next makes it seem like she doesnt actually try and do anything, and that shes just on the defensive all the time.
4. Shes had the power long enough, please let her get some training! Or at least realise how to use it.
Other than that good series. Cassie and Pritkin forever ;) and Mircea and some other vampire chick. (maybe the consul?)
July 25, 2011
This could perhaps have been a decent series, given a little more plot development and a better editor, but by book 3 things are getting worse and my patience is wearing thin.
How long does Chance expect us to believe that a supposedly all-powerful heroine who ought to be a ruler of the supernatural kingdom can do no better than be dragged around by those around her, learning nothing, and achieving little more than the odd heated encounter with a male character....
In this installment Cassie is trying to get the geis (a spell which mystically binds her to vampire lord Mircea and makes them fall helplessly in "Wuv") lifted. This involves a lot of half-arsed time travel missions and a lot of fretting about whether or not Pritkin is really a good guy, or a bad guy (in fact the only thing she seems to have decided for sure on this point is that she'd like to shag him either way).
In the hands of a better writer this could have been a far more engaging story. As it stands, it's average at best.
How long does Chance expect us to believe that a supposedly all-powerful heroine who ought to be a ruler of the supernatural kingdom can do no better than be dragged around by those around her, learning nothing, and achieving little more than the odd heated encounter with a male character....
In this installment Cassie is trying to get the geis (a spell which mystically binds her to vampire lord Mircea and makes them fall helplessly in "Wuv") lifted. This involves a lot of half-arsed time travel missions and a lot of fretting about whether or not Pritkin is really a good guy, or a bad guy (in fact the only thing she seems to have decided for sure on this point is that she'd like to shag him either way).
In the hands of a better writer this could have been a far more engaging story. As it stands, it's average at best.
March 3, 2024
I still thoroughly enjoy this series more than a decade later, but I can tell it is more of a 4-star than a 5-star read the second time. I think my memories are failing me because I remember events and keep waiting for them to happen, leaving me disappointed.
For some reason, these books move so fast that they feel a tiny bit short. I want more substance in the story and the background of some of the crazy lore.
Overall, still awesome and a lot of fun to come back to this one, I can't wait to reach the newer books that have been written and add to the story in my head.
I still weirdly find Pritkin to be the most attractive.
4 Stars.
For some reason, these books move so fast that they feel a tiny bit short. I want more substance in the story and the background of some of the crazy lore.
Overall, still awesome and a lot of fun to come back to this one, I can't wait to reach the newer books that have been written and add to the story in my head.
I still weirdly find Pritkin to be the most attractive.
4 Stars.
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