Moon Island

Vampire for Hire (world) #7

by J.R. Rain

Alternate cover edition for ASIN B00AQ81JZG

Six years ago federal agent Samantha Moon was the perfect wife and mother, your typical soccer mom with the minivan and suburban home. Then the unthinkable happens, an attack that changes her life forever. And forever is a very long time for a vampire.

Now in MOON ISLAND, Samantha Moon is hired to look into the mysterious drowning of a super-rich hotel tycoon. The death occurred exactly one year ago, at the family’s annual retreat on a private island in the Pacific Northwest. Now, as the family gathers again, Samantha Moon is asked to find a ruthless killer—all while a massive storm bears down upon the small island. But there’s another storm brewing upon Skull Island, a storm of the supernatural kind. Sam is about to come face-to-face with evil incarnate...a monster who will stop at nothing to possess her completely—mind, body and soul—and destroy all that she loves.

Genres: Paranormal, Vampires, Urban Fantasy, Fantasy, Mystery, Fiction, Audiobook

252 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 18, 2012

About the author

J.R. Rain is the author of 110 novels and counting. He lives on an island in the Pacific Northwest, where he's hard at work on his next novel... and fighting off sparkly vampires.

Reviews

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Moon Island has Sam and friend hired to stay with a family in a deviled private island for a family reunion. A year ago a family member died there and Sam is supposed to investigate while there. But she finds there is something evil there on the island along with the family!
Narration was great!

[Art Lueder · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great story premise that is spoiled by some of the most amateurish writing since high school English class. I don't know if Mr. Rain hires an editor but if so the guy must be a homeless wino or something. Turn every time Samantha says "I don't understand" into a drinking game and perhaps finishing the book would be less painful. Mr. Rain could use of a good thesaurus as well.

I hate writing bad reviews. I am no wonder writer and admire anyone who publishes a good story. I really want to like this series. The mom turned into a vampire who still cares for her kids while running her own PI business and dealing with an ex who knows what she is has so much potential. In this installment she is lured to an island to solve the dark secret of a family curse. There are several good twists and tantalizing revelations. If only the writing didn't have me cringing and rolling my eyes. The book ends on a bit of a cliff hanger but I really don't know if I can continue punishing myself to find out how it may turn out.

Each of these little books could be edited and tightened to short story length. Instead we have these short books with rambling repeated text. The bottom line of stringing the story into as many books as possible spoils the story.

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Moon Island” is book 7 of the “Vampire for Hire” series. After an amazing beginning to the series, things got weak, then better, and this book nearly returned to a 5* ranking. Almost.

In the good column, this book presents the most entertaining detective story so far in the life of Samantha Moon, PI. It’s really good.

In all other columns, there are flaws. Flaws that just didn’t need to exist.

Samantha now talks directly with God. Errr….ok…maybe. Being a vampire means she is host to a yet-to-be fully explained creature. Errr….ok….watch Stargate SG-1 much? Ex-husband Danny, sometimes a great dad, sometimes not, wants more, and unsupervised, time with their children, but only with his stripper employees/fuckbuddies in the house….yuck! Kingsley, the once-boyfriend who couldn’t keep it zipped when it mattered, comes to the island because….I don’t know….if you figure it out let me know. Samantha spends more time admiring his physique than expected given that he cheated on her. Allison is suddenly now a major character because….hmmm….oh yeah….the author is selling a novella where she is the MC, so let’s promote the character here. Ugh.

I don’t want to use the spoiler tag here (yeah, I know….might be too late), but let me ask a hypothetical question….if you need four items to make an evil situation, must you destroy two, or perhaps only ONE of the four to prevent evil and maybe perhaps keep one of the items so things are better for yourself? Arrrgh. And I won’t even mention, much, that if your friend exhibits signs of possession….pay fucking attention!!!

So…best mystery/detective story to date, but too flawed to be a 5*. Another enjoyable 4* in the series, though! (Please excuse my profanity...it was that or knock my rating down another star or ten in frustration!)

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read each Vampire for Hire book and somehow J.R. Rain manages to do the impossible and that's to make something that's already great just get better and better with each book. I don't know if it's because of the smaller-form factor of his books or the fact that each one has a self contained story with an with an overreaching story-arch that flows through each book much like a soap opera. Maybe it's his wit and humor or the romance and gut wrenching drama. Or maybe it's a combination of all of the above. Whatever it is he's definetly onto something. Samantha Moon has become a staple in my house and I eagerly look forward to each new book in the series.

This time Samantha Moon finds herself investigating a seemingly normal death of a gentelemen who drowned in his pool but this time it's on a mysterious ilsand complete with tales of sunken pirate ships, lost booty and even a pirate curse. Even with all that things are not what they seem on this island and now Samantha must meet her greatest challenge yet. (I know I say that everytime but it's true everytime) As the forces of darkenss grow Samantha seems to be rushing headlong towards her destiny. Once again Samantha Moon continues to evolve and grow. We get to briefly meet a new boyfriend and Samantha is once again faced with some difficult choices. Will she listen to her inner demon or her conscience? Find out in J.R. Rains latest isntallment.

What is it about cool pirate islands that authors seem to be drawn too? I don't know but when it works it works and J.R. Rain manages to capture it well. I'm always amazed at Mr. Rains writing, the way he can make you laugh in one sentence and cry in the next. Great book!!!

[Erth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 7, Moon Island, began excitingly fast so I read faster. I was glad Sam's location was the island. A nice change of location. The last thirty minutes of the book were some what disappointing. Sam is supposed to be this super strong, kick butt vampiress, but she has begun to whine a bit more than I like to see in a kick butt story.
Off to read book 8, Moon River. We will see what becomes of her, Kingsley and their mysterious search.

[T · Rating 4 out of 5]

I find the whole "possession by another entity" explanation for vampirism and werewolves, to be annoying and more confusing than time travel. But i still enjoyed this story and the mystery of skull island. It helps that the narrator is pleasing to listen to.

[Mary Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can’t believe how much I hated this book!! I’ve been reading the entire series, and found enough to enjoy that I just kept going, but this one really ticked me off!

I hated how dumb Samantha was portrayed in this volume, how foolish and bumbling she was, and especially how ridiculously unprepared she was for the final showdown near the end!! I hated that she was written as missing some very obvious clues to trouble ahead, and I especially hated the over-correcting decision she makes at the end!! She is given the information she needs, told of her options, then for no reason I could understand, takes the most drastic and unnecessary step possible! This ridiculous decision leaves her worse off than she needed to be, and puts her two steps back personally and professionally, ensuring less access to her children’s lives and activities, less ability to monitor their safety, which we have learned is in serious jeopardy, and restricts her ability to move about as freely as she might on behalf of her clients!! It was beyond frustrating, and I’m only reading on in the series now to find out if this was a fluke of bad writing, or a sign of worse to come.

[Literati Literature Lovers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Smart Heroine, that sometimes befuddles me.

3.5 Stars
I really like the Vampire for Hire books, but sometimes I want to slap Samantha Moon upside the head. Really Kingsley cheated and you just roll with it. In Vampire Games, the cheating happened and she also lost her best friend. Now in Moon Island she interacts with Kingsley like his cheating was no biggie. Sometimes she just rolls too easy with the punches, that come at her. I also didn't get when she refers to her brother in law as your husband to her sister. What doesn't she know her BIL's name??
The mystery was fun in this book, but the lack of emotional depth where Kingsley was concerned made me scream!

[Stephanie Serrano Hargrove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scary Good!

Five stars for the storytelling! I love how she endures .
But man this series is long! Just when you think that maybe you can stop reading the series it leaves you hanging!

[Chrys Minter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another one down

I cannot put these books down. Devouring one after another. This author is definitely addictive. This is a story and series that will stay with me for a long time.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Action packed and fun to read

[Kathy Kennerley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it! Be sure to read the short Christmas novella after book 4! I'm so glad I did. I usually save the novellas as a treat when a series is over and I begin to miss the characters. This author is excellent about slowly dropping important tidbits that lead to something later. I LOVE this series!

[Mad about · Rating 5 out of 5]

Samantha usually stays close to home but with her appointment book free and clear she heads to Skull Island in the hopes of solving the accidental murder of a rich Tycoon which occured more than a year previously.
With their bond growing Allisons powers are increasing and she tags along knowing that sometime during this investigation she will lend aide to her Supernatural friend. The duo seperate and gather clues which lead them to believe there is more to the Thurman family than meets the eye, one that only Samantha can see.

Samantha always knew evil existed but what she see's on Skull Island shakes her to her core and even has her calling Kingsley after everything that's happened.

Really enjoyed this installment that took Sam away from her usual cohort and showed us more of Allison and even the mysterious Maximus after another Medallion is uncovered.

There was the usual self deprecating from Sam which I try not to notice as it seems silly such a wonderful person would think so little of herself just because her DNA has changed.
A spark of hope was ignited with her relationship with Kingsley as he valiantly rode to the rescue on the stormy waves to save her so fingers crossed something happens between them but things are heating up between her and the boxer Russell so who knows where her love life will lead.

There's the hint the next sequel will involve Fang and I really hope it does as i've missed his involvment so hope he'll take more of a forward role soon.

Another dramatic, fast paced tale from this seasoned mystery author that leaves us thirsty for more.

[Bookmom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Private eye, mother and vampire, Samantha Moon, is requested by Tara Thurman to come with her to Skull Island, owned by her family, to investigate the death of her grandfather a year ago. He’d died during a yearly family reunion and they are about to have their next one. Her new blood source, Allison from the last book, demands to come along, “seeing” that she would be needed to save Samantha’s life.

Something very weird and dangerous is going on in this story and finally Sam does something I’ve been waiting for her to do for a number of books now. I love the philosophy in the series, between characters and even the divine. The story was interesting, one thing was definitely surprising and the reader will be able to figure out a couple of things before Sam does.

Decisions made at the end of the story will continue in the next book, although it doesn’t have the feel of a cliffhanger.

Repetition and editing are still issues.

[Tony Hisgett · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think the the 'Samantha Moon' books are probably the best Vampire series of all time. This is because the stories are focused around a 'real' women trying to cope with the almost imposible problem of living in the normal world and being a vampire and mother. In the earlier stories Sam is forced into decisions she doesn't want to make but has to, or she will loose her children and possibly her humanity. These were extremely well written and believable (if any paranormal fiction can be said to be believable).
However, although I enjoyed this story I found Sam was making decisions that didn't make sense and must admit I felt a little disappointed at the end of the story. (It still love Samantha Moon but could give only 4 stars instead of the 5, I have given every other book in the series).
PS This will not stop me eagerly waiting for the next book in the series.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished vampire for hire book #7 and it was just as great as all the other six that I have read. I love the vampire for hire series because it combines my two loves --vampires and mystery. This series starts with book #1 Moon Dance and it is the first book in the series about a wife and mom named Samantha Moon and when she was out jogging one nite she was attacked and bitten and turned into a vampire. Samantha is a private detective and she is so funny and the cases she works on are suspenseful and full of mystery and intrigue. J. R. rain is a master male story teller who writes this female character who is trying to juggle motherhood and being a vampire. Every book is an adventure you must check these books out. The books are easy to read and light fun. My go to book when I want a light fun read. 5-stars!
For more indie book reviews: Myindieauthorfix.com

[Dale Modisette · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got fuckin tired of hearing her say she didn't understand. Also I got tired of her intelligence going out the door the longer the series goes on. Then there's the fact the damn books are only about 200 pages each which by my account is smaller most other authors midway books. I guess this is what I get for reading/listening to a male author, maybe. Though there are few good male authors like D.M. Cornish, Barry Eisler and Darren Shan.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

It just keeps getting better and better! Samantha Moon is one of my favorite vampires. I really liked Alison as a side kick. This time Sam was up against a formidable entity. I didn't think she would survive!

I can't wait until we meet Fang again. I think that will be epic.

I buy these books on kindle and audio as they become available. I've listened to the audio books a ridiculous amount of times.

J R Rain publishes 2 books in this series per year, so it's never a long wait.

and finally, I STILL have a girl crush on Samantha.

[Patricia White · Rating 5 out of 5]

This contains a lot of SPOILERS

WHY

Okay. I am pissed all the way off. I loved the book. However I’m upset that after all Sam has gone through, having her kids taken away. Her finally getting them back. Her feeling like a bad mother because of her ex being a pile of crap and telling her she was. Her feeling like a monster because she’s a vampire because her ex said she was. Her burning her skin to pick up her kids from school because the sun her skin. She finally found something that allows her to be able to go out in the sun in book 6. She has her kids back and she is super mom!! Her family is happy. But it’s short lived.

In this book she has to go to this stupid island and deal with an evil entity. The brother the entity that is inside of her! This thing controls an uber rich family. Has controlled them for decades upon decades because the great grandfather wanted money and power. It was a damn trap!! They needed Sam to find the 3rd medallion. Sam’s son is the first medallion because it was made into a liquid and he drank it. The second medallion had given Sam the ability to go into the sunlight and burn. The 3rd medallion the one the family needs is buried somewhere on the island. Sam finds the 3rd medallion with help from Kingsley and Allison. However Sam has to fight the great grandfather who is living in a mausoleum on the island controlling the family. She kills him of course in her bat form only after he rips the 2nd medallion from her chest and almost kills her! Now she is forced to make a choice. She is forced in my own opinion the way I read the book to give up her medallion and revert back to NOT being able to go into the sun. And she then breaks both medallions!! I’m upset! I don’t like the way this book ended. I’m very upset. Hopefully Max since he now has the broken medallion pieces keeps them and is able to make them whole again.

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

End of the line for me

There are 6 or 7 more books in this series I think, and I’m pretty sure I won’t be reading them. To me, one of the failings of many multi-book series is that the author stops developing the main character so that he/she stays interesting. The author put considerable effort into world-building and the development of the Samantha Moon character but after the second or third book there hasn’t been any further growth in her character. Of course many things happen TO our heroine but she is essentially the same person as she was at the beginning.

One thing that has irritated me about the character of Samantha Moon is her little asides of how weird she and her life are. These asides are not woven into the dialog but are just plain, almost parenthetical statements directed at the reading audience, a breaking of the 4th wall. I get it, her life is not “normal,” whatever that is, but it is not necessary for the author to break the flow of the narrative to tell me so.

Finally, the author occasionally “dumbs down” Samantha. For example, this sentence: “Definitely didn’t see a candlestick, whatever that is.” Now, Samantha is college educated with a major in architecture and a minor in criminal justice and worked as an FBI agent. Surely she is smart enough to know what a candlestick is. There are other examples of the author’s attempt to dumb down her character, perhaps as a form of humility, but I found it ridiculous and irritating.

On the plus side, the mystery picked up and became interesting near the end of this novel. Unfortunately these books are starting to exhibit enough sameness that I don’t see any reason to keep reading the books.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book I’ve read/listened to in this series. It was fine as a stand alone but really needs to be read in order because some characters from the series are mentioned and I have no clue who they were. I get the feeling that this book isn’t part of the overall story from reading reviews. It also read like it was a side story maybe. I could be wrong. It did draw me in but wasn’t as suspenseful as I thought it would be. I’ve seen so much on Facebook and other places about this author and wanted to see what he was all about. I’m a book hoarder and have several of his. I usually try to follow authors on fb and engage with them and try to help promote the books I like, also sign up for their newsletters, but this author never responds or engages with readers. Maybe he doesn’t have time. I do like how he is always giving his books away in newsletters. Books are precious to me and I cherish this. Anyway, I got off topic here, sorry. I did like this story and I am definitely going to start with the first book in the series. The only thing about this one was at the end Samantha kept saying ‘I don’t understand.’ This was so annoying. It’s almost like the information we were trying to get was like pulling teeth from a chicken. It would’ve been a whole lot better if the author would’ve just explained things instead of having her keep saying this to get more answers. I read/listened to this through KU. It’s nice the author also has the book through here on audible. If you like audiobooks, this narrator is one of the best. If I had been reading the book, I might not have finished it but the narrator kept it interesting.

[Liz · Rating 2 out of 5]

That was really disappointing. I'm sure many people have already dropped this series because of the absolutely ridiculous Mary Sue qualities of Sam. I bought #6 & #7 because they were on sale. I took a long pause from this series but wasn't totally ready to throw in the towel because there are characters and aspects of the stories that I really like. That said, what's with all the constant repetition; such as "I don't understand", "I'm such a freak/ghoul". What is the ultimate Mary Sueism; probably omniscience (and we're almost there) but running a close second is, for crying out loud, talking with God/a god. Where is the barf emoji when I need it? As to the plot; this is the first one I've struggled to finish and that is saying something considering how short these are. To start off Sam has misgivings about accepting the case, but does it anyway. She sees Allison with the creepy smile of the possessed and it still takes her forever to figure it out. Then when she has to cut off the head of the beast, she walks in and stands there while he brutalizes her, when any sane person is assuming she will walk in and assume her other form and rip its' head off. But no, she sits there being pummeled and letting threats to her son fly by. One of the most believable things about Sam is that she is a mom first; so what happened. I'm not even going to comment on the stupidity of the choice that was made at the end. All I will say is that martyrdom is not attractive. These examples all lead to my number on pet peeve, and that is seemingly intelligent characters doing really stupid things just to move the plot along.

[Carrie Bringhurst · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok, so I am going to review books 2-7 here. Each book is great and each story is wonderful. I’m having a hard time with the overarching storyline.
1)Things that were shown or explained in book 3-4 are still not brought up now.
2)Love triangles are tricky. This author hasn’t given the heroine a true “hero” to stake her claim (pun intended cause...vampires) ones a cheater that his only defense is “she was out of town 🙄) the other one is friend zoned for no real reason.
3)I am all about sexy times in books and this author does a fade to black-ish thing.
4)I’m kind of over the heroines inner dialogue. She’s always talking about how she’s a crazy gal, or freaky, or ghoulish. She’s been a vamp for like 6-7 years. You would think she has come to terms with it? Or seen a therapist or done something more rather than just blah...
5)heroine claims she does it all for her kids but I swear her kids are with a babysitter, aunts house or with this horrid father which after each book I feel should be killed off.

Well..I think that’s it so I will have to be in a book slump yo pick up book 8.

[CC · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's not you. It's the author.

In theory, this should be a fun series. It has most of the ingredients that you figure someone would need to create a fun, dynamic series with various supernatural characters. Sadly, this is not the case. I have gotten through seven of these books, and I have to say that the writing remains just as mediocre from book 1 to book 7. The characters are flat; they don't grow emotionally despite various opportunities to do so. The main character continues to engage in serious self-loathing behavior despite actual divine entities telling her that she is the equivalent of a superhero. I'm not sure if the author simply doesn't like women or just doesn't know how to write believable female characters, but whatever the case, it's absolutely reflected in the writing. The dialogue, especially Samantha's inner dialogue, is repetitive and falls flat. I don't think I can do another 20 books filled with a main character that constantly calls herself a monster, a ghoul, or a fiend. Quite frankly, I'm not sure who would want to. At least the whole series is on Kindle Unlimited, and the audiobooks are only two bucks a piece. There are far better supernatural PI series out there. Don't waste your time on this one!

[Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cursed?

This series must be read in order. This is the eighth book. I can't wait to read "Moon River"!



Sam has been enjoying the sun now that she has the second medallion inside of her. The first medallion turned her son back from being a vampire. She seems to be inexorably linked with these alchemical marvels. And her dreams are turning prophetic it seems. What will happen next? When she takes her new friend Allison on a job things get weird. All the Thurmans have a black ribbon through their auras. What is it? How did it get there? What does it mean? How can she solve a death that happened a year ago? Is that even really what she was hired to do? Or was she hired for a more sinister reason?

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Samantha Moon is hired to go to a family reunion to investigate the death of a grandfather. Her new sidekick Allison begs to go with her claiming she is going to save Sam's life. When they get to the island, an evil force is at work in this family. There is a curse upon the family and Sam has been lured to Skull Island under false pretenses. Someone, something dark wants her there for a purpose. As always, I love that Samatha is ferocious when it comes to protecting her children but am not crazy about her choice or inability to chose men. This installment had some good twists and turns, but it is darker than I usually like.

[JW David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read as part of Samantha Moon Boxed Set
Interesting intuitive revelation at the end. I wonder if I interpreted it correctly.
This is definitely a well created series, and I recently discovered that other writers were invited to add to this world, so the depth expands. I think I'll be here for a while, with only short breaks between.
Again this series so far has no stand-alones, except the Samantha Moon Origin books are a little different, as they were written later but I agree should be read first despite creating a little confusion.

[Sally · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dnf @70%

Talking to God? Really?? ... that didn’t even happen in Lucifer the show, and that’s about angels and devils... Sam conversing with God was the most random bizarre shit ever.. like really?

Ugh... I’m dropping this series after 7 books... I waited and waited for the interaction between characters to improve but ... it probably won’t and the stories are getting more bizarre. I didn’t care about the mystery of this book and I’m not sure why Allison is there to begin with.. since when is she a main character anyway?

[James Schoen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another reasonably quick read. I am still enthusiastic about the continuing saga. Love the medallion thing...although having 4 medallions world-wide ending up in a 1000 mile radius is a tad trite. Sam's love life is not unlike Stephanie Plum in that there are two interests and she, of course, vacillates. Her kid's gifts continue to become more prominent...interesting. Lol...I find myself waiting for a shark to swim by to be jumped over, but so far, I'm still in it for the ride.

[Maryann Stasio · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am binge reading this series

Samantha Moon is a character I have come to know and love. She’s a “ no BS” kind of woman it’s easy to admire and believe in. This storyline showcased her bravery, loyalty and strong values- qualities that make her so enjoyable to read about. I’m glad to see knew continuing characters because you see various relationships and how she handles them. A great series. Already have the next 7 books loaded to go.