Predatory

Immortal Guardians #3.5

by Alexandra Ivy, Nina Bangs, Dianne Duvall

Paranormal romance authors Alexandra Ivy, Nina Bangs, Dianne Duvall, and Hannah Jayne present four original novellas in this exciting anthology.

In Out Of Control by Alexandra Ivy: Ph.D. student Angela Locke has a crush on her sexy professor, Dr. Nikolo Bartrev. When she learns he's actually a Sentinel with extraordinary powers, she joins forces with him to catch a psychopath. But soon, their hottest pursuit is of each other.

In Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs: Cassie Tyler agrees to sub for her friend at the funeral home where she works. But she gets more than she bargained for when a group of men attack her and a vampire comes to her rescue.

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall: Immortal Richart d'Alençon can't forget the woman who rewarded him with a sensuous kiss after he saved her from a trio of vampires. While Richart knows that loving a human can only bring trouble, the taste of forbidden lust is too great to resist.

And in Hannah Jayne's High Stakes: When vampire fashionista Nina LaShay's design contest rival is found dead, she's the prime suspect. Sexy photographer Pike is number two. He's the kind of man who makes Nina salivate. But will she have to reveal herself to have him—and to save them both? Or does Pike have a secret of his own?

Genres: Paranormal, Paranormal Romance, Anthologies, Romance, Vampires, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy

MP3 CD

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

I'm not exactly sure when I fell in love with books. Probably on my mother's knee listening to her read Dr. Seuss to me. I do remember that I was barely old enough to cross the street by myself when I discovered the delights of the local library. Could anything be more wonderful than spending summer days surrounded by stacks of Nancy Drew mysteries? Over the years I fell in love with Victoria Holt, Jane Austen, Agatha Christie, and J.R.R. Tolkien just to name a few. I read poetry, essays, biographies, and plays. In fact, I read anything I could get my hands on.

Years later (no, I'm not admitting how many) I'm still an avid reader, and my tastes are still as varied as they were in my youth, which I suppose helps to explain why I enjoy writing regency historicals under the name of Deborah Raleigh, as well as my contemporary paranormals as Alexandra Ivy. For now that is enough to keep me busy, but who knows what the future might hold!

I do have a few other loves in my life besides reading and writing, the most important being my unbelievably patient husband, David, and my two sons, Chance and Alexander. Without their constant support and belief in me, I never could have been able to follow my dreams. They are truly my heroes.

--From authors website--

Reviews

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Out of Control by Alexandra Ivy.
⭐⭐⭐
3 stars.
(I already did a separate review on this book.)

Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs
⭐⭐💫
2½ stars.
(A little too flat/boring and with main characters that also are boring and flat but also formulaic in everything from looks/appearance to how they act etc. and they also acted rather nonsensical even for this genre.
The romance and romantic build-up and chemistry is very very rushed…. And unconvincing...Even for a Novella…. and also what very little romance/romantic build-up etc.there is feels forced and based only on the physical…. There is almost No emotional connection… it just felt lacking and very insta-lust and insta-love.
The ridiculousness of the hero being so extremely super attractive that his beauty kills his “prey”.🤦‍♀️😂
Very very predictable/formulaic and cliché.
(The plot and main characters are too formulaic and too predictable… there is nothing that really stands out or brings something new etc. It is too similar... too reminiscent of many many other Paranormal Romance books and characters … so it blends into the crowd.)
Formulaic in the character description/visual appearance/character choice about both the main characters.
(Hero= tall, muscular, very very handsome…. And heroine: slender and pretty etc.)

In Still Darkness
By Dianne Duvall
⭐⭐
2 stars.

One dimensional.
Rushed.
Cringey.
Even for a novella...Too much focus on sexy times and not enough focus on emotional connection and depth etc.
Too based only on the physical.
Formulaic in the character description/visual appearance/character choice about both the main characters.
(Hero= tall, muscular, handsome…. And heroine: slender and petite and pretty etc.)



High Stakes
Hannah Jayne
⭐⭐
2 stars.

Unlikable/annoying heroine.
Repetitive.
Predictable.
Uninteresting main characters.



And as a Anthology of Short Stories the plots and main characters are a little too similar to each other… it felt like reading the same main characters and to some degree the same plots over and over.
So all in all this Anthology of Short Stories is a ⭐⭐2 star read.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

What happens when you take 4 of my favorite paranormal romance writers and put their novella-length stories together in a book called Predatory…you get a magnificent read. Each story was fan-freakin’-tastic, riveting and long enough to suck you completely in. This anthology is a great way to try out each of these author’s series, but for fans it gives you a grand snippet of adventures we’ve come to love. Page turning action, steamy romances and super hot alpha heroes Predatory hit the spot.

This ARC copy of Predatory was given to me by Kensignton Books - Zebra in exchange for an honest review.

[Angela (Angel's Book Nook) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This anthologies was just ok. I picked it up to read Alexandra Ivy’s The Sentinels since I own book’s 1 & 2 (not yet read them), so I wanted to get a taste of what the series is about. I also went a head and read the other novellas featured as well.

Out of Control by Alexandra Ivy - 3 Stars

This one is an introduction to The Sentinels #0.5 series. It features Nikolo a Sentinel and Angela. The set up is interesting. I’m not found of the quick hook up’s. The couple featured have only known each other for a few weeks, they are thrown together, with not much dating happening; before they hook up. I wasn’t fully feeling the connection between these two even though you can clearly see the desires and sexual tensions.

Out of Control gives us heartache, betrayal, and surprises. It had plenty of action, humor, and lust. This novella was enjoyable!

Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs - 3 Stars

This one was a little dark, a little odd, and a little interesting. It features Cassie who has a fear of dead bodies and Ethan a vampire. We get a taste of the world and supernaturals it has. The set up was nice and the romance was warm and heartfelt.

Ties That Bind gives you lots of action and an engaging storyline. This novella was enjoyable!

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall - 3 Stars

This one is part of the Immortal Guardian #3.5 series. It features Richart a Guardian and Jenna a human. The characters and concept are interesting. I was a little confused at the beginning on what the differences where between a Guardian and a Vampire, but that was answered farther along in the novella.

I did have a little issue when Richart was ambushed and ends up in Jenna’s living room. Jenna and son should have looked for a wallet on him, a phone, or some way to get ahold of his people even though they aren’t sure what he is. Also his people should have found him sooner since they have the capability to track cell phones and he has one on him.

In Still Darkness gives you action, steamy romance, and camaraderie. I’ve not tired the series out yet, but I plan to give it a try at some point. This novella was enjoyable!

High Stakes by Hannah Jayne - DNF

Couldn’t get into this novella.

Rated: 3 Stars

As far as anthologies go. I wouldn’t purchase this one, but I do enjoy that my library carries this and other anthologies. I will point out that most of these novellas are now published on their own.

[Megan Riverina Romantics · Rating 4 out of 5]

Out of Control by Alexandra Ivy:
Rating: ❤❤❤.5
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥🔥
Narrator Performance: 🎧🎧🎧

This was my first Alexandra Ivy read and unfortunately I have to say that I was disappointed in it. That could be because of it's length though. Sometimes novelists have trouble putting together a well rounded story within the limited amount of words that novellas have. Maybe it was the narrator. I didn't really appreciate her style so that could have effected the way I felt. Whatever it was it's not enough to deter me from trying to read Ivy again. She's written lots of books and a number of my book friends enjoy her writing. The story wasn't bad, it just didn't live up to my expectations.

More about the narrator...
Like I said I wasn't super thrilled with the narrator's performance of this. Her pace was kind of stilted IMO. She also made like no effort to differentiate the characters by changing her speech pattern or the timber of her voice.

Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs:
Rating: ❤❤❤❤.5
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥🔥
Narrator Performance: 🎧🎧🎧🎧

This story was great! Nina Bangs is also a new author for me. I of course knew her name even though she's not as prolific as Alexandra Ivy. I remember strolling through the book stores and seeing her name on the spines of the paperbacks. Anyways, I truly enjoyed her story. The world building was surprisingly detailed considering the length of it. I could easily feel the connection between the characters and her take on vampires is unique and interesting. I'll definitely be looking into reading/listening to more books by her.

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall:
Rating: ❤❤❤❤❤
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥🔥
Narrator Performance: 🎧🎧🎧

OMG what a fantastic read! I've seriously fallen for Richart! Maybe it's because he's a sweetheart. Or maybe it's that sexy accent!

I really enjoy Duvall's Immortal Guardians series and as expected Richart's story did not disappoint. Richart was sweet and sexy and Jenna was a very strong woman in her own way. A young widowed mom has to be in order to raise her child to be a well adjusted, responsible adult. They were wonderful together and the length of the story couldn't detract from that fact. If course I wanted more but that's just me being greedy.

Though In Still Darkness is #3.5 in the Immortal Guardians series it actually takes place during both books 2 and 3 and ends a bit after book 3 in the series timeline. Fans of the series will recognize key scenes from those books but via Richart's viewpoint. That was fun! I think I've only read like two other series where that has happened and I find it to be an awesome series plot device (not sure if I used the correct phrase there). Bravo to Duvall for pulling it off!

About the narrator...
I enjoyed parts of the narrator's performance. Richart's accent was wonderful! She easily pulled me into the story and kept a steady pace with no annoying pauses in wrong places. Unfortunately she mispronounced "Richart" more than a few times. She also mispronounced Bastien's name. Another thing that surprised me was that she chose not to use a British accent for the few lines that Marcus spoke. It said he was British in the text and she was already pulling off a French accent. Considering all this I can only give her three out of five headphones. I hope to listen to another of performances though. It think I'd love her if I wasn't familiar with the series.

High Stakes by Hannah Jayne:
Rating: ❤❤.5
Narrator Performance: 🎧🎧🎧🎧

Until reading Predatory I had never heard of Hannah Jayne like I had the other authors in the book. This is nothing new though. Oftentimes publishers will include a lesser known author in an anthology to help boost the number of their readers. Unfortunately I don't think it worked in this case. At least for me it didn't since I don't plan on reading anything by her again. However that's partially the publisher's fault. Jayne's story was an Urban Fantasy so why the hell was it included in a set of Paranormal Romances? I spent the first half of the shortie wondering where the romance was and was really disappointed when I realized that there wasn't going to be any. It kinda felt like "false advertising" for lack of a better phrase.

Another reason why I won't be reading Jayne again is that I figured out who the the bad guy was rather early in the story. What's the point of reading a "Who done it?" when you know who did it? I had to force myself to keep listening to the story and after I read a few reviews I found that I wasn't the only person with this problem. The writing just wasn't that great and the story itself was kind of weak. Plus the world building was incomplete. Her vampire mythology was nonexistent.

Yet more about the narrator...
As far as I know this is the first book that I've listened to narrated by Arika Rapson. At first she didn't impress me much. Her pace was off during Ivy's story. There were spaces between words and her performance was stilted. It got better as the book went on though. I think that she must have been having an off day the day that she recorded the story because her performances of the other ones were great. For Duvall's novella she had to include French and French accents and she did with those parts. I'll be listening to her again. She narrates a few other books in my Audible library. I look forward to seeing how she does with those.

My final verdict...
Rating: ❤❤❤❤
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥🔥
Narrator Performance: 🎧🎧🎧.5

[Beyond the Squee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review may also be found at:
Beyond the Squee: Book Reviews
www.beyondthesquee.com

Four of today's most exciting paranormal authors take readers into the thrilling realm of vampires, immortals, and other supernatural beings with a thirst for illicit desire...

Out Of Control by Alexandra Ivy
Ph.D student Angela Locke has a crush on her sexy professor, Dr. Nikolo Bartrev. When she learns he's actually a Sentinel with extraordinary powers, she joins forces with him to catch a psychopath. But soon, their hottest pursuit is of each other...

Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs
Cassie Tyler agrees to sub for her friend at the funeral home where she works. But she gets more than she bargained for when a group of men attack her and a vampire comes to her rescue. . .

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall
Immortal Richart d'Alençon can't forget the woman who rewarded him with a sensuous kiss after he saved her from a trio of vampires. While Richart knows that loving a human can only bring trouble, the taste of forbidden lust is too great to resist. . .

High Stakes by Hannah Jayne
When vampire fashionista Nina LaShay's design contest rival is found dead, she's the prime suspect. Sexy photographer Pike is number two. He's the kind of man who makes Nina salivate. But will she have to reveal herself to have him--and to save them both? Or does Pike have a secret of his own?


These are not the vampires you've come to know from past books. Each of these authors have made them their own. And I'm not sure which one I love the most. Too hard to choose! There's just something about a man (or a woman) with fangs. Thankfully, you can enjoy each of them in their own right. The stories all continue in their individual series. Hurray!

One thing that I enjoyed about every one of these stories is that they had a beginning, a middle and and an END. Yes, the stories will continue, but we are never left hanging. I loved that. I'm just not done with vampires yet, and these authors have fed my hunger quite nicely.

Out Of Control by Alexandra Ivy
This is the start of a hot, new series. This book sets up the world of Sentinels and Guardians. Yes, I want more of them. Niko and Angela had a hard start to their relationship, but I'm sure it will be all the stronger in the later books because of it.

Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs
I've read books by Ms. Bangs in the past, and she's the reason I rushed to get this ARC. This one was creepy! And HOT! Vamps abound and there was a lot of blood...and dead bodies. And a cat! So, shivery and fun and sexy. Yep, right up my alley!

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall
I think this one was my favorite. Richart d'Alençon was a joy. He is an Immortal, dressed all in black with a long coat, ridding the world of crazed vamps. His knees are made weak by one kiss from a woman he rescues from the nutters. She doesn't remember that kiss, so he has to give her another. Yes, and please! Again, a lovely start to a series that I'm going to be searching out ASAP.


High Stakes by Hannah Jayne
I got lost a couple of times with this one. Nina LaShay is featured in one of Ms. Jayne's series and there were many asides relating to that series. I'm sure that those remarks will lead readers to search the series out. This vampire chick is totally into fashion. And she's hyper and she's worried about that crow that just won't leave her alone. There's a murder; two, in fact. And Nina is on the hook for them both. Again, it was nice to not be left hanging as the end tied things up nicely.

These short stories made me want more of the characters, while not leaving me wondering what was going to happen. Three of the four were steaming hot, as well. Well done, Authors, and thank you! This book and others by these authors can be found HERE!

This one gets a FIVE BOOKMARK rating from me.
And I'll be picking up books by these authors soon!




*Thank you, NetGalley and Kensington ~ Zebra, for the opportunity to read this ARC.

[Crystal _ Reading Between the Wines Book Club · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Partial review. Rating based on stories by Alexandra Ivy and Dianne Duvall only.*

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall - 4 Stars
I'm a huge fan of Dianne Duvall and her Immortal Guardians series, and I am happy to say that this short story did not disappoint. In Still Darkness occurs during Night Reigns and Phantom Shadows . If you recall, during those stories you hear talk about Richart d’Alençon's mysterious human girlfriend. In In Still Darkness readers finally get the down-low about her and all of those secretive phone conversations. You don't need to be familiar with the series to read this short story as the author provides background into the Immortal Guardians world, but she doesn't bog the story down for fans of the series by being overly descriptive which I appreciated.

Despite the length, the author packs in plenty of sizzling romance, exciting action and a wonderful HEA into the story. Richart saves Jenna from a pack of vampires, which she doesn't remember, but Richart can't seem to forget Jenna. So he stalks watches over Jenna to be sure that the vampires don't return for her. But soon just watching isn't enough.... Sheldon, Roland, Sarah, Étienne, Lisette and a few other series characters join the story, which I enjoyed. All together, In Still Darkness was a short but satisfying read and I think the author did an exceptional job of giving readers a complete story in such few pages.


Out Of Control by Alexandra Ivy - 4 Stars
A promising start to Alexandra Ivy's Sentinel series, the author introduces readers to the world of the High-Bloods, gifted and sometimes mutated men and women, and their hunters and protectors, the Sentinels. As a novella, it doesn't get too in-depth as to the history and background of these groups, I'm sure we'll see that in the full-length novels, but it did give enough to peak my curiosity.

Nikolo Bartrev is on the hunt for a murdering high-blood who killed not only two of his best friends, but several 'norms' as well. He knows the psychopath will eventually try to contact Angela Locke, a college student with the ability to manipulate cells, so for the last six weeks he has been watching her in the role of a visiting professor. Never did he expect to fall for the beautiful but shy scientist. Can he separate his emotions from his duty when it comes time to confront the killer, or will he loose it all?

Passion, intrigue, magic and mayhem, I'm looking forward to finding out more in Born in Blood! I'm hoping that we see more of Niko and Angela in the following books as well as fellow Sentinel Arel!

[Reading In Pajamas · Rating 4 out of 5]

PREDATORY by: Alexandra Ivy, Nina Bangs, Dianne Duvall and Hannah Jayne
Publish date: May 7, 2013
REVIEW by Reading in Pajamas/Donna
RATING: 4

OUT OF CONTROL by Alexandra Ivy
An introduction to her new series “The Sentinels”, this novella is about Nikolo, a Sentinel from Valhalla on the hunt for deranged/rogue Sentinel, Dylan, who murdered his friends in her escape. To catch her, he must guard the one person Dylan thinks can make her normal….Angela Locke. All her life, Angela has felt out of step with others. Incredibly smart with a natural talent in molecular biology, she rarely cared about anything outside the lab…until she met Niko. There was an immediate attraction and they were helpless to stop it.
REVIEW:
I enjoyed this story! Plenty of action, humor and lust written into a very nice package. I can’t wait to read more.

TIES THAT BIND by Nina Bangs
Cassie has a fear of dead bodies and can’t believe she agreed to work a few hours at a funeral home for a friend. If that isn’t strange enough, she is attacked and now under the protection of a handsome and mesmerizing vampire named Ethan. The vampires are being hunted by the Collector and his minions. While Cassie helps them fight back, the desire between her and Ethan grows until there is no denying their love.
REVIEW:
Lots of action and an interesting storyline. The romance was warm and heartfelt. I liked that the writer made you care about the people. I liked it!

IN STILL DARKNESS by Dianne Duvall
When Immortal Guardian Richart d’Alencon saves single mom, Jenna McBride from a vampire attack, the sensual pull was immediate. Jenna has no memory of the attack and no idea that the man she is falling for is an immortal vampire hunter. As their love grows, so does the danger.
REVIEW:
I enjoyed this story! The action was intense, the romance steamy and the camaraderie was enjoyable. I’m already a fan of the Immortal Guardian series and this was a nice addition.

HIGH STAKES by Hannah Jayne
When vampire fashionista Nina LaShay’s design contest rival is found dead, she is the prime suspect. Sexy photographer Pike is number two. Their attraction to each other is instant but they have more important things to worry about…like who killed the contestant. What will happen if Pike finds out what she is….and what happens if she finds out he is much more than he seems?
REVIEW:
I enjoyed the fast paced writing and snarky sense of humor in this story. A very fun read!

**Review copy was provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[eRomantix · Rating 4 out of 5]

Original post at http://eromantix.com/wordpress/

I love an anthology. Well I love a well put together anthology. There can be inherent problems with them. The stories can be too short, underdeveloped. Just a teaser for a longer story about the same characters in a different book. So it feels like you have read the first three chapters in a book and then. Nothing, you have to buy the longer version. Or the story is set in a world the author has created in a current series, with no explanation about that world. Great, if you have read the other eight books before this one is set. If you haven’t you are just lost and confused. I was so pleased that this book didn’t fall into any of those traps.

Alexandra Ivy introduces us to an interesting new world starting off a new series from her called The Sentinels. It revolves around “gifted” individuals and the warriors who protect them. After reading Out of Control I can’t wait to read the first full length book in the series hopefully coming soon? I can’t find a release date as yet.

Ties that bind by Nina Bang starts with very girls worst nightmare that turns into the most interesting night of her life. It had the feeling of an old-fashioned horror story to begin with, which I love. But quickly turned into an interesting story. Cassie shows a side of her personality that I wasn’t expecting from the start of the story. Well written with lots of action.

I haven’t read Dianne Duvall before but I really liked In Still Darkness. Richart was a great Hero. A born protector with a sweet side. Jena was a good match, smart and not prone to hysterics no matter what is thrown at her. Also I liked the cast of other characters we were introduced to. The story certainly immersed you in this world. I will certainly be looking for more of her books.

All of these stories had different heat levels. High Stakes by Hannah Jayne was certainly the sweetest one of the three with only a kiss exchanged between the two main characters. I also felt this was the weakest of the four stories. I didn’t always feel the explanations Hannah Jayne gave were always satisfactory. I also wasn’t particularly sure about the chemistry between the hero and heroine. I don’t know if they really liked each other. Still it was certainly funny and I did enjoy it. It’s just the other three were so good!

[Robin Priddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Out of Control by Alexandra Ivy
Angela Locke is working on her Ph.D but what she doesn't know is that she has a spical ability that allows her to rearrange genetic material. Or that this ability has put a target on her back from an escaped psychopath. Dr Nikolo Bartrev is a Sentinel for Valhalla. Valhalla is a sade place for people who are special and can't live in regular society. Nikolo is sent to capture the escaped killer and he knows that she will be after Angela because she needs Angela to use her gift to make her normal.
Ties that Bind by Nina Bangs
Cassie Tyler is scared of dead bodies, but she covers for her best friend at her job answering phones at the local funeral home. She is attacked by two strange men and taken to a room with a glass coffin. Inside the coffin is a man. Cassie ends up killing on of the men and that enables the trapped man to free himself from the coffin. Ethan was ttrapped in the coffin until Cassie frees him. Now he must protect her from the group that wants to kill him.
In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall
Jenna McBride is attacked by three young men on her way home from work. But these were not just men they were vampires. It seems that there is a new vampire king and he wants his followers to transform their victims instead of killing them. Richart d'Alencon is an immortal guardian, his job is to protect humans from the vampires. After he saves Jenna he is unable to walk away from her. Once she finds out what he is will she be able to accept him?
High Stakes by Hannah Jayne
Nina LaShay is a vampire who hopeing to have her own clothing line that she calls Drop Dead Clothing. She is one of the finalists in a design contest. It seems that the other finalists are dropping like flies and Nins is being framed for the murders. Will Nina be able to clear her name before she is either killed or jailed?

[Dee · Rating 3 out of 5]

★★★½ Review is for Dianne Duvall Immortal Guardians story only.

This was well written but just didn't like the fact that it was so short! I know it is a novella so it's gonna be short but it really felt like chunks of the story were missing/taken out and just seemed to move too fast.....I think part of the problem is I was looking forward to reading Richart's story but because it was so short I felt short changed :( Can't wait until Darkness Rises is released in October.

As the Aleaxandra Ivy novella is the kick off to her new Sentinels series I will read that nearer the release date of Born in Blood which is end of December.

Have never read Hannah Jayne or Nina Bangs before but will give them a try at some point!

[Shauni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Are you hungry for some PNR? Waiting for your next favorite author's fix and just need a little bite to take the edge off? Then Predatory is the book for you. Four excellent authors share novellas from in this book.

Alexandra Ivy offers Out of Control an introduction to new series The Sentinels

Nina Bangs shares Ties that Bind, a story wrapped around the "traditional" vampire lore.. ok not exactly.

Dianne Duvall tell Richert's story in In Still Darkness, part of her Immortal Guardians series and takes place along side books two and three..

and Hannah Jayne shares High Stakes with us as part of her Underworld Detective Agency Series.


Out of Control: Loved this story and can't wait to learn more about the Sentinels.. am already in love with two of the secondary characters. Ms Ivy takes us to the world of High-Bloods (aka Freaks) which consists of just about all PNR species and their weird cousins.. Some attempt to live in the world of the "Norms", some don't even know they are High-Blood and some would do just about anything to escape Valhalla (where the High-Bloods live) and live life as a norm but just can't.

Angela Locke is a just another PHD student who doesn't quite fit in. She has spent her entire life feeling that ever present sense of being on the outside looking in but seriously as a girl who puts science before the girly arts, she considers herself pretty normal. She even has a rather extreme crush on a visiting professor.. Then one day someone tilts the gameboard and her entire life has been changed. She's not just an above average student she's a High-Blood and some crazed High-Blood sociopath needs her help.

Dr Nikolo Bartov has got to be the sexiest visiting professor anyone has ever had.. lovingly referred to as Professor Hottie (How come I never got a Professor Hottie?). Although he has been sent by the Sentinels to track down an escaped killer, he can't help but notice the sexy Angela Locke. Whom he is using as bait more or less.. While he is attracted he is sure he can keep it under control and still bring the fugitive to justice... yeah right..

Sparks fly between the innocent and rather naive Angela and the not really a professor Nikolo.. Ms. Ivy tells a fast and furious story in mere pages.. Angela has a lot to accept practically overnight.. she's a High-Blood, a sociopath is after her, her hottie professor is a Sentinel and no matter how he puts it he used her as bait.. and oh yeah.. she is seriously into said hottie professor. A lot of story to put into so few pages and yet Ms. Ivy does a wonderful job of it.. can't wait for the Sentinel Series to come out!!

Ties that Bind: Some one is capturing vampires and killing off all of the witnesses and somehow Cassie Tyler is smack dab in the middle of it.

Cassie Tyler just wanted to help a friend out of a fix and agreed to cover for her at her job.. her job at the eternal rest funeral home.. Only thing is things are too creepy for even a funeral home and when she is asked to help out a worker everything goes from weird to Oh My Gosh.. don't go into the basement freaky weird.

Ethan has been bound into a glass casket and with the sudden death of his binder is suddenly free. Fortunately for Cassie, just in time to save the day. But he has a mission to find out who is capturing the vamps and why? Not wanting to bring Cassie along he can't seem to help himself and suddenly she is his main focus.

While it remains a "normal" vampire story complete with the "father" who made Ethan and assorted other members of the "Family" there is a mystery involved. The mystery aspect takes control of the story and the Vampire aspect remains just a fact to be understood. Much easier for me, the I don't like traditional vampire stories queen.. Ms Bang writes an intense story and I know you vampire lovers will adore it.

In Still Darkness: I will admit, I got this book for this story and was thrilled that Ms. Duvall told it so wonderfully. Dianne Duvall continues her Immortal Guardians series with this wonderful story. Telling us just what Richert has been up to and why he keeps disappearing. It has been mentioned a few times in the previous books and Ms Duvall does an excellent job of telling his story, keeping us aware of what is going on in the background and not overloading us with backstory.

Jenna McBride is a 37 year old single mother and has been doing her best to make ends meet for as long as she can remember. One night she is attacked by Vampires and sexy Richert swoops in to save the day. Of course she has no memory of such a thing but when he keeps appearing at her place of work and starts chatting with her.. Jenna is totally and completely won over..

Immortal Richart d’Alençon is a couple hundred years old and has never been this attracted to a woman. He is willing to slowly get to know her waiting to see if maybe they can have a relationship. Each moment is becoming more and more unbearable because he wants more and has to tell her what he is before he can take things further. When circumstances out him, he is astounded by her compassion and understanding..

I liked this story for a number of reasons, initially because it was about Richert and I do like him and his siblings from previous books. Second because the story runs parallel with the other books. A lot of times novellas run outside the story. By doing it this way it won't be the end of the world if a reader misses it (except it's too good to miss) and it doesn't overwhelm a reader who is aware of the rest of the series.. again bravo for an excellent job in that.. Fourth because the heroine wasn't some twiggy blond teen or early 20's but a woman.. with a real life and real issues.. and Finally because it was just that good!!

High Stakes: Can we say campy? This particular story just made me giggle. I know that might not have been the intention of Ms Jayne but her characters really knew how to play it up. A Vampire fashionista competing for an award? Dead bodies dropping in? Crows? Really bad police.. I kept waiting for Columbo's signature and just one more thing... all that said, I enjoyed this story.

Vampire Nina LaShay knows she is going to wipe the floor with the competition in the prestiges New York contest but before she does the competition starts dying..

Nina is shallow, frivolous and quirky but she does have a heart and when the competition starts dying she is concerned for not just them but those that care about them. Only trouble is she has to convince the police that she is not the murderer. Since her friends at the Underworld Detective Agency are all on the West Coast she is on her own. All she has is the help of her annoyingly eternally teenage nephew and some photographer (who she has the hots for and considers as one of the real suspects).

This was not a powerful romance or serious whodunit the power of this book was in the humor. I consider it almost a YA book. I won't claim it as one without having read some of the other books in the series.. but it has that fresh, buoyant feel to it.

Any of these stories are worth the price of the book all four together make it a steal. Check it out and take a bite out of your PNR hunger pains.

Shauni

This review is based on the ARC of Predatory provided by netgalley

[Shawna · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars - Paranormal Romance Anthology/Novella

This review is for the novella In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

ORIGINAL POST:
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PREDATORY: Would You Hunt Humans if You Were Vampire?


Anthology
Alexandra Ivy, Nina Bangs, Dianne Duvall, and Hannah Jayne
Kensington/Zebra May 7, 2013
E-Galley provided by publisher via NetGalley for review purposes. No remuneration was exchanged and all opinions herein are my own unless otherwise note


Anthologies are a great way to test drive a writer you haven't read yet. Or, in some cases they are good if you want more of a series (the so-called x.5 books), or to keep us from going mad between books in a series. Usually I am not satisfied by them in the PNR/UF genre if the workld has been built up already and I'm not familiar with the lay of the land (What can the vampires do? Are the shifters the bone changing crunch type or the magical shift type? Is it this or an alternate world? What's the political structure of the supernatural hierarchy? ). Fortunately, none of the books in this anthology seem to occur in worlds so developed that I feel lost.

Several feel quite "tellish," which appears to be the current writing style in favor. I found some of the tales felt a bit amateur.

I liked Alexandra's Ivy piece, Out of Control. It had the best writing and the most developed world and is an introduction to a new series: THE SENTINELS. The intimate scenes were handled well and I got a decent idea of the characters although they didn't feel hugely unique.

Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs started off rough, yet promising. It had the feel of a particularly graphic graphic novel. If it were a graphic novel the printer would need to order a lot of whatever constitues red (cyan and magenta?). It had an edgy, videographic feel. There are a lot of characters but two are the main characters and they're interesting Cassie and Ethan. Cassie is rather unusual; she starts out fearful but has hidden depths. Ethan's personality is not developed as much but his vampire self -- the vampire world in general -- is really unusual. It's a bit lightly explained and obscure.


Dianne Duvall's In Still Darkness had the feeling of a traditional romance novel. It had a reasonable amount of character development and world building for the short format. The foreshadowing was classic as was the climactic save.

High Stakes felt like Mary Janice Davidson's earlier work with the Queen Betsy series. There were some major holes in the world rules and violations. Lots of fashion and snark.

Three of the stories are about vampires and made me wonder whether I would become one if I knew I would have to hunt humans for food. Not because blood is gross (rare steak anyone?), but because I am pretty sure at some point being an apex predator means someone lower on the food chain dies. What about you? If you had the choice would this bug you enough to say no?

If you are interested in one of these writers but don't want to invest the time and money in a full-length tome, this would be a good place to begin.

[Vanessa theJeepDiva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Out of Control by Alexandra Ivy. 4 Stars, 3 Flames
Ivy’s new Sentinel series seems promising. From just the novella amount that I got from this anthology I think I am going to enjoy it. I do wish I would have gotten more of it. The life of the various high-bloods (gifted/genetically mutated) and the Sentinels they surround themselves with seems a little too complex for a novella length intro. I am however intrigued enough that I will read the next in the series.
Angela and Niko have a fairly hot tale. Niko is one of the “freaks” that lives at Valhalla. His “norm” looks allow him to easily blend into society. The abilities he possesses allow him to protect the innocent from psychopathic high-bloods, or to easily bring high-bloods developing new abilities into the fold.

The Ties that Bind by Nina Bangs. 2 Stars, 3 Flames
Every author puts their own brand to their vampires. Bang’s uses something called “Second One.” Apparently her vampires have their humanity and their Second One. I’ve looked to see if this is part of a series or if this is how all her vampires work. I honestly don’t know. I do know that it was confusing.
Ethan and Cassie’s romance left much to be desired. Actually there was not a romance. They fought against a harrowing circumstance, they were forced to share a bed due to limited accommodations, and they persevered against some (not all) the evil. These events led to a happily ever after that I never warmed up to. I do hope this is part of a series/world and it makes more sense to others.

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall. 5 Stars, 3 Flames
First of all I am a HUGE Immortal Guardians fan. I liked how this story seems to run in the background of Night Reigns and Phantom Shadows. Readers have known that Richart has had a human girlfriend. He spent much time on the phone with her during the last book. That was all readers got though. Now Dianne lets her reader know what Richart has been up to.
I just loved this story! Richart saves a damsel in distress from the vampires attacking her. This is what he does. The new twist is that this damsel kisses him in gratitude and he can’t forget her. Jenna on the other hand has no problem forgetting her rescuer. Little does she know that the sexy Frenchman that keeps popping up at her work has already had a taste of her and now he wants more.

High Stakes by Hannah Jayne. DNF
An urban fantasy snuck into my paranormal romance. I can handle some urban fantasy as long as they are very dark. The thirty or so pages that I read were fluffy. The heroine Nina is competing in a fashion design contest, she seemed flighty. I just could not bring myself to get interested. The first person point of view did not help matters either. Definitely not a series for me.

[A Voracious Reader (a.k.a. Carol) · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

*Book source ~ Many thanks to Kensington for providing a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Predatory is a paranormal romance anthology with four authors of which only Nina Bangs is new-to-me. To be completely honest, while I have enjoyed the works of Alexandra Ivy and Hannah Jayne in the past, I requested this book solely on the fact that it included Dianne Duvall's story about Richart from her Immortal Guardians series. I love, love, love the Immortal Guardians! Turns out, with this book, I had my wonderfully frosted cake and not only savored it, but had decadent ice cream, too. All of the stories were wonderful, if only a bit too short.


Out of Control ~ Alexandra Ivy
Series ~ Sentinels, #0.5

Angela Locke is a Ph.D student when gorgeous hunk of man Dr. Nikolo Bartrev walks into her lab. But Nikolo is not just a Dr. and Angela is about to find out she’s not just a student. She has a crazy Sentinel after her and Nikolo is sent to guard her. Peril happens, sparks fly and there’s humor. I love humor in my reads. A great introduction to a different take on the paranormal. I’m looking forward to more in this series.

Ties That Bind ~ Nina Bangs
Series ~ None known, but hoping so.

Cassie doesn’t like being around dead people, but when her friend calls with an emergency and needs Cassie to mind the shop, er funeral parlor, what’s Cassie to do? Go hang with the deaduns, of course. She’s thinking zombie apocalypse, but what she gets is much different when she discovers a naked guy (Ethan) in a glass coffin and two thugs almost kill her. Her life does a 180 after that. I really enjoyed this different take on vampires. Color me intrigued. I really hope this is the start of a new series because I may kick my little *cough* feet in a tantrum if it’s not.

In Still Darkness ~ Dianne Duvall
Series ~ Immortal Guardians, #3.5

This is yummy Richart’s story in the even yummier Immortal Guardian series. I need say no more. *pauses* What do you mean you haven’t read the series?! *mind boggles* Get thee crackin’ right now! You don’t know what you’re missing! *makes shooing motions*

High Stakes ~ Hannah Jayne
Series ~ Underworld Detection Agency, #4.5

A little side story for the resident vampire, Nina LaShay, from the Underworld Detection series. She goes to New York for a fashion competition and instead ends up giving Sophie a run for her money in the dead-people-show-up-wherever-she-goes competition. Vlad is in this and a new interesting character shows up. I hope Pike sticks around. All-in-all a fun addition to the series.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know that some people enjoy anthologies and some don't. I admit, I fall into the former category. I like introductions to new worlds that I want to visit because it is part of a series I want to read or just visiting worlds just invented for the short story. I also think that short stories are very hard to write. You have to develop a connection and a world in a very short time. So when it works, I really enjoy it.

In this anthology 2 of the 4 stories was an introduction to a new series and another one was part of an already established series. These were my favorites. Out of Control brings us an interesting world where people develop paranormal abilities and are separated from the "norms". It's a great start to the series and has me interested in further stories. In some way the romance felt a bit forced due to the length, but yet still kept my interest. I'm very curious as to how this world evolves within the series. I'm looking forward to reading it.

In Ties That Bind, I think this one isn't an introduction to a new series. I thought it really started off with a bang and was very gritty and gothic. Much darker than most PNR you read. However, it sort of got a bit funny to me when what kills others is the beauty of the vampire. Some may eye roll at this and some may actually love the creativity within. I did both, but was entertained no matter what my eyes were doing.

In Still Darkness is a part of an established series (Immortal Guardians) which I have read and reviewed. I love this world and the stories and this one was just so much fun going back to that world and learning about another character. You don't have to have read the others to get it, but it makes it just that much more fun if you had. If you love this series (like me) then you will really love this short.

High Stakes is a fun PNR with a lot of tongue in cheek. I suspect I will like this series much better when there is more time to really explore the mysteries surrounding the main character Nina. I also think I will have more fun with a longer novel as it should really bring out Nina's snark. I can see the beginnings of excellent snark... can't wait to see how it is even better pulled off.

All in all I give this anthology 4 stars. Like other anthologies you will enjoy some more than others, but in all, it was an entertaining book. Great for introductions to other PNR worlds which is what I think this book was all about. It pulled it off nicely. :)

[PepperP0t · Rating 4 out of 5]

Out of Control - Alexandra Ivy (Sentinels .5) (3.5stars)
Sentinel hunter, Niko is in the human realm to protect latent high-blood geneticist, Angela Locke from Dylan. Though Niko's bound to capture Dylan, he can't help falling for the awkward scientist. Dylan's left a bloody path behind her escaping from Valhalla (the safe-house realm for high-bloods supernaturals that do not easily blend with humans).

Seeing Dylan in action, Angela agrees to help him save her life. This short sets a good foundation for the world but even for a paranormal short, the romance was too rushed and seemed to be missing pieces for my taste.

Ties That Bind - Nina Bangs (4.25stars)
Cassie is terrified of dead people but promised to sit at her friend's job while she takes care of an emergency. When two men come to finish their work, Carrie can only take comfort in the fact that they're alive and not zombies because they scare the daylights out of her. Cassie has every right to be scared since they don't plan good things for her. Defending herself, Carrie unleashes Ethan, a vampire.

This engaging tale is reminiscent of old fashioned vampire movies and it's so well written you practically hear melodramatic music. There's a fair amount of action on the way to romance. This reader was glad it was a novella since the read was a little scarier than I like.

In Still Darkness - Dianne Duvall (Immortal Guardians 3.5) (4.25stars)
Immortal guardian Richart d'Alencon is on patrol to save humans from vampires when he sees two young vampires preparing to attack single mom Jenna McBride and stops them before they can. Richart erases he memory for Jenna but recognizes Jenna as a gifted one and his mate. Now if only he can convince her. Jenna doesn't believe in vampires and has no idea why Richart is suddenly vital to her.

Stake Out - Hannah Jayne (Underworld Detection Agency 4.5) (3.25stars)
Vampire Nina LaShay dreams of her own clothing line that she'll cleverly call, Drop Dead. Nina enters a contest that will get her just that but the finalists are all ending up dead making her a very likely suspect. Can Nina outwit the police and find the murderer before she's arrested? This light entry was my least favorite as the writing style was not to my taste and I couldn't connect with the characters.
Overall Rating: 4stars

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Copy provided by Netgalley*


It was nice to have four short paranormal stories from different authors in a book. I liked it but I didn't LOVE it. Sometimes I had a hard time to finish one story and start with another. I couldn't read it in one shot and had to take some time to finish it.

I wish the first story "Out of control" was longer. I liked that the heroine was one of the 'freaks' like Nikolo and that she was able to manipulate cells even if she didn't really know what she's doing. The "woman" (I don't even know if I can call it that) who wanted to use her for her own benefits was really creeping me out. My imagination has its limits and I can't even imagine what her face looks like...But it's probably better to not know ;).

I liked the second story better ("Ties that bind"), I was hooked with her humour and I felt like I was Cassie in that creepy place at the very beginning. The end was too fast, there were still questions unanswered and I wanted to know more about it!

In the third one "In still darkness", I liked Sheldon (he was funny) but Jenna was annoying sometimes (like when she insists it's only the flu even if Robert know what the situation really is). It was a nice read :).

The fourth story, "High stakes" take place during a fashion contest. The vampire was a woman (it seems like the vampires are mostly men in books) So there is a murderer and Nina try to find out what's going on when she appears to be the suspect number 1 but she could also be the next victim. With her, there is the mysterious Pike and he's keeping secrets on his own too. Nina will only found out about them at the very end of the book.


Predatory is a nice read introducing you to different short paranormal stories :).

[Paulina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Out of Control: This is 0.5 in the Sentinel series. I loved Alexandra Ivy's short, interesting world-building and characters, and am very excited about this new series! 5 stars.

Ties That Bind: I liked Nina Bangs' short, though it seemed to end abruptly with many questions unanswered. It doesn't seem to be part of a series (which would explain why all the loose ends were not tied up). But despite this I'll add her to my TBR list and see if I like her other works as well - maybe with more pages she can wrap things up better. 3 stars.

In Still Darkness: This is 3.5 in the Immortal Guardians series. I enjoyed Dianne Duvall's short. I like that the heroine was 37 with a grown son, and that, other than in the beginning, she wasn't a damsel in distress. I'll definitely be reading the rest of the series. 5 stars.

High Stakes: This is 4.5 in the Underworld Agency Chronicles series. Hannah Jayne's short was okay. The heroine was a little on the annoying side. It's a general turn-off to me to read characters saying something is "totes cute". But that's just a personal taste. The 2 mysteries (a murder mystery and another one that is spoilerish) were obvious. But since the short was only about 43 pages or so, there wasn't a whole lot of space to really develop a decent mystery. But there were some entertaining moments, so I may eventually check out the other books in the series, though it's not high on my TBR list. 3 stars.

[T.J. Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars!

I’m just going to admit that I picked up PREDATORY because of Dianne Duvall and while I enjoyed all the short stories, my review is based on Ms. Duvall’s short, IN STILL DARKNESS.

Having said that, I really, really enjoyed IN STILL DARKNESS. Writing a short seems like it’d be a tricky proposition. I mean the author has to fit a lot within a short: introduce characters and make the reader sympathize for them, develop a quick, fast paced plot, nurture a growing attraction, and wrap things up to realistically foster a happily-ever-after ending. Wow, that’s a lot! Out of the shorts I’ve read, I’ve always had a hard time with the insta-love that happens as a result of trying to cram everything in, but thankfully that didn’t happen with IN STILL DARKNESS. I don’t know how Ms. Duvall did it, but the story felt complete and wasn’t rushed for me.

As always, I love the characters and the world Ms. Duvall has created. Richart and Jenna were believable and great together. I also enjoyed the interaction with Jenna’s son, John. Sarah and Roland continue to warm my heart and I was glad to see them. And can I just say…dude! I love Sheldon!

The witty mix of dialogue, action, and romance makes IN STILL DARKNESS a great PNR short!

I’m now anxiously awaiting book five in the Immortal Guardians series, Night Unbound.

[Dali · Rating 5 out of 5]

”I am so smitten with you.”

Yeap! That’s basically what I feel towards Dianne Duvall’s Immortal Guardian series. Ever since the first I make a happy dance when a new book is announced and hug my eReader when it finally arrives there.

In this brief story, compiled with three other paranormal shorts, we go back in time a bit to when handsome, compelling Richart d'Alençon meets and woos the very lovely and very human Jenna.

I really like Duvall’s writing style. Her books, short of full length, are well thought out, well paced, with good amount and balance between action, romance, comedy and sexy. And I really like the way those old Immortals talk.

“I love the way you phrase things. Like the heroes from the historical romance novels I read.”

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars I liked the first three stories in the book, Ivy and Bangs have been favorites for years. I thought the Bangs story had another good turn on vamp romances. I've never read Diane Duvall before but I enjoyed her novella which is part of a series. Now I have to move them up in my tbr pile. The Jayne story was ok, but I am not a 1st person fan so that colors my opinion somewhat.

[Ann Lorz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful mix of some great authors. You have a lite something for everyone. I enjoyed the story all the stories but the last one, and the reason I didn't care for it was only because it was first person and nothing to so with the story itself. I'm not a fan of first person.

[Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Out of Control by Alexandra Ivy
5 stars
This was my first Alexandra Ivy book and I'll definitely be looking to read more. I wasn't ready for Angela and Nico's story to end. I'm really bummed it's over.

Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs
4.5 stars
I feel that this story could be part of a series or at least an offshoot of one, but it appears to be written only as a short story in the anthology Predatory. I could not find it as it's own entity anywhere. I'm bummed as I really enjoyed this story and would be interested in learning more about this world Nina Bangs has created. I sincerely hope some of her other books exist in this same world as I would like to read more. I just find it hard to believe this short story isn't connected to anything else Bangs has written.

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall
4.5 stars
I really enjoyed this book but it ended super abruptly. I was so excited to see what happened next once they got home and told John who it was. It makes me wonder if a shortened version was put into the anthology Predatory or if that's actually all there is. Either way, it really stunk for it to end that way. I'll have to look into it. I very much enjoyed was I was able to read and can't imagine Jenna and Richart's story is actually over. Everything until the end of the book was great and makes me want to read more of the Immortal Guardians series (knowing that John is also one of the gifted makes me really want to hear his story, so I hope he's included in the Immortal Guardians series as well), and of Dianne Duvall's work in general. I will be upset, though, if this is truly all there was to this particular story.

High Stakes by Hannah Jayne
4 stars
While I did enjoy it, this was probably my least favorite story in the anthology. I was able to guess the killer well before the story ended. While there were some sparks between Nina and Pike, their romance never seemed to truly develop. It was an enjoyable story, but it didn't quite measure up to the other three books in the anthology.

[Malinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall I really liked this book. My opinions of each story ranged so I've written out s review for each story.

Out Of Control by Alexandra Ivy

4-4.5 stars

This was a really good story. It’s my first story by Ms. Ivy and I was impressed with her writing. As this is the beginning of the Sentinels series (#.05) I'll definitely be checking out the first book in the series.

Angela is a student in genetics. She’s very smart but also very shy. She’s been interested in one of the new professors but despairs when she thinks he has no interest in her. Of course he keeps showing up to see her but she’s always sure he has other reasons than interest in her.

Nikolo is a Sentinel and is hunting for another Sentinel that’s gone crazy. He’s convinced that she'll come looking for Angela because of her abilities in genetics and has been shadowing Angela because of this, pretending he’s a visiting professor. Along the way, Nikolo finds himself falling for the sweet scientist.

When the psycho comes after Angela, Nikolo has to protect her and ends up revealing himself and what his mission is. Seeing that she was used as bait, Angela is hurt by this and isn't very happy with Nikolo. Now he has to go all out to try to get her forgiveness while still keeping her safe. Obviously this is a short story so things go pretty quickly but it was well written so it didn't feel stinted. It ends well and overall I really liked the story and the characters.


Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs

3-3.5 stars

This was a good story. It’s the first story I’ve read by the author. Based on this I might try more buy the author in the future.

Cassie does a friend a favor and ends up regretting it. While covering for a few hours at a funeral parlor for a friend, Cassie finds herself involved in an undercover plot that is heading her towards getting killed. When she unexpectedly releases an imprisoned vampire, he helps her and they escape together.

Ethan is a vampire that was captured and held captive via mystical means by humans for unknown reasons. When he escapes he finds himself involved with Cassie and doesn’t want to let her go. He keeps her near to keep her safe while he and other vampires try to discover what the human hunters want and why they’re after the vampires.

During all the drama Cassie and Ethan find themselves drawn together. There’s an added part to the vampire mythos in this story that makes Ethan more dangerous to Cassie but she’s still drawn to him. Although they fight it, they both feel the pull to each other and obviously they end up giving in. Just as things are looking good between the 2 of them the action drama spikes and Cassie is captured by the enemy. They do something terrible to her before Ethan is able to save her but it works out to make for a good ending.

This was a good story. It has a HEA for the romance but the action plotline wasn’t fully resolved and I can’t find that it’s part of an existing series so the plot might not get resolved overall (let’s just say they won the battle but not the war). TBH, I wish the story had been a bit longer. I think I would have liked the story more with more character development. Overall I did enjoy the story and would be willing to try something more full-length by the author


In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall

4.5-5 stars

This was a great story. I've read the rest of the Immortal Guardians series and loved it so I was really thrilled to see Richart get his story.

Jenna is 37 years old and has a son that just started college. She works as the night manager at a superstore. She hasn't had things easy but has made a good life for her and her son. One night at the end of work she is attacked by Vampires and is saved. In gratitude for saving her, she gives her savior a kiss that she doesn't remember later.

Richart is an Immortal Guardian (immortals that hunt Vampires and protect humans). He is hunting vampires one night when he hears a woman scream. He goes to her rescue and saves her, earning a kiss for his troubles. But afterwards, Richart can't forget her and finds himself visiting her, frequently.

Jenna and Richart start out with a light flirtation between them. Richart goes to her store often when she's working and they've chatted while sharing coffee on her breaks. After a bit he asks her out on a date and she's a bit unsure about their age differences, since she's sure she's older than him. He convinces her it doesn't matter to him and they start to date.

Things are going good between them, and Richart even meets her son and they get long well, when things heat up in the vamp world. During a fight with vampires, Richart gets drugged and as a result, ends up accidentally showing what he is to Jenna. He had intended to tell her anyways but it came out in a bad way. Fortunately, Jenna didn't freak and was willing to hear his explanations. Once she heard everything, she was willing to stay with him regardless of their differences. Things grow between Richart and Jenna but there is an issue that almost costs Jenna her life. Things turn out well though and Richart & Jenna get a very nice HEA.

I thought this story was great. I love the series and I'm glad Richart got his book and the girl. Jenna is cool and I look forward to seeing her character in the next book in the series.


High Stakes by Hannah Jayne

3 stars

This was a good story. It’s the first I’ve read by this author and while it was alright I’m not sure if I’ll try another book by this author.

Nina is a fashion designer that’s in New York for a competition. She’s also a vampire. She finds trouble before the competition even starts when one of the 3 designers in the competition is killed. When the second is killed, Nina becomes the prime suspect.

Pike is a photographer. We don’t get much background about him but he is assigned to take pictures of the 3 competitors and ends up getting drawn in to things when the first body shows up. When the second ends up being an ex of his and he becomes a possible suspect he tries to find the murderer.

Nina decides she should try finding out who the murderer is because she’s a suspect. Pike keeps showing up and alternately accusing her of the murders and helping her investigate. Nina’s attracted to Pike but since he runs hot and cold on her, he’s hard to figure out. TBH, I didn’t feel the heat between them. As I was reading, I wasn’t sure how they’d come together in the end. The murders do get solved and Nina and Pike end things on somewhat good terms but I really don’t have a clue if they ended up together at the end of the story or not. There was a comment about them making a good team but we’re not left with any idea if they’ll try a relationship or not (although I guess you’re supposed to assume they do…). Maybe it was just me not liking the writing style but I ended the story feeling a little disappointed that there wasn’t a more solid conclusion.


I listened to this on audiobook and the narrator did a very good job. Its total run time is 12:07. The story start times are:

Out Of Control by Alexandra Ivy – the first story
Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs – starts at 3:11
In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall – starts at 6:09
High Stakes by Hannah Jayne – Starts at 9:18

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Out of Control by Alexandra Ivy ***3 Stars
Highbloods are people with gifts, some can blend in and some cannot. Dylan is one who can't and she wants so badly to be normal that she goes on a killing spree to get to Angela. She is a scientist who works with cell manipulation....she is also a highblood but she doesn't know it. Niko is posing as a profressor but he is a sentinel who is on Dylan's trail but gets caught up with his feelings for Angela. This was ok...about what you would expect from a novella. I did like Niko and Angela and I thought the idea of the highbloods sounds pretty interesting.

Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs ****4 Stars
Cassie is doing a favor for a friend when she falls neck deep into a scheme buying and selling vampire powers. I actually really enjoyed this one. The characters were fun and the story was interesting.

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall ***3 Stars
Richart is an immortal guardian who saves Jenna from vampires but then becomes a tad obsessed with her after she kisses him in thanks. They start a relationship even though Richart doesn't believe it can go anywhere. He then accidentally reveals his nature to Jenna and her son, but they prove to be a bit tougher than he first thought. This was ok. I don't love the the Immortal Guardian series but I think the novella format worked for me.

High Stakes by Hannah Jayne **2 Stars
A fashion completion turns murder investigation. This was from the Underworld Detection Agency of which I only read book 1. In the book, Nina was my least favorite character so I'm not surprised that I didn't enjoy this. It was just flat.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Out Of Control by Alexandra Ivy
Ph.D student Angela Locke has a crush on her sexy professor, Dr. Nikolo Bartrev. When she learns he's actually a Sentinel with extraordinary powers, she joins forces with him to catch a psychopath. But soon, their hottest pursuit is of each other...
Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs
Cassie Tyler agrees to sub for her friend at the funeral home where she works. But she gets more than she bargained for when a group of men attack her and a vampire comes to her rescue. . .
In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall
Immortal Richart d'Alençon can't forget the woman who rewarded him with a sensuous kiss after he saved her from a trio of vampires. While Richart knows that loving a human can only bring trouble, the taste of forbidden lust is too great to resist. . .
High Stakes by Hannah Jayne
When vampire fashionista Nina LaShay's design contest rival is found dead, she's the prime suspect. Sexy photographer Pike is number two. He's the kind of man who makes Nina salivate. But will she have to reveal herself to have him--and to save them both? Or does Pike have a secret of his own?​

Heather's Notes
These were not bad stories. I liked them all, 3 were from ongoing series. The one from NB seems to be a stand alone but read like the beginning of a series. I thought it need a little more resolution, and figured it was in the nonexistent series. Still I enjoyed all the stories and will probably be checking out a few new series.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once upon a time I was sitting in front of my computer… Okay so I sit in front of my computer every day, but that's not the point, anyway… On my computer I was browsing Dianne Duvall's website in the hopes of finding out when her next Immortal Guardians book was going to come out and not only did I discover that Darkness Rises, book #4 in the series was due out, but I also discovered that she had written a short story, In Still Darkness, about Richart, whose romance with a mortal had been alluded to in both Night Reigns and Phantom Shadows, and published it in an anthology called Predatory. I was so excited, I immediately went to Amazon.com and ordered .

I tell you all that so that you will understand that "In Still Darkness" was the reason that I bought this book. The start to Alexandra Ivy's new Sentinel series, Out of Control, had almost nothing to do with the purchase, I just saw this one as a bonus, since I like Alexandra Ivy's Guardians of Eternity series and will no doubt read her Sentinel series as well. The other short stories in the anthology, Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs and High Stakes by Hannah Jayne had nothing to do with it.

I can, now having read the entirety of the anthology, quite honestly say that despite the exorbitant amount it would have cost, I still would have paid the price of the entire book, just for Dianne Duvall's contribution alone, though you will not have to because In Still Darkness is now available on its own through all the usual booksellers. However, at the time I purchased this it was not so I'm happy to report that I enjoyed all four!

However, before I get to my breakdown of my star ratings for each story, I do want to tell you that I purchased this also as an Audible Audiobook. I mention this because I always like to comment on whoever narrates the story or in this case stories. Under normal circumstances, I'm sure that Erika Rapson, the narrator for "Predatory", is a fine narrator. Unfortunately, she is not the narrator for the rest of the "Immortal Guardians" series and I'm afraid she'd just doesn't measure up to Kristin Potter. For one, her French accent is atrocious and she doesn't pronounce the names of the characters properly. The story is still just as awesome as ever, but her narration definitely leaves much to be desired.

Below is my breakdown of star ratings for each story:
Out of Control (Sentinel #0.5) by Alexandra Ivy 4.5 stars
I enjoyed this beginning to the Sentinel series and after reading this one will absolutely be reading the books that will be coming in the future!

Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs 3.5 stars
As far as I know this is not part of a series currently being written by this author, but it was an enjoyable short and could easily be made into a series as the bad guy behind the whole problem was not dealt with in this story. Who knows what Nina has in store for the future of this one. :-)

In Still Darkness (Immortal Guardians #3.5) by Dianne Duvall 5 stars
As you can tell by the rating, this one was my favorite! I absolutely adored it from start to finish and couldn't put it down. At one point I literally cheered when we found out that both Jenna and her son John are gifted ones! I'm so glad that Richart will be able to spend eternity with the love of his life, when just moments before we thought he may lose her to the virus! I also loved how the story took us from their meeting, through the parts alluded to in the two previous books and gave us a conclusion we can all be happy with. :-) It was a beautiful romance from start to finish!!!

High Stakes (Underworld Detection Agency #4.5) by Hannah Jayne 3 stars
Upon finishing this story in the Dear Reader letter at the end, I discovered that this is part of the Underworld Detection Agency series (or UDA, to those of us in the know). At some point I may decide to read the series that goes with this short, but as this is the one I had the hardest time getting through, I'm honestly not motivated to rush right out and read them right now.

Read:
May 19-23, 2013 - Kindle Edition
July 26, 2017 - Audible Audiobook - Reduced from $27.99 to $7.49 if you own the Kindle Edition
July 16, 2020 – Audible Audiobook
January 7, 2021 – Audible Audiobook

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

An anthology of four stories about from four popular paranormal romance authors.
1) ‘Out of Control’. By Alexandra Ivy. 0.5 The Sentinels. 3 stars. When a psychotic Sentinel escapes another is sent to prevent her from killing another and finds his true love. I found the Sentinel organization to be very confusing, but otherwise the story was ok. May read the rest of series.
2) ‘Ties That Bind’. By Nina Bangs. 3 stars. Darkest of the four. While working at a funeral home Cassie accidently rescues a captured vampire. But she has to flee with Ethan and gets mixed up in his world and his need for revenge. Felt like there should be other books but couldn’t find any.
3) ‘In Still Darkness’. By Dianne Duvall. 3.5 Immortal Guardians. 5 stars. In between fighting vampires, Guardian Richart tries to keep his growing attraction for Jenna, a single mom with a teen son, secret from his Immortal family until he can figure out if and how to tell her what he is. This is the story I read this book for.
4) ‘High Stakes’. By Hannah Jayne. 4.5 Underworld Detection Agency. 4 stars. Just before the start of a New York Fashion Week one of Nina LaShay’s competitor’s assistants is found dead. Lighthearted, vampire fashion designer/detective story. Interesting enough that I put the series on my to-read list.

[Liz F · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley.


I'm finding that I really enjoy paranormal romance. So when I saw that some of my favorite authors had an anthology together, I knew I had to read it! There are 4 novellas in Predatory and here is how they break down:

Out Of Control by Alexandra Ivy
I liked another book that I read by this author and I was excited to see what else she had. This novella looks like the very beginning of a new series for her. I loved it and I can't wait to pick up the next one!

Angela Locke is a very bookish PhD student who really, really would rather stay in and do research rather than go out with her friends...er friend. She's socially awkward but I loved her! She has this serious crush on this visiting professor and they chit chat but she absolutely has the hots for him. Well, not everything is as it seems, of course! The visiting professor, Nikolo, is a Sentinel. A Sentinel is a guardian of the "freaks". Now, "freaks" are anybody who is born with special powers, like telepathy, mind reading, etc. Think X-Men. And like X-Men, most (if not all) live in this castle behind huge walls, yadda yadda yadda. So one of the evil "freaks" is after Angela and Nikolo is using Angela as bait. You KNOW that even though Anegla is a bit of a shrinking violet, she's still going to be mighty pissed! The sparks fly between them and its a lot of fun to watch it go down. There are plenty of laughs, excellent sexy time and plenty of action! Gah! I was on the edge of my seat! One minor issue: if you aren't really into the book and paying close attention, it may seem like Nikolo goes from being indifferent to Angela to being in love with her in a very short amount of time.

This was a great novella and an excellent intro to Alexandra Ivy's writing.


Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs
This one was a little weird. I've not read Nina Bangs before and although this novella felt strange, I think I kind of liked it!

Cassie has a very strange fear of corpses. I mean, don't we all? But she has, like, a debilitating fear stemming from a horrible incident when she was a child. She's subbing in for a friend who works at a mortuary... wouldn't ya know it?! LOL! But I really liked Cassie. She's got this phobia but she works through it and then later, she's kind of a badass! And if not a badass, then she at least has a hand in keeping herself AND others safe. Anyways, various things happen... various BAD things... and Cassie finds herself in serious trouble when a vampire comes to her rescue. It felt like there was this whole mob-esque connection so Cassie and her vampire rescuer, Ethan, are on the run. Why a vampire would have to run from the mob is a really long story and I don't want to give anything away so let's just say that it involves plenty of magic. Ethan is a pretty great hero and you know this because he rescues a bad tempered cat from his dead neighbor's apartment.

Just a couple of issues with this one: this is a very unusual vampire tale. The vampires have, like, cat eyes when they vamp out. They have something called The Second One, which is part of them and is responsible for any killing that happens. Drinking of blood isn't really discussed but sounds like they have to do it. I really felt like I was dropped into the middle of a series already in progress but if that's the case, I couldn't find any information on it. Maybe you won't be confused but I was. Still, I enjoyed this novella and I hope that there are more to come.

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall
Full disclosure: I love Dianne Duvall. A lot. Her Immortal Guardians series is amazing. I'm just sayin'...

I really believe that you could read this novella without having read the rest of the series. If you even SORT OF like this offering from Dianne Duvall, I implore you to try the rest of the series. You'll love it.

Richart is a centuries old French immortal. Kind of like a vampire that's almost impossible to kill. They don't really drink blood but an infusion of blood can help them heal super fast. Anyway, he's so sweet and handsome (duh) AND he can teleport! Awesome! He has telepathy with his brother and sister who are also Immortals. One night, he saves a woman from regular vampires (the bad guys in this series) and he can't get her out of his head. So he decides to keep an eye on her (code: stalks her! LOL!). Of course, she doesn't mind since he's a great guy.

There is a special treat for anyone who has already read the series. In the last book of the series, Phantom Shadows, we saw that Richart was always on the phone and there were some off-handed comments about his human woman. In this novella, you see the other side of it and get the whole story. There isn't anything I didn't like about this novella. I loved it, loved it, loved it!


High Stakes by Hannah Jayne
This was a DNF for me. Within the first few pages, the main characters uses the phrase "totes adorbs" which I'm pretty sure is air-headed-California-bimbo speak for totally adorable. It pissed me off when I read it and it took me right out of the story. That has got to be the dumbest phrase ever invented. But I stuck with it since I've never read this author before. But I never connected with the heroine and the rest of the characters were just as vapid. I quit before the second chapter. Sorry.

Overall, I'd recommend this book. For the novellas, there's one great one, two good ones and one awful one. That made me give this anthology 3.5 stars. I enjoyed it and I will for sure be checking out some of those authors again!