Sinners & Sorcerers

by S.M. Reine

EXCLUSIVE! 2 brand-new releases by SM REINE and ROBERT J. CRANE that you'll find only in SINNERS & SORCERERS!

4 full-length books by 5 bestselling authors
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WITCH HUNT (Preternatural Affairs) - SM Reine
Cesar Hawke wakes up with a dead waitress in his bathtub after a night of drunken partying, but he knows he didn't kill her. He works for the Office of Preternatural Affairs. He doesn't hurt people - he saves them. The cops disagree. Now he's running. He'll have to find Isobel Stonecrow, a witch that speaks to the dead, to clear his name and get his life back. He's bagged a dozen witches before. How hard can one more be?
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CALLED (Southern Watch) - Robert J. Crane
A local cop keeping order in Midian, Tennessee, Archibald "Arch" Stan lives a good but ultimately empty life. Until the drifter with a sword comes to town. Lafayette Hendricks fights things that don't die - even when shot. As demons, chaos and unspeakable evils threaten Arch's small town, he and Hendricks must join forces to keep watch on the darkness before it swallows Midian--and from there, the world.
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FLAMING DOVE - Daniel Arenson
A child of both angel and demon, Laila is outcast from Hell, banished from Heaven and lost on an Earth left in ruins. Yet the armies of Armageddon, ended now in an uneasy truce set to implode, both need her. She can become the ultimate spy...or ultimate soldier. As the armies of Heaven and Hell pursue her, Laila's forced to confront the struggle between her demonic and heavenly blood that battles within her heart.
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CURSED! - Scott Nicholson & J.R. Rain
Albert Shipway is an ordinary SoCal guy, an insurance negotiator who likes booze and women and never having to say he’s sorry. But a little old woman knows about the storm of broken things -- promises, hearts, families -- littering his past, and she has one heck of a recipe for supernatural revenge: a psychotic ex, a pinch of childhood fear, a life-stealing great-granddad and a notorious mass murderer who doesn't know he's dead. Albert's about to get a chance to right some wrongs.

Genres: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy

806 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 4, 2014

About the author

Hi everyone! My name is Sara, and I write urban fantasy and paranormal novels as SM Reine. I collect swords, cat hair, and typewriters (which I do use for writing!). It's a good day when those three things have nothing to do with each other.

If you would like to know the instant my next book is available, you should enlist in my Army of Evil! We have a wicked cool secret handshake, but you'll have to sign up to learn it. ;) Check it out -- http://smarturl.it/armyofevil

Reviews

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this box set on the basis that it contains books by two of my favourite authors, SM Reine, and Robert J Crane, with 2 extras thrown in for good measure.... and what a bargain it was

I have enjoyed everything these two have written....

Called - by Robert J Crane is something of a different genre than the previous series i have read from him. Nevertheless, as with all his work, I found this to be well written, engaging, humorous with a kick ass hero and a great cliff hanger ending. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who likes their demon fiction....cant wait for the next one... (hint hint!).

Witch Hunt- by SM Reine is a spin off of sorts from the Elise Kavanagh novels. I love how SM's stories link in seamlessly - again, well written and drew me in from the off, which was good, because I wasnt expecting to like a story about the OPA. Again, thoroughly recommended.

[Myra Wray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately I found that this book not so good. Story-line could have been better.

[Shirley]

So far I've read 2 books in this set and I loved both of them....

Witch Hunt by S.M. Reine 5 Stars

From the moment I started reading Witch Hunt I knew that this was going to be a different kind of story than what I was used to from S.M. Reine. I love the characters in her Seasons of the Moon, Descent and Ascension series. Those books are centered around Elise and Rylie and while they are very different characters, the vibe that you get from both of them is dark. From the description of Witch Hunt, it’s obvious that this isn’t a light and fluffy read by any stretch. It’s just that the feeling you get from Cesar is a lot lighter. I know that’s kind of vague and honestly, I’ve been struggling with the best way to describe it and I keep coming back to the same ‘feeling.’ Regardless of how I say it, what I’m trying to get across is that Cesar’s POV is fresh and totally different than the author’s other characters and I liked it. A lot.

The fact that I even liked Cesar was kind of a surprise considering who he was. If you’ve read any of the other books by S.M. Reine you know that officers from the Office of Preternatural Affairs aren’t necessarily the good guys. If you have any qualms at all about whether or not your opinion will change, ignore them. Cesar is definitely one of the good guys… well not perfectly good, but… you get the picture. The kind of ‘good guy’ that was just rough around the edges enough to be interesting.

Cesar wasn’t the only interesting character in Witch Hunt though. There was a full cast. The thing was that you never knew exactly who was on what side. I changed my opinion about characters more than once – and that rarely happens. Usually there is a turning point and you know pretty much what to expect. I thought that was happening this time, but I was wrong… and then I was wrong again. As frustrating as it may seem, I love it when that happens. Basically, nothing was EVER as it seemed. EVER.

This is one of those books where I could keep going, and going, and going and basically ramble on and on about what I loved about it. I don’t want to give anything away though – so I’ll just leave you with a little taste of why I loved Cesar so much. This is from the first chapter so I’m not spoiling anything, honest

Would you look at that? A pair of open handcuffs dangled from my headboard. The key glistened on the bedside table, reflecting a sunbeam right into my aching eyeballs. I didn’t make a habit of decorating my bedroom with my work equipment, so I assumed that recreational use of my cuffs meant I had company. The best kind of company.
I swatted it with a finger and grinned at the clatter of chains.
My eyes traveled from the cuffs to my arm. Four bloody scratches spanned the space between wrist and elbow.
I’d handled enough crime scenes to recognize fingernail marks. And I’d been with enough women to know that some wildcats liked it like that.
Yeah, definitely a hell of a night.

Witch Hunt is currently available as part of a set that includes 4 books from 5 different authors. I’ve read one other book in the set. Cursed by J.R. Rain and Scott Nicholson. I can’t wait to get to the rest. The other books include Called by Robert J. Crane and Flaming Dove by Daniel Arenson.

Cursed by J.R. Rain and Scott Nicholson 4 Stars

Okay, after reading that synopsis and checking out the cover how could you not at least take a peek at Cursed? It may sound weird, but this paranormal murder mystery was a fun read. Who knew?

Albert isn’t your typical male hero. He’s an alcoholic, adulterer, underachieving coward. But hey, what’s not to love? He finds out within a 24 hour period that the love of his life has been murdered, his hopefully soon to be ex-wife is crazier than even he suspected, he’s been cursed by a witch and he’s a father. Needless to say this book doesn’t slow down until the final page is turned. Also, I’m not sure if I have Scott Nicholson or J.R. Rain to thank for my floor crawling nightmares, but regardless, thank you. Thank you very much! o.O

Cursed was one of those books that had a little bit of everything. It only had a hint of romance, but that’s Okay. It had more than enough humor, mystery, action, suspense and danger (and yes, there was a gross factor too *shivers*) to keep me interested.

Although this is the first book I’ve read by Scott Nicholson, I’ve several of J.R. Rain’s books, which brings me to my guilt factor confession. Looking back, I realized that this is the first of his books that I have reviewed. I guess that means it’s time for some more ‘Deja Vu’ reviews. It’s been a while – guess I’ll just have to force myself to re-read Moon Dance (Vampire for Hire #1), Vampire Moon (Vampire for Hire #2) and Dark Horse (Jim Knight Horse #1). *sigh* The sacrifices I make in the attempt to be a conscientious reader and reviewer. Stay tuned!

[Cheryl M-M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four highly entertaining Urban Fantasy stories..

Witch Hunt
Sort of sucks big time when the tables get turned on you, especially when you're the one usually dishing out the judgment and punishment. Poor old Cèsar just can't seem to catch a break when he wakes up to find himself in the midst of a crime scene and he is the only viable suspect. Unfortunately he can't remember who, when, what or how and that may have something to do with the 50 Shades of Alcohol from the night before. So what does a member of the supernatural law enforcement do when caught in such a predicament?
Yes, that's right, he makes a run for it like any sensible law-abiding chap would.
After being thrust into the world of 'you're on your own and we don't care if you hang' attitude of both his employer and to some extent his partner Suzy, he takes matters into his own hands. They only way to get answers is to ask the only other person there that night.
But...you mean the dead person? Yes, right again. Cèsar has concocted a foolproof plan to prove his innocence, which would be fine if he was 100% sure he didn't do it, there is just this teeny weeny Tequila worm of doubt wriggling in his memory.

Called
This is something completely different for Crane.
A walk on the darker, more gruesome border of the worlds of Urban Fantasy.
I am not sure how I feel about this one. It lacked the distinctive style and Craneness I have come to enjoy about his books and yet it had a certain je ne sais quoi.
We have a trio of main characters, Hollywood the gentleman demon with the morals of an alley cat, Hendricks the nonchalant demon-hunter and Arch the cop with a conscience. Three strong men who couldn't be more different and yet each one interwoven into the hidden world of the supernatural.
The story seemed to overwhelm the characters though, which meant they left less of an overall imprint than they could and should have done.
The sense of evil is ripe and the feeling that worse is yet to come lingers like a overpowering sense of foreboding throughout the tale. Simultaneously Crane has managed to stamp his own special brand of wit on the story. The end-product is a mad mix of limb-chomping (literally) horror, quirky humour meets Urban Fantasy.
One thing I have to mention is the accent and general feeling of the setting. I swear whilst I read it I could hear a southern drawl throughout.

Flaming Dove
If all the Fallen Angels are brothers then doesn't that make the daughters and sons of said angels relatives of all the other angels. So technically that makes Beelzebub an uncle to the half-sisters Bet-al and Laila. That makes all the seducing of very young girls just ever so slightly incestuous and Beelzebub a little less of a charming seducer.
The concept was quite interesting but the story suffered a little from repetitive phrases and the superb battle between the evil and good forces was overshadowed by the romantic overtures of the overeager Lord of Hell.
With Beelzebub being such a lech with a penchant for young virgins it might be easy to overlook another dilemma I found intriguing.
There is a grey area in between the evil demons and the good angels. Laila is both, which means she is neither completely demon nor angel. Then there is the issue of Bat-al changing her affiliations. So that must mean that angels and demons can be good and/or evil and perhaps a combo of the two. The murky waters that follow this conclusion are bound to ruffle some feathers and bat wings.

Cursed
The beginning is a tad somber much like the main character Albert Shipway. There isn't much that isn't wrong about his life and to top it all off he ends up making the acquaintance of an odd old woman who decides he needs to be cursed.Just when you think things can't get worse than they are and you find they can.
In one day Albert gets a curse, becomes a father of a baby kidnapped by his psycho ex-wife and finds there is a small matter of a serial killer gone zombie Golem to deal with. Happy Days.
Oh and of course there is the minor issue of his curse in form of his mouse phobia. They are simply everywhere giving him the major heebie-jeebies. I can't say that mice bother me very much, although I would find it mildly irritating if they were harassing me every second of the day.
The build-up of the evil father-in-law come back to life to kill again was good, however it culminated in a very short ending of said Golem. Shame really seeing as the previous info on the man was quite creepy, I was expecting a lot more from that character.
It is an entertaining read with a sense of morbid and a quirky sense of humour.

I received a copy of this box-set courtesy of the authors, although I actually ended up buying a copy of it on the Amazon UK site.

[Bookworm52732 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read and enjoyed books by SM Reine, Robert Crane, JR Rain and Scot Nicholson and will most likely read more. I give each of their stories in this volume four stars.

I can't say the same for Mr. Arenson as I did not like Flaming Dove. Not only overly descriptive, but repetitively so. He needs to give his readers a break, we have a brain and a memory and I believe most fantasy readers like to fill in some of the blanks themselves. After the first mention of the Queen of Hell drooling, we get it, she drools, no need to keep bringing it up. Her hair burns and sparks and smolders, yep, got that too. Why in the world, after describing the clothes Laila would wear to her final battle with the Queen of Hell, would the author go through another description of the same clothes a page later? Do some authors get paid by the word? One star.

[Aleah Flowers · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book bc of SM Reine and let me say I was not disappointed until the final book. I was a Robert Crane fan before but his book just solidified why!!!!!!! The third: Oh My Goodness!!!!!!!! Those three kept me on edge!!!!! The final book, Cursed, was cursed. It did not have the author showmanship that the others had. I didn't...nay, couldn't finish reading it bc I didn't care! The author made me not care about what I was reading.

[Catherine Vickers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some real gems among this collection of 4 stories. I also reviewed them individually as you have yourself 4 books in 1 here. My ratings were: Story 1 = 4*/ Story 2 = I personally didn't care for, and didn't read / Story 3 = 5*/ Story 4 = 4* I don't think I find stories this good, that often. A very enjoyable book and highly recommended.

[Susan Mcclellan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very eclectic mix

Although the plot is unnecessarily convoluted in a couple of these they do manage to make it to the end without major injury. On the whole this "quadiology" (I love making up new words) was amusing and an entertaining way to while away a few hours.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

absolutely loved the first two books, third book I just couldnt get into and the 4th I enjoyed awhile ago. definitely worth grabbing this compilation

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not ever story is fantastic
However every story is at least good and that is why its a four star not 5