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Night Tracker #1
Demons Not Included
Meet Nyx. This half-human, half–Drow private eye investigates paranormal crimes by day and is an elite Tracker of demons by night. She prefers working solo—and playing rough. So when a terrifying force starts murdering innocent humans and paranorms, and leaving strange demonic symbols burned into their buildings, it’s a case Nyx takes very personally…
Meanwhile, Nyx’s fellow Trackers are being killed one by one—and a sexy new Tracker named Torin is shadowing her every move. Torin has powers Nyx can’t read, and sometimes she wonders whose side he’s on. Nyx’s instincts tell her something’s brewing in the city’s meanest supernatural streets, and that it’s ready to unleash hell on Earth. Who can she trust? Now it’s five minutes to permanent midnight…and Nyx’s last chance means risking everything—even her own life.
334 pages, Paperback
First published June 2, 2009
33 people are currently reading
3100 people want to read
About the author
Cheyenne McCray
163 books1,764 followersCheyenne McCray fell in love with reading and writing early, deciding in kindergarten that one day she would become an author. Today, she is an award-winning New York Times and USA Today bestselling fiction author who’s sold millions of books worldwide. Having published more than 100 novels and novellas in contemporary and paranormal romance, urban fantasy and romantic suspense, she is now also writing cozy mysteries as Deb Ries.
Chey grew up on a ranch in southeastern Arizona and delights in creating stories of suspense, love, and redemption with characters and worlds her readers can get lost in. Chey and her equally geeky husband live with their two dogs, six ducks (the neighborhood celebrities), and a small flock of chickens in a small Arizona town where she enjoys gardening, crazy quilting and, of course, writing.
Find out more about Chey, how to contact her, and her books at https://cheyennemccray.com.
Chey grew up on a ranch in southeastern Arizona and delights in creating stories of suspense, love, and redemption with characters and worlds her readers can get lost in. Chey and her equally geeky husband live with their two dogs, six ducks (the neighborhood celebrities), and a small flock of chickens in a small Arizona town where she enjoys gardening, crazy quilting and, of course, writing.
Find out more about Chey, how to contact her, and her books at https://cheyennemccray.com.
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July 13, 2009
Demons Not Included is Cheyenne McCray’s first novel in her Night Tracker series, which has and pretty okay looking cover (if you appreciate a pretty looking fit female stomach) and a heroine with a creative name. Other than that, this eye rolling book is one designated for the land of forgotten books. Five pages in and I wanted to forget what I was reading because it was painful. Demons Not Included felt like a paint by numbers read. There was an extreme case of telling and not showing. Info dumping runs rampant on every page and it felt so empty as if nothing was really put into the writing. Hey reader, look at this, let’s tell you about that, insert some snooze worthy action and a few sex scenes for those who like sex in their books and hope you will have a book that will keep readers interested in the next one. In my case, that will not be happening. Some may feel that Demons Not Included is a fun urban fantasy romp, but it simply doesn’t work because it has too many faults. Again, the writing seems so stilted and the voice of Nyx Caer, the half fairy heroine grated on my nerves.
Nyx is a princess whose father is king of the Drow realm. Nyx is not the submissive type like most of the Drow females, so Nyx lives in New York City, because it is such a cool place to live! She spends her days as a private investigator who specializes in paranorm cases. Not paranormals but paranorms. Pretty hip lingo, isn’t it? Nyx is partners with Olivia, a human with huge breasts (Nyx points this out a few times) who loves to dress in those cutesy t-shirt with phrases on them that you find at stores like David and Goliath and what a sixteen year old would wear. Olivia is definitely not a sixteen. Olivia and Nyx are so very opposite with their wardrobes. Olivia likes to dress down in jeans and sneakers, while Nyx loves to wear Neiman Marcus clothes such as Dior blouses, Hermes scarves, Fendi jackets and Victoria Secret underwear. Also Nyx loves her Dolce & Gabbana hand bag to pieces and her Xphone. Can we say extreme case of name dropping product placement here? And the much beloved Xphone of Nyx’s is mentioned six times in the first chapter. Perhaps the title should have been Demons Not Included: The Xphone Chronicles?
Nyx is a trendy half human, half fairy crime fighter who can afford all these expensive name brands because she has more money than she can do with. Such are the perks of being a fairy princess. Nyx has it bad for NYPD Detective Adam Boyd. But Nyx can’t engage in any aerobic bed fun with Adam because when the sun sets, Nyx’s Drow side comes out and because her ex-lover Stan thought she was freak, Nyx has been scarred emotionally when it comes to men. Nyx looks human during the day but at night her straight black hair turns into, “a luxurious cobalt blue” and her ears turn pointy. Her skin becomes, “like pale amethyst marble” and her teeth turn pointed like a vampire's, but she doesn’t thirst for blood. When Nyx fights against the demons that cause trouble at night, she wears a special costume. This costume is a leather pants and a black leather corset set. I can’t help but wonder why Nyx hasn’t been confused as a sex worker wearing that outfit.
Some of Nyx’s paranorm (remember, not paranormal) friends are being killed by these demons and Nyx can’t defeat them all because it seems she is the only one available to fight. Nyx has a mentor and former lover Rodan of the Pit nightclub who is also Drow, into S&M and is so very seductive and elusive. We know he is into the kinky side of things because we are told of his spanking bench, toys and naked nymphs in his bed. Nyx is perturbed by Rodan because she doesn’t appreciate that Rodan has given Nyx a bodyguard. His name is Torin, which Nyx calls “T” just for kicks and giggles. The amount of times she would call Toran by that letter “T” grated on my nerves just as much as the constant mention of the Xphone.
Nyx is beloved by all and is an excellent warrior in her leather clad body. She is up against all types of baddies but has some big brawny men to keep her in one piece. Not only does Nyx have to keep daddy dearest calm because he is not happy to have a daughter that puts herself into danger, but Nyx has to deal with her feelings for Rodan and Adam. Rodan would sacrifice everything for Nyx. He would be an one woman man and keep the spanking to a minimum. Adam is the sexy human who Nyx thinks is adorable. She is afraid to commit to him because what if he finds out what she really is? Perhaps if Adam sees her in her leather outfit, he wouldn’t care if her hair was blue? And what would happen if say Toran stepped on Nyx’s Xphone so we wouldn’t have to hear about it every other page?
Demons Not Included reads very poorly. I had no connection to Nyx or the other characters in the least. This is one less than hollow ho-hum run of the mill book that has nothing to recommend for it.
Nyx is a princess whose father is king of the Drow realm. Nyx is not the submissive type like most of the Drow females, so Nyx lives in New York City, because it is such a cool place to live! She spends her days as a private investigator who specializes in paranorm cases. Not paranormals but paranorms. Pretty hip lingo, isn’t it? Nyx is partners with Olivia, a human with huge breasts (Nyx points this out a few times) who loves to dress in those cutesy t-shirt with phrases on them that you find at stores like David and Goliath and what a sixteen year old would wear. Olivia is definitely not a sixteen. Olivia and Nyx are so very opposite with their wardrobes. Olivia likes to dress down in jeans and sneakers, while Nyx loves to wear Neiman Marcus clothes such as Dior blouses, Hermes scarves, Fendi jackets and Victoria Secret underwear. Also Nyx loves her Dolce & Gabbana hand bag to pieces and her Xphone. Can we say extreme case of name dropping product placement here? And the much beloved Xphone of Nyx’s is mentioned six times in the first chapter. Perhaps the title should have been Demons Not Included: The Xphone Chronicles?
Nyx is a trendy half human, half fairy crime fighter who can afford all these expensive name brands because she has more money than she can do with. Such are the perks of being a fairy princess. Nyx has it bad for NYPD Detective Adam Boyd. But Nyx can’t engage in any aerobic bed fun with Adam because when the sun sets, Nyx’s Drow side comes out and because her ex-lover Stan thought she was freak, Nyx has been scarred emotionally when it comes to men. Nyx looks human during the day but at night her straight black hair turns into, “a luxurious cobalt blue” and her ears turn pointy. Her skin becomes, “like pale amethyst marble” and her teeth turn pointed like a vampire's, but she doesn’t thirst for blood. When Nyx fights against the demons that cause trouble at night, she wears a special costume. This costume is a leather pants and a black leather corset set. I can’t help but wonder why Nyx hasn’t been confused as a sex worker wearing that outfit.
Some of Nyx’s paranorm (remember, not paranormal) friends are being killed by these demons and Nyx can’t defeat them all because it seems she is the only one available to fight. Nyx has a mentor and former lover Rodan of the Pit nightclub who is also Drow, into S&M and is so very seductive and elusive. We know he is into the kinky side of things because we are told of his spanking bench, toys and naked nymphs in his bed. Nyx is perturbed by Rodan because she doesn’t appreciate that Rodan has given Nyx a bodyguard. His name is Torin, which Nyx calls “T” just for kicks and giggles. The amount of times she would call Toran by that letter “T” grated on my nerves just as much as the constant mention of the Xphone.
Nyx is beloved by all and is an excellent warrior in her leather clad body. She is up against all types of baddies but has some big brawny men to keep her in one piece. Not only does Nyx have to keep daddy dearest calm because he is not happy to have a daughter that puts herself into danger, but Nyx has to deal with her feelings for Rodan and Adam. Rodan would sacrifice everything for Nyx. He would be an one woman man and keep the spanking to a minimum. Adam is the sexy human who Nyx thinks is adorable. She is afraid to commit to him because what if he finds out what she really is? Perhaps if Adam sees her in her leather outfit, he wouldn’t care if her hair was blue? And what would happen if say Toran stepped on Nyx’s Xphone so we wouldn’t have to hear about it every other page?
Demons Not Included reads very poorly. I had no connection to Nyx or the other characters in the least. This is one less than hollow ho-hum run of the mill book that has nothing to recommend for it.
April 9, 2020
A bumpy ride through fascinating territory. The first-person narrative is told by Nyx Ciar, whose mother is human and whose father is king of the Dark Elves, who call themselves Drow. Unlike all the other hybrids I know of in urban fantasy, Nyx is human by day and Drow by night. Her change, with a premonitory tingle, happens at sunrise and sunset. By day she has black hair, light skin, and human ears; at sunset her hair turns blue, her ears get pointy, and her skin becomes a lovely (she says) amethyst. Twenty or more times through the book she corrects people: amethyst, not purple.
Because her father is the Drow king, her mother became their queen, and she is a princess--totally! It's not exactly a secret that princesses generally aren't very easy for us ordinary people to take, and Nyx is no exception. First-person narrative, with a ton of attitude, starting with fashion snobbery (endless designer name-dropping etc.) that really put a lot of reviewers off--Nyx is someone you'd probably rather hear about than listen to, but this is her story as she sees it.
At least she's direct, even abrupt in her narration, presumptuous but not pretentious. And as it goes along, she's straightforward about her mistakes and how much the deaths of her friends tear her up; she goes through plenty of physical pain in this adventure, and her grief is almost as painful, in large part because she acknowledges a big share of the responsibility when her friends are torn apart by demons.
You see, she rebelled against the subservient role of females in the Drow kingdom; she got her father to let her get trained and join the all-male armed forces, and then got him to agree to let her live in New York City where by day she's a private investigator with a human ex-cop named Olivia for a partner and by night she's a Tracker patrolling a section of Manhattan (upper West Side, well described) for the Peacekeepers, headed by a Light Elf named Rodan (accent on the a).
In addition to Soothsayers (who freeze scenes and wipe memories so that paranormal evidence can be removed), Gatekeepers (who guard the gates to the Demon realm), and Healers, the Manhattan Peacekeepers have fifteen Trackers patrolling specific territories and five more at large. They maintain order among all the supernatural species of New York's underworld (the prologue lists ten of them, with snarky comments from Nyx).
But three orders of Demons have penetrated since one of the gates failed three weeks ago, and Nyx and her partners are killing them right and left. Here's the juicy part--a demon's claws are fatally poisonous, and a demon can only be killed by a dagger penetrating a sac of blue liquid at their throat. That means close combat: strike the throat, avoid even the tiniest scratch from the claws. Different species have different sorts of specific powers, and fortunately Nyx describes the action scenes in clear detail. In her Drow form Nyx herself runs a mile a minute or faster, does multiple backflips in combat, and has superhuman force with her two seventeen-inch daggers named Lightning and Thunder.
The exciting action stops least twice, though, for sex scenes in minute detail that go beyond just one chapter and read like an entirely different book. Some writers are able to incorporate sexual encounters into an adventure--this one can't. Sorry. But Nyx is frank about her relationship problems, and she admits her mistakes and fears. Sexual freedom among the elves won't go with human monogamy, and Nyx is human by day and elf by night. She knows she doesn't have good answers, and she says so.
To sum up, this fast-paced book is loaded with potential turn-offs and triggers, exciting adventure with both mystery and suspense, strong emotions, and several paranormal species you probably haven't met before.
Because her father is the Drow king, her mother became their queen, and she is a princess--totally! It's not exactly a secret that princesses generally aren't very easy for us ordinary people to take, and Nyx is no exception. First-person narrative, with a ton of attitude, starting with fashion snobbery (endless designer name-dropping etc.) that really put a lot of reviewers off--Nyx is someone you'd probably rather hear about than listen to, but this is her story as she sees it.
At least she's direct, even abrupt in her narration, presumptuous but not pretentious. And as it goes along, she's straightforward about her mistakes and how much the deaths of her friends tear her up; she goes through plenty of physical pain in this adventure, and her grief is almost as painful, in large part because she acknowledges a big share of the responsibility when her friends are torn apart by demons.
You see, she rebelled against the subservient role of females in the Drow kingdom; she got her father to let her get trained and join the all-male armed forces, and then got him to agree to let her live in New York City where by day she's a private investigator with a human ex-cop named Olivia for a partner and by night she's a Tracker patrolling a section of Manhattan (upper West Side, well described) for the Peacekeepers, headed by a Light Elf named Rodan (accent on the a).
In addition to Soothsayers (who freeze scenes and wipe memories so that paranormal evidence can be removed), Gatekeepers (who guard the gates to the Demon realm), and Healers, the Manhattan Peacekeepers have fifteen Trackers patrolling specific territories and five more at large. They maintain order among all the supernatural species of New York's underworld (the prologue lists ten of them, with snarky comments from Nyx).
But three orders of Demons have penetrated since one of the gates failed three weeks ago, and Nyx and her partners are killing them right and left. Here's the juicy part--a demon's claws are fatally poisonous, and a demon can only be killed by a dagger penetrating a sac of blue liquid at their throat. That means close combat: strike the throat, avoid even the tiniest scratch from the claws. Different species have different sorts of specific powers, and fortunately Nyx describes the action scenes in clear detail. In her Drow form Nyx herself runs a mile a minute or faster, does multiple backflips in combat, and has superhuman force with her two seventeen-inch daggers named Lightning and Thunder.
The exciting action stops least twice, though, for sex scenes in minute detail that go beyond just one chapter and read like an entirely different book. Some writers are able to incorporate sexual encounters into an adventure--this one can't. Sorry. But Nyx is frank about her relationship problems, and she admits her mistakes and fears. Sexual freedom among the elves won't go with human monogamy, and Nyx is human by day and elf by night. She knows she doesn't have good answers, and she says so.
To sum up, this fast-paced book is loaded with potential turn-offs and triggers, exciting adventure with both mystery and suspense, strong emotions, and several paranormal species you probably haven't met before.
December 27, 2016
I'd actually give it a 0.5 but then, I didn't finish the book. I couldn't. It was so terrible - and I did go up to 90 pages before my Brain informed me that if I continued to expose it to the horribleness, it would up and away from me. First of all, the t-shirts? Ms. McCray, those are not funny. No. Maybe in an email forward but in a book that is telling me a story? No. Secondly, what's up with your main character? I have seen puppets that are less wooden than her. I understand she's a Mary Sue but seriously. And Stan? Couldn't you think of a more original name and - excuse me, why was she with this man if he turned out such a dick? Give the woman some emotional depth and for God's sakes, spend some time on your side characters so that the reader is at least a bit affected by the narration. I have never had this instant hate reaction to any other character before yours. And xPhone - a barely veiled reference to iPhone, we get that. But come on now, do you have to shove that information in our faces all the bloody time? "My xPhone made a beep yaadi yaada." Seriously, a simple "phone" would suffice. We understand it's a smart phone, let us forget it and move on. And T for Torin? Um. I thought we were dealing with adults and not kindergarten kids. I'm just glad I didn't buy this book. I'd have been very, very angry if I had done so.
August 11, 2014
Great character driven UF series beginning Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you. – Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)
Over the centuries, mankind has tried many ways of combating the forces of evil… prayer, fasting, good works and so on. Up until Doom, no one seemed to have thought about the double-barrel shotgun. Eat leaden death, demon. – Terry Pratchett
Monsters are real. You just can’t see them. And if you do? Well, a Soothsayer will make sure you forget all about it. So, it’s all good, right? Olivia’s T-Shirt says it all: People like you are the reason People like me need medication. And there is heavy need for medication going around. Because the Ruhin Demon Gate has been breached, the Gatekeeper murdered, and demons are at, and past, the gate.
Nyx is a Tracker, protector of the people of Earth from the things that go bump in the night. Of course, Nyx is one of those things that go bump in the night – a Drow Princess, half Dark Elf, half human, crazily strong, crazily brave, and more fragile than most would understand. She lives between worlds, not only as a Tracker but also in her very makeup. By day, she works as a PI beside her friend Olivia, a human. But by night, Nyx is Drow, or as close as she can get. Her half-blood heritage means she her skin is amethyst rather than blue, her hair cobalt rather than sapphire, but she is still Drow in her heart, and her Drow powers of manipulation of the elements, strength and speed mean that she is very, very good at her job. But the sudden presence of demons in Manhattan changes everything. As Trackers die, and their human liaisons disappear, Nyx’s strength will be tested beyond anything she ever imagined – and the whole world will be at risk.
This first in the series had the potential to be “just another UF.” There is the expected cast of characters – vampires, werewolves and elves (Oh, my) as well as characters that aren’t often seen, such as shadow stalkers and metamorphs. But Cheyenne McCray has done a wonderful job of taking this book to a new level, writing a much more character-driven novel than one normally sees. There are twists and turns, some seriously messed-up stuff, and the truth of never knowing if those who you believe to be your friends truly are.
This is a great start to the series, and I look forward to reading more.
I was given this book as a gift from a friend. All thoughts are my own.
Over the centuries, mankind has tried many ways of combating the forces of evil… prayer, fasting, good works and so on. Up until Doom, no one seemed to have thought about the double-barrel shotgun. Eat leaden death, demon. – Terry Pratchett
Monsters are real. You just can’t see them. And if you do? Well, a Soothsayer will make sure you forget all about it. So, it’s all good, right? Olivia’s T-Shirt says it all: People like you are the reason People like me need medication. And there is heavy need for medication going around. Because the Ruhin Demon Gate has been breached, the Gatekeeper murdered, and demons are at, and past, the gate.
Nyx is a Tracker, protector of the people of Earth from the things that go bump in the night. Of course, Nyx is one of those things that go bump in the night – a Drow Princess, half Dark Elf, half human, crazily strong, crazily brave, and more fragile than most would understand. She lives between worlds, not only as a Tracker but also in her very makeup. By day, she works as a PI beside her friend Olivia, a human. But by night, Nyx is Drow, or as close as she can get. Her half-blood heritage means she her skin is amethyst rather than blue, her hair cobalt rather than sapphire, but she is still Drow in her heart, and her Drow powers of manipulation of the elements, strength and speed mean that she is very, very good at her job. But the sudden presence of demons in Manhattan changes everything. As Trackers die, and their human liaisons disappear, Nyx’s strength will be tested beyond anything she ever imagined – and the whole world will be at risk.
This first in the series had the potential to be “just another UF.” There is the expected cast of characters – vampires, werewolves and elves (Oh, my) as well as characters that aren’t often seen, such as shadow stalkers and metamorphs. But Cheyenne McCray has done a wonderful job of taking this book to a new level, writing a much more character-driven novel than one normally sees. There are twists and turns, some seriously messed-up stuff, and the truth of never knowing if those who you believe to be your friends truly are.
This is a great start to the series, and I look forward to reading more.
I was given this book as a gift from a friend. All thoughts are my own.
November 30, 2018
I cringe
November 26, 2011
This is going to be a bit of a mini review because, well, I couldn’t bring myself to finish this book. I felt an immediate dislike for the heroine, the heroine’s sidekick, the romantic lead, the secondary romantic lead… needless to say, almost as soon as someone was introduced on page, they were added to the list. In addition to unlikeable and unrelatable characters, we’re treated to massive amounts of info dumping in a telling rather than showing fashion that just alienated me further.
Right off the bat, we’re informed that Nyx, the main character, is a Drow princess. Then we’re treated to what we’re supposed to interpret as “I’m so hip” language by the main character. Paranormals are now paranorms because abbreviating, or abreving (like that, huh?) is cool and, really, we just don’t have time to finish saying the rest of the word because we need to look up something on our XPhone. Oh, yes, the author must have sold her soul to Apple because ‘XPhone’ is mentioned almost ten times in the first chapter alone.
As if the repeated mentions of the character’s XPhone isn’t bad enough, we’re also treated to a detailed description of every item Nyx wears, which is all designer, of course. Yay, more name dropping. Fortunately, we are treated to a brief reprieve from Neiman Marcus and Dolce & Gabbana when Nyx describes her partner’s clothing. Unfortunately, the partner wears jeans and phrase t-shirts that are better suited to a 10 year old girl. Don’t worry, you’ll get a new phrase at least once a chapter. Be excited.
Speaking of the partner, when we’re first introduced to Olivia, we’re told she has ‘full curves.’ Ok, got an idea of the character, great, can we get to the story? Oh, sorry, wait, you wanted to talk more about that? Apparently, because that’s mentioned several times in the beginning of the second chapter, even after we’ve seen the sidekick for a whole chapter.
“What’s it been?” Olivia adjusted the bra strap that helped contain her melon-sized breasts. “Two years since you moved into this place and she put up the sign?”
Alright, have you made your point yet? No? Damn.
Olivia snapped her bra straps in place. “This place was a mess before you had the privilege of me coming to work as your partner.”
“Ha.” I looked down at my breasts, which were small in comparison to Olivia’s. I hadn’t known they grew them as big as hers until I moved here from the Drow Realm. Elves and Fae – peaches in comparison. I looked back at her. “That Sprite would have had you singing Broadway show tunes if I hadn’t arrived. Before he fed you to his buddy, the Were.”
Needless to say, the disillusionment with this book never ceases to continue. We then find out that Nyx is emotionally when it comes to men because one man, Stan, was spooked by her nighttime appearance. Oh, yes, while during the day Nyx has the appearance of a very attractive human, at night, her straight black hair turns to a “luxurious cobalt blue,” her ears become pointed, skin turns “like pale amethyst marble,” and her teeth also turn pointed, similar to those of vampires. But don’t worry, she doesn’t thirst for blood like they do. Oh. She also wanders around at night fighting in leather pants and a black leather corset. While this isn't out of the norm in your UF books, by this point in time, I was so fed up I wasn't going to give a benefit of the doubt anymore.
Read at your own risk.
Right off the bat, we’re informed that Nyx, the main character, is a Drow princess. Then we’re treated to what we’re supposed to interpret as “I’m so hip” language by the main character. Paranormals are now paranorms because abbreviating, or abreving (like that, huh?) is cool and, really, we just don’t have time to finish saying the rest of the word because we need to look up something on our XPhone. Oh, yes, the author must have sold her soul to Apple because ‘XPhone’ is mentioned almost ten times in the first chapter alone.
As if the repeated mentions of the character’s XPhone isn’t bad enough, we’re also treated to a detailed description of every item Nyx wears, which is all designer, of course. Yay, more name dropping. Fortunately, we are treated to a brief reprieve from Neiman Marcus and Dolce & Gabbana when Nyx describes her partner’s clothing. Unfortunately, the partner wears jeans and phrase t-shirts that are better suited to a 10 year old girl. Don’t worry, you’ll get a new phrase at least once a chapter. Be excited.
Speaking of the partner, when we’re first introduced to Olivia, we’re told she has ‘full curves.’ Ok, got an idea of the character, great, can we get to the story? Oh, sorry, wait, you wanted to talk more about that? Apparently, because that’s mentioned several times in the beginning of the second chapter, even after we’ve seen the sidekick for a whole chapter.
“What’s it been?” Olivia adjusted the bra strap that helped contain her melon-sized breasts. “Two years since you moved into this place and she put up the sign?”
Alright, have you made your point yet? No? Damn.
Olivia snapped her bra straps in place. “This place was a mess before you had the privilege of me coming to work as your partner.”
“Ha.” I looked down at my breasts, which were small in comparison to Olivia’s. I hadn’t known they grew them as big as hers until I moved here from the Drow Realm. Elves and Fae – peaches in comparison. I looked back at her. “That Sprite would have had you singing Broadway show tunes if I hadn’t arrived. Before he fed you to his buddy, the Were.”
Needless to say, the disillusionment with this book never ceases to continue. We then find out that Nyx is emotionally when it comes to men because one man, Stan, was spooked by her nighttime appearance. Oh, yes, while during the day Nyx has the appearance of a very attractive human, at night, her straight black hair turns to a “luxurious cobalt blue,” her ears become pointed, skin turns “like pale amethyst marble,” and her teeth also turn pointed, similar to those of vampires. But don’t worry, she doesn’t thirst for blood like they do. Oh. She also wanders around at night fighting in leather pants and a black leather corset. While this isn't out of the norm in your UF books, by this point in time, I was so fed up I wasn't going to give a benefit of the doubt anymore.
Read at your own risk.
June 16, 2009
Maybe I need to keep a list of heroine names separated by author; because for the first few pages I had the heroine of "Demons Not Included" confused with another heroine of the same name (slightly different spelling I think) by another author and it threw me for a bit. Cheyenne McCray's new 'Night Tracker' series began with a bang and, at least for me, ended with a bit of a whimper.
Nyx is a one-of-a-kind gal--half-human, half-Drow. By day she's a blonde human--at night she's an amethyst (NOT PURPLE)-skinned, dark-haired Drow. She grew up living in the Drow underworld pampered by both parents and got her strong will and strength from her Dad the Drow King, and her unwillingness to submit and daytime human looks from her Mom. She's also likely the only Drow female to be trained as a warrior and she can certainly kick butt. However, all these things made her a sort of outcast in Drow society...not that it really bothered Nyx' she'd much rather live in the human realm anyway.
Nyx also has a plethora of sexy, available men--one a Drow, one a human, and one a...something. This first book really mostly sets the scenery and rules for McCray's new series (even though it's an offshoot of her previous 'Magic' series) and introduces the main cast. Maybe that's why I felt a little let-down at the end...because although there is AN ending, it's not an END...is that too confusing?
There's sex (and with more than one character), there's mystery (of the paranormal sort), there's action (all over the place), and there's lots of bad guys and a big battle towards the end. Now, even though "Demons Not Included" wasn't a five-star read for me, I fully intend to follow the series and see where she's headed and what happens next with Nyx. So did I enjoy the book? Yes. Will I continue to read Cheyenne McCray? Yes. Was I a little disappointed? Yes.
Nyx is a one-of-a-kind gal--half-human, half-Drow. By day she's a blonde human--at night she's an amethyst (NOT PURPLE)-skinned, dark-haired Drow. She grew up living in the Drow underworld pampered by both parents and got her strong will and strength from her Dad the Drow King, and her unwillingness to submit and daytime human looks from her Mom. She's also likely the only Drow female to be trained as a warrior and she can certainly kick butt. However, all these things made her a sort of outcast in Drow society...not that it really bothered Nyx' she'd much rather live in the human realm anyway.
Nyx also has a plethora of sexy, available men--one a Drow, one a human, and one a...something. This first book really mostly sets the scenery and rules for McCray's new series (even though it's an offshoot of her previous 'Magic' series) and introduces the main cast. Maybe that's why I felt a little let-down at the end...because although there is AN ending, it's not an END...is that too confusing?
There's sex (and with more than one character), there's mystery (of the paranormal sort), there's action (all over the place), and there's lots of bad guys and a big battle towards the end. Now, even though "Demons Not Included" wasn't a five-star read for me, I fully intend to follow the series and see where she's headed and what happens next with Nyx. So did I enjoy the book? Yes. Will I continue to read Cheyenne McCray? Yes. Was I a little disappointed? Yes.
September 3, 2015
I don't think it was that bad. Was it predictable? Well, yeah. I saw that one coming, but it was entertaining. Nyx as a character is flawed... she has a temper and tends to leap before she looks because she's young, a warrior and thinks she's invincible. I could've done without all the clothing description. Nyx is kind of a label whore - personally I don't care about fashion, so I related more to her sidekick Olivia. The whole XPhone thing didn't bother me. (IPhone, XPhone, who give a shit.) What did bother me were the sex scenes. I HATE the way that Cheyenne McCray writes about sex. She writes sex like a dude! (Pussies, cocks, slick core, etc.) YUCK!! Could've done without all that. In fact, I skipped those sections because it was just making me cringe. I don't like her relationship with the human detective Adam either. I don't know why, but something about him bothers me. Plus, if she's a half Drow princess and the only one of her kind then she should probably be with someone supernatural. I don't want her to be with Rodan, but I kind of thought there was a little tension between her and T.
Overall: it's entertaining but predictable. Sex scenes are crude and cringe worthy but it has potential as a series. Bad ass heroine wearing leather corsets while kicking ass - check. Multiple love interests - check. Under appreciated human side kick - check. It's not the best written and the character are a little underdeveloped, but it's entertaining and a quick read.
Overall: it's entertaining but predictable. Sex scenes are crude and cringe worthy but it has potential as a series. Bad ass heroine wearing leather corsets while kicking ass - check. Multiple love interests - check. Under appreciated human side kick - check. It's not the best written and the character are a little underdeveloped, but it's entertaining and a quick read.
June 23, 2009
I had numerous problems with this book. The entire time I was reading it (it took me several days -- almost unheard of for me -- because I had to force myself to finish it), I kept wondering why I was keeping with it. I'd have been happier if I had just put it down but I spent the money so I was determined to try and like it.
Didn't happen. The characters and the world in which they exist lacked any real depth. Even the protagonist was a bit of a Mary Sue. I couldn't connect with any of them. I got sick of the author trying to convince me someone was quirky and fun just because of the clothes she wore.
I read a lot of these type of books so I don't actually mind if the book is predictable. However, if I figure out where you're headed within the first few chapters and it takes the protagonist the entire book to put two and two together? That's just bad. I spent the entire book being annoyed she's supposed to be this great paranormal PI and she couldn't put the simplest of clues together. At least make her suspicious! Even if she can't prove it to anyone else. That would stop the reader from having to buy that this is a tough mystery to solve.
So, yeah, I wasn't a fan. I think I'll be passing on any additional Night Tracker books.
(Also posted at my book blog, With A Good Book.)
Didn't happen. The characters and the world in which they exist lacked any real depth. Even the protagonist was a bit of a Mary Sue. I couldn't connect with any of them. I got sick of the author trying to convince me someone was quirky and fun just because of the clothes she wore.
I read a lot of these type of books so I don't actually mind if the book is predictable. However, if I figure out where you're headed within the first few chapters and it takes the protagonist the entire book to put two and two together? That's just bad. I spent the entire book being annoyed she's supposed to be this great paranormal PI and she couldn't put the simplest of clues together. At least make her suspicious! Even if she can't prove it to anyone else. That would stop the reader from having to buy that this is a tough mystery to solve.
So, yeah, I wasn't a fan. I think I'll be passing on any additional Night Tracker books.
(Also posted at my book blog, With A Good Book.)
November 19, 2017
This review appears on my blog BTH Reviews
I read Demons Not Included because I had heard a lot of great things about Cheyenne McCray.
This review was originally posted on my old blog Books That Hook. I am updating it and expanding on many of my original points.
Quick Review: I hated the main character, but I liked the action, pacing, and story line.
The Story
Nyx is half-human, half Drow (dark elf). She looks like a human during the daytime, but at night she's purple (yes, I said purple, not amethyst like she insists throughout the book) with blue hair.
She runs a private investigation business, but also works as a Tracker to hunt down demons. Demons have been killing her fellow trackers. She needs to find their lair and stop them.
The plot points fit together well, and the story moves quickly from one point to the next. There's plenty of action in the book to keep things interesting. I felt that the plot was consistent. However, I often felt like minor details didn't match up. I just couldn't put my finger on what they were, and I didn't care enough to go back and try to find where something different had been said.
The Characters
Nyx is not someone I could relate to. She seemed self-centered and vain. Some of the comments added in the book, particularly at the beginning, seemed like afterthoughts to try to make her more likable. It took a long time for me to believe that she really cared about the people who were being murdered. Plus, she's a clothing snob who carries a designer purse to crime scenes. That part just seemed ridiculous. The only thing I liked about Nyx was her strong backbone. She didn't let people walk over her.
The main character has two romantic interests. She is really interested in a human named Adam, but she's afraid he'll reject her when he sees what she looks like at night. Her other love is an elf named Rodan, who she knows will never be able to commit to just her.
I liked the tension brought on by Torin, who is forced to work with Nyx, but doesn't get along with her.
Her sidekick Olivia is great. I loved her t-shirt collection with interesting sayings.
The Writing
Overall, the writing is sound without grammatical, punctuation, or spelling errors. The author was skilled at writing action scenes and creating atmosphere and suspense. I felt she developed well the mystery of the killings. She kept me guessing about which master demon was behind them.
I liked how nothing was left hanging at the end, but she set up Nyx for a new case and, thus, a new book.
Off-topic: Nit-picky, but the cover's wrong. Nyx only wears the corset and leather stuff when she's a Tracker, which is only at night. Since that's her nighttime demon-fighting outfit, she should be purple and have blue hair. She never wears that stuff when she's human.
Do I Recommend?
Ugh, this is hard for me because, as a whole, I liked this book a lot. But, I didn't like the main character. If I had to base my rating on the plot, it would be between 4 and 5 stars. If I had to base it on my feelings about the characters, my rating would be a 1 or a 2. So, I'm going to with a 4 overall. I liked the book enough to read the next book in the series.
I think this is a book people should give a chance if they haven't read it yet. It has a lot of positives, definitely more than negatives. However, it's not going to be for everyone.
I read Demons Not Included because I had heard a lot of great things about Cheyenne McCray.
This review was originally posted on my old blog Books That Hook. I am updating it and expanding on many of my original points.
Quick Review: I hated the main character, but I liked the action, pacing, and story line.
The Story
Nyx is half-human, half Drow (dark elf). She looks like a human during the daytime, but at night she's purple (yes, I said purple, not amethyst like she insists throughout the book) with blue hair.
She runs a private investigation business, but also works as a Tracker to hunt down demons. Demons have been killing her fellow trackers. She needs to find their lair and stop them.
The plot points fit together well, and the story moves quickly from one point to the next. There's plenty of action in the book to keep things interesting. I felt that the plot was consistent. However, I often felt like minor details didn't match up. I just couldn't put my finger on what they were, and I didn't care enough to go back and try to find where something different had been said.
The Characters
Nyx is not someone I could relate to. She seemed self-centered and vain. Some of the comments added in the book, particularly at the beginning, seemed like afterthoughts to try to make her more likable. It took a long time for me to believe that she really cared about the people who were being murdered. Plus, she's a clothing snob who carries a designer purse to crime scenes. That part just seemed ridiculous. The only thing I liked about Nyx was her strong backbone. She didn't let people walk over her.
The main character has two romantic interests. She is really interested in a human named Adam, but she's afraid he'll reject her when he sees what she looks like at night. Her other love is an elf named Rodan, who she knows will never be able to commit to just her.
I liked the tension brought on by Torin, who is forced to work with Nyx, but doesn't get along with her.
Her sidekick Olivia is great. I loved her t-shirt collection with interesting sayings.
The Writing
Overall, the writing is sound without grammatical, punctuation, or spelling errors. The author was skilled at writing action scenes and creating atmosphere and suspense. I felt she developed well the mystery of the killings. She kept me guessing about which master demon was behind them.
I liked how nothing was left hanging at the end, but she set up Nyx for a new case and, thus, a new book.
Off-topic: Nit-picky, but the cover's wrong. Nyx only wears the corset and leather stuff when she's a Tracker, which is only at night. Since that's her nighttime demon-fighting outfit, she should be purple and have blue hair. She never wears that stuff when she's human.
Do I Recommend?
Ugh, this is hard for me because, as a whole, I liked this book a lot. But, I didn't like the main character. If I had to base my rating on the plot, it would be between 4 and 5 stars. If I had to base it on my feelings about the characters, my rating would be a 1 or a 2. So, I'm going to with a 4 overall. I liked the book enough to read the next book in the series.
I think this is a book people should give a chance if they haven't read it yet. It has a lot of positives, definitely more than negatives. However, it's not going to be for everyone.
September 13, 2010
Lately I've been seeing the covers for Cheyenne McCray's Night Tracker novels and I'll admit they had me intrigued so I decided to give them a try. Starting with Demons Not Included, of course.
It was pretty darn good too. Some of the beginning details are fuzzy since I was reading them while at the beginning of my cold which is slowly going away now, but when I picked it back up today! WOW! I was blown away. I was wondering why it took me so long to finish the book, then again being sick chimed in, whatever!
I loved it! It was very exciting. There was a little bit of info confusion for me in the beginning. Just trying to get use to how the supernaturals are in the book. Who's good and who's bad. The glossary in the front of the novel was helpful and a little funny since some of the creatures didn't really have a description according to Nyx. It was based on her knowledge.
Nyx was a great character! Still a little confused with her identity, being half Drow or one of the Dark Elves. But with most of the terminology and things like that, it's always best to just roll with it. During the day Nyx is a normal human being and by night she transforms into her Drow side. You learn this very quickly, so I don't think of it as a spoiler and the BOC tells you this too, I'm just detailing it a bit!
She works with other Trackers to keep their city, NYC safe. There are a few humans in the know, they are known as liaisons. And one is Adam, a cop that Nyx works with often and lately has been building feelings towards.
There is a little more romance in here than I'm use to, but it didn't bother me a whole lot. I don't want to get into all of it, because that does lead to spoilers. So before I type out something I shouldn't, I'll leave the details alone. But there was quite a bit of romance in here and it wasn't bad. I'd call it steamy, but I don't read a lot of romance-y things, so it might be tamed for the PNR lovers.
The overall story arc was good too. Nyx is trying to track down demons that are slaughtering her friends. The mystery element is huge here! Then the mysterious Torin guy comes in and Nyx can't make heads or tails of him. Neither could I! I was surprised again and again with certain elements to the storyline and never saw any of it coming.
The book didn't end too HEA either, it actually sets you up for the next book, No Werewolves Involved, which is going on my To Buy list! Don't know when I will actually get around to it since my TBR pile is still pretty tall and just keeps growing!
Overall the book was fantastic! My opinion on the beginning is muddled as I said due to my cold, but it did pick up. There was a nice steady pace that had me wanting to read on to solve the mystery and see if my guesses were correct or not--they weren't! The characters were all engaging and interesting too. Olivia, Nyx's human partner in the PI business, was just great! Loved her and her many shirts! Read the book and you'll know what I mean unless you have already read it!
I give it 4/5 stars!
It was pretty darn good too. Some of the beginning details are fuzzy since I was reading them while at the beginning of my cold which is slowly going away now, but when I picked it back up today! WOW! I was blown away. I was wondering why it took me so long to finish the book, then again being sick chimed in, whatever!
I loved it! It was very exciting. There was a little bit of info confusion for me in the beginning. Just trying to get use to how the supernaturals are in the book. Who's good and who's bad. The glossary in the front of the novel was helpful and a little funny since some of the creatures didn't really have a description according to Nyx. It was based on her knowledge.
Nyx was a great character! Still a little confused with her identity, being half Drow or one of the Dark Elves. But with most of the terminology and things like that, it's always best to just roll with it. During the day Nyx is a normal human being and by night she transforms into her Drow side. You learn this very quickly, so I don't think of it as a spoiler and the BOC tells you this too, I'm just detailing it a bit!
She works with other Trackers to keep their city, NYC safe. There are a few humans in the know, they are known as liaisons. And one is Adam, a cop that Nyx works with often and lately has been building feelings towards.
There is a little more romance in here than I'm use to, but it didn't bother me a whole lot. I don't want to get into all of it, because that does lead to spoilers. So before I type out something I shouldn't, I'll leave the details alone. But there was quite a bit of romance in here and it wasn't bad. I'd call it steamy, but I don't read a lot of romance-y things, so it might be tamed for the PNR lovers.
The overall story arc was good too. Nyx is trying to track down demons that are slaughtering her friends. The mystery element is huge here! Then the mysterious Torin guy comes in and Nyx can't make heads or tails of him. Neither could I! I was surprised again and again with certain elements to the storyline and never saw any of it coming.
The book didn't end too HEA either, it actually sets you up for the next book, No Werewolves Involved, which is going on my To Buy list! Don't know when I will actually get around to it since my TBR pile is still pretty tall and just keeps growing!
Overall the book was fantastic! My opinion on the beginning is muddled as I said due to my cold, but it did pick up. There was a nice steady pace that had me wanting to read on to solve the mystery and see if my guesses were correct or not--they weren't! The characters were all engaging and interesting too. Olivia, Nyx's human partner in the PI business, was just great! Loved her and her many shirts! Read the book and you'll know what I mean unless you have already read it!
I give it 4/5 stars!
December 15, 2009
Half-human, half-Drow Nyx Ciar may be Princess of the Dark Elves, but she's currently living in New York as a paranormal private investigator by day and Tracker of demons by night. When fellow Trackers are killed, Nyx soon discovers that a Demon Apocalypse is nigh.
Cheyenne McCray has done such a good job with the secondary characters that I like them more than the primary ones. Nadia's past in the Bermuda Triangle sounds exotic and intriguing, and Olivia DeSantos is undoubtedly awesome. Unlike Nyx, Olivia is all-human, and thus her fighting skills and whatnot are even more impressive because she doesn't have magical genes and powers. But she has personality plus, and is great fun. However, the author overdoes it by having Olivia wear T-shirts bearing witticisms. The character is so vibrant that the hokey slogans aren't needed, and thus make them seem lame.
Unfortunately, Olivia is not the main character here, and thus plays second fiddle to the annoying Nyx. At first the Princess's voice is kind of fun, and she's honest enough to admit that she's spoiled. The problem, however, is that she doesn't try to change that. Excluding the fighting scenes, nary a page goes by without a brand name appearing. Everything from clothes, coffee, chips and cat food. And her XPhone, let's not forget. She doesn't just pick up her phone; Nyx picks up her XPHONE, specified all the freaking time. Yes, the phone has more capabilities than just calling and texting, but the persistent and ever-present brand names just make her seem incredibly shallow.
Mind you, everyone consistently telling her how beautiful she is doesn't exactly make Nyx get over herself. Beautiful in human form, beautiful in Drow form, and her skin isn't purple - it's AMETHYST.
And being Drow doesn't mean just being Drow, because apparently that's not enough. Nyx has several kinds of elemental power. The key to creating likeable characters is to make them more realistic, and if she'd only had power with ONE element, that would've been fine.
If the Night Tracker series has a different heroine for every book, this could actually be quite good - the world-building and plot certainly are page-turning - but if Nyx continues to narrate each novel, I don't know if I could summon up the enthusiasm to stick with the Night Trackers.
Cheyenne McCray has done such a good job with the secondary characters that I like them more than the primary ones. Nadia's past in the Bermuda Triangle sounds exotic and intriguing, and Olivia DeSantos is undoubtedly awesome. Unlike Nyx, Olivia is all-human, and thus her fighting skills and whatnot are even more impressive because she doesn't have magical genes and powers. But she has personality plus, and is great fun. However, the author overdoes it by having Olivia wear T-shirts bearing witticisms. The character is so vibrant that the hokey slogans aren't needed, and thus make them seem lame.
Unfortunately, Olivia is not the main character here, and thus plays second fiddle to the annoying Nyx. At first the Princess's voice is kind of fun, and she's honest enough to admit that she's spoiled. The problem, however, is that she doesn't try to change that. Excluding the fighting scenes, nary a page goes by without a brand name appearing. Everything from clothes, coffee, chips and cat food. And her XPhone, let's not forget. She doesn't just pick up her phone; Nyx picks up her XPHONE, specified all the freaking time. Yes, the phone has more capabilities than just calling and texting, but the persistent and ever-present brand names just make her seem incredibly shallow.
Mind you, everyone consistently telling her how beautiful she is doesn't exactly make Nyx get over herself. Beautiful in human form, beautiful in Drow form, and her skin isn't purple - it's AMETHYST.
And being Drow doesn't mean just being Drow, because apparently that's not enough. Nyx has several kinds of elemental power. The key to creating likeable characters is to make them more realistic, and if she'd only had power with ONE element, that would've been fine.
If the Night Tracker series has a different heroine for every book, this could actually be quite good - the world-building and plot certainly are page-turning - but if Nyx continues to narrate each novel, I don't know if I could summon up the enthusiasm to stick with the Night Trackers.
April 29, 2024
Cheyenne McCray’s first installment in the Night Tracker series, Demons not Included is utter trash in the best possible way. It is 322 pages of loosely sewn together plot under the guise of a novel.
The story focuses on Nyx, our Mary Sue. Nyx is half drow and half human. She conveniently inherited the perfect set of skills between her parents. By day she appears human and runs a PI Firm. By night, she turns into a purple (sorry, amethyst as Nyx reminds us every ten pages) dark elf magic police officer. Her powers include speed, flight (of a sort), stealth, power over all elementals, quick healing, you name it. She is one of the best warriors of her time. Nyx is the dark elf equivalent of a superhero. The only thing giving the stakes of this story any weight would be her terrible decision making skills. This is absolutely a book that would have been 200 pages shorter if “common sense” had been included in her list of abilities.
I believe this book was erroneously shelved under “sci-fi/fantasy” in my bookstore rather than the romance section it belongs in. Nyx is one of the horniest first-person characters I have ever read. Throughout the book, awful things are happening. She loses her best friend. She loses her second-best friend. Within the course of hours she’s banging someone to get over it. Nyx also is written like a bit of either a sociopath or someone with extreme attention issues. There are multiple scenes when she is literally touching a corpse, looking at blood spray or at a gruesome crime scene. Rather than treating the setting with the solemnity it deserves, she’s cracking jokes, making plans and dishing about her booty calls.
Mind you – this series all takes place over about a week. I would understand the more jaded or cynical investigator cracking jokes occasionally in these situations, either as dark humor or as a defense mechanism. However first of all, Nyx has only been doing this for 2 years and says these crime scenes are the worst she has ever seen. Additionally, to lose numerous loved ones and stand over what is described as one of the most horrifying crime scenes you have ever witnessed and think about riding a hot guy’s cock is not how a healthy mind works.
The ensemble characters are absolutely forgettable. We are introduced to one or two characters, but the majority of the ensemble have no defining qualities. Characters we have not been introduced to are dropped into the story as though we have met them already and this isn't their first mention. While the book is more focused on interpersonal relationships than a strong plot, the characters themselves are bland and uninspired. At no point does anyone learn or grow, making it hard to care about any of them.
We have, in no particular order:
Olivia: Nyx's PI Partner. She always wears a snarky shirt and has massive melon-sized breasts. You will be reminded of her giant bahonkaroos regularly.
Adam: Nyx’s wannabe fuckbuddy. Also a cop liaison for the supernatural community.
Torin: Advertised on the back of the book as “a sexy new Tracker who is shadowing her every move.” In actuality, a mysterious body guard who showed up out of nowhere and no one asked followup questions about.
Rodan: Local head honcho. Nyx’s former lover and current boss. The reason Torin is allowed to shadow Nyx. Somehow runs an entire city and yet didn't run a supernatural background check on Torin first.
Chance: An asshole.
Caprice and the Tracker gang: Our collection of magical cops. None of their names or characteristics matter. They are completely interchangeable except for who lives or dies. Even the ones who should matter have the personality and character development of wet cardboard.
The writing itself is fairly cringeworthy. This was published in 2009 and our characters all have XPhones. McCray apparently does not believe in pronouns when it comes to XPhones because you will find a reference to Nyx’s XPhone 3-4 times a paragraph, sometimes even multiple times in the same sentence. Nyx won’t leave home without her XPhone, designer shoes, designer handbag and 6 other brand name items which we will hear about by full brand and item every single time (ie “My Gucci purse). If you hate your liver, a good drinking game would be to drink every time XPhone is on a page. Please be sure to have emergency services on speed dial.
As I said at the start, this is the “so bad it is good” type of book, so while there was so much to laugh at, it was still an enjoyable enough read. McCray did a great job world building, to the point that I had to look multiple times to verify this was the first book of the series. I chose to view this as a positive. It told me that there were many stories before this one that I wasn’t privy to and this was a well established world. However, this could be detrimental, as often the book would allude to other characters for the first time as though the reader should already be familiar with them.
Another item for the positive column was the plot. While the plot definitely felt like a means to an end (let’s write 250 pages so I can write 50 pages of smut!), it was an interesting enough premise that it was a shame there wasn’t more to it. The plot played a support role to the interpersonal relationships throughout (which I found bland and unremarkable).
The rough plot of Demons Not Included is an investigation into a string of gruesome murders and kidnappings. Nyx is called in both in her day job of PI and her night job as a Tracker (supernatural cop) to help investigate. Throughout the plot, we are introduced to a whole supernatural world hiding in plain sight in NYC.
While it feels like cheating to know how a book will wrap up based on page count, having everything come to blows with only a few pages remaining removes any potential sense of concern or stakes for the characters.
Finally, we come to spice level. This is a romance novel (apparently) after all! Spice level: My asexual ass was able to skip multiple chapters and miss nothing plot related. I can’t speak to if those scenes were good, but a quick skim makes me think they were descriptive if nothing else.
I give this a strong 2 stars. This book is absolute trash with no redeeming qualities. It is the literary equivalent of eating a family sized bag of Doritos and a 2L Coke in one sitting. Still, as far as trash novels go, this one was a fun and enjoyable read.
The story focuses on Nyx, our Mary Sue. Nyx is half drow and half human. She conveniently inherited the perfect set of skills between her parents. By day she appears human and runs a PI Firm. By night, she turns into a purple (sorry, amethyst as Nyx reminds us every ten pages) dark elf magic police officer. Her powers include speed, flight (of a sort), stealth, power over all elementals, quick healing, you name it. She is one of the best warriors of her time. Nyx is the dark elf equivalent of a superhero. The only thing giving the stakes of this story any weight would be her terrible decision making skills. This is absolutely a book that would have been 200 pages shorter if “common sense” had been included in her list of abilities.
I believe this book was erroneously shelved under “sci-fi/fantasy” in my bookstore rather than the romance section it belongs in. Nyx is one of the horniest first-person characters I have ever read. Throughout the book, awful things are happening. She loses her best friend. She loses her second-best friend. Within the course of hours she’s banging someone to get over it. Nyx also is written like a bit of either a sociopath or someone with extreme attention issues. There are multiple scenes when she is literally touching a corpse, looking at blood spray or at a gruesome crime scene. Rather than treating the setting with the solemnity it deserves, she’s cracking jokes, making plans and dishing about her booty calls.
Mind you – this series all takes place over about a week. I would understand the more jaded or cynical investigator cracking jokes occasionally in these situations, either as dark humor or as a defense mechanism. However first of all, Nyx has only been doing this for 2 years and says these crime scenes are the worst she has ever seen. Additionally, to lose numerous loved ones and stand over what is described as one of the most horrifying crime scenes you have ever witnessed and think about riding a hot guy’s cock is not how a healthy mind works.
The ensemble characters are absolutely forgettable. We are introduced to one or two characters, but the majority of the ensemble have no defining qualities. Characters we have not been introduced to are dropped into the story as though we have met them already and this isn't their first mention. While the book is more focused on interpersonal relationships than a strong plot, the characters themselves are bland and uninspired. At no point does anyone learn or grow, making it hard to care about any of them.
We have, in no particular order:
Olivia: Nyx's PI Partner. She always wears a snarky shirt and has massive melon-sized breasts. You will be reminded of her giant bahonkaroos regularly.
Adam: Nyx’s wannabe fuckbuddy. Also a cop liaison for the supernatural community.
Torin: Advertised on the back of the book as “a sexy new Tracker who is shadowing her every move.” In actuality, a mysterious body guard who showed up out of nowhere and no one asked followup questions about.
Rodan: Local head honcho. Nyx’s former lover and current boss. The reason Torin is allowed to shadow Nyx. Somehow runs an entire city and yet didn't run a supernatural background check on Torin first.
Chance: An asshole.
Caprice and the Tracker gang: Our collection of magical cops. None of their names or characteristics matter. They are completely interchangeable except for who lives or dies. Even the ones who should matter have the personality and character development of wet cardboard.
The writing itself is fairly cringeworthy. This was published in 2009 and our characters all have XPhones. McCray apparently does not believe in pronouns when it comes to XPhones because you will find a reference to Nyx’s XPhone 3-4 times a paragraph, sometimes even multiple times in the same sentence. Nyx won’t leave home without her XPhone, designer shoes, designer handbag and 6 other brand name items which we will hear about by full brand and item every single time (ie “My Gucci purse). If you hate your liver, a good drinking game would be to drink every time XPhone is on a page. Please be sure to have emergency services on speed dial.
As I said at the start, this is the “so bad it is good” type of book, so while there was so much to laugh at, it was still an enjoyable enough read. McCray did a great job world building, to the point that I had to look multiple times to verify this was the first book of the series. I chose to view this as a positive. It told me that there were many stories before this one that I wasn’t privy to and this was a well established world. However, this could be detrimental, as often the book would allude to other characters for the first time as though the reader should already be familiar with them.
Another item for the positive column was the plot. While the plot definitely felt like a means to an end (let’s write 250 pages so I can write 50 pages of smut!), it was an interesting enough premise that it was a shame there wasn’t more to it. The plot played a support role to the interpersonal relationships throughout (which I found bland and unremarkable).
The rough plot of Demons Not Included is an investigation into a string of gruesome murders and kidnappings. Nyx is called in both in her day job of PI and her night job as a Tracker (supernatural cop) to help investigate. Throughout the plot, we are introduced to a whole supernatural world hiding in plain sight in NYC.
While it feels like cheating to know how a book will wrap up based on page count, having everything come to blows with only a few pages remaining removes any potential sense of concern or stakes for the characters.
Finally, we come to spice level. This is a romance novel (apparently) after all! Spice level: My asexual ass was able to skip multiple chapters and miss nothing plot related. I can’t speak to if those scenes were good, but a quick skim makes me think they were descriptive if nothing else.
I give this a strong 2 stars. This book is absolute trash with no redeeming qualities. It is the literary equivalent of eating a family sized bag of Doritos and a 2L Coke in one sitting. Still, as far as trash novels go, this one was a fun and enjoyable read.
August 6, 2015
This was my second attempt at reading this book. I started it once several years ago before I wrote reviews on everything I was reading. When it popped up on a recommended reading list, I decided to give it another shot, especially as from what I remember, I didn't give it a full 25% before giving up on it.
Well, I couldn't reach 25% on this second attempt either. The main character just drove me absolutely nuts. If I had to listen to her talk about using her "XPhone" instead of just "phone" one more time I would have been seriously tempted to cause some grievous bodily harm. And the designer name dropping and constant mentions of "how could I afford all this? Well, I am a Drow princess and Drows mine precious things". And the "cute" sayings on her partner's t-shirts - a different one every time the scene changes. Blech. And then the love interest came in and I just had to tap out. The descriptions made me feel like I was listening to a 15 year old describe her crush, not reading a novel marketed for adults.
Well, I couldn't reach 25% on this second attempt either. The main character just drove me absolutely nuts. If I had to listen to her talk about using her "XPhone" instead of just "phone" one more time I would have been seriously tempted to cause some grievous bodily harm. And the designer name dropping and constant mentions of "how could I afford all this? Well, I am a Drow princess and Drows mine precious things". And the "cute" sayings on her partner's t-shirts - a different one every time the scene changes. Blech. And then the love interest came in and I just had to tap out. The descriptions made me feel like I was listening to a 15 year old describe her crush, not reading a novel marketed for adults.
June 18, 2011
I really need half-stars to properly rate this book, the first of a new series by an author I love. I enjoyed the first person voice, the world building is fantastic (Drows are "new"), the characters were likable (Olivia is hilarious!)and the pace was fast. The problem I had was that it all felt very superficial to me; Ms. McCray is such a good writer that I even felt her main character felt everything was superficial! That said, I will eagerly pick up the next installment because a) I want to see what happens with Adam; b) I want to see some *wink-wink* action w/ T who sounded positively YUMMY; and c) this Night Tracker world is something else! I just hope that Cheyenne is able to delve a bit deeper into this storyline while still delivering the Jim Butcher-esque dialogue. Altho his characters wouldn't be carrying this season's D&G handbags . . . .
January 10, 2011
It took a long time for me to get into this book, 150 of 243 pages. It's not that it was bad there were just things I was rolling my eyes at. What? The constant name dropping of designers was the big one, that always feels awkward to me. I don't mind some but everytime the heroine is sitting in her human form, the narrative goes to this designer's bag, this designer's shoes. Once it was established that she only wore designer clothing and was a princess, it began to feel like those mentions were word count filler. A couple scenes felt like that as well.
The love triangle was interesting in a way, but I never really cared which of the two men Nyx ended up with and that isn't good. The fight scenes were well planned out. The plotline pretty predictable for the genre.
Having read some of her shorts, I really expected more from Cheyenne McCray and that disappointed me.
The love triangle was interesting in a way, but I never really cared which of the two men Nyx ended up with and that isn't good. The fight scenes were well planned out. The plotline pretty predictable for the genre.
Having read some of her shorts, I really expected more from Cheyenne McCray and that disappointed me.
November 20, 2011
Great plot and world building but rough writing with repetitive use of words/phrases. Ms. McCray has great potential in Paranormal writing career with a little more practice. Really talented in creative writing just need to polish her continuity and fluidity in writing.
January 23, 2015
Bland... characters were interesting, but plot was mediocre at best
January 31, 2018
I have to admit- when I started this book, I didn't think I was going to end up liking it. The beginning of the book was very jumbled, and I really couldn't "connect" with the main character "Nyx". She seemed very selfish and spoiled. There wasn't enough "back-story" to really understand what was going on in the story, and I felt there was a lot of unneccesary name dropping of designer products. (Also the term of "Xphone" instead of "iPhone" was silly and annoying.)
I almost gave up on the book, but for some reason, about 2/3 of the way through, I found myself beginning to like Nyx a bit. The author finally gives us a little bit of insight into her character, and we actually see some real emotion from her. The action in the story really began to pick up at this point too, although the final battle scene with the demons left me with the strange feeling that I was watching "Ghostbusters 2" for some reason.
Did I love this book? No. Did I hate it? No. Would I read the sequel? I think I will... (Especially since I've already got it!) I have just enough interest in what happens between Nyx and her two beaus that it'll keep me reading for at least one more installment. Maybe book 2 will be a little easier to read, since I no longer dislike the heroine as much... We'll see...
I almost gave up on the book, but for some reason, about 2/3 of the way through, I found myself beginning to like Nyx a bit. The author finally gives us a little bit of insight into her character, and we actually see some real emotion from her. The action in the story really began to pick up at this point too, although the final battle scene with the demons left me with the strange feeling that I was watching "Ghostbusters 2" for some reason.
Did I love this book? No. Did I hate it? No. Would I read the sequel? I think I will... (Especially since I've already got it!) I have just enough interest in what happens between Nyx and her two beaus that it'll keep me reading for at least one more installment. Maybe book 2 will be a little easier to read, since I no longer dislike the heroine as much... We'll see...
February 24, 2020
I picked this series up at a half price books and got 5 books in the series - so obviously I’m going to keep reading it.
I’m waffling between 3 1/2 or 4 stars for this book. It had intense moments, action, great imagery etc but something was just missing for me to loooooove this. Maybe it was the beginning of the book seeming to just drop you in the middle of something with no world building or backstory. Granted the backstory is filled out more as the book goes on but I literally checked twice to make sure I didn’t start on the wrong book for book 1. The heroine in this story has both amazing skills and terrible self confidence - so that probably stopped it from being rated higher. Yes she’s confident in some parts of the book but it felt like she constantly compared herself to others and her personal bad history.
Idk I hope it gets better with the other books. But yep - probably going to stick to a 3 - 3/ 1/2 rating more than bumping it up to 4.
Good twist on the plot for the ending though.
I’m waffling between 3 1/2 or 4 stars for this book. It had intense moments, action, great imagery etc but something was just missing for me to loooooove this. Maybe it was the beginning of the book seeming to just drop you in the middle of something with no world building or backstory. Granted the backstory is filled out more as the book goes on but I literally checked twice to make sure I didn’t start on the wrong book for book 1. The heroine in this story has both amazing skills and terrible self confidence - so that probably stopped it from being rated higher. Yes she’s confident in some parts of the book but it felt like she constantly compared herself to others and her personal bad history.
Idk I hope it gets better with the other books. But yep - probably going to stick to a 3 - 3/ 1/2 rating more than bumping it up to 4.
Good twist on the plot for the ending though.
September 22, 2017
Not a single thing about this book is in any way satisfying. Not the writing, not the characters, not the plot, and definitely not the romance. Every aspect of the story is half-assed, and the final battle is so anticlimactic that I feel like I've wasted my time forcing myself to get to it.
My biggest turn-off was the main character and how the author wrote about her. Congrats! You're half-Drow, you're a princess, and you wear designer clothes! We really don't need to be reminded of it every few paragraphs throughout the entire book, I promise.
I found the first three books in this series in good condition at a used book store for cheap, and I bought them because I was desperate for reading material and the synopsis was interesting. I hope to God the next two are better than this.
My biggest turn-off was the main character and how the author wrote about her. Congrats! You're half-Drow, you're a princess, and you wear designer clothes! We really don't need to be reminded of it every few paragraphs throughout the entire book, I promise.
I found the first three books in this series in good condition at a used book store for cheap, and I bought them because I was desperate for reading material and the synopsis was interesting. I hope to God the next two are better than this.
June 15, 2017
This book was non stop action, compelling story plot and very romantic. Especially, Nyx's romance is very complicated with Rodan and Adam. Her fellow friends dying almost every night from demon attacks just wait until you find out what happens next. You'll become hooked reading the series and it just keeps getting better. I recommend people to read this paranormal romance book because it is a real page turner it's hard to stop reading it.
February 24, 2021
Not a bad book, just really nothing special about it either. And for a romance novel, the sex scenes were decidedly uninspiring. And therefore, blessedly short. Not sure I'll be looking for the next in the series any time soon, if ever. Again, not bad, but gotta be better stuff to spend my time reading.
December 23, 2017
I couldn't get passed the first page.
August 2, 2018
Xphone.... Uhg
April 20, 2022
Really enjoyed this first book in the series keep writing them please.
February 27, 2023
For some reason, I didn't have high expectations for this book. I'm not sure if there was a specific reason for this, but I wasn't expecting much. And maybe that's why I'm very pleasantly surprised that I got a lot more story than I anticipated.
It's not a very long book, which is why I was surprised at how complex and multi-threaded the plot was. Although I also admit that at times I wondered if it wasn't all a bit too much for this volume of the book. Sometimes I wished the book had left me a little more time to understand everything that was really going on.
Another thing that surprised me was the number of sex scenes in this book and the main character's approach to sexual relationships. Of course, I expected some romance, but I didn't expect the main character to be involved with several men at the same time. Although, of course, at least right now, we have quite clearly shown who will be her main partner. I'm a bit curious if this will really be the case, or if the main character will be emotionally involved with other men as well.
When I started reading this book, I didn't really expect to continue this series. But now I'm starting to wonder about it. I certainly won't read the next book right away, but maybe one day I will. Of course, if I remember this series at all, which is not so sure.
It's not a very long book, which is why I was surprised at how complex and multi-threaded the plot was. Although I also admit that at times I wondered if it wasn't all a bit too much for this volume of the book. Sometimes I wished the book had left me a little more time to understand everything that was really going on.
Another thing that surprised me was the number of sex scenes in this book and the main character's approach to sexual relationships. Of course, I expected some romance, but I didn't expect the main character to be involved with several men at the same time. Although, of course, at least right now, we have quite clearly shown who will be her main partner. I'm a bit curious if this will really be the case, or if the main character will be emotionally involved with other men as well.
When I started reading this book, I didn't really expect to continue this series. But now I'm starting to wonder about it. I certainly won't read the next book right away, but maybe one day I will. Of course, if I remember this series at all, which is not so sure.
August 13, 2018
This novel wasn't what I originally thought I'd be. I guess I was thinking that it'd have more action to it. More filling material I guess. However, that doesn't mean that this was a terrible novel. Because it wasn't by any means. It was rather interesting in a unique way. Making it a somewhat faster read than I'm used to. Which is probably where I went wrong to begin with. For the lack of detail was quite noticeable.
Nyx has worked really hard to get the position that she's in. Which is no easy task for someone who is considered an official princess. But for Nyx being a Nighttracker is the best thing in the world, and she wouldn't trade it for anything. The only thing that even compares to it would be the lives of her friends. So when something starts attacking the city all the Nighttrackers go on high alert. Because the first attack on the city has left one of their own dead. Which means that Rodán has to bring in extra help. Because now they know exactly what they're dealing with. Demons, very well organized Demons too. They not only managed to take down one Nighttracker, but three of them. One of them being a very close friend of Nyx's. So now it's personal to all of them. Because for once they're the ones being hunted, instead of doing the hunting. Which means that everyone has to be on their guard for anything suspicious. Including the new guy Torin. The one that Rodán brought into the fold recently. There's just something about him that rubs Nyx the wrong way. She just can't seem to get a good read on him, and it seems to her that he's holding something back. Perhaps it's the way that he kills all the demons so easily, almost as if he knew exactly were to attack them. However, keeping an eye on Torin isn't the only thing that Nyx has to worry about. A certain detective has also caught her interest, in a good way. But when it comes to human relationships Nyx doesn't exactly have a good record. And with all these demon killings going around she may not be able to ever make her move.
This novel would be classified as an adult urban fantasy novel. One that has a slight hint of romance to it. Otherwise, it's full of demons, fae, shifters, and so much more. There's so many that I actually forgot what certain characters were at times. Which just made the whole thing very confusing to me as well. Including the plot to this novel. Which became very confusing. Especially towards the very end of things. But that's just to be expected in such a lackluster novel such as this one. Where all the details just sort of run together and become one huge mess. So when it comes down to my final recommendation it's needless to say not a very good one. Because I wholeheartedly believe that there are truly better novels than this one. Ones were the details actually go right along with the characters they portray.
*Read on June 27th, 2017
Nyx has worked really hard to get the position that she's in. Which is no easy task for someone who is considered an official princess. But for Nyx being a Nighttracker is the best thing in the world, and she wouldn't trade it for anything. The only thing that even compares to it would be the lives of her friends. So when something starts attacking the city all the Nighttrackers go on high alert. Because the first attack on the city has left one of their own dead. Which means that Rodán has to bring in extra help. Because now they know exactly what they're dealing with. Demons, very well organized Demons too. They not only managed to take down one Nighttracker, but three of them. One of them being a very close friend of Nyx's. So now it's personal to all of them. Because for once they're the ones being hunted, instead of doing the hunting. Which means that everyone has to be on their guard for anything suspicious. Including the new guy Torin. The one that Rodán brought into the fold recently. There's just something about him that rubs Nyx the wrong way. She just can't seem to get a good read on him, and it seems to her that he's holding something back. Perhaps it's the way that he kills all the demons so easily, almost as if he knew exactly were to attack them. However, keeping an eye on Torin isn't the only thing that Nyx has to worry about. A certain detective has also caught her interest, in a good way. But when it comes to human relationships Nyx doesn't exactly have a good record. And with all these demon killings going around she may not be able to ever make her move.
This novel would be classified as an adult urban fantasy novel. One that has a slight hint of romance to it. Otherwise, it's full of demons, fae, shifters, and so much more. There's so many that I actually forgot what certain characters were at times. Which just made the whole thing very confusing to me as well. Including the plot to this novel. Which became very confusing. Especially towards the very end of things. But that's just to be expected in such a lackluster novel such as this one. Where all the details just sort of run together and become one huge mess. So when it comes down to my final recommendation it's needless to say not a very good one. Because I wholeheartedly believe that there are truly better novels than this one. Ones were the details actually go right along with the characters they portray.
*Read on June 27th, 2017
September 29, 2010
Short synopsis-
Half-human, half-Drow princess Nyx is a Tracker who defends her city against the big and small creatures of the Otherworld in NY. She solves cases and kicks butt with her former NYPD partner Olivia when she isn't shopping or salivating after hottie human liasion cop, Adam.
Something nasty in the form of Demons, has been murdering paranorms and now...Trackers and humans.
Nyx isn't going to take this lying down, even if she has to do all the dirty work all by extra special self.
Too bad no one (friends et al) is going to allow her to hog all the glory.
End synopsis
Hmmm...I don't know why this book got such a bad rep. I've read and reviewed books where the author could not write a straight, grammatically correct sentence if they were facing a firing squad--and this author (who shall remain nameless) is selling books from four e-publishers, three I highly respect yet question for this fact.
I've read so many negative reviews about Demons Not Included on here. This has me puzzled over the nameless author I just mentioned gaining so many readers without anyone screaming foul play. Ms. McCray can write, understand the mechanics of writing, whether you liked the darn book or not.
Of course, I don't allow anyone's opinion to deter me from making up my own mind.
:-) Usually the general consensus is the least interesting one--or inaccurate.
I do agree that the high end designer references sometimes overloaded the story. You can only read about a character's Dolce and Gabanna bag so many times without grimacing. And I like D&G!
There's plot cliches all around, not a lot of twists and surprises. Still, this was an enjoyable read, pleasant in fact.
Lots of good character developement and ideas, too. I like the depiction of the Dark Elves/Drow; it's fresh and original, quite different from RA Salvatore's UnderDark featuring purple eyed ranger Drizzt. No one is trying to emulate Salvatore, few to zero could pull it off.
I liked the Trackers, Nyx's human partner Olivia, Adam her love interest, and the array of supernatural nasties.
This is the first book and it ended with an interesting cliff hanger. And other unresolved concerns--sooo, it's worth a read for the second book. First books can sometimes stagger and lurch a bit in the beginning, and will pick up and soar later. This series has potential.
It gets 3 stars for solid writing, great characters, inspired moments of originality, decent sex scenes and good, tight action. The protagonist is pretty interesting, and I'd like to see her fleshed out more.
With that all said--
If you like the author, try this on for size, and don't let anyone's angst and distaste infect you.
It just might be the book for you, after all.
Half-human, half-Drow princess Nyx is a Tracker who defends her city against the big and small creatures of the Otherworld in NY. She solves cases and kicks butt with her former NYPD partner Olivia when she isn't shopping or salivating after hottie human liasion cop, Adam.
Something nasty in the form of Demons, has been murdering paranorms and now...Trackers and humans.
Nyx isn't going to take this lying down, even if she has to do all the dirty work all by extra special self.
Too bad no one (friends et al) is going to allow her to hog all the glory.
End synopsis
Hmmm...I don't know why this book got such a bad rep. I've read and reviewed books where the author could not write a straight, grammatically correct sentence if they were facing a firing squad--and this author (who shall remain nameless) is selling books from four e-publishers, three I highly respect yet question for this fact.
I've read so many negative reviews about Demons Not Included on here. This has me puzzled over the nameless author I just mentioned gaining so many readers without anyone screaming foul play. Ms. McCray can write, understand the mechanics of writing, whether you liked the darn book or not.
Of course, I don't allow anyone's opinion to deter me from making up my own mind.
:-) Usually the general consensus is the least interesting one--or inaccurate.
I do agree that the high end designer references sometimes overloaded the story. You can only read about a character's Dolce and Gabanna bag so many times without grimacing. And I like D&G!
There's plot cliches all around, not a lot of twists and surprises. Still, this was an enjoyable read, pleasant in fact.
Lots of good character developement and ideas, too. I like the depiction of the Dark Elves/Drow; it's fresh and original, quite different from RA Salvatore's UnderDark featuring purple eyed ranger Drizzt. No one is trying to emulate Salvatore, few to zero could pull it off.
I liked the Trackers, Nyx's human partner Olivia, Adam her love interest, and the array of supernatural nasties.
This is the first book and it ended with an interesting cliff hanger. And other unresolved concerns--sooo, it's worth a read for the second book. First books can sometimes stagger and lurch a bit in the beginning, and will pick up and soar later. This series has potential.
It gets 3 stars for solid writing, great characters, inspired moments of originality, decent sex scenes and good, tight action. The protagonist is pretty interesting, and I'd like to see her fleshed out more.
With that all said--
If you like the author, try this on for size, and don't let anyone's angst and distaste infect you.
It just might be the book for you, after all.
December 8, 2010
Storyline: Meet Nyx. She's a half-human, half–Drow (Dark Elf) PI who investigates paranormal crimes by day and is an elite Tracker who wears leather and fights demons by night. (Her skin also turns Amethyst, or purple, as her partner Olivia likes to say and her ears and teeth grow as well.) She prefers working solo—and playing rough. So when a terrifying force starts murdering innocent humans and paranorms, and leaving strange demonic symbols burned into their buildings, it’s a case Nyx takes very personally
Meanwhile, Nyx’s fellow Trackers are being killed one by one and a sexy new Tracker named Torin is shadowing her every move. Torin has powers Nyx can’t read, and sometimes she wonders whose side he’s on. What may, or may not be a coincidence to the Trackers deaths, their police liasions are also killed. Nyx’s instincts tell her something’s brewing in the city’s meanest supernatural streets, and that it’s ready to unleash hell on Earth. Who can she trust? Now it’s five minutes to permanent midnight and Nyx’s last chance means risking everything—even her own life.
Nyx Ciar is also a Princess of the Dark Elves, and works with a human partner named Olivia DeSantos. Olivia is the comic relief of the book at times, but she's also a former police officer, so she knows her way around guns and investigations. Unlike Nyx, Olivia is all-human. She tends to wear off the cuff T-Shirts bearing different witticisms. While Nyx wears Dolce and Cabanna, Olivia wears Jeans and T-Shirts. They couldn't be more different. One is tall, while the other is short. But they make excellent partners.
This is the first book in the Night Tracker series and a good entry into the UF genre. This was my first time reading anything by this author, but have since finished several other books. I like Nyk, and Olivia's relationship, and it can only get better in future books. Nyk's boss, a Dow named Rodan, is also a former lover who just happens to want to jump Nyk's bones each and everytime they are around each other. Of course, this causes conflict with NYPD Detective Adam Boyd, naturally.
Everyone has different opinions regarding this novel, and how Nyk has to dress up in leather when she transforms into her Dark Elf side. It's fantasy folks!
Meanwhile, Nyx’s fellow Trackers are being killed one by one and a sexy new Tracker named Torin is shadowing her every move. Torin has powers Nyx can’t read, and sometimes she wonders whose side he’s on. What may, or may not be a coincidence to the Trackers deaths, their police liasions are also killed. Nyx’s instincts tell her something’s brewing in the city’s meanest supernatural streets, and that it’s ready to unleash hell on Earth. Who can she trust? Now it’s five minutes to permanent midnight and Nyx’s last chance means risking everything—even her own life.
Nyx Ciar is also a Princess of the Dark Elves, and works with a human partner named Olivia DeSantos. Olivia is the comic relief of the book at times, but she's also a former police officer, so she knows her way around guns and investigations. Unlike Nyx, Olivia is all-human. She tends to wear off the cuff T-Shirts bearing different witticisms. While Nyx wears Dolce and Cabanna, Olivia wears Jeans and T-Shirts. They couldn't be more different. One is tall, while the other is short. But they make excellent partners.
This is the first book in the Night Tracker series and a good entry into the UF genre. This was my first time reading anything by this author, but have since finished several other books. I like Nyk, and Olivia's relationship, and it can only get better in future books. Nyk's boss, a Dow named Rodan, is also a former lover who just happens to want to jump Nyk's bones each and everytime they are around each other. Of course, this causes conflict with NYPD Detective Adam Boyd, naturally.
Everyone has different opinions regarding this novel, and how Nyk has to dress up in leather when she transforms into her Dark Elf side. It's fantasy folks!
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