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Rhine Maiden #1
The Rhine Maiden
(This edition is out of print and has been replaced in the series by "Don't Rhine on My Parade" http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18...)
Piper Cavanaugh is The Rhine Maiden, a descendent of the sirens who lured sailors to their deaths with beautiful singing. After vowing never to use her supernatural power of command, she is more than happy to stay at home with her two little girls, but one little slip-up and her secret has come back to bite her – literally. Now she must win permission to join the United Supernatural Beings, or it’s open hunting season on all of humanity.
While juggling toddlers, keeping her husband in the dark, and babysitting her rebellious kid sister, Piper finds herself befriending a vampire, stealing from murderous witches, and doing battle with Satan, otherwise known as her mother-in-law. And she thought grocery shopping with her kids was hard!
Piper Cavanaugh is The Rhine Maiden, a descendent of the sirens who lured sailors to their deaths with beautiful singing. After vowing never to use her supernatural power of command, she is more than happy to stay at home with her two little girls, but one little slip-up and her secret has come back to bite her – literally. Now she must win permission to join the United Supernatural Beings, or it’s open hunting season on all of humanity.
While juggling toddlers, keeping her husband in the dark, and babysitting her rebellious kid sister, Piper finds herself befriending a vampire, stealing from murderous witches, and doing battle with Satan, otherwise known as her mother-in-law. And she thought grocery shopping with her kids was hard!
215 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 20, 2010
15 people are currently reading
229 people want to read
About the author
Erin Evans
19 books15 followersErin Evans is a stay-at-home mom of seven (yep!), wonderful, little children. When she's not chasing after her offspring, changing diapers, teaching school, cooking gruel, chauffeuring minions about, or potty training, she is writing, playing drums at her church or crashed out dead asleep.
BOOKS:
- In her first series, "The Rhine Maiden" (Books 1-5), Erin based her siren-voiced character, Piper Cavanaugh, on her own life, but decided to have pity on Piper and only gave her two kids... to start off with.
- The Pernicious Princess series is a delightfully wicked take on twisted fairy tales. Book 3 is coming 2015.
- Food for Love, a foodie inspired romantic comedy with an urban fantasy twist.
REVIEWS:
The Rhine Maiden - ABNA 2012 Quarterfinalist
Food for Love - ABNA 2013 Quarterfinalist
- "... a very satisfying read ... fun and imaginative -- and romantic, of course ... this book is highly entertaining" - Publishers Weekly (ABNA 2013 Manuscript Review)
- "The humor and verve the protagonist exhibits are refreshing and delightful to read." - ABNA Expert Reviewer (Partial Manuscript Review)
- "The story unfolds rapidly, and Cordelia's voice is strong, individualistic and rich with self deprecating humor." - ABNA Expert Reviewer (Partial Manuscript Review)
FAVORITE BOOKS
In urban fantasy, Erin enjoys Charlaine Harris, Patricia Briggs, and Kim Harrison. All time favorite authors would be a tie between Robin Hobb and Jasper Fforde. Best series would be Jim Butcher's Codex Alera.
BOOKS:
- In her first series, "The Rhine Maiden" (Books 1-5), Erin based her siren-voiced character, Piper Cavanaugh, on her own life, but decided to have pity on Piper and only gave her two kids... to start off with.
- The Pernicious Princess series is a delightfully wicked take on twisted fairy tales. Book 3 is coming 2015.
- Food for Love, a foodie inspired romantic comedy with an urban fantasy twist.
REVIEWS:
The Rhine Maiden - ABNA 2012 Quarterfinalist
Food for Love - ABNA 2013 Quarterfinalist
- "... a very satisfying read ... fun and imaginative -- and romantic, of course ... this book is highly entertaining" - Publishers Weekly (ABNA 2013 Manuscript Review)
- "The humor and verve the protagonist exhibits are refreshing and delightful to read." - ABNA Expert Reviewer (Partial Manuscript Review)
- "The story unfolds rapidly, and Cordelia's voice is strong, individualistic and rich with self deprecating humor." - ABNA Expert Reviewer (Partial Manuscript Review)
FAVORITE BOOKS
In urban fantasy, Erin enjoys Charlaine Harris, Patricia Briggs, and Kim Harrison. All time favorite authors would be a tie between Robin Hobb and Jasper Fforde. Best series would be Jim Butcher's Codex Alera.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
March 31, 2013
This is one of the few books I have ever read that have truly made me angry with the author. The first half of the book is fairly light, easy to read, and likable. The main character is very human, loving one moment, judgmental the next. Then suddenly out of the blue comes this deadly serious condemnation of anyone who have an abortion or anyone who would help a woman to abort her fetus. Then the indifferent or inconsistent discipline of her own children, judgmental treatment of her sister become quite hypocritical. I will not ever read another book by this author, nor will I recommend anyone else read her either.
I have no problem with authors expressing their opinions, or characters coming to realizations. But the literal demonization of abortion clinics coming out of the blue like that makes the rest of the story more than a little hypocritical.
I have no problem with authors expressing their opinions, or characters coming to realizations. But the literal demonization of abortion clinics coming out of the blue like that makes the rest of the story more than a little hypocritical.
August 31, 2011
I got a little tired of the anti-abortion ranting, but it was fun to read a stay-at-home-mom goes paranormal story.
August 31, 2011
Got this as an Amazon Freebie. I can say that I wouldn't gotten this if I had to pay for it. I was, however, nicely surprised and am considering buying the second one.
Piper has a problem and it's more than her mother-in-law. A vampire is trying to kill her. And her young sister is going rebellious. And her dog doesn't really understand house breaking. And she has two young girls who both want to wear the princess crown, even though there are two.
And she has a magical ability that she hasn't told her husband about.
And humans might be wiped off the face of the earth.
Is this the best book I read? No, but it was very amusing in places, and Piper is a wonderful drawn character. I do agree with another reviewer, the anti-abortion rant went on just a little too long. But, I must also give credit to Evans for having Piper's husband, Mark, disagree with the rant and then both parties agreeing to disagree.
The very ending I did see coming. Certain things prior to the end I didn't. In particular, Piper's test was rather gripping and give her more depth.
Piper has a problem and it's more than her mother-in-law. A vampire is trying to kill her. And her young sister is going rebellious. And her dog doesn't really understand house breaking. And she has two young girls who both want to wear the princess crown, even though there are two.
And she has a magical ability that she hasn't told her husband about.
And humans might be wiped off the face of the earth.
Is this the best book I read? No, but it was very amusing in places, and Piper is a wonderful drawn character. I do agree with another reviewer, the anti-abortion rant went on just a little too long. But, I must also give credit to Evans for having Piper's husband, Mark, disagree with the rant and then both parties agreeing to disagree.
The very ending I did see coming. Certain things prior to the end I didn't. In particular, Piper's test was rather gripping and give her more depth.
May 22, 2013
very preachy. I liked the concept but hated the preaching. won't read more.
August 23, 2019
I dont get it....
I tried to give this story a chance cause it strted out well enough. The inteoduction of magic, though was lackluster and borderline cocky, though. Wish I couldve liked it, but alas...
I tried to give this story a chance cause it strted out well enough. The inteoduction of magic, though was lackluster and borderline cocky, though. Wish I couldve liked it, but alas...
August 10, 2011
The story follows Piper, the stay at home mother of two demonic toddlers who also has the power of Voice, making her being able to command people. She sworn not to use the power ever again (unless in a dire situations, aka when it comes to her dog Harvey) after she had a scary incident in university which made her change universities and move cities. For 6 years Piper was able to keep her power under control, until she lost her temper with her little sister Sarah and came under the radar of USB (United Supernatural Beings) again.
This is where the fun starts! Now Piper has to petition USB to join them, while trying to not get killed, while still taking care of her children, while keeping it all a secret from her husband Mark. Enter Cecily, her new next door vampire neighbor who ended up becoming Piper's permanent side-kick. Then enter a werewolf and a fae who need Piper's help, along with a bunch of evil witches who really don't want Piper to stick her nose in their affairs. And of course we can't forget about little sister Sarah, who is a general pain-in-a-butt type of character (Sorry Sarah, but I'm with Piper on that regardless of how misunderstood you think you are).
The book grabbed my attention from the first page, and I was chuckling all the way through at Piper's parenting methods. I don't have kids, but I can relate. And her mother-in-law was making me so mad, I wanted to throw something at her. Or better yet, kick her really hard where it hurts! I loved all the supporting characters too, especially Otis the cat. Ok ok, I meant Cecily, the uber cool vampire chic who can kick ass and eat anything she wants while not gaining an ounce of weight. There were other miscellaneous characters that helped to bring the book alive, and I'm hoping to see them again in the next books.
Piper is very real, maybe a little ditzy (but who wouldn't be after dealing with her kids) but still able to think on her feet. She cares about her family, and loves her children more than anything, but at the same time she takes her situation (and the fate of humanity) very seriously. So she works around her parenting schedule and even asks her mother-in-law to babysit two days in a row, so she could go take care of her paranormal business. Piper is a character I could relate too, someone who has problems and not always a clear way of dealing with them.
There is also not an ounce of sex in this book, which was very refreshing considering that's where all the paranormal fantasy books are leaning these days. Maybe I've been reading too many naughty romance novels lately, but it was nice to see a heroine who didn't loose her ability to think the second she saw a hot guy. (Um, Piper = married mother of two here thank you very much)
There were few minor things I didn't particularly cared for, namely the aliens..... aliens huh? But I know there is a higher purpose to that, so I'll just wait and see. Then there is the vampire character that briefly appeared at the beginning, but then disappeared for the rest of the book. I kept waiting for him to jump out and attack Piper, but no, he must have went into vampire hibernation. And finally Sarah and Piper's mother-in-law. They were so real that I was reliving Piper's experiences with them, and it was making me mad! I have to applaud Erin Evans on her writing here.
Overall I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who is looking for a different type of paranormal fantasy.
This is where the fun starts! Now Piper has to petition USB to join them, while trying to not get killed, while still taking care of her children, while keeping it all a secret from her husband Mark. Enter Cecily, her new next door vampire neighbor who ended up becoming Piper's permanent side-kick. Then enter a werewolf and a fae who need Piper's help, along with a bunch of evil witches who really don't want Piper to stick her nose in their affairs. And of course we can't forget about little sister Sarah, who is a general pain-in-a-butt type of character (Sorry Sarah, but I'm with Piper on that regardless of how misunderstood you think you are).
The book grabbed my attention from the first page, and I was chuckling all the way through at Piper's parenting methods. I don't have kids, but I can relate. And her mother-in-law was making me so mad, I wanted to throw something at her. Or better yet, kick her really hard where it hurts! I loved all the supporting characters too, especially Otis the cat. Ok ok, I meant Cecily, the uber cool vampire chic who can kick ass and eat anything she wants while not gaining an ounce of weight. There were other miscellaneous characters that helped to bring the book alive, and I'm hoping to see them again in the next books.
Piper is very real, maybe a little ditzy (but who wouldn't be after dealing with her kids) but still able to think on her feet. She cares about her family, and loves her children more than anything, but at the same time she takes her situation (and the fate of humanity) very seriously. So she works around her parenting schedule and even asks her mother-in-law to babysit two days in a row, so she could go take care of her paranormal business. Piper is a character I could relate too, someone who has problems and not always a clear way of dealing with them.
There is also not an ounce of sex in this book, which was very refreshing considering that's where all the paranormal fantasy books are leaning these days. Maybe I've been reading too many naughty romance novels lately, but it was nice to see a heroine who didn't loose her ability to think the second she saw a hot guy. (Um, Piper = married mother of two here thank you very much)
There were few minor things I didn't particularly cared for, namely the aliens..... aliens huh? But I know there is a higher purpose to that, so I'll just wait and see. Then there is the vampire character that briefly appeared at the beginning, but then disappeared for the rest of the book. I kept waiting for him to jump out and attack Piper, but no, he must have went into vampire hibernation. And finally Sarah and Piper's mother-in-law. They were so real that I was reliving Piper's experiences with them, and it was making me mad! I have to applaud Erin Evans on her writing here.
Overall I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who is looking for a different type of paranormal fantasy.
February 13, 2012
This is a story about Piper Cavanaugh, who has the ability to command people (a better term would be 'creatures', I believe) around her to do as she says. Now a mother of two, she found out that there is an impending alien invasion, and the fate of the world and all of humanity lies with her. Things of course, were not so simple, with werewolves and vampires and malicious trifids to handle, and nothing is quite what it seems. On top of it all, she has two hyperactive kids and a menacing mother-in-law to handle...
I quite like the story. It was written in a lighthearted way that was meant to bring a smile to your face. There were quite a few laugh out loud moments, and Piper is a character one can relate to. The antics of the kids and the other creatures were also entertaining, and the side characters were rather memorable too. Piper is hilarious at times, and her sarcasm is delicious.
However, there were a few things that bothered me about this book. First would be the structure of the writing. I would have preferred it to be more organized. The way it was written made it seem like it was written as a high school project. I appreciate the story, but it could do with better paragraphing and structuring.
Another thing that bothered me was the weak ending. After all that the characters had gone through, everything was wrapped up in about... two chapters. While I understand that more of the Rhine Maiden story will be coming, the ending felt too rushed, reaffirming my idea that this was all a high school essay writing project, that the writer had ran out of time for the ending.
I quite like the story. It was written in a lighthearted way that was meant to bring a smile to your face. There were quite a few laugh out loud moments, and Piper is a character one can relate to. The antics of the kids and the other creatures were also entertaining, and the side characters were rather memorable too. Piper is hilarious at times, and her sarcasm is delicious.
However, there were a few things that bothered me about this book. First would be the structure of the writing. I would have preferred it to be more organized. The way it was written made it seem like it was written as a high school project. I appreciate the story, but it could do with better paragraphing and structuring.
Another thing that bothered me was the weak ending. After all that the characters had gone through, everything was wrapped up in about... two chapters. While I understand that more of the Rhine Maiden story will be coming, the ending felt too rushed, reaffirming my idea that this was all a high school essay writing project, that the writer had ran out of time for the ending.
July 20, 2012
It was nice to see a stay at home mom as a paranormal heroine, but be warned: this one listens to Glen Beck for "news', is preachy and overbearing (but thinks it's funny to use the term "fag")and hits you over the head with her poorly researched anti choice stance (that goes on for many chapters and is hard to skip past). There were some promising points when she described her college years, and her younger sister has potential. I'd like to see stories from the sister's POV. I would also like to see this paragon of virtue show a little appreciation for a mother-in-law who drops everything alt the last minute whenever she's called to babysit. Instead we hear complaints about how the old bat buys too many toys for the girls and cooks homemade meals instead of microwaving everything. The gall. I will try to read the next book in the series in hopes that the main character grows (or at least gets that stick out of an uncomfortable place). I think with experience and editing, the author may be able to write a decent story.
November 18, 2012
The Rhine Maiden by Erin Evans initially caught me by the title, which made my little Germanic heart go pitter-patter. (Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries" is my ring tone, but no skin heads allowed.) It's an easy read with parts that I enjoyed. I have grands that are 2 & 4 years of age and a Harvey of my own, so I can testify that part of our heroine's personal life was spot on. I enjoy quirky, funny urban fantasy heroines, but I felt Ms. Evans took elements from three of my favorite urban fantasy heroines--Julie Kenner's demon-hunting soccer mom Kate Connor, Charlaine Harris' plucky Sookie Stackhouse (from the books, not the, ugh, HBO series) and Mary Janice Davidson's ditzy and hysterically immature Queen Betsy--and tried to combine all of the above. Tried too hard, IMHO, which not only does not quite work, it became a tad annoying. A thirty-something mom sticking out her tongue in the face of danger not once, but twice was really twice too many. This book was free from Amazon, it was entertaining, it wasn't great, but it wasn't bad, either.
March 15, 2013
This was a funny story about this housewife who finds out she is on a hit list for exposing magic she didn't realize she was even using! Well she knew early on she had a voice that could make people listen if only for a few moments but she never really considered it magic or anything until paranormals started popping out of the woodwork trying to run her over.
It was a bit different than the usual paranormal stories I read because it was quite comedic on one hand and full of every day life on the other like mother-in-laws from heck and screaming kids and pesty kid siblings and ect....all rolled into one and poor Piper has to find a way to live not only with her day to day life struggles but how to survive the world of magic!
It was a bit different than the usual paranormal stories I read because it was quite comedic on one hand and full of every day life on the other like mother-in-laws from heck and screaming kids and pesty kid siblings and ect....all rolled into one and poor Piper has to find a way to live not only with her day to day life struggles but how to survive the world of magic!
March 17, 2012
Contrary to other reviewer's opinions of this book, I found it to be a really fun, quick read. Yes, an abortion clinic was a setting for a part of the book, but unless it has been edited since the negative reviews were placed, there really wasn't much pertaining to pro-life or pro-choice issues. Certainly, the subject matter was not excessive nor is it required to read the sections of the book one may find offensive in order to comprehend what is taking place.
I enjoyed this book; I read it on and off for a little less than two days. There is a good balance of action, humor, family and fantasy. I will definitely be reading more from this author!!
I enjoyed this book; I read it on and off for a little less than two days. There is a good balance of action, humor, family and fantasy. I will definitely be reading more from this author!!
August 6, 2011
this is the first book in the rhine maiden series by erin evans, and it was really cute. not a romance, per se, but just a really cute story about a harried housewife/stay-at-home-mom who has a secret--she is human BUT....
going to have to check out the other books in this series; it's too good to stop here. i really commend amazon and other book sellers who are offering so many books free lately. i've been introduced to several good authors this way, though my budget is complaining loudly!
going to have to check out the other books in this series; it's too good to stop here. i really commend amazon and other book sellers who are offering so many books free lately. i've been introduced to several good authors this way, though my budget is complaining loudly!
October 25, 2014
Overall this was a cute piece of fluff fantasy. I was enjoying it until I was 2/3 of the way through and I had to wade through a few pages of anti-choice preaching. Then it was back to the regularly scheduled story. It wasn't really the content that bothered me. I've read other books where the character's (and obviously the author's) beliefs were very different from mine and I didn't feel beaten over the head with sanctimony. This just seemed out of place in the context of the book.
May 1, 2012
Excellent read. Light reading and very amusing. Very interesting twist on the whole vampire/werewolf/witches genre. Not dark, except when you consider how real some of her book really is. The interactions between the main character and her children, and the main character and her mother-in-law is hilarious.
Read
October 9, 2012DNF. Glen Beck is "news"? Spanking your 2 and 4 year olds because they get out of bed and want to spend time with you, their mother, is OK because you'd rather be snogging your husband on the couch? There were some funny bits, and it's a neat concept, but in the end, I couldn't do it. I just couldn't do it.
October 18, 2011
it's a good book. but i am really not interesting book 2. i'm trying to stay away from the whole vampire supernatural stuff right now. with twilght and vampire diaries,i've had my fill. that's the only reason i didnt give it 3 stars. but there were parts that really had me glued.
August 5, 2011
This was a fun read. Kind of on the order of the Sookie Stackhouse novels or the Dead and Unwed novels.
August 15, 2011
Cute little fantasy read.
September 7, 2011
Clearly not headed for the canon of classical lit for all times, but very entertaining to a stay at home mom!
October 13, 2011
Bizzare plot but fast paced, well written. A cute, quirky read. Got it free and bought the second installment. Never trust a witch is my new motto.
October 24, 2011
3.5 -only because it's not the smartest read but oh-so-much fun.
March 6, 2012
I didn't really start to like the book until it was almost finished. There was lots of set up. I got hooked in and I bought the next book on my kindle. Just 99 cents.
February 15, 2012
enjoyed this!
September 15, 2012
I liked this book a lot. It had a heroine I could really relate to, and an original plot (I really couldn't predict the ending).
March 3, 2013
Not a bad book but not really a good one either. I wasn't offended by this book as some reviewers were but the main character was a little flat to me.
September 2, 2014
got it as a Kindle freebie, it kept my interest and had potential. liked the characters, but I hate figuring out the plot twist at the beginning of a book.
August 29, 2022
I didnt expected this kind of book. I feel like I am hook onto the whole story
Want to read
August 8, 2011Kobo free download 8/8/11
to-read-owned
February 13, 2016romance
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews