Although Kiss of the Rose is a paranormal romance involving vampires, druids and humans with special senses, it focuses much more on the interpersonal relationships than it does on the supernatural stuff, which is a good thing. This book reminds me a bit of the Gardella Vampire Chronicles series by Colleen Gleason in that the story takes place in a historical setting, rather than a contemporary one.

The heroine, Rosalind, is a descendant of ancient druids with a special sense for sensing vampires and has been sent to the court of King Henry VIII to sniff one out. At the same time the Vampires have sent one of their own cohorts to take stock of the situation as well, and to oppose her, if necessary. Naturally, this fellow – Christopher, a human associate of the Vampires – is our hero.

Rosalind and Christopher team up to find and stop a rogue vampire who has been killing in a way that will bring attention to the other vampires who, not surprisingly, wish to remain unknown. As they skulk about the castle during the night trying to figure out who the vampire might be, they begin to discover that they like each other way too much. Kind of a problem, considering their positions firmly on opposite sides.

This is a solid story, with good character development and an interesting take on vampire existence. The romance is a little bit frustrating, as the book really concentrates more on the search for the vampire, but still builds some romantic tension without ever fully satisfying it. This is definitely intentional on the part of the author, though, as the story wraps up with an obvious intention of future sequels.

I’m glad I got an opportunity to read this story, since it is new and different. Not one that made me instantly a rabid fan (like J.R. Ward), but I definitely think there may be some promising development with this story coming up. Kiss of the Rose is a solid win for fans of vampires and historical romances.

The books (including book one: Howling at the Moon and book two: On the Prowl) follow werewolf Sophie Garou as she attempts to make her way between were-society and the human world. MacInerney’s characters are so enjoyable and the storyline well written with lots of romance, action and mystery  that this series makes the perfect read for any paranormal fiction fan hoping to find a new author.

In ‘Leader of the Pack,’  Sophie is hot and heavy with her sinful boyfriend Mark while still lusting after the fabulous golden werewolf Tom, when out of nowhere her long lost father arrives seeking a relationship with her.  The local Houston pack is threatened, murders are involved and her father Luc is under suspicion. All the while, Mark is becoming as questionable as ever.

We already know from the last book that he isn’t human but what is he really? Is he dangerous and why does he feel like he ‘owns’ Sophie? For anyone following the series, this is the book you cannot miss. Without giving anything away all I can say is… trust me ‘Leader of the Pack‘ is worth reading. For anyone who is not familiar with this series start with book one.

The only negatives that I can see are that for fans of the more sci-fi Lilith Saintcrow crowd this series may be a little tame. However, at least for me this book was an all day read. Anyone who likes Carrie Vaughn or any of the more mainstream paranormal romances will be pleasantly surprised by this author.

To be perfectly honest with everyone… I’m not completely sure why I keep reading this series. The first book  ‘The Turning‘ was explosive. The characters are fantastic – some are disturbed, some are heroic, but all are interesting and maybe that is what hooked me.

However, since that first novel, all after have fallen short and this one is no different. The story line is slow. The characters that I loved previously now feel overdeveloped. Armintrout basically changed everything I love about both men. Nathan gets over the anguish of his dead wife. Cyrus, the best sexy super villain vampire ever written, was ruined completely by being made human and Carrie is at a total loss as to who she wants to be with. Normally that kind of tension is good, but here it just gets boring.

The back story that strings all the novels together  follows ‘The Voluntary Vampire Extinction Movement’, the Soul Eater (Cyrus’ father), and a vampire called the Oracle,  all tangled together in a complicated tale of each player’s agenda. Overall, I like the continuing saga but I’m so bored with the current story line that I can barely stick with it until the end. Maybe it’s not as bad as I’m making it out to be and please let me know if you disagree.

In short, I guess I have read worse novels and Armintrout is a good writer but overall I think this storyline is done for me. That being said, I will probably read book four anyway. What can I say … I have hopes it’ll get better.

The writing is interesting and I’m a fan of Carrie Vaughn’s writing but these last few novels weren’t some of my favorites. I felt like the plot line was a little slow and the action lagged. I’m also very disappointed that she has cut Cormac down to a few pages near the end of the novel. Some of you may disagree, but Ben as a character, just isn’t as intriguing to me. I hope that I’m picking up signs that her next novel ‘Kitty’s House of Horrors‘ or at least one in the future, will involve Cormac more.

Still, the novels retain the basic humor that fans love and the characters remain the same. I’m sorry to say that I seem to be losing interest in this series. ‘Kitty Raises Hell‘ was good but in the sense that a book is good to read while waiting for a favorite author’s to come out.

The only possible down side to the series (depending on the kind of books you like this could be an upside) is the lack of erotic romance. However PG-13 it may be, the sexual tension is so thick you cut it with a knife.

Overall, the series follows Mercenary Kate Daniels as she tries to unwind magical mysteries in a world unlike any I’ve read. Her work leads her from a large pack of Were-animals, led by the very luscious Beast Lord to ’The People’ (a group of human necromancers who control armies of undead vampires) and retells her history with a group of virtual knights. 

The idea puts a fresh spin on the typical vampire genre and adds a very ’Karen Marie Moning‘esque dark side to her writing without being overly wordy or gory. In short: great action, fab characters, a quick read and a storyline I’m curious to keep up with.

After I read Magic Bites I had to drive 30 minutes to find the next book in the series ‘Magic Burns‘ at a library and I have the third book ‘Magic Strikes‘ on order.

This series has major potential and definitely deserves anyone who likes Sci Fi /Paranormal Fiction to give it a shot. Ilona Andrews is quickly making my favorite authors list!