Demons Are A Girl's Best Friend (2011) - Plot & Excerpts
I was super excited to read another series with multiple species, in a Kim Harrison-ish world. I did find some things falling a little flat. There is no reason why these two main characters should be together. I was not sure when they fell in love as the only time they spent together they were in "stand by" or some sort of violence or another. I expected Declan to take a bigger affront to his Girlfriend being in danger but maybe that was the authors way of stressing her kick ass heroine? But I have to say that I love that the God of ALL Destruction was a female, of course! Plot: 3 StarsThis novel was one of those that suffers from the blurb on the back of the book not matching so well with the actual story that is read. Sure, everything mentioned actually happens, but there was a point where I wondered if they had put the wrong blurb on the back. The Mayan plotline wasn't nearly as involved as I thought it was going to be, which was a bit disappointing because it was one of the main reasons I picked the novel up. Basically, the blurb leads you to believe that the majority of the book is going to be the described events, when in reality these events didn't really start taking place until about halfway through the novel. The first half of the novel was a lot of set up between the characters, plus a number of scenes that played a large part in the plot and probably should've been mentioned in the blurb. By the time I finished, I really had enjoyed the novel. I just couldn't get over how long I was sitting there reading, wondering when the Mayans and teenagers would come into play. Outside of this fact, the author wove a great world where numerous paranormal creatures interact. And I always love paranormal law enforcement agencies. They tend to happen more in Urban Fantasy, so it was great to see one highlighted in a Paranormal Romance. Pace: 2.5 StarsAlong with the strange blurb leaving me wondering for a while, the first half of the novel was a bit slow. I'm sure a part of it has to do with waiting around for certain plot elements that were promised. But I think a larger part was due to the amount of information the author shared about the world, the characters, and the law enforcement agency. Some of these details that were given to us right up front, could've been spread throughout the novel a little more. It seemed like the author wanted to make sure we had all of the information in the first half, so that the second half could focus more on the action. But the beginning ended up a bit muddled with a lot of long descriptions. Once the plot really took a turn in the direction that the blurb promised, the pace picked up and it was a race to the end. Characters: 3 StarsMaggie was one kick ass chick! I actually wondered at time if this novel would have a happily ever after (since it's a romance) because she was such a strong independant woman. Her powers were also very interesting. I've read many novels that included witches, but this was my first where all of the spells are little rhymes or phrases that are made up on the spot. They were silly without being cutesy, perfect for Maggie. I didn't really care for Declan at first because I had trouble connecting with his character, but he grew on me as the book continued. I wish we could've learned more about his powers as a fire demon. He rarely used them. The teenager they were tasked to watch wasn't as rambunctions and rebellious as I expected from the blurb, but I really enjoyed that plotline and her character, so I'm glad she was more toned down. The smaller characters that Maggie worked with were a wide variety of creatures, and I hope we learn more about them in future books.Cover: 3 StarsI'm not the biggest fan of the outfit worn by the cover model, but it is described in the novel, so I like that the cover artist picked up that detail. I also liked the bar detail in the background. The cover model's pose is great. It really gives her a kick ass vibe. And I love that she's looking away from the reader. It allowed me to picture Maggie how I wanted, and hinted at a bit of mystery. The model chosen for Declan was not how I pictured him at all though. My favorite part of the cover is the title placement and font choice. A long title like this could've easily taken over the cover with the wrong font, but this title stands out without detracting from the cover itself. My one problem with this cover is that I've seen it before, from the same publisher no less. One month early, on March 1st, Sourcebooks released Taste Me by Tamara Hogan, and the covers are eerily similar. It looks like another image taken from the same photoshoot, with small details such as hair color digitally changed. I can totally understand using multiple images from the same photoshoot for multiple books in a series, or years later with more drastic changes. But to use such similar images two months in a row just bugs me a little. Overall: 3 Stars Disclosure: I borrowed this novel from the local library.
What do You think about Demons Are A Girl's Best Friend (2011)?
Cute - I see potential. A bit explicit, but that's a small part of the book.
—Wpr316
3.5 This was a fun book but not as good as the rest in the series.
—Bookcritic101
