The Sinful Life of Lucy Burns; Elizabeth Leiknes

This is, I believe, Ms. Leiknes' debut novel published by Bancroft Press out of Charm City (aka Baltimore MD), up the road a bit from Bookwormom Central.Link to author's website in title above. I received a copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review. The flap lists this as romantic comedy, my assessment is that it's paranormal chick lit- a subgenre that's currently selling well & is popular. I like the voice & the pacing & the story is cute and hides its deeper meaning pretty well. I wish Ms. Leiknes much success & future book deals.

The plot is your classic Faustian bargain: as an eleven year old Lucille Burns' older sister is hit by a truck and is hospitalized with a coma. Lucy writes a letter 'to whom it may concern' and promises that if Ellen is ok she will 'be forever in your debt' and put the letter in their magic mailbox. The next morning Ellen is miraculously healed. In the magic mailbox a note appears, "it's a deal..I'll be in touch."

Fast forward nineteen years: Lucy has had to give up her family and forgo personal relationships with men because her job requires her to be on the down low all the time. What is her job? Lucy's a facilitator for the Devil. She's to ensure that evil people get to their final destination. To do this she's given a few paranormal powers, a magic basement that leads to hell, and a type of were-dog that's alternately a normal scruffy mutt and satan's minion. She has inhumanly perky breasts and never breaks out during her period. She can eat lots and lots of chocolate and never gains weight.

For all of the her superficiality and her physical perfection, Lucy is unfulfilled and lonely. Although she's good friends with the earth mother neighbor and her kids next door Lucy misses her sister and really wants a steady man in her life. Kids of her own maybe. None of which are available to her unless she can figure out how to break the contract she made as an eleven year old. The turning point comes when the earth mother neighbor takes Lucy to a concert to see Lucy's favorite easy listening idol perform.

The novel hangs together tightly- which I loved. Sometimes story elements are unevenly treated in shorter novels, but the author avoids that this time around. Ms. Leiknes touches on some deeper themes than your usual genre novel: the disconnectedness of modern life, wish fulfillment vs. personal development, morality, ambiguity, and others. I did have some problems with the narrative, mostly to do with characterization and plot details and the too neat wrap up at the end. Mostly minor, and not enough to stop me dead in my tracks. The story fit well for the length of the book (only 167 pages). The Sinful Life of Lucy Burns is a light quick read- good poolside or beach umbrella reading. Or, if you prefer, it can be a meditation on modern life,moral ambiguity and easy listening lyrics! Enjoy!

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Drive By Reviews

Lord of the Keep~ Ann Lawrence

An historical romance set in England in 1192, released by Lovespell in 1999. Retains a flavor of 'old school' romance. Young heroine becomes pregnant via a garrison soldier. Her uncle brings her to the lord's court but she refuses to name her suitor & agrees to pay the fine. Time passes. Emma & her babe are again brought to Gilles' attention, this time because they are being pursued through the woods by a pack of dogs. He finds her a position at his keep, but this is complicated by the presence of her former lover- who tries to take advantage of her. Story dragged & I skimmed most of it.

Deryni Tales~ Katherine Kurtz

This is an anthology edited by Katherine Kurtz and published by Ace in 2002. There are eight short stories plus an introduction and a story by Ms. Kurtz. All are set in her world, the Eleven Kingdoms, which is loosely based on medieval Wales. The stories take place all along the timeline of the Deryni books previously published by Ms. Kurtz. Most of these are excellent. I'm already a fan of this author & she has ably edited these fanfics. Recommmended for existing fans only, newcomers will surely be lost.

Night Lost, Lynn Viehl

I read this a few weeks ago. Lynn Viehl's Darkyn books are always my reliable, go-to vampire novels. Fast paced & yummy with a side order of edginess. At least they are for me anyway. :) Excellent world building with an overarching plot that continues in each novel. It isn't necessary to read the series in order, though. I like some emo angst driven vampires, but once in awhile I want grown up adults who can handle their business. Ms. Viehl's Darkyns are that. Night Lost is the fourth book in the Darkyn series. Correct series order is listed HERE. The first book in the Darkyns is If Angels Burn, the fifth book is Evermore.

Nicola Jefferson is a tormented young woman, now an art thief, religious art being her specialty. In the course of looking for a particular relic that has personal meaning for her, she has freed several Darkyn. Thus making her an enemy of the Brethren of the Light, the Roman Catholic order sworn to eradicate the Darkyn. Nicola also has a particularly strong dream life, often seeing and talking with someone she calls 'the green man'. In rural France she enters a derelict church and finds Gabriel Seran imprisoned there.

Gabriel is a captured Kyn who has been abandoned by his fellow Kyn. For those readers who like to know, Gabriel's l'attrait (each Kyn has a unique scent called l'attrait) is evergreen. I love that unique Darkyn trait, somehow it makes them..I don't know..more accessible? I'm a gardener and scent gardens are a particular favorite of mine, so maybe I'm different. I don't know. Anyhow, somehow he has managed to hold on to his honor despite being locked in a church cellar and tortured by the Brethren. Gabriel too has dreams of an ethereal young woman, a woman who may be able to free him, if only she can find him.

Meantime the overarching plot continues apace. Alexandra Keller, the physician heroine from the first book, has been kidnapped and locked up in Richard Tremayne's (the Kyn leader) castle in Ireland. Alex's estranged brother John is imprisoned there as well. Michael Cyprian, Alex's lover, several of his men as well as Brethren, Gabriel and Nicola all converge in Ireland. Makes for some serious fireworks.

This book has a more sinister tone to it than the last one. I enjoyed that. Vampires should be edgy, should make you feel unsettled a little. This novel delivers that and heat. A fabulous combination! Winner. Also, probably a keeper.


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The Immortal Hunter; Lynsay Sands

This is book eleven in the Argeneau family series as well as a book in Ms. Sands' Rogue Hunters series. Click title above to go to Ms. Sands' page for this book. This is a contemporary set paranormal suspense. TBH, I've not read one of Ms. Sands'books in quite some time. The last title of hers I read is Tall Dark & Hungry (book four), review here. I did not purchase this one myself, it was a gift from my Hubby who knows that I like vamps. I do like vamps but generally I've not really connected deeply with Ms.Sands' characters & thus she fell by the wayside. Ms. Sands other new title so far this year is titled Devil of the Highlands & she has book twelve in the Argeneau/Rogue Hunter series coming out in September of this year.

This book made me wonder if the 'Cynster disease' has struck with Ms. Sands. For those of you unfamiliar with this, Stephanie Laurens started an historical book series with a large family named the Cynsters. Subsequently she's moved out to cousins & family friends etc. all tied in with the original Cynsters in some vague and nebulous way. Now, I'm all for an author following a tried and true reader loved path: connected series. Authors are in the market to make money & sell books after all. I simply wasn't aware that Ms. Sands had done so.

This book follows a familiar path: innocent victim(s) is/are terrorized by a group of baddies, victim rescued by a mysterious pair of men who claim to be good guys intent on helping her, but can she really trust them? The victim in this case is Dr. Danielle McGill, who along with her sister was kidnapped out of a parking lot. The supposed good guy is Decker Argeneau, a kind of vampire cop who chases down killer vampires. In Ms. Sands' world vampires don't need to feed off of live humans because hello?? blood banks. I really appreciate that Ms. Sands' vampires are forward looking & unafraid of technology.

Much of Ms.Sands' world I appreciate: the blood banks, the un-self-conscious way the vamps feed, the fact that the love interest cannot be forced to choose immortality, the strong sense of duty and responsibility to the community. There were elements in this story I didn't like: the totally unrealistic hot & heavy petting in the back of the van while another vamp drove up front at breakneck speed chasing the baddies; sex in the changing room at the mall; how willing Decker Argeneau was to lie to Danielle while justifying what he said both to her and to his boss (also his cousin) when questioned.

A mixed bag for me, but I think there's alot to recommend Ms. Sands' work for other romance lovers.

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