Review of the Cassie Palmer Books by Karen Chance

In the past couple weeks I have read all five Cassie Palmer books, back to back, with no other books in between.

I think I suffered from the most intense case of book crack addiction ever.

Every night I would read and read, I would look at the clock (creeping towards 1 am then 2 am) and keep telling myself "just one more chapter then I'll go to bed" And of course one more chapter turned into three of four.

It is great to be able to jump into a series with several books already available. The only bad part is that once you finish that final (available) book you go into serious withdrawals.

I've been completely immersed in this series and now it's back to reality with no more Cassie, Mircea or Pritkin. No more Marco, who I have come to appreciate as well. I need a Cassie/Mircea/Pritkin fix already.

When is the next book coming out?

This series is fabulous. Cassie is fantastic as the accidental heroine. She's not a vicious bad ass but she's kick ass in her own way and she really comes into her own as the series progresses. In book 5, Hunt the Moon- wow you'll never guess what happens - so much is finally revealed it's awesome.

But I get ahead of myself.

The Cassie Palmer series has everything yo could ant in a good urban fantasy series- those pesky family skeletons in the closet- all those secrets that add up to making the heroine the power freak of nature and her life the mess that it is.

Then there's all the mysteries surrounding other characters- who and what they really are, how it all plays into making Cassie's life "interesting".

And of course there's romance, even a bit of a love triangle- and it's so hard to choose a side with this one because both men are smokin hot and interesting in their own unique ways. And thanks to the love triangle we get plenty of emotion and several sexy hot scenes that smolder.

The adrenaline junkies will enjoy the numerous action scenes (there's a lot because someone is always trying to kill Cassie)- and history and mythology buffs will get a taste of mythical creatures, gods and goddesses coming to life in these books.

I honestly couldn't ask for more. Vampires, mages, witches, and mythical creatures- combined with action, romance and a tad but of mystery and mayhem.

Yeah it's a fabulous series not to be missed. I just can't believe it took me this long to read these books- but now that I have I am seriously addicted.

.5

Book Description from back jacket:

Cassandra Palmer can see the future and communicate with spirits-talents that make her attractive to the dead and the undead. The ghosts of the dead aren't usually dangerous; they just like to talk...a lot. The undead are another matter.

Like any sensible girl, Cassie tries to avoid vampires. But when the bloodsucking Mafioso she escaped three years ago finds Cassie again with vengeance on his mind, she's forced to turn to the vampire Senate for protection. The undead senators won't help her for nothing, and Cassie finds herself working with one of their most powerful members, a dangerously seductive master vampire-and the price he demands may be more than Cassie is willing to pay...

To read a sample chapter from Touch the Dark, please click here.

My Review of Touch the Dark :

The first book is the hardest to get through because we get thrown into Cassie's life, not where it all started, but where the crazy gets going and people start trying to kill her. This leads to a bit of confusion while reading and some amounts of info dumps that catch us up on the backstory but sometimes detract from the story going on now.

Keep reading- do not less this distract you because I guarantee once you get past it the reading becomes smoother and the story just keeps getting better.

I was immediately sucked into Cassie's world. I honestly couldn't put the book down. I kept reading becoming absorbed by poor Cassie's plight and the ever growing cast of unique characters.

It's worth reading- especially once you get to book 2.

From the book jacket
for Claimed by Shadow:

A recent legacy made Cassandra Palmer heir to the title of Pythia, the world's chief clairvoyant. It's a position that usually comes with years of training, but Cassie's circumstances are a little...unusual. Now she's stuck with a whopping amount of power that every vamp, fey, and mage in town wants to either monopolize or eradicate-and that she herself doesn't dare use.

What's more, she's just discovered that a certain arrogant master vampire has a geis on her-a magical claim that warns off any would-be suitors, and might also explain the rather ... intense attraction between them. But Cassie's had it with being jerked around, and anyone who tries it from now on is going to find out that she makes a very bad enemy...

To read sample chapters from Claimed by Shadow, please click here.

My Review of Claimed by Shadow:

Faster moving and not as confusing as book one- this one is all about Cassie coming into her own, trying to untangle the mess her life has become - deal with being or not being the Pythia all while trying to break the power hold gone wrong that Mircea put on her.

A trip to Fairy helps seal the deal on one thing and takes the sting away from the geis for a little while but it doesn't solve any problems. In fact it may just add to everything.

Book 2 put me in a choke hold and said "you will read this and enjoy it" and I did.

From the book jacket
for Embrace the Night:

Recently named the world’s chief clairvoyant, Cassandra Palmer still has a thorn in her side. As long as Cassie and a certain master vampire—the sizzling-hot Mircea—are magically bound to each other, her life will never be her own …

The spell that binds them can only be broken with an incantation found in the Codex Merlini, an ancient grimoire. The Codex’s location has been lost in the present day, so Cassie will have to seek it out in the only place it can still be found—the past.

But Cassie soon realizes the Codex has been lost for a reason. The book is rumored to contain some seriously dangerous spells, and retrieving it may help Cassie to deal with Mircea, but it could also endanger the world…

To read sample chapters from Embrace the Night, please click here.

My review of Embrace the Night:

Best book so far. Intense, sexy and thrilling- this is what I'd been waiting for- Revelations, sexy encounters, action upon action leading to more character and story development.

Pritkin and Mircea along with the minor characters in the books make for fun reading, you'll be entertained and mesmerized.

From the book jacket
for Curse the Dawn:

Cassandra Palmer may be the all-powerful Pythia now, but that doesn’t mean people have stopped trying to kill her. Most of the supernatural power players don’t want the independent minded Cassie as chief clairvoyant—and they’ll stop at nothing to see her six feet under.

The Vampire Senate does support Cassie in her position, but their protection comes with a price: an alliance with the sexy master vampire Mircea, who has claimed Cassie as his own.

But even the vampires will have trouble keeping Cassie alive now that the self-styled god Apollo, the source of the Pythia’s power, has it in for her in a big way. To save her life—and the world—Cassie’s going to have to face down her creator once and for all.

Click here to read two sample chapters from Curse the Dawn.

My Review Curse The Dawn:

Wow- every book just gets better. I read them faster and faster- each book has more drama and more intensity than the previous one.

This is the book where mythology really starts having a powerful focus because Cassie has an enraged God on her tail and he wants to use her to come back to earth.

How can you defeat a God? Cassie doesn't know but she's sure going to try- it's either that or let the world fall apart while everyone that she knows and loves dies.

From the book jacket
for Hunt the Moon:

Cassandra Palmer recently defeated a god, which you'd think would buy a girl a little time off. But it doesn't work that way when your new job description is Pythia — the world's chief clairvoyant. Cassie is busier than ever, trying to learn about her power, preparing for her upcoming coronation, and figuring out her relationship with the enigmatic sexy master vampire, Mircea.

But someone doesn't want Cassie to become Pythia, and is willing to go to any lengths to make sure the coronation ceremony never happens—including attacking her mother before Cassie is even born.

Click here to read two sample chapters from Hunt the Moon.

My Review of Hunt the Moon:

OMG!

This book is hot and filled with action- and a few steamy encounters.

Poor Cassie never gets a a break. After getting through an ordeal with a God now she has to deal with a bunch of demigods out to kill her.

She's finally ready to become the Pythia, with an official coronation and everything but someone is trying real hard to make sure that never happens.

Mircea is trying to keep her safe but Cassie refuses to be a prisoner in a guilded cage and makes it hard for him to care for her. Pritkin is doing his best to be her bodyguard- when the vampires let him but Cassie has her own mind and wants to do things her way. Which of course, causes trouble.

There is never a dull moment in Cassie's life- which means these books are non-stop reading addiction.

Hunt the Moon is full of revelations and ah ha moments which is what reading a series is all about. And seriously this will not disappoint.

You will keep turning pages until your eyes blur because you simply can not stay awake to read any more. It's book crack at it's best.

Read this series- you will not be disappointed.