Bitten by Cupid

In general, I enjoy anthologies. They give me a chance to try new-to-me authors and I also like reading novellas and short stories to take a break from longer novels. As with just about every anthology I've tried, Bitten by Cupid is a mixed bag but it's a book that gets progressively better as one reads along.

Vampire Romance
Sensuality: Warm

Lynsay Sands writes very enjoyable vampire stories as part of her Argeneau/Rogue Hunter series. I normally enjoy turning to her books when I'm in the mood for a light-hearted, funny story. Though Vampire Valentine brings readers a happy ending for a recurring character, the story itself just did not entirely work.

The story opens at a wedding of lifemates. Family matchmaker Marguerite Argeneau dispatches investigator Tiny McGraw to assist Mirabeau la Roche with her mission to evade an enemy and safely deliver a package from New York City to Canada. Things start badly when Mirabeau learns that evasion will involve hiking through New York City sewers in her bridesmaid's dress and it gets worse when she meets her "package," a very unhappy teenager newly turned into a vampire.

The relationship between Mirabeau and Tiny is predictable enough and it does work, but it just doesn't feel like anything special. In addition, while readers of the series will know some of the dangers the characters face, none of that is really elaborated upon in this story, so the danger does not feel very immediate and the plot seems a little disjointed.

Paranormal Romance
Sensuality: Warm

Set in the world of the Therians which readers of her Feral Warriors novels will recognize, Pamela Palmer's Hearts Untamed starts off well but gets hampered down a bit with a few awkward plot points toward the end.

Julianne declared her love to Zeeland when she was 18 and offered him her virginity. When he rejected her and subsequently left, she was devastated. Ten years later, Zee has returned. Despite the issues between them, Julianne and Zee have instant chemistry and their romance is very engaging. However, Julianne harbors a secret which, if revealed to Zee, could cost them both their lives. For this reason, her failure to confide in Zee about her problems makes sense. However, the loose ends of the plot resolve themselves just a bit too quickly to fully satisfy and that, combined with some real awkwardness in the sex scene plotting, garner this only a qualified recommendation.

Paranormal Romance
Sensuality: Warm

In an anthology that saves the best for last, Jaime Rush's Kiss and Kill Cupid delivers a very good serial killer story with a paranormal twist. Kristy can hear other people's thoughts, though she tries to hide this ability in order to fit into society. While in a coffee shop to meet with the founders of a magazine about writing for them, she hears the thoughts of a killer picking her as his next victim and it terrifies her. The notorious Kiss and Kill killer has terrorized the city for several years, always leaving behind a victim on Valentine's Day.

Following the meeting in the coffee shop, Kristy finds herself drawn to Adrian, one of the magazine's owners. However, she also fears that he may be connected with the killer. The hunt for the killer and Kristy and Adrian's love story flow very well for the most part. However, toward the end of the book, the author throws in a twist that causes strong conflict between the couple but then gets resolved too easily. Still, even with the too-pat resolution, this was a very entertaining read.

Though Bitten by Cupid is a somewhat uneven read, the latter two stories in the anthology are both enjoyable reads and worth giving this book a qualified recommendation.

-- Lynn Spencer

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