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RATING:  4 of 5 stars ~ Excellent

STEAMINESS:  Inferno .... in fact the warning on the back of the book reads: 
WARNING!  This is a REALLY HOT book.  (Sexually explicit)   

     This anthology was one of the autographed books that I won in the last little while ~ I actually won all of Noelle Mack's Kensington / Aphrodisia stories... and three of the books are anthologies ~ Perfect!
   Of the three authors in this anthology, I'd only ever read Vivi Anna before ~ which is why I started with this anthology ~ but I'm definitely going to enjoy reading the other Noelle Mack stories that I have ~ and I'm very curious about Kate Douglas and her Chanku series!

 Overall RATING:      4 stars of 5... Excellent anthology
         One of the things that I liked a lot about this anthology ~ and I hadn't really expected to ~ was that each of the stories was quite different from the usual vampire stories that I love:  think Katie MacAlister, Lynsay Sands and J. R. Ward... all different yes, but I adore their vampires!  Well none of these stories really fit into what I thought of what I liked best about vampire stories... but somehow they each have a very special charm all their own... and they're all great romances too.

     I've been following Kay Hooper's Bishop series since the beginning ~ and loving it.  It's not just her incredible story-telling; it's not only the paranormal element in each of her Romantic Suspense / Bishop series books; it's both these and the way that she delves into the psyche of the murderers. 
     Really, I'm not a true crime reader ~ basically can't stand them ~ but when it comes to stories dealing with the psychology of killers and, most importantly, the stories of those brave men and women investigating the horrendous crimes, then I become totally engrossed.  It's also the fact that these stories depict the ultimate battle between good and evil with various paranormal elements that are a big part of the story. Kay Hooper is one of my favourites in this genre ~ but I've been a fan of hers for a number of years now.  She's one of the really great ones, IMHO.
   Yes, this story can get pretty descriptive ~ we are dealing with a psychotic serial killer after all ~ but that is only a very small part of the story.  Ms. Hooper has continued this most excellent series with another book filled great deal of tension, yet we never lose sight of hope.  The ending is definitely open-ended enough that we know there is more going on than first appears.  I can hardly wait for the next book!  VERY, VERY, VERY HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!

  This latest KMM book ~ Bloodfever ... I LOVED it... as dark and dreary / suspenseful / gory(ish) as it is, she stil tells one HECK of an amazing story.... And we've actually got a MacKeltar in the wings... I think... hope... what ever.  I just hope that Christian may play a bigger part in future stories!
   Mac is facing incredible evil with very little knowledge of her past, her strengths and her abilities.  She is learning more of what it is to be a Sidhe-seer but she still has far more questions than answers ~ and her enemies aren't too concerned that she learn anything; they only want her death.  And just who are her enemies?  She's pretty sure that the line between friends and enemies barely exists ~ the only one that she can be sure of is herself.
    As I said before, I LOVE this continuing saga... before the next book in the series ~ Faefever ~ is released, I think I'm going to have to re-read both Darkfever and Bloodfever.  I was able to remember enough of the first story... but there's a lot going on that I forgot. 
   As usualy KMM has another winner; I give this book 4.5 stars out of 5.  VERY, VERY, VERY, VERY HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!

FROM the FLYLEAF:
     MacKayla Lane's ordinary life underwent a complete makeover when she landed on Ireland's shores and was plunged into a world of deadly sorcery and ancient secrets.
     In her fight to stay alive, Mac must find the Sinsar Dubh ~ a million-year-old book of the blackest magic imaginable, which holds the key to power over both the world of the Fae and of Man.  Pursued by Fae assassins, surrounded by mysterious figures she knows she cannot trust, Mac finds herself torn between two deadly and irresistible men:  V'lane, the insatiable Fae who can turn sensual arousal into an obsession for any woman, and the ever-inscrutable Jericho Barrons, a man as alluring as he is mysterious.
     For centuries the shadowy realm of the Fae has coexisted with that of humans.  Now the walls between the two are coming down, and Mac is the only thing that stands between them....

     I liked the book; the stories, for the most part, were good... but there were at least two that I really, really liked and I'll keep the book for them....   Overall, all five stories were enjoyable to one degree or another ~ certainly more than I had first thought they would be.  The reason that I got this book was because of the Mary Balogh story.  Every one of her stories that I've read has been an amazingly heartwarming story.  Patricia Rice is the only other author in this anthology that I'd previously heard of ~ and her story was the other one that I loved.

     Two stories were Great to Excellent; one Good to Very Good; one I didn't enjoy... personal taste all the way. But the first story, by Kim Harrison, definitely has me curious about more stories about 'Sister Rachel'. 

FROM FLYLEAF:
     KIM HARRISON introduces us to a younger Rachel Morgan ~ an undergraduate witch-in-training ~ who naively resurrects a spirit and sparks a terrifying showdown with a deadly undead adversary.
    Two Ghosts for Sister Rachel     ~     4.0 stars:  Excellent {really liked it... curious about other stories for this h}

     LYNSAY SANDS serves up a scruptious ste of Yuletioe suspense when, in order to escape from a determined stalker, a beautiful, reluctant shape-shifter must assume different forms.
     Run, Run, Rudolph     ~    4.5 stars:  Excellent+   {Loved it ~ read the story previous during 2007 challenge}

     MARJORIE M. LIU keeps a petite-but-powerful government agent's hand full when she must join forces with a hunky necromancer to prevent an unholy brotherhood of terrorists and vampires from ringing in the New Year with blood.
     Six     ~     3.5 stars: Very Good+  {Intriguing....}

    VICKI PETTERSSON brings a former superhero ~ an elite Zodiac warrior ~ back to the mortal world for a Thanksgiving reunion with her equally hated and beloved enemy to do battle for the livers of her imperiled children.
     The Harvest     ~     2.0 stars:  Good  {Just couldn't get into the story...}

     Really liked this book ~ three of the four stories I rated as Very Good to Excellent; fourth Good (just not my thing really).  I got this book because of Susan Sizemore's contribution.  It's only been a bit over a year since I first "found" this wonderful author's paranormal stories of Clan, Family and Tribe vampires, but I was solidly hooked on the first one.  Since then I've managed to acquire all of these related books ~ and every time I visit the Clans or Families, I get a little deeper into their world.  Gotta love bonded males!
   Maggie Shayne's story I quite enjoyed as well; for me her stories are usually hit-and-or-miss... she's a good writer, I'm just not usually enthralled with her story-lines... or her heroes and heroines.
   Lori Handeland is still a fairly new-to-me author.  The first time I read anything of her werewolf books I was taken somewhat aback ~ her werewolves aren't the fabulously sexy heroes that I usually like my wolves to be... but her other heroes make up for it, so all's good!
   Caridad Piñeiro's Amazon story and shifters, while good, just didn't resonate much with me.  I like my romances more romantic and less confrontational between the h and H ~ me, a sappy romantic... who'da thunk it?

RATING:  Enjoyed more of the stories from this collection... probably 'cause there are more of some of my favourite authors in it.  On the whole I'd rate the book Excellent (4.0 stars).

FROM the BACK:
                WHAT NEWLY MARRIED COUPLE DOESN'T DREAM
              OF A ROMANTIC RETREAT WHERE THEY CAN ESCAPE
           FOR A WHILE ~ BUT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN SUPERNATURAL
                       FORCES INTRUDE ON THEIR WEDDED BLISS?
Nine of today's hottest paranormal authors answer that question in this all-star collection of supernatural stories. 
*  Can a vampire-hunter enjoy her honeymooon after learning that her new hubby is a werewolf?  (Lilith Saintcrow's Half of Being Married) 3.5 stars
*  How can newlyweds focus on their wedding night when their honeymoon suite is haunted by feuding ghosts? (Katie MacAlister's Cat Got Your Tongue?) 4.0 stars
*  And what's a wizard do when a gruesome monster kidnaps the bride on her way home from the wedding?  (Jim Butcher's Heorot) 4.0 stars
     With so much otherworldly mayhem awaiting our newlyweds, will they ever get around to the honeymoon itself?  Find out in....My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon.

RATING:  Liked the book on the whole. Good to Very Good.  A couple of new (or NTM) authors that I'll be looking for more of.    

  My primary reason for getting this book?  Jim Butcher.  I'm a fan of his Dresden Files and I was intrigued enough to get the book... I know, seems rather odd; getting an anthology for one author.  But I didn't really decide to get it until the subsequent My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon came out.  Now this book has stories by another two or three authors, other than Jim Butcher, that I love:  Kelley Armstrong, Katie MacAlister and, to some degree, Ronda Thompson.  Regarding Ms. Thompson's stories, I've read one book, one novella and I have another two or so of her Wulf stories lurking in my TBR.  So finally I had a good enough reason to get MBFS Wedding!