Our Most Anticipated 2009 Books: Paranormal
January 7th, 2009


Casual Hex by Vicki Lewis Thompson (March 3, 2009)
Casual Hex gives us the chance to see Gwen Dubois’ story. And what a rivalry it looks to be! But seriously, who can resist a love triangle story, especially when one of the party involved sounds like a delicious Frenchmen and the other an equally charming wizard. I can’t wait to see who she chooses and who shows himself to be just perfect for her. Plus, you know we just can’t wait to see what George will be up to next!
– Élodie
Desire Unchained by Larissa Ione (February 24, 2009)
Ever since falling for Ione’s demons last summer - and then reading the tantalizing blurbs and excerpts on her website - I’ve been dying to read the stories of the other two brother. Since Shade’s comes first, that’s my pick. How can I resist his love curse - or conflict that starts with him trapped in a mysterious dungeon, chained to the ex-lover he betrayed. Plus, getting my hands on this book will mean it’s only another month to wait for Wraith’s story, Passion Unleashed!
– Lindsey
Midnight’s Master by Cynthia Eden (June 30, 2009)
Cynthia Eden has not one, but TWO new books coming out in 2009. The first, Immortal Danger, features a vampire cop and her sexy main squeeze, and sounds sexy and dark and fun. But if I am to be honest, it’s Cynthia Eden’s second release of 2009 that’s got me counting down the days to June 30th. Because Midnight’s Master features that oh-so-bad boy bar owner who’s appeared in both Hotter After Midnight and Midnight Sins, Niol Lapen. Not only is Niol a powerful demon, he’s also a reluctant hero who’s been hurt before. Sigh. I love my heroes that way. And together he and his heroine, the intrepid reporter Holly Storm, must work to stop a killer. But if I know Cynthia Eden, there will be plenty of time for some hot demon love along the way! Only 173 days to go!
– Manda

Storm of Visions by Christina Dodd (August 4, 2009)
NYT Bestseller, Rita winner Christina Dodd gained new fans and set a personal record with her Darkness Chosen quartet last year. The last two books of the series, Into the Shadow and Into the Flame, reached #4 on the New York Times Paperback Fiction Bestseller list. Like many Dodd fans, I followed the Wilder saga from book one, impatiently awaiting Firebird’s story, and yet I adored the Wilders and was sorry to see the last of them. When I saw a new Dodd title listed on a website as Darkness Chosen Book Five, I was delighted—but I was also misled.
August 4, 2009, Storm of Visions, the first book of a spin-off series, The Chosen Ones, will be on bookstore shelves across the country. (Book Two Storm of Shadows will follow in September.) Although the new series is not a continuation of the Darkness Chosen books, it is set in the same universe. According to La Dodd herself, “It includes the Zorana’s gypsies, and the Abandoned Ones are the element that holds everything together; and one of the Wilders is a main character. But not the main character. Not for quite awhile.”
Hurray! We see more of the Wilders, and this series is going to be longer than four books. Ms Dodd is frankly enthusiastic about the new series: “It was so much fun to write and I love this cast of characters.”
I’ve been a Christina Dodd fan for a long time, and I feel certain that I will share her love for these characters. I won’t name names, but I know some of you other gypsies share my fangirl status.
The Vagabonds, thanks to Christina’s graciousness, are privileged to give you a first look at the introduction to the series and the back copy for Storm of Visions:
Hailed as “a master romantic storyteller,” New York Times bestselling author Christina Dodd delivers a seductive new paranormal series about an ancient rivalry that lives in the world today.
When the world was young, twins were born. One brought light to a dark world. The other, darkness and danger. Their powers could not be denied, and they gathered others around them, men and women destined to use their gifts for good or evil. Today, they walk the earth as the Chosen and the ultimate battle is about to begin.
Jacqueline Vargha has always run from her gift. Now Caleb D’Angelo forces his way into her life and insists she take her place as one of the Chosen. She flees, he pursues, but she can no longer deny her visions, or the dangerous man who is her downfall and her destiny.
There will be an excerpt from SOV in the back of Danger in a Red Dress (March 2009), the conclusion to The Fortune Hunter series. Be sure to check out Christina’s website; she plans to reveal the cover of SOV, which she describes as “beautiful,” in February.
– Janga
What are your most anticipated paranormals for 2009? Got any scoop on them?









Marianne Stillings’s Satisfaction. Funny enough, around the camp, I joked that I had trouble getting Satisfaction when it was first released, so I finally found it when I came home on break and stayed up overnight to read it. It was absolutely delicious! I’ve said it many times and will say it again. MS has one of the most amazing abilities to meld two seemingly disparate sub-genres into one book and have me simultaneously laughing while being intrigued by the mystery in a plot. It was tons of fun reading Ethan’s story. And I nearly died with laughter when Georgie, the heroine, took him to a house party she was attending.
Of course, this favourite read made me anticipate all the more the last book in the Darling siblings trilogy, Killer Charms. Andi’s story, perhaps the one I was anticipating the most, much the same as I wanted to read Claire and Taylor’s story (Sighs Matter). And an added boon was the fact that she got herself a Scottish hero in the end! It was enough to make a Vagabond swoon and consider trading in Soldier McKennitt for Logan Sinclair! Phew!
This summer, I found an author that was new to me. Actually, I was surprised to learn that she had a fairly extensive backlist. I think I said earlier this year when I blogged on the book that I was absolutely delighted and surprised that I fell in love with Charlotte Hughes’s What Looks Like Crazy. Written as a book that appears to carry out the hero’s and heroine’s story over several books, I had a blast reading about Kate and Jay and am eagerly anticipating her new release in a few months to see what happens with their story.
Another author I discovered with whom I absolutely fell in love this year was Jasper Fforde and I will give my kudos to The Eyre Affair, since it is the book that kicks off the Thursday Next Chronicles. I swear I do not know how he does it, but it’s amazing! His style of prose and ability to cleverly insert literary references into his books keeps me smiling through every book. He had been recommended to me several times throughout the past couple of years, but I finally got around to reading the books this year and boy was it worth it! After having tasted a bit of his writing with the Thursday Next stories, as well as finding his Nursery Crimes series, I am eager to read his newest release Shades of Grey when it is released in July.
I did read some historicals along the way. As I said a couple of days ago, I have been on an Elizabeth Boyle kick lately and so I’ve been glomming all the recent books of hers of which I have not done a “real” read (rather than a skim read) and I was reminded of why I totally love her books as I went through This Rake of Mine and His Mistress by Morning. *sigh*
And no blog of favourite reads for me would be complete without a fond reference to a book I’ve read so many times and gifted to so many people that I actually managed to give away my last copy of it last year. *gasp* And, naturally, the book has gone out of print. Yes, you guessed it, Marianne Stillings’s The Damsel in this Dress. I cannot help it, but this is one of the my favourite reads, re-reads, you name it.






Favorite Fangirl Reads
Lindsey likes Paranormal?
Blue-Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas
Last Dance at Jitterbug Lounge by Pamela Morsi
The Perils of Pleasure by Julie Anne Long
The Spymaster’s Lady by Joanna Bourne