Waiting on Wednesday: Deadly Descendant by Jenna Black @pocket_books @jennablack

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

Book Description

Publication Date: April 24, 2012

An ancient evil is unleashed in the modern world— unless one fearless P.I. can hunt it down. . . . Nikki Glass, Immortal Huntress, returns in this new novel in the acclaimed series by Jenna Black.As a living descendant of Artemis the Huntress, private investigator Nikki Glass knows how to track someone down. But when an Oracle shows up, warning the Descendants about wild dog attacks in Washington, D.C., Nikki is afraid it might be a trap. The Olympians believe the “dogs” are really jackals, controlled by a blood-crazed descendant of the Egyptian death-god Anubis. Whatever. . . . If Nikki hopes to muzzle Dogboy, she’s got to catch him in the act. But when she stakes out a local cemetery, she ends up face-to-snout with a snarling pack of shadow-jackals whose bite is worse than their bark. These hellhounds are deadly—even for an immortal like Nikki. “Dog” spelled backward may be “god,” but that won’t stop Nikki from teaching these old gods some new tricks. Like playing dead.

bAbout the Author

Jenna Black is a typical writer, which means she’s an “experience junkie.” She created the popular Morgan Kingsley urban fantasy series and The Guardians of the Night paranormal romance series. She lives in North Carolina.

Details Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages Publisher: Pocket Books (April 24, 2012) Language: English ISBN-10: 145160680X ISBN-13: 978-1451606805

I am so looking forward to another page turner from Jenna Black!  I loved the first in the series and can't wait for this one!

REVIEW: Sirensong by Jenna Black

Description

When Dana is invited to Faerie to be officially presented at the Seelie Court, it’s no easy decision. After all, everyone knows Titania, the Seelie Queen, wants her dead. But Titania claims not to be the one behind the death threats; and her son, Prince Henry, makes the decision a whole lot easier when he suggests Dana might be arrested for (supposedly) conspiring with her aunt Grace to usurp the Seelie throne. So she and her father better do as they're told…
The journey through Faerie is long – and treacherous. Dana thought it would be a good idea to have friends along, but her sort-of-boyfriend, Ethan, and her bodyguard’s son, Keane, just can’t seem to get along, and Kimber’s crush on Keane isn’t making things any easier. When a violent attack separates Dana from their caravan, the sexy Erlking saves her just in the nick of time… and makes it clear that he hasn’t given up on making her his own.
Arriving at Titania’s beautiful palace should be a relief. But Dana is soon implicated in an assassination attempt against Titania’s granddaughter, and is suddenly a fugitive, forced to leave her father behind as she and her friends flee for their lives. Will she be able to prove her innocence before the forces of the Seelie Court – or, worse, the Erlking – catch up with her? And will she save her father before he pays the ultimate price in her stead?

About the Author

JENNA BLACK graduated from Duke University with degrees in anthropology and French. A full-time writer of paranormal romance and urban fantasy, she lives in Pittsboro, North Carolina. Visit her on the Web at www.jennablack.com.

Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; Original edition (July 5, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312575955
• ISBN-13: 978-0312575953

SOURCE:  AROUND THE WORLD ARC TOURS

MY THOUGHTS

ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT

***there may be spoilers here -- I tried, but may have let one or two slip***

Dana is in lock down in a safe house deep in the mountain of Avalon where she pines for freedom  and which she gets through the help of the Erlking's protection.  Freedom always comes with a price for Dana.  Her presence is requested by Titania, the Seelie Queen, where she is to be presented at court.  It all sounds excitingly innocent, but this being a faerie court, there are ulterior motives especially when the invitation comes from Prince Henry who is not her biggest fan. Dana takes Keane, Kimber and Ethan along for protection and companionship.  Her father's court intrigue as Titania's consort comes back into play since he replaced Prince Henry's father and Henry has never forgiven him. While traveling though the Faerie countryside, Dana makes an a couple of decisions that on the surface don't seem very important, but play a huge part in her safety. 

The procession to the castle with Prince Henry shows how much he despises Dana's father and even with Finn and the rest protecting Dana, there are many attempts on her life.  The Erlking also makes his presence known and lends his protection, even though he really doesn't have to.  I think the Erlking shows more humanity and becomes an important ally in Dana's defense.  He is probably my favorite character even though he is slightly evil, he freely admits he only does things are in his best interest.  (Maybe we can convince the author to spin off a series just of him maybe for us grown ups!)  Dana learns that she has even more magic in her than she ever thought possible.  Of course, once they do reach the castle there is even more intrigue.


I thought this was the best of the series and although I believe this in the final chapter in Dana's story, I would really like to revisit the characters here again.  Dana really grows in this last book and even though she still has her issues with her alcoholic mother and trusting others, she finally learns she has friends that she can lean on.  You can see her despair and anger while she deals with her mother and the magical gifts she develops.  It is really bittersweet at the end and will make you wish it hadn't ended quite yet. 

REVIEW: Shadowspell by Jenna Black

Description

On top of spending most of her time in a bunkerlike safe house and having her dates hijacked by a formidable Fae bodyguard, Faeriewalker Dana Hathaway is in for some more bad news: the Erlking and his pack of murderous minions known as the Wild Hunt have descended upon Avalon. With his homicidal appetite and immortal powers, the Erlking has long been the nightmare of the Fae realm. A fragile treaty with the Faerie Queen, sealed with a mysterious spell, is the one thing that keeps him from hunting unchecked in Avalon, the only place on Earth where humans and Fae live together. Which means Dana’s in trouble, since it’s common knowledge that the Faerie Queen wants her – and her rare Faeriewalker powers – dead. The smoldering, sexy Erlking’s got his sights set on Dana, but does he only seek to kill her, or does he have something much darker in mind?

About the Author

Jenna Black graduated from Duke University with degrees in anthropology and French.  A full time writer of paranormal romance and urban fantasy, she lives in Pittsboro, North Carolina.  Visit her online at www.jennablack.com.

Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; Original edition (January 4, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9780312575946
• ISBN-13: 978-0312575946

SOURCE:  PURCHASED

MY THOUGHTS

LOVED IT

Shadowspell continues the story started in Glimmerglass and follows Dana as she gets deeper involved with the world of the fae.  Her aunt Grace and both Queens want her dead while Ethan seems to be playing games with her.  She now lives in a bunker like safe house deep inside the mountain where Finn is defending her full time and his son, Keane, is now giving her more lessons in self defense.  Dana can only go out supervised by Finn and another body guard.  The Erlking has now discovered Dana and wants her for his own, so he captures Ethan and makes him part of his Wild Hunt gang.  I can't watch Lady Gaga's video Judas without thinking of this book. 

Of course, Dana is manipulated into a bad situation with the Erlking in order to return Ethan from his clutches, but in her headstrong way, Dana thinks she has all the angles of the deal figured out.  She doesn't and finds out she might have possibly bargained away her life.  I don't think the Erlking is truly evil since he is protected Dana and gives her excellent advice to help her protect herself and make better decisions.  So now there is a love quadrangle (?) and there are quite a few developments that keep the plot moving (sorry, I am not going to spoil that for anyone).  Now, I just can't wait for the next one in the series, Sirensong, where I hope that Dana develops her newly found powers.

BLOG TOUR & REVIEW: Dark Descendant by Jenna Black

Description

From the acclaimed author of the Morgan Kingsley, Exorcist books comes the gripping first novel in a new series about a private eye who discovers, to her surprise, that she’s an immortal huntress. Nikki Glass can track down any man. But when her latest client turns out to be a true descendant of Hades, Nikki now discovers she can’t die. . . . Crazy as it sounds, Nikki’s manhunting skills are literally god-given. She’s a living, breathing descendant of Artemis who has stepped right into a trap set by the children of the gods. Nikki’s new “friends” include a descendant of Eros, who uses sex as a weapon; a descendant of Loki, whose tricks are no laughing matter; and a half-mad descendant of Kali who thinks she’s a spy. But most powerful of all are the Olympians, a rival clan of immortals seeking to destroy all Descendants who refuse to bow down to them. In the eternal battle of good god/bad god, Nikki would make a divine weapon. But if they think she’ll surrender without a fight, the gods must be crazy. . . .

About the Author

Jenna Black is a typical writer, which means she’s an “experience junkie.” She received B.A. degrees in physical anthropology and French from Duke University. She once dreamed of being the next Jane Goodall, until she realized that primates spend eighty percent of their time not really doing anything. She moved on to such pastimes as grooming dogs and writing technical documentation before creating the popular Morgan Kingsley urban fantasy series and The Guardians of the Night paranormal romance series. She lives in North Carolina.

 Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Pocket (April 26, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1451606796
• ISBN-13: 978-1451606799

SOURCE:  PUBLISHER

MY THOUGHTS
LOVED IT

Nikki is a private investigator specializing in skip traces and missing persons and she is exceptionally good at her job.  Nikki's own history is brought to the front of the story when she accidentally kills her client while trying to help him save the person Nikki was hired to find from a cult.   While badly injured she is met with more injury from  one of the "cult" members upset that she has killed his best friend.  This turns out to be no ordinary "cult" and is instead the descendants of mythological gods and goddesses from all cultures.  You will be quickly sucked into this world where there are both good and evil descendants and Nikki is trying to figure out which she should align herself with.

This is a quick read and I finished it in one night!  The story really moves fast and there is no lack of action and it is nicely woven with Nikki's back story.  She had been abandon as a child and is taken in by a wealthy family, but feels guilty about their money and doesn't touch her trust fund.  The fact that she has no interest in money. provides some great plot points for the story so far.  Another interesting point is the members of the group she has taken up with.  Anderson, who no one can figure out, sets her on a personal investigation to find his missing wife and let Nikki prove her worth.  There are lots of interesting characters that I think will provide great tales to come.