Wicked business

Wicked business by Janet Evanovich - 2012
Book 2 of the Wicked Series

Blurb...'Lizzy Tucker’s once normal life as a pastry chef in Salem, Massachusetts, turns upside down as she battles both sinister forces and an inconvenient attraction to her unnaturally talented but off-limits partner, Diesel.
When Harvard University English Professor and dyed-in-the wool romantic Gilbert Reedy is mysteriously murdered and thrown off his fourth-floor balcony, Lizzy and Diesel take up his twenty-year quest for the Luxuria Stone, an ancient relic believed by some to be infused with the power of lust. Following clues contained in a cryptic nineteenth-century book of sonnets, Lizzy and Diesel tear through Boston catacombs, government buildings, and multimillion-dollar residences. On their way they’ll leave behind a trail of robbed graves, public disturbances, and general mayhem.
Diesel’s black sheep cousin, Gerwulf Grimoire also wants the Stone. His motives are far from pure, and what he plans on doing with the treasure, no one knows… but Lizzy Tucker fears she’s in his crosshairs. Never far and always watching, Grimoire has a growing, vested interest in the cupcake-baker-turned-finder-of-lost-things. As does another dangerous and dark opponent in the hunt – a devotee of lawlessness and chaos, known only as Anarchy.
Treasures will be sought, and the power of lust will be unmistakable as Lizzy and Diesel attempt to stay ahead of Anarchy, Grimoire, and his medieval minion, Hatchet, in this ancient game of twisted riddles and high-stakes hide-and-seek'

Wicked appetite by Janet Evanovich - 2010
Book 1 of the Wicked series

Blurb...Life in Marblehead has had a pleasant predictability, until Diesel arrives. Rumor has it that a collection of priceless ancient relics representing the Seven Deadly Sins have made their way to Boston’s North Shore. Partnered with pastry chef Lizzie Tucker, Diesel bullies and charms his way through historic Salem to track them down—and his criminal mastermind cousin Gerewulf Grimorie. The black-haired, black-hearted Wulf is on the hunt for the relic representing gluttony. Caught in a race against time, Diesel and Lizzie soon find out that more isn’t always better, as they battle Wulf and the first of the deadly sins.

With delectable characters and non-stop thrills that have made Janet Evanovich a household name, Wicked Appetite will leave you hungry for more

The industry

The industry by Rose Foster (2012)
Blurb...'
Kirra Hayward is an ordinary sixteen year old - smarter than most, but otherwise completely anonymous. When she stumbles across an unusual puzzle on the internet and manages to solve it, she has no idea of what she′s letting herself in for.

Kidnapped by a shadowy organisation known only as The Industry, Kirra soon discovers how valuable her code-breaking skills are. And when she stubbornly refuses to help them, they decide to break her ... by any means at their disposal.

Kirra knows that to protect herself, she must trust no one, not even her fellow prisoner, Milo. But as time goes by she realises he might be the only person she can rely on ...' - webiste

Girl with the dragon tattoo trilogy

Girl with a dragon tattoo (Milennium trilogy) by Steig Larsen - 2010-

Blurb ... The Girl with the Dragon TattooHarriet Vanger, a scion of one of Sweden’s wealthiest families disappeared without a trace more than forty years ago. All these years later, her aged uncle continues to try to discover what happened to her. He hires Mikael Blomkvist, a journalist recently sidelined by a libel conviction, to investigate. Blomkvist is aided by the pierced and tattooed computer prodigy Lisbeth Salander. Together they tap into a vein of unfathomable iniquity and astonishing corruption on their way to discovering the truth of Harriet Vanger’s fate.

The Girl Who Played with FireMikael Blomkvist, now the crusading publisher of the magazine Millennium, has decided to run a story that will expose an extensive sex trafficking operation. On the eve of its publication, the two reporters responsible for the article are murdered, and the fingerprints found on the murder weapon belong to his friend Lisbeth Salander. Blomkvist, convinced of Salander’s innocence, plunges into an investigation of the murders. Meanwhile, Salander herself is drawn into a murderous game of cat and mouse, which forces her to face her dark past.

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest
Lisbeth Salander lies in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She’s fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she’ll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. On her own, she will plot revenge—against the man who tried to kill her, and against the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.

New York to Dallas

New York to Dallas - J.D. Robb - 2011 (Kindle)

Blurb ....
In the mid-twenty-first century, NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas is facing possibly her worst nemesis yet: paperwork. Just as Eve finds herself wishing for a murder that would spring her from paperwork hell, something worse comes along.

Isaac McQueen - a violent pedophile Eve took down not long after she became a police officer - has escaped prison. McQueen seems more than eager to get back to raping and torturing young girls, but he's added an additional target to his list: Eve. McQueen's sick cat-and-mouse game will take Eve and her husband Roarke from New York to Dallas, where the demons of Eve's past will collide with the terrifying danger that taking down McQueen presents.

Grave minder

Grave minder by Melissa Marr - 2011

Blurb ....

Three sips to mind the dead . . . 
Rebekkah Barrow never forgot the attention her grandmother Maylene bestowed upon the dead of Claysville, the small town where Bek spent her adolescence. There wasn't a funeral that Maylene didn't attend, and at each one Rebekkah watched as Maylene performed the same unusual ritual: She took three sips from a silver flask and spoke the words "Sleep well, and stay where I put you." 
Now Maylene is dead, and Bek must go back to the place she left a decade earlier. She soon discovers that Claysville is not just the sleepy town she remembers, and that Maylene had good reason for her odd traditions. It turns out that in Claysville the worlds of the living and the dead are dangerously connected; beneath the town lies a shadowy, lawless land ruled by the enigmatic Charles, aka Mr. D. If the dead are not properly cared for, they will come back to satiate themselves with food, drink, and stories from the land of the living. Only the Graveminder, by tradition a Barrow woman, and her Undertaker—in this case Byron Montgomery, with whom Bek shares a complicated past—can set things right once the dead begin to walk. 
Although she is still grieving for Maylene, Rebekkah will soon find that she has more than a funeral to attend to in Claysville, and that what awaits her may be far worse: dark secrets, a centuries-old bargain, a romance that still haunts her, and a frightening new responsibility—to stop a monster and put the dead to rest where they belong.

Well this is certainly a new one for the supernatural genre. When I started reading this story I wasn't sure if I was enjoying it. However, once the story started picking up the pace it just became more weird and unusual and yet I found myself waiting for the next page. The whole premise for this novel revolves around a small town in which the role of the grave minder and the undertaker are solely responsible for making sure the dead stay dead. Lots of gruesome scenes and creepy evil stuff makes this story and interesting read. Not sure if Melissa is making this a series (I wouldn't be surprised) I have no doubt that it will be a hit.
Just how much I liked this book, the jury is still out. I would really like to hear what you think if you have read it.
Visit Melissa's site: http://www.melissa-marr.com/

Morganville Vampire series

Morganville Vampire Series by Rachel Caine - Penguin 2009- (Kindle)

Blurb ....
College freshman Claire Danvers has had enough of her nightmarish dorm situation. When Claire heads off-campus, the imposing old house where she finds a room may not be much better. Her new roommates don't show many signs of life, but they'll have Claire's back when the town's deepest secrets come crawling out, hungry for fresh blood


So far, this series contains 10 books, there will be 12 in total, the 11th due out at the end of this year.

I was totally involved in this vampire/human story. It features a big cast, primarily focusing on Claire and her friends Shane, Michael and Eve who live in the small town of Morganville which is ran by vampires. The stories are diverse while slowly building up to the ultimate ending. While each book has its own storyline, Rachel Caine lets you discover more about the characters and their backgrounds. As I was reading each book I was shocked and amazed and in awe of author's ability to keep you reading and wanting for more.



Visit Rachel's site: http://www.rachelcaine.com/Rachel_Caine_-_Writer/Home.html