Review: Night Shift by Nalini Singh, Ilona Andrews, Lisa Shearin, & Milla Vane

Night Shift
By: Nalini Singh, Ilona Andrews, Lisa Shearin, & Milla Vane
Publisher: Berkley
Publication date: Nov. 25, 2014
Genre: Paranormal Romance

New York Times bestselling author Nalini Singh delivers a smoldering story with Secrets at Midnight , as the scent of Bastien Smith’s elusive lover ignites a possessiveness in him that’s as feral as it is ecstatic. And now that he’s found his mate, he’ll do anything to keep her.

In #1 New York Times bestselling author Ilona Andrews’ novella, Magic Steals , when people start going missing, shapeshifting tigress Dali Harimau and jaguar shifter Jim Shrapshire must uncover the truth about the mysterious creatures responsible.

It’s seer Makenna Frazier’s first day on the job at Supernatural Protection and Investigations, and her first assignment is more than she bargained for when bodyguard duty for a leprechaun prince’s bachelor party goes every which way but right in national bestselling author Lisa Shearin’s Lucky Charms .

From Milla Vane—a warrior princess must tame The Beast of Blackmoor to earn a place among her people. But she quickly discovers that the beast isn’t a monster, but a barbarian warrior who intends to do some taming himself.

Secrets at Midnight by Nalini Singh

I have not read the Psy-Changeling series, although I have heard of it. I was kind of looking forward to this story since it’s supposed to be the prequel to the series. I felt like this was the perfect way to dip my toes in and try a new series without committing to a full book. However, I was a little confused. The author doesn’t really go over the world she created. I have no clue what a Psy is and why that’s a slur among the shifters (changelings). I also didn’t understand the timeline. It seemed like everything happened in the span of like a day. Kirby meets a stranger, they have a sleepover  (no sex), fall in love, and find that they’d do anything for the other. I get that Bastien is a shifter and there’s that whole insta-mate thing, but Kirby’s response to him was a little quick for me. With that being said, I did like the premise of this story and felt like it would have been amazing if it were a bit longer and took the time to explain what was going on.

Magic Steals by Ilona Andrews

I confess, I haven’t read all of the Kate Daniel’s books, but I have read one of two of them. However, that was years ago and so, I can’t say that I remember much of the world. Other than Curran is a lion that everyone seems to swoon over. Thankfully, I didn’t need to know anything about the world, not did I really need to read the books, because the authors catch you up to speed on everything. I tend to have a problem with novella’s because it always seems like when a book just starts to get good, it ends. However, Magic Steals was like a pocket-sized novel. I got a good intro, character & world development, conflict, bad guys, mystery, and a happy ending all in one short story.

I loved Dali and Jim’s characters. The fact that Dali isn’t this perfect picture of a heroine. She wears glasses, she doesn’t like violence, and she’s vegetarian. Did I mention that she’s a TIGER shifter? So, yeah, her character might not be the strongest when you think of shifters. However, she’s magically inclined and can do things no one else can because of that. Jim is the alpha of the cats and therefor is the image you think of when you think of shifters. He’s strong, determined, and protective. These two on paper would not go together, but in this story they work so well. Jim’s able to defer to Dali when it comes to magical things, and he’s not afraid to ask for help or let her take charge. He pretty much shows her that she’s a strong shifter and is very special.

If you can’t tell already, I really enjoyed this one. I was happy that the author didn’t rely on the readers already knowing the world they developed and instead took the time to catch us all up on it. This made me want to give the Kate Daniels series another shot.

Lucky Charms by Lisa Shearin

Makenna can see beyond the glamours that the “others” put out to appear human. Which makes her a huge asset to a team, because she can see their target even when no one else can. However her first day doesn’t go as planned when she’s tasked to clean up a mess a previous team made when they were tasked to keep their eyes on a bachelor party for a leprechaun. Well, they’ve managed to lose the bachelor and party, and now it’s Makenna’s job to find them and make sure they are safe. Let’s just say her first day does not go as planned.

This story pretty much is a prequel to a new series by the author. So a little information is given to explain what’s going on, but I feel like we get more world development in the first book of the series. However, this story gives you a small taste of Makenna’s new life working with the SPI. Not to mention that it’s revealed in this prequel that the previous seers have all died in the line of duty, but something smells fishy about it. So, I’m curious to see where that goes in the rest of the series. Plus, we’re clued in that Makenna might not be all that she seems. There was never a dull moment in this story. So if this is what the series is like, be ready for a jam packed supernatural ride.

The Beast of Blackmoor by Milla Vane

This was one that I liked, but also had a hard time with. Mala is on a quest for her Goddess. She’s tasked with finding the beast of Blackmoor and taming him. With only that to go off of, she’s a little thrown when the beast turns out to be a fellow warrior. As she starts to see Blackmoor for the awful place it is, and the ruler as a vile man who gives her chains and collar to “tame the beast”, she battles with her task. Surely it’s not to put this proud man in chains.

I liked the fantasy element of this story. There are poisonous beasts, dark magic, and Goddesses that grant some extraordinary favor. However, a lot wasn’t explained and I was at a bit of a loss. Another thing was that this story is very graphic. First of all, there’s rape. Secondly, the way the hero talks and treats the heroine was off putting. Yanking her hair and demanding she pleasure him. Only to have his harshness be written off as him struggling with his feelings for her. It was a hard pill to swallow.

I still liked the story overall, and I’m chalking this up to being a novella and therefor not getting the full picture. So, I might still check out the series.