by Casey Wyatt
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance
August 18, 2016
ISBN-13: 978-1534902718
ISBN-10: 1534902716
ISBN13: 2940153402147
ASIN: B01HUFDDT2
Number of pages: 410
Word Count: 83,000
Cover Artist: Kim Killion, Inc.
Cherry Cordial, vampire stripper extraordinaire, spectacularly messes up her life with a single act of kindness. How could she have known when she rescued gorgeous rogue Ian McDevitt that she would be implicated in the vampire queen’s murder?
Soon, she faces the wrath of the entire vampire community. To escape retribution, she joins a settlement program to colonize Mars. Her choices are grim: hurtle through space to the red planet to face the unknown and possible death, or stay on Earth and face certain annihilation.
To make things even more complicated, a certain gorgeous rogue seems to be shadowing her every move...
The female main is Charity Belmont AKA Cherry Cordial, a vampire burlesque star. By happenstance, Cherry’s life is intertwined with that of sexy rouge Ian McDevitt. Framed for a crime they didn’t commit, the pair seeks refuge in the Undead Space Initiative, a resettlement program on Mars. Joined by a supporting cast of paranormals, the colonists must meet challenge after non-stop challenge while unravelling ancient mysteries.
I applaud Wyatt for her bravery and creativity. This premise is outrageous, daring, and, at times, just plain silly. However, it contains many hallmarks of good paranormal romance/urban fantasy. Cherry is a likeable, dynamic female main. I love that she’s a stripper; it eliminates the arduous unrolling of sexual confidence and appeal. Cherry has wide attraction as a high-born Victorian girl who has learned to adapt and evolve. Ian is a perfect counterpart for Cherry. He’s strong, confident, rebellious and incredibly sexy. At its core, the plot is fairly predictable, however, the outer trapping and devices Wyatt uses elevates it as something altogether different. I enjoyed the slow reveal of Cherry’s backstory including her tenuous relationship with her sire, Jonathan. As well, the sci-fi aspects were entertaining, if not puzzling.
I’d like to offer a few provisos for anyone ready to take this interstellar romp with a would-be colony of vampires, zombies, and ‘revenants.’ First, don’t even try to make sense of the scientific and anthropological aspects of this book. Just go with it. Completely suspend your disbelief and enjoy the ride. Next, the copy I read was a digital ARC, and while it’s typical for errors to arise, this copy was full errors and misplaced sentences. There are loose threads and inconsistencies throughout the book. It appears as though this book was originally published as Undead Space Initiative in 2012 and has been reworked. And while reception to the 2012 edition appears to be mixed, I feel this series has definite potential with some significant tightening. Hopefully these bugs are worked out prior to a wider release.
At least two subsequent books in this series are slated for release. I hope Wyatt is efficient with their release as this is a series I plan to follow. Looking for something wild and cray? Give Dead Girls Don’t Cry a try.
4 super galactic sheep
Bianca Greenwood
Excerpt:
Suddenly, I wasn’t the biggest, baddest thing on the block.
Revenants.
They always traveled in packs. Enough of them could take me down. Revenants were cousins to vampires, undead beings with too much spirit. Essentially ghosts with physical reality.
I picked up the pace, steering toward the middle of the street and well away from dark corners. If I had a heart rate, it would have been pounding. My blood was rare and prized. One sip and the revenants would keep me alive to serve as a drink dispenser.
I fished through my bag. Where was my cell? Jonathan would come. Provided I could find the damn phone.
Meaty thwacks rang out in the alley as I passed by.
Do not look.
A soft oomph, followed by a clipped English accent, “Try that again, bastards.”
I looked.
Shit.
A lone and gorgeous male vampire had been captured. Three revenants had him pinned against the wall. Two held his arms and one pinned his legs. Three more surrounded him like a pack of knife-wielding hyenas.
The vampire snarled. Long fangs bared, presumably pissed off at his capture. With his sculptured physique, he could handle the situation. Right?
None of the baddies had noticed me yet. I could leave.
Another punch landed, connecting with the vamp’s mouth. The crack echoed in the alley. Liquid splattered, followed by cruel laughter.
The vampire hottie spat, his lip broken. Blood trickled down his jaw, seeping into the stark white collar of his button down shirt. “Think twice before you cut me, mate. I’ll smash all of your fucking heads in.”
“Shut up, meat.”
One added, “I’m so scared,” before swinging his knife and tearing a gash in the vampire’s chest. The pack laughed. A revenant approached the vampire with IV bags.
Crap-a-roni, now I had to get involved. They planned to bleed him out. That’s what revenants did. They took a vampire’s blood and drained him or her dry. The blood was then sold to the highest revenant bidder. They believed our blood could remove the excess spirit from their bodies, returning them to their true vampire form.
Problem is—it’s a myth. There’s no way for a revenant to become a vampire, any more than I could become a zebra if I wanted to. These guys were zealots. Deranged lunatics.
“This is your last warning, blokes,” Mr. Sexy English accent said. I tried not to shiver at the sound of his rich voice. Heady whiffs of his sweet scented blood drifted my way. Like a fine wine, the smell promised a delicious and satisfying taste. Saliva pooled in my mouth. My fangs dug into my bottom lip.
“Well lookee here!”
Damn. I should have run when I had the chance. The pack turned in my direction, their faces eager for more blood. I cringed under the gaze of the hollow-eyed, pale-skinned nightmares who all wanted a piece of me.
The nearest one licked his gray, rubbery lips. “Yum. Dessert.”
I was too stupid to live. Why didn’t I run? My feet were frozen to the spot. I did the lamest, girliest thing possible. I swung my purse. And connected. A solid hit to the nuts.
The revenant shrieked, clutching his junk. “Bitch!”
The male vampire bucked, tossing the revenant off his left arm. Partially free, he ripped the arm off the other revenant before the thing could even react. With balled fists, Mr. Hottie crushed the skull of the captor holding his feet.
“Don’t stand there like a daft pony!” the vampire scolded. He snapped the neck of the nearest revenant, then motioned. “Get out of my way!”
“What? Without my help, you’d still be trapped against a wall!” I ducked and stepped aside, narrowly avoiding the gray-lipped revenant who had thought I was dessert.
“The rubbish bin would be more help than you!” Mr. English silenced two more revenants with brutal, neck-twisting efficiency.
“Oh really?” What a prick.
The revenant recovered from the nut bash and charged me again. His fingertips knocked off my ball cap. I kicked him in the stomach, grabbed the garbage barrel and slammed it over the revenant’s head as he honed in on me. The plastic bin wouldn’t kill the thing, but he couldn’t see either.
“Pathetic,” the vampire said.
Mr. English and I watched as the last revenant bounced against a brick wall before falling over, his legs scissoring.
“Time for this one to bugger off as well.” Mr. English yanked off the barrel and snuffed out the revenant with a bone-shattering blow to its head.
One by one the corpses disintegrated into dusty husks. A breeze blew through the alley and scattered the remains. Gray vaporous clouds floated around before dissipating into the air. To a passerby, the revenants’ final passage would look like dirty car exhaust.
“Well, I’m off then. Have good evening.” He brushed dirt off his tailored trousers. “Sod it, they scuffed my shoes. And this shirt is ruined.”
“Yeah. What a tragedy. You’re lucky. You could have been a revenant Slurpee.”
He sniffed at the suggestion. “I was never in any real danger.”
“You could have fooled me,” I retrieved my ball cap from the grimy sidewalk.
A late afternoon sunbeam penetrated the alley, illuminating the vampire’s blue-green eyes and highlighting the fine bone structure of his face. I tried not to gawk.
I gathered my tangled hair and mashed it under the hat. “Looks to me like they had you pinned against the ropes.” Did I mention he was gorgeous? Like a cover model. An underwear cover model. I cleared my throat. He was a total stranger, and while I bet he looked divine in only underwear, I needed to stop ogling him.
When he stared at me and didn’t reply, I lamely added, “You know? Down for the count.”
“I understood the reference, luv,” he said in his damn fine accent.
A man-shaped shadow shifted from across the street, forming a dark blot in the alley’s entrance. We weren’t alone.
Suddenly, I wasn’t the biggest, baddest thing on the block.
Revenants.
They always traveled in packs. Enough of them could take me down. Revenants were cousins to vampires, undead beings with too much spirit. Essentially ghosts with physical reality.
I picked up the pace, steering toward the middle of the street and well away from dark corners. If I had a heart rate, it would have been pounding. My blood was rare and prized. One sip and the revenants would keep me alive to serve as a drink dispenser.
I fished through my bag. Where was my cell? Jonathan would come. Provided I could find the damn phone.
Meaty thwacks rang out in the alley as I passed by.
Do not look.
A soft oomph, followed by a clipped English accent, “Try that again, bastards.”
I looked.
Shit.
A lone and gorgeous male vampire had been captured. Three revenants had him pinned against the wall. Two held his arms and one pinned his legs. Three more surrounded him like a pack of knife-wielding hyenas.
The vampire snarled. Long fangs bared, presumably pissed off at his capture. With his sculptured physique, he could handle the situation. Right?
None of the baddies had noticed me yet. I could leave.
Another punch landed, connecting with the vamp’s mouth. The crack echoed in the alley. Liquid splattered, followed by cruel laughter.
The vampire hottie spat, his lip broken. Blood trickled down his jaw, seeping into the stark white collar of his button down shirt. “Think twice before you cut me, mate. I’ll smash all of your fucking heads in.”
“Shut up, meat.”
One added, “I’m so scared,” before swinging his knife and tearing a gash in the vampire’s chest. The pack laughed. A revenant approached the vampire with IV bags.
Crap-a-roni, now I had to get involved. They planned to bleed him out. That’s what revenants did. They took a vampire’s blood and drained him or her dry. The blood was then sold to the highest revenant bidder. They believed our blood could remove the excess spirit from their bodies, returning them to their true vampire form.
Problem is—it’s a myth. There’s no way for a revenant to become a vampire, any more than I could become a zebra if I wanted to. These guys were zealots. Deranged lunatics.
“This is your last warning, blokes,” Mr. Sexy English accent said. I tried not to shiver at the sound of his rich voice. Heady whiffs of his sweet scented blood drifted my way. Like a fine wine, the smell promised a delicious and satisfying taste. Saliva pooled in my mouth. My fangs dug into my bottom lip.
“Well lookee here!”
Damn. I should have run when I had the chance. The pack turned in my direction, their faces eager for more blood. I cringed under the gaze of the hollow-eyed, pale-skinned nightmares who all wanted a piece of me.
The nearest one licked his gray, rubbery lips. “Yum. Dessert.”
I was too stupid to live. Why didn’t I run? My feet were frozen to the spot. I did the lamest, girliest thing possible. I swung my purse. And connected. A solid hit to the nuts.
The revenant shrieked, clutching his junk. “Bitch!”
The male vampire bucked, tossing the revenant off his left arm. Partially free, he ripped the arm off the other revenant before the thing could even react. With balled fists, Mr. Hottie crushed the skull of the captor holding his feet.
“Don’t stand there like a daft pony!” the vampire scolded. He snapped the neck of the nearest revenant, then motioned. “Get out of my way!”
“What? Without my help, you’d still be trapped against a wall!” I ducked and stepped aside, narrowly avoiding the gray-lipped revenant who had thought I was dessert.
“The rubbish bin would be more help than you!” Mr. English silenced two more revenants with brutal, neck-twisting efficiency.
“Oh really?” What a prick.
The revenant recovered from the nut bash and charged me again. His fingertips knocked off my ball cap. I kicked him in the stomach, grabbed the garbage barrel and slammed it over the revenant’s head as he honed in on me. The plastic bin wouldn’t kill the thing, but he couldn’t see either.
“Pathetic,” the vampire said.
Mr. English and I watched as the last revenant bounced against a brick wall before falling over, his legs scissoring.
“Time for this one to bugger off as well.” Mr. English yanked off the barrel and snuffed out the revenant with a bone-shattering blow to its head.
One by one the corpses disintegrated into dusty husks. A breeze blew through the alley and scattered the remains. Gray vaporous clouds floated around before dissipating into the air. To a passerby, the revenants’ final passage would look like dirty car exhaust.
“Well, I’m off then. Have good evening.” He brushed dirt off his tailored trousers. “Sod it, they scuffed my shoes. And this shirt is ruined.”
“Yeah. What a tragedy. You’re lucky. You could have been a revenant Slurpee.”
He sniffed at the suggestion. “I was never in any real danger.”
“You could have fooled me,” I retrieved my ball cap from the grimy sidewalk.
A late afternoon sunbeam penetrated the alley, illuminating the vampire’s blue-green eyes and highlighting the fine bone structure of his face. I tried not to gawk.
I gathered my tangled hair and mashed it under the hat. “Looks to me like they had you pinned against the ropes.” Did I mention he was gorgeous? Like a cover model. An underwear cover model. I cleared my throat. He was a total stranger, and while I bet he looked divine in only underwear, I needed to stop ogling him.
When he stared at me and didn’t reply, I lamely added, “You know? Down for the count.”
“I understood the reference, luv,” he said in his damn fine accent.
A man-shaped shadow shifted from across the street, forming a dark blot in the alley’s entrance. We weren’t alone.
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Casey Wyatt grew up in a mid-size Connecticut town where nothing exciting ever happened. To stem the boredom, she spent plenty of time reading fantasy and sci-fi novels and imagining her own adventures in her head. Not much has changed since she’s grown up, only now she shares those made up stories with her readers and earns a coin or two.
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Casey Wyatt grew up in a mid-size Connecticut town where nothing exciting ever happened. To stem the boredom, she spent plenty of time reading fantasy and sci-fi novels and imagining her own adventures in her head. Not much has changed since she’s grown up, only now she shares those made up stories with her readers and earns a coin or two.
Tour giveaway
Winner’s choice of either 1 $50 Amazon gift card OR 1 Kindle Fire Tablet, 7" Display, Wi-Fi, 8 GB - Includes Special Offers, Black ($49.99 version), ship to US only.
Winner’s choice of either 1 $50 Amazon gift card OR 1 Kindle Fire Tablet, 7" Display, Wi-Fi, 8 GB - Includes Special Offers, Black ($49.99 version), ship to US only.
I look forward to reading this.
ReplyDeleteI guess it's hard to cry...when you're dead. LOL
ReplyDeletesherry @ fundinmental
Vampire burlesque dancer AND zombies? Sounds like just my kind of book!
ReplyDeleteI hope you all enjoy! It was a fun book to write!
ReplyDeleteAnd a fun book to read! Follow up book soon please ;)
ReplyDeleteHi Bianca, I'm working on Dead Girls Don't Sing right now. I plan to release it by Spring 2017.
DeleteCherry and Ian are such a cool couple. I can't wait to read their story!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jeanna! Enjoy!
DeleteHi Bianca,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you enjoyed the story!
Book 2 - Dead Girls Don't Sing - is being written right now. I plan to release it in early 2017.
I'd read it. Sounds exciting. I've experienced the opposite so I'm moving from Toronto where it's too big and exciting. Trading it in for small town.
ReplyDeleteIt would be rough to be at the wrath of the entire vampire community
ReplyDeleteThat is very true. Sometimes a girl can't catch a break. :o)
DeleteI would love to read this book
ReplyDeleteThanks Christina. If you do read it, I hope you enjoy it!
DeleteI have added this book to my book wishlist, and I can't wait to read this story.
ReplyDeleteThanks Juana! I appreciate that. I hope you enjoy the story.
DeleteNot your everyday vampire stripper Mars explorer, eh.
ReplyDeleteNope! Makes you wonder who those Mars rovers are sharing their planet with. :o)
DeleteOh my gosh, luv to read this book. Pick me, pick me! Your next winner!!! Show me the money!!! It would be a dream come true and means more to me than anyone else to win. Starving artist here desperately needs the kindle to work and eat. Winner, winnner. Chicken dinner. A life changing experience. Top of my bucket list. Thank you for the awesomeness, the contest, and generosity. Dear Santa: I’ve been nice. My X-Mas wish this year is to win this contest.
ReplyDeleteGood luck. May the Rafflecopter Gods (or AI) smile on you. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteI'm really excited to read this one! it sounds like one i won't want to put down, and I'm really excited that you're writing a second one. i love books in series.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Shannon! Cherry's story (at the moment) is a trilogy and yes, I am working on finishing book 2 now.
DeleteIf you love series, I do have another: Mystic Ink, Mystic Storm and Mystic Hero. They are paranormal romances that take place in real world Mystic, CT where gods and goddesses live among the mortals.
thanks for the giveaway
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome! Good luck!
DeleteA vampire going to Mars, interesting.
ReplyDeleteI liked the excerpt - looks like a fun read.
ReplyDeleteIf you do pick up a copy, I hope you enjoy!
DeleteI love the cover it's sophisticated and captivating looking forward to reading it ;)
ReplyDeleteEnjoy! And kudos to Kim Killion. She designed the cover. The covers for books 2 and 3 are equally awesome!
Delete"True Blood meets Star Trek," two great shows in one, "Dead Girls Don’t Cry" is sure to be a fantastic read!
ReplyDeleteThanks Sue! I like to think it's a fun story. ;o)
Deleteسرویس و تعمیر انواع لوازم آشپزخانه و الکترونیکی در مرکز جامع تعمیرات دو سوت تعمیر
ReplyDelete2sottamir
تعمیر تخصصی تبلت در مدل های مختلف در شهر های تهران
ReplyDeleteتعمیر تبلت در دو سوت تعمیر
طراحی لوگو صنایع و مواد غذایی
ReplyDeleteآژانس های طراحی و تبلیغات می توانند به انواع مختلف مشاغل، از جمله مشاغل کوچک و متوسط تا شرکت های بزرگ، خدمات ارائه دهند. آنها همچنین می توانند به مشاغل در صنایع مختلف، از جمله خرده فروشی، خدمات مالی، فناوری و غیره، خدمات ارائه دهند.
ReplyDeleteمنبع:
https://jasina.ir/