The Barnes & Noble Review
Cravings is a quartet of unabashedly erotic novellas by four of today's most provocative writers -- Laurell K. Hamilton, MaryJanice Davidson, Eileen Wilks, and Rebecca York -- that includes a new Anita Blake tale by Hamilton that is as bloodcurdling as it is enticing!
Hamilton's "Beyond the Ardeur" -- an excerpt from her next Anita Blake novel, Incubus Dreams -- begins with everyone's favorite vampire hunter attending a friend's wedding. At the reception, sandwiched between two supernatural hunks -- Nathaniel, a stripper/wereleopard, and Damian, a green-eyed vampire -- Anita struggles to control her insatiable need to feed. As her yearning for lust (sexual energy, blood, etc.) grows, so does the potential for one unforgettable wedding reception!
MaryJanice Davidson revisits her Undead universe with "Dead Girls Don't Dance," a laugh-out-loud story about a vampire who fatefully gets unearthed by an old college crush. Andrea Mercer is a relatively young bloodsucker trying to find a way to Minneapolis to pay homage to the new vampire queen. When she hitches a ride with a former love interest, Daniel Harris -- a hulking stud muffin with the IQ of a head of lettuce -- she realizes being dead isn't necessarily the end of the world.
"Originally Human" by Eileen Wilks chronicles the plight of a three centuries-old succubi who must decide what to do with an extremely handsome -- and extremely naked -- man with amnesia. Rebecca York's "Burning Moon" is a bittersweet tale about a werewolf hunting down his wife's killer --- and the revelation he finds at his quest's end.
Stuffed with steamy supernatural sensuality, Cravings is perfect summertime reading. In a word: Hot! Paul Goat Allen
One need only glance at this anthology's lineup of authors to know that it's bound to be loaded with kinky, creative sex. And indeed, that's exactly what Hamilton delivers in "Beyond the Ardeur," which uses the setting of a wedding to bring back virtually the entire cast of characters from her popular series about necromancer Anita Blake. While Hamilton's fans will enjoy revisiting these night creatures, some may be disappointed to find that this tale is all sex and no slaying; the only mystery is which paranormal hunk(s) will satisfy Anita's ardeur. Far more suspenseful is York's "Burning Moon," which follows a blind tarot reader and a werewolf as they steam up the sheets and try to trap a serial killer. Equally compelling but more inventive is Wilks's "Originally Human"; neither the succubus heroine (whose age varies between 19 and 300, with stops at 50 and 35) nor the reader uncovers her amnesiac mystery man's identity till the final pages. Davidson, meanwhile, delivers nonstop, witty repartee and a surprise denouement in "Dead Girls Don't Dance," a delightful romance between a vampiress and her old college classmate. By turns sensual, suspenseful and amusing, this anthology will satisfy almost any craving. (July) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
