First Drop of Crimson (Night Huntress World Series #1)

great urban fantasy

Over a year ago on New Year's Eve, they were attacked by something paranormal that frightened her best friend Cat; Denise knew that little scares a vampire even a hybrid bloodsucker. Denise's husband Randy went outside where the fray was on going, but told his beloved to stay inside with the runaway kids who take shelter with them and promised to be back. He never kept his promise dying during the zombie assault.

Over a year later, Denise's cousin Paul informs her that he does not believed the doctors or police are right when they insist twenty-three year old Amber died from a heart attack; he thinks she was murdered and he is "Destined for an Early Grave" too. Denise says no way, but the man comes out of the shadows and grabs Paul who stops breathing. She attacks the man who laughs and vanishes. Next she tries CPR as does a stranger, but both end up coughing and Paul remains dead.

Unable to reach Cat or her BF's mate Bones, Denise calls Spade the vampire. Bones' best buddy quickly arrives and realizes that the killer left behind a residual of demon essence from Raum, which proves Paul was right; dead right. They seek Nathaniel, who escaped from Raum. As they search for the predator, each feels an unwanted attraction to one another, which she rejects out of guilt and he denies out of a previous failed mortal relationship.

This is a great beginning of a sidebar series spun from the terrific Night Huntress saga as Denise and Spade have consistently appeared so fans knows each of them. The story line is fast-paced from the attack on Paul and never slows down on either the urban fantasy thriller prime plot or the supporting romantic subplot. Jeaniene Frost provides a powerful tale.

Harriet Klausner

17 out of 21 people found this review helpful.

Disappointing, but entertaining

I love Jeaniene Frost, her book "Halfway to the Grave" was what pushed me into the paranormal/urban fantasy genre, unfortunately her spinoff book falls short. From reading the Night Huntress series, I was very aware of Spade and Denise and liked them a lot, because of that I was excited to read this book and ran to the bookstore to get it the first day it came out.

I was very disappointed. Spade and Denise are no Cat and Bones, which is obvious, but the chemistry and passion that makes the Night Huntress series so amazing, falls flat in the spin off. Though you feel bad for all Spade and Denise have lost and you want them to find each other, it just isn't that interesting. The two characters are all of a sudden waxing lyrical about their true love, when there is no real evidence of them getting there.

While the villain in the story is initially interesting and the deeper look into the undead world is always good, the story is cliche. The book in itself is not original, you can see almost every plot twist coming and there really isn't a sense of any urgency, because you can pretty much guess how it's going to end.

If you are a true Frost fan you will find the book entertaining and I like her Night Huntress books so much that I will try Frost again before writing her off.

5 out of 6 people found this review helpful.

Good spin off.

For a spin off it was great. Unless you love spoilers dont read this first, read her other books.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Great Read

At first i was really annoyed that Jeaniene Frost decided to start a spin off series without the Night Huntress series being over with. I thought the books should have come out afterwards so the people who loved the series would still have something to look forward too BUT....The first drop of crimson was awesome! Jeaniene Frost is a talented writer! I loved that we got to read from Denise's and Spade's point of view and now i'm looking forward to reading more of spin off books!! If you love the night huntress series then these books are a must read!!

3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Shade the romantic. who would have thought

I enjoyed this spin off. I liked that the first part of the story focused on Denise and Shade. It gave them time to develop separately from the characters of the main series. At the same time, I was happy Frost brought in Cat, Bones and Ian later. Shade was a great lead. It took me a while to be won over by Denise but in the end, I found them to be a wonderful couple. I hope to see Ian with his own book sometime soon.

2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Loved.

I thought this was truly the book for Ian to SHINE! OMG seriously every scene he was in he was brilliant, LOL. The drunken Pirates of Penzance singing, turning on the raunchy video saying what he wanted to do for the night, then the "payback" scene..... I never thought I'd grow to LOVE his character so much!!! He's such a lovable SLEEZE :P

I also loved all the guys coming back together to fight, watching the dynamics between Bones, Spade and Ian. Their bond and concern for one another was really highlighted in this book and I loved every second of it. I bet you they'll find Timothy here in the near future too, and the four of them will reunite.

I love Denise and Spade together, too. I think their story was so awesome, and so heartfelt at how they were leaving their pasts behind and forgiving themselves so they could have a future together. AWWWWWWWW!!! And, Denise is one BAD Mother-shutyomouth now!!!

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

YUM!!!

I love, love, LOVE JF's vampires! Her stories and writing style are addictive and thrilling. My toes curled several times while reading this new addition to the world of the undead. I purchased it the day it was released and DEVOURED it the same day.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Good, but could be better

I was looking forward to Spade's story, but found it lacking. I enjoyed Frost's first series and thought this was going to be just as interesting. The story was lacking and I was hoping it would get better as I continued reading. Hopefully the next book in the series will be more thrilling.

2 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Even the "Side Story" is Good!

If you've read any of the Night Huntress series, then you know Frost puts out good material. This book is no different. Although Spade is a secondary character in the main series, he's front and center in this book, along with Denise, Cat's friend. Excellent storyline, the plot and the romance gets thicker throughout the book, and there's great action throughout. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and am looking forward to the next installment in the Night Huntress series.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Edge of your seat!!

I thought this was the fifth book of the "in the grave" series. it has the same charactors..its the best series ever!! almost as good as the Black Dagger Brother series by J.R.Ward. This is a can't put down book. I read it in three days..

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Loved it!!

If you have already read the other books written by Jeaniene Frost than you are familiar with the characters in this book. If you have not, its really okay. The story of Spade and Denise captivated me from the beginning, as I hoped that it would. If this is your first Jeaniene Frost read, you will become intrigued and want to read the others. I enjoyed the interaction of characters from other books. Nice getaway.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

First Drop of Crimson

I recommend that you be at least familiar, if not up-to-date on the Night Huntress series (Halfway to the Grave, One Foot in the Grave, At Grave's End and Destined for an Early Grave) before reading this book.

I really enjoyed this book; however, it had a tiny bit more romance than I thought it would. The first parts of the book were a bit predictable but not hard to get into. Once things got going, Spade and Denise's story was just as exciting and captivating as a Cat and Bones story. And akin to the Night Huntress series, the humor was just laugh-out-loud funny!

This novel was just as exciting and on par with the Night Huntress series; and it was also refreshing to have demons incorporated into the mix. My attention was completely absorbed through the majority of this book; so much so, that most of the times I couldn't wait to see what happened next. All in all, I found this book to be highly entertaining. Having Cat and Bones back-up Denise and Spade, was a nice treat, since there won't be another Night Huntress novel until some time in 2011.

I highly recommend this romantic urban fantasy to fellow dark urban fantasy readers and look forward to the next spin-off book, The Eternal Kiss of Darkness (Mencheres' Story) due out 7/27/2010.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Loved It!

Although I love reading about Cat and Bones' story, First Drop of Crimson was a great read as well. I like Spade's "reluctant hero" character and Denise's subtle, but strong personality. As usual, the story is fast-paced and unique. It was well worth the wait! Can't wait for Mencheres's story!

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

I do think it is important to have read the Night Huntress serie

I do think it is important to have read the Night Huntress series with Cat and Bones prior to reading the Night Huntress World books.  It would help tremendously.  Denise is Cat's best friend and falls under Bones' protection as a result.  However, she has found herself in a world of trouble with this dangerous demon who needs her help to find some ancient decedent of hers in the undead world.  Denise doesn't want to bother Cat and Bones mostly because she doesn't want them to get hurt if she can't find this decendent.  She reaches out to Spade.  Unbeknownst to Denise - Spade already adores her but has had to stay away for many reasons (if you have read the Night Huntress series it all makes sense).  Yet, he decides to help her - and that help means he will help her at all costs.  But her time is running out.  It is a demon who needs her help and if she doesn't succeed, he will kill her entire family and she will become a full fledged demon.  In the meantime, she is slowly developing demon traits and qualities - including her blood is like a drug to vampires.  Eventually Bones and Cat learn of the situation (as well as Ian, Mencheres and a few others) and all come to aid.  Another 5 star novel by Jeaniene Frost.

Review

Good book. Looking foward to this series. Captured my attention from the beginning. Kind of reminds me of Anita Blake series from Laurell K Hamilton.

i luv this :)

i luv this :)

This book was one I was definitely eager to read, due to my undy

This book was one I was definitely eager to read, due to my undying love for the Night Huntress series. I have been a serious long-time admirer of Spade--who is featured as a secondary character in the Night Huntress books--and when I learned that he was taking the spotlight as one of the main characters in First Drop of Crimson, I couldn't wait to dig in to this story!

This book is told from the dual perspectives of Spade and Denise, which I quite liked! Denise is Cat's best friend in the Night Huntress series, and she's another favorite of mine. Getting to delve into the minds of these characters was an awesome, entertaining, and romantic experience; and finding out more about them and their past was so much fun, but also a little heartbreaking.

The excitement begins when Spade gets roped into helping Denise combat a demon who is hellbent (pun intended) on murdering Denise's family to get what he so desperately seeks. I must say that the introduction to demons in this book was very fascinating and creepy, and it definitely made the plot more intense! Denise and Spade get caught up in a wild adventure, and Denise goes through a significant physical and personal transformation; gaining powers and strength she never had before. I won't give anything away, but I will say that Denise kicks major butt and I was rooting her on the entire time.

My favorite thing about this book, though, was the romance between Spade and Denise. Spade makes my heart melt with how much he cares for Denise; and though I was yelling at Denise to just hurry up and give into Spade already, the wait and buildup leading to their union was well worth it! These characters also gained some much-needed closure from their haunted pasts, which happens because of their shared bond. I just love these two as a couple!

If you are curious to learn more about Denise and Spade, then definitely pick up this book and be prepared to be swept up in their highly eventful and sexy story! Thank you, Jeaniene Frost, for giving us a more intimate look at Spade!

Must read

I love the spin off, It great to see what happens with the rest of them. You need to read the Night Huntress series also to get the full back ground on everything

Love Charles!

Great to see Charles' gentlemanly shell cracked.

wonderful

wonderful