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From debut author Cassie Alexander comes a spectacular new urban fantasy series where working the nightshift can be a real nightmare. Nothing compares to being Nightshifted.
Nursing school prepared Edie Spence for a lot of things. Burn victims? No problem. Severed limbs? Piece of cake. Vampires? No way in hell. But as the newest nurse on Y4, the secret ward hidden in the bowels of County Hospital, Edie has her hands full with every paranormal patient you can imagine—from vamps and were-things to zombies and beyond…
Edie’s just trying to learn the ropes so she can get through her latest shift unscathed. But when a vampire servant turns to dust under her watch, all hell breaks loose. Now she’s haunted by the man’s dying words—Save Anna—and before she knows it, she’s on a mission to rescue some poor girl from the undead. Which involves crashing a vampire den, falling for a zombie, and fighting for her soul. Grey’s Anatomy was never like this…
“The best debut I've read all year. Nightshifted is simply amazing!” —Kat Richardson, bestselling author of the Greywalker series
"Nightshifted’s main character, nurse Edie Spence, has a distinctive, appealing, and no-nonsense style that you won’t quickly forget. Add to that a paranormal population that needs medical care for some very odd reasons, and you have a winner of a debut novel." –Kate Elliott, author of the Cold Magic series
"Fresh, exciting, dark, and sexy, Nightshifted is excellent urban fantasy that grabs you by the throat and pulls you along for a wild ride. Cassie Alexander is an author to watch!" –Diana Rowland, author of Mark of The Demon
“Medical drama and vampire cold wars intersect in this solid urban fantasy debut. Alexander’s zombies are particularly well designed, and the hospital environment adds an intriguing additional dimension.” –Publishers Weekly
“I loved this book. What a breath of fresh air! It’s filled with fascinating characters, including an enigmatic zombie firefighter, weres, shapeshifters, and of course, vampires. A memorable scene with a STD afflicted dragon (yup) had me on the edge of my seat, the budding romance with Ti (zombie firefighter!) is sweet and tender, and I just plain loved hanging out with Edie. Nightshifted is a very strong start to what promises to be a wonderful new series!” –My Bookish Ways
“Edie is a fun character with heart and charisma, making it easy to fall for her and want to see her succeed in all of her adventures, whether they be dealing with paranormal patients, evil vampires, or potential lovers. If you like your urban fantasy to have a dose of romance, then Nightshifted is for you. Highly recommended.” –The Debut Review
“I really enjoyed the new type of monster mythologies introduced in NIGHTSHIFTED. I especially liked the idea that you need a certain amount of blood exposure before becoming a full fledged vampire. I can’t wait to read more about the Y4 wing of County Hospital’s residents and this strange new world when the next book comes out.” –All Things Urban Fantasy
“Alexander’s first novel launches a new series that should appeal to fans of medical thrillers as well as urban fantasy.”–Library Journal
“There's so much paranormal stuff out there that I often find myself longing for some true urban fantasy. Nightshifted is the one I was starving for. It's gritty and dark, its heroine jaded and tough, and both of them are studded with moments of humor and human frailty.” –Angieville.com
LeslieN
Posted August 7, 2012
Edie's brother has a drug problem. So when she is mysteriously offered a chance to help him stay clean (and alive) by working at the county hospital in a very unique setting, she accepts. Working on Y4 causes her no end of trouble both on the job and in her personal life, but if she quits what will become of her brother?
The world-building was just right. As readers, we know what the narrator, Edie, knows. It is clear that the world does NOT know about the exsistence of these creatures. Little by little as Edie learns more, you as the reader learn more.
A unique and fascinating story that kept me up past my bedtime more than once. I can't wait to read the next one.
Content warning: sex and language.
3 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted May 22, 2012
A bit dark, a bit racy, fast-moving and engaging. Can't wait for the next installment around Thanksgiving.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted November 22, 2012
This is an amazing story! There were many times in the story when I asked myself how did the author come up with this? Who thinks about writing a scene with a dragon who has an STD? It was great and original. It also gave a great, yet supernatural view of the nursing profession. I recommend this book and I rarely ever recommend books :)
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.As a nursing student I loved the portions of this book that dealt with Edie’s actual night shifts. The author is a nurse so all nursing portions were spot on and as real as could be, when talking about caring for the paranormal creatures. I loved Edie’s character and her attitude throughout the book. The zombie she meets and falls for is also very entertaining and his actions, reactions, and conversations with Edie are often so honest they are amusing. I didn’t feel fully immersed in the world of the vampires – their different families and reasoning behind how they were was difficult for me to get into. As much of the story was involving this fact, that became a drawback for me. The were-creatures were awesome and I wanted more of their kind. Characters were definitely the big draw in this story and I would read more to find out more about them!
Reviewed by Jessica for Book Sake.
1 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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Posted May 14, 2013
Love
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 29, 2013
Based on the synopsis, I expected a better story. It had all the paranormal I love to read about, but the story fell short. I gave it 3 stars because it kept me interested enough to finish in one day, but I won't be getting anything else in this series.
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Posted December 20, 2012
Awesome read! Definitly one to share!
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Posted December 15, 2012
Not a literary masterpiece, but lots of fun to read. Surprisingly it is recognizable to hospital life except for the vampires of course! Enjoyed it very much.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.bandit1355
Posted December 14, 2012
good story line, hope more in the same series come along.
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Posted November 29, 2012
Zombies and vampires and werewolves, oh my! All given to the reader from a critical care nurses point of view. Gifted writer makes it almost believable and very humerous. Ilmao!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 27, 2012
Read this over the holiday and it was a lot of fun. As an RN myself the nursing and medical aspects were completely realistic and I enjoyed that immensely. Add in the fantasy aspects and this book kept me reading long into the night.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Reviewed by ANGELA & posted at Under the Covers Book Blog
“Nightshifted is an impressive debut novel. It’s Urban Fantasy with a lot spunk… Ms. Alexander’s writing flowed. Her imagination of her world kept me engaged with every page.” ~Under The Covers
I discovered and met this author at a local signing not too long ago. I was glad to have taken a chance on her book. I was a bit hesitant because well, to be honest, the book cover just did not appeal to me. I thought it portrayed a cheesy image of a nurse. However, because I am a nurse myself, I had to give it a go. Wow, am I glad I did! The cover did not do the book any justice. It certainly did not represent Edie, the author’s writing and imagination. Quite the opposite, Ms. Alexander’s writing flowed. Her imagination of her world kept me engaged with every page.
Nightshifted is an impressive debut novel. It’s Urban Fantasy with a lot spunk, not so much like the TV series Grey’s Anatomy but more like Nurse Jackie with a strong Paranormal element. Not to mention it’s action packed, drama filled and a selfless heroine.
Balancing a lonely life with a complex occupation, Edie works as a nurse at a secret unit called Y4. It is where the patients are of the paranormal kind. Attempting to save her brother from drug addiction, Edie landed this job in return for her brother’s sobriety. Supported by the hospital but unknown to the human world, Edie is dedicated to her job. A true nurse, she is a strong advocated for her patients. And sometimes, Edie takes her dedication to a whole new level. It was great to see how a medical team would handle the super natural patients (vamps, shifters, wolves, etc). Bedside manners, safety protocols and procedures mashed up with a paranormal world were such a treat to read. Ms. Alexander took nursing to paranormal levels indeed.
I really like Edie, her personality and some life experiences are very realistic. In fact, some parts of her remind me of some friends, coworkers and even me. She is honest and there are never any pretenses with her. Pretty much, what you see is what you get. I admire her for her patient advocacy to a point where her own life is affected just to help others. Like I said, her patients are not of the normal kind so; you can just imagine what kind of trouble she gets into. I do have to disagree with her love life or lack of. She is independent and she has no need of any man but she seems to sleep around. And when she decides to exclusively date, she picks a zombie. Why she picked Ti (the zombie) over Asher (very sexy shifter)? I do not get.
Overall, this book made it to my auto-follow series simply because it was that good. A hint, I’ve read Moonshifted and it’s even better than this one.
The premise for this book sounded very interesting. The plot of the story was sort of compelling. Edie Spence is a nurse at the County Hospital in the Y4 level, a top secret level that only the people who work on it know about. They take care of shifters, vamps, zombies, or any other paranormally inclined beast. She hates her job, but she does it because the "Shadows" who rule the hospital have promised to keep her addict of a brother clean if she stays. With nowhere else to go, she sucks it up and takes the third shift. While working, she sees her first vampire change, encounters her first sexy zombie, and fights off a lethal shifter gone crazy. Sounds like a good read right? Yeah, not so much, there were so many things that brought that down and not only didn't make logical sense but didn't fit the characters and had no true bearing on the story. It made me sad Eddie just gives up her life for her brother, it is commendable to a point, but it gets to be too much. It especially when he continues to use her, and she continues to let him. She is weak when it comes to him and it is disappointing she never stands up for herself, or really grows as a character. Also there is the grandfather character who was interesting, but why incorporate a character who she can't understand? Why would she take him with her? Overall this was an ok read, bearable enough to finish but not one I will reread or recommend.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 22, 2012
Awesome book. Relatable to any nightshift nurse that is looking to get lost in a catchy fantsy world. Cant wait for the next book
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Posted November 18, 2012
^^
0 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.geekgrrl
Posted June 27, 2012
I was looking for something new, and this caught my eye - found it very entertaining, and have pre-ordered the next in the series. Great concept, though I did find myself wishing there was more to the backstory of how Edie ended up in this job - you can piece it together from the story, but I'm hoping for more - it seems like it should play into the story more later...
Great cast of characters - can't wait to see how the story progresses!
Anonymous
Posted June 26, 2012
I don't usually read to many books like this one. But decided to give this one a try. Glad I did & will definitely be waiting for the next one.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Caerwyn
Posted June 21, 2012
Night nurse on the ward have always suspected existed, but could never find. Fresh new voice, give it a try!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Alexander is Brilliant!!
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Verushka
I think I hit my limit of medical inspired-anything thanks to the popularity of them on television over the years, but the sight of Edie Spence on the cover of this book, with her Ellen-Page-resemblance and the shadow of a dragon behind her was too good to resist.
The book does not disappoint at all – I only wish those medical shows on TV were even half as interesting. Edie Spence is a nurse on Ward Y4 of County, the ward where all manner of supernatural creatures go when they are injured, need a safe place to recuperate or to shift into their supernatural forms. It’s run by the Shadows, and while there is some explanation to their presence in the book, they do not over-power the book.
Cassie Alexander is a nurse herself, so everything in the book to do with the hospital as you can imagine, rings true. What thrilled me was the utter simplicity of her idea – a ward, a hospital for ALL sorts of supernatural creatures! It’s a fabulous way to explore different creatures in an urban fantasy setting because no matter what, at some point, they’re all going to need medical help.
I mean that dragon on the cover? Not there just for show!
Edie is a normal woman, who works at the ward to ensure her brother Jake’s continued safety. Jake is a junkie and Edie cannot help him get clean as he does not want to – that situation, I thought, was extremely real and well-written. Edie’s helplessness is palpable, as is her frustration, anger and love for Jake. There is more to Jake and his story, but this is not the book for it.
This book is about Edie. Like I mentioned above, she’s a normal woman, a nurse and working in Y4 does come with training in how to handle creatures, but a normal woman, faced with supernatural foes keeps me hyper-aware of how realistic the characters act when facing them. The author, I am happy to report, handles that superbly – I could see Edie doing everything she does physically, including killing a vampire which in this book sets her on a path towards a trial for her life. I mean, a trial before a vampire court, with vampire lawyers and everything – the world-building in this novel? In a word, superb.
The book also highlights that Edie’s compassion, even to killer-vampire children, in particular, Anna who she tries to save and needs to testify on her behalf at her trial. Edie begins the book trying to find Anna – a dying patient, one she killed (a vampire servant, in essence) whispers Anna’s name to Edie, and she becomes determined to find her to save her like her patient wanted. In an attempt to save Anna, she finds herself on trial and embroiled in vampire politics of a sort.
Along the way, she meets Asher, a shapeshifter, who begins as a romantic interest, but becomes something else towards the end – enough to make me curious as to how his relationship with Edie is going to evolve. Ti is a patient and a zombie who is as kind-hearted as Edie is and who ends up helping her in her quest to find Anna to testify on her behalf at her vampire-trial.
I have to confess, I have only read zombie stories of the evil, undead killer variety until now, so Ti is a welcome change. He comes with his own baggage, he is tender and funny and heart-breaking all at once, but he is not without those killer zombie-instincts mentioned above. He is the most interesting part of the secondary set of characters.
See the full review at openbooksociety dot com
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted June 11, 2012
I loved how Cassie Alexander kept me hooked throughout the story. It moved quickly, although a bit to quickly because we have to wait until November for her next one.
The main character was well developed and it was great to get a glimpse into the life of a nurse, even though this is set in an imagined world, you can tell that the writer knows her way around a bedside. Happy reading.
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Overview
From debut author Cassie Alexander comes a spectacular new urban fantasy series where working the nightshift can be a real nightmare. Nothing compares to being Nightshifted.
Nursing school prepared Edie Spence for a lot of things. Burn victims? No problem. Severed limbs? Piece of cake. Vampires? No way in hell. But as the newest nurse on Y4, the secret ward hidden in the bowels of County Hospital, Edie has her hands full with every ...