At Grave’s End

Jeaniene Frost is the best author out there. Ok, ok, I might be overstating that a bit, but she’s still very, very good. I once read a short story with Bones and Cat featured in it but couldn’t quite get a strong enough attachment to any of the characters to want to continue reading about any of them. Then I got the first book of her Vlad Tepesh series, apparently a spinoff character from this series what with the multiple appearances by Cat and Bones among those four books’ pages, and I fell in love with Leila’s point of view and her take of the world around her, including Vlad. A while after reading the last page of that quadrilogy I got the hankering to read more about Vlad or Leila and knew my best bet would be through the earlier series featuring, you guessed it, Cat and Bones.
Now, I was prepared to be bored to tears or simply to roll my eyes over this pair’s shinanegans since I found them to be rather jokey and very un-serious as a person can get. I mean, Bones is always throwing quips around and making fun of anyone he can, acting as irreverent as a person can get, while Cat made a few small contributions to Leila’s endeavors while not doing much to quell Bones’ snarky attitude. Then she’d quit the scene until the next time.
If you think I’m painting an unflattering picture of these two, that’s because I am. But not to worry because in reading these earlier books I’ve gained a new appreciation for this people. Bones’ snarkiness is a cover for a very calculating personality who only loses his cool when his true love Catherine, or Cat for short, is in mortal danger. Bravo for what you did to Max, by the way, although cutting Cat out of the vengeance part was a bit unnecessary since she can see your darker side, Bones, and not love you any the less for it.
Catherine Crawford, or Cat for short, is part human and part vampire thanks to her love-em-and-leave-em sperm donor Max, who screwed Justina over with his ‘We are demon-spawn’ spiel. And what Max did to both Cat and Justina deserved a hefty dose of retribution, Bones-style. Then the pair have to deal with the fallout of a millennia old mistake after Mencheres turned Patra in the hope of her loving him instead of the man he killed. Patra turns on him and they’ve been locked in an ages old battle for supremacy ever since. Now in this book, Mencheres fulfills the terms of a prophesy and drags Bones and Cat into the strife where Cat has to deal with her dual nature in ways she never had to before. And I have to say Cat grows into a true leader in here, though not yet enough to rival Mencheres.
And as an added bonus, I got to see Vlad again in here. Now to make this complete, where’s Mencheres’ new flame Kira? And will Leila make a small appearance in later books? To find out, I’ll have to read more of this series and I’ll enjoy every minute of it!

Just when you thought Cat and Bones had been through enough, they go through more.

Myth: 4/5

Cat and Bones cannot catch a break. In book three in the series, we get a solid picture of Cat & Bones the couple. Theyve been through a lot this far, including their impromptu vampire wedding. Now they continue to work together at Cats vampire hunting job.

As you may imagine, vampires arent too happy that someone keeps taking them out, in force. Cats cover is finally blown and a familiar face is out to get her.

While Cat & Bones are solidly in couple-mode, this gives us an opportunity to be introduced to other characters in the Night Huntress world that prove irresistible. Enter Vlad (dont call him Dracula).

Magic: 4/5

This is the first book where we really get the existence of magic and that its very illegal in the vampire world. Of course that never seems to stop anyone in these books.

Overall: 4/5
Although she continually tortures us, Jeaniene Frost certainly always leaves us wanting more.

The Cat and Bones series (also known as the Nighthuntress series) is basically a thoroughly R-rated Buffy with the beautiful redheaded vampire slayer hooked up with her 200-year-old British vampire lover. The series has great action, great humor, some pretty decent sex scenes (which I normally just skip through), and a fun premise. The books are probably not for everyone as they’re designed to be pure entertainment but I enjoyed them a great deal.

At Grave’s End picks up almost immediately after the previous volume with Cat having comfortably slid into her role as a government vampire slayer. She’s brought Bones along, which is an alliance working better than it probably should. They’re targetting the worst of the undead like those who pick up children at Chucky Cheese and who prey on senator’s daughters.

A chance encounter with Cat’s father, though, results in them getting involved in a whirlwind plot between two of the oldest vampires in the world. On one hand is Mencheres, an ancient Egyptian prophet who wants to make Bones co-ruler of his lineage, while on the other is Patra the daughter of Cleopatra who is insane with her desire to destroy our heroes because of a prophecy from before they were born.

I really liked this book because it got into the nitty gritty of vampire politics. We have an idea of who the strongest vampires in the world are, how alliances between bloodlines work, and what is the basis for conflict between them. Mencheres is an interesting character and reminds me of Highlander: The Series’ Methos. He’s not really a good guy or a bad guy but he’s on our heroes’ side and that’s a better place than against it.

Patra is also the strongest villain in the series so far. While her name is somewhat groan-worthy, I think she manages to convey both menace as well as a strong sense of power. She makes numerous decisions which are smart, intelligent, and threatening. Really, right up until the end, she appears like she’s going to destroy not on our heroes but every single vampire who sided with them.

The book also introduces Dracula, a character who has been done hundreds of times before but never like Jeanine Frost handles him. Taking the perspective he’s the historical character of Vlad the Impaler, she treats him as a mid-level master vampire who is neither exceptionally cruel nor especially good but fits in with the rest of the undead. The historical details aren’t always one-hundred percent accurate but are close enough that fans (for lack of a better term) of the actual person aren’t confused that this is meant to be the true Vlad III.

One element which is rather annoying in the book is the puppy-dog-devotion-bordering-on-stalking which occurs with the character of Tate. A government agent hopelessly in love with Cat, he ignores every possible sign and statement from her she isn’t interested. Really, I’m surprised she didn’t file a sexual harassment lawsuit complaint against him.

In conclusion, At Grave’s End is a fun, engaging, and entertaining read from beginning to end. If you’re looking for simple enjoyable urban fantasy adventures, then this is definitely the series for you. Some may be put off by the explicitness of the sex scenes but they’re not so numerous as to disrupt this is primarily an adventure book.

10/10

Cat Crawfield has spent years hunting vampires, first alone then with her lover Bones and finally with her FBI team. Now Cat’s secret is out, and now the vampires know all about the deadly half-breed chasing them down. With her cover blown, Bones is desperate to keep her safe. But the greatest danger isn’t to Cat as a deadly master vampire sets her sights on destroying Bones using any means necessary, including the darkest of magics.

This is the third book in the Night Huntress series (after

Halfway to the Grave

and

One Foot in the Grave

) and I was really looking forward to seeing what happened next. This book didn’t disappoint, managing not only to pick up some unsolved issues from previous books and bring them to surprising conclusions but also introducing a totally new bad guy determined to destroy Cat and Bones forever.

The storyline is full of twists and turns, not only in the more action-based parts but also in the backstory. Even Cat’s mother goes in a whole new direction. Several characters from previous books return, including Spade, Mencheres and Ian, and it’s great to see them take a larger role in the storyline. New characters like Vlad (yeah…THAT Vlad) also add interest and give some interesting side story.

It’s great to see Cat and Bones more settled in their relationship as it allows for both more action and a more intricate backstory involving other characters. Tate’s interest in Cat is still present, but thankfully completely unrequited meaning that there is no overused love triangle here. On the whole, this is an incredible read that sucks you in and doesn’t let go.

All in all this was a great read and I can’t wait to read

Destined for an Early Grave

.

Plot: 10/10
Characters: 10/10
Ending: 10/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Cover: 9/10

Overall: 49/50

Although this review won’t include spoilers for At Grave’s End this is the third book in the series and I would strongly recommend reading the series in order to get the most out of these fantastic books. If you haven’t already discovered this series then I would definitely recommend it if you’re a fan of urban fantasy and paranormal romance stories.

Things are finally looking up for Cat – she has the love of her life Bones working at her side helping to rid the world of rogue vampires and she has a great team to back her up. She should probably have guessed that things wouldn’t stay easy for long though. More vampires are now aware of the Red Reaper and she is finding it harder and harder to carry out her job as a decoy without being recognised – even when she is using multiple disguises. Not only that but a female vampire from Bones’ past is determined to see him dead and she is prepared to do anything to make it happen. This is an enemy like none that they’ve faced before – a vampire much older and considerably more powerful than Bones who isn’t going to be defeated easily.

If you’ve read any of my reviews of the previous books in this series then you’ll already know what a massive fan I am of both Cat & Bones. They are both strong individuals and they are one of my favorite urban fantasy / paranormal romance couples. I have to say that I was slightly disappointed that we didn’t get to see more relationship development between them in this installment of the series – after the amazing heat of One Foot in the Grave I was expecting to see more of the passion between them. Having said that I found that the book was so action packed that I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough & I read the whole book in just one sitting.

There are so many things going on in this story – enemies old and new, betrayals by people they thought they could trust, battles to end all battles and not everyone will survive to the end of the book. A lot of old faces will make an appearance (yay for Spade & Rodney!) and we are introduced to some fab new characters too including a couple of historical figures you’re bound to recognise. I loved the action in At Grave’s End and you are taken on a complete roller coaster ride of emotion alongside Cat making you laugh out loud one minute and leaving you close to tears the next. There was one point where my heart was in my mouth & I just could not believe what had happened. Cat is in for a difficult ride in this book but she really does have to step up to the plate and accept her vampire heritage which I thought she managed admirably.

There are also some interesting new developments with Cat’s team and I’m looking forward to see what Jeaniene Frost has in store for everyone next. I am getting slightly fed up with Tate still trying to take Cat away from Bones, yes I feel for him but there is just no way he can compete with Bones and I hope he moves on with his life soon before he ruins is friendship with Cat. Overall I didn’t quite enjoy this one as much as I loved One Foot in the Grave but it was still a fab read and I can’t wait to continue reading this series.

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