Deja Vu, The Vampire Who Loved Me, Demon and Dead on the Delta reviews

Déjà Vu
Lisa Childs
Harlequin Nocturne, $5.25
ISBN: 9780373618613

FBI agent Alaina Paulsen investigates serial killings. She suspects recluse bestselling horror author Trent Baines is the psychopath as he writes detailed books on homicides that are three decades old as if he was a witness to the murders.

Alaina and Agent Vonner meet with Trent to interrogate him and recognize they were once a married couple in a past life together. When an apparent copy cat begins killing, Alaina fears history repeating itself as she loved the killer and cop back then. However, her biggest consternation comes from her growing belief that the writer she loves today was the murderer then and is the psychopath now.

With a nod to Kenneth Branagh’s movie Dead Again, Déjà Vu is an exciting reincarnation romantic suspense. The fast-paced story line places the emphasis on the psychological tension that has Alaina wound tight; as she prays that her beloved Trent is not a serial killer although the evidence strongly affirms he is. The romantic subplot serves more to add to the Suspicion that Trent is the killer as Lisa Childs provides a taut paranormal police procedural thriller. Harriet Klausner

The Vampire Who Loved Me
Theresa Meyers
Harlequin Nocturne, $5.25
ISBN: 9780373618606

After vampires converted her loved ones, Dr. Rebecca Chamberlin hated the vile creatures. She works diligently on a vaccination in order to cure what she believes is a disease. When she is changed into the beasts she detests, she increases her efforts to find a cure.

Vampire clan security commander Achilles Stefanos watches closely the scientist in order to keep his species safe. Her financial supporters inject Beck with her serum only to find it fails. Achilles knows he must complete her transformation or Beck will die. As the pair begins to fall in love, someone modifies her vaccine in order to change vampires to their actual chronological age; which means vampire like Achilles an Ancient Greek will turn to dust.

The pairing of an ancient Greek warrior vampire and a modern day scientist make for a great tale as neither wants to love the other, but each learns you can’t always get what you want. The story line is fast-paced from the moment that Achilles fears the newest fledgling is archenemy Dr. Chamberlain and never slows down as the heroine seeks the cure for vampirism. Harriet Klausner

Demon
Kristina Douglas
Pocket, $7.99
ISBN: 9781439191934

Fallen angel Azazel mourns the death of his wife Sarah, a murder victim. Still in spite of his grief, he seeks Lilith the demon with plans to kill her to prevent the fulfilling of a prophecy that has them wedded.

When he finds her, she has no memory of being evil Lilith. Instead she insists she is Rachel Fitzpatrick who admits she has Grand Canyon size holes in her memory. He leaves allowing her to live for now. However, he comes back to Rachel-Lilith because the Fallen Angels like him need to find imprisoned Lucifer before Uriel does. If the latter gets to the former first, the Lord’s archangel will judge mankind as sinners and release his wrath on humanity; which in his narrow perspective means the extinction of mankind.

The exciting second Fallen Angels urban fantasy (see Raziel) is character driven though loaded with non stop action as readers anticipate the archangel and the fallen angel confrontation. Rachel is the focus between them as her memory is the key to locating Lucifer. Readers will appreciate the tale of the Fallen: Demon seeking to save the world. Harriet Klausner

Dead on the Delta
Stacey Jay
Pocket, 7.99
ISBN: 9781439189863

After being a mosquito size harmless species that adults assumed were mythological, the fairies changed. They became human blood seekers biting mortals. The Fey toxin leaves 75% of the humans insane; 10% physically misshapen before dying; and another 10% instantly dead. The remaining populace contains immunity, but so far no one knows why.

Following Katrina, New Orleans has become a breeding ground for the fairies. This does not prevent Fairy Control and Containment evidence collector Annabelle Lee from riding her bike and doing her job at often horrific crime scenes. Annabelle is one of lucky ones who are immune to the fairies toxin. She works with police detective Cane Cooper on the murder of a six year old girl just outside the fairie levees surrounding her town of Donaldson. Also inexplicably on the case is her former boyfriend and FBI Agent who should not be involved.

This is a super urban fantasy police procedural that intelligently extracts from real life to make the case of a Fey infestation. For instance, the Louisiana Governor is running for reelection on his hard on Fey crime platform. Although readers never learn what caused the Fairie plague, the fast-paced story line is action-packed as Cooper and Lee supported by others investigate gruesome murder on the Bayou. Harriet Klausner