Ratings Overall: 5 Sensuality: 4 Paranormal Element: 7

This is an Official Review by a contemporary Romance Writer Official Reviewer

Review for Demon's Kiss
Author: Maggie Shayne
Date of Review: 10/16/07
Reviewed by: Stacy Cooper

Reviewer Comments: When rogue vampires get out of control, Reaper is called. He was a CIA assassin in life and is now the vampire assassin in his undead state. He has just been contacted to stop a killer and his band of drones, when he begins to collect a misfit crew.

First, he gets Seth, a vampire who has just been changed and is learning about his new life. Next, he collects a human healer, who happens to know a secret about him. Third, is the scorned Princess who is looking for revenge. Finally, the shapeshifter joins the group of would be assassins.

The odd crew runs headlong into a volatile situation that threatens to destroy them all.

This book, Demon's Kiss by Maggie Shayne is light hearted. It could have been intense but seems to fight itself to avoid turning into a heavy book. I often felt like the book was fighting itself. Dark moments seemed to only be gray instead of black with evil.

Demon’s Kiss focuses on three possible love stories: Reaper and the bad vampire, Briar, Seth and the shapeshifter, Vixen, and Topaz and the conman vampire, Jake. The amount of story given to each couple was adequate and seemed to be in equal amounts. My problem was with caring about the charaters.

The only character that I felt myself attach to was Vixen. She was an innocent creature caught in a sophisticated trap. The others were to far over the top for me. Ms. Shayne made me dislike them and because of this I didn't care if they were happy or not. I especially disliked Briar. She showed her evilness right off the bat and felt no remorse until the book was almost finished. Reaper had potential bur lost my backing when he decided to get Briar for a love interest.

I don’t particularly care for characters that overcome their nature in the matter of days. It has taken them a lifetime (or deathtime) to become the cruel/insensitive/manipulative creatures that they are and to have them change seems a little to unnatural for me.

This book had potential, but in the end it didn’t thrill me the way it could have. The lightness in tone seemed at odds with the heaviness of the torture and serious situations that were taking place. I think that Ms. Shayne did this on purpose, but for me it didn’t quite work.