{DOUBLE REVIEW} LET IT BLEED and LUST FOR LIFE (WVMP RADIO SERIES) by JERI SMITH-READY

Today I have a double review of Let It Bleed and Lust for Life, books 3.5 and 4 in the WVMP Radio Series by Jeri Smith-Ready. The reviews will be spoiler-free for the two books I'm reviewing, but there are spoilers for books 1-3, Wicked Game, Bad to the Bone, Bring on the Night.

Series: WVMP Radio #3.5
Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Jeri Smith-Ready
Publication Date: 6/26/12
Format: ebook
Source: Free download, via Jeri Smith-Ready.com

BLOOD IS THICKER THAN SLAUGHTER

Con artist-turned-radio-station-manager Ciara Griffin hopes to settle into a normal un-life as a fledgling vampire, with the help of her immortally hot fiancé, grunge DJ Shane McAllister. But she has bigger problems than finding a sane blood donor and a new home for those boxes of mac ‘n’ cheese. Ciara’s best friend mourns her like she’s dead instead of undead, and her own maker clearly wishes she’d never been born (again). Worst of all, the WVMP crew calls a Code Black: hippie vampire DJ Jim has murdered a pair of humans—humans who share Ciara’s true last name.

That’s when trouble rolls out the red carpet, straight into Ciara’s life. At Shane’s first live concert, Ciara finds herself face to face with her Irish Traveller cousins, a not-so-welcome family reunion that might hold the key to Ciara’s anti-holy blood. Jim’s spiral into madness makes Ciara an unwilling prize in his deadly feud with Shane. As Ciara clings to what’s left of her humanity, she’ll need her new vampire strength—and old con artist cunning—now more than ever.

Ugh. There is honestly not much I can say about Let It Bleed without spoiling the story. I'll just say...things happen. BIG, BIG THINGS. There's death (!), blood (duh), sexy times (YES!), and most of all, Shane and Ciara. These two -- they're my favorite. The risks they take for one another, the team they have formed into, the pure love they share. I just can't... I love them. Oh, and just when I think I can't possibly love Shane more, he goes and plays an acoustic version of "Everlong". Only fans of the series understand what a big deal this is.

The story on how Let It Bleed came to be is very cool, and goes to show that Jeri Smith-Ready is honestly one of the best authors to her readers. You can find it on her website, linked above. What makes Let It Bleed so cool is that, even though it is novella, it is actually a part of the series story line. You can not skip this one, or you will be lost when you start Lust For Life.

Let It Bleed made me laugh, cringe, swoon, and cry. I loved every moment.


Favorite Quotes:

  "If I were a poet, I would say you outshine the sun, moon, and stars put together." He steps forward, pressing the length of his body against mine. "But I'm not a poet, so I'll say that no matter what you wear, I always picture you naked."
  "Pornographic poetry--my favorite kind." I lift my chin for a kiss.   (5%)


  No one wears jeans like Shane, like each pair was his secret soulmate, pining away on a department store shelf, waiting for him to fill them, fade them, fray them to perfection.
  He unbuckles, unbuttons, unzips.
  No one unwears jeans like him, either.   (30%)


  The master of control loses it. He muffles his own scream and moves faster. All at once, his blood changes, surging electric, completing the arc that shoots up and down my entire body. If he weren't holding me so tight, I'd be in a million fiery pieces spread across the universe. But I'd rather be here, in one piece, in his arms.   (32%)


  "Everlong" was never this full of ache on the radio, in electric or acoustic version. The words take me back to the happy moments we shared when I was alive, when it seemed like we could steal a life of bliss with the force of our shared breath alone.   (44%)



Series: WVMP Radio #4
Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Pocket Books
Publication Date: 11/27/12
Format: Paperback
Pages: 352
Source: Received from publisher for review.

EVERYONE’S OUT FOR BLOOD—HERS Ciara’s con-artist parents taught her three keys to survival: keep low, keep quiet, and most of all, keep moving. But managing WVMP, the Lifeblood of Rock ’n’ Roll—not to mention becoming a vampire herself—has kept her in one place long enough to fall madly in love, adopt an undead dog . . .

. . . and make more enemies than she can shake a stake at.

A psychotic DJ, a wanna-be necromancer, and a posse of vengeful hippies would all love to see Ciara get her day in the sun—literally. To protect Ciara, her fiancé, Shane, has traded his flannel shirt and guitar for a flak jacket and crossbow. If she survives to walk down the aisle, will she recognize the man waiting at the altar?

In this final chapter of the award-winning WVMP RADIO series, Ciara must decide who to trust, whom to love—and whom to kill.

  

Oh. My. God. Lust for Life. I'm at a complete loss for words. There is almost nothing I can say about this book that won't deal in spoilers. What I can say is: Prepare to be shocked. I can most assuredly say that I never, in a million daydreams (yes, I daydream about these books), ever considered the WVMP series going out in such an unexpected manner. I mean...wow. I just do not know what to say. But, I loved it.

Since I can't really say much about Lust for Life, other than it's shocking and brilliant, I want to just emphasize how much I have loved the WVMP Radio series. This vampire-centric Urban Fantasy is truly one of a kind. I know that seems impossible anymore, but it's absolutely true. Smith-Ready created her own brand of the beloved creatures, particularly that each is stuck in the era he/she was turned in. Spencer, Monroe, Jim, Noah and Regina each lent the series character. Shane and Ciara was the heart and soul. I've said to anyone who will listen to me, and I will say it again -- Shane and Ciara are probably my favorite book couple ever.  The amount of respect, love, and sacrifice they share is inspiring. Shane and Ciara are two individuals who were equally awesome in their own right. Together, they are magic.

I honestly thought this would be a super quick and easy review to write, but I'm stuck. I have so much I want to say about how much I loved Lust for Life, how happy I am with the way the series ended and how lucky I feel to have experienced the ride. This series has given me some of my favorite characters, favorite couple and reminded me how much I love good music. Thank you Jeri Smith-Ready. You never let your readers down.


Favorite Quote:

  "I'm not fighting vampires."
  "No, you're fighting something much bigger. You're fighting time, and for that you need all the strength in the world." Shane leans over and kisses my cheek, right in front of my ear. "Let me give you that strength."   (pg. 118)


"For a moment, this is enough. For a moment, this is everything."  (pg. 177)


  I shiver at the thought of him lurking outside our home, and am ecstatically happy that we brought Dexter with us to the station. "You must've also missed our sign that says Absolutely No Solicitors or Assassins."   (pg.214)


  I'd rather spend an eternity in darkness with him than in the light with the rest of the universe. I won't let him be alone.   (pg. 236)



You can purchase Lust for Life at:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

The WVMP Radio Series

 

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along, just do as following:

·         Grab your current read

·         Open to a random page

·         Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page

·         Be careful not to include any spoilers so as not to ruin the book for others!

Make sure to share the title and the author so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR piles.

This week's Teaser is from

WHAT’S BLOOD GOT TO DO WITH IT?
Recovering con artist Ciara Griffin seems to finally have it all. A steady job at WVMP, the Lifeblood of Rock ’n’ Roll. A loving relationship with the idiosyncratic but eternally hot DJ Shane McAllister. A vampire dog who never needs shots or a pooper-scooper. And after nine years, it looks as if she might actually finish her bachelor’s degree!

But fate has other plans for Ciara. First she must fulfill her Faustian bargain with the Control, the paranormal paramilitary agency that does its best to keep vampires in line. Turns out the Control wants her for something other than her (nonexistent) ability to kick undead ass. Her anti-holy blood, perhaps? Ciara’s suspicions are confirmed when she’s assigned to a special-ops division known as the Immanence Corps, run by the Control’s oldest vampire and filled with humans who claim to have special powers. To a confirmed skeptic like Ciara, it sounds like a freak fest. But when a mysterious fatal virus spreads through Sherwood—and corpses begin to rise from their graves—Ciara will not only get a crash course in zombie-killing, but will be forced to put her faith, and her life itself, in the hands of magic. (From GoodReads)

You guys. You have NO IDEA how much I LOVE the WVMP Radio series by Jeri Smith-Ready. This series has quickly shot up to the top of my favorites list. Almost every page has quote-worthy lines, but you know I can't do that. So I chose two, one funny and one romantic. As usual, my teasers are too long. Oh well.  Enjoy!

"Lori took Maggie's hand. 'Um, Regina's a vampire. But it's okay-she's a nice one.'
 'Hey!' Regina rubbed her knuckles against her Husker Du t-shirt. 'I am not nice.'
 'Sorry.' Lori turned back to Maggie. 'She's actually a bitch, but she doesn't kill people.' "

"The tension lines between his brows vanished. 'Amazing,' he whispered, then kissed me hard, with a
 deep, human sigh. I reveled in the feel of his lips against mine, and didn't care that they'd be the only
 lips I'd ever taste again. If I lived to be a hundred, my life with him would be too short."


See what I mean? This series makes me insane. I go from laughing to swooning, and sometimes crying. My family has gotten used to it. Thankfully.

Find Bring on the Night at:
GoodReads  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Constellation Books (where you can get a signed copy!)  |  Amazon   Book Depository

The WVMP RADIO website, where you can learn more about the series, including backstories on the DJS. (I'm sort of obsessed!)

Find the amazing Jeri Smith-Ready at her website. Where you can find info on all her books and the serial novella LET IT BLEED.

Teaser Tuesday

                                   

 

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along, just do as following:

·         Grab your current read

·         Open to a random page

·         Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page

·         Be careful not to include any spoilers so as not to ruin the book for others!

Make sure to share the title and the author so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR piles.

This week's Teaser is from

TURN ON. TUNE IN. DROP DEAD.

If you're just joining us, welcome to radio station WVMP, "The Lifeblood of Rock'n'Roll." Con-artist-turned-station-owner Ciara Griffin manages an on-air staff of off-the-wall DJs — including her new boyfriend Shane McAllister — who really sink their teeth into the music of their "Life Time" (the era in which they became vampires). It's Ciara's job to keep the undead rocking, the ratings rolling, and the fan base alive — without missing a beat.

For Halloween, WVMP is throwing a bash sure to raise the dead. They've got cool tunes, hot costumes, killer cocktails — what could go wrong? Well, for starters, a religious firebrand ranting against the evils of the occult preempts the station's midnight broadcast. Then, when Ciara tracks down the illegal transmission, the broadcast tower is guarded by what appears to be...a canine vampire? And behind it all is a group of self-righteous radicals who think vampires suck (and are willing to stake their lives on it).

Now Ciara must protect the station while struggling with her own murky relationship issues, her best friend's unlikely romance with a fledgling vampire, and the nature of her mysterious anti-holy powers. To make it to New Year's in one piece, she'll need to learn a few new tricks....

(From GoodReads)

My Teasers:

"People speak of 'emotional roller coasters' as if they're a bad thing, but those people are on the part of 
 the roller coaster that makes you throw up, not the part that makes your blood sing and your heart leap
 into your throat, the part that makes you smile so hard your cheeks hurt."

Paperback, 384 pages

Published May 12th 2009 by Pocket

You can find Bad to the Bone at:

GoodReads  |  Barnes & Noble   |  Amazon  |  Constellation Books

You can find the fabulous Jeri Smith-Ready at her website.

Mini Review: Wicked Game (WVMP Radio, #1), by Jeri Smith-Ready



LATE NIGHT RADIO YOU CAN SINK YOUR TEETH INTO
Recovering con artist Ciara Griffin is trying to live the straight life, even if it means finding a (shudder!) real job. She takes an internship at a local radio station, whose late-night time-warp format features 1940s blues, '60s psychedelia, '80s goth, and more, all with an uncannily authentic flair. Ciara soon discovers just how the DJs maintain their cred: they're vampires, stuck forever in the eras in which they were turned.

Ciara's first instinct, as always, is to cut and run. But communications giant Skywave wants to buy WVMP and turn it into just another hit-playing clone. Without the station — and the link it provides to their original Life Times — the vampires would "fade," becoming little more than mindless ghosts of the past. Suddenly a routine corporate takeover is a matter of life and undeath.

To boost ratings and save the lives of her strange new friends, Ciara rebrands the station as "WVMP, the Lifeblood of Rock 'n' Roll." In the ultimate con, she hides the DJs' vampire nature in plain sight, disguising the bloody truth as a marketing gimmick. WVMP becomes the hottest thing around — next to Ciara's complicated affair with grunge vamp Shane McAllister. But the "gimmick" enrages a posse of ancient and powerful vampires who aren't so eager to be brought into the light. Soon the stakes are higher — and the perils graver — than any con game Ciara's ever played...

(From GoodReads)

My Review

I don't know if it's fair to call this a review. Mainly it's me gushing about this book, the author and how happy and nostalgic they made me feel.  But first, let me make a shocking announcement.

Guys and Girls, I am about to utter words that I thought would never cross my lips. I can't even believe I'm going to say it. Are you ready? Really ready? Here goes...

I have found a vampire that I love even more than Bones.

So who is this intriguing vamp who has stolen my heart? Shane McAllister from the WVMP Radio series by Jeri Smith-Ready. To those who know and love Bones, I know that sounds like crazy-talk. But only to those of you who haven't read the WVMP Radio series.

You may ask, why I have formed such a love for Shane. Well, Shane is perpetually stuck in the 1990s, and all that comes with it. As someone with a major weak spot for that era, that aspect of Shane definitely drew me in. Shane embodies the emotions of my early teen years. Something I suppose I've been missing without realizing. But, besides that aspect of Shane, he's sexy, seriously sweet, more than a little dangerous, but never, ever mean, and emotionally vulnerable. Did I say sexy? I think I did. Well, double it.

Jeri Smith-Ready created a unique, sexy and cool new breed of vampires. I've never come across a concept quite like this one. Vampires are basically stuck in the era they were created. The music and clothes, the manner of speaking all reflect that. The way the feed, the way they and the donor react, holy smokes, it made me get all hot and sweaty and creeped out and... well, I think you get the idea.

I can't even believe that I haven't mentioned the main character, Ciara, yet. Ciara has to be one of my favorite protagonists I've ever come across. She is tough, but does have a soft (but hard to reach) interior. She is smart, very smart, when it comes to the vampires. She doesn't let them run all over her, but she doesn't treat them like freaks either. She is an all-around badass and I love her.

On a side note, if there is one thing that rivals my love for a good book, that would be good music. And let me tell you, Jeri Smith-Ready knows good music. She wove it into the book, letting the music help tell the story. Wicked Game is almost as much about the music as the story. I bought at least ten songs off the Wicked Game playlist, songs featured in the book. If you love and appreciate awesome music, you will love this series.

I meant it when I said this was intended as a min-review. I just want to quickly and loudly tell you to read this series ASAP. But, like I tend to do in real life (just ask my husband), I got distracted. Distracted by my passion for the awesome. And that, in a not so tidy nutshell is what Wicked Game is. Pure awesomeness. I honestly can not recommend it more emphatically.

Favorite Quotes:

“As he presses me against the car and his fingers tangle in my hair, I find myself hoping-and fearing-that I'll never be the object of such a love, one that could bring a man to his knees and never let him stand again.”

“Parents, preachers, and politicians think rock music is the source of young people's despair. They don't understand it's just a reflection. They also forget that music can be a source of hope, a reason to live.”

“Shane closes his eyes and groans deep in his throat, a noise that embodies sex and death. His back arches, and his fingers rake the carpet as if to pull it up like grass.”

Paperback, 384 pages

Published May 13th 2008 by Pocket

Find Wicked Game (WVMP Radio,  #1) at:

GoodReads  |  Constellations Books  (where you can get signed copies)  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Amazon  Book Depository

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along, just do as following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• Be careful not to include any spoilers so as not to ruin the book for others!

Make sure to share the title and the author so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR piles.

This week's Teaser is from



Wicked Game (WVMP Radio #1)
by Jeri Smith-Ready

LATE NIGHT RADIO YOU CAN SINK YOUR TEETH INTORecovering con artist Ciara Griffin is trying to live the straight life, even if it means finding a (shudder!) real job. She takes an internship at a local radio station, whose late-night time-warp format features 1940s blues, '60s psychedelia, '80s goth, and more, all with an uncannily authentic flair. Ciara soon discovers just how the DJs maintain their cred: they're vampires, stuck forever in the eras in which they were turned.

Ciara's first instinct, as always, is to cut and run. But communications giant Skywave wants to buy WVMP and turn it into just another hit-playing clone. Without the station — and the link it provides to their original Life Times — the vampires would "fade," becoming little more than mindless ghosts of the past. Suddenly a routine corporate takeover is a matter of life and undeath.

To boost ratings and save the lives of her strange new friends, Ciara rebrands the station as "WVMP, the Lifeblood of Rock 'n' Roll." In the ultimate con, she hides the DJs' vampire nature in plain sight, disguising the bloody truth as a marketing gimmick. WVMP becomes the hottest thing around — next to Ciara's complicated affair with grunge vamp Shane McAllister. But the "gimmick" enrages a posse of ancient and powerful vampires who aren't so eager to be brought into the light. Soon the stakes are higher — and the perils graver — than any con game Ciara's ever played...

I'm taking part in the WVMP Read-Along, hosted by Fictish-Delish. I am so happy I'm doing this because this is a fabulous book!

This book is filled with TT-worthy quotes. I couldn't pick just one, so I've included two. One is funny and one is sexxxxxy!

Here are my Teasers:

"Yeah, yeah, feed on blood, okay, can't go out during the day, yada yada yada, super-seductive,

  whatever. Sounds like re-hashed cliches to me, warmed-over Anne Rice, but hey, I scarf those trendy

  vampire novels like they were heroin-soaked potato chips, so I'll play along for entertainment's sake."

"Shane closes his eyes and groans deep in his throat, a noise that embodies sex and death. His back

  arches and his fingers rake the carpet as if to pull it up like grass." 

Believe it or not, the second teaser is not what you think!

Hope you liked my Teasers. Be sure to leave a link so I can check your's out!