Review & Giveaway: Death's Sweet Embrace by Tracey O'Hara

Thanks to everyone who read my free story, "Chenoire" yesterday. The second half will be up next THURSDAY (not Friday, as I originally said). Thanks for all the great comments! If you missed CHENOIRE, you can click on the "Free Read" tab above and check it out!

Now, ready for a new book? I just finished Tracey O'Hara's new Dark Brethren novel, Death's Sweet Embrace, a great urban fantasy read. Want to win a copy? Read on…

ABOUT THE BOOK: 

After centuries of secret conflict, humans and parahumans have reached an uneasy truce. But unspeakable evil now threatens the tenuous peace. Teenaged shapeshifters are being slaughtered by a sadistic serial killer who rips their still-beating hearts from their paralyzed bodies. A task force forms to halt the madness, including the vampiric Aeternus Antoinette Petrescu, as well as Kitt Jordan and Raven Matokwe, members of enemy Animalian tribes . . . and forbidden lovers. A centuries-old blood feud has divided their shapeshifting peoples, and if their passion is discovered it will doom them both. But past hostilities must be put aside, for the killer they seek is but the first sign of the all-consuming nightmare of The Dark Brethren.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Tracey O'Hara grew up reading Stephen King, Raymond E. Feist, and J.R.R. Tolkien, where she developed her taste for adventure and the paranormal thriller. When she's not writing, reading, or listening to heavy metal, she spends time with her husband, two sons, and three cats. The author of Night's Cold Kiss, she lives in Australia. Night's Cold Kiss was shortlisted in the Best Horror Novel category at the 2009 Aurealis Awards and won the Novel with Romantic Elements category at the Romance Writers of Australia's 2009 awards.

MY THOUGHTS: This is the second Dark Brethren book, so there is a little learning curve if you haven't read the first one--BUT since it focuses on a different protagonist (the lead characters from the first book play smaller roles here), reading them in sequence isn't an absolute must. The worldbuilding is wonderful here, with a different take on vampires and shapeshifters and a hot couple in Kitt and Raven--and since she's a leopard shifter and he's a wolf, well, you just know there will be flying fur. Another unusual thing--theirs is not a new relationship, but a rekindled one with lots (and lots) of baggage, not the least of which is the bounty on his head from her family. I'd call this one dark urban fantasy with romantic elements since the worldbuilding and the plot, not the romance, is front-and-center. It's a great read and a series to watch.

Want to win a copy of Death's Sweet Embrace? Leave a comment and tell me your favorite shapeshifter. Has your love for Alcide Herveaux waned? As always, +1 for comment, +1 for blog follow, +1 for Twitter follow, and +1 for Tweet / Retweet. Meow!