This book was nothing like I first expected from reading the blurb. It's more psychological than thriller - even though the story of the lost girls is always present. The book was still an amazing story that I have recommended to many friends already.

Lauren was a great main character and was written a way that was very easy to read. The lost girls looking for Lauren's help all have a little bit of something in common with her that she latches onto and can't seem to let go, especially Abigail, Abby. As Lauren hunts to find out what happened to these girls, she grows and discovers many things about herself.

This is a very good psychological story that has you wondering what is happening next up until the very end - where we find a little bit of a twist.

Having not started with the beginning of the series - I was a little lost at the very beginning, but soon Jaeger and Domi's story took off and it didn't matter what may have happened in previous installments. When Domi and Jaeger are torn apart shortly after finding each other - Domi swears by everything she can to search everywhere for as long as it takes to find him. Their dedication to each other was amazing.

With lots of hot sex and a thrilling rescue adventure running through it all, it was a very good read. It had a very nice mix of paranormal and science fiction to satisfy fans of either genre.

While I really enjoyed Jade's character, I had a hard time getting into her story at first. Peter just didn't seem quite right for her, but as they got to know each other and their personalities began to shine through more and more, the book became very difficult to put down. Soulmate stories can sometimes be rather abrupt, but their relationship turns out to be very sweet, and their feelings for each other evolved in a very natural way.

We meet several secondary characters along the way that really bring the storyline to life and add a fun dimension to the book. I'm hoping they make additional appearances in future installments of the series.

The action really started to pick up once they hit Brazil, and it never really stops until everything is wrapped up - which was done quite nicely for a series. I felt that I had resolution but still wondered what might happen next. It's a balance that has been hard to find at times.

Warning: May contain spoilers if you have not read book 1 - highly recommend reading book 1 before reading book 2.

Lydia finds herself in an interesting situation - bonded completely to not one, not two, but three werewolves. This along with the sudden realization that she is a storm-wielder, a rare gift that is looked on with fear, leaves her feeling a bit winded and at a loss for how to deal with it all. While one of her mates is fantastic, she hasn't quite figured out the other two just yet, but her inner wolf won't let her wait to know them much longer.

Much of the story revolves around Lydia coming to grips with her new life and trying to exert her independence with three very dominating males. As everyone's history and emotional issues begin to come forward, they all find it difficult to cope. Watching them come to terms and learn to care for each other - flaws, history, and emotional baggage included - was endearing and very thoughtfully written. Told in a way that you can't pick a favorite, just as Lydia can't either. I loved them all!

But we have to have a some more happening in the background to make things a bit interesting and keep everyone on their toes right? The group that kidnapped Ryan in book one is back and looking for the she-wolf that called the storm down, and they don't plan on giving up until they find her - but there's a twist there as well - can't say much more, it's a surprise!

While I enjoyed the first book just a little bit more, Cry of the Wolf was a great follow up in the series. With a bit of a cliffhanger ending, I know I will need to read book three as soon as I can!

Claimed by Dragons is the second in the Bag of Tricks series. Arcona's friend Jaed is our leading lady and she is about to have almost more than she can handle. She can been selected as a mate by two of her co-workers. Now as weird as that may sound at first - it doesn't seem so strange once you find out they're actually dragons. Dragons mate as trios and she is the finishing piece to their puzzle.

I loved the interplay between Roarke and Krypton - the had the casual banter of people that had been in love since they first set eyes on each other. All they needed was their female to complete their little family. But Jaed has a hard time accepting the fact that she's been chosen, and to top it all off, she is now being hunted by people that would like to see all the dragons dead. The ending and their solution to their problem was absolutely brilliant and very surprising. A great read.

Cailin is a very charming and easy flowing story. The great descriptions and very in depth characters were fascinating and fun to read. The story is a longer one, but throughout the pages I got to know Cailin's history and life in a very intimate way. Feeling very outcast by her family, she embarks on a journey of discovery that leads her unknowingly down a dark path. Her dreams haunt her and when one seems to come to life in the form of a very charming and handsome vampire - her life takes a very dramatic turn.

The relationship between Cailin and Donovan seem fated by the stars, but something felt a bit off at times in their interactions with each other that I couldn't quite put my finger on specifically. I think some of their dialog seemed a bit too formal, but that may have been the custom and intent.

One of the best things about the story, but something that does take a bit to get used to, is the writing style. The entire book is written in a Celtic dialect that takes a little while to get used to reading. Once you get into the rhythm of the writing it flows very beautifully. I can't imagine how much work it had to have taken to write the entire story that way, and it was fun to read something written in a style I had never read before.

There is a glossary included at the beginning of the book that covers the various terms that are used throughout the story, and I would recommend book marking it for when you come across the words for the first time.

This book started off a bit confusing and I had a very hard time figuring out what was going one at first. About half way through I gave up trying to figure out why anything was happening and just kept reading. Full of non-stop action, it was a bit much for me with no underlying storyline to explain why anything was happening.

My first impressions of this story was being a little overwhelmed. The author did a great job of twisting the classic Alice in Wonderland character into a slightly demented steam punk version. Not for the faint of heart, there is a little bit of gross-ness throughout, so be warned. I loved the mad hatter and his hat full of random drawers with even more random things inside. He and his robot, Clank, were probably my favorite characters.

Yes, you read the genre correctly. I consider this a dystopian story - one with zombies taking over the world and civilization crumbling. But that doesn't mean that a werewolf can't meet a witch in a super secret underground medical lab trying to find a cure. And it doesn't mean that even though they are both prisoners, that they can't fall in love and in happily every after.....right?

Of course there is the ban against werewolves mating with witches, the massive hordes of zombies waiting to eat them, and the general chaos that one would expect at the end of the world. But that doesn't stop Dirk and Dora from giving everything they can to make it work - screw the rest, they'll deal with it later.

Dora has become one of my favorite heroines, her snarky attitude and determined mindset were a perfect fit for this story. Loaded with all the action you could ask for, and plenty of hot werewolf all along the way, I finished hoping for more - and I hear there's a second in the works and I can't wait!

A mix of short stories and flash fiction. I really enjoyed The Garden, but some of the others fell pretty flat. It would be a great book to read a quick story every now and then.