Tori's Review: Taken by the Others by Jess Haines

Paperback - 352 pages
Price: $6.99
ISBN 10: 1420111884
ISBN 13: 978-1420111880
Released: January 4, 2011

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Obtained: Author
Genre: Urban Fantasy 
Series: H&W Investigations 
1. Hunted by the Others (book review)
Anthology: Spark of Temptation (book review)
2. Taken by the Others

Once, New York P.I. Shiarra Waynest’s most pressing problem was keeping her agency afloat. Now she’s dealing with two dangerous, seductive vampires who have been enemies for centuries. The only thing Max Carlyle and Alec Royce agree on is that they both want Shia–for very different reasons.

Max is determined to destroy Shia for killing his progeny, while Royce’s interest is a lot more personal. That’s not sitting well with Shia’s werewolf boyfriend, Chaz. As the feud between Max and Royce gets ever more deadly, a powerful vampire-hunting faction is urging Shia to join their side. Shia has always believed vamps were the bad guys, but she’s discovering unexpected shades of grey that are about to redefine her friends, her loyalties–and even her desires…

My Rating:

My Opinion:
Phew, so some time has passed since I finished reading TBTO and I must say that, while my fangirl squealing over the epic fight in this book has somewhat lessened, my adoration for this book has not.

While I'm going to avoid going into details regarding what happens in this book, I will say this: the plot started out somewhat slow. Naive little me thought blasphemous thoughts at the start, such as: "oh no, what if I don't like TBTO as much as HBTO?!" Rest assured all, the beginning may be slow, but it's only to lull you into a false sense of security so that, when you least expect it, the plot can reach out of the book and slap you in the face with it's pure awesome-ness.

Okay so maybe not literally, but TBTO is the type of book that needs to build up some steam in order to truly get interesting. Once it does, one practically forgets just how slow the start might have been. I felt like I was standing right beside Shia once all shit went to hell. I swear I think my pulse was pounding at one point. I definitely groaned at some points when I wanted to squeal my frustrations. Suffice to say, once things picked up, I was 110% invested with what happened.

And okay, I know that Royce is a smarmy bastard. I knew not to grow fond of him... especially because he was a vampire and totally manipulative. Plus I was a pure Chaz shipper at the start of this series, but now that I've been introduced to Royce's character in a more "intimate" fashion... I'm torn. This is one love triangle that I don't know who to side with, and I LOVE IT!

But I shake my fist at you Jess for making me sad panda about Chaz.

So we've got two hunky men representing the werewolves and the vampires in a love triangle that will probably make me start foaming at the mouth by the end of this series, we've got one of the best fight scenes I've read in ages, and then we have Mouse.

Who the hell is Mouse? Brace yourselves folks.

Mouse is a vampire and she is so freakin' amazing I'm just awestruck by her awesomeness. She is my favorite character in this series. She's tiny, she's tough, and she can use a sword like it's nobody's business. I loved how sweet she was despite the fact that she was a vampire. I want to read more of her in future releases. Words cannot give her justice... you just have to read about her yourself in order to fully appreciate her character.

I think my only complaint about this book was Shia, and it's not much of a complaint because the fight totally blew my mind (how many times can I turn this all back to the fight in one review?). Too much thinking on Shia's part contributed to a somewhat slower start, though I did appreciate the attention to detail in the thought processes. Thankfully, Shia's fear for vampires, while still prominent in TBTO, is not so in-your-face like in HBTO. I could at least understand her fear this time around, even if I wished she was tougher.... but she's human, so I'll let it slide.

I think that's all I can cover in a review without getting spoiler-y, so I'll end it by saying that Max is a psycho bastard.

And I love him for it. That is all.

Okay but really, while the cover for TBTO might not be as stellar as the HUNTED BY THE OTHERS cover, the writing and the storyline more than make up for the hooker Shia cover. If you love urban fantasy, if you love awesome, fully developed characters, if you love love triangles done right, you will love TAKEN BY THE OTHERS. I cannot stress how much readers should start investing in this series ASAP. Trust me on this one, folks.