Mona Lisa Craving by Sunny

Mona Lisa Craving by Sunny
Fiction novel published 02 Jan 2008 by Berkley Trade









1. Mona Lisa Awakening (see previous commentary)
2. Mona Lisa Three - Over the Moon anthology (see previous commentary)
3. Mona Lisa Blossoming (see previous commentary)
4. Mona Lisa Betwining - On the Prowl anthology (see previous commentary)
5. Mona Lisa Craving

Category: M&Ms - a bit lighter and/or not quite as satisfying as Peanut M&Ms, but still Oh-So-Enjoyable! (B,B-,C+,C)
Flame Height: 4.5" out of 9"


Go read my rant review over on The Good, the Bad, and the Unread

Anthology: Beyond the Dark by Knight, Holly, Leigh, Whiteside

Beyond the Dark anthology with novellas by Angela Knight, Emma Holly, Lora Leigh, Dianne Whiteside
Paranormal romance published by Berkley Sensations 04 Dec 2007





Category: Peanut M&Ms - mmmm...devour... sigh... then reach for the next one. My daily dose of Insanity-B-Gone. Most books I read fall in this category. (A-,B+,B)
Flame Height: 8" out of 9"

Head over to The Good, the Bad and the Unread to read my review.

QB's Quickies

"So, read any good books lately?"
"What did you think of...?"

Here's the Quickie answers to those questions. Click on the Links for more info.



Catherine Coulter - Double Take, FBI series, book 11

Book Category: Peanut M&Ms - mmmm...devour... sigh... then reach for the next one. My daily dose of Insanity-B-Gone. Most books I read fall in this category. (A-,B+,B)
Flame Height: 1" out of 9"

This book should be considered a continuation of book 10, Point Blank (see previous commentary), since it wraps up Dix and Ruth's storyline. Damn good multiple plotline mystery/thriller. I just wish she'd write some of the sexual tension back into her stories.
Piquant Opines: RT, ABC Wide Bay

Emma Holly - Fairyville
And Then There Were Four: The Epilogue to Fairyville (Amazon 49¢ download)

Category: Lava Cake - reads like warm Chocolate Lava Cake... à la Mode... sprinkled with nuts (A,A)
Flame Height: 7.5" out of 9"

This Fantasy is Emma Holly's most memorable work since Menage! It's light, quirky, fun, and hot. Multiple relationships, including straight, gay (m/m), and, in the downloadable epilogue, m/m/f/m.
Piquant Opines: RT, TGTBTU,

A. Leigh Jones - Forever Crossed

ALJ's LiveJournal; Forever Crossed is also available at Fictionwise

Category: Lava Cake - reads like warm Chocolate Lava Cake... à la Mode... sprinkled with nuts (A,A)
Flame Height: 2" out of 9"

This book was released in print by Imajinn books back in June of 2004 and, after recently discovering it, I was filled with glee. Why? Because I HAD to read the rest of the series and figured there were probably 2 or 3 more already released and waiting for me to devour them! Uh... nope... couldn't find anymore AND I couldn't find the author A. Leigh Jones. So I sent out a call for help to Bam (who loves a good mystery) and totally squeed when ALJ responded! Read what happened here. Course that was followed by a groan of disappointment that I wasn't going to get to visit her world again. This was a damn good Urban Fantasy and I wasn't ready to leave!
Piquant Opines: RT, TBR,

Lora Leigh - Tanner's Scheme

For the complete chronological listing of the Breeds books, including the earlier ebooks from Ellora's Cave that are all now available in print, click here.

Book Category: Peanut M&Ms - mmmm...devour... sigh... then reach for the next one. My daily dose of Insanity-B-Gone. Most books I read fall in this category. (A-,B+,B)
Flame Height: 7.5" out of 9"

Series Category: Crème Brûlée - My All-Time Moan-Out-Loud Favorites (A+)
Flame Height: 9" out of 9"

Scheme is a strong, noble, intelligent heroine and is a worthy match for ANY of the Breeds. She also happens to be the daughter of one of the Breeds most powerful enemies. The fact that she ends up mated to Tanner, the Breeds public "poster boy" is an extra sweet victory over those full humans who oppose the Breeds' acceptance by humanity. And I think I've got an unhealthy fixation on Jonas. I SO want someone to bring him to his knees, but then again, since it can't be me, I also DON'T want it to happen. Go figure.

BTW, I mentioned before that Lora likes to name characters after people she knows and I met the real life Scheme at RAW in September. But I forgot to mention that Lora introduced a new character in Tanner's Scheme, Shiloh. And yep, she's named after Lora's partner-in-crime, Shiloh Walker. And just like the real life Shiloh, the Breed Shiloh is described as shy and demure! *snickers then guffaws then ROFLMAO*
Piquant Opines: RT, TGTBTU,

QB's Quickies

"So, read any good books lately?"
"What did you think of...?"

Here's the Quickie answers to those questions. Click on the Links for more info.




Maggie Shayne, Erin McCarthy, Nalini Singh, Jean Johnson - An Enchanted Season anthology

Category: Peanut M&Ms - mmmm...devour... sigh... then reach for the next one. My daily dose of Insanity-B-Gone. Most books I read fall in this category. (A-,B+,B)
Flame Height: 6" out of 9"

Four surprisingly sexy, paranormal Christmas stories. I've been curious to read Singh's Psy/Changeling series because of the nearly universal glowing reviews. And I'm glad I finally read one of her stories, Beat of Temptation, in this anthology because it showed me that I probably won't like the series-- The "Psy" aspects would be too futuristic sci-fi for me. I ADORED the other three stories, though. If you buy only one holiday themed romance this season, I recommend it be this one.
Piquant Opines: RT, TRRC

Sherrilyn Kenyon with Alethea Kontis - The Dark-Hunter Companion

Category: M&Ms - a bit lighter and/or not quite as satisfying as Peanut M&Ms, but still Oh-So-Enjoyable! (B,B-,C+,C)
Flame Height: 0" out of 9"

I bought this book for one reason only- I'm hoping that I'll be able to make sense out of Archeron when it's released. As I've said before, Ash's story is the only reason I haven't stopped buying this series, but after his story, that's it. Although I have to admit I'm curious about Savitar, but he's not worth reading the rest of this increasingly muddied up series.

I have to give Kenyon and Kontis kudos for the entertaining concept of this book-- it's written from the POV of a smartass Squire (is there any other kind?) writing a training manual for new Dark Hunters. It's best to read this in small doses, though, because all those Greek, Sumerian, Roman, Nordic, Celtic, and Atlantian gods, goddesses and myths WILL make your head explode if you spend too much time trying to figure them out, especially since they tend to contradict each other (much like Kenyon does). It's more than encyclopedic, and some of the info is sort of interesting, while some info is just an info dump. There's a "secret" section on Archeron that precedes the Bonus Materials section. There's also a section of Cajun and Greek recipes thrown in there (how odd and random is that?!).

The most important and telling line in this rigid cover, larger than trade, paperback is "Now for the disclaimer: This book is mutable. It goes with the wind. It changes more often than the mind of a sixteen-year-old Libra..." Indeed. And might explain why I'm not the only one who has trepidations about whether Archeron can live up to expectations.
Piquant Opines: LV,

Eden Bradley, Jaci Burton, Lisa Renee Jones - Exclusive anthology

Category: M&Ms - a bit lighter and/or not quite as satisfying as Peanut M&Ms, but still Oh-So-Enjoyable! (B,B-,C+,C)
Flame Height: 6" out of 9"

BDSM doesn't usually float my boat, but I bought this because Mike, the other vet from Wild in Burton's Wild, Wicked and Wanton (see previous commentary) gets his HEA, or at least HIS version of an HEA. A pretty big life change for the amount of time that passes, but nonetheless, another intelligent erotic romance from Burton. Bradley's story just wasn't my "flavor" and Jones' story could have been better if she had just filled it in a bit more-- "show don't tell".
Piquant Opines: RT, RJ,

Maggie Shayne, Susan Sizemore, Lori Handeland, Caridad Piñeiro - Moon Fever anthology

Category: M&Ms - a bit lighter and/or not quite as satisfying as Peanut M&Ms, but still Oh-So-Enjoyable! (B,B-,C+,C)
Flame Height: 5" out of 9"

Four entertaining and engrossing vampire and/or shape shifter stories. Good stuff, Crazy for the Cat by Caridad Piñeiro was particularly memorable.
Piquant Opines: RT, RJ

Charlaine Harris (editor) - Many Bloody Returns anthology

Category: M&Ms - a bit lighter and/or not quite as satisfying as Peanut M&Ms, but still Oh-So-Enjoyable! (B,B-,C+,C)
Flame Height: 1" out of 9"

Thirteen authors (Charlaine Harris, Christopher Golden, Bill Crider, Kelley Armstrong, Jim Butcher, P.N. Elrod, Rachel Caine, Jeanne C. Stein, Tanya Huff, Carolyn Haines, Tate Hallaway, Elaine Viets, Toni L.P. Kelner), thirteen stories, each using the theme of vampires and birthdays. It truly amazed me to see the thirteen COMPLETELY different stories that arose from those two words. Some dark, some funny, some cute, some suspenseful, some poignant. Most were good, a couple were just "okay".
Piquant Opines: RT, VampireGenre, Darque Reviews

QB's Quickies

"So, read any good books lately?"
"What did you think of...?"

Here's the Quickie answers to those questions. Click on the Links for more info.


On the Prowl - paranormal anthology with stories by Patricia Briggs, Eileen Wilks, Karen Chance, Sunny

Category: M&Ms - a bit lighter and/or not quite as satisfying as Peanut M&Ms, but still Oh-So-Enjoyable! (B,B-,C+,C)
Flame Height: 5" out of 9"

Patricia Briggs - Alpha and Omega - kicks off a new series set in the same world as her Mercy Thompson series. Damn, that woman writes one helluva story, doesn't she? It's worth buying the book just for the magic of this story.
Eileen Wilks - Inhuman - enjoyed it while I was reading it. Forgot it soon after.
Karen Chance - Buying Trouble - ditto
Sunny - Mona Lisa Betwining - liked it, loathed it. Part of her Monère/Mona Lisa series. NOT a standalone. Basically, Merry Gentry channels Anita Blake. Which scene from LKH/Anne Bishop will this writer of glorified fanfic rip off next? see below...
Piquant Opines: AAR, TGTBTU, RRT


Sunny - Demon Princess Chronicles

1. Lucinda Darkly

Category: Peanut M&Ms - mmmm...devour... sigh... then reach for the next one. My daily dose of Insanity-B-Gone. Most books I read fall in this category. (A-,B+,B)
Flame Height: 6.5" out of 9"

AAAAAAAHHHHHHH! It kills me that I actually LIKE these Monère books. Yet, at the same time, I LOATHE them. I need an intervention- STAT. I just can't seem to stop reading this woman's books. It's an ILLNESS, I tell you! I just don't understand how I can keep putting myself through this!

But I HAD to read Lucinda Darkly. I mean, it was only fair, right? I consider it research. I already knew that she couldn't execute an original idea (*snort* what an understatement). She proved that with Skin on Skin (see my previous commentary). And in my commentary about her Monère/Mona Lisa series, I DID say "but [I] would like to see her now take the world she created from other author's ideas and create stories that are completely ORIGINAL and UNIQUE to the Monère world." So, since Lucinda Darkly is spun-off from the Monère, but focused more on the Demon Dead, it would be a sort of final test to see if Sunny could successfully write anything original... she can't. I can now say that without any qualifications.

The Mona Lisa books owe the essence of their world building to Anne Bishop's Black Jewels Trilogy, but the main characters and storylines are mostly Laurell Hamilton's Merry Gentry series spiced up with bits of the Anita Blake series. However, Lucinda Darkly has considerably less Black Jewels and is more Anita Blake channels Merry Gentry.

Let me just say this... she has now placed a Kitto-like character (from MG) and a triumvirate of power (from AB) into her stories. That triumverate of power was created accidently and no one knew it could even be done (AB). AND when cut off from Lucinda's power, the other two members falter and start to fade. One of the other two is a bit stronger than the other and helps keep him alive until they can access Lucinda's power again (MG and AB). It's as if the Anita-Damien-Nathaniel triumverate (from AB) was made up of Merita(that's MG+AB)-Damien-Kitto instead! And the Kitto-like character is physically like Doyle and Kitto's secret luv child (MG)!

Over on the LKH board, Neith said
"you know there are poor souls out there who are reading her stuff first and thinking she's freaking brilliant, and they will eventually find LKH and AB and be like "what the heck? they ripped Sunny's stuff off"

And judging by the number of awards that Sunny says these works of barely disguised fanfic have been nominated for, I'd say that Neith's prediction is nauseatingly accurate.

Like the Mona Lisa books, Lucinda Darkly IS good. But I LOATHE it anyway.
Piquant Opines: RT (4.5 stars, why I am not surprised), RJ

No Rest for the Witches

I've got a review posted over on The Good, the Bad and the Unread for the paranormal anthology No Rest for the Witches with stories by MaryJanice Davidson, Lori Handeland, Cheyenne McCray, and Christine Warren. I really liked this one!

Now please head over to TGTBTU and give me some comment luv, okay?!

Damn You, Jennifer Ashley!

Or maybe I should say, "Damn you, Joy Nash!" After all, the Immortals series (see previous commentary) was Jennifer's brainchild, but it is book 3, Immortals: The Awakening by Joy Nash that rocked my world and whipped me into a frenzy to go on a quest to find book 4, Immortals: The Gathering by Jennifer Ashley. It was released today and I HAD to read it ASAP, so off to Walden's I went. Couldn't find it. They looked it up and they didn't get any in. They also didn't get Susan Sizemore's Primal Desires which released today. Weird. Of course I went ahead and bought the other books that came out today, cause I obviously wouldn't have anything to read if I didn't. *rolls eyes and looks at Soon To Be Savored list* So I stopped at Border's. Not there either. They looked them up and their computer shows "in-transit". They even checked the back room.

By now, I'm irritated and disappointed. The only reason I made a point to book shop today was so I could get that Immortals book, dammit! So, as a last ditch, what-do-I-have-to-lose effort, I ran into K-Mart. And there, in the disorganized jumble that is the K-Mart book department, was my Holy Grail--- Immortals: The Gathering.

BTW, if you are heading to Walden's or Border's, be sure to google "Border's coupons" before you go. I found FIVE DIFFERENT 25% off coupons (check the codes to make sure they are different if you are using them all at the same time/same place), a 20% off, and a 15% off. It is VERY unusual to find that many different ones valid at the same time, so take advantage of them!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I'm enjoying the silence in the house with all the kids away at school. Only problem is, I took a three hour nap yesterday afternoon. Then by 9 AM today, I was on the couch taking a 2-1/2 hour nap. I have NO clue why I'm so damn tired lately. Usually, I can barely sleep 6 hours. Maybe it's catching up with me. The big problem is that I need to be doing EOM work so this sleeping shit is cutting into my online playtime and reading time.

And, I just realized it's Tuesday. Which means I should have posted a Tuesday Trio. Geesh, I must be more tired than I thought. BRB.

My Secret Revealed...

You know how I've mentioned my super secret ARC for a super secret project with my super secret new BFF?

Okay, here it is... the big unveiling...

Are you ready?







My new BFF, Sybil, sent me the ARC for Cheyenne McCray's Wicked Magic and asked me to be a guest reviewer over on The Good, The Bad, and the Unread!!!




Yeah, I know... that was my reaction, too! But here's the way I see it... I'm over there dropping my two cents into the comments so much, I figure Syb-- I call her Syb 'cause BFFs can do that, you know-- decided that she was either going to have to start charging me for the bandwidth or else put me to work.


And talk about performance anxiety! Holy Shit! You know, most of what I do on this blog is to amuse myself. If anyone else likes it too, well that's just icing on the cake and makes it even more fun. But, for TGTBTU, I had to behave myself (for the most part) and write a real, honest to gawd REVIEW!! With a grade and everything! EEK! Evidently, my review did NOT suck big hairy donkey balls because Sybil's got it posted over there RIGHT FREAKIN' NOW! SQUEEEEEE! I feel like I've gone legit! I've even got my very own TGTBTU identifying icon -->

Click here and give me some comment luv, okay? pleasePLEASEPLEASE! And while you're there, give Gwen some luvin' too--- she's not having a good time right now.

Oh, and just for the record, I may have given Wicked Magic a real grade over there, but over here it would have landed solidly in my M&Ms category! And I swear, Chey included a secret joke in that book for her faithful fans-- at Rt Con 2006 in Daytona, Chey was on the Erotica Panels. So, this woman who wrote the deliciously pervy Wonderland series for Ellora's Cave said that she can NOT say any of the "C" words out loud. Well, in Wicked Magic, every time someone says the demon goddess' name, Ceithlann, out loud, Rhiannan gets an excruciating headache. Since they could no longer say her name, everyone just referred to Ceithlenn as the "C" word!! Coincidence? I don't think so. At least I HOPE Chey meant to do that because I chuckled every time I read it!

Familiar Stranger by Michele Hauf

From the Dark Enchantments blog site (which is really fun- the CHARACTERS post blog entries): "Four hundred years ago a secret, hermetic order was created to keep the world safe from evil paranormal beings. Ever since, the Cadre has been dedicated to maintaining the delicate balance between the mortal and dark realms through research and observation of otherworldly entities. Seldom does the Cadre interfere. In recent decades, an opposing force has been created by the British Intelligence Service. This covert group, called P-Cell, has but one directive: destroy paranormal creatures of all kinds. As the two organizations fight faithfully for their separate causes, unbeknownst to either of them, the dark forces of evil gather, preparing to overtake the mortal realm.... "

Michele Hauf - Familiar Stranger (Silhouette Nocturne) - Jack and Mersey
also available as an ebook from eHarlequin

Category: M&Ms - a bit lighter and/or not quite as satisfying as Peanut M&Ms, but still Oh-So-Enjoyable! (B,B-,C+,C)
Flame Height: 5" out of 9"

From the back cover: "Recruited by a secret paranormal organization to hunt demons, Jack Harris never guessed the revenge he sought for his partner's death would be this complicated. Jack's worldview is black-and-white—until he is ordered to follow Mersey Bane, a beautiful woman who is also a familiar with shape-shifting abilities. Mersey belongs to the Cadre—a peaceful hermetic order that captures and studies Otherworldly Entities—which is at odds with Jack's organization.
As Jack delves deeper into the inner workings of the Cadre, he finds himself drawn to Mersey like a moth to a flame. She may challenge all his beliefs, but she brings color and passion to his world. Jack doesn't know whether what he feels for Mersey is love or lust. But if he doesn't figure it out soon, they may become the hunted instead of the hunters. "

Ya gotta love Jack. He's such a manly hero- stubborn to the bone. His first encounter with an OE (Otherworldly Entity) was as a child when a cat changed into a naked pregnant woman and he distracted the demon who was about to attack her by throwing a crystal ball at it. A few nights later the cat reappears and... oops! Nope, you need to find that out for yourself. Let's just say that, in Jack's world, everything is black or white. He refuses to believe what he saw, so therefore it didn't happen.

As an adult, his MI5 partner (and object of his unrequited love) is killed by a demon (it's an eeewwww!) and Jack is also attacked. Afterwards, he's recruited by the super secret P-Cell branch of MI5 and their motto can be summed up as "If it ain't human, kill it." A perfect fit for Jack- no grey areas.

Then along comes a clue-by-four named Mersey Bane. She's an adept that can capture demons. She's also a familiar (in the DE world, familiars can bring demons into our world) who can change into a cat. I try to form mental pictures of characters in my head as I read, but seldom do I picture celebrities. In Mersey's case, however, one picture kept popping up for her looks AND personality- Liv Tyler. And throw in a little Sandra Bullock and Angelina Jolie, too. She's quirky, impulsive, ethereal, seductive, vulnerable, irrepressible, fearless, sad, lonely and EXACTLY what our oh-so-pigheaded Jack needs in his life! I'm telling you, this character was just so damn likable!

So one night Mersey and Jack find themselves hunting demons in the same warehouse. Only their objectives are in direct opposition- Jack kills demons. Period. Mersey, however, is aware that not all demons are evil and, in fact, some are quite necessary to humans (like lust demons). She captures the evil ones in crystals she carries around with her and takes them back to the Cadre for questioning then release back to their own realm. Jack and Mersey each get a demon in their own way that night, and in the process become intrigued and fascinated with each other.

There is some enjoyable world building going on in this book. We go inside the Cadre and learn quite a bit about that organization's history and the rather interesting characters who reside there. Oh, and wait till you meet the denizens of Faery! These sure aren't sweet little winged cherubs- Michele bases them on the original myths and legends!

And through it all, poor Jack with his rigid manly delusions, learns that there really is far more to this world than just his black or white view of it all. He goes from "If I don't believe, then it does NOT exist" to "If I believe, it WILL exist".

I would like to have learned more about the history of Mersey's parents and the demon lord's involvement with them, particularly since it was the prime motivation for many of his actions. I got the gist of it, but I think there's an interesting story there and I'm hoping Michele has plans to revisit and expand on it.

Overall, this is a light, but highly enjoyable read. It contained just enough darkness to keep me engrossed and the main characters are just plain perfect for each other- their personalities play off each other beautifully. I'm looking forward to the rest of the Dark Enchantments series. But I have to admit (and this is no reflection on the other authors) that I wish Michele was writing all the books in the series so we could catch-up with Jack and Mersey in a future book. Nonetheless, she has set the bar for this series pretty damn high- are you up for it Cynthia, Nina, and Pat?!
Piquant Opines: RT (4.5 stars!): "...contains a novel idea that's brilliantly executed. Her characters are fresh, as is her story, and readers won't want to put this one down.", Devon

Familiar Stranger shows a release date of 08/01/07 but I saw it in my local Borders last week. I've linked to Amazon for all the print books, but remember that they will all be available as eBooks from eHarlequin.com also:
09/01/2007 - Cynthia Cooke - Rising Darkness (I linked to Cynthia's DE page- VERY creative!)
10/01/2007 - Nina Bruhns - Night Mischief
11/01/2007 - Pat White - Saving Destiny

Sunny - The Novels of the Monère, Children of the Moon

Mona Lisa Awakening, (Monère #1) 09/2006
Mona Lisa Three (Monère #1.5?) from the anthology Over the Moon 01/2007
Mona Lisa Blossoming (Monère #2) 02/2007

Series Category: Lava Cake - Reads like Warm Chocolate Lava Cake... à la Mode... sprinkled with nuts. (A,A-)
Flame Height: 7" out of 9"

I'll use this Amazon.com summary of Sunny's "Blossoming" to describe the series- "Mona Lisa has finally accepted what she really is-a Mixed-Blood of the Monère, the Children of the Moon. Stronger, faster, and more beautiful than any human, they are the origins of Earth's darkest legends-and Mona Lisa is their newest Queen. Accompanied by her loyal cadre of warriors and kin, Mona Lisa is entering her territory of Louisiana for the first time. She slowly learns the erotic and savage customs of the Monère elite-though some of her new subjects are uneasy at being ruled by a half-human. Her reign is threatened by enemies old and new, and she is ensnared in the thrall of dark forces she cannot deny. In a hidden world of animal passions and unrelenting lust, Mona Lisa soon grasps the tremendous power she must command if she is to hold her realm together-and if she is ever to come into her own. "

I was conflicted trying to figure out how I would rate/review this series. Here's the problem: in the acknowledgements for "Awakening" Sunny says "And special thanks to Laurell K. Hamilton and Anne Bishop, whose wonderful stories inspired my Monère Children of the Moon series." INSPIRED? Hell, she completely ripped them off!! Seriously, it is a jaw-droppingly blatant theft of AB and LKH's concepts! She basically took Bishop's Black Jewels Trilogy (the Queens hierarchy, Hell and demon dead, even a character named Janelle) and Hamilton's Merry Gentry series (mixed breed queen with modern ways and compassion, glowing skin during sex, healing during sex, male harem/guards, acquire new powers through sex or emergency) and Hamilton's Anita Blake series (again the healing during sex, the kick-butt heroine, shape-shifting, acquire new powers through sex or emergency) and combined them in a new setting. In "Blossoming", there is even a scene ripped off nearly word for word from LKH's Obsidian Butterfly and Narcissus in Chains where the life force is sucked out of another person. Over on the LKH forum¹, Anne Bishop said that her people looked into it and didn't feel there was enough grounds for legal action, but, IMHO, if her and Laurell joined together, there would undoubtedly be grounds for a legal case here.

And furthermore, I am always hearing stories about authors wanting to have their novels shelved as "Fiction" (they think that makes them more "legit", I guess) rather than Romance or Sci Fi/Fantasy, but their publishers/agents/editors tell them "No way!" Yet here is this upstart author who not only gets her obviously erotic romance book shelved as "Fiction", but gets by with using a pretentious one-word name like Cher or Madonna! And she's seen not only schmoozing with Kathryn Falk (the Grande Dame of RT Book Reviews Magazine), but gets invited to be a panelist at the next RT Con in Houston, thus legitimizing her plagiarism!! Oh and did I mention the major television interviews with her? Damn, this woman must really have raised clit/cock sucking to an ART!

So that's why I was conflicted about how to rate this series. The fact is, if I had never read Anne Bishop or Laurell K. Hamilton, I would probably have raised my rating of this series up to Crème Brûlée - My All-Time Moan-Out-Loud Favorites. Ironic, huh? But then again, she ripped off the best, so why SHOULDN'T her work be great? I DO really like the series and WILL continue to buy new stories as they are released, but would like to see her now take the world she created from other author's ideas and create stories that are completely ORIGINAL and UNIQUE to the Monère world.

ADDED: ¹ Since older LKH forum threads are periodically copied to inaccessible archives, I will have to quote pertinent comments from that discussion. Keep in mind that this discussion occurs after the release of Monere Book 1: Mona Lisa Awakening:

Anne Bishop 10/01/06 (after being asked if she is aware of the first Monere book): "I don't know what the correct course of action is. This is my first experience with this situation. But I did check out the Amazon reviews and they're flagging the same thing--that this author has used a lot of material that is derived from the Black Jewels universe. I'll send the information to my agent and let her take a look at it to see if/how much of a problem is brewing.

Thank you for pointing this out. This isn't a book I would have picked up, especially when I'm writing a new Black Jewels book. If there is a problem, it needs to be addressed."

Anne Bishop 10/02/06: "Have to admit I've been thrown by this, and I really have to get my head back in my own game since I have writing and proofing to do today. But I was curious about something.

This story takes place in contemporary USA? So this is Earth with Earth history and Earth religions? If so, is the High Prince of Hell in the story the Satan who is the adversary of God? Or is this an alternative Earth that didn't develop some of the Earth religions? I just wondered how the author got around that connection within the setting."

Anne Bishop 10/03/06: "Those Who Know checked out the book in question and feel the similarities are superficial rather than substance. So it's imitation of some elements rather than intellectual theft and hasn't crossed any legal lines.

Now I'd better bust a-- to get those Sebastian proofs done and get Surreal into her next scene."