Title: Bring on the Night
Author: Jeri Smith-Ready
Series: WVMP Radio #3
Cover Art: Don Sipley
Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
Publisher: Pocket (July 27, 2010)
ISBN-10: 1439163480
ISBN-13: 978-1439163481
Review Copy Source:Simon & Schuster
Reviewed by: Abigail
Book Description
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.
Review
BRING ON THE NIGHT picks up 2 1/2 years after Bad to the Bone and initially the giant leap forward feels a little disorienting. Honestly, I’m not sure why there is such a big gap between books 2 and 3. Several times during the first few chapters I checked to make sure I hadn’t missed an entire book (I hadn’t) or maybe a bridging novella somewhere (nope). There easily could have been another book, or two, before this one, but it feels almost like when a TV show gets cancelled and the writers throw all the major plot developments that they’d been saving into the last few episodes. That’s not the case with BRING ON THE NIGHT since there are already two more books planned for this series, but it feels like it.
So here we are, 2 1/2 years down the road, Ciara is finishing up her mandatory orientation/boot camp for the Control, Shane has been rebuilding his relationship with his human family, and he and Ciara are living together in domestic bliss with their vamp dog Dexter. Life couldn’t be better until the dead start rising, and the living start succumbing to lethal virus of mysterious origins.
BRING ON THE NIGHT is a game changer for the series in a lot of ways (several I which I can’t even begin to talk about with out spoiling the entire book). Characters evolve and reveal themselves in surprising yet satisfying ways, decisions are made that will irrevocably change the lives of everyone at WVMP Radio, lives are lost, new love is found, and nothing will ever be the same.
As vague as I’m forced to be in this review, I can say that BRING ON THE NIGHT is the best in the series to date, and I really love how Jeri fearlessly made some tough, bold changes this time out that have paid off in the most exciting installment yet. I still question the big time gap between books, and the “bad guy” was little more than a convenient prop for a different plot element, but for me, a new and much needed energy has been injected into this series. Book 4, tentatively titled LET IT BLEED, will be released Summer 2011, and after BRING ON THE NIGHT it’s anyone's guess what will happen next.
Sexual Content: References to homosexuality. A scene where two women make out while a man masturbates. Several sex scenes in varying graphic detail.
My Rating:
3/5
Good - A fun read with minor flaws. Maybe read an excerpt before buying.
Click HERE to read an excerpt from BRING ON THE NIGHT
Previous books in the series:
Also reviewed by:
I love Jeri Smith-Ready's Aspect of Crow fantasy series, but her UF series is just okay overall. I thought book one was fairly weak, book two pulled it up, and I'm not surprised to hear that you think this is okay but not fantastic. For some reason it just doesn't work very well.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the first two books, glad to hear this one is just as good.
ReplyDeleteRebecca - You keep mentioning her Crow series, I guess I need to try it, huh? I did read--and love--her YA debut SHADE, but as a whole I'm generally underwhelmed by the WVMP series, although I do think this is the best one so far.
ReplyDeleteTiah - If you enjoyed the first two, it's a good bet you'll like this one even more.
I'm intrigued! This isn't the field I usually read in, but the story sounds fantastic, and (shallow alert!) I love that cover!
ReplyDeleteOh this does sounds quite interesting but mayb I should catch the first book first!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the review!
Hi Abigail - Yeah, this WVMP series doesn't showcase what she can do, that's for sure. It hasn't taken off in my opinion. I keep meaning to try her YA series myself.
ReplyDeleteAmie - Well it's time to start :) You you're interested in realistically portrayed vamps, this is a good series to start with. And I love the cover too.
ReplyDeleteyllektra - You'll definitely want to read this series in order. Ciara's introduction to the vampire world is...memorable :)
Rebecca - You really should read SHADE, it's one of my favorite UF ghost stories.