Wednesday, March 17, 2010

"Over My Dead Body" by Michele Bardsley


Book 5 in the Broken Heart Vampires series is just as cute and funny as the first four. Bardsley does a good job at creating romantic tension between sassy characters, all while throwing some sort of roadblock in their way. The books are short, easy reads (usually taking me no longer than a day or so), and while there is quite a bit of information about the Consortium, the different vampire families, etc, it's all conveniently placed at the back of the book.

Simone Sweet has returned to Broken Heart, Oklahoma after killing her abusive husband. No one knows this dark secret of hers, just that she moved in with "Grandma Elaine" (her husband's grandmother) and that her young daughter Glory doesn't speak. Simone keeps to herself and works hard as a mechanic, preferring cars to people. Even though she's now a vampire with a talent for things water-related (thanks to her vamp family's background), she's still great with a wrench. While working on the Invisi-Shield for the town, she meets Braddock (Brady) Hayes, a hot hunky guy who seems to be interested in her. She's attracted to him, but given her past, feels that she should stay as far away as possible.

Enter the government, of course! Simone is not the only one hiding something; Brady has his own past actions weighing on him. He starts dating Simone, basically to keep her from dealing with Reiner, one of the werewolves. The attraction is very obvious, but of course, the author keeps them apart for a long time, thus building the tension. There's a huge festival for paranormalkind in just a few days and the threat from outside forces looms over the festivities, especially after Glory is kidnapped.

I enjoyed this book - funny, nothing too serious (although the issue of abuse is a bit heavier than normal for Bardsley). Probably the best part is a possible nod to one of my favorite comedians, George Carlin. Gosh I miss him! If you're looking for cute, funny paranormal romance, you can't go wrong with Broken Heart Vampires.

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