JESSICA'S GUIDE TO DATING ON THE DARK SIDE by Beth Fantaskey

This book was given a starred review from a couple of publications that I will not mention, and I don't see how. Don't get me wrong, its entertaining enough, but it has a slow start. It's easy to see what direction the characters are headed. When of course Jessica (Antanasia) immediately despises Lucius, who is arrogant and annoyingly proper. But Jessica quickly changes her mind as Lucius acclimates to small town rural living, joining the basketball team, riding horses in 4H competitions and eating pizza. It's not until Lucius is hurt trying to save self-involved, popular, cheerleader Faith that Jessica understand what her feelings really are for Lucius.

At this time Lucius discovers compassion, caring and love that he never had as a child growing up abused and guided by his vampire Uncles determined to use him for power. Lucius also realizes they have no intention of welcoming Jessica into the fold. they will eventually kill her and take over both of the vampire clans. Lucius breaks the marriage pact at great risk to himself. Ultimately believing that he is too warped to actually be with Jessica.

But it's Jessica's love that shows him there's a better way.

It's just very juvenile in a lot of places. Some sweet parts, but mostly very juvenile.

SOULLES by Gail Carriger

Part romance, mystery, paranormal, steampunck comedy. Gail Carriger has written a fun Victorian romance with a fantastic heroine. Stubborn 25-year-old bluestocking Alexia Tarabotti is patently unmarriageable, and not just because she's large-nosed and swarthy. She's also soulless, an oddity and a secret even in a 19th-century London that mostly accepts and integrates werewolf packs, vampire hives and ghosts. The only man who notices her is brash Lord Conall Maccon, a Scottish Alpha werewolf and government official, and (of course) they dislike each other intensely. After Alexia kills a vampire with her parasol at a party—how vulgar!—she and Conall must work together to solve a supernatural mystery that grows quite steampunkishly gruesome. Well-drawn secondary characters round out the story, most notably Lord Akeldama, Alexia's outrageous, italic-wielding gay best vampire friend.

All I can say is this is such a fun read. I really enjoyed Alexia and her adventures as well as the battle of wills, masking their attraction, with Lord Maccon. I would love for this to be a television series or something. Didn't want the story and the adventure to be over when the book ended.