Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Fifth Grave Past the Light by Darynda Jones PLUS Giveaway!





Never underestimate the power of a woman
on a double espresso with a mocha latte chaser high.
—T-shirt
Charley Davidson isn’t your everyday, run-of-the-mill grim reaper.  She’s more of a paranormal private eye/grim reaper extraordinaire.  However, she gets sidetracked when the sexy, sultry son of Satan, Reyes Farrow, moves in next door. To further complicate matters, Reyes is her main suspect in an arson case.  Charley has vowed to stay away from him until she can find out the truth…but then dead women start appearing in her apartment, one after another, each lost, confused, and terrified beyond reason.  When it becomes apparent that her own sister, Gemma, is the serial killer’s next target Charley has no choice but to ask for Reyes’ help.  Arsonist or not, he’s the one man alive who could protect Gemma no matter who or what came at her. But he wants something in return. Charley. All of her, body and soul. And to keep her sister safe, it is a price she is willing to pay.
Charley Davidson is at it again in Fifth Grave Past the Light, the sexy, suspenseful, and laugh-out-loud funny fifth installment of the New York Times bestselling series by Darynda Jones.

My Review

And the Queen of cliff hangers strikes again! Why must she torture us so? Why, Darynda, why? 

Another awesome book from Mrs. Jones. Of course, I didn't expect anything less. I love the way she can have many mysteries in a book and have you guessing the entire time. It's always wrong, but I keep guessing anyway. Reyes and Charley get pretty friendly in this one. *wink* Those scenes were VERY HOT! And it wouldn't be Charley if she wasn't always in trouble, would it? Eh, she gets in a scrape or two. Swopes opens up a little about his time spent in Hell. Rocket gives us some very disturbing news and Charley has a small break down about it. What? That's not enough for you? Greedy little thing aren't you? Ok, I'll give a you little more. We meet a few new characters. One that has me intrigued is Duff. I can't wait to find out his story. Oh, and there is knife fight that I didn't think I was going to make it through. Literally, my heart was beating so fast I thought it was going to rip right out of my chest. Whew. That was a close one. I thought we would get to know a little more about Mr. Wong, but I guess that comes later. I'm on the edge of my seat for that story! I love Darynda Jones and everything she writes. Sixth Grave cannot get here fast enough. I bow to your greatness Mrs. Jones. 

I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.





NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious Golden Heart®, a Rebecca, two Hold Medallions, a RITA ®, and a Daphne duwww.daryndajones.com.
Maurier, and she has received stellar reviews from dozens of publications including starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly, Booklist, and the Library Journal. As a born storyteller, Darynda grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike, and she is ever so grateful for the opportunity to carry on that tradition. She currently has two series with St. Martin’s Press: The Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. She lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of almost 30 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at

Links To Author:
·       Darynda Jones Website  
·       Facebook
·       Darynda’s World
·       Twitter
Links To Purchase Books:
·       Amazon
·       Barnes & Nobles
·        Audible
Excerpt

Ask me about life after death.
—T-shirt often seen on Charley Davidson,
    a grim reaper with questionable morals

The dead guy at the end of the bar kept trying to buy me a drink.
Which figured. No one else was even taking a second look and I’d
dressed to the nines. Or, at the very least, the eight- and- a-halves.
But the truly disturbing part of my evening was the fact that my
mark, one Mr. Marvin Tidwell, blond real estate broker and suspected
adulterer, actually turned down the drink I’d tried to buy
him.

Turned it down!

I felt violated.

I sat at the bar, sipping a margarita, lamenting the sad turn my life
had taken. Especially to night. This case was not going as planned.
Maybe I wasn’t Marv’s type. It happened. But I was oozing interest.
And I wore makeup. And I had cleavage. Even with all that going for
me, this investigation was firmly wedged between the cracks of no and
where. At least I could tell my client, aka Mrs. Marvin Tidwell, that it
would seem her husband was not cheating on her. Not randomly,
anyway. The fact that he could’ve been meeting someone in par tic ular
kept me glued to my barstool.

“C-come here often?”

I looked over at the dead guy. He’d finally worked up the courage
to approach and I got a better view of him. I figured him for the runt
of the litter. He wore round- rimmed glasses and a tattered baseball
cap that sat backwards on top of muddy brown hair. Add to that a
faded blue T-shirt and loosely ripped jeans and he could’ve been a
skater, a computer geek, or a backwoods moonshiner.

His cause of death was not immediately apparent. No stab wounds
or gaping holes. No missing limbs or tire tracks across his face. He
didn’t even look like a drug addict, so I couldn’t tell why he’d died at
such a young age. Taking into account the fact that his baby- faced
features would make him look younger than he probably was, I estimated
him to be somewhere around my age when he’d passed.

He stood waiting for an answer. I thought “Come here often?”
was rhetorical, but okay. Not wanting to be perceived as talking to
myself in a room full of people, I responded by lifting one shoulder
in a halfhearted shrug.

Sadly, I did. Come here often. This was my dad’s bar, and while I
never set up stings here for fear of someone I knew blowing my
cover, this just happened to be the very same bar Mr. Tidwell frequented.
At least if it came to a knockdown drag- out, I might have
some backup. I knew most of the regulars and all of the employees.

Dead Guy glanced toward the kitchen, seeming nervous before he
refocused on me. I glanced that way as well. Saw a door.

“Y-you’re very shiny,” he said, drawing my attention back to him.

He had a stutter. Few things were more adorable than a grown
man with boyish features and a stutter. I stirred my margarita and
pasted on a fake smile. I couldn’t talk to him in a room full of living,
breathing patrons. Especially when one was named Jessica Guinn, to
my utter mortification. I hadn’t seen her fiery red hair since high
school but there she sat, a few seats down from me, surrounded by a
group of chattering socialites who looked almost as fake as her boobs.
But that could be my bitterness rearing its ugly head.

Unfortunately, my forced smile only encouraged Dead Guy.

“Y-you are. You’re like the s-sun reflecting off the chrome bumper of
a f-fifty- seven Chevy.”

He splayed his fingers in the air to demonstrate, and my heart was
gone. Damn it. He was like all those lost puppies I tried to save as a
child to no avail because I had an evil stepmother who believed all
stray dogs were rabid and would try to rip out her jugular. A fact that
had nothing to do with my desire to bring them into the house.

“Yeah,” I said under my breath, doing my best ventriloquist impersonation,
“thanks.”

“I’m D-Duff ,” he said.

“I’m Charley.” I kept my hands wrapped around my drink lest he
decide we needed to shake. Not many things looked stranger to the
living world than a grown woman shaking air. You know those kids
with invisible friends? Well, I was one of those. Only I wasn’t a kid,
and my friends weren’t invisible. Not to me, anyway. And I could see
them because I’d been born the grim reaper, which was not as bad as
it sounded. I was basically a portal to heaven, and whenever someone
was stuck on Earth, having chosen not to cross over immediately after
death, they could cross to the other side through me. I was like a giant
bug light, only what I lured was already dead.

I pulled at my extra- tight sweater. “Is it just me, or is it really
warm in here?”

His baby blues shot toward the kitchen again. “Hot is m-more
like it. S-so, I— I couldn’t help but notice you t-tried to buy that guy
over there a drink.”

I let my fake smile go. Freed it like a captured bird. If it came back
to me, it would be mine. If not, it never was. “And?”

“You’re b-barking up the wrong tree with that one.”

Surprised, I put my drink down— the one I bought myself— and
leaned in a little closer. “He’s gay?”

Duff snorted. “N-no. But he’s been in here a lot lately. He l-likes
his women a little . . . l-looser.”

“Dude, how much sluttier can I get?” I indicated my attire with a
sweep of my hand.

“N-no, I mean, well, you’re a l-little—” He let his gaze travel the
length of me. “—t-tight.”

I gasped. “I look anal?”

He drew in a deep breath and tried again. “H-he only hits on
women who are more s-substantial than you.”

Oh, that wasn’t offensive at all. “I have depth. I’ve read Proust.
No, wait, that was Pooh. Winnie- the- Pooh. My bad.”

He shifted his non ex is tent weight, cleared his throat, and tried
again. “More v-voluptuous.”

“I have curves,” I said through a clenched jaw. “Have you seen
my ass?”

“Heavier!” he blurted out.

“I weigh— Oh, you mean he likes bigger women.”

“E-exactly, while I on the other hand—”

Duff ’s words faded into the background like elevator music. So
Marv liked big women. A new plan formed in the darkest, most corrupt
corners of Barbara. My brain.

Cookie, otherwise known as my receptionist during regular business
hours and my best friend 24/7, was perfect. She was large and in
charge. Or well, large and kind of bossy. I picked up my cell phone
and called her.

“This better be good,” she said.

“It is. I need your assistance.”

“I’m watching the first season of Prison Break.”

“Cookie, you’re my assistant. I need assistance. With a case. You
know those things we take on to make money?”

“Prison. Break. It’s about these brothers who—”

“I know what Prison Break is.”

“Then have you ever actually seen these boys? If you had, you
would not expect me to abandon them in their time of need. I think
there’s a shower scene coming up.”

“Do these brothers sign your paycheck?”

“No, but technically neither do you.”

Damn. She was right. It was much easier to just have her forge my
name.

“I need you to come flirt with my mark.”

“Oh, okay. I can do that.”

Nice. The F-word always worked with her. I filled her in and told
her the deal with Tidwell, then ordered her to hurry over.

“And dress sexy,” I said right before hanging up. But I regretted
the sexy part instantly. The last time I told Cookie to dress sexy for a
much- needed girls’ night out on the town, she wore a lace- up corset,
fishnet stockings, and a feather boa. She looked like a dominatrix. I’d
never been the same.


Giveaway

1 Autographed copy of Fifth Grave Past the Light to one lucky winner. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Photobucket

28 comments:

  1. I have to pick one?! I think its got to be the 2nd one, just because of the shot out scene. It had me laughing so hard i cried and ppl looked at me funny.

    -Amanda P

    Lets Get Romantical
    Where the Night Kind Roam

    ReplyDelete
  2. I really don't have a favorite but I'll say the 1st one because it started it all. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Cannot pick a fav b/c love all of them! And... I love the mystery part of the Charley Davidson series... Darynda keeps you on the edge right up to the end & slams you with the most intriguing cliffhangers to keep you wanting more.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Fantastic review!! I totally agree, Darynda Jones does like to torture us..the evil little minx! But honestly, I wouldn't want it any other way. These book are scrumptious and makes you want to play Charley in the real world and makes you wish for a REAL Son of Satan. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Love all of them, they keep me glued till the very end. They are all so good, it's hard to pick a fav. and it may just be because I just read it, but I think my favorite is 5th Grave

    ReplyDelete
  6. Wow, that is such a hard question. I would have to say it's a tie between 1st Grave and 5th Grave. The mystery of Reyes in 1st Grave, Meeting the Gang. Wow. Can't re-create that! And the amazing character/relationship progression that is 5th Grave. Even better!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Great review! This book was awesomesauce!! SO looking forward to book 6!

    ReplyDelete
  8. 5th Grave is actually my fav so far. I so loved having my reyes and Charley though more swopes and cookie would have made it even more my fav! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I LOVE them all....but definitely have to say 5th Grave!!!!! Reyes telling Charley I want your scent on my skin....That conversation OMG!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I love all of them but my favorite is Fifth Grave. Reyes and Charley really begin to have more of a relationship and it's awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  11. For now, First Grave, because i haven't had the opportunity to read more... but I can't wait to read the rest of the series!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I love all the books in this series! Thats the great thing about this series is that every book is as good as the one before it which almost never happens when you have a long running series. I guess if I had to choose I would say the 5th book.

    Crystal Guidroz
    cguidroz2@cox.net

    ReplyDelete
  13. I guess if I have to pick it'd be Fifth. Love them all though. Can't wait for Sixth!

    ReplyDelete
  14. 5th Grave is my favorite to date! Everything that I love about the series is there: the humor, action, Charley's ADD, but add to all of that yumminess Charley and Reyes getting hot and bothered! Woohoo!

    ReplyDelete
  15. i havent read any yet..I picked up the 1st book a couple of weeks ago, though and will be starting soon!!!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Ahhh, Sarah...you are going to love it! Make sure you read them in order!

    ReplyDelete
  17. I can't pick only one! I love them all!!!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Love this series! Fifth is my favorite thus far!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Aw hell, no way can I pick a favorite!! I love them all, Charley is fabulous and so is Reyes.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Thanks for stopping by everyone!!! Grimlets RULE!

    ReplyDelete
  21. I honestly love them all! It is one of my favorite series. All that sass!

    ReplyDelete
  22. I cannot pick just one! I love them all! They are great! ;) If I had to choose it would be the first one because that is the one that started my addiction! :) Can't wait for #6!! <3 them all!

    ReplyDelete
  23. I'm still working on reading the series. I'm currently on the second one but I have a feeling when I'm done I will have a hard time choosing just one. This series is amazing! Love you Darynda :)

    ReplyDelete
  24. I really have to choose a favorite? I don't think I can. They are all spectacular and picking one specifically to be a favorite just seems wrong :)

    Awesome post today!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Thanks for the giveaway. I haven't read this series yet, but book 1 is in my TBR pile.

    ReplyDelete
  26. All so great.. the more time I take the less sure I am.. ugh.




    vals_hemi at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete

I love your comments! Give me your opinion, wow me, or just say hi!