Justice is having enough trouble with her life between classes at a prestigious law school, dealing with a house of her sorority sisters, and troubles with her ex-boyfriend, Calvin.  She really didn’t need a force from somewhere inside her directing her to kill herself.  Now, Justice has to convince her family and her therapist that she isn’t crazy or suicidal.  Justice is doing pretty well until her sister takes her to a psychic for her birthday and the psychic gives her a very specific reading about a man entering his life.  Her reading comes true as Justice meets two incredibly handsome and mysterious twins, Dante and Marquis, one of whom she can’t get out of her head.  Justice’s ex-boyfriend, Calvin also decides to come back into her life and tell her all about his job protecting humans from the creatures of the night, Vampyres.

This was an entertaining, quick paced, paranormal vampire read.  I like that it had a different type of vampire, still dangerous, but integrated into society and known to exist by some.  Not all of their abilities and lore were explained in this book, but so far it seems really interesting; they can be out at all times of day when they wear a special piece of jewelry and they can seem to feed without turning victims.  Dante’s history was intriguing along with his potential interaction with Justice was very intriguing and I really want to know more and bring more of the past into the present narrative.  Justice is an interesting character; she is dealing with a lot of crap and paranormal stuff, but is holding it together pretty well.  There is a lot of mystery involved with the vampires themselves as well as the Cerebus agency, which is meant to keep them in check.  A lot of things still need to be explained, there is a quite a cliffhanger at the end and there were a few editing mistakes, but none that affected my enjoyment of the book.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.  

My Daylight Monsters (Mary Hades 0.5)

Seventeen-year-old Mary Hades can see ‘things’ that no one else can; she doesn’t quite know what these things are, but they are scary.  After an incident at school, Mary is diagnosed with schizophrenia and Mary’s mother decides to place Mary in a psychiatric institute for a few weeks until she is better.  Mary is skeptical, but wants to get better.  Once in the ward Mary meets her roommate Lacey and they create a fast friendship. Mary also notices some other patients that are no longer living.  Then, she notices that patients in another ward are dying very often. 

This novella packed a lot of punch.  I knew something good was going to happen as soon as Mary was sent to the psychiatric hospital.  I loved Mary (and her awesome name!)  she is very realistic in trying to deal with her issues both normal and paranormal.  Mary was caring and observant and formed friendships with the other teens in the ward.  All of the characters were well developed and felt like people that I might know.  The mystery folded in with the ghost story made for a creepy and exciting read.  It was nice to see how Mary began to deal with her powers and the beginning of her friendship with Lacey. 

 

Mary Hades (Mary Hades #1): 
Mary’s family decides to take her on a vacation in Nettleby after Mary’s traumatic stay in a psychiatric ward.  They want her to relax and maybe find a summer romance.  Little do they know that Mary can still see and talk to her dead best friend, Lacey or that the small town harbors a ghost legend about a young girl that was killed five years prior who now haunts the moors killing unsuspecting men.  Mary happens to find her summer romance in a boy named Seth.  However, Seth is harboring a secret that connects him to ties him to the dangerous ghost.

Picking up right after My Daylight Monsters, Mary now has the constant companionship of her dead best friend, Lacy which makes for an entertaining companionship.  Lacey’s personality as a ghost is hilarious.  I’m glad that Mary became more confident in herself and with her powers in this book.  The mystery of Amy the ghost and her connection with Seth were intriguing and kept me interested.  I’m glad that I got to learn more about ghosts, what they can become, and the ‘things’ that Mary sees.  Mary finds a mentor in Igor, the local ghost tour guide; and with his help, she finds a purpose for her strange powers.  I’m interested to see what Mary does next with her new knowledge. 

Shadow ( Mary Hades 1.25)
Mary visits her Aunt Izzy's seaside home to watch the comet pass through the night sky.  The visit brings tension between Mary and her mom.  Her mom and Aunt Izzy have not gotten along in years, but Mary visits anyway knowing that her aunt will need her.  When Mary arrives, she notices strange shadows. Mary must put her new ghost skills to use and make some difficult family decisions.  

This short story gives some insight into Mary's family and some of the tensions brewing between Mary's mom and her Aunt.  The ghost story involved was fairly simple, but divulged another family secret which put Mary in a difficult spot.  It was nice to see Mary in an environment with more freedom and less judgement from her parents where she was freely allowed to practice her new ghost skills.  A quick, short story giving some insight into Mary's family.

Sister (Mary Hades 1.5)

A short story where Mary's aunt Izzy writes a letter to Mary's mother about an incident from when the two sisters were younger.  Izzy remembers a time when Mary's mom, Susan was not herself; Susan doesn't seem to remember or acknowledge this time in her life, but it may explain something about Mary and Izzy and Susan's relationship.

A short, intense story that explains a lot about the dynamic between Susan and Izzy; this event seemed to be the turning point in their relationship that no one wants to talk about.  I am really interested in knowing the truth about the event; it is set up to be a paranormal event, but can be explained by weird teenage hormones and growing up.  I'm expecting it to be a great set-up for the next full book, Possess. 

Possess (Mary Hades #2)
Mary's family makes a hasty decision to move so that her father would be closer to his work.  Mary's father finds a older home called Ravenswood.  As soon as Mary and her mother arrive, something just doesn't feel right to Mary; but she or Lacey don't feel or see any other ghosts.  The people in town become anxious whenever they learn of where Mary lives, a strange neighbor hints at the paranormal and Mary's mom begins acting differently.  Mary finds a diary in Ravenswood written by a girl named Liza during the Victorian era.  The diary entries slowly unlock the mystery of the evil force within the house as it takes over her mother.

This is my favorite book of the series so far.  The mystery is very involved and not the typical ghost story that has been presented in the other book and novella.  Possess has a mixture of an evil force, a possession, and multiple ghosts which added suspense and amped up the creepy factor.  Since I am also a sucker for dual time lines, the addition of Liza's diary was a bonus for me.  Not only was Liza someone that Mary could easily identify with, but her experiences were a good parallel to what Mary was dealing with in the present with her mother.  Mary is able to grow and learn even more when she must face the evil within Ravenswood and I'm glad that things got even scarier.  I can't wait to see where things will go next with Mary.