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book_whispers's review against another edition
3.0
Returning back to the world of Jane Yellowrock has been something that's been consuming my thoughts for a while. The first book left such an impression on my mind, I truly loved Hunter's contribution to vampire hunters in UF.
Blood Cross is another fantastic adrenaline rush! The plot had me captivated as I tried to figure out what was going on. This is the book of vampires and witch magic mixing. The vampire lore really is refreshing and I love the concept of 10 years of madness before a vampire rises. Basically vampires are mentally unstable and events can set them off easily. It's very chilling.
Beast gets more stage time! It's wonderful watching Beast as she is clearly the more compassionate of the two, despite Jane being human. At one point Beast comments that Jane is only a hunter and killer. Beast has been a mother, experiencing and living more life then Jane. It's a shock to Jane, and it's one heck of turn that as a reader I just had to take an Ally McBeal moment. Because it's true, of the two I would say Beast is more human and is better equipped to handle human interactions.
Jane's romantic life takes a turn, that I hadn't expected and rather like it. More of Jane's past is revealed and she gets in touch with more of her Cherokee heritage. BC loses some of Jane’s killer edge. It's nice to see that she can research the heck out of a case besides just going in guns blazing. What I didn't like was how much weaker she seemed from the first book. She gets her throat torn open by friendly fangs, gets beaten up by the bad guys—unless they're baby vampires, and probably wouldn't have gotten by without tons of magical help. Jane was unarmed, or under armed, so much in this book I was starting to wonder if she had a death wish. Especially since there were children on board.
Also, I'm already seeing some overused plot devices. Jane having to get dressed up and look pretty for vampire formal functions is clearly something that's going to be seen in future books. (In my mind it's just a really lazy way to show that Jane isn't just a tough hunter, no she's a sexy lady with legs!)
In the end there are some plot holes here. Like Molly's children being taken, but they'd waste Molly's witch blood! The twist on Jane and Beast’s relationship is really refreshing, and I look forward to seeing what happens there. Jane's romantic life looks like it's going to be sticky in the future, not only because of the man picked, but because of Jane's heavy Christian beliefs. Now that Jane's taken up a contract with the New Orleans vampires there's even more promise for mayhem and good’ol UF fun.
Sexual Content: Beast is feeling a bit frisky with the full moon, so look out for some yummy make out scenes and plenty of sexual dialogue.
3/5- Adored it, just a few minor details held it back.
Originally reviewed at Book Whispers.
Blood Cross is another fantastic adrenaline rush! The plot had me captivated as I tried to figure out what was going on. This is the book of vampires and witch magic mixing. The vampire lore really is refreshing and I love the concept of 10 years of madness before a vampire rises. Basically vampires are mentally unstable and events can set them off easily. It's very chilling.
Beast gets more stage time! It's wonderful watching Beast as she is clearly the more compassionate of the two, despite Jane being human. At one point Beast comments that Jane is only a hunter and killer. Beast has been a mother, experiencing and living more life then Jane. It's a shock to Jane, and it's one heck of turn that as a reader I just had to take an Ally McBeal moment. Because it's true, of the two I would say Beast is more human and is better equipped to handle human interactions.
Jane's romantic life takes a turn, that I hadn't expected and rather like it. More of Jane's past is revealed and she gets in touch with more of her Cherokee heritage. BC loses some of Jane’s killer edge. It's nice to see that she can research the heck out of a case besides just going in guns blazing. What I didn't like was how much weaker she seemed from the first book. She gets her throat torn open by friendly fangs, gets beaten up by the bad guys—unless they're baby vampires, and probably wouldn't have gotten by without tons of magical help. Jane was unarmed, or under armed, so much in this book I was starting to wonder if she had a death wish. Especially since there were children on board.
Also, I'm already seeing some overused plot devices. Jane having to get dressed up and look pretty for vampire formal functions is clearly something that's going to be seen in future books. (In my mind it's just a really lazy way to show that Jane isn't just a tough hunter, no she's a sexy lady with legs!)
In the end there are some plot holes here. Like Molly's children being taken, but they'd waste Molly's witch blood! The twist on Jane and Beast’s relationship is really refreshing, and I look forward to seeing what happens there. Jane's romantic life looks like it's going to be sticky in the future, not only because of the man picked, but because of Jane's heavy Christian beliefs. Now that Jane's taken up a contract with the New Orleans vampires there's even more promise for mayhem and good’ol UF fun.
Sexual Content: Beast is feeling a bit frisky with the full moon, so look out for some yummy make out scenes and plenty of sexual dialogue.
3/5- Adored it, just a few minor details held it back.
Originally reviewed at Book Whispers.
zaraelisabeth's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
The good:
- I liked the story of the origin of the vamps, it was very clever
- the writing was way better than book one
- I am slowly warming to Jane as the protagonist and I LOVE Beast, I think the character created is original and starting to become more rounded
The bad:
- the last two books would have been solved 10x quicker if Jane had spent less time hating vamps and more time listening to what they said and took them up on offers to visit.
- I liked Rick in book one, but despite how the story progressed, I felt like he lost all of his spark from book one, there was no sexual tension between him and Jane. By the end I kinda was shipping her and Bruiser which is the opposite of book one and unfair on both characters.
- Theres a lot of unnecessary descriptions of clothing/setting/actions that ruin the fast pace of the book and makes the writing and story lack cohesion.
- I feel like so much more could have been done with Rick, Molly, Jodi, Derek (in fact most of the secondary characters) and they were done a disservice
The good:
- I liked the story of the origin of the vamps, it was very clever
- the writing was way better than book one
- I am slowly warming to Jane as the protagonist and I LOVE Beast, I think the character created is original and starting to become more rounded
The bad:
- the last two books would have been solved 10x quicker if Jane had spent less time hating vamps and more time listening to what they said and took them up on offers to visit.
- I liked Rick in book one, but despite how the story progressed, I felt like he lost all of his spark from book one, there was no sexual tension between him and Jane. By the end I kinda was shipping her and Bruiser which is the opposite of book one and unfair on both characters.
- Theres a lot of unnecessary descriptions of clothing/setting/actions that ruin the fast pace of the book and makes the writing and story lack cohesion.
- I feel like so much more could have been done with Rick, Molly, Jodi, Derek (in fact most of the secondary characters) and they were done a disservice
dlmoldovan's review against another edition
3.0
This book started off strong (or maybe I should say that the series started off strong), but in the end it did not really deliver. I really hate it when something is billed urban fantasy, and then it transforms into paranormal romance. I don't mind it if the author decides to throw in a romantic aspect as long as it doesn't take over the story. When it starts taking center stage, I get a little ticked off because that's not why I picked up the book in the first place. If I wanted something fluffy to read, I would have picked up something fluffy. The only thing that saved this book for me is the fact that it's not all fluff. Okay, rant over. I really like Faith Hunter. I loved her Rogue Mage series, and when I picked up the Jane Yellowrock series I was hoping to see the same kind of world building and characterization. I have to say that I like the setting, and I liked the plot line for the first book in the series. This installment though left a little to be desired. Too many tangents and way too many things going on - it was a little hard trying to keep track of everything at one point, the romance took over the storyline towards the end, and the main character was just morphing into another one of those tough as nails heroines that are so prevalent in the urban fantasy/paranormal romance genre that she lost some of the appeal. The world building was still interesting, and the overall story was still interesting enough that I will pick up the next one in the series. But if Jane transforms into another Anita Blake, that will be the last book in the series that I'll read.
master_jedi_reader's review against another edition
4.0
I am super digging this series. The author has definitely done her research and blended it into the story perfectly. Can't wait to tackle the next adventure!
mkaber's review against another edition
4.0
The second book in the Jane Yellowrock series does not disappoint. Although, I loathe awkward bring-the-reader-up-to-speed first chapters, where the characters say things like : "as you know, I am the one who killed the creature that was pretending to be so-and-so and then that made you-know-who all kinds of angry at me so that now I have a price on my head while I also attempt to discover who is creating other rogue vampires without anyone finding out my secret." And the other person says: "yes, the secret of how you turn into an enormous cat and prowl the night, and which also gives you some supernatural speed and better senses in your human body, but of which we should totally not discuss because someone could hear..." Ms. Hunter would make me happier if she just did a prologue. Anywho, I'm still really enjoying the newness of the author's take on vampire society and the mystery of their making. This one had another good mystery with lots of options for the next books. The wrap-up was a little rushed but I think that was the point. Like the first book, I think this one will be better the second time around.
ezichinny's review against another edition
3.0
**Re-read in prep for Mercy Blade
Read first in April 2013.
Read first in April 2013.
shelleyrae's review against another edition
4.0
I've been itching to read this for a while - I really enjoyed [b:Skinwalker|5585788|Skinwalker (Jane Yellowrock, #1)|Faith Hunter|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1236753957s/5585788.jpg|5757031] and I'm glad to say that Blood Cross was equally as enjoyable.
Jane Yellowrock is smart and capable. The plot relies on her intelligence and initiative rather than lucky coincidence to move forward. I like the segues between Big Cat and Jane, it feels suprisingly natural. Jane's love interests are very much secondary characters rather than equal leads and they are more about lust than romance at this stage though it seems that will change in the next book.
There is plenty of action, interesting background and lore and a taut mystery.
I would strongly recommend that Skinwalker be read before Blood Cross because the threads are weaved pretty tightly. Really looking forward to the next in the series.
Jane Yellowrock is smart and capable. The plot relies on her intelligence and initiative rather than lucky coincidence to move forward. I like the segues between Big Cat and Jane, it feels suprisingly natural. Jane's love interests are very much secondary characters rather than equal leads and they are more about lust than romance at this stage though it seems that will change in the next book.
There is plenty of action, interesting background and lore and a taut mystery.
I would strongly recommend that Skinwalker be read before Blood Cross because the threads are weaved pretty tightly. Really looking forward to the next in the series.
delaneybull's review against another edition
5.0
I've since learned that the author isn't Native which feels icky, so I can't comment on the accuracy of the depiction of Native folk. However, the plot is good and I enjoyed seeing Jane's world expand.
setaian's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 Stars ★★★★☆
Somebody in New Orleans is creating rogue vampires and Jane Yellowrock has been employed to hunt them down. But with employers who look at her and see their next meal, she needs to tread carefully.
This series is completely astounding! It's reminiscent of Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson series and Jennifer Estep's Elemental Assassin series, but Faith Hunter somehow manages to do everything just a little better.
Synopsis ★★★★
Cover ★★★★☆
Book ★★★★☆
Overall ★★★★☆
Somebody in New Orleans is creating rogue vampires and Jane Yellowrock has been employed to hunt them down. But with employers who look at her and see their next meal, she needs to tread carefully.
This series is completely astounding! It's reminiscent of Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson series and Jennifer Estep's Elemental Assassin series, but Faith Hunter somehow manages to do everything just a little better.
Synopsis ★★★★
Cover ★★★★☆
Book ★★★★☆
Overall ★★★★☆
colls's review against another edition
4.0
Jane is still entertaining and having her best friend and kids along keeps her from being too one-dimensional. The vampire lore is interesting and the author is doing a decent job with pacing and balancing action with development.