Berls
Written on May 21, 2016
It's lucky number seven for Darynda Jones in her bestselling Charley Davidson series! Following up from Sixth Grave on the Edge, Charley's back and she's ready to reap . . .
Lead me not into temptation.
Follow me instead! I know a shortcut!
--T-shirtTwelve. Twelve of the deadliest beasts ever forged in the fires of hell have escaped, and they want nothing more than to rip out Charley Davidson's jugular and serve her body to Satan for dinner. So there's that. But Charley has more on her plate than a mob of testy hellhounds. For one thing, her father has disappeared, and as she retraces his last steps she learns he was conducting an investigation of his own, one that has Charley questioning everything she's ever known about him. Add to that an ex-BFF who is haunting her night and day, a rash of suicides that has authorities baffled, and a drop-dead sexy fiance who has attracted the attentions of a local celebrity, and Charley is not having the best week of her life. But all of that barely scratches the surface of her problems . . .
Recent developments have forced her to become a responsible adult. To conquer such a monumental task, she's decided to start small. Really small. She gets a pet. But how can she save the world against the forces of evil when she can't even keep a goldfish alive?
A tad north of hell, a hop, skip, and a jump past the realm of eternity is a little place called Earth, and Charley Davidson, grim reaper extraordinaire, is determined to do everything in her power to protect it.
We're doomed.
- ISBN10 1250045649
- ISBN13 9781250045645
- Publish Date 21 October 2014
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 30 June 2021
- Imprint St. Martin's Press
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 336
- Language English
Reviews
EBookObsessed
Written on May 14, 2015
Charley Davidson is a private investigator and grim reaper. She can speak to the departed, which makes solving their deaths so much easier. Charley sometimes works with Uncle Bob, a detective with the Albuquerque Police Department to solve crimes.
NOTE: There might be small spoilers here on the emerging relationship between Charley and Reyes since the last book. You’ve been warned.
Someone has released the twelve hellhounds from the depths of hell and have sent them after Charley. Reyes is trying to keep her safe, but as usual Charley has other plans.
Reyes still doesn’t trust the Dealer, the escaped demon slave from hell, but Charley feels he has a part to play in their future. He has been making himself useful by working with Garret to decipher the old texts which seem to be some type of prophesy about Charley. Weird, but pretty cool, right?
Let’s start with the fact that her father has gone missing. He lied to Charley. He never intended to go sailing but he didn’t clue anyone in on the “investigation” he was working on but it seems that the man the Leland was watching has been watching Charley for awhile now, and he might have been sent by the Vatican. Yeah, that Vatican.
Charley’s ex-BFF Jessica, who never believed Charley’s confession when they were in high school, now wants Charley to use her grim reaper powers to save the life of her nephew. Charley tries to explain to Jessica that is not how her powers work, but with nothing to lose, Charley allows herself to be dragged to the hospital. She can’t possibly hurt the dying boy, could she?
Between looking for her father and trying to heal the sick, Charley and Ubie have a case. People are leaving suicide notes, and then disappearing. One person, maybe, but half a dozen? Charley notices that all of the suicide notes sound like they were written by the same person. Someone is killing them and hiding the bodies.
Every trip outside of her home puts Charley are risk of attack by the hounds, but it kind of hard to investigate from inside her apartment. She is just going to have to trust the son of Satan and the former slave to keep her from becoming a chew toy for hellhounds.
THOUGHTS:
My friend and I did a binge audiobook listen on this series and finished just in time to get an ARC of the upcoming release, Eighth Grave After Dark. God, I love this job. Our binging included some listening at work. Let me tell you, it is really hard to pretend you’re diligently working when you are trying not to laugh about everything Charley says.
This story will be the beginning of some changes to the series which I don’t want to detail here and give it all away.
I highly, highly recommend not only this series, but enjoying the audiobook version of it. Lorelei King does an incredible job with all of the characters but she especially breathes life into Charley and all her insanity.
Linda
Written on Apr 26, 2015
Also, Denise continued to grate on my nerves, just the way she was supposed to, I'm sure.
Cocktails and Books
Written on Oct 23, 2014
kimbacaffeinate
Written on Oct 21, 2014
I pre-ordered Seventh Grave and No Body the seventh book in the hilariously awesome Charley Davidson series and began reading it on release day. My intention as always was to savoir it. *hangs head* Yeah, as if. I came up for air at about 50%. My sides hurt from giggling and my nether parts from swooning over Reyes. I than decided a nap would allow me to savior it longer. *dreams of Reyes, yeah I can so handle that* Forty-five minutes later, I was back in the story and soon in tears because it was over. OVER. Now I have to wait until May 2015.*sobs* Oh, the cruelty of it all! Despite the frustration of having to wait for more answers, and more time with this motley crew of characters that I abso-friggin-loutely adored Seventh Grave and No Body was brilliant. Brilliant I tell you.
Charley Davidson is a grim reaper, and her transformation with her skills increases in the seventh book. She is really beginning to tune into her powers. Has she grown otherwise? No, Charley is still Charley, taking impossible risks, making Reyes crazy and risking all for her cases. This at times frustrates me, but you have to give her kudos for knowing who she is and never apologizing for it. Snark is her middle name and trouble is her addiction, well that and Reyes. *mine too- best book boyfriend EVER* The poor son of Satan must have ulcers by now trying to keep Charley safe.
The cases were interesting in Seventh Grave without a Body. Her ex-BFF is stalking her, bodies are missing from a grave and folks are writing suicide notes and disappearing. She is also helping the FBI to solve a cold case involving a brutal camp murder, and using her abilities for some unexpected things. The action is intense. Jones’ continues to amaze me with her writing. Her plot is tight, addictive and well balanced. She manages to weave all of these sub-plots into the overall storyline and develops them. We make some progress in the overall arc. From the Twelve to an important character's role that Charlie has dubbed, “Beep.” We learn more about the demon Osh, and I really liked him. I am curious to see what his role will be. We are beginning to see an army build around Charlie and I cannot wait to see how this team develops. Cookies’ daughter, Amber shocks us and the group works together to battle hellhounds. We lose a few characters, and see a surprise development regarding a secondary character. Gads, I want to spill, but spoiler’s darling. It was intense, fascinating and Jones’ still delivered all the quirky, hilarious one-liners I have come to love.
Jones’ continues to flesh out the characters and storyline, notching up my excitement. I so need answers and while she answers some, she also adds more to my list. All of which makes this an addictive and unique Urban Fantasy. The ending was intense, with twists and for a brief moment, I wanted to curse Jones’ for leaving me salivating for more. Does anyone else want answers about Mr. Wong? Guardian or psycho demon waiting to be awaken? Gads.
I love the Charley Davidson series hard, and If you have not read them or listened to them, I feel the urge to lock you in a room and force you to become as addicted to them as I am. The characters in the series are fleshed out and unique. Good or bad, you will fall hard for them. At times, I laugh so hard my sides ach, and tears stream down my face. This is a series I like to read alone, in a quiet room where my outbursts will not alarm the outside world. Just my coffee, this book and me …Nirvana baby!This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer