Succubus Blues (Georgina Kincaid, #1)

by Richelle Mead and Lydia Parks

When it comes to jobs in hell, being a succubus seems pretty glamorous. A girl can be anything she wants, the wardrobe is killer, and mortal men will do anything just for a touch. Granted, they often pay with their souls, but why get technical? 

But Seattle succubus Georgina Kincaid's life is far less exotic. At least there's her day job at a local bookstore—free books; all the white chocolate mochas she can drink; and easy access to bestselling, sexy writer, Seth Mortensen, aka He Whom She Would Give Anything to Touch but Can't. 

But dreaming about Seth will have to wait. Something wicked is at work in Seattle's demon underground. And for once, all of her hot charms and drop–dead one–liners won't help because Georgina's about to discover there are some creatures out there that both heaven and hell want to deny . . . 

"Mead cooks up an appetizing debut that blends romantic suspense with a fresh twist on the paranormal."—Booklist

"The mix of supernatural mystery, romance and reluctant succubus is great fun."—Locus 

"An engaging read."—Jim Butcher, New York Times bestselling author

• ISBN10: 0758216416
• ISBN13: 9780758216410
• Publish Date: 1 March 2007 (first published 27 February 2007)
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 9 June 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Kensington Publishing
• Format: Paperback (UK Trade)
• Pages: 368
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/isbn/9780758216410

Reviews

[Berls]

I've had this series on my TBR List for years, so when I saw that I had the opportunity to pick up the books from Tantor Audio for review, I couldn't resist. I'm really glad I decided to grab them too, I think this is going to be a series I love. I was able to buddy read this book with Anne and she's also giving it 4 stars.

I want to understand this world a bit better, but I feel like this is a common complaint for me with first books in a UF series - they tend to either not give me enough of the world and they suffer from an info dump. The world was gradually revealed and by the end I did have a better idea of how things worked. But I still have lots of questions, like about the full extent of paranormal "creatures"... we have angels, we have demons, Georgina is a succubus, I know of some vampires, but what else is there? And what exactly are the rules governing them?

A lot of my questions revolve around the main character Georgina. Throughout the book, we do learn a lot about how she came to be a succubus (which in this series is a daughter of Lillith, so more questions like I mentioned above!!!), but I still am unsure of WHEN that happened. And I think there's a potential mystery surrounding the deal she made. And she has a woeful amount of ignorance about her own world IMO... as do her demon friends. (Perhaps that's why there's so much unanswered?)

BUT all those questions are there because I am VERY interested. I think the world has a lot of potential and I really like Georgina. I think she's a good person, well demon (ironically). And her relationships - both human and demon (and angel) are really interesting. And the book kept me guessing pretty much too the end, which led to me reading it a bit faster than I had expected. And the way it ended was satisfying, but also left me with lots of ideas and speculation for what will happen in future books. I'm very ready to keep reading, which Anne and I plan to do later this month.

The narration was very satisfying and I think a really good fit for Georgina's character. I don't think I've read anything narrated by Elizabeth Rogers before, but I do hope she continues to narrate this series. I think she did a good job bringing the characters and situations off the page. I listened at 2x with no problem.

Qualifies for COYER Fall Scavenger Hunt Item #1 - 1st book in a series.

I love Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy series so the idea of an edgier, older paranormal/urban fantasy read was appealing. But I'm not sure if I failed to like it because I'm sick to death of angels and demons and nephilim or if it was the story itself.

Regardless it wasn't all bad, or even bad at all. I liked Georgina and the friendships she had with the other immortals and bookstore employees. I thought the balance for good and evil was struck well - particularly the quip about evil creating middle management. It allowed the whole being evil but not totally evil make sense. I found the humour quick witted and the snarky banter hilarious. The brutal retorts were gold.

The romance absolutely sucked. I don't know if I'm just particularly jaded these days but the romance was badly paced and lacklustre. Georgina was all over the shop - and fine, she's a succubus - have sex - but it seemed like she was too busy with feelings for every guy she has contact with. Okay two guys but I've never enjoyed love triangles. She was either too flighty or not flighty enough.

It probably didn't help that I didn't actually like either love interest and I definitely didn't feel Georgina had much or any chemistry with either one.

My biggest complaint though would be length. It was too long. I found myself stopping often, hoping I'd be a lot closer to the end than I actually was. I don't think I'll be able to bring myself to continue with the series, just not my thing. 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3.

[Angie]

I have read Succubus Blues three times and I still feel like I want to give it a big hug upon finishing. It's funny, sexy, and sweet. The characters are absolutely wonderful. The plot is engaging, even if it does get a bit predictable. But there's a certain charm about it that I hadn't come across before or after. Georgina is a succubus, but she tries to be a "good" one. She's by no means perfect or pretending to be, but when someone starts killing off supernaturals, Georgina throws her whole self into figuring out who's doing it even if that means putting herself in danger to save those she cares about.

Succubus Blues just transports me to this happy place. I love Georgina! She's a succubus who is hanging on to her humanity and finds delight in the simple things. So what if she's going to live forever, she's going to savor the things that matter to her. She has some quirky habits, such as only reading five pages of her favorite novels a day to make them last. She cares deeply about people, even if she won't let herself date. But stealing energy from anyone she would kiss also makes that complicated (and adds some serious sexual tension in future books!). She's not without her flaws though, but she doesn't try to justify them. She knows when she's doing something bad, but she does try to find another way first. Basically, she feels like a real person, even though she's a demon.

I also adore the rest of the cast. Cody cracks me up as the new vampire who is too obsessed with his appearance. Carter, the hobo angel, is quite the mystery as he hangs out with a bunch of demons and always seems to know more than he lets on. Jerome, the archdemon, who looks like John Cusack and is quite infuriating! Then there's the love interests: Seth and Roman. Roman is charming and hot and causes a dilemma for Georgina, because she wants the closeness of a relationship but can't get close to anyone. Seth, on the other hand, is quiet and awkward, but his e-mails are clever and funny. I just want to grab everyone into a big group hug!

I just love Succubus Blues. And I've noticed now that there are a lot of little details that one would probably overlook, but are actually clues of things to come! I loved noticing this and it made me excited to revisit the rest of Georgina's story.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[kimbacaffeinate]

This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer

[liz089]

Reread 2019 - Audiobook ! LOVED it like this, will always be one of my favourite series 3

[Melanie]

Listening to audiobook.

DNF

I tried to listen to this story and just couldn't do it. It never really grabbed my attention. The characters were boring and after the several minute scene of attempting to put a bookcase together, I just couldn't stand it any more. I only made it 3 hours in, maybe it gets better later in the book.

My TBR list is getting longer not shorter. I just can't spend my time reading (or in this case listening) to something that is putting me to sleep. I'm moving on to something else.

[mbtc]

This was a fun book to listen to with a lot of likable characters. Would like to read the others in this series.

[SilverThistle]

The way to tell if a series is any good, is to get to the end of the first part and ask yourself "Will I be reading the follow on parts?". Well, I probably will be reading the rest of the Succubus books, but I'm not desperate to do it right now.

It's an ok book. It's got some interesting characters (I really like Carter), it had a bit of suspense (although I sort of guessed who-dunnit about half way through), it's got a nice mix of otherworldy goings-on and it's got a bit of romance thrown in.....although Succubii don't normally go for the 'romance' side of things really....usually.

Anyway, I'll read the next in the series for one main reason. The ending! Or rather, the beginning, because the first chapter of the next book was tacked onto the end of Succubus Blues and that was the clincher. It's nothing special or out of the ordinary, but the teaser chapter of the next book sounds great..... If that preview chapter hadn't been there I probably would call it a day at book one.

I liked it but it's not unlike a hundred other paranormal books out there at the moment. It's just a variation on a theme and if I'm honest I've maybe done them to death and they're all a bit 'samey'.

Must have something going for it though, I was ready to throw in the towel with this series but just at the final bell I got hooked back in....

[mitabird]

It was really nice getting back to the beginning of Seth and Georgina. Knowing what I know now, I saw a lot of clues that Mead dropped. Just as before, the first half of the book is pretty slow moving, but it was hard to put down about halfway through.

[inlibrisveritas]

I'm really glad I decided to start this series. It's refreshingly different then other paranormal novels I've read so it didn't feel like something I could find elsewhere. It's a light type of read but there is also depth, I also really like the love interest that she found in Seth. I enjoyed the style of writing as well, it was fluid and quick paced. The main character is quick witted and likable, and makes the story that much more enjoyable. I'll definitely continue the series.