Rating:  Summary: excellent Review: I liked this book more than Caress of Twilight. Unlike the first two books, there's no mystery or investigation in this book. The first half of the book is filled with new and regained powerful magic for Merry and her men in Los Angeles. The latter half of the book takes place at the Unseelie court and is full of ten new guards, two new goblins, politics, a duel, assassination attempts, more scary Andais, and a great ending. My favourite part of Laurell K. Hamilton's books is that the heroine, by being an honorable, protecting, courageous person, gets ahead in life. Merry's responsible, humble, sheltering nature turns more and more guards to care for her more than the Queen. I liked the ending in particular because it was very tender and shows Merry's old guards easing the new guards into the very different culture of guarding Merry, which the old guards seem grateful for as a reprieve from the Queen's tender care. The book heavily hints that the next books in the series will cover their visit to the Goblin Court and the Seelie Court, and Merry keeping her bargain with Sholto. I've read it 3 times in 2 days, and now I'm re-reading the entire series again. I can't wait for the next one. Highly recommended.
Rating:  Summary: The best work yet in this great fantasy series Review: When President Jefferson invited the fae to make their home in America on the condition they would not set themselves up as destroyers, they had no choice but to accept. No other country wanted them and to keep their cultural identity they gave up much of their powers. Now the courts of the Sealie and Unsealie are dying, with very few children born to carry on the line.Queen Andais of the Unsealie court has made her son and her niece compete for the throne with the first one to get pregnant or to get someone with child named the heir. Princess Merry is worried that even with her own harem she remains barren but also worries that her magic is growing in her and she doesn't know how to control it, a dangerous position to be in when many Sidhe want her dead. Many people think it's a dream come true to have a harem but the princess knows that some of the shallower men only want her to take the throne so they can share in her power. SEDUCED BY MOONLIGHT is a magical romantic fantasy that will charm anyone who reads it. There are many surprises concerning the heroine and the author brilliantly sets the stage for the storyline of the next book in the series. Laurell K. Hamilton remains one of this reviewer's top ten favorite authors, a slot she has held for years (but not as far back as the Jefferson Presidency). Harriet Klausner
Rating:  Summary: Read the print edition; skip the recorded version Review: If you love the Merry Gentry series, stick with the print edition on this one. Some idiots at Brilliance Audio cast a thin-voiced, 50-something with the acting charm of a bored librarian to read a deliciously naughty first person novel about a sexy princess in her early thirties. What were they thinking? The reader is SO BAD that it ruins the experience of a wonderful book. Skip the recorded edition - the print edition is much livelier and more fun!
Rating:  Summary: Read the print edition; skip the recorded version Review: If you love the Merry Gentry series, stick with the print edition on this one. Some idiots at Brilliance Audio decided to cast a thin-voiced, 50-something with the acting charm of a bored librarian to read this deliciously naughty, first person novel about a sexy princess in her early thirties. What were they thinking? The reader is SO BAD that she totally ruins the experience of a genuinely wonderful book.
Rating:  Summary: Seduced by Frost, Doyle, Rhys, Sage, etc, etc, etc....... Review: Ok. I have no problem with a few sexy scenes in a book, but when it becomes the entire focus, thats when I have a problem. Seduced By Moonlight was so slow in its first half that I came dangerously close to not even finishing it. The beginning chapters were just one page after another filled with wordy dream sequences and excuse after excuse to get Merry's men naked. I will be the first to admit that Merry's men are beyond beautiful and truly it is no hardship to get to "know" them intimately, but I need a plot, people! FINALLY, after speedreading through too many things that I could have done without, LKH pulled it all together and from midway on, the book became interesting. I thought that some of the violence in the books ending scenes was a bit over the top, but the last pages were fun to read as Merry settled in for the night and we were able to look in and listen to her and her suitors as they whispered to eachother while drifting off to sleep. I just love Rhys and I definitely felt like he stole the show in those last pages. All in all, this is a definite must read if you are a fan. There is too much going on at this point for me to stop reading the series and I hope that LKH comes out with the next book soon because I am very curious to see which man will become Merrys husband.
Rating:  Summary: Loveless Review: Bravo!!! Hamilton strikes gold again with the third book that goes with the Merry Gentry books. This sexy, well-written book was definately worth the wait. Merry is brave and beautiful, the men are powerful and sexy, and the enemies are strong and believable. This book doesn't have as much action as the other two, but the writing is sensual, which makes it easy to read. Hamilton's detailed writing makes each scene and each chapter come vividly to life. There can be no doubt in your mind what's going on due to the way she writes. The magic each person has is unique in its own way and seems to fit the character perfectly. The politics are great too! It's interesting to read and notice how Merry handles herself with her allies and enemies. There has been some complaints about too many new lovers and characters in this book, and I have to agree. It gets a little confusing at the end because of all the new characters. She could've just stuck with Rhys, Doyle, Frost, Galen, Nicca, and Kitto. Especially Rhys!! He is super sexy, and I think he has the best power of all...and of course the most deadly. He sounds the most sexy too. (even though he's missing an eye) There was also a little too much sex too. But it is understandable because she is trying to get pregnant. All-in-all, Seduced By Moonlight, is a wonderful book with a great plot and excellent characters. I definately recommend it, and hope there will be another Merry Gentry book coming out soon!
Rating:  Summary: I love it Review: Regardless of the negative reviews that I have read, I found that I really enjoyed the book.
Rating:  Summary: Keep your $6.95 Review: Seduced by Moonlight starts out bad and doesn't get much better. I struggled with myself to keep reading although it was most possibly the worst book purchase I have made. Not having read the other books in this series, I can say with certainty that I am not missing anything by skipping them!
Rating:  Summary: Nearly plotless soft-porn; borrow from the library Review: I gave this one star, because it didn't look like I could give it zero.
Like many other readers it seems, my first introduction to Ms. Hamilton was "Guilty Pleasures", the very first book in the Anita Blake series. I enjoyed it immensely, and proceeded to inhale the next six books in the series (fortunately they'd already been published). Then the series began to go downhill. With each new book, Anita gained a new power, lost a few more of her morals, and had quite a bit more sex ... and so on and so forth until her escapades are no longer remotely believable and the books detailing those escapades are three quarters soft-porn.
Unfortunately, Hamilton's "Meredith Gentry" series seems to be "Anita Blake" on growth hormones. Only three books into this saga, Meredith is already collecting powers left right and centre and copulating with everyone in sight.
Don't get me wrong: I appreciate a good sex-scene as much as the next well-adjusted post-pubescent person. As long as all parties involved are rational and consenting adults, they can do what ever the hell tickles their fancy. Hetero-sex, same-sex, S/M, D/s, BDSM, kink, bring it on. It doesn't bother me a whit.
But, personally, if I had to choose between a sex scene and plot-development, the plot would win hands-down any day of the week. I'd prefer not to have to choose. If I could get both, I'd be very pleased. Unfortunately, I don't get to choose, and unfortunately, Ms. Hamilton's choice is not mine. And to add insult to injury: the sex isn't even that good!
"Seduced by Moonlight" saw me skipping entire pages, utterly bored by the tedious sex-scenes, stopping only briefly to take note of what new weird and wonderful thing had occurred as a result of Meredith's latest orgasm. Maybe I missed some of them. I don't know. I don't really care. And doesn't that just say it all?
I will say one thing for Hamilton. Her descriptive prose is beautiful and does a great job of painting a scene for me. She could, however, mix it up a little, since if I read one more time about how Merry had swallowed the moon I think I'd have thrown the book away in disgust.
In all other aspects, however, there is a *great* deal of room for improvement. Her characterisation leaves a lot to be desired, the plot gets lost in the constant sex, and if someone - *anyone* - can show me what Meredith sees in Frost, I'd be eternally grateful.
My recommendation: if you're really interested in finding out what happens next, borrow it from the library. Don't waste good money on this drivel. I will admit that I may hang on for another couple of books, though I'm fairly certain that Meredith's eventual pregnancy will be delayed as long as possible to get as much sex in with as many different people as Hamilton can possibly conceive of. I live in hope that Doyle will be king. If it doesn't happen, I may never even look at another Hamilton book again.
Rating:  Summary: Couldn't we at least get GOOD sex? Review: I'm starting to be disappointed in Laurell Hamilton's work. Not necessarily because she's putting so much sex into her books, but because a) it's at the expense of plot, dialogue, and character and b) it's bad sex. If this were a book filled with nothing but hot, kinky sex, I'd be just fine with that. But the sex isn't even that great! The second half is taken up with Meredith touching a bunch of guys with a magical ring that gets her off each time. Nice, but after the fifth guy in line, it gets a little old, and very unsatisfying for the rest of us.
The plot, if anyone cares, involves Meredith coming into some serious and mysterious new power that could restore the Unseelie Court to its former glory - if she can stay alive and keep it out of the hands of her enemies. Typically, however, she's less concerned with resurrecting Faerie than with picking out outfits and cuddling with her bodyguards. And talking. My God, do these people talk a lot. They will literally drop whatever they're doing and go on for pages at a time, about the most inconsequential detail imaginable - yet, when something really, really important happens, it barely even rates a mention. Nicca's wings burst out of his back in the middle of having sex with Meredith - and she wipes the blood off her face and hauls someone else into her bed. Focus, girl!
The end is left somewhat dangling - the whole book takes place over the course of a few days, so a lot of issues are raised that don't get resolved. I can hope, I guess, that they'll be addressed in the 4th book, "Stroke of Midnight", but something tells me I shouldn't hold my breath. On the other hand, Meredith adds a few more men to her queue, so at least the hot sex should be back soon.
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