The Demon's Daughter (Berkley Sensation)

Rating:
Summary: Intriguing Mix Of Fantasy, Mystery, History and Erotica.
Review: Although I would have given this delightful novel a more creative title - one which would inspire a wider variety of readers to take interest - Ms. Holly has written another winner with "The Demon's Daughter." An off-beat, science fiction-fantasy, cum Dickensian Oliver Twist, cum romance, the book is set in Victorian Avvar, in the Empire of Aedlyne. Avvar is a city not unlike London during Victoria's rule. It is inhabited by humans and demons - the Yama. Like the aristocratic British, the Yamas have a strict hierarchical society. The aristocracy, called "daimyos" do not want to be tainted by mingling with the lower classes (people), or with their own outcasts, rebels who refuse to live within their own hierarchical system, (called "rohn"). Yamas are a humanoid species, extremely beautiful and gifted. They are able to communicate telepathically and can feed off of human life force without killing their victims. Humans crave the high technology that Yamas have developed and accept the "rohn" into their world in exchange for the use of this advanced technology.

Inspector Adrian Philips, is a detective and peacekeeper, policing both human and "rohn" communities. He loves his work, is ambitious and has his heart set on moving up in his field, using whatever politics necessary. Roxanne McAllister is a lovely but eccentric artist, a painter, daughter of a deceased diva and an unknown father. She is an outcast from polite society because of her illegitimacy and her eccentricity. Roxanne lives on the edge of the Avvar slums with two boys who she picked up on the streets, starving and desperately in need of a home. Adolescent Charles, 5 year-old Max, (right out of Dickens), and Roxanne make-up an unusual but loving family of three...until Inspector Philips enters the picture.

Roxanne finds Adrian literally on her doorstep, seriously injured after a fight with hostile "rohn," and takes him in to care for him until he heals. The plot thickens with a huge dose of Ms. Holly's romance and erotica. The mainstream storyline is not bad either. One of the conflicts is that if Inspector Phillips follows his heart and stays with Roxanne, he will ruin his reputation and all chances for promotion. There are enough interesting subplots and unusual characters to make this a page turner. The two boys are adorable, Adrian's family is just too funny, and there's a chillingly evil doctor who steals children for experimentation to keep the plot edgy.

This is a fun book, which mixes fantasy, intrigue, history, and sensuality, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
JANA

Rating:
Summary: entertaining historical romantic suspense fantasy
Review: During the reign of Queen Victoria, Inspector Adrian Philip enhanced his ability to keep the peace between demons and humans by accepting implants that enable him to have the incredible physical skills of demons for a short time. However, the cost of doing his job better is that neither human nor demon society accepts Adrian as one of them.

Adrian wanders in a dangerous part of town seeking a missing boy Tommy Bainbridge. He is accosted by a local gang, but uses his implants to escape, but fails to get on the other safe side of the wall. Adrian collapses in the courtyard of Roxanne McCallister, an outcast half-breed. As she helps him recover from exhaustion due to the implant use and the beating from the gang, he realizes that he wants her. However, he knows no woman will have him as evidenced by Christine, his former wife of three months, who walked out on him. Roxanne is not Christine as she desires her patient, but knows no male, demon or human, would want an in-between soul like her.

This is an entertaining historical romantic suspense fantasy that never slows down from the moment the hero is fleeing for his life in the foggy Avvar slums until the final confrontation with his Roxie and (two buggers). The story line is action-packed and filled with a deep cast, especially the lead couple. However, what makes Emma Holly's tale so powerful is that fans from several genres will believe in this alternate Victorian world.

Harriet Klausner


Rating:
Summary: brilliant paranormal
Review: Emma Holly confused and dazzles. I just never know quite what she will be coming out with next. And this book is yet another curve in the road for this talented writer.

It's brilliant written, an original concept, with characters that pull at the heart.

Rating:
Summary: brilliant work from the genius of Holly
Review: Emma Holly is one of the hottest cutting-edge writers in today's market. She's gaining a strong fan base for her sizzling Romantica tales (Strange Attractions, Personal Best and her Black Lace books) to her Paranormals (Catching Midnight, Hunting Midnight and the novella in Hot Blooded) and Victorian Era (Beyond Innocence, Beyond Seduction). Frankly, I think Emma Holly can¯and does¯write anything she wants and does it unlike any writer around. Her writing is frank, open and she loves to walk on the wild side.

This time she ventures into another Paranormal tale that is both exciting and very original. It has the feel of another series, and one I will be looking forward to when they tales come! The range of Holly's writing is amazing, her deeply drawn characters and strong plot really set her above others Romantica writers. She succeeds while others often don't make the bar, because her works are well researched, and she gives such heart to her heroine and hero.

Set in the Victoria era, Inspector Adrian Philip of Securite Service, is more than a typical policeman, he is the keeper of peace between demons and humans. He has accepted implants in his body that enable him to have incredible strength, and to assume the powers of a demon for short periods. By accepting this role of protector of both, he belongs to neither. Adrian is an outsider in both worlds.

When Adrian seeks a missing boy, he is attacked by a local gang. Using his demonic implanted powers, he escapes. After using the powers, he is weakened and collapses in a courtyard of Roxanne McCallister. Roxanne is also an outcast, a half-breed, part demon, part human. She takes Adrian in and treats him. Adrian is very attracted to Roxanne, but knows no woman will want him. Proof of this is his former wife had walked out on him because of his not quite human state. Roxanne desires Adrian, but is unaware of his demon enhanced state. Being a half breed, she fears no man or demon would want her either. As Adrian recovers under Roxanne's tender care, he falls in love with her, yet tries to resist a relationship that could interfere with his police career, and ultimately will leave him hurt when she rejects him.

In true Emma Holly fashion, the love scenes are beyond erotic, but she never loses a firm grasp on what makes Romance work. Her fantasy world works, because she strongly roots it in reality of caring people that linker in the readers mind long after you put the book down.

Another keeper for my Emma Holly shelf! They are racking up very fast, and each one so special.

Rating:
Summary: Ms. Holly does it again!
Review: Honestly, I didn't know what to expect with this book. When authors creat different worlds it can either go very good or very bad. I am happy to report that Ms. Holly did an excellent job of creating a parallel world that just happens to have demons in it. I couldn't put the book down. The romance was excellent and this being an Emma Holly book the sex was divine. I have to say that the first kiss was one of the best first kisses I've ever read and I've read a lot off books. Pick this book up for that and keep reading to enjoy the ride!


Rating:
Summary: Another unique offering from Ms. Holly!
Review: I have always marveled at Emma Holly's exquisite use of erotica in her novels. I have enjoyed almost all of her work and had looked forward to reading more. I enjoyed Strange Attractions and couldn't wait to read The Demon's Daughter. This novel's unique brand of romance, erotica and fantasy enthralled me from beginning to end. Imagine a setting that is similar to Victorian London but with futuristic technology and demons inhabiting the earth. You get the city of Avvar and demons that feed from human life force with sex. Inspector Adrian Philips is one of the best police officers out there. In order to tackle both humans and demons, he implanted demon strength into his system and has suffered major prejudices because of it. It even destroyed his marriage. However, his life isn't the same after he meets Roxanne McAllister. Strong, independent and uninhibited, Roxie seduces him to new heights. But his romance with Roxie could cost him his career, especially after he finds out that she is the illegitimate daughter of a powerful demon, a demon her human mother had had an affair with. There are various twists throughout the novel.

The sex scenes in this novel are very hot and tangible -- branding it with the signature Emma Holly romantica. The building of tension and scenes centered on seduction reminded me of Beyond Seduction, but the difference is that Roxie, i.e. the woman, is the seducer in this one. It is so nice to read about a sexually confident woman in a romance novel for a change. I loved the scene in the bathtub and the first encounter the most. The overall story is quite intriguing and the characters are well developed. But I couldn't help picturing the demons as aliens of some sort because of their silver eyes with no surrounding whites. I also couldn't help but notice that this novel could have easily been a regular Victorian romance with all the social obstacles and other aspects that this one possesses. I understand that Holly wanted to be creative and write something a little more different, but the demons came across as unnecessary fillers at times. Other than that, this is a great novel. Emma Holly has once again illustrated the reasons why she is one of my favorite romantica authors. I cannot wait to read her future projects. In the meantime, I cannot recommend The Demon's Daughter enough.


Rating:
Summary: Very enjoyable
Review: I picked this book up because a friend of mine had read it, and told me about it. She described it as, "Victorian, only not", and I think that's a pretty apt, if short, description. Emma Holly gives us two main character who are flawed, but not in an irredeemable way. Holly also has a flair with showing us the internal conflicts her characters are going through. This book is definately adult in content, but the erotic content compliments the main story, instead of overwhelming it. A good read, and very much something to be read more than once.

Rating:
Summary: Breaking the Mold: Apparently Absent Archetypes
Review: Let me start with Inspector Adrian Phillips, DEMON'S lead male.... Adrian isn't a normal male lead. There are cracks in what would otherwise be a counterfeit archetype-the typical erotic-romantic-fantasy author's Ken doll, if you will. He's sensitive, but sometimes hurts others while he's trying to do the right things. Adrian has strength both of character and body that he must come to recognize in himself over time. Adrian is vulnerable and shy and imperfect, but with an overwhelming passion and sensuality just bubbling
under his polite emotional shell.

Roxanne McAllister is a not what she appears to be either. I think Holly uses Roxanne to represent the reality for most women (and maybe men too) that individuals are often desired for the same qualities about which the world's most harsh judgments are made-sexuality, strength and race (species, rather), among other things. Roxanne is as in need of love as Adrian, and the love story between Roxanne and Adrian is as tender as it is seductive.

Holly's recipe for Adrian and Roxanne (and all the characters really) was crafted with a masterful hand. With both lead characters, I think Holly strives to bring androgyny to gender stereotypes-that is, showing that behaviors that may seem distinguishably male or female can and do exist in BOTH genders in reality. Holly has created a world that made me think-about racism, about the imperfection of love as well as its connection to hate and, most importantly, about myself.

Additionally, Holly must understand that overemphasizing Adrian's beauty would make us wonder if there was anything else to the man. That overdosing us with his too-perfect integrity underneath a nearly impenetrable veneer of darkness would stretch the bounds of a reader's belief to breaking.

I think Holly knew too that the finesse of grays (not so many extremes in behavior that the subtlety of characterization would be lost) was the way to go when she created her characters. Otherwise, Holly would have lost that deeper connection with me that allowed me to step into their shoes for awhile, feel pity for them, feel angry for them and keep my fingers crossed, hoping that their situations would eventually sort themselves out.

The fantasy foundation of DEMON and the underlying story regarding the Yama `demons' and the humans is intellectually stimulating and very creative. This sci-fi background is given proper respect and attention, and it does not feel thrown together as an afterthought.

The difference between DEMON and other books that a-s-p-i-r-e to be comparable erotica-romantica-fantasy is like the difference between making love and having you-know-what. There's erotic-romantic-fantasy out there that's fun. It's provocative. And it's also depthless. I read those, but I don't hold my breath. I don't think back on the characters in those books; I donate those to the library when I'm finished. If, like me you wait for a book to come out that makes you hold your breath and linger over every line, so that you don't have to come to the ending, then DEMON is your book. If you write, DEMON will make you want to initiate a more ambitious writing project.

I haven't read an Emma Holly that I have not liked as of today. And after reading BEYOND INNOCENCE and BEYOND SEDUCTION (I own but have not read STRANGE ATTRACTIONS and wish to read MENAGE) , I frankly cannot imagine reading an Emma Holly book that I don't love.

Two Thumbs Way Up!


Rating:
Summary: Erotic Story Set in an Alternate World with Demons
Review: THE DEMON'S DAUGHTER is erotic - and most of the plot revolves around the sex scenes. I'm not complaining, mind you. I'm just warning you that there is A LOT of intimacy in this book. Some of it is very exciting - to the point where you don't want to read this book in public for fear of embarrassing yourself. Yet, sometimes, the sexual descriptions are so detailed it's almost clinical (and sadly humorous, to boot).

I personally enjoyed DEMON'S DAUGHTER. It's the first book I've read by Emma Holly, and it has made me curious to read more. DEMON'S DAUGHTER takes place in an alternate world, sort of a Victorian England thriving with both humans and a technologically superior race called the Yama that feed off of human energy. The heroine, Roxy, is half Yamish (or, half demon), while her hero, Adrian, is a cop who is something of an outcast among his fellow humans for having Yamish implants that make him super-strong. Accident throws them together, while social and racial issues try to break them part.

I thought Roxy and Adrian were both well rounded, intriguing characters who (demons aside) actually seemed realistic. My only complaint would be Adrian is the only hero I've ever read about who blushes over everything, non-stop (he is the exact opposite of a bodice-ripping, chauvinistic warrior-type), while Roxy's initial resentment and anger toward her Yamish father seem overblown. Other than that, DEMON'S DAUGHTER was fun to read. Adrian is quite probably the most inoffensive hero EVER to grace a romance novel (he's a real sweetie), and while there is some colorful language used in this book, overall it's still pretty tasteful and quite exciting to read. Just remember, this book is all about the love scenes. If that doesn't bother you, then you'll be sure to enjoy this most unusual, most unique love story. PS. Will Charles get his own story?





Rating:
Summary: Just about perfect
Review: This was so well crafted. You actually felt like you were in Victorian England (well with demons). The heroine is resourceful and loving. Adrian is smart yet not over bearing. He is not a super alpha male hero, but he shows such care and love. I love the fact that he makes difficult choices and is not apologetic about them. No quirky, zany characters or last minute saves from new people. This is a tightly drawn story you will soak in. The only real problem is it ends a little abruptly. I could have gone on for another 100 pages.