Rating: 
Summary: WASTE OF MONEY
Review: ---ONE STAR FOR THE STORY LINE.
The story line is catching, but the writing itself is abominable. I was recommended this book by a friend, and I will NEVER listen to her again.
The heroine is at best an "amateur" although she is very old in "human" years. She's lost and looking for someone to love her as she is. Now, the hero, is scarred and disfigured--yet his brother's wife is obsessed with him for some otherworldly reason.
The villains are by no means "evil". In fact, Nim Wei(the villain) seems to fall in love with the hero's brother, without even putting up a fight, of sorts.
IT DRAGGED! I WAS THINKING OF GOING BACK TO B&N FOR A REFUND! HORRENDOUS BOOK! DONT WASTE YOUR MONEY!
Rating: 
Summary: If this is the direction Ms Holly will be taking . . .
Review: . . . then this may be the last of her books I read. I'm surprised at all the 5 star reviews. I'm with "shereads" and CBDB and others - this book was a bit boring and to be truthful, I haven't even finished it yet. I've gotten three quarters of the way through and I'm stalled. I don't know if I'm even interested enough in finding out what will happen to finish it!In the interest of full disclosure, I'm not a reader of paranormal romances. Frankly, shapeshifting blood suckers are not normally my cup of tea, but the number of 5 star reviews (particularly from reviewers I usually agree with) and the fact that I enjoyed both Beyond Innocence and Beyond Seduction, convinced me to give this book a chance. It's not a bad book, it just didn't hold my interest. You expect immortals to be fascinating, alluring and enigmatic, but the immortals here seemed all too human. Gillian was ok, but seemed awfully bland for a vampire/upyr. Aimery seemed like a nice guy but again, nothing special. Their relationship was a strange almost naive sort of childish love and fascination for each other, albeit a sexual one. Nim Wei had possibilities as an evil presence, but seemed under utilized - her relationship with Aimery's brother Edmund was more intriguing than that between Gillian and Aimery just because it was so unlikely. I guess I had expected more intrigue, danger, manipulation and tension than this book offered. It's not even particularly dark or gothic in tone. I wonder what a real fan of paranormals would think of this book as it seems a bit tame to me. I also expected a bit more sexual tension but the hottest scene for me was in the very first chapter between wolfpack leader Ulric and Gillian - some serious pheromones there! The very scene Ms Holly excerpted on her website to entice readers to buy this book - tells you something doesn't it! Unfortunately for those of us hoping this is a temporary dip in the paranormal pool, I believe the title of her next book is "Hunting Midnight" so it would appear that more "children of the night" are forthcoming. I'll just save my money.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Romance
Review: As usual Emma Holly's latest novel, Catching Midnight, is a full-bodied erotic romance. However, this time she adds a paranormal flavor which greatly enhances the reader's pleasure. Set in the mid to late 1300s Scotland, where tales of witches, warlocks, and shape-shifters are easily believable, begins the story of a waif trying to make her way in the world. From the very beginning she draws the attention of two beings who will influence the path and form she takes in life. It is this path that will lead her straight to her lifemate who must decide if being a mere mortal is enough for his lover. I'll only leave you with this teaser because you have to experience this tale with an open mind. In my opinion Ms. Holly did a great job with her first paranormal eromantica. I'm looking forward to another! I'd love to know what happened to this couple ...
Rating: 
Summary: Expecting Much More Spice
Review: Considering Emma Holly's talent for erotic romances, I thought this tale of shapeshifters and mortals to be on par with her other novels. In fact, having rediscovered my taste for paranormal romances, this one had a rather interesting premise. If anything, the sexual scenes lacked the emotional intensity I have come to expect from someone whom my favourite writer, Robin Schone considers one of the best in the genre. Not to mention they were rather vanilla in scope. While I enjoyed Aimery Fitz Clare as a beta male hero, it seemed as if Ms. Holly was trying to make him both a beta and an alpha male. Gillian was probably one of the most boring immortals I've ever read about. I couldn't empathize with her. Nim Wei would have made a better lead heroine, because there seemed to be more depth to her. While I was disappointed in this book, I am looking forward to reading Ms. Holly's Victorian-themed romances.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: Emma Holly is definitely my favorite writer in this genre. None of her books have disappointed me. She is able to tell an amazing story filled with memorable characters and an intricate plot. Some of her critics complain that the sex scenes are too graphic, but I think that they are perfect. Her scenes are realistic without being overly awkward or disrespectful. All told, the writing is hot, hot, HOT.
The only other writer who as impressed me as much is Linda Howard. If you like her, you'll love Emma Holly. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend either author to a friend.
Rating:
Summary: Not impressed.
Review: I am a big Emma Holly fan, and an avid reader of paranormal romance. I loved Luisa's story in the FANTASY anthology. That said, I'd have to say that I didn't care much for this book. I think it had too many elements, ans was not nearly long enough to really tackle everything she tried to approach, plot wise. The "werewolves" the shape-shifting, the animal bond, the vampirism, the transformation, it really tried to do too much. Plot wise, there were too many bit-players that the reader knew too little about. Istead of concentrating on 2 major players and 2-3 additional minor characters, the author confused us with 2 main characters and 10-15 minor players who occasionally only appeared for a page or two. This book would have been much better if it was longer, and could go into much greater detail about the paranormal elements and the description of the characters, or if it was pared down and distilled to a much simpler story.
Rating:
Summary: What Happened?
Review: I am a huge, I mean HUGE Emma Holly fan. I love her erotica and I love her first two books in the Romance genre. So... you can imagine how disappointed I am that after 4 weeks I still have not finished reading this book. It took me about 5 days to read every other book of hers but I became so uninterested in the characters that I had to force myself to even get three fourths of the way through. What happened to the passion and sexual tension between her characters that is usually so beautifuly writen. I didn't find the story erotic in the least bit. Of course I will buy and read her next book because everything else that she has written has been amazing but I can't recommend this one. If you want to read a truly wonderful story of Ms. Holly's try Beyond Seduction ... but be careful...it could burn a hole in your sheets.
Rating:
Summary: cathing midnight
Review: i have just finished the book and i loved it. this was the first book i have read of hers and i am going back today to buy another.
Rating:
Summary: cathing midnight
Review: i have just finished the book and i loved it. this was the first book i have read of hers and i am going back today to buy another.
Rating:
Summary: Neither erotic nor sensual nor romantic
Review: I have to admit I really like Ms. Holly's erotic books (esp Cooking up a Storm). In fact, I think she has the potential to be a really spicy writer. Alas, she has tried to go mainstream romance paranormal in this book and has ended up with a hopeless hash that her editor really should have known better than to publish.
The first complaint-the loves scenes are so toned down no as to be total plain vanilla between the hero and the heroine. But she commits the cardinal sin of having her heroine have a really spicy romance scene at the start of the book with her ex, and the lion's share of the rest of the 'loves scenes' is the manipulative woman who is the heroine's enemy using her power on an unsuspecting priest and the hero's brother.
Repeat after me: a romance is a hero and heroine falling in love. There are only three scenes which really count between the hero and heroine and the rest is her disguised as a hawk. She is an upyr, a half vampire half werewolf, but the supernatural bits are not really thrilling enough or fully consistent in the book. There was no genuine commitment or even conversation between the couple-I could never figure out why he was supposed to be so heroic. He was a knight at Poitiers? So were lots of others. The obsessive sister in law as villain is also pretty weak. The truly intriuing characters get no real airtime, like her 'father'-but why introduce so many if it is only going to detract from the couple.
Ms. Holly is undoubtedly a writer with talent, but Beyond Seduction and Beyond Innocence were actually better than this novel because at least she was writing with some verve and style, and some passion, even if they were not very typical of what romance readers want (proposed menage a quatres and back door action, for example).
Some of the sentences in this book were unreadable. There are plenty of other werewolf and vampire stories far more sensual (or erotic if you prefer). I am giving it two stars because she ought be be encouraged to try to be a better writer, but not many people have the luxury of cutting their teeth in a major publishing house, and most of them would be too embarrassed. Give this one a miss.
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