Amanda Weidensjö

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: This short story dates back to the period shortly after Michael turns vampire, and Shane’s still deeply uncomfortable about it. He’s also still picking fights to work off his rage, which never really helps him. Warning: there’s drinking. And confessions. And secret missions with night vision. Bonus Bishop, and scary battles. Michael and Shane, being heroes together. Which seems about right. Another great short story! One of the oldest friendships (human friendship) is Shane and Michael. And it was nice having a story of them together, especially, after Michael turning into a vampire their relationship has been strained. Shane hasn't been holding back when it comes to jabbing at Michael about the whole vampire thing but at the end of the day he will have Michael's back and protect him, and vice versa.  I loved the perspective being from Shane's point of view for this story. Claire has had thoughts and feelings of doubt when i...

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: Without the evil vampire Bishop ruling over the town of Morganville, the resident vampires have made major concessions to the human population. With their newfound freedoms, Claire Danvers and her friends are almost starting to feel comfortable again…Now Claire can actually concentrate on her studies, and her friend Eve joins the local theatre company. But when one of Eve’s castmates goes missing after starting work on a short documentary, Eve suspects the worst. Claire and Eve soon realize that this film project, whose subject is the vampires themselves, is a whole lot bigger—and way more dangerous—than anyone suspected. Another fantastic book in this wonderful series that keeps on giving. The previous one we finally got the big bad Bishop killed and brought back some normalcy in Morganville. So typically, once you kill the big antagonist, it's hard to keep a story going, however, I'm so happy to say this wasn't the case. I...

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: Normal life in Morganville. As far as normal ever was, Shane Collins thought; nobody was overtly rioting, getting arrested, or killing anyone. Not on the street, anyway. One of the hard-to-find exclusive stories written specifically for the UK editions (which at the time were being published a month or two after the US releases, meaning that die-hard fans rushed to buy internationally) … it was offered as an extra to help the UK publisher convince fans there to wait for the local edition, and it seems to have worked! I love these little short stories. Especially, when it is from a different character's perspective. We don't often get to see much from Shane by himself so I'm happy this short story exists. He has truly grown and changed for the better so far in the series and it truly shows in this story.  Aside from Claire, Shane is the only one in the house who doesn't have a car. For most it doesn't seem much but wh...

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: In the small college town of Morganville, vampires and humans lived in (relative) peace-until all the rules got rewritten when the evil vampire Bishop arrived, looking for the lost book of vampire secrets. He's kept a death grip on the town ever since. Now an underground resistance is brewing, and in order to contain it, Bishop must go to even greater lengths. He vows to obliterate the town and all its inhabitants-the living and the undead. Claire Danvers and her friends are the only ones who stand in his way. But even if they defeat Bishop, will the vampires ever be content to go back to the old rules, after having such a taste of power? Another fantastic book in the Morganville series! I seem to be a broken record but damn it I’ll say it again. I am beyond impressed by how much Caine is able to include in a book with only a couple hundred pages. I’ve wasted my time on reading books with triple the amount of pages and maybe with 5%...

***This review will contain spoilers***  Summary: This story came about just because I wanted to know more about Myrnin for my own understanding of his character, and sometimes, the best way to achieve that is to write a character’s history from his/her point of view. The character tells me what’s important, and what changed, for better or worse. Discovering that Myrnin’s father had some type of mental disorder was important to me, because of course when he was born, such things weren’t really understood. When I was working on the draft of the first book in which Myrnin appeared, my co-worker who read it said, ‘Oh, you’ve written a bipolar character, and he’s actually really cool! Did you know that I take medication for that?’ She went on to relate all the ways he was familiar to her. I was amazed, and honoured. I won’t name the co-worker, for privacy, but I say now, as then: thank you for sharing your story with me, and you know who you are. I hope Myrnin continues to make you pro...

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: In the college town of Morganville, vampires and humans coexist in (relatively) bloodless harmony. Then comes Bishop, the master vampire who threatens to abolish all order, revive the forces of the evil dead, and let chaos rule. But Bishop isn't the only threat. Violent black cyclone clouds hover, promising a storm of devastating proportions as student Claire Danvers and her friends prepare to defend Morganville against elements both natural and unnatural. I have said it in the past and I shall say it again. I am beyond impressed how much Caine is able to include in just a couple hundred pages. I have read books with 700+ pages and have just a fraction of action or plot in comparison to the Morganville books.  Lord of Misrule is slightly different in comparison to the previous books where they were structured this one is more chaotic and erratic. Which absolutely makes sense. There's an outright war in Morganville, humans are h...

***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: Living in West Texas is sort of like living in Hell, but without the favorable climate and charming people. Living in Morganville, Texas, is all that and a takeout bag of worse. I should know. My name is Shane Collins, and I was born here, left here, came back here—none of which I had much choice about. Another great short story from Caine! It was nice to have the point of view of a different character than Claire. Shane plays a huge part in the series but we have rarely seen a emotional side to him thus far. I love when authors write short stories because it adds a different level of intimacy with a character that we might not have experienced otherwise through the series. Zombies in Morganville? I guess with vampires around it wouldn't be surprising that a different type of undead would be around and of course creating havoc in Shane Collins life. And of course who else would be behind Shane's abduction than daddy dearest. Shan...

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: In the town of Morganville, vampires and humans live in relative peace. Student Claire Danvers has never been convinced, though, especially with the arrival of Mr. Bishop, an ancient, old-school vampire who cares nothing about harmony. What he wants from the town's living and its dead is unthinkably sinister. It's only at a formal ball, attended by vampires and their human dates, that Claire realizes the elaborately evil trap he's set for Morganville. I love how much Caine is able to pack in a book of just a couple hundred pages. It's like non stop organized chaos. There's a war brewing with Bishop in town and all these motherfuckers are playing chess while most of the humans in town are unsure of what is even happening. Another reason why I love Claire is that no matter how outnumbered or outpowered she is, she is still going to stand up for what's right and hold her ground. Granted she might not hold it for lon...

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: When Claire Danvers learnt that her college town was run by vampires, she did what any intelligent, self-preserving student would do: she applied for a transfer and stocked up on garlic. The transfer is no longer an option, but that garlic may come in handy. Now Claire has pledged herself to Amelie, the most powerful vampire in town. The protection her contract secures does little to reassure her friends. All of a sudden, people are turning up dead, a stalker resurfaces from Claire's past, and an ancient bloodsucker extends a chilling invitation for private lessons in his secluded home. Another great book! Just when I think the story will start to die down, Caine just suckers me right back in. I love that the books start right where the previous one left off, so you can finish one and pick up the next one to continue on with the journey. The fact that Caine is able to fit so much in just a couple hundred pages shows the talent she h...

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary:  This story details events discussed in The Dead Girls’ Dance about the death of Shane’s sister Alyssa. Here, in its entirety, is the story of that night told mainly from Shane’s point of view. Another great short story by Rachel Caine! The first two books briefly mentioned Shane's sister; Alyssa and her tragic demise but it was nice to get a different perspective on the Morganville residents prior to Claire's attendance. Of course, Michael and Shane are the best of buds and we had a insight to the dynamics of Shane's family. Mother is absent working to keep the family afloat, the father is a drunk drowning in his sorrows which if you asked me being drunk would be the last thing I would want to do in a town full of vampires. Finally, we have baby sister Alyssa and big brother Shane. Both have the usual sibling dynamic and Shane being the older brother took up that mantle quite easily.  A bitch is a bitch and unfortunately ...

 Summary: A brief vignette to understand Amelie's and Oliver's relationship. This was written very early on, between Glass Houses and The Dead Girls’ Dance... This really was a short story of maybe 4 to 5 pages. I wish it would have been longer since I find Amelie from what little has been introduced about her in the first two books quite interesting. We don't know much about her. We don't know how old she is, how she came to become a vampire or why Morganville is so important to her. Out of all the places to choose to reside in, the United States wouldn't be my first choice. Especially, as a vampire.  Amelie doesn't seem to like Oliver either but yet she allows him some leeway. I do wish to see these two go head to head which seems to be coming up soon in the series seeing as how in The Dead Girls' Dance he was plotting with Shane's dad to get rid of Amelie. I know Amelie doesn't take kindly to disrespect and I hope she puts Oliver in his place.  Fr...

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: Eve Rosser is turning eighteen. Does she accept the Protection or go without? This is a short story about Eve prior to the start of the series and the Glass Houses book. It is technically before the start of Glass Houses but I preferred to read a couple of the books in the series first and then read some of the short stories of our favourite or new characters. Makes it easier for me to understand the whole story and I love getting an insight on characters since the Morganville series is read from Claire's point of view.  I am impressed with how much Caine was able to include in a short story. Eve had to endure more than anyone should have to, especially, on their birthday. She is out with some friends drinking and celebrating her eighteenth birthday but things turn for the worse when one of her friends drives while under the influence. Of course it leads to an accident and only but two girls make it out alive. Eve and her best ...

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: Claire Danvers has her share of challenges---like being a genius in a school that favors beauty over brains, dealing with the homicidal girls in her dorm, and above all, finding out that her college town is overrun with vampires. On the up side, she has a great roommate (who tends to disappear at sunup) and a new boyfriend named Shane, whose vampire-hunting dad has called in backup: cycle punks who like the idea of killing just about anything. Now a fraternity is throwing its annual Dead Girls' Dance and---surprise!---Claire and her equally outcast best friend, Eve, have been invited. When they find out why, all hell is going to break loose. Because this time both the living and the dead are coming out---and everybody's hungry for blood. I just need to start off by saying how amazing this book was! We have murder, action, teen angst and a whole lot of vampires. Despite it being the second book in the series, we weren't overw...

 ***This review will contain spoilers*** Summary: College freshman Claire Danvers has had enough of her nightmarish dorm situation. When Claire heads off-campus, the imposing old house where she finds a room may not be much better. Her new roommates don't show many signs of life, but they'll have Claire's back when the town's deepest secrets come crawling out, hungry for fresh blood. Will she be able to face the town's terror or will she drown like everyone else? This is exactly what I needed right now in my life! I have read books from this series at least over a decade ago at this point and I remember loving them back then. I have been in such a reading funk these past few years trying/soldiering through Hamilton's Anita Blake series that I'm making a shift for the remainder of this year and I am happy to say this decision is already proving to be the best one. I ended up reading Glass Houses  within 4 days. Granted this book has less than 300 pages but wi...