Home of the Alpha Showdown, and one-stop shop for urban fantasy, paranormal romance and fantasy news and reviews.
While most of our Character Love Letters are to book boyfriends, sometimes we have book best friends. That’s the case today. Kelly from Reading the Paranormal is down to be Atticus O’Sullivan’s bestie. And why not? The Druid is funny and clever and has an awesome dog. So many reasons to love. If you haven’t started Kevin Hearne’s series, I suggest starting with Hounded. Now on to the letter! Atticus....
Trapped (The Iron Druid Chronicles #5) Kevin Hearne Published: Nov. 27, 2012 (DelRey) Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon Reviewed by: Jo Rating (out of 5): 5 stars Note: This review will be spoiler free, but it does make reference to earlier books from the Iron Druid series. If you haven’t started this series yet, check out Chelsea’s review of the first book, Hounded. When I picked up Hounded two... 
We’re doing things slightly differently this year. This is the first year where we have associate reviewers at VBC. As such, it didn’t feel quite right to only include my top 10. So, you’ll find my 10 picks for the absolute best books of 2012 and below that a top 5 list from Jo and Candace, respectively. Plus, of course, we have your winner for the reader’s choice best book. (See the Best Of lists from... 
In an effort to help you keep that to-read list updated, I’ve compiled the hot urban fantasy and paranormal romance releases for November 2012. All dates are U.S. and tentative. Also: Click the title of any book to visit the Amazon page for pre-order or purchase goodness. I’ve included genre classification with each book: UF is urban fantasy, PNR is paranormal romance, F is fantasy and YA is young adult.... 
Round 5 of the Alpha Showdown 2012 has the back-from-the-dead leader of Cadogan House of vampires Ethan Sullivan taking on Atticus O’Sullivan, a 2,100-year-old druid with a death goddess backing him up. We expect blood — Ethan looks thirsty — and magic — Atticus can pull from the earth. But most of all we expect a serious fight from the two alphas with Sullivan in their last name. Read the pitches, then... 
Chaos at VBC HQ has brought about another executive decision group read pick. Kevin Hearne’s Iron Druid Chronicles are a bright example of urban fantasy done right. They’re funny. They’re engaging. They have a hero worthy of fanboy and fangirl love. Basically, you should be reading them. The fourth novel Tricked comes out later this month, which makes April a great time to start up the series. If you have... 
In an effort to help you keep that to-read list updated, I’ve compiled the hot urban fantasy and paranormal romance releases for April 2012. All dates are U.S. and tentative. I’ve included genre classification with each book: UF is urban fantasy, PNR is paranormal romance, F is fantasy and YA is young adult. APRIL 1 The Lingering Dead by J.N. Duncan (Deadworld #3) UF The Slayer by Theresa Meyers (Legend... 
Hear Jericho Barrons have sex. What?! Yeah, you actually read that right. Kind of. Last year, Karen Marie Moning wrote a sex scene from Jericho Z. Barrons’ point of view as a prize for him winning our 2011 Alpha Showdown. And it was epic. And sexy. Well, Karen had the voices of MacKayla and Barrons from the audio books record the scene. It’s not free, but it sure is sexy. You can get the full details,... 
From VBC: When I interviewed Kevin Hearne, I asked if he knew the hero of his urban fantasy series would be seen as a hottie. It certainly wasn’t his intention, but as this character love letter shows, I’m not alone in recognizing the swoon-factor of the 2,100-year-old druid Atticus O’Sullivan. Dear Atticus, I first experienced your hotness when I saw you on the cover of Hounded, sword on your back, curls... 
The prize bin at VBC HQ is overflowing a bit. I’m still in the giving mood, so I’ve set aside 13 books — several are signed — for one big giveaway. We’ll have 12 winners (two of the books go together) and each will also get great book-related swag like bookmarks, pens and the like. And I’m even making it easy to enter. Filling out the form embedded below is all it takes to get entered for the New Year’s... 
