Home of the Alpha Showdown, and one-stop shop for urban fantasy, paranormal romance and fantasy news and reviews.
Last year when Written in Red came out, it seemed to pop up everywhere for me. That’s when I knew I had to read this first book in a new series by Anne Bishop. What I found once I started reading was an interesting take on the supernatural, mainly shifters, that puts them in less of the human light and more in touch with their animal natures. Meg is a human, a cassandra sangue, a blood prophet on the run... 
In an effort to help you keep that to-read list updated, I’ve compiled the hot urban fantasy and paranormal romance releases for May 2014. 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. MAY 1... 
Last Blood (House of Comarré #5) Kristen Painter Published: July 30, 2013 (Orbit) Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon Review source: Provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review Reviewed by: Amy Rating (out of 5): 4 stars Note: While this review will be spoiler free, it will reference previous books in the series. If you haven’t started the House of Comarré books yet, please start with Blood... 
From Chelsea/VBC: This is the second in a series of spook-tacular posts leading up to Halloween. I’ve invited a few friends to fill us in on their favorite monsters. Today the too-clever-for-her-own-good (and talented) Kristen Painter convinces you to love her favorite vampire movie. Also, she gives away the first of her House of Comarré books, Blood Rights, and a copy of Near Dark. Pretty damn awesome.... 
One of the great things about conventions like Authors After Dark is how accessible the authors are to readers. This wasn’t just a meet an author for a minute at a signing, but time to really hang out as friends. After several versions of this recap, I’ve decided to do this the same way I handle True Blood recaps for Heroes & Heartbreakers: highlights and snark. No order here. Just awesomeness and plenty... 
I just got home from the Authors After Dark convention in New Orleans. It was a whirlwind experience full of laughter, photo ops, Bourbon Street craziness, food and Voodoo shops. I will have a photo recap of the whole thing with plenty of author and blogger fun, and a blurry picture of a male model climbing on VBC reviewer Candace. (So proud.) And I did get signed goodies and swag for a giveaway, too.... ![Auction: Signed books from Kristen Painter [Books Fighting Cancer]](http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1307380042l/9571401.jpg)
Kristen Painter’s House of Comarré novels are explosive with high levels of sexual tension. Just the kind of urban fantasy I like. Kristen has donated signed copies of the first three novels to help the Books Fighting Cancer event. Now is your chance to bring them home. Highest bidder will take home: Signed set of the first three House of Comarré novels by Kristen Painter Donated by: Kristen Painter HOW...
Oh, readers, it is the epic return of If You Like…! I know we dropped this feature for a few months, but when you started asking again (and continually read the BDB/Demonica post), I decided I couldn’t resist any longer. Today’s recommendation is for those who love their urban fantasy with heavy doses of sexual tension. If you’ve fell in love with Chloe Neill’s Chicagoland Vampires series (Some Girls... 
Last year, I listed 10 of the most delicious heroes from novels published that year. You guys liked it quite a bit. As such, I bit my lip and narrowed down the giant list to give you the Top 10 Swoon-Worthy Heroes from 2011 novels. To make my life easier, I excluded YA novels here because you’re all going to get nasty in the comments. (It’s OK, we’re all friends here.) Also, if you need more suggestions,... 
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... 
