Home of the Alpha Showdown, and one-stop shop for urban fantasy, paranormal romance and fantasy news and reviews.
Fury (Menagerie #3) Rachel Vincent Published: Oct. 30, 2018 (MIRA) Purchase: Book Depository or Amazon Review Source: Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for and honest review Reviewed by: Amy Rating (out of 5): 4.5 stars Note: While this review will be spoiler free, it will reference previous books. If you haven’t started this series yet, check out VBC’s review of book 1, Menagerie. August 24,... 
One of Us Craig DiLouie Published: July 17, 2018 (Orbit) Purchase: Book Depository or Amazon Review Source: copy provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review Reviewed by: Beth Rating (out of 5): 4 stars Who defines what a monster is? Is it the child who doesn’t look “normal,” or the adult who locks that child away in a home with other children, who are beaten, not educated, and forced to work in... 
It’s no secret I’m a huge fan of Rachel Vincent’s books. Her Unbound series is one I recommend all the time to anyone who likes their romance and their heroines complicated. Beautiful writing. Engaging stories. Just, seriously, she’s an auto buy for me for a reason. I’m not the only one at VBC who adores her books. Check out Amy’s review of Menagerie. RIGHT?!? As a matter of fact, I have a signed copy...
I’m always looking to add new books to dive into headfirst. I know you are, too. (That’s why we’re friends.) So how about I giveaway one of those books to a lucky reader? Rachel Vincent has been an auto-buy author for me for quite some time. She knows how to balance an engaging plot, character development, and the emotional suckerpunch that serves a purpose. Menagerie explores humanity in an utterly... 
Blackbirds (Miriam Black #1) Chuck Wendig Published: Sept. 24, 2013 (Tor) Purchase: Book Depository or Amazon Review Source: purchased Reviewed by: Amy Rating (out of 5): 4 stars Eight years. That’s how long Miriam Black has lived with the ability (curse?) to know when and how a person is going to die. Just one touch, skin-on-skin, is all it takes, and Miriam can tell you right down to the minute when you...
Menagerie (Menagerie #1) Rachel Vincent Published: Sept. 29, 2015 (MIRA) Purchase: Book Depository or Amazon Review Source: copy provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review Reviewed by: Amy Rating (out of 5): 4 stars Delilah Marlow’s life has been pretty normal throughout her twenty-five years. She’s wanted for nothing. However, things can change in the blink of an eye. Metzger’s Menagerie is... 
The Glittering World Robert Levy Published: Feb. 10, 2015 (Gallery Books) Purchase: Book Depository or Amazon Review source: copy provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review Reviewed by: Amanda Rating (out of 5): 4.5 stars The thing I love about fantasy is its ability to surprise. You think you know something, and then an author comes around and shakes his finger at you and says, huh-uh. Not so... 
The Reckoning (The Taker Trilogy #2) Alma Katsu Published: June 19, 2012 (Gallery Books) Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon Reviewed by: Amy Rating (out of 5): 4 stars Please note: While this review will be spoiler free, it will contain references to the first book in the series The Taker. The Reckoning picks up a couple of months after the end of The Taker. Luke and Lanore are in London viewing... 
Need an escape? Oh, we have you covered. Today we’re bringing you another Reading Escapes contest. Four hardcover copies — yes, four — of Anne Bishop’s Twilight’s Dawn. It’s a collection of novellas set in her Black Jewels world. (You can read an excerpt here, but there may be spoilers.) Leave a comment on this post on or before April 26 for a chance to win Twilight’s Dawn. Four winners will be chosen.... 
Chelsea Quinn Yarbro has given us stunning displays of dark fiction teeming with vampires for more than two decades. All her Saint-Germain novels, which feature vampires in a historical setting alongside famous figures (yes, with historical accuracy), and they’re plenty dark. We’ll skip the crash course on her writing, because, really, Yarbro knows how to write vampire novels. That’s what you need to...
