Dead End Dating

I was a bit reluctant to start on this endeavor, for the back cover description sounded a bit too cutesy for me. Also, I enjoy male vampires with female humans as the main characters, but I of course was curious about this one and am as addicted to series as vamps are to the red stuff. Pleasantly, this book was very different, focusing basically only on vamp-vamp relations, involving humans to a lesser degree, and injected so many unusual and new twists to vampirism that it was almost like reading about a new race entirely. Vampires are matched based on this orgasm rate for female, and fertility rating for the male. There are born vamps, and made vamps. Both groups are snobby toward each other and rarely interact.

I have seen comparisons show more in other reviews between this one and Mary Janice Davidsons' Undead series, but I digress. The protagonist does share the same fashion obsession, although not necessarily Betsie's die-hard shoe fetish, but she is no way over the top annoying. Her situation is completely different, goals endlessly varied, and all interacting characters from another world outside the 'undead' one. In other words, if you don't enjoy that series, you can still enjoy this one for they're not the same.

Liz is a bit irrational at times, but she's a fun gal to follow. She has a pleasant heart and an interesting outlook in the vamp world on love, romance, the whole nine yards. Her mother is constantly trying to set her up, which makes for truly funny moments. Her father is in constant battle with the neighbor werewolf, which also proves amusing.

She's surrounded by three brothers whom her parents have different standards for. It's almost like there is analogy for this in the book (as with how women are rated) that matches the human every-day life reality stuff. Ty does sound hot, although I'm not sure on the sugar endearment, and I was disappointed things didn't progress a bit more with this installment. Hopefully the second, please? He did irritate me with his comments on her softness, however, as he made fun of and looked down on her a bit too much sometimes.

If you're in the market for intense vampires, steer far away. There's no dark and ghastly here, even in terms of other vamps. It's all very light, fluffy, and a fast read that's humorous but not overly so, with plenty happening at all ends to keep things spicy. Raye's writing style is very different, not cloying and overdone but extremely spruced up and addictive. Add in a serial murder story that needs uncovering, and the pages fly by. The book does not stand out enough to rate a four star, but I'm very eager to read the next book :) show less

This is a funny light read. The main character Lil is a cross between a 1980's valley girl and a fashion diva that happens to be a vampire.

Lil is a born vampire pushing 600 and looking to be independent from her family and the family copy center business, Moe's. She strikes out on her own by starting a dating service for humans, vampires and, er, others. This is odd because born vampires don't believe in love, only in procreation. But Lil sees a market in matching vamps up for baby vamp making as well as just casual date making. She calls the business Dead End Dating. Business is picking up when she meets Ty, hunky vampire bounty hunter on the trail of a kidnapper, maybe serial killer, who haunts the personal ads and dating services. Much fun ensues.

I really like this book. I have seen reviews where people have said this is a Queen Betsy ripoff (as in Undead and Unwed) but show more I beg to differ. This is paranormal chicklit romance so Lil sounds alot like Betsy, partcularly at the beginning. But soon the differences start appearing, Lil is a born vampire who is totally not the norm. She is also smart, which takes a while to figure out but she really is, well at least as far as paranormal chicklit romance heroines go. I enjoyed the vamp mythology that Raye has created. It is not so far from the standard vamp that it drove me crazy, like some of the new vampire books do, can you say Twilight? show less

So the narrator is a little bit too much of a Valley Girl, despite aristocratic French roots. So she talks obsessively about designer goods. (Which I'm not entirely opposed to, by the way.) Still, I found myself interested in the book. It puts a slightly different twist on the whole vampire lore while still being pretty funny. Honestly, the storytelling style kind of reminds me of the Jen Lancaster books --- which you must read if you haven't.All in all, the book can be a little annoying at times but it's a quick and entertaining read with a pretty funny voice to tell the story of a modernized vampire just trying to start her own dating service.

Started Dead end Dating by Kimberly Raye got to 30% and am dropping it ! It reads like a silly copy of the Undead series by MJDaivson. (a series I enjoyed in the early books)The main character is fashion/labels/looks obsessed, she turns into a pink bat ?!? I found myself skipping paragraphs, forcing myself to turn the page, time to quit. Just a big fat DUH from me.

This was a fun read, but there’s not a lot of substance to it. You can draw some comparisons between this and MaryJanice Davidson’s Undead series, but not a lot of them. Lil and Betsy are really only similar in that they are very style conscious. Otherwise, Lil is *much* less annoying.

Raye’s vampires are either made or born that way, and there isn’t a lot of mixing between the two. And the general population has no idea they exist. Lil is a born vampire who believes in love, and she’s backing up her belief by starting a dating service, much to the chagrin of her entire family. They are more traditional, believing that matches should be made on the basis of who is most fertile, not this silly love business.

Unfortunately, there show more is a serial killer who is targeting women using dating services, and that’s what brings bounty hunter Ty into Lil’s office. Ty is a made vampire, but Lil can’t help finding him just a little bit irresistible.

This is more paranormal romance than urban fantasy, but it’s not a bad ride. The serial killer storyline is almost secondary to Lil’s struggle to get her business off the ground. I’ll probably continue the series – it’s good for when you need a quick distraction. show less

Lil Marchette is your "new" vampire, she's not into wearing black, likes shoes and modern clothes, and is ditzy. When given a choice between joining the family copy-shop and finding a new career she decides that a new career is good, the new career she decides on is matchmaking, for both the undead and the live.

In this world there are two kinds of undead, the born undead and the made undead, there's a real class struggle between the two and she's a born undead so when she meets with bounty hunter Ty Bonner who is made and who she's very attracted to there's tension. Add in a serial killer and you've got a pretty typical vampire romance.

And it is pretty typical, and pretty mindless, and not too bad but nothing I'd rave about.