Kiss of Death

Road trip, baby! This one takes us out of Morganville and into the "real" world, but perhaps the real world is scarier than Morganville. The road trip is innocent enough, until the group are given a chaperone who insists on stopping in a small town in the middle of nowhere. Cue bad luck and horror movie action.

I love the you-can-never-leave-Morganville thing so stepping out of it was new. For about 5 minutes. Then, I began to miss Myrnin's quirkiness, Amelie's smooth self-control, and damn, even Monica's bitchiness. The entire first half of the book was very teen-in-love tongue-in-cheek. Too sickly sweet for me.

The real action doesn't start until well in to the book, perhaps this was to give the characters a rest, a well-earned show more vacation from the upheaval of the last 7 books. But I love that upheaval, the action and the politics, and as a result this felt like a filler book to me. I didn't truly enjoy it until the last 100 pages and then it ended.

The ring scene was VERY Buffy & Angel but I can overlook this for the significance of the ring to Shane. He's serious about Claire, and that's what matters, but I'm wondering when their happiness is going to be shattered. Is Myrnin going to make a move on Claire? Is Shane going to become too overbearing and protective? Which brings me to Eve and Michael, is it going to last? I have a feeling Michael may break it off in order for Eve to have normal things like children, which he can't provide.

Claire makes progress with her parents; she gets to move back into the Glass House again. Plus, she turns vampire slayer with a crossbow to a stunned Oliver which spawns a hilarious scene ending with Claire promising she won't hurt him!

Shane's changed too. In Michael's own words, "The universe explodes, hell freezes, and Shane does something reasonable." In fact, Shane does quite a few reasonable things. He doesn't move first and pick himself off the floor later any more, he's learned to restrain himself in dangerous situations. I'm impressed.


***Spoiler***


There was one thing I didn't understand: the reason for the diseased rogues. Bishop was clean. He didn't suffer from the vampire virus, which is why his blood helped cure it, so how come he infected the vampires he made?


Overall, there were some great lines but this was probably the weakest of the series so far, though I am rubbing my hands together in anticipation of [b:Ghost Town|7600922|Ghost Town (The Morganville Vampires, #9)|Rachel Caine|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1268376325s/7600922.jpg|10018961] set back in Morganville for more mysteries and conspiracies. show less

I have to say, I find it very impressive that Rachel Caine can continue writing this series like she has; there are very few series that can go on this long and still remain interesting and forward-moving in terms of character and world.

For the first time since her fateful arrival in Morganville, Claire, along with her three best friends and housemates, is granted the chance to leave the town. The prospect of freedom from the vampires and a roadtrip to accompany Michael to a recording studio in Dallas seems like a dream come true. But since it is Claire, Shane, Eve, and Michael, of course it is anything but.

From encounters with unpleasant Texas locals, to car troubles of the most extreme variety, to the discovery of an abandoned town show more straight out of a horror movie, the exterior of Morganville is shaping up to be just as terrifying as its interior, and maybe even less accomodating.

What I continue to adore about this series is its characters. From the smallest appearances, Caine manages to let every one of her characters shine through. Even Myrnin's (sadly) three page cameo here had me grinning. And I came to like Oliver even more in this book as well (and maybe even feel the tiniest twinge of liking for Jason, of all people). And of course, the Glass House four are not neglected in any way, continuing their pitch perfect banter amid vampire sieges and kidnappings alike. Claire especially steps up to become quite the badass (not that she wasn't before, but let's just say one climax scene of hers near the end left me as awed and delighted as the other characters). And yet, they're still real; Caine never lets you forget they aren't perfect, or without fear and weakness.

This is the eighth book, but I'm still ready to go full on ahead, which is praise for the series in itself. show less

One of the best things about the Morganville Vampires series is the continuity. Everything Claire and Co. say has a consequence and sometimes that consequence is more than they bargain for. I love it. You can tell, almost immediately, when one of them says or promises something that will come back to bite them in the butt (such as their promise, in Fade Out, to Morley and his motley gang). That is just their luck quite frankly.

The beginning is slower then I expected, but that makes sense given the high octane ride that was Bishop, and the post-high crash that was Ada. I wouldn't say things were exactly perfect for the Glass House Gang, but their only concern was Morley. Michael was getting a deal, they were all getting out of show more Morganville for a little while (even if Oliver had to tag along, for obvious reasons) and they were almost guaranteed a vampire free weekend...not including Michael or Oliver of course. What could go wrong?

Oh practically everything. Oliver has his own agenda, from Amelie, that lands them group in Boondocks, Texas. They all decide to hit up the local truck stop and wind up in a whole heap of trouble that just keeps escalating from there on out. Once the action begins it doesn't really slow down. However the trademark wit and devilry is still very much in attendance. I laughed everytime one of them would, almost as a positive mantra, chant "We've been in worst situations". The amount of times Claire has to think to herself that Bishop was a worst situation is sad. Coupled with the fact she begins missing crazy Myrnin after a while. Though I missed Myrnin. There wasn't enough of him in this book.

Some of the more mundane things are aired out (issues between Eve and Michael, Claire's parents and even some uncertainties that Michael is feeling about his and Eve's future) in and around the rest of the plot, but a solid chunk is given over to cleaning up one more mess Bishop left behind.

This was a transition book, setting up many of the storylines that the ninth book, Ghost Town (due out in November 2010) will expand upon, as well as bringing to a close some other looser threads that would only get in the way of a larger story arc. Once again I greatly enjoyed this installment of the Morganville Vampires series. This series has, without a doubt, become one of my favorite series to follow and wait for. show less

I think Rachel Caine could make a trip to the grocery store intoxicating, as long as it took place in Morganville. Kiss of Death introduced a wide variety of variables to play with by allowing the residents of Glass House a road trip outside of town, in the company of the less-than-companionable Oliver. Little did they know that they would not be truly leaving Morganville's craziness behind. From a near-death experience at a late-night truck stop to the destruction of Eve's beloved vehicle, from the surprising usefulness of Eve's brother Jason to the after-effects of Bishop's passage through Texas, Claire, Eve, Shane, and Michael were forced to fight for their lives and freedom from cover to cover, with barely enough time to throw out a show more few Buffy-esque quips to keep me laughing as I read as fast as I could.
The progression of the various relationships of the main characters were quite interesting. Eve and Michael's relationship is filled with angst and stress over their biological differences, but ironically still makes for typical young love issues. Shane and Claire's relationship lacks the drama of Eve and Michael's, but provides a solid foundation for the two in the midst of the chaos of their lives without becoming sickly sweet. Eve's brother Jason also seems to be in pursuit of redemption with the relationship he has with Eve, even despite his ignoble views about life in Morganville. The reader even gets a broader view of Oliver that shows he may actually have some concern for the lowly humans.
The town of Blacke and its inhabitants could possibly add a new dimension to the series that I hope to see in the next book, Ghost Town (Morganville Vampires, Book 9). show less

Wow! What a GREAT sequel!! I did not want this book to end. It was full of action, crazy vamps, snarky dialog, and constant twists and turns. For a portion of the book, I felt like I took a turn into Night of the Living Dead, and I loved every moment of it. INSANE.ABSOLUTELY.INSANE!!

In this book, Michael gets a recording deal in Dallas and is granted a leave from Morganville. As part of the agreement he’s made with Amelie, he is able to have Eve, Shane and Claire join him on his road trip. Just when you think they are out of the danger zone when crossing the Morganville city limits, things could not get any worse for the Glass pact. They get caught between a war of vamps and zombie vamps as they stumble into the town of Blacke where show more Bishop left behind a group of infected vampires that are turning the town upside down.

I loved the dialog in this book between the four main characters. Shane gets honorable mention in this installment for his hilariously snarky lines. He was shear perfection in this book. Every single word that came out of his mouth had me squeeing like a fang-girl. LOL I missed some of the Morganville characters, especially Myrnin, but it was nice to see a change in scenery. I was a bit surprised by Eve’s vulnerable side as she lacked a bit of her badass edge, and I found myself missing that part of her. Claire was great and Michael was his perfect self.

What a great sequel, with a more subtle cliffhanger than the other books, but it’s not going to ease the pain in having to wait for the next book. Morganville is an awesome series for true die-hard paranorm fans and Kiss of Death does NOT disappoint. show less

All the action you've come to expect from a Morganville Vampires book is present in Kiss of Death. Claire's kicking butts and taking names, Shane's sexy as usual, Michael's typically protective and sensitive at the same time, and Eve...well, she's still the cute Goth girl who loves flipping off Shane. However, I felt something was missing in this book, and that "something" is...Morganville itself.

In this book, the foursome is allowed to take a roadtrip to Dallas for Michael to record in a music studio. Amelie sends Oliver as an escort. (And, let's be honest, how interesting would a Morganville Vampires book be without the villain we love to hate?) As you'd expect, things fall apart for the group, leaving them to wonder if they'll ever show more make it to Dallas on time. They encounter a vindictive group of rednecks, Oliver goes off on his own and appears to be in some kind of trouble, Jason Ross appears (I'll let you read to discover whether that's a good-or bad-thing), and Morley and his band of reckless vampires decide to have a little fun with Claire, Eve, and Shane. But that's not the worst that could happen, which Claire and her friends find out when they encounter an eerie town filled with sick, recently-turned vamps. Everyone from Morganville must join together for the fight of their lives.

I've come to love this series, and this book is no exception. I do miss the unique setting of Morganville, as it's a little strange to see trouble following the group outside the city limits. While Oliver's presence kept it interesting, I really missed Myrnin and can't wait to see him in the next book, Ghost Town. (My previous reviews for this series can attest to my unhealthy adoration for the lovable vamp.) If you're new to this series, please, please, please begin with Book 1: Glass Houses. There are so many twists and turns you won't want to miss! show less

Michael has a made a deal with a recording studio to finally get his music out there. It’s exciting, unique – and involves them leaving Morganville. This is also a useful opportunity for Claire and co since it allows them to avoid a deal Claire made that could get them all eaten.

On the road, they quickly raise the chance of finally escaping Morganville for good. But Oliver has been sent as chaperone and what about the loved ones they left behind? More, it’s clear that Even and Michael, residents of Morganville all their lives, have little idea of the outside world and how to behave in it.

Then there’s the problem of the vampire rebels. With the Morganville security network down, the only thing holding the vampires in Morganville show more is Amelie’s word. And some are not accepting that. Leaving the town, these wild vampires are looking for a new place to take over, one without the rules and restrictions of Amelie. Their travel makes them cross paths disastrously with Claire & Co – and when they reach their destination, they find things are not what they expected.

I’ve always had mixed feelings about this series. I’ve felt that the world that has been built and some of the background characters have been fascinating and have a lot of potential. Unfortunately the main characters don’t appeal to me and I often find Claire, the protagonist to be an outsider in her own story. In short, I was coming close to giving up on the series, it’s just not for me.

This was my “last chance” book, the last book I’d read before I shelved the Morganville vampires and didn’t open another one.

And I enjoyed it.

By taking the story out of Morganville, we introduced a lot of new contexts and themes. We got to see how the very insular life the Morganville residents had lived. How they were so used to the supernatural dangers of the vampires and how they are used to negotiating the dangers of Morganville, that they were utterly lacking in the social skills necessary to survive in small towns with close minded, dangerous people without vampires lurking around to keep order. It was a really well done twist that added a lot to the world, the characters and the story.


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