Try Me

Try Me follows in the vein of the first Demon Underground novel, Bite Me. Sarcasm and self-doubt combine to continue Val's self-discovery of the demon world and exploration of her powers. Whereas the first novel mostly concerned itself with Val's struggle to find her place in the world, in Try Me Val has accepted her place among the police and now is forced to accept Lola as a power and not a nuisance. Her fight to control Lola and accept the help provided by the Demon Underground affords the reader another dimension of Val's personality, fleshing her out to be more than just a teen trying to become an adult.

Fang remains the highlight of the novel. His snark provides many laugh-out-loud moments, as his is the voice of common sense when show more the situation gets a bit too angst-y. The two characters balance each other perfectly and provide the right level of sentimentality and reason in this urban fantasy.

To take this novel too seriously would be doing Ms. Blue a disservice. While there are undertones of gravitas and life-or-death struggles, Try Me is first and foremost an engaging, fun novel that is meant to cause the reader to chuckle frequently. Val is quirky but likable in her vulnerability and will quickly endear herself to the reader. Fans of urban fantasy looking for a very quick but thoroughly enjoyable novel needs look no further than Val Shapiro and Try Me. show less

Val Shapiro is a part-demon vampire slayer with a talking-dog (hellhound) sidekick. In this book we see her battling vampires and demons while wrestling with her inner succubus and trying to come to grips with her love-life.

I found this an enjoyable read. However, the characters outside of the main circle seemed a bit one-dimensional and at times the prose seemed a bit heavy-handed. In particular, although the set up of the story makes it seem as though Val and co will be solving a mystery, it ultimately feels at though they tried and failed to work it out, and then the solution more or less falls into their laps, conveniently presenting them with a climax and resolution. However, the author can probably be forgiven for this, since show more nothing else suggests that this is trying to be a mystery novel, and so the plain urban fantasy elements dominating is absolutely fine. I think I would have enjoyed the added depth, however.

I read this, the second in the series, without having read book 1 and I don't feel like I missed out on any nuances that would have been brought up in book one. In that respect, the recapping was good. I do feel like I know the key events of book 1 now and probably would have enjoyed it equally as much as this book. However, I don't feel tempted to now go and track down the first book since I can't help but feel that would be a step backwards along the path of the main character development and I am more keep to find out what happens to her next.

I received this book as part of the LT Early Reviewers program. show less

Try Me, the second book in the Demon Underground series, begins days after the end of Bite Me. The tough, yet vulnerable, Val Shapiro is once again having a crisis of conscience. Believing that she will be forever ruled by her inner succubus Lola, Val feels she will forever be on the outside looking in. Val’s co-workers in the SCU are suspicious of her part-demon nature. And once again, she has to prove that being part demon does not make her evil. Now that she and Dan are on the outs, Val decides it is time to move on with someone new. That someone new happens to be Shade, a shadow demon. Shade is able to help Val control Lola, which turns out to be a win-win situation. The Demon Underground is now working with Alejandro’s New show more Movement group to find out who is poisoning the vamps. Just another day in the life of a part-demon vampire slayer!

Once again, I love reading about Val Shapiro’s crazy life! Val is just a really fun character to read. On the outside, she’s tough, snarky and sarcastic. She’s The Slayer. But, of course, on the inside Val is unsure of herself, always feels she will be alone. Val’s real feelings are told mostly through the interaction between her and Fang, her loyal (and hilarious) hellhound. I honestly adore Fang! He’s without a doubt my favorite character in the series. He always calls Val on her bull. Their verbal sparring is priceless.

I really like that the Demon Underground world is being expanded. All of the different types of demons and what they do has really made this book interesting. The character of Shade has been a nice addition. He’s a nice, straightforward, although swirly, guy! The sexual chemistry and tension while he helps her control Lola has been hot. Try Me left us with a super-surprising ending in regards to Val’s powers and her future, a perfect setup for book three, Fang Me.

*I received Try Me via NetGalley*

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Try Me is the sequel to Bite Me. It's a good sequel. The author gives enough of the back story that I think it could be read without reading the first one, but you don't want to miss the first part of the story. Val is a part demon teenager who is also a vampire slayer. In this second story, Val has found a job and a roommate, and maybe a boyfriend - all while helping figure out who and what is out to get the "good" vampires. Val's "super power" is explained in this episode and that explanation leaves her with an interesting decision to make. A really fun book with engaging characters. I sure hope more books are planned.

This book was so much better than the first one, and I really enjoyed reading it. The book was well written and funny at times, and much more cohesive than the first one.

I love that Val gains more confidence in this book and is better able to control her demon, Lola. She already kicks butt, so her gaining more control just makes her all the better. We find out some things about why she is so strong, and now I'm so worried about what will happen in the next couple of books.

Shade is by far my favorite in the series, and I just can't get enough of him! I'm so excited that he got such a large role in this book because he definitely deserves it. I hated how Dan treated Val in the first book and it was refreshing to have Shade treat her show more like she deserves (like a person & not just a part-demon). He accepts her for who she is and that is so important in a relationship. I liked Dan before but was extremely frustrated with his behavior. With Shade, he just accepts her, all of her, and doesn't try to get her to do anything she doesn't want to do.

I just know that Val is going to end up losing her virginity eventually and I'm hoping it's with Shade. I mean, what Lola wants, Lola gets...you get the picture.

Anyways, it was a really enjoyable read and I can't wait to find out what happens next.
***Review Copy Provided by NetGalley & Bell Bridge Books***
*Also published on my blog http://www.bookliaison.com show less

In this next part of the Half demon Val, she is just coming to terms that there are others out there like her. And realizing more and more that there are good vamps and bad vamps. But in this book is basically about the encyclopedia's her father had given to her. Come to find out they were stolen from the Demon Underground many years ago, and unknowingly Val has been the caretaker of these books. She decides to do the right thing and give them back to Micah, so the Demon underground has access to them. Big Mistake! Because on the night they are returned to Micah, at a social gathering for the vamps and the demons, someone ends up stealing them. So in this book Val stuggles with fidning the books, finding the thief, finding the person show more who is making the vamps go crazy, finding out where she stands with Dan, and finding a new love interest in Shade.

These books are very easy to get enthralled in, when I started reading it all I wanted to do was curl up and do nothing but read it, but alas life does get in the way, but I manage to read this when I got the chance. I love this world, and the characters, and character build up. I love how there are no full demons, just partial. Which in this book you find out why there are no full bred demons.


Continuing on this adventure with Val, Fang and the others, can't wait to see what happens next. show less

Poor Val can't catch a break! The second book in the Demon Underground series by Parker Blue is a good read for mature teenagers with a love for urban fantasy. Part lust demon Val has to learn to control her powers and stop a potential war between vampires and demons. When the books of magic disappear from the Demon Underground, Val and her demon dog, Fang, must find the thief before he/she does anything reckless. She enlists the help of Shade (a very handsome part demon) to find the thief and goes on a emotionally confusing but exhilarating journey.

I started this series with book two, and Parker Blue does an excellent job catching the reader up. The dialog sounds exactly like a teenager, full of emotion, sometimes wrong, sometimes show more right, and that is exactly how it should be. I hate books that make a 19 year old sound like they are in their thirties, wise and surprisingly calm about everything. Blue got it right. Can't wait to see what happens with Val, Shade, and Fang in book three! show less