When we first met Shia Waynest, she was getting her feet wet in the world of the Others in Hunted By The Others. Now with Jess Haines’ second H&W Investigations novel, Taken By The Others, she’s exploring the vampires a little more.
Once, New York P.I. Shiarra Waynest’s most pressing problem was keeping her agency afloat. Now she’s dealing with two dangerous, seductive vampires who have been enemies for centuries. The only thing Max Carlyle and Alec Royce agree on is that they both want Shia – for very different reasons. Max is determined to destroy Shia for killing his progeny, while Royce’s interest is a lot more personal. That’s not sitting well with Shia’s werewolf boyfriend, Chaz. As the feud between Max and Royce gets ever more deadly, a powerful vampire-hunting faction is urging Shia to join their side. Shia has always believed vamps were the bad guys, but she’s discovering unexpected shades of grey that are about to redefine her friends, her loyalties – and even her desires.
Where Hunted By The Others introduced us to the various factions in Haines world, Taken By The Others is taking us deeper into the vampire world. We’ve only seen glimpses before, but now we get to see just how ruthless they can be. At the same time, the vampires have this practicality to them that is not only fascinating, but actually seems to bring them all closer together. We really see this when we’re introduced to a few of Royce’s vampires, one of which I simply love. Mouse is this fabulous character that is not your typical vampire – she’s mute. Seriously, how awesome is that? It’s not necessarily a flaw, but when you see vampires, they don’t normally have such an obvious handicap. Vampires are suppose to be the ultimate perfection in beauty and grace; and yet with Mouse, we have a vampire with an element that doesn’t show up often. How many vampires do you know that are either deaf, blind or mute?
There’s one other character that’s putting off warning bells in my head. Chaz is getting his second chance with Shia now that he knows his being a werewolf didn’t bother her too much, it was just the fact that he lied to her about it. However, even though he’s back together with her, like he wanted, there’s something going on. He’s canceling dates, being secretive and just not sharing. Since Deceived by the Others is going to be focusing on the werewolves, I have a feeling we’re going to find out that there’s a whole new side to Chaz that even Shia isn’t aware of (and since I have read Deceived by the Others, I don’t want to say too much more).
Other than the moments when Chaz does make an appearance, the only other werewolf who shows up is our lovable cabbie from the Moonwalker clan. I seriously want to know what is up with this guy. How is it that whenever Shia needs an ear or a ride, he’s always there. I’m really hoping we’ll get to see more of him in the future.
As for the plot, make sure you have some time set aside for this one. Taken By The Others has a great blend of action and dialog that keeps the reader interested. I seriously had a hard time putting this down as I wanted to see what Shia was getting involved with next.
Overall, while it’s been awhile since I’ve read Taken By The Others, there are still moments that I can still imagine with clarity and I love it when a story does that for me. Not only was it hard for me to put down, but it wasn’t all because of Shia. Each of the characters within Taken By The Others interest me and I want to see what Sara and Arnold are doing on their date or why Royce hasn’t called. The more I read of Jess Haine’s Others, the more I hunger for the next novel. If you haven’t picked up this wonderful serious yet, you really need to.
Read Order:
Hunted by the Others
Taken by the Others
Deceived by the Others
Justice for the Others (not soon enough or 2012)
