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kathydavie's review
4.0
First in the Delilah Street, Paranormal Investigator urban fantasy series based in Las Vegas and revolving around an intrepid reporter turned investigator.
My Take
Douglas sets up the series in this story and I'm torn. Part of me is irritated with her uneven writing but a larger part of me [no pun intended!] is intrigued with her cast of characters and where Douglas intends to take it.
Douglas has so much going on: Delilah discovering her psychic side along with the mirror abilities as well as her odd, almost hysterical naiveté; Ric seems to be hiding something; all the bad guys in Vegas want her for something; her dog...I don't think her dog is a dog…; and, Hector Nightwine has some kind of hidden agenda — certainly his food choices are *ahem* interesting.
Oh, gimme a break! Douglas needed to spend more time working up the kidnapping that leads to the eventual hunt. It's a lazy excuse to have Delilah refuse to tell anyone where she's going in order to create some tension. All it did was piss me off. Although, I do enjoy the morphing jewelry.
Still for all the gag-worthy lines, Douglas has a unique take on the supernatural world and the effects of Y2K as well as her introduction of the CinSims and I'm anxious to read on and see what happens.
The Story
Between seeing her "twin" on a CSI episode and Ted's sabotage that results in Achilles' death, Delilah is fed up and heads to Vegas to discover who that woman was. The most likely resource being Nightwine Productions, the producers of CSI.
As part of her reconnaissance, Delilah explores Sunset Park across the street from Nightwine's building where she meets Ric Montoya and experiences a mutually electric and erotic moment. A moment that leads to a wide array of experiences: an offer from Hector Nightwine of a job and a place to live; the [unwanted] attention of the police, Detective Haskell in particular; and, increased problems for Ric, although, it does lead to some very sensual salsa for the two of them when Ric introduces her to the other side of life in Vegas.
It's Delilah's first negative encounter with a Maggie-lovin' public that encourages her to replace Achilles with Quicksilver. A good thing since the negative attention continues to mount and Quicksilver proves his worth. The investigation she pursues regarding the bodies she and Ric discover in Sunset Park simply adds more parties interested in the sexy Delilah. And, no, it's not in a good way.
The Characters
Delilah Street embraces a whole new life in Las Vegas when the vampire newscaster she's seeing sabotages her Kansas life. Delilah has a passion for vintage clothing and classic movies with a crazy reporter's need to know. Dolly is her '56 black Cadillac with a red leather interior and a white ragtop. Quicksilver is part wolfhound and newly adopted from the Las Vegas ASPCA. And very jealous of her burgeoning relationship with Ric. Irma is her subconscious girlfriend.
Ric Montoya, a.k.a., the Cadaver Kid, is a former FBI agent with a Gift. A gift for discovering the dead. Hector Nightwine is the producer of CSI and a seriously odd man. He's agoraphobic and experiences the outside through an extensive audio/video system; most useful when Haskell gets too physical with Delilah. He has a butler, Godfrey, who is a CinSim. CinSims, Cinema Simulacrums, are a result of a merging of zombies with classic film stars brought back to "life" to serve whoever purchases their bodies. Perry Mason shows up as Delilah's defense attorney when she's taken in by Haskell for questioning.
Detective Haskell is one of the old-school, obnoxious, and prejudiced policemen with a corrupt outlook. Captain Kennedy Malloy is a friend of Ric's. Vilma Brazil is a really old B-movie actress currently working wardrobe at the Twin Peaks. Hugh Hefner is the oldest vampire still in Las Vegas. Grady Bahr is the coroner for Las Vegas; it takes Delilah entirely too long to get the connection when he asks her to call him "Grisly".
Snow, a.k.a., Christophe, is one of the Seven Deadly Sins' band members as well as the owner of the Inferno. He has an intense interest in Delilah that results in a most unusual gift of a lock of his hair. A very active lock of hair. Grizelle is his shapeshifter (white tiger) bodyguard. Nick Charles and the Invisible Man are CinSims at the Inferno who help Delilah with her investigations, break-ins, and escapes.
Cesar Cicero is the werewolf mob boss who owns six different hotels and "requires" Delilah to work for him as part of a magic act simply because she has spoken with Snow and he thinks she's Maggie. Turning him down is not on his schedule. Sansouci is his hit man and seems to have a sympathy for Delilah. Madrigal is his pet magician. He and his two assistants Sylphia and Phasia have been trapped at the Gehenna for 60 years.
The Cover and Title
The cover is Vegas, baby! With its flash building and even flashier "Fabulous Vegas" billboard creating a background for a black-velvet-sheathed Delilah and her new dog Quicksilver.
The title says it all as Delilah, Ric, and Quicksilver are Dancing with Werewolves throughout the story.
My Take
Douglas sets up the series in this story and I'm torn. Part of me is irritated with her uneven writing but a larger part of me [no pun intended!] is intrigued with her cast of characters and where Douglas intends to take it.
Douglas has so much going on: Delilah discovering her psychic side along with the mirror abilities as well as her odd, almost hysterical naiveté; Ric seems to be hiding something; all the bad guys in Vegas want her for something; her dog...I don't think her dog is a dog…; and, Hector Nightwine has some kind of hidden agenda — certainly his food choices are *ahem* interesting.
Oh, gimme a break! Douglas needed to spend more time working up the kidnapping that leads to the eventual hunt. It's a lazy excuse to have Delilah refuse to tell anyone where she's going in order to create some tension. All it did was piss me off. Although, I do enjoy the morphing jewelry.
Still for all the gag-worthy lines, Douglas has a unique take on the supernatural world and the effects of Y2K as well as her introduction of the CinSims and I'm anxious to read on and see what happens.
The Story
Between seeing her "twin" on a CSI episode and Ted's sabotage that results in Achilles' death, Delilah is fed up and heads to Vegas to discover who that woman was. The most likely resource being Nightwine Productions, the producers of CSI.
As part of her reconnaissance, Delilah explores Sunset Park across the street from Nightwine's building where she meets Ric Montoya and experiences a mutually electric and erotic moment. A moment that leads to a wide array of experiences: an offer from Hector Nightwine of a job and a place to live; the [unwanted] attention of the police, Detective Haskell in particular; and, increased problems for Ric, although, it does lead to some very sensual salsa for the two of them when Ric introduces her to the other side of life in Vegas.
It's Delilah's first negative encounter with a Maggie-lovin' public that encourages her to replace Achilles with Quicksilver. A good thing since the negative attention continues to mount and Quicksilver proves his worth. The investigation she pursues regarding the bodies she and Ric discover in Sunset Park simply adds more parties interested in the sexy Delilah. And, no, it's not in a good way.
The Characters
Delilah Street embraces a whole new life in Las Vegas when the vampire newscaster she's seeing sabotages her Kansas life. Delilah has a passion for vintage clothing and classic movies with a crazy reporter's need to know. Dolly is her '56 black Cadillac with a red leather interior and a white ragtop. Quicksilver is part wolfhound and newly adopted from the Las Vegas ASPCA. And very jealous of her burgeoning relationship with Ric. Irma is her subconscious girlfriend.
Ric Montoya, a.k.a., the Cadaver Kid, is a former FBI agent with a Gift. A gift for discovering the dead. Hector Nightwine is the producer of CSI and a seriously odd man. He's agoraphobic and experiences the outside through an extensive audio/video system; most useful when Haskell gets too physical with Delilah. He has a butler, Godfrey, who is a CinSim. CinSims, Cinema Simulacrums, are a result of a merging of zombies with classic film stars brought back to "life" to serve whoever purchases their bodies. Perry Mason shows up as Delilah's defense attorney when she's taken in by Haskell for questioning.
Detective Haskell is one of the old-school, obnoxious, and prejudiced policemen with a corrupt outlook. Captain Kennedy Malloy is a friend of Ric's. Vilma Brazil is a really old B-movie actress currently working wardrobe at the Twin Peaks. Hugh Hefner is the oldest vampire still in Las Vegas. Grady Bahr is the coroner for Las Vegas; it takes Delilah entirely too long to get the connection when he asks her to call him "Grisly".
Snow, a.k.a., Christophe, is one of the Seven Deadly Sins' band members as well as the owner of the Inferno. He has an intense interest in Delilah that results in a most unusual gift of a lock of his hair. A very active lock of hair. Grizelle is his shapeshifter (white tiger) bodyguard. Nick Charles and the Invisible Man are CinSims at the Inferno who help Delilah with her investigations, break-ins, and escapes.
Cesar Cicero is the werewolf mob boss who owns six different hotels and "requires" Delilah to work for him as part of a magic act simply because she has spoken with Snow and he thinks she's Maggie. Turning him down is not on his schedule. Sansouci is his hit man and seems to have a sympathy for Delilah. Madrigal is his pet magician. He and his two assistants Sylphia and Phasia have been trapped at the Gehenna for 60 years.
The Cover and Title
The cover is Vegas, baby! With its flash building and even flashier "Fabulous Vegas" billboard creating a background for a black-velvet-sheathed Delilah and her new dog Quicksilver.
The title says it all as Delilah, Ric, and Quicksilver are Dancing with Werewolves throughout the story.
ameserole's review
2.0
Dancing With Werewolves was interesting to say the least.
It was kind of like watching someone do something horribly wrong over and over again. But instead of actually trying to help them or say something.. you just keep watching it over and over. So yeah, reading this book felt like that sometimes.
That being said, this book was confusing. It had some moments where I thought I knew where things were heading and then I would get some serious whiplash and be completely wrong. I'm not even going to mention the amount of times I either rolled my eyes or shook my head. I would like to say it was entertaining but that would be wrong.
I don't even want to dive into the characters because they just annoyed me so much. They were just really cliché and reminded me of so many other annoying characters. Other than that, it was a bit predictable and I'm glad that I reached the ending of this book. Not sure how much wine I drank in order to do so.. but now I need more wine.
It was kind of like watching someone do something horribly wrong over and over again. But instead of actually trying to help them or say something.. you just keep watching it over and over. So yeah, reading this book felt like that sometimes.
That being said, this book was confusing. It had some moments where I thought I knew where things were heading and then I would get some serious whiplash and be completely wrong. I'm not even going to mention the amount of times I either rolled my eyes or shook my head. I would like to say it was entertaining but that would be wrong.
I don't even want to dive into the characters because they just annoyed me so much. They were just really cliché and reminded me of so many other annoying characters. Other than that, it was a bit predictable and I'm glad that I reached the ending of this book. Not sure how much wine I drank in order to do so.. but now I need more wine.
cheesygiraffe's review
4.0
Great new series. I like the references to the old movies, tv shows and stars. And Delilah's talent is something different.
lerat42's review
2.0
With all the elements necessary to make for a fun story, it is interesting how badly Carole Nelson Douglas misses the mark with this book. For me, a large part of the dissatisfaction comes from the style the book is written in. The narrative structure just never seems to settle down and all too often I felt jolted by things the characters did or said. Delilah is a likable enough character, but her motivation (and background) often seem out of sync — elements are introduced willy-nilly and all to often parts of the book seem thrown in just to keep the plot moving. Ultimately the book just left me feeling very unsatisfied.
git_r_read's review
2.0
Not a very enjoyable read for me. I finished it as I liked the premise and always dig paranormal, werewolves, vampires, etc. This one was too jumpy for my taste. Author has posted to me on my blog that I perhaps don't like complex plots. Okie dokie.
jajorgen's review
4.0
I liked this one a lot though it felt incomplete. The mystery of who the dead bodies were wasn't wrapped up - though I'd guess it will be revisited. Lots of action and a smart, snarky heroine.
slferg's review
3.0
Interesting concept that the millenium didn't bring the end of the world, but brought all the werewolves, vampires, etc. out into public. Kim Harrison uses a similar premise in her novels. But Carole Douglas puts a slightly different twist on it. The book was kind of fun and I'll probably read more of the series. Douglas also writes the Midnight Louie mysteries and another series I want to try, which is the Irene Adler one. Love her pet Quicksilver.
Delilah Street was raised in an orphanage, never adopted altho people thought she was a pretty child. She remembers the Milennium change-over that brought out the werewolves, vampires and other supernatural beings into the open, out in public. She had a certain fascination with those and learned to defend herself from those in the orphanage that were attracted to her looks. The orphanage sent her to high school and a "benefactor" paid her college tuition although she had to earn her own money to live on. She haunted estate sales and bought second-hand clothing, furniture and dishes. She loved the old-fashioned stuff and continued to buy it after she got a job. Delilah was a television news reporter on paranormal or supernatural events or occurrences. She had begun to date the evening news anchor, a vampire, but broke it up when he sneaked an exacto blade into flowers and caused her to cut her finger and sucked the blood. Her little lhaso, Achilles, bit him and died of blood poisoning a day or two later. Then the anchor got it on with the weather witch, who took over Delilah's job and destroyed her house with a tornado. But she had seen someone who looked exactly like her on one of the CSI V episodes. So she goes to Las Vegas to check out who this person is. She goes to the park across from the offices of the production company and runs into a man who tries to show her how to dowse, only he dowses for the dead and showing her how leads them onto a grave with a young couple inside and she is overwhelmed by the feelings of the dead. She later wanders over to the area where the shelter is trying to get animals adopted and finds a huge gray dog with blue eyes. She falls for him and adopts him. She names him Quicksilver, calling him Quick. This adoptions was fortunate for her because Quick is a werehunter, part wolf. He adores her and protects her from all the half-weres and others living in Las Vegas. But Delilah and Ric are determined to find out who the young couple are and what happened to them. Delilah has problems because not only does the woman who was the "body" on the show look just like her, but she was immensely popular and people think its her and keep trying to kidnap her. Delilah is also determined to find this other woman - perhaps she is a twin, too? Delilah was found on a street corner, which is where she received her name.
Delilah Street was raised in an orphanage, never adopted altho people thought she was a pretty child. She remembers the Milennium change-over that brought out the werewolves, vampires and other supernatural beings into the open, out in public. She had a certain fascination with those and learned to defend herself from those in the orphanage that were attracted to her looks. The orphanage sent her to high school and a "benefactor" paid her college tuition although she had to earn her own money to live on. She haunted estate sales and bought second-hand clothing, furniture and dishes. She loved the old-fashioned stuff and continued to buy it after she got a job. Delilah was a television news reporter on paranormal or supernatural events or occurrences. She had begun to date the evening news anchor, a vampire, but broke it up when he sneaked an exacto blade into flowers and caused her to cut her finger and sucked the blood. Her little lhaso, Achilles, bit him and died of blood poisoning a day or two later. Then the anchor got it on with the weather witch, who took over Delilah's job and destroyed her house with a tornado. But she had seen someone who looked exactly like her on one of the CSI V episodes. So she goes to Las Vegas to check out who this person is. She goes to the park across from the offices of the production company and runs into a man who tries to show her how to dowse, only he dowses for the dead and showing her how leads them onto a grave with a young couple inside and she is overwhelmed by the feelings of the dead. She later wanders over to the area where the shelter is trying to get animals adopted and finds a huge gray dog with blue eyes. She falls for him and adopts him. She names him Quicksilver, calling him Quick. This adoptions was fortunate for her because Quick is a werehunter, part wolf. He adores her and protects her from all the half-weres and others living in Las Vegas. But Delilah and Ric are determined to find out who the young couple are and what happened to them. Delilah has problems because not only does the woman who was the "body" on the show look just like her, but she was immensely popular and people think its her and keep trying to kidnap her. Delilah is also determined to find this other woman - perhaps she is a twin, too? Delilah was found on a street corner, which is where she received her name.
bookstuff's review
2.0
The premise was interesting but the narrative voice kept me from being fully immersed. Delilah Street narrates like a cross between an old time Chicago PI and cocktail-happy Milagro from [b:Happy Hour at Casa Dracula|33536|Happy Hour at Casa Dracula|Marta Acosta|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168448146s/33536.jpg|33599], But where Milagro charms, Delilah mostly annoys.