Genre: Young Adult (Paranormal)
Date Published: May 3, 2011
Publisher: Simon Pulse
The ultimate battle. The ultimate love.
For the past two years, Jenn has lived and trained at Spain's Sacred Heart Academy Against the Cursed Ones. She is among the few who have pledged to defend humanity or die trying. But the vampires are gaining power, and the battle has only just begun.
Forced to return home after death takes a member of her family, Jenn discovers that San Francisco is now a vampire strong-hold. As a lone hunter apart from her team, Jenn is isolated—and at risk. She craves the company of her fighting partner, Antonio: his protection, his reassurance, his touch. But a relationship with Antonio comes with its own dangers, and the more they share of themselves, the more Jenn stands to lose.
Then Jenn is betrayed by one who was once bound to protect her, causing her to doubt all she had held as true. To survive, Jenn must find the courage to trust herself—and her heart.
Crusade is the first book in the Crusade series by Nancy Holder. I had a very hard time getting into this book. There are several characters, and it seems like quite a few have secrets or something going on behind the scenes that they don't let the others in on. With that being said, none of them really have anything special that sets them apart. Jenn is the main character. She doesn't have any confidence in who she is, and I'm not quite sure why others referred to her as a leader throughout the book. I guess that was a try at foreshadowing, but she showed zero leadership kills, and during most of the story, I didn't get the impression that the rest of her team thought much of her as more than just a hindrance in a fight. I didn't feel any chemistry between her and Antonio. There were moments that made me wonder why they were even in a relationship. I'm still wondering that actually, but it seems as if their feelings may be growing. We're given the back story on many of the characters which I found interesting. It let you know what made them who they are now.
I kept waiting for that moment where something would grab me or to feel that connection with a character, but I never felt it. Instead, I felt very disassociated from the characters, and without some kind of connection, it's hard for me to become involved in their fictional lives.
Damned (Crusade #2) by Nancy Holder co-written with Debbie Viguie
Nancy Holder, New York Times Bestselling author of the WICKED Series, has just published CRUSADE - the first book in a new vampire series cowritten with Debbie Viguie. The last book her her Possession series is set to release in March 2011.
Nancy was born in Los Altos, California, and her family settled for a time in Walnut Creek. Her father, who taught at Stanford, joined the navy and the family traveled throughout California and lived in Japan for three years. When she was sixteen, she dropped out of high school to become a ballet dancer in Cologne, Germany, and later relocated to Frankfurt Am Main.
Eventually she returned to California and graduated summa cum laude from the University of California at San Diego with a degree in Communications. Soon after, she began to write; her first sale was a young adult romance novel titled Teach Me to Love.
Nancy’s work has appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, LA Times, amazon.com, LOCUS, and other bestseller lists. A four-time winner of the Bram Stoker Award from the Horror Writers Association, she has also received accolades from the American Library Association, the American Reading Association, the New York Public Library, and Romantic Times.
She and Debbie Viguié co-authored the New York Times bestselling series Wicked for Simon and Schuster. They have continued their collaboration with the Crusade series, also for Simon and Schuster, and the Wolf Springs Chronicles for Delacorte (2011.) She is also the author of the young adult horror series Possessions for Razorbill. She has sold many novels and book projects set in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Saving Grace, Hellboy, and Smallville universes.
She has sold approximately two hundred short stories and essays on writing and popular culture. Her anthology, Outsiders, co-edited with Nancy Kilpatrick, was nominated for the Bram Stoker Award in 2005.
She teaches in the Stonecoast MFA in Creative Writing Program, offered through the University of Southern Maine. She has previously taught at UCSD and has served on the Clarion Board of Directors.
She lives in San Diego, California, with her daughter Belle, their two Corgis, Panda and Tater; and their cats, David and Kittnen Snow. She and Belle are active in Girl Scouts and dog obedience training.
To learn more about Nancy Holder and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter.
Debbie Viguié is the New York Times Bestselling author of more than three dozen novels including the Wicked series co-authored with Nancy Holder. In addition to her epic dark fantasy work Debbie also writes thrillers including The Psalm 23 Mysteries, the Kiss trilogy, and the Witch Hunt trilogy. Debbie also plays a recurring character on the audio drama, Doctor Geek’s Laboratory. When Debbie isn’t busy writing or acting she enjoys spending time with her husband, Scott, visiting theme parks.
To learn more about Nancy Holder and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter.
I kept waiting for that moment where something would grab me or to feel that connection with a character, but I never felt it. Instead, I felt very disassociated from the characters, and without some kind of connection, it's hard for me to become involved in their fictional lives.
Genre: Young Adult (Paranormal)
Date Published: August 30, 2011
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
The ultimate battle. The ultimate love.
For the past two years, Jenn has lived and trained at Spain's Sacred Heart Academy Against the Cursed Ones. She is among the few who have pledged to defend humanity or die trying. But the vampires are gaining power, and the battle has only just begun.
Forced to return home after death takes a member of her family, Jenn discovers that San Francisco is now a vampire strong-hold. As a lone hunter apart from her team, Jenn is isolated—and at risk. She craves the company of her fighting partner, Antonio: his protection, his reassurance, his touch. But a relationship with Antonio comes with its own dangers, and the more they share of themselves, the more Jenn stands to lose.
Then Jenn is betrayed by one who was once bound to protect her, causing her to doubt all she had held as true. To survive, Jenn must find the courage to trust herself—and her heart.
Damned is the second book in the Crusade series by Nancy Holder. This book was much like the first book. What little chemistry I thought was forming between Jenn and Antonio is gone. Jenn still has zero confidence, although I think that is finally starting to change. Towards the end she seemed to start growing a pair. Like the first one, nothing grabbed me. I didn't feel like any plot progression took place, and it wasn't until the very end that things significant started to take place. At this point, I don't think I'll read any of the following books in this series. I just don't have that connection with this story or its characters, but that's just me. This series has tons of positive reviews out there. So, give it a go.
Check out my review of another book by these authors!
Nancy was born in Los Altos, California, and her family settled for a time in Walnut Creek. Her father, who taught at Stanford, joined the navy and the family traveled throughout California and lived in Japan for three years. When she was sixteen, she dropped out of high school to become a ballet dancer in Cologne, Germany, and later relocated to Frankfurt Am Main.
Eventually she returned to California and graduated summa cum laude from the University of California at San Diego with a degree in Communications. Soon after, she began to write; her first sale was a young adult romance novel titled Teach Me to Love.
Nancy’s work has appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, LA Times, amazon.com, LOCUS, and other bestseller lists. A four-time winner of the Bram Stoker Award from the Horror Writers Association, she has also received accolades from the American Library Association, the American Reading Association, the New York Public Library, and Romantic Times.
She and Debbie Viguié co-authored the New York Times bestselling series Wicked for Simon and Schuster. They have continued their collaboration with the Crusade series, also for Simon and Schuster, and the Wolf Springs Chronicles for Delacorte (2011.) She is also the author of the young adult horror series Possessions for Razorbill. She has sold many novels and book projects set in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Saving Grace, Hellboy, and Smallville universes.
She has sold approximately two hundred short stories and essays on writing and popular culture. Her anthology, Outsiders, co-edited with Nancy Kilpatrick, was nominated for the Bram Stoker Award in 2005.
She teaches in the Stonecoast MFA in Creative Writing Program, offered through the University of Southern Maine. She has previously taught at UCSD and has served on the Clarion Board of Directors.
She lives in San Diego, California, with her daughter Belle, their two Corgis, Panda and Tater; and their cats, David and Kittnen Snow. She and Belle are active in Girl Scouts and dog obedience training.
To learn more about Nancy Holder and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter.
To learn more about Nancy Holder and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter.
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