A Rush of Wings: Book One of The Maker's Song
Product Type: Book
Product Price: $7.99
Manufacturer: Pocket
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Description
HIS NAME IS DANTE.
Dark. Talented. Beautiful. Star of the rock band Inferno. Rumored owner of the hot New Orleans nightspot Club Hell. Born of the Blood, then broken by an evil beyond imagination.
HIS PAST IS A MYSTERY.
F.B.I. Special Agent Heather Wallace has been tracking a sadistic serial murderer known as the Cross Country Killer, and the trail has led her to New Orleans, Club Hell, and Dante. But the dangerously attractive musician not only resists her investigation, he claims to be "nightkind": in other words, a vampire. Digging into his past for answers reveals little. A juvenile record a mile long. No social security number. No known birth date. In and out of foster homes for most of his life before being taken in by a man named Lucien DeNoir, who appears to guard mysteries of his own.
HIS FUTURE IS CHAOS.
What Heather does know about Dante is that something links him to the killer -- and she's pretty sure that link makes him the CCK's next target. Heather must unravel the truth about this sensual, complicated, vulnerable young man -- who, she begins to believe, may indeed be a vampire -- in order to finally bring a killer to justice. But Dante's past holds a shocking, dangerous secret, and once it is revealed not even Heather will be able to protect him from his destiny....
Reviews
Rating: 5 / 5
Date: 2010-08-14
Summary: "AWESOME, AWESOME, AWESOME!!!"
I don't know where to begin with the review of this book because, as I said before, it's simply awesome. Thanks God I'm in my summer holidays because I've read it in 24 hours. I simply couldn't put it down. The story is great and brilliant as well as the characters. Of course the main characters, Heather and Dante, are amazing. In this novel you can find mistery, thriller, romance, love, incredible twists, humour... Adrian Phoenix is one of the best authors I've discovered recently after reading Black Dust Mambo. Congratulations and thank you for your work! Of course this novel is a must read without any doubt!
Rating: 4 / 5
Date: 2010-08-11
Summary: "It is dark, twisted and full of carnage, but it also beautiful, touching and full of hope."
WOW! This was definitely an interesting book, and it took me for a bit of a surprise. It is dark, twisted and full of carnage, but it also beautiful, touching and full of hope. I really enjoyed the world that Phoenix has built (and it will no doubt continue to expand in subsequent books). The setting is great (New Orleans is always a kick ass setting for PNR/UF) and the plot is intense. It is thrilling, horrific and a tad romantic. These three things don't usually mesh well together, but Phoenix makes it work. The book is alluring, compelling, passionate, amusing, intense and dark.
While I am still a bit lost on the character's abilities/backgrounds (i.e. Maker/Unmaker), I am enjoying her take on vampires, fallen angels and the like. I really enjoyed learning more about Dante and Heather, and I actually cared about them early on. Phoenix draws you into her character's inner being, allowing you to experience their emotional turmoil and happiness. I grieved right along with them, and smiled when they were happy. I was amazed at how realistic they felt! Heather was proactive, tough, loyal but a bit impulsive. Dante was protective, loyal and fierce but also melodramatic and "pigheaded." Heather believes in keeping her promises but knows that promises aren't always able to be kept. Dante doesn't lie, ever, and doesn't forgive those who lie to him, ever. Also, the two main characters aren't the only bright stars in this world. Lucien, Von, Simone, Trey, etc. were also very integral in this story. The connection between Dante and Lucien makes my heart hurt immensely.
I found the chemistry between Dante and Heather profound, as they were drawn to one another on a much deeper scale. True to Urban Fantasy, there is only a touch of romance between them and their one sex scene is one of the best I've read in the genre. It happens 300+ pages in, so the sexual build up may have something to do with it, but my eyes were wide and my heart was palpitating. I also loved that weaving in any form of sexual activity into the book - ménage à trois, hetero sex, gay sex, etc - was not off limits and was second nature to the world.
The evil SOB in this book was one hell of a creep. He made my skin crawl. I also felt a twinge of sadness for him though (that would be the social worker in me) since he did not ask for that existence. However, he was still the president of Sickos R' Us.
Conclusion: 4/5 Stars. It only gets 4 because it did not hook me, and I had to push through it a bit in the beginning. This was not due to boredom, but complete ignorance as to what Dante is - and this I am still not sure of! His past has been uncovered, but he is one mysterious creature. After things got rolling, I really enjoyed the plot. The social worker in me LOVED the ability to remain compassionate, fiercely protective and loyal despite horrific, painfully debilitating histories. I am a sucker for the tortured soul! I do wish I had book 2 in the series to read right away, but I guess I have to wait on it.
Rating: 5 / 5
Date: 2010-08-10
Summary: "GREAT READ LOVE DANTE"
Dante is very charismatic. Every one who sees him is drawn to him including the lovely Agent Heather Wallace. What starts out as just a little Q&A with the owner of the club at which the most recent murder occurred unravels a whole different world she didn't even knew existed.
Heather has always lived in a black and white, good vs. evil, right vs. wrong world but that world is about to be turned upside down and she is will have to adjust her way of thinking just for him. She is willing to risk it all to keep a promise to him that is starting to be an impossible task.
I wanted to read this series for a while now but I have so many books in my TBR pile I just couldn't get to it. Then I found my self going through book store withdrawals and needed to go buy a book. Since this has been on the top of my want to buy list I ran out and got it. Once I started I was hooked. Dante is the bad boy tortured past, strong, handsome...what's not to love...lol. I enjoyed Heather also she is a head strong women with a hard past also . She has something to prove to her self or just to the world and is determined to take anything on to achieve her goals. I felt all the characters where very strong and the story flowed very well and it kept me hooked the entire time. If you have not picked up this book I totally recommend it.
I reread this book and i loved it even more. Dante is such a beautiful character you cant help but fall in love with him. Heather is so giving , she is a force to be recond with for sure. She will stand up for you even if every one else things your wrong. She has some sadness in her past too so she can totally feel and understand Dante as no one else has even been able to . She wants to help him and do what ever is necessary to keep him safe. I hope all who read this book will continue on the rest of the series is equally good.
Rating: 3 / 5
Date: 2010-08-02
Summary: "Really?"
Book 1 of The Maker's Song
I bought this book.
Heather Wallace is an FBI profiler working in the field(??) on a serial killer case (all alone, loose-cannon like). In New Orleans the killer leaves its latest victim on the doorstep of Club Hell (a goth/punk club located at street number 666) with a message in blood that seems directly aimed at Club Hell's popular (in an underground/punk/sexual deviant way) lead attraction, the (mysterious, tortured, and possibly a vampire) Dante PreJean (seriously). Heather can't help falling for the mysterious (and seemingly sickly, but oh so sexy) PreJean and decides to go against the local cops (as in disagree with them) to prove his innocence and keep him from falling prey to the brutal serial killer.
A Rush is Wings is heavily cliched, overly-dramatic and so gothic I'm surprised it wasn't printed on black paper with red words. As a mystery/police procedural it makes my head hurt. Heather is not a field agent, but she's operating alone, ignoring things like evidence and jurisdiction and common sense. She doesn't hesitate to give rides to PreJean, who is the primary suspect in the murder cases she's apparently investigating. She also hangs out at his house and drinks with him while the local cops are trying to finger him as the serial killer (and of course, eventually she sleeps with him). She has such dangerously poor control of her weapon that she doesn't notice when the magazine is stolen from the gun (which is in her purse). Meanwhile the mysterious man they find outside a crime scene, a reporter who somehow always has pictures of the crime scenes before the cops ever get there and is actively trying to make the cops out to be fools (and who, of course is the killer, and no this isn't a spoiler because it's revealed all of 100 pages into this nearly 500 page book) is dismissed outright and escapes to create more havoc. These are only the biggest (and they are pretty big) mistakes in only the first third of the book.
However, A Rush of Wings comes in at an even three stars because there is something almost hypnotic about Phoenix's writing style and despite how many times I was thrown out of the book to engage in eye rolling or assessments on WTF it was easy to keep reading (and I could almost forget about the mistakes for a little bit until another one happened). It reads like some of the better Ann Rice or Poppy Z. Brite fan fiction, that is not original, but containing a familiar charm. I really don't recommend it, but I have no doubt that there is an audience just salivating for books like these (with a dark, sexy, rock-god vampire hero, a pretty, strong, determined heroine, gothic intrigue and serial killers).
Rating: 3 / 5
Date: 2010-06-15
Summary: "Maybe Tomorrow? ([...])"
A Rush of Wings is the first group read pick for Book Bloggers Anonymous. An online reading group started by Steph at Paper Cut Reviews.
I was a little wary at first because it seemed like something out of my comfort zone. A FBI agent, a psychotic serial killer and a mysterious guy who also claims to be a vampire? Not usually something I'd pick up at the bookstore.
But the great thing about being part of a book club is that you get pulled out of your comfort zone sometimes because other people are making your reading choices for you and that way you discover books you normally wouldn't look twice at!
It's been a while since I've read a third person narrative and it took me a while to get used to it at first. I don't have a preference for either, though I am fond of first person, as I like to follow the story at the pace of the lead character sometimes, learning as they do.
But I wouldn't let this stop you from picking up this book! I really enjoyed the way Phoenix laid out the plot line, letting us see all angles of the story through the narratives of the main characters.
I'm still on the fence in my opinion of Dante; I can't put my finger on it. I did warm up to him as a character by the end, but I still can't make my mind up. I'm looking forward to reading more about his history and learning more about his unique `talents'. Plus it was refreshing not to read about a vampire who is centuries old.
Heather I loved; there are not enough strong independent women in PN and UF books. Too many of them drop everything at the feet of their newfound loves. Heather's ability to stay true to herself and her principles made me respect her all the more.
Final Thoughts...
I do feel there's a lot to explore, - Lucien for example, I'd love to know his story. I'd also like to see more of the vampire's world explored more. Plus I'd like to find out more about Heather's background (maybe I should just write a wish list?)
During the opening chapters I did feel a little lost. Like something had happened that I'd missed. Though this feeling quickly disappeared as I read on. I can imagine some people would find this a little off putting.
There's also a glossary at the end of the book that maybe, could have done justice at being placed at the start of the book. Even though I'm Welsh and can speak a handful of Welsh words (the language some of the names are based on) I butchered the pronunciation and the glossary would have been a help.
In the bigger scale of things these are minor factors and by no means take anything away from the book. It's an interesting premise and I can't wait to see more of this world explored in the next book.