Title: Charming Blue
Author: Kristine Grayson
Series: Fates #8
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Number of Pages: 384
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Source: Netgalley
Once upon a time...he
was the most handsome of princes. But now he's a lonely legend, hobbled
by dark history. With too many dead in his wake, Bluebeard escapes
through the evil spell of alcohol. But it's a far different kind of
spell that's been ruining his life for centuries. Jodi Walters is a
fixer, someone who can put magic back in order. But Blue has a problem
she's never encountered. And worse, she finds herself perilously
attracted to him.
I wanted to read Charming Blue because I discovered she's one of my dads favorite science fiction writers under a different name, and I thought how cool would it be for us to read the same author?? What I didn't realize though, was that this was book 8 in a series. I normally hate reading the last book in a series first, but you know what? This worked great as a stand alone. I'm sure it would've helped knowing a bit more about the other characters who were obviously from other books, but I felt like I didn't miss anything by not reading the first seven books.
What made the book happen for me was Blue. He was so heartbreakingly sad that I just wanted to wrap him in a big bear hug the whole entire time I was reading the book. I loved watching him gradually come out of his shell, and I loved the chemistry he and Jodi had as they worked together to figure out the mystery of who is threatening to kill girls in Bluebeards name. This was just a sweet romance, and while a little more heat would have been nice it was refreshing to read a book where there was passion, chemistry & sizzle without the actual sizzle.
While I loved Blue, I had a really hard time connecting to Jodi. I thought her magic was interesting, and that she came from a long line of chatelaines, but I felt like we never were told why she left the kingdoms to come to this realm and it seemed like every time something got hard she used her magic & I'm not sure why that bothered me so much, but it did.
The mystery involved in the book was delightful as well. I loved trying to figure out who was behind everything, and the only thing that I was disappointed by & made me rate this a three was that the ending felt a rushed. I felt like there was so much lead up to what happened that the solution just came to easy.
Even though I had some problems with solutions coming too easily to Jodi & Blue, I loved the world this book was set in, and would like to read more of the series to see if some of what bothered me in this book was solved in those earlier books.
Barrons Hero Hotness Meter: High
Curran Crush Meter: High
Martini Sigh Meter: Medium
Rhiannon Kick Ass Heroine Meter: Medium
