Review: Darynda Jones - Second Grave on the Left/Giveaway!!

Darynda Jones - Second Grave on the Left

• Pub. Date: August 16, 2011
• Publisher: Macmillan Audio
• Format: Compact Disc

Charley Davidson, Grim Reaper Extraordinaire, is back in this sexy, suspenseful novel of supernatural shenanigans.

When Charley is rudely awakened in the middle of the night by her best friend who tells her to get dressed quickly and tosses clothes out of the closet at her, she can’t help but wonder what Cookie’s up to. Leather scrunch boots with a floral miniskirt? Together? Seriously? Cookie explains that a friend of hers named Mimi disappeared five days earlier and that she just got a text from her setting up a meet at a coffee shop downtown. They show up at the coffee shop, but no Mimi. But Charley finds a message on the bathroom wall. Mimi left a clue, a woman’s name. Mimi’s husband explains that his wife had been acting strange since she found out an old friend of hers from high school had been found murdered a couple weeks prior. The same woman Mimi had named in her message.

Meanwhile, Reyes Alexander Farrow (otherwise known as the Son of Satan. Yes. Literally) has left his corporeal body and is haunting Charley. He’s left his body because he’s being tortured by demons who want to lure Charley closer. But Reyes can’t let that happen. Because if the demons get to Charley, they’ll have a portal to heaven. And if they have a portal to heaven…well, let’s just say it wouldn’t be pretty. Can Charley handle hot nights with Reyes and even hotter days tracking down a missing woman? Will Cookie ever get a true fashion sense? And is there enough coffee and chocolate in the world to fuel them as they do?

I received this audio book for review from Macmillan Audio. Here is my honest review:

Second Grave picks up a week after the first novel. This one is just as funny, if not funnier, than First Grave! Darynda Jones does a fabulous job of making Charley a great lead female. I freaking love Charley and her attitude. Her humor and spunk are so fun to listen to. But she knows when to be serious. And I laughed a whole lot, out loud, at work!

There were a few memorable scenes in this one. That's not as bad as it sounds, I just have a really bad memory. So when something sticks with me, that's awesome. There were a couple scenes with Reyes that I won't forget any time soon. The scene towards the end with her father in the police station was a bit shocking, but it made sense in a way. And Cookie trying to get Charley in the trunk at the very beginning was a great way to get attention right from the start!

I did listen to this, and the always lovely Lorelei King narrates the Charley novels. She's such a pleasure to listen to. All of her voices are unique from other narrators and really capture my attention. They're easy to tell apart as well. King's narration always pleases, so check out this series if you haven't listened to anything she reads.

However, this makes it hard to not compare these books with the likes of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, since King also narrates those. In my opinion, Stephanie's shoes are hard to fill, but Charley is very much up there! Cookie reminds me a bit of a Lula-like sidekick, and some of the minor characters have an Evanovich feel. Plus there's that right amount of romance! The quotes at the beginning of each chapter make these books more original and funny.

Bottom line: Definitely recommended if you like the paranormal/humorous mystery genre!

Rating:

3.5 / 5 book sharks

Giveaway Alert!!

Macmillan Audio was so spectacular and send me an audio book copy of this novel for review. I would like to share the love, so here's the giveaway! It's for one audio book copy of the book, Second Grave on the Left. Use Rafflecopter to enter. Ends 9/15/11. Good luck!!