Review: Hot Short stories.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 18, 2011
The Blushing Bounder ~ By Meljean Brook90pgsTempest is sick and now living with, whom she feels is, her deceiving husband in London and the reason she had a falling out with her family in the US.  Her husband wishes she would get the infection with the "bug" to cure her illness, but fearing the stories of becoming a zombie after death she refuses.  While in her room one night she witnesses a murder in the alley.  Tempest's husband is the one on the case and is to keep her safe from the guilty man.  Tempest looks closer at her husband and learns a few things, and maybe will save his life and hers.This was a different story for me.  So much here to this world in this short read.  The bugs to heal people, and potential zombies.  Then we have the steampunk take on the mechanics uses here.  Wonderful the way Meljean mixes all this and creates an amazing world in such a short story.  I really enjoyed the world set-up and the ideas here.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Vixen ~ By Jill Myles95pgsMiko lives in the country to be away from distractions and interruptions...including men.  She's a were-fox and men drive the hormones through the roof as foxes are vixens.  Miko has visitors, 2 men visitors, sent from her mother.  They are sent to protect her from the new specialized hunts.  But the flirting begins, and Miko starts thinking about the one thing she moved to keep from her mind the sting of men and...mating.Hot and steamy.  Sexy!  Have the fan ready!  Miko and these two delicious men.  But not only is the attraction flowing strong, but there is a story here as well.  The hunters are out and boundaries are crossed.  Oh by far Jill has created a Hot! story here.  The whole idea of the were-fox and her needs.  Wow!  But there is a story here about the hunter issue, but the main focus is on Miko.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Kitten-Tiger & The Monk ~ by Carolyn Crane131pgsSophia is sick of herself and what she does to others.  She wants rebooted and the only one to do that is The Monk.  She has a hint of where to start to find someone who knows where he is, on her path she learns this person is one from her past.  A past she thought she had moved past but found she never can.  Can she forgive herself and can he forgive her?This is the story I got this anthology for.  I loved reading the first 2 books of Carolyn Cranes Disillustionist series.  And this one just adds to the list!We learn more of Sophia and of The Monk.  Oh, I love Robert!  We get to see into the Tangle, the curvy twisting highway mess everyone dreads that is ever present here in the city.  Of this Tangle we see why it's the way it is.  We get just a touch of the stories in the trilogy as well, but it is not needed to have read those to read this.  But you might fall in love with the magic created here to pick up the first two books.  Great side story!