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mellhay's review
4.0
Oh goodness! I can't tell you how much love I have for this book, series. Mystery, action, and romance all in one place. Everything I want and MORE!!
****FULL REVIEW****
Even the Grim Reaper, Nate, is distressed by what he find with the newly found dead body Trish has come to read. A man with his throat ripped out, but no blood sprays. The clues lead to a vampire kill. The only attacks that ever come to this close to brutal...were Dracula's. Vlad Dracula went to ground two years ago after involvement in Sebille's Killing spree, where Nate and Tess were involved. Now, they are afraid he might be back and looking to make Tess his once and for all. Tess, even in her condition, is ready to go after Dracula and settle her score with him. Then, there's a "hero" (or vigilante) who's been swooping in and taking care of bad guys, and strange vampires, they are calling The Spider. The human governed group, The Agency, is involved and keeps appearing everywhere Trish looks for clues to the vampires on a killing spree, creating more complications the Trish could ever imagine.
We meet Trish in the Prelude, her memory of being transplanted from Make Believe to Here and Now. When she first met the rueful Nicky Blue, and even felt the draw to him then. Again, Kate uses Preludes with ease. I love them in this series. They are a memory of coming to Here and Now, reminding us of where the Tales came from. You get a great feel of their tale and history.
Saved from an attack and being pushed out of her apartment due to a haunting, Trish finds Nicky who's come asking for help. No where else to go, Nicky takes her with him to keep safe, at his home. Trish is excited to be with the one she's had a heart for, yet trying to contain herself and not get over hopeful. The history we learn of Trish's and Nicky's. Wow. They are a set. And what Trish saw when she looked into Juliette's dead eyes before Grimm took her soul to rest, yea we learn that. Wow. Honestly, I was wondering how Kate was going to bring our newest couple together, knowing he's still hurting in some ways after his wife's death. And Kate set the foundation right away, and grew that strong brick building to create a lovely home for a new couple.
Aaah, The Agency. This is a neat little agency. They are like the Men in Black crossed with CIA. Top secret, yet they have their noses in too many things Tale. And even are strong arming Trish's place of business, the FMA - Fairytale Management Authority. But Trish also has a sorted history with one of the Agents as well.
We see old friends and couples again. Tess has been trying to pair her friends up, wanting them to be happy like her. Tess is also having troubles, and they fear it's due to the condition of her mans past. But this is a small drop in the bucket of troubles Trish is seeing and dealing with. We see Lavender and Seth as they come to visit everyone, and get to help. Oh Lavender and her dysfunctional family dinner. LOL! Seth is still hot as ever. And they are happy as ever. Gideon! He is so sweet! I love him with his brief appearances here. Then we have new characters. Rumpelstiltskin, Oh my goodness! LOL! Loved him and Truman. Make me smile.
The mystery murder story takes off and builds, dropping hints with each turn. There is a twist to the story, and I loved the way Kate turned this. I was not expecting the end with this mystery and string of dead bodies. Action packed with Nicky and Trish. Nicky has a gangster feel to his methods and tricks, but he's a strong individual as well. Nicky and his easy ways, finds him flirting with Trish and Trish trying to not fall to hard as he's leaving after he takes care of his target. I could see how over the last few years Tess has worn off on Trish. I didn't know if she'd be as kick butt as Tess, but she sure was, and on the sensitive side more than Tess too. Trish is her own person and growing as a character now that we read from her eyes. There is an independence found in Trish like Tess, a strong-ness to do what she needs to do to solve and stop the murders.
This is an amazing tale of Romance and Mystery. Once again, Kate has blended the two with amazing talent, in a new and rich world full of possibilities.
****FULL REVIEW****
Even the Grim Reaper, Nate, is distressed by what he find with the newly found dead body Trish has come to read. A man with his throat ripped out, but no blood sprays. The clues lead to a vampire kill. The only attacks that ever come to this close to brutal...were Dracula's. Vlad Dracula went to ground two years ago after involvement in Sebille's Killing spree, where Nate and Tess were involved. Now, they are afraid he might be back and looking to make Tess his once and for all. Tess, even in her condition, is ready to go after Dracula and settle her score with him. Then, there's a "hero" (or vigilante) who's been swooping in and taking care of bad guys, and strange vampires, they are calling The Spider. The human governed group, The Agency, is involved and keeps appearing everywhere Trish looks for clues to the vampires on a killing spree, creating more complications the Trish could ever imagine.
We meet Trish in the Prelude, her memory of being transplanted from Make Believe to Here and Now. When she first met the rueful Nicky Blue, and even felt the draw to him then. Again, Kate uses Preludes with ease. I love them in this series. They are a memory of coming to Here and Now, reminding us of where the Tales came from. You get a great feel of their tale and history.
Saved from an attack and being pushed out of her apartment due to a haunting, Trish finds Nicky who's come asking for help. No where else to go, Nicky takes her with him to keep safe, at his home. Trish is excited to be with the one she's had a heart for, yet trying to contain herself and not get over hopeful. The history we learn of Trish's and Nicky's. Wow. They are a set. And what Trish saw when she looked into Juliette's dead eyes before Grimm took her soul to rest, yea we learn that. Wow. Honestly, I was wondering how Kate was going to bring our newest couple together, knowing he's still hurting in some ways after his wife's death. And Kate set the foundation right away, and grew that strong brick building to create a lovely home for a new couple.
Aaah, The Agency. This is a neat little agency. They are like the Men in Black crossed with CIA. Top secret, yet they have their noses in too many things Tale. And even are strong arming Trish's place of business, the FMA - Fairytale Management Authority. But Trish also has a sorted history with one of the Agents as well.
We see old friends and couples again. Tess has been trying to pair her friends up, wanting them to be happy like her. Tess is also having troubles, and they fear it's due to the condition of her mans past. But this is a small drop in the bucket of troubles Trish is seeing and dealing with. We see Lavender and Seth as they come to visit everyone, and get to help. Oh Lavender and her dysfunctional family dinner. LOL! Seth is still hot as ever. And they are happy as ever. Gideon! He is so sweet! I love him with his brief appearances here. Then we have new characters. Rumpelstiltskin, Oh my goodness! LOL! Loved him and Truman. Make me smile.
The mystery murder story takes off and builds, dropping hints with each turn. There is a twist to the story, and I loved the way Kate turned this. I was not expecting the end with this mystery and string of dead bodies. Action packed with Nicky and Trish. Nicky has a gangster feel to his methods and tricks, but he's a strong individual as well. Nicky and his easy ways, finds him flirting with Trish and Trish trying to not fall to hard as he's leaving after he takes care of his target. I could see how over the last few years Tess has worn off on Trish. I didn't know if she'd be as kick butt as Tess, but she sure was, and on the sensitive side more than Tess too. Trish is her own person and growing as a character now that we read from her eyes. There is an independence found in Trish like Tess, a strong-ness to do what she needs to do to solve and stop the murders.
This is an amazing tale of Romance and Mystery. Once again, Kate has blended the two with amazing talent, in a new and rich world full of possibilities.
jetenold's review against another edition
4.0
Loved it, just not as much as Red. Looking forward to more about Al and Gideon and even Alex, so anxiously awaiting the next book! This series has definitely become one of my new favorites!
lesliewatwar's review against another edition
3.0
since I started with the third in the series I was a bit lost on the back story. I did keep feeling like I was in the 40's with Nickey's "doll" s he kept throwing out. I liked the twists that the nursery rhymes were in. made it have a feel for a tv series for fairy tales a really really,like. hint hint.....see the full review in exchange for an honest opinion on bittenbyparanomralromance.com on July 30.
tales_of_a_bookbug's review against another edition
4.0
Another great addition to the Transplanted Tales series! Honestly, this is such an underrated series and each book features amazing characters with the perfect amount of romance, steam and suspense!
Along Came A Spider follows the story of Trish Muffet and Nicky 'Little Boy' Blue - who have been transported into the real world along with many other fairytale/fictional characters after a spell goes awry. It's quite common to come across Beauty and the Beast and other fairy tale retellings, but this one is quite unique as it has Little Miss Muffet and Little Boy Blue - all grown up now(and they seem like a perfect pair, don't they lol?
Along Came A Spider follows the story of Trish Muffet and Nicky 'Little Boy' Blue - who have been transported into the real world along with many other fairytale/fictional characters after a spell goes awry. It's quite common to come across Beauty and the Beast and other fairy tale retellings, but this one is quite unique as it has Little Miss Muffet and Little Boy Blue - all grown up now(and they seem like a perfect pair, don't they lol?
lily_peach's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
_surri_'s review against another edition
3.0
This one felt forced
I don't know if she was rushed to write or if she just wasn't feeling these characters, but this book just didn't hold my interest like the first two did.
I don't know if she was rushed to write or if she just wasn't feeling these characters, but this book just didn't hold my interest like the first two did.
berls's review against another edition
5.0
My top thoughts:
This series is FANTASTIC and this may be my favorite so far? We already knew both the main characters fairly well from the previous two books and I was so eager for their story. And it surpassed my hopes and expectations – not just in their romance and character development, but in the plot as well.
What I liked/didn’t like:
I think one of the things I’m enjoying most about this series is the way it’s breathing life into often ignored fairy tale / nursery rhyme / fictional characters (called Tales) and combining them with familiar ones. We started with Tess “Red” Little (Little Red Riding Hood), a more familiar character that gets lots of attention. But then we drifted it a little with Lavendar (Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother). And now we’re so far off the beaten path with Trish Muffet… Little Miss Muffet! I doubt she’s ever had a book and definitely not one like this. I already knew I loved her from the previous books, but there was so much more to her than I knew. She’s a no-nonsense, tough as hell, forensic scientist for the FMA (Fairytale Management Authority). And I just love the way the nursery rhyme about the spider is all twisted into something so much more in this book. And then her love interest – Nicky Blue – is little Boy Blue (again, way off the beat path)! And I also knew I loved him from previous books. He’s a good bad guy – in that he’s plays on the wrong side of the law, but he’s not out to hurt people – and he’s built wealth for himself in the Here and Now after being a nobody in Make Believe. I felt for him instantly, as his wife (Juliet, from Romeo and Juliet) was killed in book one and he’s tormented over his inability to protect her. He’s busy seeking vengeance. I think if I have one complaint it would be that everyone is Red’s Ex and I like to start seeing stories where she hasn’t slept with the love interest (and I do think those are coming). Not that this caused any friction in this book – Nicky is not in love with Red (though he does care for her) and Red is so in love with Nate. In fact, I also really loved seeing the continuation of her story – she’s pregnant – and Lavender’s story too – they visit! It’s nice the way old characters keep cropping back up.
Beyond the characters, the story is just fantastic. There’s a mystery element – I think these definitely qualify as Fantasy Mysteries/Detective stories. And we have a continuing element that has been a problem since the first book, namely Dracula. But we have a new player on the scene – The Agency – that’s very bad news for the Tales. Well, new in the sense that I think this is the first we’ve heard about them, but they’ve been around for a while. Just in the past two years (which is when book 1 started) they’ve been changing into more of a problematic player. I’ll let you read it and learn more about them for yourself, as you really truly must read this series. I do think you could hop into this one and understand what’s going on, but you’d miss out on a lot of background information and character development, so I wouldn’t recommend it. But they’re great, so why would you want to skip ahead?
This is truly a great combination of paranormal romance, urban fantasy, crime/detective genres to give you all awesomeness.
This series is FANTASTIC and this may be my favorite so far? We already knew both the main characters fairly well from the previous two books and I was so eager for their story. And it surpassed my hopes and expectations – not just in their romance and character development, but in the plot as well.
What I liked/didn’t like:
I think one of the things I’m enjoying most about this series is the way it’s breathing life into often ignored fairy tale / nursery rhyme / fictional characters (called Tales) and combining them with familiar ones. We started with Tess “Red” Little (Little Red Riding Hood), a more familiar character that gets lots of attention. But then we drifted it a little with Lavendar (Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother). And now we’re so far off the beaten path with Trish Muffet… Little Miss Muffet! I doubt she’s ever had a book and definitely not one like this. I already knew I loved her from the previous books, but there was so much more to her than I knew. She’s a no-nonsense, tough as hell, forensic scientist for the FMA (Fairytale Management Authority). And I just love the way the nursery rhyme about the spider is all twisted into something so much more in this book. And then her love interest – Nicky Blue – is little Boy Blue (again, way off the beat path)! And I also knew I loved him from previous books. He’s a good bad guy – in that he’s plays on the wrong side of the law, but he’s not out to hurt people – and he’s built wealth for himself in the Here and Now after being a nobody in Make Believe. I felt for him instantly, as his wife (Juliet, from Romeo and Juliet) was killed in book one and he’s tormented over his inability to protect her. He’s busy seeking vengeance. I think if I have one complaint it would be that everyone is Red’s Ex and I like to start seeing stories where she hasn’t slept with the love interest (and I do think those are coming). Not that this caused any friction in this book – Nicky is not in love with Red (though he does care for her) and Red is so in love with Nate. In fact, I also really loved seeing the continuation of her story – she’s pregnant – and Lavender’s story too – they visit! It’s nice the way old characters keep cropping back up.
Beyond the characters, the story is just fantastic. There’s a mystery element – I think these definitely qualify as Fantasy Mysteries/Detective stories. And we have a continuing element that has been a problem since the first book, namely Dracula. But we have a new player on the scene – The Agency – that’s very bad news for the Tales. Well, new in the sense that I think this is the first we’ve heard about them, but they’ve been around for a while. Just in the past two years (which is when book 1 started) they’ve been changing into more of a problematic player. I’ll let you read it and learn more about them for yourself, as you really truly must read this series. I do think you could hop into this one and understand what’s going on, but you’d miss out on a lot of background information and character development, so I wouldn’t recommend it. But they’re great, so why would you want to skip ahead?
This is truly a great combination of paranormal romance, urban fantasy, crime/detective genres to give you all awesomeness.
booklovinmamas's review against another edition
5.0
Full Review posted on Book Lovin' Mamas
Along Came a Spider has become my favorite book out of the Transplanted Tales…so far at least. =) I loved the story of Nicky Blue and Trish Muffet.
Kate SeRine delivers another tale of our favorite fairy characters, but it is a twisted world where some of our tales are not the friendly, beautiful characters we know from reading as kids in our fairy tale books. Instead, Kate gives some of our favorites horrible reputations or make them villains. But with that twist of the characters personalities make these Tales so much better than our traditional fairy tales.
I give this book 5 full moons and highly recommend it to urban fantasy and paranormal romance readers out there. If you love fairy tale stories with a twist, you will enjoy this book. I suggest you read the first two though, so you can find out about the other characters in the series. You will want to know about Little Red Riding Hood and her personality before you read this book. She is one stubborn, strong-willed character. =)
Along Came a Spider has become my favorite book out of the Transplanted Tales…so far at least. =) I loved the story of Nicky Blue and Trish Muffet.
Kate SeRine delivers another tale of our favorite fairy characters, but it is a twisted world where some of our tales are not the friendly, beautiful characters we know from reading as kids in our fairy tale books. Instead, Kate gives some of our favorites horrible reputations or make them villains. But with that twist of the characters personalities make these Tales so much better than our traditional fairy tales.
I give this book 5 full moons and highly recommend it to urban fantasy and paranormal romance readers out there. If you love fairy tale stories with a twist, you will enjoy this book. I suggest you read the first two though, so you can find out about the other characters in the series. You will want to know about Little Red Riding Hood and her personality before you read this book. She is one stubborn, strong-willed character. =)