WITCHES BE BURNED

In Stacey Kennedy’s steamy paranormal romance novel, a rookie guardian sworn to combat the undead risks life and love in a world of violence, witchcraft, and seduction.

Trained as an Elite Guardian and witch, Nexi Jones has lost her family and she’s hell-bent on making sure she doesn’t lose anyone else. At least she has Kyden, her smoldering hot partner who’s been there for her every step of the way. But just as Nexi thinks she’s done mourning, tragedy strikes the Otherworld when a fellow guardian is murdered by a group of rogue vampires. Drawn into their dangerous games, she and Kyden trek into the Earthworld to hunt down a killer—and Nexi alone will be put to the ultimate test.

Although Kyden knows that Nexi must fight her own battles, his guardian instincts are raging as he struggles to keep her close. The ruthlessness of these vampires is like nothing he’s ever seen. And at their helm is the black witch Astoria, a demon with one burning desire: to shed blood in the name of vengeance. What troubles Kyden even more, though, is the warlock lurking in the shadows. Let the devil do his worst . . . all Kyden can do is love and protect Nexi until his last breath.

Release Date May 19, 2015

Magic & Mayhem Book 2

Random House Loveswept

I was lucky enough to receive a review copy from the publisher through NetGalley. I really enjoy Stacey Kennedy's books and was excited to try a new-to-me series. Witches Be Burned is the 2nd book in the Magic and Mayhem series, yet I didn't feel lost at all starting with this book. I felt like Ms. Kennedy did a great job of catching up her readers on what all had happened in the first book.

I enjoyed Witches Be Burned and absolutely loved many of the characters, Kyden especially. I liked Nexi, but honestly felt like she was a bit too whiny at times and sadly this happened way too often during Witches Be Burned. I loved the chemistry between Kyden and Nexi and they totally work as a couple for me, even when Kyden is acting super over protective of Nexi. It was almost endearing to see this huge warrior have the ability to be tender with Nexi when needed. I did have issues that Kyden didn't seem to respect the power Nexi had as both a witch and a guardian.

I loved all the guardians, witches and vampires coming together for the battle. I will say felt completely chaotic as I tried to keep up with all the main players in the battle. As I'm still learning about the various worlds within the series, I will attribute my confusion to that rather than any fault of the author. I find myself having a hard time distinguishing this book as either a paranormal romance or an urban fantasy book. There were elements of both within the story, and the multiple point-of-views for the story read a bit more like an urban fantasy story for me. I did feel that by the end of the book, Kyden saw Nexi as not only his lover, but as a capable warrior who can handle herself in difficult situations. I felt like Kyden and Nexi's characters both matured a bit and hope they continue to grow and progress in the next book in the series.

Witches Be Burned was really did read well as a stand-alone story. However, as I'm a fan of reading all the books in a series, I've already added book 1 to my kindle and my ever-growing To Be Read list. I look forward to reading the 3rd book in this series to see where Ms. Kennedy takes the characters in the future.