Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Night's Rose-Annaliese Evans

Night's Rose
Annaliese Evans
Tor, Mar 31 2009, $6.99
ISBN: 9780765361660

In 1750 in Bedfordshire, England, in Lord Drummand’s garden Comtesse Rosemarie Edenberg kills an evil ogre, who has been dining on servants. However, she did not expect the late culprit Sir Walter Pithwater to have other members of his ogre tribe to arrive. Vampire Lord Gareth Barrows assists her in killing the ogres. The winners enjoy a post game tryst.

Rosemarie’s Fey de la Nuit partner and advisor for the past century (ever since she was rudely awakened without the necessary happily ever after kiss before completing her hundred year nap) is fey Ambrose Minuit. He is outraged that she is seeing the rakish Gareth. However, as the two males compete for Rosemarie’s love, she begins to see the world differently as if her rose colored glasses were removed. Before she can explore her new wisdom, Rosemarie and her Fey de la Nuit group must learn why the ogres after behaving the same stupid way for a century have changed their patterns radically.

This is a wild spin to Sleeping Beauty that turns the classic fairy tale into a historical urban fantasy. Rosemarie is an interesting protagonist as a female soldier in the ogre wars who a bit grumpily (her nap was interrupted not in the fairy tale way) has always followed orders until Gareth enters her life to introduce her to the more pleasing adventures of sex. Fans will want to follow the escapades of Annaliese Evans’ not so Sleeping Beauty as the heroine balances the two hunks who each pull an arm of hers making a wish that she belongs to him.

Harriet Klausner

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