REVIEW: Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost

Series: Night Huntress #1
Format: Kindle eBook
Release Date: October 2007
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

Half-vampire Catherine Crawfield is going after the undead with a vengeance, hoping that one of these deadbeats is her father—the one responsible for ruining her mother’s life. Then she’s captured by Bones, a vampire bounty hunter, and is forced into an unholy partnership.

In exchange for finding her father, Cat agrees to train with the sexy night stalker until her battle reflexes are as sharp as his fangs. She’s amazed she doesn’t end up as his dinner—are there actually good vampires? Pretty soon Bones will have her convinced that being half-dead doesn’t have to be all bad. But before she can enjoy her newfound status as kick-ass demon hunter, Cat and Bones are pursued by a group of killers. Now Cat will have to choose a side... and Bones is turning out to be as tempting as any man with a heartbeat.

Kick-ass Heroine. Knife Throwing. Crazy Mother.
Sexy Vampires. Steamy Romance. Comedy. 
This vampire lover couldn’t have asked for more!

Cat Crawfield knew she was always different from other kids while growing up. It wasn’t until her sixteenth birthday when she found out just how different she was from everyone else. On that monumental day, Cat’s mother, Justina, informs her that sixteen year ago she had been raped by a vampire and five months later she gave birth to half vampire/half human, Cat. To avenge her mother’s rapist, Cat sets out to con and kill as many vampires as she can. Six years later, Cat is still out hunting vampires and hoping one day she’ll eventually take down the vampire who raped her mother and made her half the evil demon as her mother claims her to be.

One night while on a hunt, Cat bumps into a tall and masculine vampire she’d lost track of the previous night. Not willing to let him slip away from her stake, Cat lays it on thick with the flirting and leads the vampire out to an empty field with the intent to slay him. Things don’t go according to her plans because one minute she finds herself undressing in front of the vampire and the next she’s chained up inside a cave. Her kidnapper vampire Bounty Hunter, Bones, is convinced that she’s been sent out to kill him and is determined to find out who she works for. After literally beating the crap out of her, Bones eventually acknowledges that 1) she doesn’t work for anyone and 2) she’s part vampire. Instead of letting her walkaway freely, Bones offers Cat an unusual partnership. Instead of killer Cat, Bones will allow her to continue to doing what she loves most – killing vampires – but only the ones that he’s looking for. Hesitantly Cat agrees to his offer and begins her rigorous six week training with Bones.

Right off the bat Cat and Bones had great chemistry. The snarky banter between the two was entertaining, funny and as the story went further along I wanted more and more page time with the two. Cat was a very likeable heroine. At the beginning, Cat is a little naïve and childish but she had me laughing hysterically. She still has a lot to learn about the vampire world but she’s strong-willed, vivacious and extremely determined. I was a little perturbed when Cat would allow her mother’s strong words against vampires put her down. It’s understandable that Justina harbored great animosity towards vampires but the abhorrent words she used to describe them was also an inadvertent insult to her own daughter. I could rant on and on about this dysfunctional relationship but bottom line I just wanted Cat to finally stand up against her mother and put a kibosh on constantly insulting a part of Cat’s DNA that she couldn’t help was inside her.

Now let’s get to the best part of this book, Bones. Oh Lord, I LOVED this Vampire from the very beginning. Jeaniene Frost has created the most perfect Vampire and hero. Don’t get me wrong I love my vampires from Black Dagger Brotherhood but Bones just hits the spot. He’s tall, muscular, dangerous, witty, and oozes sex appeal. On top of that he’s British. British! Having that accent just put him over the top and had me gushing from the moment he stepped on to the scene all the way to the very last page. As a Master Vampire, Bones is over 200 years old who holds a lot of knowledge and power. He’s every bit the Alpha male you find in urban fantasy novels. What sets Bones apart from most male leads is that he has a great combination of macho man and sappy romantic lead. He growls and barks orders at Cat but then the next minute he’d say words that would make my heart flutter and turn me into a pile of goo. Every time he would call Cat “Kitten” or “Luv” I would gush like some stupid school girl. As soon as he developed feelings for Cat he didn’t hide his feelings for very long or play games with her. He knew what he wanted, told her and even said he’d wait however long for her to return his feelings. Come on! He’s seriously hot and has more moves to teach Cat outside of the fighting ring. *wink, wink*

Now the ending threw me off the loop and I wanted to scream and fight for it to not happen. I think the conclusion was unwarrented and unnecessary but her I'm not the writer so Miss Frost is free to do whatever she wants. I wasn't too happy with the descisions made but I think for the sake of the story to progress and and characters to grow I understand why Frost would end things the way she did. Good thing I didn't have to wait too long to find out what would happen next because I had already downloaded book two of the series, One Foot in the Grave the same day I bought book 1.

Halfway to the Grave was such a fun, fast, and funny read. Jeaniene Frost’s writing is easy to follow and her plot lines flowed effortlessly. She has written characters that easily draw you in and fall in love with instantaneously. I love the chemistry between Cat and Bones and the sexual tension between the two was palpable. I must have been living under a rock or blind or stupid these last few years because I still cannot believe that I recently just picked this series up. Zillions of folks adore this series and it’s been lauded allover Goodreads and the book blogosphere. To say that I loved Halfway to the Grave would be an understatement. I just want to scream from the top of my lungs and say, “ I Freaking Love This Book!” This book had everything and more in what I look for in a good paranormal/urban fantasy book and I’m so happy that I’ve finally suck my teeth into this series.