Charley Davidson: part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper. Charley sees dead people. That's right, she sees dead people. And it's her job to convince them to "go into the light." But when these very dead people have died under less than ideal circumstances (i.e., murder), sometimes they want Charley to bring the bad guys to justice. Complicating matters are the intensely hot dreams she's been having about an Entity who has been following her all her life...and it turns out he might not be dead after all. In fact, he might be something else entirely. This is a thrilling debut novel from Darynda Jones, an exciting newcomer to the world of paranormal romantic suspense.
From Goodreads:
Darynda Jones revisits the sexy, suspenseful world of supernatural shenanigans she created in her Grave series with For I Have Sinned. In this Charley Davidson story, Charley helps a woman find out how she died and gives her the closure she needs to pass through to the other side.
From Goodreads:
If you hang around with dead people, life can get pretty complicated. Take it from Charley Davidson, part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper. Complicated is her middle name. The deceased find her very sparkly. Demons find her irresistible. And one entity in particular wants to seduce her in every way possible.
When Charley and Cookie (her best friend/receptionist) have to track down a missing woman, the case is not quite as open and shut as they anticipate. Cookie's friend Mimi disappeared five days earlier. Mimi then sends Cookie a cryptic message telling Cookie to meet her at an nearby coffee shop. The coffee is brewing, but Mimi's still missing. There is, however, a clue Mimi left on the bathroom wall: a woman's name. Mimi's husband explains to them that his wife had been acting strange since she found out an old high school friend had been murdered. The same woman whose name Mimi had scribbled on the bathroom wall.
Meanwhile, Reyes Alexander Farrow (otherwise known as the Son of Satan. Yes. Literally) has left his corporeal body and is haunting Charley. He's left his body because he's being tortured by demons who want to lure Charley closer. But Reyes can't let that happen. Because if the demons get to Charley, they'll have a portal to heaven...well, let's just say it wouldn't be pretty.
Can Charley handle hot nights with Reyes and even hotter days tracking down a missing woman? Can she keep those she loves out of harm's way? And is there enough coffee and chocolate in the world to fuel her as she does?
From Goodreads:
Paranormal private eye. Grim reaper extraordinaire. Whatever. Charley Davidson is back! And she's drinking copious amounts of caffeine to stay awake because every time she closes her eyes she sees him: Reyes Farrow, the part-human, part-supermodel son of Satan.
Granted she did imprison Reyes for all eternity, but how is she supposed to solve a missing-persons case, deal with an ego-driven doctor, calm her curmudgeonly dad, and take on a motorcycle gang hell-bent on murder when the devil's son just won't give up on his plan of seduction..... and revenge?
From Goodreads:
Welcome to the world of grim reaper extraordinaire, Charley Davidson. Try as she might, there’s no avoiding her destiny.
Sometimes being the grim reaper really is, well, grim. And since Charley’s last case went so awry, she has taken a couple of months off to wallow in the wonders of self-pity. But when a woman shows up on her doorstep convinced someone is trying to kill her, Charley has to force herself to rise above . . . or at least get dressed. It becomes clear something is amiss when everyone the woman knows swears she’s insane. But the more they refute the woman’s story, the more Charley believes it.
In the meantime, the sexy, sultry son of Satan, Reyes Farrow, is out of prison and out of Charley’s life, as per her wishes and several perfectly timed death threats. But his absence has put a serious crimp in her sex life. While there are other things to consider, like the fact that the city of Albuquerque has been taken hostage by an arsonist, Charley is having a difficult time staying away. Especially when it looks like Reyes may be involved.
Just when life was returning to normal, Charley is thrust back into the world of crime, punishment, and the devil in blue jeans.
From Goodreads:
Never underestimate the power of a woman on a double espresso with a mocha latte chaser high.
- T-shirt
Charley Davidson isn't your everyday, run-of-the-mill grim reaper. She's more of a paranormal private eye/grim reaper extraordinary. However, she gets sidetracked when the sexy, sultry son of Satan, Reyes Farrow, moves in next door. To further complicate matters, Reyes is her main suspect in an arson case. Charley has vowed to stay away from him until she can find out the truth...but then dead women start appearing in her apartment, one after another, each lost, confused, and terrified beyond reason. When it becomes apparent that her own sister, Gemma is the serial killer's next target, Charley has no choice but to ask for Reyes's help. Arsonist or not, he's the one man alive who could protect Gemma no matter who or what came at her. But he wants something in return. Charley. All of her, body and soul. And to keep her sister safe, it is a price she is willing to pay.
From Goodreads:
Shimmer is a Charley Davidson Christmas Short Story. For more, the author released Glow, which is the same story but through the eyes of Reyes Farrow.
From Goodreads:
Glow is the sultry short story, Shimmer, as told through the eyes of Reyes Farrow.
Few things in life can come between a grim reaper and her coffee, but the sexy, sultry son of Satan is one of them. Now that Reyes Farrow has asked for her hand, Charley Davidson feels it's time to learn more about his past, but Reyes is reluctant to open up. When the official FBI file of his childhood abduction lands in her lap, Charley decides to go behind her mysterious beau’s back and conduct her own investigation. Because what could go wrong?
Unfortunately, another case has fallen into her lap—one with dangerous implications. Some very insistent men want Charley to hunt down a witness who is scheduled to testify against their boss, a major player in the local crime syndicate. If Charley doesn't come up with an address in 48 hours, the people closest to her will start to disappear.
Add to that a desperate man in search of the soul he lost in a card game, a dogged mother determined to find the ghost of her son, and a beautiful, young Deaf boy haunted by his new ability to see the departed as clearly as he sees the living, and Charley has her hands full. The fact that Reyes has caught on to her latest venture only adds fuel to the inferno that he is. Good thing for Charley she's used to multi-tasking and always up for a challenge…especially when that challenge comes in the form of Reyes Farrow.
Twelve. Twelve of the deadliest beasts ever forged in the fires of hell have escaped onto our plane, and they want nothing more than to rip out the jugular of Charley Davidson and serve her lifeless, mangled body to Satan for dinner. So there's that. But Charley has more on her plate than a mob of testy hellhounds. For one thing, her father has disappeared, and the more she retraces his last steps, the more she learns he was conducting an investigation of his own, one that has Charley questioning everything she's ever known about him. Add to that an ex-BFF who is haunting her night and day, a rash of suicides that has authorities baffled, and a drop-dead sexy fiancé who has attracted the attentions of a local celebrity, and Charley is not having the best week of her life.
A tad north of hell, a hop, skip, and a jump past the realm of eternity, is a little place called Earth, and Charley Davidson, grim reaper extraordinaire, is determined to do everything in her power to protect it.
We're doomed.
With twelve hellhounds after her, pregnant Charley Davidson takes refuge at the only place she thinks they can't get to her: the grounds of an abandoned convent. But after months of being cooped up there, Charley is ready to pop. Both metaphorically and literally since she is now roughly the size of a beached whale. Fortunately, a new case has captured her attention, one that involves a murder on the very grounds the team has taken shelter upon. A decades-old murder of the newly-vowed nun she keeps seeing in the shadows is almost enough to pull her out of her doldrums.
Charley's been forbidden to step foot off the sacred grounds. While the angry hellhounds can't traverse the consecrated soil, they can lurk just beyond its borders. They have the entire team on edge, especially Reyes. And if Charley didn't know better, she would swear Reyes is getting sick. He grows hotter with every moment that passes, his heat scorching across her skin every time he's near, but naturally he swears he's fine.
While the team searches for clues on the Twelve, Charley just wants answers and is powerless to get them. But the mass of friends they've accrued helps. They convince her even more that everyone in her recent life has somehow been drawn to her, as though they were a part of a bigger picture all along. But the good feelings don't last for long because Charley is about to get the surprise of her crazy, mixed-up, supernatural life…
From Goodreads:
All his life, Reyes Alexander Farrow has suffered the torments of the damned. Only one thing has given him hope: the woman who radiates a light that no mortals can see; a light that only the departed can see...
Told from his point of view, BRIGHTER THAN THE SUN chronicles the first time Reyes ever encountered Charley, and how their relationship has been the one thing that can either save him or doom him.
My first review of First Grave on the Right, For I Have Sinned, Second Grave on the Right, Third Grave Dead Ahead, Forth Grave Beneath My Feet, Fifth Grave Past the Light, Sixth Grave on the Edge, Seventh Grave and No Body, Eighth Grave After Dark, Brighter Than the Sun
My second review of First Grave on the Right, Second Grave on the Right, Third Grave Dead Ahead, Forth Grave Beneath My Feet, Fifth Grave Past the Light
My Review:
Ah, this series was just so great to read! I can't believe we're almost at the end! So of course I had to read the whole series again, because it's so excellent! It was a little bit tiring being in Charley's head for that long back to back, because it's just slightly off tilt, which requires extra brain power to translate. But that's the only negative, because the rest is this amazing series!
For me, these books are three things. They're funny, absolutely. Like, every word comes together to a hilarious whole. They're mysteries, sometimes with a lot more going on, and not a lot of time. Finally, they're romances. The burn between Charley and Reyes isn't always a focus, but it's always there!
This world of a Grim Reaper, was so fantastic! The rules changed a few times, and when I was reading them as they were coming out, I would get a bit confused because of those changes, but mainly it's because people kept important details to themselves, or changed said details. Which was confusing the first time round, but less so this time, yeah!
I've read the first few books in this series a few times, so I remember them. But books 6 to 8, I've only read once, so it's funny, I remember them less than books 9 to 12, because I've read that later more recently. So it was fun to read those ones again, it was basically like it was the first time!
Loved reading this series, and I can't wait to reread more!
Author: Darynda Jones
Series: Charley Jones #1, 1.5, 2, 3, 4, 5, 5.5, 5.6, 6, 7, 8, 8.5
First Read: July 15th, 2012, July 19th, 2012, July 21st, 2012, July 20th, 2012, December 3rd, 2012, July 10th, 2013, January 12th, 2014, January 12th, 2014, May 20th, 2014, October 21st, 2014, June 1st, 2015, December 7th, 2015
Second Read: November 23rd, 24th, 24th, 24th, 25th, 25th, 2013
Read: October 30th, 30th, 30th, 30th, 31st, 31st, November
Source: Own, Free
Reason Why: Rereading! And they're Prequel & Sequel Challenge 2018 Books!
Publisher: Griffin, St. Martin's Press, Darynda Jones
Published: July 5th 2011, 2011, August 16th 2011, January 31st 2012, October 30th 2012, July 9th 2013, December 23rd 2013, January 1st 2014, May 20th 2014, October 21st 2014, May 19th 2015, October 6th 2015
First Grave on the Right:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
For I Have Sinned:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
Second Grave on the Right:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
Third Grave Dead Ahead:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
For I Have Sinned:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
Forth Grave Beneath My Feet:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
Fifth Grave Past the Light:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
Shimmer:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
Glow:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
Sixth Grave on the Edge:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
Seventh Grave and No Body:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
Eighth Grave After Dark:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
Brighter Than the Sun:
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| 5/5 Hearts |
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| 5/5 Books |
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| 5/5 Stars |
