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They Call Me Death
My name is Alexia Williams. In my world, North America is divided between north and south but not the way it's taught in the history books. After losing my family to the shifters, I joined the Combined Human States Army. Now I find myself on the front lines, defending the wall between my species and theirs. My mission is simple: keep the animals on their side by whatever means necessary and I'm good at it.
I don't talk to them. I don't sympathize with them. I sure as hell don't admire them until one saves my life.
Andor isn't like any shifter I've ever met. He's a three-hundred-year-old golden eagle asking for help finding missing shifters who may be in my lands.
I just have to decide between helping the animals or ignoring signs that my fellow humans aren't what I thought they were. But how can I help a species I hate and fear? Even if Andor makes me feel alive again? In the land of the shifters they call me Death.
I don't talk to them. I don't sympathize with them. I sure as hell don't admire them until one saves my life.
Andor isn't like any shifter I've ever met. He's a three-hundred-year-old golden eagle asking for help finding missing shifters who may be in my lands.
I just have to decide between helping the animals or ignoring signs that my fellow humans aren't what I thought they were. But how can I help a species I hate and fear? Even if Andor makes me feel alive again? In the land of the shifters they call me Death.
208 pages, Paperback
First published February 10, 2009
2 people are currently reading
202 people want to read
About the author
Missy Jane
34 books326 followersI'm a Texas native who loves to read and write Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, Fantasy Romance, and Contemporary Erotic Romance. When not reading or writing I'm an avid photographer.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
January 18, 2018
I thought there'd be more death from such a titled book. I also thought the heroine would've done more of that killing. She didn't. She was still a badass, I just would've enjoyed it more if she was a super Buffy. She's a very normal human who's gotten lucky / trained.
The plot makes sense & I liked Andor. Could've done with a few more explanations to things in the end.
The plot makes sense & I liked Andor. Could've done with a few more explanations to things in the end.
September 19, 2015
"They Call Me Death" is a very strong title, which means this book had a lot to live up to. It started out well, with a prologue that was pretty intriguing, but unfortunately it fell at the first chapter due to poorly thought-out world-building and unimaginative characters.
In the prologue we are told how the world became what it is; an America divided into North and South between shifters and humans. Alexia is at home with her husband and child and watches a news anchor-man kill everyone in the studio live on TV, after shifting into a cougar.
This suggests that shifters had been living alongside humans for years, taking on human jobs, living human lives. However, further along in the next few chapters the main character, Alexia, tells us how she is able to differentiate between species even in human form due to "canines having overbites" (let me point out here that in another paragraph a few pages on it states 'underbite'), "felines can't hide their teeth when they talk" and "reptilians can be spotted by their skin" - wouldn't this have been noticeable before the shifters declared war and ate their work colleagues?
There is also mention that shifters had families - human families. How is this possible? What about children? Were they born shifters and if so wouldn't the parent have noticed reptilian skin or feline teeth?
The plot is also rather thin. In a nut shell there's a laboratory where shifters are presumably being held for some kind of experimentation. Andor, a Golden Eagle shifter, thinks his daughter is being held there and needs Alexia's help. There are a few twists along the way but that's pretty much it. We are given no explanation as to why the shifters turned on humans so violently and so suddenly.
Most of the story is 'told' rather than 'shown' which makes for tiresome reading, and the author had a habit of skipping chunks of the story by adding "10 days passed", "after two weeks" or jumping to the next day. Wouldn’t it have been better to show us what happened rather than tell us in retrospect in the next chapter?
Being called "Death" by the enemy is a pretty big statement and Alexia had a lot to live up to. Unfortunately she didn't manage it and did absolutely nothing to back it up, as we never get to see her in action. We do see her, however, throwing her weight around with the guys at work. This was a little unrealistic to be honest, especially when she's only five foot eight and the guys she works with are well built and six feet tall. There needed to be more evidence as to why these guys would be scared of her and why shifters nicknamed her "Death".
Alexia and Andor's relationship happens too fast and isn't particularly explosive or toe curling. It took them only a couple of weeks to fall in love and shorter still for Alexia to trust him, even though she has a self-proclaimed loathing of shifters due to them killing her husband and child. The sex scenes were awkward and clumsy and didn't get me hot and bothered at all.
Andor's most appealing aspect is that he shifts into a Golden Eagle, which I think are magnificent birds. The author did try and express how beautiful and powerful Andor is in bird form but didn't quite manage it and therefore I didn't get a sense of how amazing he is.
Also, with just a little bit of research you can learn that Golden Eagles have a flight speed of approximately 30 miles per hour; their wing span can be up to 7 feet and they can carry prey three times their own body weight. Andor in shifter form is 6 feet tall with a wing span on 15 feet - therefore, taking all this into consideration, why oh why were Andor and Alexia running for their lives from the Alpha of the shifter divide when all he had to do was carry her and fly?
Although Alexia didn't get the opportunity to show us why shifters called her 'Death', she did have a tough-guy attitude, but her demeanour changed almost immediately when she met Andor. He kept telling her to keep behind him or wait in the other room. She even leaned into him at times like a simpering wimp! This isn't evidence of a woman called "Death"!
Another aspect I found rather strange was all the shifters seemed to speak in formal English, and yet have mixed with human society for years, blending in, pretending to be human, surely modern day speech would have rubbed off, if not then the human's around them would have found them all rather odd. Alexia starts out sounding like a modern day woman, but for some reason even she begins to speak formally:
VERDICT:
I really wanted to like "They Call Me Death" as I am a huge urban fantasy fan, but it had a lot to live up to with such a statement for a title – unfortunately the heroine, Alexia didn't pull it off. The world building and plot needed a lot more thought and better execution. It could have done with being longer with more 'show' than 'tell'. There were too many unanswered questions and hugely noticeable inconsistencies. I was constantly niggled, frowning in displeasure and sighing with annoyance. I may be reading about supernatural beings but it still has to be believable.
However, it wasn't the most awful book I’ve ever read, but would I recommend it? No...there are far too many fantastic urban fantasy novels to be read, so I wouldn’t waste your time with this one.
In the prologue we are told how the world became what it is; an America divided into North and South between shifters and humans. Alexia is at home with her husband and child and watches a news anchor-man kill everyone in the studio live on TV, after shifting into a cougar.
This suggests that shifters had been living alongside humans for years, taking on human jobs, living human lives. However, further along in the next few chapters the main character, Alexia, tells us how she is able to differentiate between species even in human form due to "canines having overbites" (let me point out here that in another paragraph a few pages on it states 'underbite'), "felines can't hide their teeth when they talk" and "reptilians can be spotted by their skin" - wouldn't this have been noticeable before the shifters declared war and ate their work colleagues?
There is also mention that shifters had families - human families. How is this possible? What about children? Were they born shifters and if so wouldn't the parent have noticed reptilian skin or feline teeth?
The plot is also rather thin. In a nut shell there's a laboratory where shifters are presumably being held for some kind of experimentation. Andor, a Golden Eagle shifter, thinks his daughter is being held there and needs Alexia's help. There are a few twists along the way but that's pretty much it. We are given no explanation as to why the shifters turned on humans so violently and so suddenly.
Most of the story is 'told' rather than 'shown' which makes for tiresome reading, and the author had a habit of skipping chunks of the story by adding "10 days passed", "after two weeks" or jumping to the next day. Wouldn’t it have been better to show us what happened rather than tell us in retrospect in the next chapter?
Being called "Death" by the enemy is a pretty big statement and Alexia had a lot to live up to. Unfortunately she didn't manage it and did absolutely nothing to back it up, as we never get to see her in action. We do see her, however, throwing her weight around with the guys at work. This was a little unrealistic to be honest, especially when she's only five foot eight and the guys she works with are well built and six feet tall. There needed to be more evidence as to why these guys would be scared of her and why shifters nicknamed her "Death".
Alexia and Andor's relationship happens too fast and isn't particularly explosive or toe curling. It took them only a couple of weeks to fall in love and shorter still for Alexia to trust him, even though she has a self-proclaimed loathing of shifters due to them killing her husband and child. The sex scenes were awkward and clumsy and didn't get me hot and bothered at all.
Andor's most appealing aspect is that he shifts into a Golden Eagle, which I think are magnificent birds. The author did try and express how beautiful and powerful Andor is in bird form but didn't quite manage it and therefore I didn't get a sense of how amazing he is.
Also, with just a little bit of research you can learn that Golden Eagles have a flight speed of approximately 30 miles per hour; their wing span can be up to 7 feet and they can carry prey three times their own body weight. Andor in shifter form is 6 feet tall with a wing span on 15 feet - therefore, taking all this into consideration, why oh why were Andor and Alexia running for their lives from the Alpha of the shifter divide when all he had to do was carry her and fly?
Although Alexia didn't get the opportunity to show us why shifters called her 'Death', she did have a tough-guy attitude, but her demeanour changed almost immediately when she met Andor. He kept telling her to keep behind him or wait in the other room. She even leaned into him at times like a simpering wimp! This isn't evidence of a woman called "Death"!
Another aspect I found rather strange was all the shifters seemed to speak in formal English, and yet have mixed with human society for years, blending in, pretending to be human, surely modern day speech would have rubbed off, if not then the human's around them would have found them all rather odd. Alexia starts out sounding like a modern day woman, but for some reason even she begins to speak formally:
I'm not his to command, but I may be death for you unless you explain why you're here unbidden," I replied.Unbidden?
VERDICT:
I really wanted to like "They Call Me Death" as I am a huge urban fantasy fan, but it had a lot to live up to with such a statement for a title – unfortunately the heroine, Alexia didn't pull it off. The world building and plot needed a lot more thought and better execution. It could have done with being longer with more 'show' than 'tell'. There were too many unanswered questions and hugely noticeable inconsistencies. I was constantly niggled, frowning in displeasure and sighing with annoyance. I may be reading about supernatural beings but it still has to be believable.
However, it wasn't the most awful book I’ve ever read, but would I recommend it? No...there are far too many fantastic urban fantasy novels to be read, so I wouldn’t waste your time with this one.
March 22, 2010
I'd give this 3 stars as a Paranormal Romance, but since this kept coming up for me as recommended "Urban Fantasy" by Amazon, I'm going to only give it 1 star. This is NOT Urban Fantasy.
The paranormal aspects of this story could have easily been removed and replaced with any other factor that typically keeps the hero and heroine apart in romance novels.
There is mention of what happened to Alexia's family, but not how she went from Suzie homemaker to kick-ass military chick who doesn't even remember how to put on lipstick anymore. Clearly not everyone took the military path she did and if all her "kills" are defensive, how could a whole nation of Shifters consider her "death".
For someone who had her child "torn apart in front of her", she is awfully quick to switch from big bad shifter killer to "I did shift so our thighs were touching"... "welcoming the warm touch" of a shifter she's known for a few days. Alexia is definitely not my definition of a "kick-ass heroine"
The action surrounding the romantic elements can barely be considered action.
...oh lets run to my house in the shifter zone
...oh no, the Alpha is coming... RUN!! Let's run back to the human zone.
...oh I can't run any more... carry me so I can rest while you run.
...OMG Alexia killed a shifter who jumped her! Big bad kick-ass heroine breaks down in tears and zones out while the big strong hero makes sure she gets to safety.
...Lets sneak into the bad guy's lair and infiltrate his evil operation.
...OH YEA! One of the big strong men is just in time to save Alexia, but where's the hero??
Hero runs off for 2 weeks without contacting her afterward but in typical romance novel style, that's OK because I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!
Now, if you like Paranormal Romance, you might like this book and for $3.60 for the Kindle edition, the price isn't too bad. It was a quick read and as far as Romance goes, it's not bad.
I wish Amazon would stop recommending Paranormal Romances as Urban Fantasy. This is not Urban Fantasy folks, it's ROMANCE. I just personally like darker Urban Fantasy... Jim Butcher, Kim Harrison, Illona Andrews, Patricia Briggs, Faith Hunter. Now those are some "kick-ass" heroines (or heroes in the case of Harry Dresden).
Warning: book does contains somewhat explicit sex scenes.
Contains little to no gore descriptions in the "action" scenes
The paranormal aspects of this story could have easily been removed and replaced with any other factor that typically keeps the hero and heroine apart in romance novels.
There is mention of what happened to Alexia's family, but not how she went from Suzie homemaker to kick-ass military chick who doesn't even remember how to put on lipstick anymore. Clearly not everyone took the military path she did and if all her "kills" are defensive, how could a whole nation of Shifters consider her "death".
For someone who had her child "torn apart in front of her", she is awfully quick to switch from big bad shifter killer to "I did shift so our thighs were touching"... "welcoming the warm touch" of a shifter she's known for a few days. Alexia is definitely not my definition of a "kick-ass heroine"
The action surrounding the romantic elements can barely be considered action.
...oh lets run to my house in the shifter zone
...oh no, the Alpha is coming... RUN!! Let's run back to the human zone.
...oh I can't run any more... carry me so I can rest while you run.
...OMG Alexia killed a shifter who jumped her! Big bad kick-ass heroine breaks down in tears and zones out while the big strong hero makes sure she gets to safety.
...Lets sneak into the bad guy's lair and infiltrate his evil operation.
...OH YEA! One of the big strong men is just in time to save Alexia, but where's the hero??
Hero runs off for 2 weeks without contacting her afterward but in typical romance novel style, that's OK because I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!
Now, if you like Paranormal Romance, you might like this book and for $3.60 for the Kindle edition, the price isn't too bad. It was a quick read and as far as Romance goes, it's not bad.
I wish Amazon would stop recommending Paranormal Romances as Urban Fantasy. This is not Urban Fantasy folks, it's ROMANCE. I just personally like darker Urban Fantasy... Jim Butcher, Kim Harrison, Illona Andrews, Patricia Briggs, Faith Hunter. Now those are some "kick-ass" heroines (or heroes in the case of Harry Dresden).
Warning: book does contains somewhat explicit sex scenes.
Contains little to no gore descriptions in the "action" scenes
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 1, 2011
I feel like this book had a lot of potential but it didn't quite manage to live up to my expectations. I was really curious about a story where shifters have revealed themselves to the public but did so as an act of war and aren't trying to live happily alongside humans. Unfortunately I was left with a lot of questions - why did they start the war? What happened to make them so anti-human? If they had such obvious physical differences (Alexia points out several times that she can easily spot shifters) then how did they remain hidden for so long? If these questions had been answered They Call Me Death would have been a much more satisfying read.
I also found myself a bit disappointed with Alexis, with a title like They Call Me Death I was expecting a heroine who could stand up for herself. This expectation was only raised by the warning on the back cover "If you are easily intimidated by kick-ass heroines who can hold their own against alpha males and bring them to their knees, this book is not for you!". Alexis spends a lot of time telling you she is kick-ass, she certainly acts like she must be when surrounded by her male army colleagues but when it comes down to it she fails to deliver. The one time we see her kill a shifter (even though it is in self defense) she breaks down and is horrified by her actions, hardly what I would expect from someone who has killed so many shifters that they actually refer to her as Death.
At first it was easy to feel for her, you discover in the prologue that both her husband and her son were killed by shifters when the war first began. It is easy to see why she would hate shifters and want revenge, her world was turned upside down and she reacted in a way that I think most people would wish they could. That just made it harder to believe the complete turnaround she makes when she first meets Andor, she lets him in far too quickly and it just didn't fit with what we knew of her personality. This just made their relationship completely unbelievable and I struggled to feel the connection between them.
The plot itself was fairly thin, shifters have been going missing and Andor is trying to find out what is happening to them. He comes to Alexis for help but it was never really clear why he needed her, I didn't see any evidence of her being particularly useful in the investigation. The two of them spend a lot of time running and hiding, the author skips chunks of time without making it clear what they had been doing during the gaps and the showdowns they do have with their enemies were mostly over too quickly with very little drama.
I had high expectations for this book but unfortunately it failed to deliver and I would struggle to recommend this when there are so many fantastic urban fantasy series out there.
I also found myself a bit disappointed with Alexis, with a title like They Call Me Death I was expecting a heroine who could stand up for herself. This expectation was only raised by the warning on the back cover "If you are easily intimidated by kick-ass heroines who can hold their own against alpha males and bring them to their knees, this book is not for you!". Alexis spends a lot of time telling you she is kick-ass, she certainly acts like she must be when surrounded by her male army colleagues but when it comes down to it she fails to deliver. The one time we see her kill a shifter (even though it is in self defense) she breaks down and is horrified by her actions, hardly what I would expect from someone who has killed so many shifters that they actually refer to her as Death.
At first it was easy to feel for her, you discover in the prologue that both her husband and her son were killed by shifters when the war first began. It is easy to see why she would hate shifters and want revenge, her world was turned upside down and she reacted in a way that I think most people would wish they could. That just made it harder to believe the complete turnaround she makes when she first meets Andor, she lets him in far too quickly and it just didn't fit with what we knew of her personality. This just made their relationship completely unbelievable and I struggled to feel the connection between them.
The plot itself was fairly thin, shifters have been going missing and Andor is trying to find out what is happening to them. He comes to Alexis for help but it was never really clear why he needed her, I didn't see any evidence of her being particularly useful in the investigation. The two of them spend a lot of time running and hiding, the author skips chunks of time without making it clear what they had been doing during the gaps and the showdowns they do have with their enemies were mostly over too quickly with very little drama.
I had high expectations for this book but unfortunately it failed to deliver and I would struggle to recommend this when there are so many fantastic urban fantasy series out there.
April 27, 2010
They Call Me Death is a fabulous debut book.
We look through the eyes of Alexia Williams at a world overrun by shifters. After watching her husband and son killed by shifters she has become one of the top fighters for the human defence force. Defending the wall daily and killing any shifters that cause trouble. Alexia is portrayed as a strong woman, but really she has put a lid on all of her emotions. She doesn't feel and doesn't care about the various life-threatening situations she puts herself through.
Then, along comes Andor, the shape-shifting Golden Eagle. Andor is smart, sexy and strong. He protects Alexia after puting her life in danger by contacting her. Andor changes everything. Alexia starts to feel again, but is confused because she's dealing with a creature that is the reason her family is dead.
Watching Alexia struggle with her emotions about Andor and trying to keep him from reading the thoughts about her true feelings from her mind is quite entertaining.
The development of the characters was very well done, giving each character a unique voice. The build-up of the relationships was evenly paced and very believable. Although there were feelings from the start Alexia stuck with her gut about Shifters and wouldn't give into her emotions, the romance had time to mature and become something special, not just a quick jump in the sack.
I encourage anyone who likes shape-shifters to read it because it is a new take on the genre, the detail put into Andor shifting into an eagle and the feelings attached to his animal side are incredible. When Alexia touched the feathers, I almost felt like I did too.
The only bad thing about this book are the time jumps, they are unexpected and oddly done. We can jump hours or days from one sentence to the next which involved a bit of re-reading on my part to understand what was going on. Other than that, for a debut author the style was if a little simple, very well done.
They Call Me Death is fast-paced and once we get more into the story, completely unputdownable. Things move along quickly without skipping important details which keep us enthralled from start to finish.
find this review at storywings.blogspot.com
We look through the eyes of Alexia Williams at a world overrun by shifters. After watching her husband and son killed by shifters she has become one of the top fighters for the human defence force. Defending the wall daily and killing any shifters that cause trouble. Alexia is portrayed as a strong woman, but really she has put a lid on all of her emotions. She doesn't feel and doesn't care about the various life-threatening situations she puts herself through.
Then, along comes Andor, the shape-shifting Golden Eagle. Andor is smart, sexy and strong. He protects Alexia after puting her life in danger by contacting her. Andor changes everything. Alexia starts to feel again, but is confused because she's dealing with a creature that is the reason her family is dead.
Watching Alexia struggle with her emotions about Andor and trying to keep him from reading the thoughts about her true feelings from her mind is quite entertaining.
The development of the characters was very well done, giving each character a unique voice. The build-up of the relationships was evenly paced and very believable. Although there were feelings from the start Alexia stuck with her gut about Shifters and wouldn't give into her emotions, the romance had time to mature and become something special, not just a quick jump in the sack.
I encourage anyone who likes shape-shifters to read it because it is a new take on the genre, the detail put into Andor shifting into an eagle and the feelings attached to his animal side are incredible. When Alexia touched the feathers, I almost felt like I did too.
The only bad thing about this book are the time jumps, they are unexpected and oddly done. We can jump hours or days from one sentence to the next which involved a bit of re-reading on my part to understand what was going on. Other than that, for a debut author the style was if a little simple, very well done.
They Call Me Death is fast-paced and once we get more into the story, completely unputdownable. Things move along quickly without skipping important details which keep us enthralled from start to finish.
find this review at storywings.blogspot.com
November 8, 2016
3.5 stars
I read some reviews before reading this book and was thinking oh no what am I going into. I have to admit I like the book, didn't love it but liked.
Quick back story, there was a war between newly formed shifters and humans and now countries are separated by borders. Some people venture into shifter side but shifters are not overly welcome on human side that is why the wall is patrolled by soldiers with guns.
Alexia is a human, she lost her family in the war and now patrols the wall. She see's a lot of happenings on the shifter side, some walk around looking human and others can't control themselves so much and walk around partially shifted. In some ways the shifter side sounded more civilized.
Andor is a shifter, he doesn't hide this fact and I have to admit I really like him, he was an older shifter and different to the new wave of shifters - he also had powers, telepathy and can create illusions about how he looks.
Andor and Alexia come together on a mission to find some missing shifters, along this journey they grow closer and I was desperate for them to cross that line - I had a wait but it finally happens.
This book is enjoyable to read. I believe the story would have been better if some things were expanded more and made into a longer book.
I read some reviews before reading this book and was thinking oh no what am I going into. I have to admit I like the book, didn't love it but liked.
Quick back story, there was a war between newly formed shifters and humans and now countries are separated by borders. Some people venture into shifter side but shifters are not overly welcome on human side that is why the wall is patrolled by soldiers with guns.
Alexia is a human, she lost her family in the war and now patrols the wall. She see's a lot of happenings on the shifter side, some walk around looking human and others can't control themselves so much and walk around partially shifted. In some ways the shifter side sounded more civilized.
Andor is a shifter, he doesn't hide this fact and I have to admit I really like him, he was an older shifter and different to the new wave of shifters - he also had powers, telepathy and can create illusions about how he looks.
Andor and Alexia come together on a mission to find some missing shifters, along this journey they grow closer and I was desperate for them to cross that line - I had a wait but it finally happens.
This book is enjoyable to read. I believe the story would have been better if some things were expanded more and made into a longer book.
February 23, 2012
I really enjoyed this book. What I really liked though was Alexia. I know that there were some complaints (though I didn't read them) that she wasn't tough enough or ass kicking enough. I thought that she did enough of that through the book. I got what MJ was trying to do. Alexia is tired of Death, it's apart of her now but she was not always like this. She had a family once and more domesticated (Suzy homemaker). And let's face it, who wants to live killing people all the time, hating all the time. That's got to be exhausting. This was a Character that grew out of that and we got small snippets of why she ended up with the nick name "Death"
I would have liked to have seen more about how she ended up such a bad ass. I thought that MJ should try her hand at Urban Fantasy. This character was very cool and the type you want to follow.
As far as the romance, it was pretty hot and Andor was a hunk! The world building was different to. The throw back to the civil war boundaries was interesting.
Now I do want to read about this Alpha named Sandulf. Maybe the next book she has planned in the future?
Overall this was a really good read that kept my attention and enjoyed.
I would have liked to have seen more about how she ended up such a bad ass. I thought that MJ should try her hand at Urban Fantasy. This character was very cool and the type you want to follow.
As far as the romance, it was pretty hot and Andor was a hunk! The world building was different to. The throw back to the civil war boundaries was interesting.
Now I do want to read about this Alpha named Sandulf. Maybe the next book she has planned in the future?
Overall this was a really good read that kept my attention and enjoyed.
February 5, 2010
I requested this from my local library. I usually do this with new authors that I have never read. This saves me money if I do not like the authors writing style. I encourage everyone to make buying requests from your local library. Mine fills my request 8 out of 10 times, and I can request up to 4 new books each month. In the last 3 years they have bought at least 100 books that I have requested. Now on to the review, I found this to be a short pleasant read. I liked the world she wrote about it just needs to be fleshed out a little more. She didn't explain how the shifters had kept their physical charcteristics hidden for so long. Some are discribed as having longer canine teeth. How were these hidden? Also something about their blood,or dna denotes them as shifter how did hospitals not notice this for many, many years? I liked it enough to want to read the next book in the series which I believe will be Lance and Emily, the daughter of the hero in this book.
February 10, 2012
Im really not sure what to say here. it started well, I enjoyed a kick-ass heroine, who had a reason to be who she is, and who was not TSTL.
Somehow she seemed to loose that person. As the plot went on, she gradually became weaker and more dependent on others to look after her, and in the end this trained and highly experienced soldier couldn't keep focus on the very dangerous mission she was on, because she was so intend on the hotness of the guy next to her. That is when I lost all respect for her, and if I had not been reading on my computer, I would have thrown the book at the wall. The overly twee ending did not make up for the lacking plot.
Despite the ample sequel bait, I doubt I will be wanting to read any more of this.
Somehow she seemed to loose that person. As the plot went on, she gradually became weaker and more dependent on others to look after her, and in the end this trained and highly experienced soldier couldn't keep focus on the very dangerous mission she was on, because she was so intend on the hotness of the guy next to her. That is when I lost all respect for her, and if I had not been reading on my computer, I would have thrown the book at the wall. The overly twee ending did not make up for the lacking plot.
Despite the ample sequel bait, I doubt I will be wanting to read any more of this.
December 21, 2009
really good book i enjoyed it alot. it's a quick read and jumps right into the action and is really fascinating. death is a women named Alexia in this post war world shifters control some of the u.s as there own state Alexia is a human who guards a wall that divides the two countries and she is a fierce woman with a wall of steel around her heart untill she mets andor... enough of that this books is really good you'll like it for alexia and her attitude but love it for andor and his sexiness
November 2, 2016
This is probably more of a 3.5 book. I liked everything about it basically....the premise is good, the characters were good and had great potential but I found it hard to connect emotionally to the characters and their struggles. I also feel like a few enemies or threads could have been used better to enhance the storyline but all in all it was a decent read.
July 23, 2017
Story started out with great promise, but tanked after the two main characters met. The romance was unrealistic, the sex scenes were cheesy, and the suspense pretty much nonexistent. Too bad, because the story had real potential. Handled well, it would've been a reflection of today's cultural mores and conflicts.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 9, 2011
I have to admit, I was pleasantly surprised by this novella-length story. Had an additional 100 or so more pages been added to flesh out the world building and character development, this could have been a solid urban fantasy novel and the start of a strong series. As it is, there is enough here to be interesting and unique and it made for a very decent read.
In an alternate version of the U.S., shapeshifters came out of the closet in bloody fashion, resulting in a war that split the country from east to west, from sea to shining sea, and left humans struggling for any sort of cultural resurgence in the south while in the north, shifters flourish. Between them stands a wall, and on that wall stands Alexia Williams, a member of the Combined Human States Army, and known to the shifters simply as Death. She's the lone survivor of her family and after having watched her husband and infant son brutally slaughtered under the fangs and claws of shifters, she's got absolutely no love for their species and not much more in the way of tender feelings for even her fellow man. In fact, her loss has turned her into a cold killing machine and the only person she trusts is herself.
When a three hundred year old golden eagle shifter named Andor steps in and saves her life, then asks for her help in uncovering the truth behind missing shifter youth, shifters that are disappearing into human territory, it takes a lot to convince her to even start taking another look at shifters in general, and Andor in particular. Can a woman who has lost so very much ever trust a member of a species responsible for that loss, or will Death reign supreme in the end?
They Call Me Death is well written, given the constraints of the length of the story. At it's core is a compelling narrative about the importance of humane and ethical behavior, the dangers of corruption, and the truth that evil isn't restricted to species, breed, sex, culture, color, or creed. This isn't really a book about a kick-ass chick who goes all Deathy on the enemy. Truth is, Alexia has a core that's less tough-ass and more grief stricken...like she got stuck in the rage state of loss and never quite got over it. Beneath it, though, is a woman who loved her husband and son and led a fairly normal suburban life prior to the world going to such hell in such a spectacular handbasket. So when she starts to warm to Andor, starts to trust a little and heal a little, you realize she's got quite a capacity for lack of prejudice. I liked her quite a lot, and I enjoyed Andor too.
There's enough world building and character development to keep a moderately tolerant reader very happy, but in truth, if you tend to be exceedingly critical of shorter length novels, I wouldn't recommend They Call Me Death. I was left feeling the ending was a bit contrived and wrapped up a bit too patly, and there were some plot holes and questions that didn't get sufficiently resolved to my satisfaction. That being said, I also thought that the narrative (first person from Alexia's perspective) was rather well done in that it started out as cold and brutally clinical as Alexia herself was, then warmed as her character slowly changed - and that rate of change was realistic and seemed very organic to the story. If this was all the writer's intent, than kudos for the subtly drawn device that assists a reader in experiencing Alexia's change with her.
I would've liked to see more about her military compatriots, but I will warn easily upset readers that there was one thread about a co-worker, so to speak, that was extremely dark and disturbing and definitely chilling - I appreciated it from an intellectual standpoint for what it was and what it disclosed, but it was rough on an emotional level. Fortunately it didn't last long.
I don't know that I would recommend this particular story for just anyone, but I will say that I would reread it. There was quite a bit here I liked.
~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
In an alternate version of the U.S., shapeshifters came out of the closet in bloody fashion, resulting in a war that split the country from east to west, from sea to shining sea, and left humans struggling for any sort of cultural resurgence in the south while in the north, shifters flourish. Between them stands a wall, and on that wall stands Alexia Williams, a member of the Combined Human States Army, and known to the shifters simply as Death. She's the lone survivor of her family and after having watched her husband and infant son brutally slaughtered under the fangs and claws of shifters, she's got absolutely no love for their species and not much more in the way of tender feelings for even her fellow man. In fact, her loss has turned her into a cold killing machine and the only person she trusts is herself.
When a three hundred year old golden eagle shifter named Andor steps in and saves her life, then asks for her help in uncovering the truth behind missing shifter youth, shifters that are disappearing into human territory, it takes a lot to convince her to even start taking another look at shifters in general, and Andor in particular. Can a woman who has lost so very much ever trust a member of a species responsible for that loss, or will Death reign supreme in the end?
They Call Me Death is well written, given the constraints of the length of the story. At it's core is a compelling narrative about the importance of humane and ethical behavior, the dangers of corruption, and the truth that evil isn't restricted to species, breed, sex, culture, color, or creed. This isn't really a book about a kick-ass chick who goes all Deathy on the enemy. Truth is, Alexia has a core that's less tough-ass and more grief stricken...like she got stuck in the rage state of loss and never quite got over it. Beneath it, though, is a woman who loved her husband and son and led a fairly normal suburban life prior to the world going to such hell in such a spectacular handbasket. So when she starts to warm to Andor, starts to trust a little and heal a little, you realize she's got quite a capacity for lack of prejudice. I liked her quite a lot, and I enjoyed Andor too.
There's enough world building and character development to keep a moderately tolerant reader very happy, but in truth, if you tend to be exceedingly critical of shorter length novels, I wouldn't recommend They Call Me Death. I was left feeling the ending was a bit contrived and wrapped up a bit too patly, and there were some plot holes and questions that didn't get sufficiently resolved to my satisfaction. That being said, I also thought that the narrative (first person from Alexia's perspective) was rather well done in that it started out as cold and brutally clinical as Alexia herself was, then warmed as her character slowly changed - and that rate of change was realistic and seemed very organic to the story. If this was all the writer's intent, than kudos for the subtly drawn device that assists a reader in experiencing Alexia's change with her.
I would've liked to see more about her military compatriots, but I will warn easily upset readers that there was one thread about a co-worker, so to speak, that was extremely dark and disturbing and definitely chilling - I appreciated it from an intellectual standpoint for what it was and what it disclosed, but it was rough on an emotional level. Fortunately it didn't last long.
I don't know that I would recommend this particular story for just anyone, but I will say that I would reread it. There was quite a bit here I liked.
~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
August 22, 2011
They Call Me Death by Missy Jane is the first of an urban fantasy romance series and a debut novel for the author.
Alexia Williams is one kick-ass heroine with no interest in getting to know the shifters on the other side of the wall or the men with whom she works in the Combined Human States Army. The shifters killed her family, she started picking them off, and that’s about as up close and personal as she wants to get. Alexia tends to shoot first and ask questions later. It’s worked for her so far … until one saves her life.
Andor Olavson is a three-hundred-year-old shifter who needs Alexia’s help to find missing shifters who may be on the wrong side of the fence. But it’s hard to gain the trust of the woman shifters everywhere call Death.
They Call Me Death is a good urban fantasy romance read, although the romance certainly takes its sweet time to get into gear. But when you have a woman who is hell-bent on destroying those who killed her family, it’s kind of hard to get in the mood. The emotions play out nicely, not rushed at all, and Alexia grows at a good pace. The romance had time to mature as Alexia worked through how she felt about shifters. The rest of the story is fast-paced, written in first person almost as though Alexia was giving a report to her Commander, which fits the character well. This story will keep you glued to the pages until finished, as it is a one-night read. It’s short and quick, full of action, suspense, and humor. There are moments when time is confused, as the story jumps a lot, but the descriptions are fascinating, especially when Andor shifts for Alexia in full detail. The sex scenes aren’t too bad either.
The only thing that jarred this reader out of the story was the 15-foot wingspan on a six-foot golden eagle. A real golden eagle is three feet in length and has a seven-foot wingspan. You can’t just double that for height. One must consider mass as well. Suspension of disbelief failure has obviously occurred here, which could have been easily overcome by adjusting the wingspan to 25 or 30 feet. The larger wingspan is much more believable for a man who changes into a bird.
Overall, Missy Jane has done well for a first book and this reader looks forward to reading more from her.
They Call Me Death – available at Samhain Publishing and Amazon. Check out Missy Jane's website at: http://www.msmissyjane.com
Alexia Williams is one kick-ass heroine with no interest in getting to know the shifters on the other side of the wall or the men with whom she works in the Combined Human States Army. The shifters killed her family, she started picking them off, and that’s about as up close and personal as she wants to get. Alexia tends to shoot first and ask questions later. It’s worked for her so far … until one saves her life.
Andor Olavson is a three-hundred-year-old shifter who needs Alexia’s help to find missing shifters who may be on the wrong side of the fence. But it’s hard to gain the trust of the woman shifters everywhere call Death.
They Call Me Death is a good urban fantasy romance read, although the romance certainly takes its sweet time to get into gear. But when you have a woman who is hell-bent on destroying those who killed her family, it’s kind of hard to get in the mood. The emotions play out nicely, not rushed at all, and Alexia grows at a good pace. The romance had time to mature as Alexia worked through how she felt about shifters. The rest of the story is fast-paced, written in first person almost as though Alexia was giving a report to her Commander, which fits the character well. This story will keep you glued to the pages until finished, as it is a one-night read. It’s short and quick, full of action, suspense, and humor. There are moments when time is confused, as the story jumps a lot, but the descriptions are fascinating, especially when Andor shifts for Alexia in full detail. The sex scenes aren’t too bad either.
The only thing that jarred this reader out of the story was the 15-foot wingspan on a six-foot golden eagle. A real golden eagle is three feet in length and has a seven-foot wingspan. You can’t just double that for height. One must consider mass as well. Suspension of disbelief failure has obviously occurred here, which could have been easily overcome by adjusting the wingspan to 25 or 30 feet. The larger wingspan is much more believable for a man who changes into a bird.
Overall, Missy Jane has done well for a first book and this reader looks forward to reading more from her.
They Call Me Death – available at Samhain Publishing and Amazon. Check out Missy Jane's website at: http://www.msmissyjane.com
May 14, 2012
The title and cover of this book are a bit corny but I'm glad I didn't judge this book by it's cover; the story was phenomenal! Missy Jane, has built a vividly-dark world of chaos and fear. The world has been ravished and split by war between the humans and shifters. The USA no longer exists but is split in half between the North, shifter country and the South, human country.
It has been four years since a third of the worlds population suddenly united and exposed themselves as shifters. Alexia Williams, is one of the military guards who patrol on top of the fifteen-foot wall that separates the humans from their worst nightmares. Humans, naturally having the sense of entitlement, are permitted to come and go between both countries freely (assuming they can make it out of shifter country alive) but shifters are swiftly prohibited from stepping foot on human soil behind the wall.
When shifters suddenly start disappearing, Andor Olavson, a golden-eagle shifter, approaches Alexia for assistance. Having a smart wit about her and an even faster trigger finger, has gotten her the well deserved reputation as Death, amongst the shifters. However, Alexia is also known to be intuitive, level-headed, smart and fair. Alexia agrees to secretly smuggle Andor onto human soil and assist him in his investigation.
What they stumble upon during their search, shakes Alexia to her very core and causes her to reevaluate what she deems good and evil. For Alexia, the lines between human and shifter, right and wrong start to blur. Seeing the degradation human hands can cause, pushes Alexia into action.
I really enjoyed this book from the beginning to the very end and gobbled it all up in one day. The story was so fresh, exciting, imaginative and clever, I couldn't put it down. Alexia, is strong and fearless. She is the kind of heroine, I'd like to see more urban fantasy authors emulate. I highly recommend this urban fantasy romance to dark urban fantasy readers. I also look forward to the next book Much More than Human (Emily & Lance's story).
I also recommend:
Servant: The Kindred
Magic Bites (Kate Daniels, Book 1)
Night Life (Nocturne City, Book 1)
Halfway to the Grave (Night Huntress, Book 1)
Moon Called (Mercy Thompson, Book 1)
It has been four years since a third of the worlds population suddenly united and exposed themselves as shifters. Alexia Williams, is one of the military guards who patrol on top of the fifteen-foot wall that separates the humans from their worst nightmares. Humans, naturally having the sense of entitlement, are permitted to come and go between both countries freely (assuming they can make it out of shifter country alive) but shifters are swiftly prohibited from stepping foot on human soil behind the wall.
When shifters suddenly start disappearing, Andor Olavson, a golden-eagle shifter, approaches Alexia for assistance. Having a smart wit about her and an even faster trigger finger, has gotten her the well deserved reputation as Death, amongst the shifters. However, Alexia is also known to be intuitive, level-headed, smart and fair. Alexia agrees to secretly smuggle Andor onto human soil and assist him in his investigation.
What they stumble upon during their search, shakes Alexia to her very core and causes her to reevaluate what she deems good and evil. For Alexia, the lines between human and shifter, right and wrong start to blur. Seeing the degradation human hands can cause, pushes Alexia into action.
I really enjoyed this book from the beginning to the very end and gobbled it all up in one day. The story was so fresh, exciting, imaginative and clever, I couldn't put it down. Alexia, is strong and fearless. She is the kind of heroine, I'd like to see more urban fantasy authors emulate. I highly recommend this urban fantasy romance to dark urban fantasy readers. I also look forward to the next book Much More than Human (Emily & Lance's story).
I also recommend:
Servant: The Kindred
Magic Bites (Kate Daniels, Book 1)
Night Life (Nocturne City, Book 1)
Halfway to the Grave (Night Huntress, Book 1)
Moon Called (Mercy Thompson, Book 1)
October 25, 2011
The shifters have come out. Now the US is divided. Shifters to the north and humans to the south. Lex has worked patrolling the wall that divides the two keeping humans safe from the animals. When she slips and falls into shifter territory, Andor saves her. Later, he comes to her asking for help.
Lex is a tortured soul. She saw her husband and son killed by people she thought were friends. Neighbors who turned out to be shifters. She fights to keep the shifters on their side of the wall. Andor takes a huge risk approaching Lex. She is known as Death on his side of the wall. But, he needs help from someone he can trust. Someone with no ties in the human world. That someone is Lex.
I liked that the author took her time with Lex and Andor's relationship. Anything else would have seemed false.
Lex is a tortured soul. She saw her husband and son killed by people she thought were friends. Neighbors who turned out to be shifters. She fights to keep the shifters on their side of the wall. Andor takes a huge risk approaching Lex. She is known as Death on his side of the wall. But, he needs help from someone he can trust. Someone with no ties in the human world. That someone is Lex.
I liked that the author took her time with Lex and Andor's relationship. Anything else would have seemed false.
August 5, 2010
OK, so the attraction to this book was the Title and the Cover artwork. I was suckered into it...at least that is my excuse.
It was a good story, but I feel like the main character Alexia wasn't the tough chick that I thought she could have been. I guess I am looking for Jill Kismet or Maxine (from Hunter Kiss series). It had potential, but the author went from let's kick some ass to the mushy stuff (and I don't mind the mushy stuff) in a heart beat and it just takes over the whole story. I understand she has had a wall around her heart forever, but don't we all? lol...anyway, it was a good basic story, I think it needed more substance.
I am actually giving this 3.5 stars and not 3.
It was a good story, but I feel like the main character Alexia wasn't the tough chick that I thought she could have been. I guess I am looking for Jill Kismet or Maxine (from Hunter Kiss series). It had potential, but the author went from let's kick some ass to the mushy stuff (and I don't mind the mushy stuff) in a heart beat and it just takes over the whole story. I understand she has had a wall around her heart forever, but don't we all? lol...anyway, it was a good basic story, I think it needed more substance.
I am actually giving this 3.5 stars and not 3.
January 2, 2013
A really good book. I enjoyed the story, but wish it had been longer. I liked that Alexis was able to move past any prejudices she had especially since the shapeshifters killed her husband and son. Her interaction with Andor moved the story.
Questions:
1) So just who is Lance?
2) Is Sandulf a good guy?
3) Will the humans and shifters ever learn to work together?
4) What will they do with the elixer?
5) Will Emily heal and be ok?
6) What happened to the others?
7) What happened to Lucien?
So another book added to the collection. :-)
Questions:
1) So just who is Lance?
2) Is Sandulf a good guy?
3) Will the humans and shifters ever learn to work together?
4) What will they do with the elixer?
5) Will Emily heal and be ok?
6) What happened to the others?
7) What happened to Lucien?
So another book added to the collection. :-)
May 12, 2010
This was a pretty good story, I did like it. I think I just wish it had more action and went a little more in depth with the background on Andor & Alexia. I also would have liked more background info on the shape shifters as a whole, as to why they did the things they did. All in all I think It was worth reading I just felt liked I wanted and needed more. I did enjoy the build up in romance between Andor & Alexia.
February 25, 2019
A fairly enjoyable dystopian shifter action/adventure/romance. Though I was expecting it to be grittier.
Andor and Alexia are on opposite sides of a Wall (!!) that divides the previous US between humans and shifters.
But as Alexia and Andor meet, get to know each other and embark in their ‘quest’, we see that not everything or everyone is one or the other.
Some messages - walls, technology.
Enjoyable, and fairly light, take on shifter world, probably deserves more stories from this universe
Andor and Alexia are on opposite sides of a Wall (!!) that divides the previous US between humans and shifters.
But as Alexia and Andor meet, get to know each other and embark in their ‘quest’, we see that not everything or everyone is one or the other.
Some messages - walls, technology.
Enjoyable, and fairly light, take on shifter world, probably deserves more stories from this universe
January 26, 2023
This is the first book I've read by Missy Jane and I absolutely loved it. I loved the storyline. It had a little bit of everything in it and I appreciate it not being over done with mushy romance and too much sex. It was a fast-paced story and once the sex came into play boy was it well worth the wait.
September 11, 2012
I can't tell what fascinated me in this one so much. It was simple, without romance at first sight and all the things that annoy me plus an awesome character development. It had everything it should.
It was glamorous.
It was glamorous.
December 23, 2010
Great story. I would have liked a bit more depth. I'd have loved several chapters between the prologue and chapter 1 describing all that was just glossed over.
April 25, 2010
Pretty good. Would read more of them.
July 25, 2021
The 3 stars are due to the powerful story, but know that the execution wasn’t up to par.
October 8, 2011
3.5 Stars
January 4, 2012
Omg, it was awesome.
Read my full review at http://cecesreviews.blogspot.com
Read my full review at http://cecesreviews.blogspot.com
September 9, 2012
These kinds of books are still pretty new to me, but I enjoyed it a lot!
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