Paranormal/Urban Fantasy Couples that we love!!

Welcome back for another week of LOVE. Last week kicked off our "Love is in the Ink" February book theme with classical literary couples. We share with you how these classical love connection influenced most of today's current literary trends and we hope you took the time to pick up one of those classics and give a go yourself. This week we're focusing on one our favorite genre's to read and blog about Paranormal/Urban Fantasy.

We love Dracula, and the dark and twisted love of such classics as Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights so to today we're bringing you our top picks for Paranormal/Urban Fantasy literary couples. Each of these couples has faced their own trials and tribulations in the worlds that their authors created for them. If you're looking for a Happily Ever After you may have to wait a few years to get it but I guarantee you will love the journey.

Up first is one of mine and Roxanne's favorite literary couple to date coming to us from the Windy City itself; ETHAN AND MERIT (METHAN) from the Chicagoland Vampire series written by Chloe Neill.

We crave the Chicagoland Vampires like a Chicagoan craves Red Hots and Deep Dish Pizza. Ethan and Merit are two of the best literary couples to date not because they're both vampires (they are) but because they are so easily relatable in today's world. You'll find true Chicago landmarks and eateries peppered through these books and Merit's love affair with all things Chicago is only slightly less obsessive than her devotion to protecting her Master (Ethan) and her House (Cadogen). This series is ongoing and the next book in the series "MIDNIGHT MARKED" release March 1st. I for one already have it pre-ordered and can not wait to dive back into Ethan and Merit's Chicago. You can check out more about the world of the Chicagoland Vampires at Chloe Neill's website: http://www.chloeneill.com/ 

Since we do, in fact, love all things that go "bump in the night" our next couple comes from the dark and twisted mind of Jeaniene Frost and the incredibly hilarious and often times HOT romance between Cat and Bones. 

Cat begins the series as "do it yourself" Vampire Hunter and that is as awful as it sounds. She attempts to pick up Bones whom she knows is a vampire and slay him but he flips the tables on her in the most epically awkward, almost sex scene in literary history. I laughed so hard when I read that first scene between Cat and Bones that I had to put the book down wipe my the tears from eyes before I could continue. Why do we love Cat and Bones..oh let us count the ways: 

1: Cat is such an awkward person she really has next to no social skills but she does excel in killing vampires. She's funny, sarcastic, and witty and so self depreciating that you can't help but fall in love with her.

2: Bones is HOT, like I forgot how to spell kind of hot and he's FUNNY! His relationship with Cat starts off with him chaining her to a wall and threatening to kill to teaching her how to be a better vampire hunter. Bone is after all the best Vampire Hit Man money can buy.

3: Cat's mom, at first you are going to hate this woman but you can't really judge an old bat by her wrinkles and Cat's mom will grow on you. Her interaction in Cat and Bone's relationship only makes you love this couple more, and we'll all empathize on having to deal with our significant other's parents.

4: Cat would do anything to protect those she loves and the lengths she goes to for Bones will make your heart melt and sigh in aww, unless you're Bones in which case it'll only infuriate you that she keeps messing up your plans. 

5: Bones would do anything to protect those he loves and he really goes the distance for Cat.

This series is complete with the last book in the series coming out early of last year. Finished reading this series but not quite ready to leave Jeaniene's world yet? No worries because she has a spin off of one of my favorite characters from the Cat and Bones series and one of my personal favorite literary couples: Vlad Basarab Dracul (Dracula to those not in the know) and Leila Dalton in her spin off series "Night Prince" novels. You can find out more about the world of Cat and Bones and Vlad and Leila at Jeaniene's website: http://jeanienefrost.com/ In the meantime feast your eyes on this book cover for the Night Prince series.

Ok enough about pointy teethed, blood sucking vampires. Let's move on to our next couple who are neither Princes of Darkness, or Vampire hunters. They hail from Atlanta Georgia and the minds of Ilona Andrews. That's right we're talking about the Kate Daniels series written by husband and wife team. 

Kate Daniels is the Heroine of this piece of work that's sets in a future where Magic has returned with a vengeance and it doesn't like Technology. In this world Magic and Tech. battle it out as they swing from one side to the other. Tall building crumble from the force and things like Shifters, Fae and other magical beings have reentered the world. Kate is magical mercenary with a shady backstory and she meets her tall, dark, and furry love interest Curran when she agrees to help the Pack with a murder investigation. Kate and Curran don't have the smoothest start to their relationship. He's an Apex Alpha of the Atlanta Shifter Pack and she's, well she's Kate the magic in her blood makes her a target and she's spent her entire life hiding in plain sight. She's distrustful by nature and mouthy by design. He's the Beast Lord and used to being bowed to and respected. You can see where the sparks start flying before they ever meet up in Unicorn Lane to discuss the murder of her friend and guardian Gregory. This series is gritty, and urban and you'll absolutely LOVE the fight scenes throughout this series. The love affair between Kate and Curran keeps the story going as more and more about her past comes to light in each new book. This series is ongoing and the next book "MAGIC BINDS" hasn't been released yet. We're all waiting anxiously for a release date. You can find out more about the apocalyptic world of Kate and Curren at Ilone Andrews website here: http://www.ilona-andrews.com/

I have to list one more couple before we say adios for today and they come from a series so rich in visual dialogue you'll almost swear you can see the scenes playing out in front of your eyes. The relationship between these two characters is hard to describe. It begins so antagonist you don't see anyway this is going to work out so it's as much a surprise to the reader as it seems to be to the characters when they finally do come together. I'm talking about October Day (Toby to her friends) and Tibalt (yes Tibalt kind of the Cats). These two lovebirds come to us from the richly imagined world of Seanan McGuire.

In Seanan's world the Faerie realm has always been a part of the human world. It exists in the shadows and places where the light doesn't fall parallel to our own. The Fea aren't human and they don't want to be; but they will dally on the side and sometimes those dalliances result in children. Changelings to be exact. October Daye knows how cruel Faerie can be to it's changeling children because she is one of them. She's born in San Francisco and raised in the Summerland by her pureblooded Fae mother. October struggles to find her footing in a world that would rather kill her than let her live. Toby's bravery in the face of danger garners her unusual allies as she tries to unravel the mystery of who her mother actually is, who she is, and why so many people want her dead. It's one of these allies Tibalt the king of Cats that she meets along the way that shows her that even a Changeling in an inhospitable world can find love. Fellow book reviewer and my best friend Roxanne turned me onto this series and I have to say it's one of the most beautifully written series. I instantly fell in love this world and these characters and I for one hope that Toby and Tibalt get their Happily Ever After. You can find more on October and Tibalt and the amazing world of Fae at Seanan McGuire's website: http://seananmcguire.com/toby.php

That's all the time we have for today folks but check in with us later this week when we bring you this weeks HEA book review of the "Something Wonderful" Series.