Lure Of Obsession by Lisa Kessler
Series: The Muse Chronicles #1
Published by Indie
Published on: July 21, 2016
Genres: Paranormal Romance
Pages: 266
Format: eARC
Source: Author
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The Prophecy - "Every generation the nine daughters of Zeus are reborn, and with their rebirth are also nine Guardians. They will be marked by the gods, and given gifts to protect his treasure. Their abilities will only be unlocked when they find their muse."
Melanie Jacoby teaches English at Crystal City High School. She's also the reborn Muse of Tragic Poetry, but she isn't prepared for the tragedy of finding her roommate dead at the bottom of the stairs.
Nate Malone is the detective assigned to the case, but as the evidence points to an accidental fall, the visions begin. He sees a killer in a gold Kronos mask.
Mel is the next target.
The Order of the Titans are eager to bring about the return of the Golden Age of Man, and they're prepared to kill the Muses to complete their mission. But Nate's desire to protect Mel is almost as strong as his hunger for her.
And tragedy isn't part of his plan.
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I am a fan of Lisa Kessler’s, Moon series and have read and liked all of them. So it was an easy decision to read her latest release which is part of a new series. I must admit, the paranormal element was new to me as far as reading fiction. And that element is from Greek mythology-Muses.
Mel is the Muse of Tragic Poetry, having changed at the age of eighteen. She’s still human, but embodies the Muse. Now she has not only met the other eight Muses, but is in partnership with them as they work to renovate an old theater. Their goal is to have a place for all artistic endeavors to happen there. Mel’s roommate Nia is the Muse of Astronomy. When Mel comes home one night, she finds a tragic scene in her home. Nia is dead. She meets Nate, a detective, and is pretty much immediately attracted to him. Even as she grieves. Nate doesn’t understand why he is so attracted to her either, as it goes against all his professional rules.
Mel is the complete opposite of a optimist due to her being the Muse of Tragic Poetry. Everything to her is a potential disaster, but she doesn’t act out or anything, it’s just what runs through her mind. She’s a high school English teacher, the kind of teacher that kids never forget. Nate is a handsome man, one that refuses to ever settle down. He’s good at what he does and is usually very professional. Meeting Mel, and becoming involved with her goes against everything-and he really doesn’t care as he can’t think of anything but her-and the case. What started out as just another case really ramps up when he starts having new abilities-out of the blue. It pretty much makes him think he is going crazy. Also featured is his partner, John, who doesn’t approve of Mel. Mel’s fellow muse, Callie, has a bigger part to play as Mel’s friend. There’s also an assortment of villains, all with the same agenda. An agenda that involves Mel dying.
To me, the romance and the mystery took precedence over the paranormal aspects with Mel. And there is nothing wrong with that. However other than her “glass is half empty” view of life, the reader doesn’t see much of the paranormal. It’s more of a personality thing, then something that really manifests. As far as Nate goes, his new powers seem to be more paranormal than what Mel is. However, he does have the powers because of her. And I am going to leave it at that because of spoilers. As far as the reasoning of the villains, I am still a bit unclear of the why of what they do. To be honest, that part was a bit out there for me. I hope in the next books, the villains and their reasons will be explored further.
My favorite part of the book was the romance, and the addition of a small child in Nate’s life, just made that part better.That didn’t surprise me as Lisa Kessler knows how to write a good romance. The Muse part was interesting, but I would like to see more of what the Muse’s do to change the person they inhabit. The thriller aspects were also a good part of the story, but as I said, I think I need more about the villains and why they feel the need to do what they do. I liked the characters and I will be interested to see who the next one will be about. I thought this would be a good book for adult, light paranormal romance fans. Adult due to sensual scenes and some violence.
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The Muse Chronicles
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I’m Lorna and I live in Maryland. Since retiring, I spend my time mostly reading and reviewing books. My favorite reads are Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, and Young Adult. I read a lot of indie books in addition to traditionally published books. Favorite paranormal creature? Vampires, but I am really liking werewolves more everyday.
Ohhh I haven’t read one about muses as well. This intrigues me! I’m gonna have to one-click these babies!
I hope you like it Joy 🙂
I pretty much agreed and can sum it up in 2 sentences from my review:
“One of the things I really hate is when an author has a great premise and can’t deliver a great story. This was kind of an opposite, I thought the premise was a bit weak (and kinda still do) but the story was written well for capturing my attention and having a decent romance in the mix.”
I completely understand what you are saying.
Not read this author but this series sounds interesting. 🙂
It definitely has a different premise!
Tragic poetry, happy muse then 😉
Um I guess?
Well this sounds a bit of something different. I’ve not read her books yet, but always meant to. I definitely want to try these with the mystery element as well as paranormal. Nice review, Lorna!
Thank you Sophia 🙂 you might try her Moon series too. I love those and they have a mystery/suspense element as well.
Thanks for reviewing Lure of Obsession Lorna!
I’m glad you enjoyed the book! It’s going to be a fun series…
Lisa 🙂
You’re welcome Lisa! I did 🙂
I haven’t tried this author yet either but it does sound like a series I would like.
It is different. I like her Moon series too!
Oh the premise sounds very original with the whole muse thing! And that’s neat there are those little hints that show she’s a muse of tragic poetry eve though the paranormal aspect stays to the background. i usually don’t mind that, but it is nice to know that before you start a book. Glad to hear you enjoyed this one 🙂
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I think I just expected a bit more of the paranormal because her other two series are really heavy on that aspect. But it was fine 🙂
You had me at the main character’s name being Mel (I get it was Melpomene but still…). 😀 Oh I love mythology and I like the sound of the twist on this one. Oh yea… the kid usually steals the show and that does make me more curious. Brilly review.
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Thank you! If you try it I hope you enjoy it 🙂
Ohh great review this is actually the first time I heard about this book and it looks and sounds absolutely fantastic and right up my alley. I totally love paranormal romance and greek myth. Thank you for your awesome post.
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Thank you! I hope you try it and like it!
I haven’t read anything by Lisa Kessler before, but I’m glad that you tried her new series. It’s good to see she’s gone in a new direction and you’ve enjoyed it!
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