This Side Of The Grave by Jeaniene Frost

Publisher: Avon Books
Published: 22nd February 2011
Pages: 357
Series: Night Huntress
Synopsis: Half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her vampire husband Bones have fought for their lives, as well as for their relationship. but just when they've triumphed over the latest battle, Cat's new and unexpected abilities threaten to upset a long-standing balance...

With the mysteries disappearance of vampires, rumours abound that a species war is brewing. a zealot is inciting tensions between the vampires and ghouls, and if these two powerful groups clash, innocent mortals could become collateral damage. Now Cat and Bones are forced to seek help from a dangerous "ally" - the ghoul queen of New Orleans herself. But the price of her assistance may prove more treacherous than even the threat of a supernatural war... to say nothing of the repercussions Cat never imagined.

Review: I really adore this series; it's full of funny and sexy moments and I love Cat's and Bone's relationship, even though sometimes it comes across as odd, to say the least! Especially when he throws her off a bridge to try and get Cat to fly!

As the fifth in the series, this is the story of Apollyon, the bad-ass ghoul trying to start a war between vampires and ghouls over Cat's crazy new powers, and Cat and her team trying to stop him. The quite complex and completely awesome storyline kept me guessing, although there was one appearance I really hoped for - and got!

And while there were some moments where I asked 'what the hell just happened?', that is probably because some information is needed from Frost's spin-off books of the same world - which I wasn't too fussed about reading but may have to now, just to understand the timeline! Luckily, Frost's style of writing doesn't let you miss anything so you catch up quickly.

Throughout the book, there were some incredibly hilarious moment, some cringe-worthy ones, a couple of tear-jerkers and a fairly happy ending - with an added twist. Not to mention the return of Mercheres, Vlad, Tate and Justine, Cat's mother, all of whom add up to some really funny and some truly touching moments. I simply adore Frost's writing, her characters, their speech, everything about this series and I literally cannot wait to go and get the sixth!