Shift Review By Dayna.

Shift – M.R. Merrick.

“Devastated by the loss of his mother, Chase is trying to balance the life he’s been left with, a family he’s still getting to know, and power he never thought he’d have. He doesn’t understand why the Goddess has named him the Protector and granted him two gifts: the Mark, a tattoo that now covers his back, and the ring. But between getting interrogated by the Circle and psychic attacks from Riley, the Mark is the least of his concern. There’s a demon inside Rayna that’s fighting to be released, and it’s not her inner witch. It’s something else—a monster threatening to tear her apart.
As Chase struggles to control his magic, his enemies are closing in. Everyone has staked a claim on his ring, and destroying it may be his only chance to stop Riley. But Chase must decide if stopping him is worth risking the lives of everyone he cares about, or if protecting the ring will be enough to save his world.”

As was the case with Merrick’s debut Exiled, the sequel, Shift is just as darkly exciting and magical with just a drop of romance (which *cough* I’m hoping for more of in book 3 by the way Matthew *cough*. Yes, yes I like me a side of romance with my paranormal). Unlike with a few other books that I’ve read, this certainly wasn’t snail paced. There’s a lot going on to constantly keep your eyes glued and your attention permanently focused on the story. As you turn the first page you’re thrown right in to the middle of a scene ****spoiler alert**** where Rayna is trying to fight against turning in to a werecat so from that moment on you’re immediately gripped, sucked in to the story, not wanting to stop reading until you’ve gotten to the very end (which, if you’re a human, becomes tricky when you have to stop to eat, pee and sleep. Damn not being a modern day sparkly vampire! :p ).

Merrick’s writing just gets better and better and even more un-put-downable as the story unfolds and we learn more and more about each character. I love books that have witty and sarcastic retorts and Shift has plenty of that, of which I think mostly take place between Chase and Rayna or Chase and Vincent and I have to admit, a couple of times, I kinda found myself wanting to bash Chase and Vincent’s heads together ha ha ha. Chase, Rayna and Willy’s characters progress even more in Shift as does Chase and Rayna’s relationship. Chase is battling with his new found powers, Rayna’s battling with her shifter self and poor old Willy…well let’s just say he goes through some major changes too which totally had me in shock and had my jaw dropping about 3 feet to the floor which brings me back around full circle to say there’s a lot of surprises in store for you when you read Shift, trust me. It’s demon-hunters, shapeshifters, witches, vamps and fairytales all covered in awesome sauce and wrapped in a little red bow. This is a series that all lovers of the paranormal genre should definitely have on their bookshelves/ e-readers.

I rate this book 5/5!

Exiled by M R Merrick Review – By Lauren

I read this with recommendations from Dayna as per. She actually said she didn’t now whether it was my type of book and it wasn’t. However that doesn’t me I didn’t like because I did!

In a few words : Chase is a demon hunter and is exiled from the circle. Chase meets Rayna and Marcus whilst killing vampires. Turns out Marcus knew his father and mother. Rayna is a weird one. She is a witch but very much like me minus the magic so I really liked the character! The characters are very well-developed, they all have a little something about them that makes them different. I loved how he developed the demons, they were slightly different from your every day demon’s. (ha because we do have them you know!) I wanted more of Marcus/Tessa because it was sooo cute. The good thing about Exiled is the humor and relate-ability! I laughed out loud quite a few times.

I was hooked from the beginning, it seemed to be my type of book. Then about 60% the way through it turned rather Buffy-ish as Dayna has said. Now I am not a fan of Buffy so it kind of put me off a bit but I still liked the story.

Then the very last few pages, it turned around again. It returned to the more serious supernatural/paranormal side of the book. The side which I like. So I cannot say I loved it and I cannot say I didn’t. I am in between. I would recommend people to read it, its such an easy and enjoyable read. It’s written very well and I think Merrick is a terrific writer. There is something about his story that made it different.

You can see a more in-depth review here by Dayna.

Exiled Review By Dayna

Exiled – M.R. Merrick.

Chase Williams is a demon hunter in the Circle, or at least he was supposed to be. On his fifteenth birthday, Chase stepped up to the altar to claim his elemental power, but it never came. Elemental magic is passed down to a hunter through the bloodline, but on Chase’s birthday, the bloodline stopped.

Exiled without the Circle’s protection, Chase has spent two years trying to survive a world riddled with half-demons and magic. When he has a run in with a frightened, and seemingly innocent demon, he learns the Circle’s agenda has changed: the Circle plans to unlock a portal and unleash pure-blood demons into the world. Vowing to stop them, and knowing he can’t do it alone, Chase forms a reluctant alliance with Rayna - a sexy witch with an attitude and a secret. In their attempt to stop them, Chase and Rayna find themselves in the middle of the Circle’s plan, leaving one of them to decide what their friendship is worth, and the other’s life depending on it.

Wow there was action from the very beginning. A spellbinding read that I never wanted to end. I think I must have gone through all emotions possible reading this book. It had me laughing so hard in some parts, frustrated in others, incredibly angry and then crying at other parts so get ready for a rollercoaster of a ride! Merrick’s writing is incredible and if you’re like me and like updating your statuses with quotes from books then this is quote-a-plenty! Merrick is also so brilliantly descriptive that in my head I could vividly picture each scene as it unfolded. The detail put in to the monsters and fight scenes were so descriptive that at times it verbally made me go “Ewww” and “Oh my god I could so picture this scene in a movie or something right out of an episode of buffy”. Gotta love a book with detail like that. It makes it all the more engrossing and exciting to read. I also loved that magic and the use of the elements were part and parcel of being a demon hunter.

I have to say that I loved Merrick’s unique take on the classic vampire where-by in this, when the vampire transforms into its’ demon form, its’ ‘Milky skin faded into transparent flesh, revealing the moving muscles beneath. Veins ran black through the vampire’s face and limbs, pushing against the thinning clear skin. Strange muscles in his hands pushed bony talons out over his finger nails, and the whites of his eyes disappeared, filling with an inky blackness.’

Character wise, I love Rayna. She’s got spunk and I love her sarcasm and wit. Actually, the same could be said for Chase.  They have more in common than they care to admit to begin with. Love the witty banter and chemistry between them. I’m hoping for more chemistry in book 2 (please? Pleeeaaase??? Pretty please with lots of chocolate and chocolate ice-cream and lots more chocolatey goodness on top?). Rayna and Chase are such strong characters who have been and continue to go through so much both separately and together.

The relationship Chase has with his mum, Tessa is so loving and sweet and whenever I see the phrase “You and me, always,” it brings a little tear to my eye.

The character, Willy is one of my favourites. He’s so lovely. He’s a little wimpy and I kind of imagine him to be a little geeky looking too. I found myself wanting to protect him and I felt especially bad when Chase roped him in to doing things he didn’t want to do but he pushes down that fear and reluctantly does it anyway because he wants to help. I can’t wait to see how he develops in book 2!

The sequel to Exiled will be called Shift and will hopefully be released mid-December. Is it December yet??

If you’re a Buffy,  Supernatural fan or just a fan of the whole demon hunter thing in general, you’ll be sure to enjoy this.

I rate this 5/5!

PS: I want a golden torrent!

You can purchase Exiled as an ebook from:
Amazon US

Amazon UK

Smashwords