Review: Stone Cold Seduction – Jess Macallan

Stone Cold Seduction by Jess Macallan
Series:  Set in Stone, Book One
Release Date: September 5, 2011
Publisher:   Entangled Publishing
Page Count:  245
Source:  NetGalley

When a regular night of Robin Hood-ery results in the manifestation of some, um, unusual paranormal abilities, perfume-maker Elleodora Fredricks realizes the normal world she lives in isn’t quite… normal. And neither is she, thanks to her father, king of the shadow elves. Not only is he evil incarnate and the reason Elle moonlights as a burglar-someone has to take care of all his victims-he’s stolen her memories.

And only reading her fate can fix that.

Good thing she’s got a trio of hotties willing to help her find said fate, but only if she gives them something in return. Saving her oracle BFF’s fiance, falling in love with the gargoyle, and making up for breaking the phoenix’s heart ought to be a piece of cake for the princess of the shadow elves.

If only the king didn’t want his daughter dead…

Elle Fredricks has just been caught wearing a horrible Catwoman suit while stealing from the most evil man she knows…her father.  The fact that she’s been caught by her oh so hot employee, Jax, makes this all the more embarassing.  But Elle soon finds out that being caught stealing is the very least of her problems.

Seems Elle never knew her father with the king of the Shadow Elves.  Sure, he’s still an evil bastard, but now she finds out he’s evil with special powers.  If that wasn’t enough, she finds out gargoyles are real, there are Light Elves and Oracles as well.  And to just dump on an otherwise craptastic day, she finds out her best friend is an Oracle, her employee is a Gargoyle (and still really hot), she’s suddenly got some really freaky powers and she might have been engaged to the hot man at her door that she can’t remember.

Elle suddenly finds herself in need of a trip to Scotland to speak with the Oracle that read her fate, torn between the bond she feels for Jax and the need to slow things down, and how her mother could have been so different than the woman she remembers.

Elle is a brilliant character.  She’s sarcastic, cute, wimpy, whiny and down to earth.  Given everything she’s endured by having the bastard father that she does, she quite normal…which makes you pull for her all the more.  You’re smiling when she’s happy and heartbroken when she is.

Elle trio of hot men are just as great.  Teryl with his annoying but loving brother attitude, MacLean who’s trying his hardest not to crowd Elle but hoping to get what he lost, and finally Jax who believes with every fiber in his being that Elle is his mate and will do everything in his power to save her…even from himself.

Can’t wait for the next book in the series (which according to the Entangled Publishing web site will be November 2011).