REVIEW by @_Shoe_Girl_: Third Grave Dead Ahead by Darynda Jones – Release Date 1/31/2012 (@Darynda)

Grim reaper extraordinaire. Whatever. Charley Davidson is back! And she’s drinking copious amounts of caffeine to stay awake because, every time she closes her eyes, she sees him: Reyes Farrow, the part-human, part-supermodel son of Satan. Yes, she did imprison him for all eternity, but come on. How is she supposed to solve a missing persons case, deal with an ego-driven doctor, calm her curmudgeonly dad, and take on a motorcycle gang hellbent on murder when the devil’s son just won’t give up?

Ok, so after reading First Grave on the Right a couple months ago, I was an INSTANT fan of Charley and this series! I was (im)patienly going to await the January 31st, 2012 release date for Third Grave Dead Ahead to see exactly what was next for Charley & the crew. This past Friday, I got an email from Jena over at PureTextuality saying that she got me an ARC of Third Grave Dead Ahead from the publisher (St. Martin’s Press)! Can I just say that Hubby thought I was a tad….crazy? I yelled and jumped up and down. Yup, crazy. I met up with Jena Saturday afternoon to collect Third Grave and came home to start reading! Ahhh, life is good! Warning: some spoilers.

Death comes to those who wait.
And to those who don’t. So either way….
-Charlotte Jean Davidson, Grim Reaper

Ok, I don’t even know where to start. How about with: Paranormal lovers MUST read this book, and if you AREN’T a paranormal lover, you will be after this book. Reading this series, you almost feel as if you know Charley, and she is one of your best friends (or, you wish she were, anyways), so grab the book, curl up get comfy and start reading!

There wasn’t one thing about this book I did not love. Third Grave Dead Ahead picks up where Second Grave on the Left ended….Reyes is PISSED beyond belief at Charley for binding him to his body. Because of this, Charley doesn’t want to sleep since when she does sleep, Reyes is there. How can she not sleep, you ask? Coffee. Super-duper amounts of coffee, renting movies, and not going to bed….for weeks.
Despite being severely sleep deprived (be it self-inflicted), Charley manages to keep up her envious ability to come up with THE BEST sarcastic quips that I’ve ever heard (I’m quite envious), keep up her “can do”/kick-a** attitude, convince Cookie that stealing coffee from her Dad isn’t a big deal (lol!!!), deal with a few new characters (some good, some bad), team up with the FBI (seems Charley’s reputation is getting around) to solve a missing persons case, TRY to get her Dad to stop freaking out, and, deal with a biker gang…..and a Rottweiler (yikes!). She also gets quite the surprise from Reyes…could what he says REALLY be true?!?! How?!?!? Charley also gets a Guardian Angel….who will it be (sorry, you won’t get THAT spoiler from me!), which I LOVED. If anyone can use a Guardian Angel, its Charley.
I really like that Cookie had more time in this book….her fashion sense (or lack there of…cupcake, anyone?) cracks me up as does the fact that she gives as good as she gets when it comes to Charley. I think it is hilarious how she acts anytime there is a good looking man around. Swopes….oh, Swopes I just don’t know what to say. Charley’s sister, Gemma has more time in this book and I’m glad. Gemma and Charley are working on their relationship, and I think Gemma will be a great ally for Charley. I’m also glad that Denise, Charley’s step-Mother didn’t get as much time in this book. I think she needs to have something awful happen that she NEEDS Charley to help her with, so she can see how wrong and mean she has been to Charley.
During this book I laughed (a lot), I had quite a few “OMG” moments, I had a few “Don’t, Charley!” moments, and even shed a few tears. There is SO MUCH more I want to say about Third Grave Dead Ahead. SO MUCH. However, I won’t. If I do, this review will be as long as the book, and you won’t need to read the book after.

I give Third Grave Dead Ahead 5 Heels!

I was ECSTATIC to find out that there will be a 4th book, Fourth Grave Beneath My Feet (Fall 2012), and 5th book in this series!!! Hey, Jena…ARC for Fourth Grave Beneath My Feet?!?! LOL! 😉
(cover art for Fouth Grave Beneath My Feet)

Keep up with Charley on Twitter (her updates are, as you would expect, quite funny!). You can also find Darynda Jones on Twitter or her site. Again, a HUGE thank you to St. Martin’s Press and PureTextuality for providing me with an ARC. It is a most prized possession!
Click here to pre-order your copy of Third Grave Dead Ahead from Amazon.com!

Thanks again to Heather for the review! Check out her site at www.shoe-girl.com or follow her on Twitter @_shoe_girl_! The original review for Third Grave Dead Ahead can be found on her site by clicking here!