A-Z: Urkonn from Whedon's Fray comic series

Alright, let's face it...there aren't that many fictional characters that begin with the letter "U" --ones I want to discuss anyway.  And so for my A-Z Challenge today, I wanted to highlight a character that is a part of Joss Whedon's comic world.  Are you familiar with Fray?

The Fray is "an eight-issue comic book limited series about Melaka Fray," a future slayer living in the 23rd century.  The call for a slayer has been made after centuries of a slayerless world.  My character feature is for Melaka's stand-in watcher/trainer--a demon named Urkonn.  

Aside from being a demon, Urkonn has his own backstory, which I found intriguing.  As Melaka's trainer, he relentlessly prepares her for her worst nightmares, including betrayal from those she trusts.  

Urkonn used unorthadoxed methods to train Melaka that ultimately led to his demise.  I highlighted him because I liked his interactions with the slayer and wanted more. 

What do you think about Urkonn?  He looks like a bad a**, huh? Were you (are you) a Buffy fan?  Have you read any of Whedon's comic books?  

On another note, can someone tell me why Joss Whedon doesn't have a website?  I mean, for the love of Peter, he's on Facebook.  Good grief.  

Mina B.

Mina’s Shorts: The Beast

I sometimes get lost in my imagination when it comes to writing.  As far as an idea goes, I get inspired by something as random as a passerby’s comment or words on the back of a cereal box. From time to time, an idea will throttle my brain until I write something down.  In the spirit of these random thoughts, I thought I’d start doing a segment on my blog called Mina’s Shorts. They’ll be most likely around 300 words and creepy in nature, cuz…that’s just my thing and all. Anyway, here’s one I scribbled recently called The Beast.  Enjoy.

The Beast

By Mina Burrows

“Kill the beast!”

A savage cry bellowed from the amassed crowd, followed by a surge of approving screams.

The group’s leader, a domineering hunk, approached center stage. His voice boomed across the sea of onlookers, “Silence!”

The crowd simmered as the speaker summoned the beast on stage. The beast was massive, excessively pale, and bare-chested with a nipple ring. His head covered with a burlap sack – a seemingly better alternative to his face. His black pants were ordinary except for a slit in the back, allowing for the beast’s winding tail.

Flanked with two beefy guards, the beast jerked ferociously, his tail whipping in defiance.

A busty beauty called out.

“Let me have it,” she cried. “I want that bloody tail.”

The leader's eyes honed in on the woman. She wore a tight crimson ensemble, revealing breasts begging to be touched. Lust assaulted him and he sneered a reply, “That can be arranged.”

The woman winked at him, silently agreeing to his demands, her desire increasing tenfold. The leader waved her on stage and she hurried in response, her matching Gucci shoes clicked in tandem.

The leader grunted at her enthusiasm, while the crowd roared.

The beast stilled, sensing her presence.

“I know who you are,” the beast growled, unable to see her face.

The red seductress laughed, unsheathing her dagger. The knife gleamed against the harsh lighting, making the crowd go wild.

She snatched the tail, her brain engrossed in her task. As she readied her knife, she felt a nudge on her shoulder.

“Honey?”

She ignored it, lost in her salacious mind.

“Sweetheart!” The tap turned into push. “Can you hear me?”

The distant voice finally pulled Delia, the day dreaming housewife, out of her musings.

“What?” She glanced at her husband in surprise.

“You’re day dreaming again,” her hubby replied.

Delia grinned. “Only about you, you beast…I mean, sweetie.”


The End




Until next time…read a little, write a little. Yeah, that’s my thing.

Mina B.

 
 
 
 
Copyright 2010 by Mina Burrows.

All rights reserved.

Book Review: Kresley Cole’s Kiss Of A Demon King

My next review is of Kresley Cole's  Kiss of a Demon King , Book 6 in her Immortals After Dark Series. I’ve already reviewed Book 1, A Hunger Like No Other – Click here to read my review. Cole has a remarkable ability to capture sensuality and vulnerability in her characters. I so love that about her novels.

Coming off of Cole’s Book 5, Dark Desires After Dusk, this book is also about DEMONS! Not since Joss Whedon or Larissa Ione have I been so excited about demons. And can I tell you this rage demon has horns….purrrrrr YES! The Demon King, Rydsrtom, has horns and he’s still hawt. Go figure. Only in a Kresley Cole novel would it be conceivable that a horny demon would be hawt. Which reminds me…he’s horny as hell too, especially after he meets his woman, Sabine.

Kiss of a Demon King sucks you right in from the start. The book opens up with Sabine and paints such vivid imagery about the sorceress giving us immediate insight into her domineering presence. I totally loved that about her character. She’s beautiful, tough, cunning and just a formidable as her male counterparts. Sabine is the Queen of Illusions, a magical being so powerful that she’s known to turn other beings brains into soup. As the master of illusion, she’s foretold by the Hag that she’s destined to be the Demon King’s queen.

Here’s the catch though. Rydstrom is all that is good, kind and honorable (and hawt too but we already covered that). He’s playing for Team Good. Sabine is completely opposite; an evil, lying, greedy sorceress who works for his arch nemesis, Omort. With these two so radically different, how can they be destined for a date, let alone an eternal relationship?

What I like best about this book is how each character pushes, teases, torments and seduces each other. Men and women often do that to one another in relationships. And Cole captures that perfectly.

Despite their differences, Rydstrom and Sabine have a cosmic attraction. I can’t tell you how many times I roared when Sabine referred to him. “Demon,...”. And since reading this, I now refer to my husband the very same way.

Kiss of a Demon King is a refreshing, unique tale. And let me tell you, in a sea of paranormal romance books, I so appreciate a tale that’s not only different but great.

On the Mina Burrows KilloMeter, I give Kresley Cole's Kiss of a Demon King 3 ¾.

Until next time…read something, anything by Kresley Cole.

Mina B.

A Paranormal Book Review: Larissa Ione's Sin Undone

Book 5 and the final installment of Larissa Ione’s Demonica series is Sin Undone. Okay, before I review, I have to give a shout out to RexRobotreviews.com. If it weren’t for their ARC tour, I wouldn’t be raving my review today. So…thank you, Rex! You rock!!

And now, onto the demonic magic of Larissa Ione. Sinead Donnelly is a demon who’s genetically flawed. She’s the first ever female Seminus Demon. For those of you who do not know the series, Seminus Demons are always male and NEVER female. In a DNA fluke, Sin was born right along with her twin, Lore.  He was the typical male Seminus Demon and Sin was the anomaly.  Now, she's the only Seminus female ever known to behold a disease-prone power and a killer sex drive.

Let me back up. A Seminus male demon, once gone through S’genisis – if not mated – can be a hell of a sperm bank for unsuspecting fertile females (human or demonic, otherwise). The Seminus demons in Ione’s novels - Eidolon, Shade, Wraith, Lore and now Sin - are all products of their father's overzealous sexual appetite. It’s not like a Seminus Demon can help it, really. Sex and release are as crucial to their demon species, almost like air is to humans. If you’re a Seminus demon, you MUST have sex or else.

For those of you that are unfamiliar with the series, see Larissa’s site or my previous reviews of Book 1 & 2. Book 1, Pleasure Unbound (my review) and Book 2, Desire Unchained, (my review).  As I said before, I screwed the pooch and read this series out of sequence. Do yourself a favor and tow the line accordingly.

Now we first met Sin in Ecstasy Unveiled. I laughed out loud HARD when I read the “Sex Bet” scene with Sin and Con (the dhampire: half vampire/werewolf). Freaking funny as all get out! Reading about Sin was so pleasurable it felt like a sin, truly. Sin has this abominable gift to inflict any disease to anyone/demon she touches – diseases that could wipe out entire races, let alone species. In Book 5, she’s caused a catastrophic mess by conjuring up a plague that nearly destroyed all worlds of werewolves. She didn’t mean to do it, or did she? One never knows with Sin. The disease was running ramped and Underworld General, the neutral demon hospital, was feeling Sin’s repercussions.

What makes this book different from the rest? First of all…Sin. She’s an outright mess, who fits rather nicely next to all her brother’s and their demonic/neurotic tendencies. Sin is Wraith with tits. She’s ballsy, witty and has a sex drive to outmatch most males. Basically, Con’s dream girl. And the heat that these two generate when near one another is off the charts.

Sin Undone is full of sub plots that make you wonder if this series is really over. I hope not. What a tragedy it would be to discontinue such a vivid, sadistic, sensual, demonic underworld. A complete and utter tragedy, I assure you. Sin’s book was just a lively as the others. Once you read the other novels, only then can you really appreciate Sin and her complex character. She’s hell on wheels or daggers, actually. Oh, how I enjoyed this book. I won’t tell you more than that…you’ll just have to go out and buy it when it releases, August 24th.

Larissa Ione writes like a MF and that’s meant as a compliment. If you’re looking for something different and sexy from a killer writer, then Ione’s Deminica Novels are just for you.

On the Mina Burrows KilloMeter, I gave Larissa Ione’s Sin Undone a 4.5. (Sniffle…I can’t believe the saga is over.)

Mina B.