Love Bites: A Handsome Cop, A Glamorous Star, and Murder (Vampyres of Hollywood #2)

L.A. TIMES BEST-SELLING AUTHOR!
"The fast and furious final pages will leave fans hoping for a third installment.” -Publishers Weekly
NOT YOUR MAMA’S POLICE PROCEDURAL--A COP STORY WITH BITE…AND ROMANCE

Not to mention sharp, cutting wit. Detective Peter King and movie star Ovsanna Moore are the sexiest tongue-in-cheek crime-solving duo since MOONLIGHTING hit the air waves in the ‘80s. But they may remind you more of TRUE BLOOD’s Sookie and Eric than Maddie and David—because one of them’s a vampyre. And like Sookie’s Bon Temps, their Los Angeles has its fair share of shapeshifting sometime-humans.

Ovsanna’s the successful owner of her own Hollywood film studio and the star of 17 blockbuster horror films, plus three, sadly, that went straight to video. But even vampyres have bad days. Though never fat days or bad hair days—she looks pretty great for 450. And in those four and a half centuries she’s pretty much seen everything, formed an opinion about it, and developed the kind of worldly-wise wit the late Joan Rivers only dreamed of.

Peter, on the other hand, is a Beverly Hills cop firmly rooted in human affairs, from the domestic issues of his lively Italian family to the romantic ones of his neighbor, snake dancer Suzie Q. Though Ovsanna’s had flings with everyone from Genghis Khan to Errol Flynn, Peter’s got what it takes to catch her eye and hold her interest. And he’s one hell of a detective. He's also a consummate master of spin, concealing what he knows about the world of vampyres, werewolves, and shapeshifters while solving the crimes they commit.

Barbeau, a beloved actress much like Ovsanna herself, is a skilled satirist possessed of a sharp eye for the absurdity of Hollywood, with its petty jealousies, vain ambitions, over-the-top visuals, and twisted values. The result of all these delicious elements? An action-packed mystery, a sly satire, and a lush love story, spiced and seasoned with paranormal characters that the author manages to turn into metaphors for the monsters we all encounter on a daily basis.

"An engaging, sinister romp.” -Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, creator of the Saint-Germain vampire series

"Love Bites is pure fun from beginning to end." -David Morrell, New York Times bestselling author of Creepers

WHO WILL LIKE IT:
*Fans of TRUE BLOOD and Charlaine Harris’s Southern Vampire Mysteries, J.D. Robb’s “In Death” series, Ann Charles' humorous Deadwood series, and Kay Hooper’s psychic mysteries.
*Fans of witty couple mysteries like Dennis Lehane’s Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro series.
*Paranormal and vampire fans, especially those fond of Christopher Moore, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, George R.R. Martin’s FEVRE DREAM, and THE HISTORIAN by Elizabeth Kostova.

Excerpt:
I spent the rest of Monday in the office, playing host to the three Japanese businessmen who had the power (i.e. money) to catapult my burgeoning film studio into the big leagues. By the end of the day, we all had what we wanted. My business affairs people went back to their office to put the finishing touches on the paperwork, and our PR department issued a press release about the merger. I went home to enjoy the solitude with Maral out of town. I checked the security cameras and made sure the alarm was on. The geese were quiet. Then I took a hot bath, lit a fire in the fireplace in my bedroom, and cuddled up in my huge, over-stuffed chair to read the latest Doc Ford novel. I love Randy Wayne White’s character as much as I love Lee Child’s Jack Reacher. It dawned on me that that’s probably why I was attracted to Peter. He’s got some of their same qualities. Maybe not as iconoclastic, but definitely as macho.

I thought about Peter, a lot. I hadn’t heard from him. Maybe it was too soon. Or maybe that meant he’d made his decision.

Tuesday afternoon, he called.