A Kiss Before Doomsday

May 22, 2017
MacNaughton’s delightful second apocalyptic urban fantasy picks up just days after the events of It Happened One Doomsday, in which newly minted crystal sorceress Dru and her friends defeated the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, staving off a plan for world destruction. Greyson, a very reluctant Horseman and Dru’s romantic interest, is presumed dead—until Dru sees the taillights of his car, Hellbringer, speeding off into the distance. She begins a series of reckless attempts to find him, interspersed with fighting larger battles. The undead are now walking the earth, which means the fifth of the seven seals on the apocalypse scroll has been broken. Complicating matters, a sorcerer from Dru’s past makes a very surprising appearance. Adventure and humor help to balance the story’s horror elements. The ending provides just enough resolution to be satisfying while leaving plenty of questions unanswered to heighten anticipation for the next installment.

May 15, 2017
Dru Jasper, a plucky sorceress who owns her own crystal shop in Colorado, finds herself in the middle of a plot involving undead slime, deadly sorcerers-only parties, and the end of the world in this peppy urban fantasy.In the second installment of his Dru Jasper series, MacNaughton (It Happened One Doomsday, 2016) combines high-stakes drama with elements of comedy and romance. After the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse drove a truck through her shop in the last novel, Dru and her half-demon lover, Greyson, journeyed to the netherworld to save the world of the living. Dru is heartbroken, convinced that Greyson was killed in the battle, but when she finds the crystal she gave him shoved in her mailbox and sees the tail end of his demonic car, she becomes convinced he somehow survived. But Dru's plans to search for him are put on hold when Salem, a snotty sorcerer whose true alliances are murky, almost falls prey to an undead black slime called "scourge." When Dru and her friends find a horrible monster of the undead where Greyson used to live, they discover that the mysteries of Greyson's disappearance and the undead creatures are connected. Can Dru find Greyson and put a stop to whomever is raising the dead before it's too late? MacNaughton's magical world is digestible if not vivid. The strains of comedy, fantasy, and romance blend together smoothly enough, and the characters are cute if not particularly nuanced. But entire chapters of unnecessary scenes make for choppy plot progression. When the crucial action sequences do arrive, they can be difficult to follow, leaving the story without any meaningful buildup or payoff. This bubbly blend of genre tropes has spirit and whimsy with some good pieces in place, but it doesn't quite deliver the goods.

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June 15, 2017

After battling the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, new sorceress Dru Jasper returns to Denver to find that her store has been broken into and that undead creatures are attacking sorcerers. The wizards also are behaving even more strangely than usual, and signs indicate that someone is using forbidden necromancy to fulfill the Apocalypse Scroll's prophecy. Dru could use the help of half-demon Greyson and his car Hellbringer, but Greyson is nowhere to be found, and most believe him dead. Dru must rely on her friends to confront the mysterious sorcerer determined to make doomsday a reality. VERDICT The follow-up to It Happened One Doomsday is a fun turducken of humor, magical exploits, and entertaining characters. More urban fantasy than supernatural romance, this offers fans of both subgenres a fun crossover read.--KC

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2017
MacNaughton follows up It Happened One Doomsday (2016) with this equally engaging sequel. Greyson, a half-demon who drives a demonic car named Hellbringer, remains missing and presumed dead. Crystal shop owner Dru Jasper, who's still learning to use her own magical gifts, is desperate to find Greyson because he may represent the only hope of preventing the dead (who are currently rising from their resting places in frightening numbers) from wiping out the human race. Dark stuff but handled with a light, nimble touch: the book isn't quite a comedy, but it's a long way from being yet another gloomy, claustrophobic urban fantasy. This is urban fantasy for readers who want to have a good timeeven a few laughshanging out with characters who have unusual powers but who are basically regular folk. The villain, while plenty evil, is evil in an almost delightful way. A well-crafted and thoroughly entertaining novel.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)