Reviews for Grave Sins (Cin Craven Series)

The average rating for Grave Sins (Cin Craven Series) based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2010-03-31 00:00:00 Denis Mercier I have recently fallen in love with a new heroine. Cin Craven is such a great heroine, and my favorite thing about this series is that she and her consort Michael stay faithful to each other. You don't get that too often in a UF series. It's 1828, it's been about 14 yrs since the first book, since Cin died/became a vampire. In the beginning we see Cin taking her yearly 2 week long vacation back in her home to visit her family. What we see (that is usually touched upon but never utilized) Cin keeping ties to her human life. She has kept her ancestral home, and is still involved with her best friend and almost sister Fiona. I'm sure we all have a girl in our lives who we'd call sister, but we aren't actually related by blood...that's Cin and Fiona-they grew up together and when Cin "died" she left her estate to Fiona. Well, by now Fiona has her own children, but Cin stays in their lives. what we see is how in keeping the ties to her old life, Cin feels she can hold on to her humanity as well. Throughout this series we see Cin watching her family grow older, and in some cases die. Now, while Cin is on vacation, a vampire named Drake shows up and tells them that they (the Righteous) must go see if the queen of the Western Lands is truly mad and slaughtering humans, or if something else is going on. The problem? The king and queen are incredibly powerful. so off to Edinburgh, Scotland to see if Marrakesh is indeed mad. Well, their problems are much more than just a mad queen. I can't say without spoiling it big time, so I'll just say that things are NEVER what they seem. A big thing I like here, is that Cin and Michael have real relationship issues. They are along the lines of jealousy and possessiveness. I love seeing that incorporated into the series without actually ruining the relationship. I liked how the ending was a bit of a surprise to me as far as HOW it was done...I think I'd figured out WHO early on. Not enough to spoil it for me, but it kept me guessing, and I just hoped it was who I thought it was (this is hard to not put names, so I'm sorry if it's confusing). So the pages turned as quickly as I could without missing anything, and Cin's wit and snark were there in spades: This is about grave robbers, ...the man had offended my sense of decency. I was a vampire and I respected the sanctity of holy ground. Was that too much to ask of humans as well? There are a few important parts that refer to a time spent in Venice. Now I know there's another Cin Craven short story in Strange Brew, and I think that's the "time" and the recap I keep getting in this one. It talks about a wizard who captured Cin and tried to force her to the Dark Side. I mention this for 2 reasons: 1-so you'll know there is another short out there, and 2-so you see that her "dark side" is VERY important to this story. I suggest this series to anyone and everyone. I mainly suggest that you read them in order! Each story starts with the year, so go by that, not the publication date. Next up is Bound By Sin, and then the short story in the anthology Huntress-it's called "Sin Slayer."

Review # 2 was written on 2008-12-15 00:00:00 Kurt Surber Reviewed for queuemyreview.com; book release Feb09 I read and reviewed Jenna Maclaine's first book "Wages of Sin". When I did, I said I was looking forward to her next book and was interested to see where her characters were going. Well, "Grave Sins" was just as enjoyable for me as the first one and even with the glut of paranormals on the market today, I think Maclaine offers something a bit different and well worth the read. It's been 13 years since Cin 'died' and became a vampire in early 1800s England. In that time, she's grown into her abilities as a vampire and her powers as a witch. She and her 'consort' Michael are part of 'the Righteous''a foursome that acts as a kind of FBI to vampiredom. They seek out those who break vampire law and dispense the vampire High King's justice. One of the biggest vamp rules is the prohibition against killing humans and the automatic sentence is death. Cin has also instituted an annual 'vacation' where she visits her old home and humans she's closest to for two weeks every year. No killing, no fighting…just rest, lots of sex, and reminders of her past humanity. But this year, their vacation is interrupted by a special envoy from the High King. The vampire Queen of the Western Lands has been accused of killing humans and the High King has requested Cin's group determine the validity of the claims and carry out the sentence if required. Of course, when you receive a request from the High King, it's not something you refuse, so off they go. I won't give the plot away, but suffice to say that this second book in Maclaine's series provides a lot more information about vampire government and customs and the local 'pecking orders'. This story has a few interesting twists and a bit of a mystery. The relationship between Cin and Michael sees some rocky moments. The question of who is killing the humans must be resolved. Cin's witchy human aunt even has a role in furthering the plot and Cin's growth in her powers. There's also a goddess, a werewolf, and a mysterious dumb blonde (is that an oxymoron?) involved. The story is told in first person from Cin's perspective, but that didn't result in any information gaps for me. The flow and pace were smooth and the jokes and descriptions of 'old' and 'new' fashions were rather humorous considering. The mystery was interesting in that I had a good idea of the who, but no idea of the why or how…and I liked that the author surprised me when she laid out the solution. The sex between Cin and Michael is hot even though it isn't by any means the focus of the story, but the decisions and reactions of these two certainly aided the unfolding of the plot. I had such a good time reading, the time flew by and I wasn't ready for the book to end. At least there was a sneak peek of "Mortal Sins", the next tale in the series, at the end of this book. If history, the paranormal, a bit of romance, and mystery interest you…check out "Grave Sins" by Jenna Maclaine. I'm sure glad I did.