Author: Dakota Cassidy
Ratings: V-3-4; S-4; H-5
Publisher and Titles: Berkley
The Accidental Werewolf (2008)
Accidentally Dead (2008)
The Accidental Human (2009)
Accidentally Demonic (2010)
Accidentally Catty (2011)
This blog entry was revised and updated on 7/28/12 to include a review of the sixth book in the series: Accidentally Dead, Again. That review comes first, followed by an overview of the world-building and brief summaries of books 1-5:
BOOK 6: Accidentally Dead, Again
This improbable plot centers on not one, but two accidental vampire transitions. First is Sam McLean, who left a party for a one-night stand with a beautiful woman and woke up on the steps of OOPS to find that he is now a vampire. As the OOPS girls are filling him in on the pros and cons of his new life style, a young human woman named Phoebe Reynolds comes in claiming to be foul-mouthed Nina's half-sister. When Nina reacts to this unexpected and unwelcome news with her usual loutish rage, Phoebe stumbles back, falls down on Sam (who is lying on the floor), and lands her derrière on one of his new fangs. Voila! She is now a vampire, too. When the newbie vamps demonstrate some brand new talents (i.e., teleporting, walking through walls), the OOPS girls decide to track down the vamp who bit Sam so that they can figure out where these skills came from. Then, a dying vamp—the woman who bit Sam—appears on their doorstep with a mysterious memo and a warning. Before she turns to ash, she tells Sam that he is going to die just like her—and very soon. Now the pressure is on. The group must discover what's going on so that they can save the undead lives of Sam and Phoebe, who—by the way—are quickly falling for one another.
Although the story has several major improbabilities and plot holes, it still has the usual amount of sarcastic dialogue, frenetic action, and quirky characters in which this series specializes. Unfortunately, the author strikes a wrong note when she goes straight to offensive stereotypes for her portrayal Mark, Phoebe's gay roommate. She also throws in way too many dated cultural references. For example, the girls make several pointed references to the 1970s TV cops, Starsky and Hutch. And when Phoebe, Sam, and Nina are communicating with walke-talkies on one of their escapades, Phoebe begins spouting 1970s CB trucker slang. I'm not sure that the average reader will get these references. Certainly, Sam and Nina don't have a clue about what Phoebe is trying to tell them. All in all, this is a light and fluffy (but somewhat violent) story that you can read during a single beachy summer afternoon.
The emphasis is on humor and sex in this contemporary series about three friends in New York City. The series was originally called ACCIDENTAL FRIENDS, but now it appears to be called the ACCIDENTALS SERIES, according to the author's web site. In book 1, Marty, a devoted cosmetics saleswoman, is accidentally turned into a werewolf. In book 2, Nina, a dental assistant, has the unfortunate on-the-job experience of being accidentally bitten by a vampire patient. In book 3, Wanda is diagnosed with a terminal illness but is saved by her friends. In book 4, Wanda’s sister, Casey, is accidentally possessed. In book 5, the girls starts a business (OOPS—Out in the Open Paranormal Support) to help other "bitees," and they come to the assistance of Katie, who has been bitten by an amnesiac werecougar.
In this world, the human population is unaware of the existence of supernaturals, even though vampires, shape shifters, and demons live amongst them.
In each book, the lead character is a cute, spunky, mouthy human female who is accidentally "turned" (usually bitten) by a preternatural creature who appears to be a sexy, handsome young guy. The plots follow the same route: the girl's initial denial of the supernatural species-changing consequences of the bite followed by gradual (or sometimes quick) bodily changes, with the biter trying to make amends and falling in love along the way. Plot interruptions come in the form of villainous supernaturals who want to get in the way of the romance for one reason or another.
The "girlfriend" dialogue flies fast and furious, frequently profane (lots of f-bombs) and always sarcastic. The lead couple falls into bed early in each book and enjoys a full sexual relationship with plenty of graphic details. A few violent episodes occur, but with few bloody details.
In Accidentally Catty, the fifth book in the series, the beginning is a bit confusing as we are dropped into the middle of a bite situation with not much explanation. Reading the back-cover blurb will help clarify things, and when the girlfriends show up to help, the chart below will help you sort them out:
> The Accidental Werewolf: shape-shifting werewolves, Marty and Keegan
> Accidentally Dead: sun-sensitive vampires who can fly, Nina and Greg
(Nina is the most foul-mouthed of the group, especially in book 5.)
> The Accidental Human: bizarre mixture of werewolves and
vampires, Wanda and Heath
> Accidentally Demonic: fire-wielding demon Casey and vampire Clay
> Accidentally Catty: shape-shifting cougars plus a touch of
vampirism, Katie and Shaw
> Accidentally Dead, Again: laboratory-created vampires Sam McLean and Phoebe Reynolds
> Accidentally Dead, Again: laboratory-created vampires Sam McLean and Phoebe Reynolds
This is a cute series that sometimes goes overboard with its earthy dialogue among the girlfriends. Some of the scenes are really hilarious. For example, in Accidentally Dead Wanda researches vampire fundamentals in paranormal romance novels so that she can help Wanda adjust to her new situation. Wanda says, "Make fun all you like, but some of the people that write these romance novels are right on the money....Where they come up with some of this and call it fiction is beyond me. If they only knew how accurate they really are, huh?" So true!
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