Nice Girls Don't Bite Their Neighbors

Half-Moon Hollow, Book 4

By: Molly Harper

Narrated by: Amanda Ronconi

Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

WITH THIS RING, I THEE DEAD.

Just as Jane Jameson’s unlife seems to be stabilizing, fate sinks its fangs firmly into her butt. Despite her near-phobia of wedding planning, her no-frills nighttime nuptials to her sexy boyfriend, Gabriel, are coming along smoothly. That is, until she turns a fatally wounded teenage acquaintance, and the Council pronounces her responsible for the newborn vamp until he can control his thirst.

Jane’s kitchen barely holds enough Faux Type O to satiate the cute teen’s appetite and maintain Gabriel’s jealous streak at a slow simmer. As if keeping her hyperactive childe from sucking the blood out of the entire neighborhood isn’t enough to deal with, the persnickety ghost of Jane’s newly deceased grandma Ruthie has declared war on the fanged residents of River Oaks. Suddenly, choosing monogrammed cocktail napkins and a cake she can’t even eat seem downright relaxing in comparison.

Tensions inside the house are growing… and outside, a sinister force is aiming a stake straight for the center of Gabriel’s heart. Most brides just have to worry about choosing the right dress, but Jane fears that, at this rate, she’ll never make it down the aisle for the wedding all nice girls dream of.

©2012 Molly Harper (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Another Fantastic Wild Ride!

Molly Harper - you’re my hero of sarcasm! Bringing to life the best adventures with my kind of crazy-ass people. Love it! Kids, Commitments, receptions, ghosts, scissors, bombs, beer, and sharpened pencils….what else can you ask for!

Molly Harper Does It Again! (Light Spoilers)

Ever since I finished "Nice Girls Don't Live Forever" I've been waiting patiently for this book to come out. I got it the day it was released. And once again Ms. Harper did not disappoint me. I've said it in every review of one of her books and I'll say it again, "I love Molly Harper's books!". She is so clever and witty and her character development from book to book is fantastic. I've come to view these characters as almost family and hate it when I hear that music at the end......

Harper starts each book and chapter with a piece of advice from a fictitious paranormal "guide book". In this book it is "Siring for the Stupid: A Beginner's Guide To Raising Newborn Vampires". It sets the tone for the book as well as each chapter, depending on the advice given in each blurb. From book to book, it still hasn't gotten old; it still "works"'. This story goes along pretty much the same way as the other books in the series, with Jane and her friends trying to solve a mystery or sometimes several mysteries; all the while trying to avoid being killed in some gruesome manner and/or avoid entanglements with Jane's Grandma Ruthie, a fate almost worse than death.

In this latest installment of the "Nice Girls" vamp series, Jane is now the "sire", having turned an old family friend into a vampire after he's accidentally hit by a car. It is now Jane's responsibility to see that Jamie, a gorgeous teenager whom she babysat as a child, learns how to be a decent vampire and doesn't go on a random killing spree through Half Moon Hollow. Added to this, someone is trying to kill her fiance, Gabriel. And if all of that weren't enough, horror of horrors, they're also trying to plan a wedding.

Jane Jameson is such a great character. I love her snarky, sarcastic attitude and the way she seems to attract trouble. I've always enjoyed watching the underdog get ahead and, for a heroine (and a vampire, no less), she surely is an underdog from the word go. And boy is she accident-prone! In spite of her super-fast reflexes and super-human strength, bad things still just seem to happen to her. Once again, as in previous books, there are laugh-out-loud moments, like the "Wives Need To Learn Special tricks" lecture given by her Mama on Jane's wedding night (and Jane's reaction to it). Then there is the description of the gowns Jane makes her gorgeous bridesmaids wear, out of pseudo-revenge. There are also some touching moments like, near the end, when Jane "loses" some very important "people" to whom she is very close......Sorry Molly, I totally saw it coming.

Amanda Ronconi is the perfect narrator for Molly Harper's books. I wrote this in a previous review: "Amanda Ronconi's voice is perfect for Harper's stories and I'm glad she is the narrator for all of them so far. She differentiates between characters well so I was never confused about who was speaking. I greatly enjoy Ms. Ronconi's style of 'performing the books', not just reading them". I would also say that, since Ms. Ronconi is a talented actress, it's no surprise that I have gotten sucked into these books like I have, no pun intended. She's quickly becoming my favorite narrator and I find myself comparing every other female narrator in this genre to her - unfavorably, I might add. In fact, I've purchased other books simply because she narrates them (even though it is a YA series, "Soul Screamers", though very different, is quite good).

All-in-all I highly recommend this book and the entire series to anyone who enjoys the paranormal genre. Even if you don't normally appreciate paranormal lit, I think you should give it a try. It's completely different from another, very popular, series in which vampires "sparkle". It has lots of humor, a little bit of romance, action, and mystery. I certainly hope this is not the last we'll hear of Ms. Jameson (aka Mrs. Nightingale).

Great Overall Everything!

Loved the story. Loved the narration. Loved the romance.

I found myself laughing out loud, more than a few times. I even scared my poor husband more than once (which if you ask me is worth the credit right there).

I highly recommend this book. Good Stuff!

Great As Always

Molly Harper has done it again! This 4th book in the "Nice Girls" series is just as good as the other three. I was entertained and laughed many times (as I always do with MH books).
I have to admit, I panicked near the end because I thought the series was ending because of some things that happened, but then Molly threw us a curve ball and now there is subject matter for several more books. Whew! That's a relief.
Amanda Ronconi was awesome as the narrator, as always.
I had started and stopped several audio books before NGDBTN because I was bored but I listened to this one every chance I could and was disappointed when it was over. I am ready for #5.

Daddy mommy vampire issues never were so fun

I haven’t enjoyed the series this much since book one. The addition of a teenage vampire made for some fresh new hijinks. I also liked the amount of girl time as Andrea, Jolene, and sister Jennie help Jane prepare for her wedding. From here, the books don’t need to be heard strictly in order as they start featuring different couples in Half Moon Hollow.

Please tell me its not really over...

There just HAVE to be more excuse for Jane to return to my life. Maybe and Andrea and Dick book? More from Iris and her sister? Ophelia and Jamie? Please... more. More please.

Satisfying Conclusion to Great Series

My Initial Reaction...
These books always bring me to tears with laughter and Nice Girls Don't Bite their Neighbors was no exception!

The Narration...
I know you've got to be tired of hearing me say it, but for anyone who hasn't heard me yet I'll say it again. Amanda Ronconi is an incredible narrator. I would (and have) pick up a book just because she's narrating it. She brings the wit and snarkiness of her characters to life perfectly and I always the variety of voices for all the different characters. You can't go wrong with Amanda!

The Characters...
I just adore these characters. I connect with Jane so easily - she's a book worm living the dream, running her own bookstore. *sigh* Oh and did I mention that she's finally marrying her sire - Gabriel? It took me a while to fall for Gabriel but his proposal finally brought me over to his side. He's always been a bit removed from the rest of the group in my opinion, but in this book he finally seems to be part of the drama.

Of course, right in the thick of the drama are Dick Cheney and his wife Andrea. Gah, I love these two! They're like the poster children for opposites attract and every minute with them is hilarious. There are no words for how ridiculous Dick is and Andrea is as witty and smart as Jane, so what's not to love?

I have to admit to being a bit disappointed with how little we see of Jane's best pre-turn friend, Zeb, his wife Jolene, Jane's Aunt Jetti and Mr. Wainwright. These are four of my favorite characters and, while they were still there, they've definitely started moving on and living their own lives. When it mattered most, though, they were all right there in the middle of things and supporting Jane - who seems to have the worst luck of any vampire, ever.

And then there's the two newest additions to the gang - Jane's sister, who I not only love but am so glad to see not fighting with Jane anymore, and Jaime - Jane's "son." Throwing in Jaime was a lot of fun for the story - even if a bit predictable. Dealing with a teenage vampire is about as fun as dealing with a teenage boy - full of hilarious embarrassing moments and food/blood shortages.

The Story...
Jane's life is just so complicated, nothing ever is simple for her. It would help if someone wasn't always trying to kill her. This time, she's trying to plan her wedding (with a period theme! Loved it!) and all the while she and Gabriel keep having near death experiences. The first one earned her the hatred of the entire town and a new son, further complicating (and enriching) the story. The level of mystery is pretty much non-existent, since from pretty early on you know what's up. But that's not the point of these books, in my opinion. The point is watching Jane and the gang trip all over themselves as they try to figure out who's out to get them. Let dumb plans, witty banter, and disastrous fall out ensue. For me, the most epically hilarious moment of Nice Girls Don't Bite their neightbors was when they finally found who was behind it all. It was so ridiculous that I couldn't help but laugh, hysterically - despite being on the bus.

Concluding Sentiments...
This was a very satisfying conclusion to the Jane Jameson series. I laughed so hard I cried, and a couple times, I cried for reals (which was totally unexpected for this series). I'll miss this crazy gang, but I'm really happy with where Molly Harper left us.

Jane is back at it again

Molly Harper never fails to bring the snark and a pinch of sexy to her loveable characters. So I was excited to jump into another light and fun read with Nice Girls Don’t Bite Their Neighbors.

Jane and the group are back for another fun filled mystery. This time around Jane is dealing with her own wedding planning issues, more dead relatives, and being a new mother so to speak.

Seems that someone always wants to kill or at least maim Jane. And she usually makes things worse by running off by herself to solve the mystery of who it is. But this time Jane is showing her maturity by letting her friends do the heavy lifting in the department of who wants Jane dead.

Dick nodded. "I was thinking official 'Keep Jane from Being Murdered Task Force' T-shirts.”

Jane gets to see how life is as a sire when she helps out a follow Half Moon Hollow citizen. And it’s funny as hell to see her and the gang deal with the new member to the family.

At some point, your child may challenge you to a fight. Try not to beat the childe too badly. Imagine having your mother knock you into unconsciousness. It would be emotionally scarring on several levels.
- Siring for the Stupid: A beginner's Guide to Raising Newborn Vampires

So if you are a fan of the series you will want to pick this one up if you have not already. And if you have not started the series I recommended to anyone that likes a fun paranormal light read with laughs on just about every page.

Loved this series!

Would you consider the audio edition of Nice Girls Don't Bite Their Neighbors to be better than the print version?

Always is, but only listened to it, did not read the print version!

What other book might you compare Nice Girls Don't Bite Their Neighbors to and why?

Molly Harper stands alone!

Have you listened to any of Amanda Ronconi’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

the Molly Harper books, she is really good, funny and believable!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

This book was hilarious...I did tear up a bit when Aunt Jetty finally moved on..she was awesome!

Any additional comments?

The first 2 books are good, but not great...but the last 2 are really good...this was a fun and hilarious series...I cant wait to read the werewolf ones!!! I recommend!!!

good lord !

Molly Harper has never disappointed. These books give you the giggles , get you sort of hot and make you want to cringe throughout. so don't listen while around people you don't know. They may call the men in the white coats.