cover image Mistral's Kiss

Mistral's Kiss

Laurell K. Hamilton, . . Ballantine, $23.95 (212pp) ISBN 978-0-345-44358-8

In bestseller Hamilton's steamy fifth in the Meredith Gentry fantasy series (after 2005's A Stroke of Midnight ), the fey former Los Angeles PI has given up detecting and fully embraced her duties as Princess Meredith NicEssus, potential heir to the faerie throne. Since the extremely orgasmic princess's foremost duty is to prove her fertility in order to gain the throne, she spends most of her time bedding her immortal sidhe royal guardsmen, giving each a fair shot as her future consort. All the group sex has a profoundly transformative effect: her men are regaining their full powers, and the long-dead faerie gardens are springing to life. But when Meredith and her merry men inadvertently find themselves in the territory of King Sholto, who has been betrayed by others in the faerie court, there's deadly danger even for immortals. Lots of earth-shattering, supernatural sex and a rousing climactic battle will have Hamilton's fans panting for more. (Dec.)