"As if being fired and then dying aren't enough to ruin your day..."

As if being fired and then dying and waking up in a pink (pink? as if THAT color had every looked good on her) suit and cheap shoes instead of her favorite designer heels, Elizabeth (don't even think about calling her Liz, or Elizabeth, it's Betsy thank you very much) Taylor finds out she is a vampire and supposedly the foretold Queen.

What a headache that turns out to be. A cliché vampire movie wannabe named Nostro is threatened by her, since he wants to be the lead vampire. Sinclair, or Sink Lair as Betsy not so affectionately calls him, wants her to join forces with him. And her materialistic stepmother not only doesn't want to attend Betsy's funeral because of a cruise, but she also STOLE her shoes! Her designer, beautiful, shoes.

The only bright spots are her friends: a doctor she stops from jumping to his death and her childhood gal pal Jessica the rich.

Throw in a totally unacceptable feeling of lust for Sinclair, and Betsy's first week of un-death is turning out too awful.

MaryJanice Davidson's Undead & Unwed is definitely a book to read while alone, because you will be laughing so much people may look at your strangely.

Betsy is a shallow woman, with surprising depths. She seems even more real to the reader since she ISN'T perfect. The romance between her and Sinclair is slow to build, but the humor is evident from page one. Told in first person from Betsy's point of view, the reader gets to know the character very well, not just what she says but what she feels. The quiet desperation to return things to as close to normal as possible is very evident, as is the conflict she feels over Sinclair.

I for one can't wait for the all-new sequel, UNDEAD AND UNEMPLOYED, which is coming out in August. I simply must know how many pairs of shoes Sinclair sends Betsy. To understand what I meant by that, well, I guess you'll just have to read UNDEAD AND UNWED to find out.

Reviewed by Michelle Houston
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted February 29, 2004

Originally published in ebook format by Ellora's Cave in 2002, UNDEAD AND UNWED has been revised and expanded for Berkley Publishing Group.

Summary

From Just Laid-Off Secretary to Queen of the Undead...

It's been a helluva week for Betsy Taylor. First, she loses her job. Then, to top things off, she's killed in a car accident. But what really bites (besides waking up in the morgue dressed in a pink suit and cheap shoes courtesy of her stepmother) is that she can't seem to stay dead. Every night she rises, with a horrible craving for blood. She's not taking too well to a liquid diet.

Worst of all, her new friends have the ridiculous idea that Betsy is the prophesized vampire queen, and they want her help in overthrowing the most obnoxious, power-hungry vampire in five centuries -- a badly dressed Bela Lugosi wannabe, natch. Frankly, Betsy couldn't care less about vamp politics, but they have a powerful weapon of persuasion: designer shoes. How can any self-respecting girl say no? But a collection of Ferragamos isn't the only temptation for Betsy. It's just a lot safer than the scrumptious Sinclair, a seductive bloodsucker whose sexy gaze seems as dangerous as a stake through the heart...