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Three Days to Dead (Dreg City, Bk 1)
Three Days to Dead - Dreg City, Bk 1
Author: Kelly Meding
Life is short, but death is forever...until someone buys a spell to bring you back. In a city teeming with paranormal creatures, Dreg Bounty Hunters work to protect oblivious citizens and keep the various species under control--by any means necessary. — Evangeline Stone is one of the best, known and feared by Dregs all over the city; until she wa...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780553592863
ISBN-10: 0553592866
Publication Date: 11/24/2009
Pages: 405
Rating:
  • Currently 3.7/5 Stars.
 117

3.7 stars, based on 117 ratings
Publisher: Dell
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

mreneerouser avatar reviewed Three Days to Dead (Dreg City, Bk 1) on + 127 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 8
The best book I've read all year! So far, I've read 314 books this year. That should tell you something.

The main character, Eva is your kick-butt heroine. She is witty, sarcastic, stubbon and loving. The other characters are varied and complex including vampires, weres, fey and half breeds. Eva is a Hunter. Her job is to keep the community (the Dregs) in line. But, things are not what they seem.

Right from the start, you learn that Eva is dead and now undead. She only has three days to figure out how she died and why she was brought back. In addition, she has relationships that may or may not be what they seem as well.

The author does an incredible job of detailing the environment making you feel like you are right there with Eva. When she is nervous, scared, angry, I felt it. However, the author didn't overdue the details. It's been a long time since my heart raced right along with the book. My only complaint was when I hit the last page. I can't wait for the next book in the series!

The book is more urban fantasy with a touch of romance (very small but necessary in the scheme of the entire story).
katiebratt avatar reviewed Three Days to Dead (Dreg City, Bk 1) on + 105 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
I really wanted to like this book. It had almost all of the components that i enjoy but I just couldn't get into it. I found myself putting it down and coming back to it.
This would have been a great second book.
There is so much back story about the characters that could have helped us along. I didn't feel invested in Wyatt and his feelings for the protagonist because we didn't know where it came from. I feel this is more sequel than first novel.
Glad t see others enjoy it so much.
barbsis avatar reviewed Three Days to Dead (Dreg City, Bk 1) on + 1076 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
I had a lot of trouble with this book. The premise was interesting and it started out well but quickly started dragging on and on but it didn't seem to be getting anywhere important. Both Evy and Wyatt were flat almost two-dimensional and the romance between them was forced. She claims not to love him but sleeps with him anyway (seemingly out of gratitude for saving her life). The next thing you know they are in love and inseparable. Huh? It was almost as if the author needs to give them a reason to live and fight but just doesn't quite make it believable.

I thoroughly enjoyed First Break and wished the book focused more on this well developed world. It was a fascinating place and I guess it will be further explored in future books. But honestly I won't be reading them because there was just something missing from this story. I really wish I could put my finger on what's bugging me about this story. It had so much going on - vampires, halfies, goblins, elves, trolls, gargoyles, humans, magic, psychic gifts and the fey - but nothing really clicked. It was as if everything but the kitchen sink was tossed into the mix. A lot of the "extras" could easily have been introduced in later installments as they didn't have any impact on the story.
myhotstylist avatar reviewed Three Days to Dead (Dreg City, Bk 1) on
Helpful Score: 2
Dark, Raw Imaginative and Gritty. Awesome Book! Sent straight to the top of my favorite books read in 2010 list.

Kelly Meding has created a hard-to-put down world that will have you on the edge of your seat, and reading into the wee hours of the morning. This is a perfect addition to the Urban fantasy genre that doesnt dissapoint. Even though the opening chapters are somewhat confusing, the more the book progreses, the easier it is to understand. I was thrilled to pieces when i opened the 2nd book up to the exact scene where the first left off..... now for my review:

Evangeline Stone is a Dreg Hunter. (Dreg=any paranormal being, aka: Goblins, Gargoyles, Gremlins, Elves, Trolls, Vampires, Shapeshifters/Weres etc. All of which we meet in this book)
She wakes up on a morge table only to find she is now inhabiting someone elses body. She quickly learns her Triad (group that she hunts with) has been killed, and a species of Owlkins were assisnated protecting her, by another group of Triads that were told she had gone rouge. After she finds her Handler, Wyatt Truman, she learns he purchased a spell from an Elf that allowed her to be brought back to life for 3 days. But with any purchase, comes a price. He brought her back to get information she withheld before she died. Someone is creating monsters in the city, a war is brewing, and the clock is ticking. 3 days until she dies again.

I cannot give enough praise for this book. its full of action, suspence and raw emotion. Lots of blood and gore with mystery and mixture of paranormal. Evy is a strong character that fights for what she belives in, but is able to show weakness at the same time. This is not a book for the faint hearted. There is cursing, fighting, and fuschia blood splattered everywhere. Definitely a series to follow. 5 stars all around!
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ophelia99 avatar reviewed Three Days to Dead (Dreg City, Bk 1) on + 2527 more book reviews
This is the first book in the Dreg City series. There are four book total in this series, there were supposed to be seven but the publisher dropped the series after the fourth book. This series was pretty typical urban fantasy; nothing bad but nothing all that original either.

I listened to this on audiobook and the audiobook was decent. The narrator did a good job distinguishing characters voices and conveying emotion. My one complaint would be that Evys voice was kind of breathy sounding which totally didnt match Evys character-type (at least I didnt think so).

This was an urban fantasy series about a Bounty hunter named Evangeline who hunts Dregs (the cities dark creatures like goblins, vamps, etc). Evangeline starts the book waking up in a new body thats not hers. For the whole book she is trying to remember and hunt down critical information that she knew when she died, information that could save the world. Evangeline (Evy) has been resurrected into the body of a young woman who committed suicide, Chalice. She was resurrected by her friend Wyatt, who is determined to help her hunt down her memories.

While I thought the idea behind the world was interesting, there wasn't a ton creative here and the world wasn't expanded much beyond the initial premise of fey-like creatures hiding out in the bad parts of the city.

Evangeline was your typical urban fantasy heroine, except for the fact that she was killed and brought back into a different body at the beginning of the book. She complains some about Chalices body not reacting like her own. Still she seems to do fairly well in fights despite the fact that Chalices body is untrained. The fact that she only has three days to solve the mystery of this unknown information does lend more urgency to this story.

Wyatt was okay but not all that inspiring as a male lead. He seemed a bit weak and easily led...I didnt really feel great chemistry between him and Evy. In fact I didn't find any of the characters to be all that intriguing or engaging in this book.

The plot was also fairly predictable, there are some twists and turns but things end up pretty much how I thought they would in the end. This is a pretty dark story as well with torture, rape, and dank bleak settings. So those who dislike really dark urban fantasy should probably skip this and look elsewhere.

Overall this was an okay read, but nothing that really stood out in the urban fantasy genre for me. The world was kind of interesting but not all that well filled out, Evy is in an interesting situation with her resurrection and all, but I didnt like her all that much as a character. Nothing really offensive here, but nothing great either. This is a dark setting with rape and torture as part of the story, so just a heads up to those who dont like those subjects in their reading. There is so much excellent urban fantasy out there that I wouldnt really recommend this series. I dont plan on reading any more of this series.

For excellent urban fantasy check out Ilona Andrews Kate Daniels series, Richard Kadreys Sandman Slim series, Seanan McGuires InCryptid or October Daye series, Jim Butchers Dresden Files, Jennifer Esteps Elemental Assassin series, or Jeaniene Frosts Night Huntress series.
NonExistence avatar reviewed Three Days to Dead (Dreg City, Bk 1) on + 239 more book reviews
After reading many Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy novels, I sometimes wonder how a new author will manage to create a fantasy world with characters that will grab my attention and wow me with something different.

I have a good sense of Kelly Meding's world and the rules that govern it, and yet I feel truly connected and engaged with her characters. Evy especially. Evy is a heroine that grabbed my attention immediately and I was pulling for her throughout the story.

Vampires, goblins, the Fey, trolls, and many more mythical creatures play major roles in Evy's city.

This debut novel is fast paced, suspenseful and full of unexpected twists.
reviewed Three Days to Dead (Dreg City, Bk 1) on + 72 more book reviews
Just finished the first book and put the second in the series on my Wish List. Meding has created a very interesting world inhabited by characters with distinct talents and traits that could lead to fascinating plots. I really enjoyed the Evy/Chalice character and her devoted Handler Wyatt, but got as much enjoyment out of the secondary characters much like you would reading Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson series. If I had to rate this against Briggs' series, I'd give Brigg's an A+ and this one a B+ but that's because it's her first book and she's bound to get better as she gets more experience. I think this series has great potential.


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