Holly writes the sexiest writing I have ever read. The love scenes are hot, hot, HOT!

The characters are endearing. The action is packed. The setting is vivid. Most erotic fiction is bland and corney. Not so with Holly. The plot in all her novels are serious and intiguing. The story line always comes full circle and there are never any strings left hanging. She's simply an excellent writer.

In Demon's Daughter (title DID need a bit of work, though) Inspector Adrian Philips is a bit of an outcast after he receives demon technology to help him in his job in policing the demon population (who are stronger than humans). Roxanne McAllister is a unique artist (she does porn-people, yet she's a virgin). She's also the daughter of a very famous and beautiful singer. Unfortunately, her mother is also known for her multiple and frequent sexual partners and Roxie's father. . . (come on people it's not hard to figure out, look at the title).

After Adrian ends up in Roxie's garden, badly beaten and in need of medical care, Roxie takes him in and nurses him back to health. Regardless of their backgrounds, they can't help but feel something for each other. But, problems are on the horizon.

Writing a story that is both paranormal and believeable, yet with enough quality components to make the otherworld plausible is a neat trick. Add an interesting set of secondary characters and a dash of spicy--almost erotica--and you've got a terrific book. The whole world of "non-satanic" demons used here and in the Crimson City series is not a favorite of mine. No matter how it's sold--demons only have negative connections to me. Yet this one provides a strong father demon, a mixed blood daughter as the female lead and an "enhanced" male lead creating a weird demon blended family that you come to care about. Their story is so well written that you buy the whole package and enjoy a brief escape from the cares of our everday world. Definitey worth reading and a little "softer" than the usual harder-edged stuff from this author.

I love Emma Holly's historical romance novels, so I was hoping for something special here. No such luck. By two thirds through the book I just had to put it down; reading it had become a chore.

The setting is the part of the book that really fails. It's supposed to be Victorian England combined with aliens and modern technology. People have absurdly prudish views about what is proper in this world (but you'll have to infer them - the author never really explains any of it). At the same time, it's sort of a futuristic society where people live alongside a bunch of aliens called Yama who have brought with them some technology that looks mostly like modern technology. Unfortunately, these two aspects of the setting just cancel each other out rather than combining to form something interesting. Most of the time I just couldn't figure it out.

The Victorian social mores of the time are supposed to be the driving force behind the characters' actions, and yet they never really made any sense. The minute that Adrian and Roxanne meet they are torn between desire and the knowledge that they can never be together because Roxanne is not a suitable lady. Adrian is worried that associating with her will hurt his career. But it took me half the book to figure out why Adrian thought she wasn't suitable, and even then it didn't seem like that big a deal. Apparently painters were not considered proper. And Adrian wants a promotion at work, and his boss might not give it to him if he finds out he's been sleeiping with Roxanne. I kept asking, "So what? So what if he doesn't get a promotion? So what if his mother doesn't like her? So what if she's a painter?" It was a non-conflict.

And frankly, Adrian seemed like a bit of a wimp. Sort of a mama's boy. A "proper Victorian gentleman."

The Yamish implants that give him some special power also don't add a thing to the story. On top of the Victorian morals, which are never really explained in a way that is convincing, there is some kind of social taboo about having the Yamish implants. Couldn't quite figure out what that was about. So basically this book is about two characters worrying constantly about a complex social system that the reader doesn't know anything about. Maybe there was more to the book in the second half. I was so bored and annoyed after a while that I just couldn't keep reading.

I think it might have been better if the setting had been Victorian England, and had been fleshed out to the point where the plot made sense. The alien aspect didn't add a thing to the book (except confusion).

As for eroticism or romantic tension, there didn't seem to be any. No explanation at all for why Roxanne and Adrian are so consumed by desire the first time they glimpse each other. Adrian seemed totally repressed, and that seemed to be the main focus. I found it boring.

Demon's daughter is the story of Adrian Phillips, a police officer in an alternate London where demon-like creatures called Yama run the show and humanity are pretty much in league with the Yamish or alternatively their lunch.

Frankly, while I found the story descriptive, this novel didn't really rock my boat. Why? The authors attempts at erotic tension fell flat for me. The two main characters are in such a state of arousal when they first meet I'm surprised they can walk. This state seems to continue throughout the book to a ludicrous degree. What the author considered 'exciting' and 'erotic' frankly just made me groan.

Also, I was bored with the whole orphan subplot. Not a big fan of kiddies in my romance novels. Yes we get it. The heroine is a saint for looking after two orphans. Can we get back to the main story now?

Sorry, I hate to go against the tide which is obviously a very popular novel, but Demon's Daughter bored me and I found the 'erotic tension' ludicrous. 1 Star.