Tag Archives: #Urbanfantasy

Reine, S.M.: The Darkest Gate (The Descent II) (2012)

2013-11-01 humanitysdarkerside 5 Comments

I think my favorite part of The Darkest Gate is the way S.M. Reine writes Elise’s pain. Her emotional baggage is at least ten sizes larger than her and the manner she deals with other creatures (human or not) reflects that. Emotional pain eats you up and makes itself so much at home that you forget that it is there. But your interactions will reflect the depth of your pain and the extent to which you work to keep a lid on it. For once the lid comes off, man. Well, it’s an experience.

Elise’s awkwardness is not only due to her emotional pain. As we get snippets of her past we see that the main focus of her parents has been to train her to fight and to repress her feelings. At 14 James found her (see Death’s Hand) and her career as a kopis began. No wonder Elise has no time for the niceties.

Another factor influences Elise’s interactions with others. In 1999 (as you will discover in this novel) Elise went to a gynecologist to figure out what her problem was. Her discovery shocked her and created another wound to place in her casket of pain.

How much influence this next factor has had on Elise’s way of dealing with the world, I do not know, but I imagine quite a deal. The life of kopis and aspis is not an easy one. It requires a great deal of dedication and sacrifice. There is no glory and no wealth in the life of keeping humanity safer from other creatures. At one point James tells us that:

“hope for was dying in the service of mankind. The idea of being able to settle down was equally tempting and disappointing, since he knew it was something he couldn’t have. He couldn’t afford to eat on many days.”

We get several realistic descriptions of their situations. My parents grew up with poverty, my dad with hunger. When they speak of the harsher parts of their childhoods I find myself amazed to see the people they have become and the lives they have been able to provide us. I see some of their pain reflected in the writing of S.M. Reine.

When you are placed in such a position, some of us find ourselves willing to do things we might not otherwise do. Our practical sense of survival takes over. In 1999 Elise, not James, was the practical one of the two and decided she had to do the job Mr. Black offered to pay for. Doing that job and the consequences that derived from it led to the situation the retired kopis and aspis find themselves in when 2009 comes around. One might say that James and Elise’s lovely rear ends are being royally bitten by the past catching up with them.

I think I am going to leave you with that. Well, that and (as you have probably guess) I LOVED The Darkest Gate.

Review:

Print Length: 304 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1937733076
Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
Publisher: Red Iris Books; 1 edition (May 4, 2012)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
Language: English
ASIN: B0080RED3U

My review of Death’s Hand

Fantasy, Mystery, Thriller

Spencer, Wen: Eight Million Gods (八百万の神) (2013)

2013-10-25 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

EightMillionGods1 — Cover art by Tom Kidd
Really great cover

There is a reason I love Wen Spencer’s writing. Her characters are all odd-balls trying to fit in with the rest of the world. Some are more successful than others. Having pretty much grown up in mental institutions ensures that Nikki is going to have a harder time of it than most people. Having an obsessive compulsive disorder called hypergraphia isn’t helping Nikki fit in.

The driving compulsion to write; the overwhelming urge to write. Hypergraphia may compel someone to keep a voluminous journal, to jot off frequent letters to the editor, to write on toilet paper if nothing else is available, and perhaps even to compile a dictionary. Hypergraphia is the opposite of writer’s block.

The way Wen Spencer describes Nikki’s writing compulsion is pretty intense. At one point Nikki tells us that she would even use her own blood to write if the urge became too strong. Wow! That is some disorder to have.

For some weird reason, quoting law to some policemen was like hitting Superman with kryptonite. They just couldn’t cope with material from their home planet. (p. 1)

When Nikki’s mom drags along a police officer to have Nikki interred in a mental institution, quoting law to the police officer is one of the tools Nikki uses to get away. She does get away to Japan on a roller-coaster ride of gods, goddesses, super-natural creatures (like tanuki) and new friends.

But first things have to be resolved with the police officer and Nikki’s mom.

All mom’s are nuts, but some moms are crazier than others. While Nikki certainly has a pronounced form of OCD her obsession is fairly easy to satisfy. All her mom had to do was make certain that Nikki had the writing implements she needed. Being a Senator from a wealthy family (in the US that goes without saying) would also give Nikki’s mom the finances to make certain Nikki could get her education and help her with her obsession at the same time. That means that either Nikki’s mom is insane or maybe there is some other reason for Nikki being placed in a mental institution than the one Nikki thinks is true.

The blurb kind of gives the answer to that. Hah, hah – one of the many reasons I seldom include the blurb in my reviews.

When Nikki discovers that perhaps there is more to her hypergraphia than insanity, she is filled with relief and despair. Her relief is obviously from understanding that she isn’t nuts (well, not only nuts). The despair comes from realising that her horror stories are real, real, real.

What would it be like to realise that the story you had written about a person being killed by a blender was for real? It’s not the most common method of killing a person and to have that person be killed in the exact manner you had written – well that would freak me out. Then imagine finding out that the gods, goddesses and mythical creatures in Japan were real, and wanted something from you. Nikki freaking out is an understandable reaction. She does, but not in a major manner. In fact, her experiences with getting away from her mom’s attempts to get her into mental institutions serve her well in adjusting to her new reality.

“Eight Million Gods” was a fun story. There is an element of romance, but it doesn’t dominate the tale. Instead, we get loads of action, murder and mayhem. In other words, my kind of fantasy story.

Reviews:

Hardcover: 400 pages
Publisher: Baen (June 4, 2013)
ISBN-10: 1451638981
ISBN-13: 978-1451638981

Fantasy, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller

Gimpel, Ann: Earth’s Requiem (Earth Reclaimed I) (2013)

2013-10-10 humanitysdarkerside 3 Comments

Earth’s Requiem is the first installment of the serial Earth Reclaimed. Being a serial, it did what all proper installments of a serial should – ended on a cliff-hanger.

I should probably tell you that there is explicit sex in Earth’s Requiem but no explicit violence. The sex was consensual and safe. Here in Norway teen-agers read this kind of stuff. Other places have other rules.

If you check out Ann Gimpel’s blog, you will see that she has been writing fiction since 2009. She has generally written urban romantic fantasy. Earth’s Requiem is my first meeting with Ann Gimpel and it was sent to me as a reviewer’s copy.

Earth’s Requiem is not urban romantic fantasy. Instead it could be called apocalyptic romantic fantasy. I’m calling it fantasy because we are dealing with the old gods of celt mythology but it might also be deemed science fiction because of the Lemurians who have entered the Earth through gates opened by – you guessed it – humans. We humans are stupid and curious little monkeys. If there is a lever to be pressed, a ritual to be performed or aliens to be contacted we will do our be to do the deed. I’m that dumb myself. When I was a kid I would put a knitting needle into the wall sockets just because my dad had warned me not to. I’ll still do really stupid stuff just because I wonder what would happen if …

Once I started looking for info on the gods in Earth’s Requiem, I became fascinated with Celtic mythology. The celtic gods we get to meet are:

Fionn mac Cumhaill: God of wisdom, protection, and divination. A warrior-hunter and god of the wood-lands.
Bran the blessed / Benedigeidfran: God of prophecy, the arts, leaders, war, the sun, music, writing.
Arawn: God of the underground kingdom of the dead. Revenge, terror and war.
Gwydion: Greatest of the enchanters, warrior-magician. Illusion, changes, magics, the sky, healing.
Dewi: Dragon goddess

As this is a romance novel all four human-like gods are devastatingly good-looking. Fionn mac Cumhaill is the god we are particularly interested in. He is the paramour of our main protagonist, Aislinn Lenear, whose mother was Tara MacLochlainn. Tara MacLochlainn was thrown into a vortex by one of the new rulers of the Earth when her sanity was insufficient to please the Lemurians. Aislinn’s father had already been killed by one of the Dark gods. The Lemurians and Dark gods fight each other for dominance of the Earth and humans are being used as their tools.

While Aislinn has realised that all she is to the Lemurians is a tool, she has been so wrapped up in her grief that she has been unable to see past that. The compulsion that has been laid upon her and all humans under the thumbs of the Lemurians might have something to do with that inability as well. But after three years, Aislinn meets the above Fionn and he manages to rescue her from that compulsion. Together they spear-head the resistance that includes humans and celtic gods.

It wouldn’t be a romance novel without some pretty complicated inner dialogue about whether or not to love a person, how to love them and all of that other stuff. I always tend to zone out when romance comes along and that is a pity because Ann Gimpel writes well enough to deserve a romance reader that can appreciate romance. I enjoyed the action and the premise of the resistance group and the fascinating stuff this story led me to on the net.

Fantasy, Thriller

Violante, Maria: BirthMarked (The Markers I) (2013)

2013-10-03 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

So, I was sent a review copy of BirthMarked by Maria Violante and have now finished it. She wasn’t sure I was going to like it, but I did.

The main character is very different from De La Roca in Violante’s De La Roca Chronicles. They are almost like night and day. But both fit very well into the world Violante has created for them.

In BirthMarked we meet Charlie Kale as our protagonist. Poor Charlie. Abandoned by her father and left with an increasingly bitter and alcoholic mother to raise her. Charlie’s mother dies leaving Charlie alone in the world. Then her boyfriend dumps her. Thankfully she has her career as a truck-driver to comfort her. Except does she? You know things are just going to get worse, don’t you.

Violante brings Charlie lower and lower into the dumps. The already less than confident woman discovers it is possible to get to an even lower point. Violante is kind of mean to Charlie, poor kid. I think I must be identifying with Charlie or something.

Charlie’s truck gets over-turned because of a “drunk driver” and that accident ends up leaving Charlie with a choice between getting killed then and there or taking a chance with a gory death later. What you need to know right now is that these are the “good guys” Charlie gets the choice from. The Markers or as the rest of us know them: truck-drivers saving the world from monsters from another dimension.

What is there not to like about a set-up like that? Charlie is helpless, hopeless and strong at the same time. She is a blubbering idiot who tries her best to fit in with the cultish group of men she has ended up with. But this girl has a backbone. It just needs a bit of prodding at times by Diesel and various other characters that turn up.

Diesel the dog is cool. He is probably some kind of familiar whose powers have not yet been revealed. Already it seems he might have a bit of empathic abilities and a whole lot of gumption. Jeff Bruckner is a likeable character, Shawn an extremely conflicted one, Josh devious and Joseph a bit odd. All of the men are a bit odd considering the cultish quality of The Markers but Joseph might be a bit odder than the others.

I am prophesying a sort of love-triangle in future installments to this new series. I also prophesy tons of action and a really cool dog helping Charlie figure out her place in life. If the rest of the series ends up as fun (and silly at times) as this one then Maria Violante has a good series going for her.

Genre: Urban Fantasy with Romantic Elements
Tags: Monsters, gunmen, and secret societies should know not to mess with a female trucker who is pushing thirty!
Series: The Markers
Length: 69091 words
Release Date: 10-3-13
ISBN: 978-1-962916-008-5

Fantasy, Thriller

Hoyt, Sarah A.: Draw One in the Dark (Shifter) (2006)

2013-09-19 humanitysdarkerside 2 Comments

Draw One in the Dark made me think about what it must be like to be a foster-kid and a homeless kid in the US. I haven’t been a foster-kid anywhere. Nor have I worked with foster-children and am therefore unqualified to speak about its reality. But I have wondered what it must be like. That and being homeless. I’ve read books and articles about both but that doesn’t show me the way the minds of people who have been in the foster-system and living on the street work. How would this affect a person’s ability to deal with situations? Let’s say you throw in being a shape-shifter on top of that. And on top of that you aren’t really sure if you are a shape-shifter or if you are just having psychotic episodes that leave you covered in blood every once in a while.

This is the point that Kyrie Smith and Tom Ormson are both at when Draw One in the Dark begins. Some months after meeting each other they both receive revelations about their nature and are thrown together into one dangerous situation after the other. This means that life becomes even more chaotic for the two of them but they soldier on as best they can.

That tells me something about resilience. For regular people soldiering on can be difficult enough but for kids with an atypical background soldiering on must be even more of a struggle.

To my way of thinking Draw One in the Dark is partly about resilience and partly about bravery. It is also about messed up people making messed up decisions and living with the consequences of those. Trying to make amends as best we can is one of life’s major lessons. What has been done can never be fixed, but maybe/hopefully some of the pain we inflict can be lessened.

Draw One in the Dark is an easy to read young adult urban fantasy novel that is of pretty average quality. But it spoke to me and helped me clear up a couple of things in my head. Oh, and I really liked the cover art (roar, my name is dragon).

Reviews:

Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Baen; First Edition edition (November 1, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1416520929
ISBN-13: 978-1416520924
Shop: Amazon (US)

Science Fiction, Short story/novella, Thriller

Lichtenberg, Tom: Happy Slumbers (Dragon City) (2012)

2013-08-09 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

Spring Hill Lake is this bizarre town where mysterious things happen. People disappear, sinkholes appear and then disappear and people suddenly appear out of the blue. In Happy Slumbers we find out what is going on and why it happens.

When Alex Kirkham comes looking for his brother Argus, who seems to have disappeared, Alex meets this old lady (Etta) on a park-bench. She starts talking in riddles and Alex follows her around trying to figure out what she is talking about.

We get a short historical recap of Alex and Argus’ encounters with the “Thing” in Spring Hill Lake. Part of the recap comes through Alex’s interactions with the “Law”.

Of course, the government has to get involved. After the last oddities regarding the stadion they are all gung-ho about making Alex spill the beans. But Alex has no beans to spill, at least not yet.

I loved the ending of the Dragon City series. Another thing I really enjoyed was my inability to place the Dragon City series in any one category. Is it science fiction or is it fantasy or maybe a bit of both? That is the joy of being a reader, at least when an author writes as well as Tom Lichtenberg does.

Reviews

Published: June 24, 2012
Words: 15,040 (approximate)
Print Length: 53 pages
Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
Language: English
ASIN: B008EED36M
ISBN: 9781476241968

My review of Dragon Town

Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Young Adult

Caine, Rachel: The Morganville Vampires (2006-2013) / Weather Warden (2003-2010) / The Revivalist (2011- )

2013-06-13 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

Rachel Caine, or Roxanne Longstreet Conrad as she is known to her friends, is a prolific writer. From what I have read of her writing (Morganville series, one Weather Warden and one The Revivalist) her novels seem to target young adults (not the youngest).

Her books are fun to read and full of murder, mayhem and entertainment. We get all sorts of magic and supernatural creatures. Some of these supernaturals are the baddest baddies while some fight on the side of light and justice for all. There is something a bit soap operaish about the books at times, but for the most part they manage to stay out of that trap. The ones that I have read are from: Weather Warden, The Morganville Vampires and The Revivalist.

THE MORGANVILLE VAMPIRES (2006 – 2013)

The Morganville Vampires books are supposed to be appropriate for age 13 and up. My library has fourteen of them while fifteen have been published thus far. According to the Morganville website no. 15 (Daylighters) is supposed to be the last one of the series (for now). I believe I have read through no. 10 (Bite Club).

The Morganville series begins with Glass Houses.While it is an advantage to begin reading with book no. 1 of the series, I would have had no trouble starting at any point as all of the novels have some sort of resolution to their plot. There are threads that leave you somewhat hanging but they are more of the kind that you will find in most series out there. So NOT a serial.

Claire Danvers is our main character through the series. There are others that get to shine along with her, but she is the one we always meet.

What can I say about Claire Danvers? Claire is a brilliant girl. Her IQ gets her into Texas Prarie University at the age of 16. Choosing TPU was a result of having to be closer to her parents. I can understand her parents wanting her to be a close as possible. Being the parent of two boys who have been that age, I probably would have let them go to the offered spot at MIT. Whether my choice would have been different had they been girls is impossible to predict.

So off Claire goes to Morganville. TPU is apparently a typical university town. In it she meets both ends of the spectrum of niceness. Claire gets bullied by the town diva, Monica Morell, and makes friends with the much nicer Eva Rosser. Her friendship with Eva Rosser and the bullying by Morell and her crowd is what brings about Claire’s move into what is known as Glass House.

Glass House belongs to Michael Glass. Michael lives in the house himself and he is hesitant about letting Claire live there. The other tenant, Shane Collins, also worries about having an under-age student living with them. The constellation two boys and two girls might have something to do with that. I found that rather charming and wise of the two guys. I also approved of the choice of letting Claire live with them, especially considering Monica’s influence at TPU. Monica does not have many endearing qualities.

Moving into Glass House brings the reality of Morganville crashing in on Claire. Living in Morganville can be detrimental to one’s health.

WEATHER WARDEN (2003-2010)

Weather warden

The Weather Warden series begins with Ill Wind and ends with Total Eclipse. According to various reviews and Ms. Caine’s own website the Weather warden is meant for an adult audience. I have only read no. 1 (Ill Wind). It is difficult for me to know exactly what differentiates a novel meant for adults or older young adults, so I am going to trust the author on this one. On the link above you can read samples from each of the novels.

Ill Wind introduces Joanne Baldwin a Weather Warden. A Weather Warden is a person who has the power to control one of the elements. In Joanne’s case that is the wind. She is not considered an especially gifted Warden. When we meet her she is on the run from the other Weather Wardens and the Weather Council. The Weather Council wields a lot of influence in society due to its nature. Together with the UN they decide when to and when not to intervene in natural disasters (having to do with wind, fire, water and earth). So, not an organization to have chasing you.

Joanne is, of course, innocent of all charges and that is what Ill Wind is about – proving her innocence and finding the real culprit.

As a mystery, Ill Wind worked for me.

THE REVIVALIST (2011 – …)

The Revivalist

Once again you get to read sample chapters of the novels. The Revivalist is a different kind of zombie novel. As with Weather Warden, I have only read the first of the series, Working Stiff. Like the other two series in this post, The Revivalist is an urban fantasy series. Our main character is Bryn Davies. She is about to change careers – from being in a military supply unit in war to being a funeral director. An unusual choice but work is work.

At first Fairview Mortuary seems like an average funeral home. But there is one huge problem. Her bosses are experimenting on the corpses. Not all of them, but enough for Bryn to discover that there is a problem. It turns out that they are using a drug to resurrect the dead. Bryn enlists the help of the FBI and joins the take-down. During the charge, poor old Bryn ends up being one of the dead. Having no say in the matter herself (being dead and all that) Bryn ends up being one of the resurrected. At this point her options in “life” pretty much become nil. She has to do what she is told or she will not get the daily injection needed for a healthy look.

Basically, Working Stiff is an urban fantasy mystery with a zombie twist.

Adventure, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Young Adult

George, Kevin: Drinking Life (Keeper of the Water) (2011)

2013-05-18 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

Sometimes in life we make choices that can have far-reaching consequences, not only for ourselves. Drinking Life seems to be in part about the impact of choices made.

Loyalty is another issue Drinking Life approaches. Do you really have to be loyal to a person you pretty much think is detestable? I kept thinking – Why does this person not get over themself and why do the rest let themselves be bullied by that person? Isn’t it possible to say “enough is enough”?

Once again I was struck by how infatuation can make you completely blind to the worst mistakes and be willing to forgive pretty despicable actions. And when the truth finally comes out, forgiveness is given once again. Is it not ever possible to learn?

Then I thought about real life – what about that? Well, sad to say people act like this all the time. They might not be super-fast, super-strong or heal surprisingly well, but people sure can be stupid about what we accept and do not accept in others. So I guess the story about Nia and her compatriots is believable.

Nia, her parents, Cassie and Cassie’s mother always seem to be on the move. The two girls are tired of never being able to settle down. When they end up in a tiny town on the outskirts of Nowhere they feel down. But not for long.

Like the blurb says, Nia Ammo is a jock, a quality she will have need of in the upcoming days. There will be more than enough running, swimming, rowing, shooting and jumping for the girl. Add in bizarre dreams and a boyfriend/not-boyfriend/boyfriend/not-boyfriend and Nia’s life is becoming difficult for her to handle.

Drinking Life was pretty good. There were annoying editing problems that ought to have been easy to do something about.

You can find at:

Fantasy, Mystery, Short story/novella, Thriller, Young Adult

French, John F.: Just Passing Through (2012)

2013-05-12 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

Don’t let this cover fool you. This is not some idyllic tale of life in a sunset, Oooh, no! What we have here is a regular old who-dun-it with some unexpected revelations for Sheriff Steele.

Some shots are heard in the night, a body is found with some strange marks on his neck and the Sheriff’s own son Kevin seems to be implicated in the crime. Kevin is adamant that he had nothing to do with the crime (naturally). While the Sheriff wants to believe him, he decides (good for him) to be thorough in his investigation. As the investigation progresses the weirdness increases.

I loved the ending. Perfect. What we have here is a clever way of looking at the paranormal, one that does not fall within the all-too common trap of paranormal literature of today. Mr. French keeps the pace up and the gore down. A nice addition to the world of literature.

You can find on .

You can get Just Passing Through for free at and .

Fantasy, Mystery, Young Adult

Guon, Ellen: Bedlam Boyz (Urban Elves) (1993)

2013-05-10 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

There seem to be pirat copies of the digital version around – according to the author. Amazon has taken their copy off the air.

The Urban Elves series is a sub-series to the Elves on the Road Universe an urban fantasy universe depicting the interaction between the human and the elven world adding in a bit of diesel/gas.

As far as I can see Ellen Guon (Beeman) has written three novels: two in collaboration with Mercedes Lackey and the Bedlam Boyz on her own.

Bedlam Boyz is a stand-alone novel set in Los Angeles. It is about getting the surprise of your life and how that surprise changes your life. In a life-threatening situation Kayla discovers she has the power to heal.

A talent like that is bound to bring a lot of attention. Not all of that attention is positive. In fact most of the attention Kayla garners because of her ability to heal is quite negative. Gangs, elves and social workers all want a piece of her and only one of the parties wants to help Kayla get a better life.

Bedlam Boyz was a fairly good novel. It seemed believable when it came to the fate of Liane. I imagine that to be the fate of quite a few homeless kids. Kayla’s fears are also believable and her confusion about her talent seems natural. I imagine there are police officers and social workers who care about the homeless kids the way a couple of the characters in the novel did.

I liked it. It wasn’t great but it did entertain me enough to keep me reading to the end. With a bit more editing it would have been a much better read.

on /

Cover artists:

Other blogs:

The Cosy Dragon

Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Short story/novella

Duncan, Sophie: The Diablo Ouija (Haward Mysteries) (2011)

2013-04-29 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

Sophie Duncan is the author for The Diablo Ouija. For the time being, you can get the short story for free.

The Diablo Ouija is a Haward Mysteries short story. The Haward Mysteries are about the police officers Remy and Theo Haward at the Sorcerous Crimes Taskforce’s, Murder Squad. With a name like that for a task-force you can probably imagine that their investigations most probably involve something inexplicable. The title of the short story also makes it obvious we are dealing with the super-natural/para-normal.

I’m not saying the twins are insane, but a little unorthodoxy is the least of their qualities. They are on the look-out for an incredibly dangerous magical item: (drumroll) The Diablo Ouija. Three teenagers are already dead and Remy and Theo suspect they have not seen the last victims yet. When they turn to Theo’s old boss, retired DCI Swanson, for information about the old case, they discover something they had not previously known, something that will lead them into dangers untold.

Like most brothers, Theo and Remy are very different. In spite of their differences, they are willing to go to any length to make certain the other brother is safe. The Diablo Ouija tests their loyalty to each other. We get plenty of creep-factor but no tipping over into horror. An enjoyable tale.

Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller

Gay, Kelly: Shadows Before the Sun (Charlie Madigan) (2012)

2013-04-29 humanitysdarkerside 1 Comment

Shadows Before the Sun is the 4th installment of the Charlie Madigan series. Whether it is the final one remains to be seen but it did represent an ending to me.

Charlie needs to go to Elysia to find Hank. She did promise him that at the end of The Hour of Dust and Ashes. Their friendship is too important to leave anything to chance and the words of ambassadors. Right now Hank needs a friend who is willing to break the rules to get to him. Charlie and Allessandra, the Oracle, end up as travelling companions. They both consider the other a severe test of patience.

The world of Elysia turns out to be as bad as the Earth Charlie is from. There is plenty of political maneuvering, power-plays and mayhem. But there is also help from unexpected quarters.

Charlie’s character has grown during her trip through these four novels. With her growth has come a better understanding of other people and perhaps even an ability to see them as individuals and not just part of some great mass that she has to keep safe.

We get action with plenty of fighting and some sex. I guess both could be considered somewhat adult in content.

My journey with the Charlie Madigan series has been a pleasant one. Shadows Before the Sun is easy to read, difficult to put down and fits the other three novels well.

Announcement from Kelly Gay: “8/1/12 — There’s been some talk about SHADOWS BEFORE THE SUN being the final book in the series. Guys, nothing like this has been decided or announced. Official news will come straight from me. I’m usually contracted 2 books at a time. Shadows completed my second two-book contract. This does not mean I’m done writing the series or that I won’t go back to contract.”

My reviews on books 1 (The Better Part of Darkness), 2 (The Darkest Edge of Dawn), 3 (The Hour of Dust and Ashes), and 4 (Shadows Before the Sun)

Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller

Gay, Kelly: The Hour of Dust and Ashes (Charlie Madigan) (2011)

2013-04-29 humanitysdarkerside 2 Comments

Does Kelly Gay keep up her good work in The Hour of Dust and Ashes? Yes, she most definitely does. She has that rare ability of being able to keep her writing tight, very tight. That and her spelling and grammar helps the reader keep from being distracted. Add to that a pretty good plot, fun characters and talent and you have the flow.

Charlie Madigan is an interesting character. She is a believable woman in a fantastic yet believable world. Yes, this is all science fiction and fantasy, but the plot is about recognisable problems and her characters are flawed and gifted like the rest of us. Fanatics are fanatics and greed is greed.

Charlie suffers from a save-the-world-all-on-her-own syndrome. That makes it easy for her to take the blame for her sister’s ash addiction. It is true that Bryn got addicted to ash while helping Charlie out, but Charlie tends to forget that Bryn has her own will and this is creating trouble between the sisters.

When ash addicts begin taking their own lives, Charlie becomes desperate to make certain Bryn stays alive. Thus far the hunt for a cure has led nowhere. When Charlie goes to the oracle, Allessandra for help, she is told that she will need sylphs. On to Charbydon she must go and Hank and Rex get to go along with her.

Rex (the ex-jinn now revenant), Brimstone (the hellhound) and Hank (the Adonai) make themselves better known to us. We also get to see Charbydon at its best and worst. No wonder the people there think of Earth as a vacation spot.

We get tons of action and some of the fighting is explicit. If you don’t like that, consider yourself warned.

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My reviews on books 1 (The Better Part of Darkness), 2 (The Darkest Edge of Dawn), 3 (The Hour of Dust and Ashes), and 4 (Shadows Before the Sun)

Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Thriller

Monk, Devon: Magic Without Mercy (Allie Beckstrom) (2012)

2013-04-17 humanitysdarkerside 1 Comment

I think this is my favorite Allie Beckstrom cover thus far. There is something about the atmosphere in it.

Devon Monk keeps on writing well. As a reader, following Allie’s journey from lonerhood to a leadership position among her friends has been a fun ride. Monk has managed to keep her characters alive without slowing down the pace of the novels.

Things are really moving along now. The Authority has officially decided to go for Allie. All of her friends and near-friends have to make a choice as to who to follow. Because they are rebels, we know what the choice will be. But their fight to overcome the opposition while at the same time figuring out how to battle the magic plague is going to challenge all of their abilities.

Allie is affected by the magic plague. Whenever she pulls it in she gets sick and ghosts turn up. Ghost magnet is what she is. She and her father have come to an arrangement – that sounds really weird considering their co-habitation. Anyways. Zayvion still loves her and Shame is her best friend. Shame and Terric still haven’t come to terms with what they are, or rather Shame hasn’t quite. He would go down fighting.

Jingo-Jingo is his same old creepy self. Mwah, hah, hah. A regular old Dracula is what he is. Eli is/was a bad guy – or maybe we could say a guy with very special interests. But he is important to the game, so Shame and Zayvion are stuck with him.

I look forward to reading the conclusion. As long as Devon Monk keeps the quality of her work at the level that it has been, then I have something to look forward to.

My reviews for books 1 (Magic to the Bone), 2 (Magic in the Blood), 3 (Magic in the Shadows), 4 (Magic on the Storm), 5 (Magic at the Gate), 6 (Magic on the Hunt) and 7 (Magic on the Line)

Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Thriller

Monk, Devon: Magic on the Line (Allie Beckstrom) (2011)

2013-04-17 humanitysdarkerside 2 Comments

I wonder if they used the same method for Devon Monk’s covers as they have for Jean Johnson. Jean Johnson was kind enough to explain that her publishers had gotten the photographer and model together for a session and taken tons of pictures. Pictures from this session are what the publisher uses to design the covers. I know Devon Monk has some say in the design of her covers. You will usually find some kind of reference to Portland on the cover.

It really is too bad, but we are getting closer to an ending. Two more books to go and there we will be. I’ve grown to care about our Allie. She knows that what she does has consequences, yet she goes ahead anyway. I guess paying the price for magic for so long has made her willing to pay the price for other choices as well.

There are two other characters that I have enjoyed thoroughly. These are Shame and strangely enough Stone. Stone the gargoyle.

The new leader of the Authority, Bartholemew Wray, is not a fan of Allie and her gang of followers. If he could get away with closing the lot of them, he would. Allie certainly does not trust Bartholemew. This makes for a conflict-filled situation for Allie, and some of her choices will affect those she cares most for.

Her Hounds are loyal to Allie to an extent that she had not expected of such loners. They are doing their best to protect her because they see a good thing they simply cannot lose in Allie.

I think this is part of what I’ve really enjoyed about the Beckstrom series. These characters are a gang of rebels (with the exception of Zayvion). In the end, he, too, will have to make some incredibly difficult choices. These rebels seem to be more in touch with reality than the Authority and as such they reflect the way I see the world in general. But the Authority had better watch out, because choosing a fight with this gang might not go as they wish.

My reviews for books 1 (Magic to the Bone), 2 (Magic in the Blood), 3 (Magic in the Shadows), 4 (Magic on the Storm), 5 (Magic at the Gate) and 6 (Magic on the Hunt).