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Wow! How did I miss this series? This book, the third in the series, is a great story of parallel worlds, featuring a smart, witty heroine, and a number of interesting secondary characters. I should caution that there’s absolutely no romance, so if you like your urban fantasy to have some romance, this won’t work for you. But if you enjoy stories of parallel worlds, featuring interesting characters and a sprinkling of humor, then consider this book.
Jace Valchek was a successful FBI profiler known as the bloodhound because she always got the criminals she was after. All that ended when a Shaman brought her to a parallel world and to return to her own world, Jace has to first locate a serial killer. In her new world, Jace works for the National Security Agency, dealing with various problems, while at the same time still looking for the serial killer.
Jace’s new world is only superficially like her own; humans comprise one percent of the population, while golems (artificial beings), lycanthropes, and vampires make up the rest. Jace’s NSA boss is a vampire, while her partner and enforcer Charlie, is a golem. In this world, golems serve as weapons. They can hurl anything at such a rate of speed that it can destroy an opponent or a plane.
As the book begins, the NSA has word that a meet will occur in Las Vegas involving the serial killer, the Shaman, the head of a radical golem group, and a radical human rights group. Jace is asked to head up the task force.
Nothing goes smoothly in Las Vegas. Jace meets up with a number of interesting characters, including some from previous books. Things are very murky, and it’s often difficult for Jace to determine who her allies and her enemies are. Instead of simply capturing the serial killer, Jace must deal with a multitude of threats, not just to herself, but to the parallel world.
The author has created a very clever world, in which people’s history can be rewritten, causing them to become drastically different people than they were before.
I really liked Jace. She’s smart, strong, has a sarcastic sense of humor, but isn’t infallible. At times she has to sit back while others on her team solve problems. I really enjoyed Jace’s interactions with Azura, and hope that she will appear in future entries in the series.
I had a few minor quibbles with the book. While I’m not a big fan of battles, major parts of one key battle occur completely off-page. I also found some of the myth sections a bit long.
That being said, this was a quick, fascinating read. I’m not sure if I’ll go back and read the first two, because the author did an excellent job of catching us up with the series, without being repetitive. But I will definitely pick up the next in the series as soon as it’s out.
If you like urban fantasy, and don’t require any romance in the mix, this is a really promising series. While this worked for me as a standalone read, I wish that I had started the series with the first book, and would encourage anyone who’s interested to try to begin with the first.
Grade: B+
Book Type: Urban Fantasy
Sensuality: N/A
Review Date: 03/01/11
Publication Date: 2011/01
My first memory is sitting with my mother on a blanket in our backyard surrounded by books and she is reading one of them to me. My love of reading was encouraged by my parents and it continues to today. I’ve gone through a lot of different genres over the years, but I currently primarily read mysteries (historical mysteries are my favorites) and romances (focusing on contemporaries, categories, and steampunk). When I’m not reading or working, I love to travel, knit, and work on various community projects.
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Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.