Cesar is a witch, a witch who investigates demons, other
witches and any of the other magical things out there doing things they really
shouldn’t. He’s doing well and seems to be on the fast track
Until he wakes up one morning to find a dead woman in his
apartment – and absolutely no idea how she got there. The mundane, non-magical
police naturally think he’s the one who did it. He waits for the magical people
he works for to find the truth – only to find out that they, too, suspect him
Escaping to prove
his innocence seems to be the only choice – but as he follows the clues and
hones in on the truth it becomes horrendously possible that maybe they’re all
right. Maybe he’s guilty.
This book is a classic example of a good book 1. The
introduction to a new series set in a world that the reader won’t be very
familiar with (in this case, I am familiar because it’s the same world that is
carried through all of S.M Reine’s books but this is from an entirely different angle from the
previous books I’ve read. I actually love the way the different series come
together, you don’t have to have read each series, but in reading them all you
expand the world and context of all of them, adding a lot of texture), bringing
in the main characters that I have a feeling are going to be with us for the
whole series.
Where this book is a good book 1 rather than a merely
solid one is that it didn’t let the introduction stand as a replacement for an
actual interesting story. Not only that, but we didn’t even get a generic,
decent-but-nothing-that-original story in book 1 that we often get (so readers
can focus their brain power on the world and characters). This story is
involved – it’s a story of investigation but, far more, it’s a story of
betrayal and paranoia. Cesar needs to find out who framed him so he can clear
his name and he needs to keep one step ahead of the powers that be – both
magical and mundane – to remain free in order to do so (especially since the
magical forces seem to have written him off and the mundane forces are clearly
incapable of proving anything given the circumstances). But both of these
vital, involved elements rest on a very shaky foundation – who can Cesar trust?
There is, afterall, an apparent agent framing him – who could this be?
And this is where the book excels – because I honestly
suspected EVERYONE. Even when Cesar trusted them I didn’t. Everyone was
presented as a potential murderer and traitor – and that certainly includes
Cesar himself. There are twists upon twists, suspect upon suspect and it’s
truly shocking how many people seem to be the ones behind it – then maybe not –
then back in the frame again. And yes, that includes Cesar. His memory loss,
the witness statements and the very reality of what people claim he has done
mean that, yes, there’s a very good chance Cesar may have been the killer
himself. His attempts to prove himself innocent may, in fact, be just exposing
his actual guilt.
The story is very action heavy, the investigation and
cerebral elements rapidly overshot by having to flee another threat, or facing
more confusion and danger. It’s very much an action book and it’s well written
enough and visual enough to make that work and keep it exciting and flowing,
making the story one to pull you in and hold you right to the end.
So, some bad points. Firstly, I like a lot of the
characters in this book. I’m intrigued by the ambitious, aggressive and
determined Suzy and love that she will be a regular character. I like Domingo,
Cesar’s brother with his chequered past – and even dubious present but still
loyal, affectionate and reliable to Cesar (and how often do you see
brother-brother relationships in Urban Fantasy that aren’t fraught with
betrayal, competition over the same love interest etc?). Isobel is a character
with a lot of hidden depths shrouded in mystery that I really want to know more
about – she’s not a deep character because of the lies she’s surrounded herself
with makes her hard to pin down, but I want to.
And then there’s Cesar himself who… I’m not that sold on.
Don’t get me wrong, there’s some elements I approve of – I like to see a male
protagonist who isn’t ruthless or all about the big explosions and super powers
– but it’d also be nice to see a male protagonist who doesn’t drool over every
female character to come along. We didn’t need the endless descriptions of how
sexy Suzy or Isobel or any other passing woman was, we didn’t need to have
their bodies constantly described and when in life or death struggles, we
really don’t need the literary equivalent of the slow camera pan. It is
unnecessary, unprofessional, hardly makes Cesar endearing and derails an action
packed battle for survival.
We have a lot of racial diversity in this book. Cesar and
Domingo are both Latino and have an interesting and complex history with part
of their culture coming through, but also lamenting that their Puerto Rican
grandmother didn’t make a point of maintaining their culture, leaving them, as
third generation migrants, with gaps. Isobel is Native American and, again,
most of her character is shrouded in mystery – but she does play up the
mystical POC woo-woo element: but it’s fake. She plays to it precisely because
fools will fall for it and pay extra if she plays dress up in a fake ritual
than if she uses her actual talent. Suzy is Asian and she is something of a
Dragon Lady, but that only partially informs her character. Ultimately, she’s a
professional, a perfectionist and a deeply practical woman – she’s also front
and centre for main secondary character of the series.
There are no GBLT characters in this book – but we do
have evil, predatory incubi (well, I think the book calls all incubi male succubae
which just irks me) who make everyone (male and female) think terrifying sexy
thoughts. Since we’re seeing this from Cesar’s point of view, we get a lot of
disturbingly predatory male/male lust backed with a chorus of “I’m straight so straight,
no homo no homo” which was less than ideal; it would have been better with a
non-predatory GBLT character to balance, or if Cesar didn’t feel the need to so
determinedly assert his straightness in a life and death situation.
This book has done the ideal job – I want to read this
series. I want to see what happens next. I want to see this new investigation agency
develop with Suzy and Cesar. I want to see Cesar develop a better voice beyond
lust and Dresden
Goggles. I want to see this world from this different angle both in terms of storytelling and world building. In
short, it’s hooked me – I’m in.
