Shiarra is a private detective – for now anyway, though
her business is in severe financial difficulty and it’s only with the
intervention of her very wealthy business partner that they’re even keeping
afloat at all.
It’s these money troubles that drives her to accept a case from the Magi.
Despite never working for the Others and having no wish to spend any time among
the relatively newly revealed supernatural creatures, the offer is simply too
good to refuse. Even if it does mean spying on a vampire to learn about a
highly in demand artefact that has gone missing.
Unfortunately, she quickly finds herself revealed – and threatened
– by the vampire that tries to put her very life in his hands. And she comes to
the attention of the White Hats, a fanatical group determined to eliminate the Others.
Already that’s more than complicated enough, but then people start dying to
attacks that make no sense and events are being manipulated by a shadowy hand
above and beyond the immediate players.
This is the kind of Urban Fantasy world that is
guaranteed to pull me. Diverse creatures, integration into the human world,
magic and vampires and werewolves, politics between the different groups,
politics between them and the humans – it’s just the kind of world I love. No,
it’s not completely knew, we know all of this before and none of the creatures
here really strike new ground – but it’s an old pattern done well with enough
original twists to keep me interested, keep drawing me in and keep enjoying it
without think that it’s been done before. It’s a variation of an old theme –
but it’s a good theme, it’s a fun theme and while the picture is similar, the
details and story are different.
And it’s very well written. We have a few unnecessary
monologues, but the pacing is excellent. We have a vast amount of information
about the world but it’s all presented in a really natural way that completely
flows into the story. The plot also has several interested parties, each with
their own agendas and similar plots – the mages, the vampires, the White Hats –
even Shiarra’s family but they are all given the attention they need and
deserve without dragging the plot into a dozen different directions or getting
us hopelessly lost. Couple with the necessary world building, the semi-love
triangle, a decent cast of characters (even if they didn’t all play a huge
role, they were all characters and there was some level of making them more
than just floating names) keeping it all balanced was an act of true skill.
No matter what else, this book was an easy read because
the writing just kept it all moving, kept me absorbed and never derailed me or
left me floundering or bogged down – despite many chances when it could have.
Shiarra breaks the mould on a lot of Urban Fantasy
protagonists. She’s not kick arse, she’s not lethal, she’s not skilled in
weapons. She doesn’t want to get involved with the supernatural, she’s not hard
as nails, she’s not a walking ball of attitude and chutzpah. The monsters
frighten her, she doesn’t want anything to do with them, she doesn’t have the
capability to deal with them. She isn’t a hunter, she isn’t a PI who works
around the monsters - she’s been dragged into this against her will.
Which in some ways is so very refreshing because it is different and original.
And it’s nice to see her grow in knowledge and experience and work her way out
of it. In theory… yet… it’s hard not to be frustrated by the character – if she’s
this afraid of the monsters I’m surprised, despite their money worries (though
her very rich friend will support her), she took the case. And if she can’t
make her business work without monster money then is she in the right business?
And if she can be made to break a confidentiality clause and spill all her
secrets because a vampire flashed his fangs at her then why would anyone trust
her in such a sensitive job? Yes she’s afraid – but there’s fear and there’s
cowardice. She also doesn’t seem to be all that good with at her job – she doesn’t
seem to do or achieve anything through her PI profession, her plans don’t point
to any particular knowledge or expertise. Her business partner has to set her
up with her plan to approach Royce (who she didn’t even recognise), Arnold has
to take her to get equipment and weapons – magical and otherwise (which she
doesn’t question, despite the obviously illegal source). And the magical belt –
which is certainly an awesome concept – gives her her impressive fighting
skills which leaves me wondering what she brings to the story. There was
apparently some event in the past that brought her to the attention of the
Others – but we’re not really told what it is. So I keep asking why the Mages,
Royce, anyone at all is interested in her? What makes her so special?
