Tag Archives: urban fantasy

Book Review: Blood and Whispers, by A.C. Haskins

I picked up a copy of A.C. Haskins‘ Blood and Whispers from my local library’s discard shelf.

Thomas Quinn is a sorcerer haunted by the memories of the things he’s done over centuries of service to the Arcanum. From battling djinn to killing demigods and dragons, the scars and nightmares have left him a broken man. He has long retired from that life, running an occult shop in Philadelphia for the past several decades, wanting nothing more than to be left alone with his books and his whiskey and his shame.

But when two detectives come to his door asking about a brutal ritual murder in his city, Quinn must reluctantly take up the mantle of a Sorcerer of the Arcanum once more, and face down those who would threaten the fragile peace between the human and magical worlds. His investigation takes him from the streets of Philadelphia to the court of a Faerie King as he races to stop the apocalypse.

Thomas Quinn was prepared to fight rogue sorcerers and Fae monsters. But the greatest threat he faces may be his own inner demons. . . .

As I mentioned, I picked up this book from my library’s discard shelf. I did it with trepidation, I admit, because I very rarely read male authors anymore. I’ve found far too many to be untrustworthy in writing women, and the older I get, the more aware and less patient I am about it.

I’m pleased to say I enjoyed this book and would read another book by Haskins. Nothing raised my hackles. Quinn undergoes significant personal growth as he struggles to save the world, once again. There is a small but interesting cast of characters, and the world appears to be an intriguing one. I found it a bit predictable (bordering on bland), but overall, I finished it happy.

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Audio Book Review: Pretty When She Dies, by Rhiannon Frater

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I have had a copy of Rhiannon Frater’s Pretty When She Dies for a while. So, the memory of where I got it is vague. I believe I was probably given an Audible code for a free copy.

Amaliya wakes under the forest floor, disoriented, famished and confused. She digs out of the shallow grave and realizes she is hungry…in a new, horrific, unimaginable way… Sating her great hunger, she discovers that she is now a vampire, the bloodthirsty creature of legend. She has no choice but to flee from her old life and travels across Texas. Her new hunger spurs her to leave a wake of death and blood behind her as she struggles with her new nature. All the while, her creator is watching. He is ancient, he is powerful, and what’s worse is that he’s a necromancer. He has the power to force the dead to do his bidding.

Amaliya realizes she is but a pawn in a twisted game, and her only hope for survival is to seek out one of her own kind. But if Amaliya finds another vampire, will it mean her salvation… or her death?

The narrator, Kristin Allison, did a good job, and I enjoyed this book beyond the 25% mark. I spent the first quarter of the book thinking I was going to end up DNFing it because I wasn’t having a good time. The beginning of this book just feels like female victim porn. Every person the FMC meets victimizes her somehow (most, even her family, with a sexual edge). I disliked it intensely, and it’s suuuuper cliched. I just don’t enjoy reading rapey stories. I’m not talking about trigger warnings or anything like that; I just mean I do not enjoy it and generally try to avoid it in stories I read for entertainment.

However, once the FMC meets the MMC, the story changes (pacing, tone, and the expected plot arc all shift), and the rapey victimization subsides; I then enjoyed the rest of the book. Now, because I know it’ll be a ‘no’ for many readers, I’ll state up front that cheating is involved. The FMC steps into someone else’s established relationship as ‘the other woman.’ That’s a dynamic you don’t often see because many people wouldn’t forgive an FMC for that. So, fair warning. I noted it with a bit of a raised eyebrow, but let it go easily enough.

All in all, despite the rough beginning, I finished this happy. I loved the side characters (almost more than the main characters), and the FMC showed a surprising backbone. Admittedly, the MMC is somewhat of a cardboard cutout, the relationship is quite shallow, and the FMC’s sudden mastery of her power feels a bit deus ex machina. Plus, the story and language are a little dated. (I think it was first published in 2008.) Describing women of color as “exotic” is generally understood as a microaggression now, for example. But, all in all, I’ll likely read the second book at some point.