Shapeshifters

Review: A Perfect Blood by Kim Harrison

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PLEASE BE AWARE THAT THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR THE HOLLOWS SERIES AS A PERFECT BLOOD IS THE TENTH BOOK IN THE SERIES.

A Perfect Blood by Kim Harrison (UK cover)

Title: A Perfect Blood (The Hollows 10)
Author: Kim Harrison
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Publisher: HarperVoyager (31st January 2013)
Blurb:

WELCOME TO THE HOLLOWS . . .

Ritually murdered corpses are appearing across Cincinnati, terrifying amalgams of human and other. Pulled into help investigate by the I.S. and the FIB, former witch-turned-day-walking-demon Rachel Morgan soon realizes a horrifying truth: a human hate group is trying to create its own demons to destroy all Inderlanders, and to do so, it needs her blood.

She’s faced vampires, witches, werewolves, demons, and more, but humanity might be her toughest challenge yet.

Rating: ***** (5 stars)
Review:

A Perfect Blood is the tenth book in Kim Harrison’s The Hollows series, and it continues the story of Rachel Morgan, a witch who recently discovered that she’s actually a demon. The Hollows is one of my favourite urban fantasy series, and I have been waiting a while to get my hands on a copy of this book.

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Review: Tales of the Otherworld by Kelley Armstrong

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Women of the Otherworld Anthology

Tales of the Otherworld by Kelley Armstrong, UK edition cover.

Title: Tales of the Otherworld (The Otherworld)
Author:  Kelley Armstrong
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Orbit (13th April 2010)
Blurb:

Kelley Armstrong’s gripping and imaginative short stories are brought together in a fantastic new collection.

A young vampire learns the heavy price of his new existence; black witch Eve Levine meets Kristof Nast, her soulmate and her nemesis; Lucas Cortez, lawyer, sorcerer and unwilling heir to his father’s Cabal, sets out on a case that will change his destiny; Paige Winterbourne discovers just how fraught a white (witch) wedding can be; and Elena Michaels begins her unwitting journey to a new life – as the only female werewolf in the world . . .

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

With Tales of the Otherworld Kelley Armstrong introduces her second anthology of short stories based in her fantastic The Otherworld series. This book holds a collection of eight stories, some of which were at one point available on Armstrong’s website for free. However, with the publication of this book Armstrong has her proceeds go to World Literacy of Canada.

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Review: Pale Demon by Kim Harrison

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The Hollows 9

Pale Demon by Kim Harrison, UK edition cover.

Title: Pale Demon (The Hollows 9)
Author: Kim Harrison
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Publisher: HarperVoyager (4th August 2011)
Blurb:

Condemned and shunned for black magic, Rachel Morgan has three days to get to the annual witches’ conference and clear her name, or be trapped in the demonic ever-after. . . forever after.

But a witch, an elf, a living vampire, and a pixy in one car going across the country? Talk about a recipe for certain disaster, even without being the targets for assassination.

For after centuries of torment, a fearsome demon walks in the sunlight – freed at last to slay the innocent and devour their souls. But his ultimate goal is Rachel Morgan, and in the fight for survival that follows, even embracing her own demonic nature may not be enough to save her.

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

Pale Demon is the ninth book in Kim Harrison’s The Hollows series, or the Rachel Morgan series as it is sometimes referred to. It has been an interesting ride getting to this point in the series, but I have really enjoyed the journey. For various reasons real life meant it took a while for me to reach this book in my to-read pile, but I think it was worth the wait.

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Review: Hit List by Laurell K. Hamilton

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Anita Blake book 20

Hit List by Laurell K. Hamilton, UK edition cover.

Title: Hit List (An Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, Novel)
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publication Date: 7th June 2011

Blurb:

We followed the fresh blood even though every molecule in my body was screaming at me to run. Run before dark. Run before the vampires come. Run.

My name is Anita Blake. The vampires call me ‘The Executioner’. So when a series of gruesome and spectacular murders occur in the Pacific Northwest, the local police call in me and fellow US Marshal Edward to track down a serial killer they are convinced must be a ‘monster’.

But I know that some monsters are very real. The Harlequin have been the bogeymen of the vampire world for more than a thousand years; they are a secret so dark that even to speak their name can earn you a death sentence. Now they are here in America, hunting weretigers and human police. And me.

The Harlequin serve the Mother of All Darkness, the first vampire. She was supposed to be dead, but only her body was destroyed. Now Mommie Dearest is back, determined to kill Edward and to possess me. And she doesn’t care how many have to die along the way.

Rating: **** (3 1/2 stars)
Review:

This is Anita’s twentieth book, which is kind of scary as the series seems to have been part of my life for a long time. In the last book, Bullet, lines were drawn in the sand and the fall-out occurs in this book. This book is more about Anita’s police work than it is about her love life – something which I really enjoyed. It’s also set outside St. Louis, so we get introduced to some new characters. But the book is not without its problems, which is why it didn’t quite make it to four stars.

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