Kim Harrison: Black Magic Sanction

• Mass Market Paperback: 576 pages
• Publisher: Harper Voyager; Reprint edition (December 28, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061138045
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Rachel Morgan has fought and hunted vampires, werewolves, banshees, demons, and other supernatural dangers as both witch and bounty hunter - and lived to tell the tale. But she's never faced off against her own kind...until now. 
Denounced and shunned for dealing with demons and black magic, her best hope is life imprisonment - her worst, a forced lobotomy and genetic slavery. Only her enemies are strong enough to help her win her freedom. But trust comes hard when it hinges on the unscrupulous tycoon Trent Kalamack, the demon Algaliarept, and a lowlife ex-boyfriend-turned-thief.

I love Kim Harrison. I always have, ever since I first read one of her books, which was actually the third in the Hollows series, which was understandably confusing. I got through it, obviously, and enjoyed it. Part of what I love about Harrison's Hollows is that the world is so amazingly fleshed out. She's got pretty much every supernatural species one can think of, working in a fully functioning Cincinnati with its own history and complex political structure. She also has fully developed characters that come and go, but that always bring something to the table. She is able to handle multiple plotlines smoothly and they make sense. Sometimes it can get hard to keep track of what has happened and what's going to  happen next, especially when sometimes there are large gaps between readings, as is the case with me. However, Harrison does a great job of reminding us what has happened to get us to the starting point of the new novel without making it sound like a painful recap.
 In this edition, we have Rachel - surprise - running for her life. She has managed to piss off everyone at least once, but she's good enough at what she does that she eventually convinces them what a bad idea it really is to mess with her. She is, unfortunately, a victim of circumstance this time. Her previous battles have forced her into a corner, and instead of understanding that most of what she does is out of necessity and not choice, her enemies chose to punish her for what others have caused. Yes, Rachel made the choice, but when your other choice is death, becoming the student of a demon isn't all that bad of an option. Anyway, the point of all that is that she is being hunted for something that is out of her control. While she may be forced to practice black magic upon occasion and consort with demons, she still holds onto her morals, sometimes to the inconvenience or detriment of herself. I like that about her - even if it makes things harder, she still will do what's right. It's suitably frustrating when she sticks her neck out for someone (several times in this particular novel) and she catches crap from the person she's saving because they can only see the method. That's a personal rant, though.
 Harrison develops Rachel even further, and she finally accepts what she is. Furthermore, her relationships with Trent and Algaliarept are developing and I'm interested to see where it's all going. Honestly, I don't hold out much hope for her and Pierce, although he's funny and useful at times. We're heading to the end as the series is to end at thirteen books and this is number eight. Rachel's going to have to get her life together in five books, and it's going to be one hell of a ride. She got one demon mark off, she's only got one left and a boatload of smut on her aura. We'll see....
 Overall: A
 There wasn't much breathing room in this novel and it largely focused on Rachel's issues, naturally. At times it got a little confusing, especially the physics of ley lines. Still brilliant obviously.

Jillian Hunter: The Wicked Duke Takes a Wife

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; Original edition (October 27, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345503953
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Lord Griffin Boscastle has no intention of ending his glorious career as a rakehell now that he has inherited a dukedom. Still, there are responsibilities he must discharge before he resumes his pleasures, including finding a bride and depositing his incorrigible niece at a relative's academy outside London. It is at this so-very-proper finishing school that flame-haired instructress Harriet Gardner awakens in Griffin emotions so dangerously intoxicating that he must avoid her at all cost. Yet when Harriet finds work in the townhouse where Griffin resides, her presence tempts him at every turn.
Harriet has survived London's streets far too long to let an arrogant duke woo a bride he doesn't want when she desires him for herself, and she has seen too much of life not to recognize a man ripe for redemption. But just as Harriet finds the perfect cure for His Lordship's devilish ways, a vindictive enemy intervenes, and the duke whom Harriet has plotted to save suddenly becomes her devoted protector.

 I will not lie to you, fair reader. I accidentally skipped this one. Granted, this series is not truly a series, and so skipping around is allowed. So I didn't miss anything. Moving on.
 I have become increasingly disappointed with Hunter. Her first three books in the Boscastle series were divine. They were funny, and well developed, and just great. However, it feels like after her initial success, she gave up and started churning out your average romance novels. Nothing special about them. I've been continuing to read them because I'm a dolt and I keep hoping she'll return to her former skill. I think I should probably accept that she's gone average at this point.
 This book, however, gave me a little more hope. Not necessarily that they're going to suddenly improve, but that they've maybe transformed a little. Maybe I've become complacent. In this installment, we have cousin Griffin Boscastle finding true love in the most unlikely place - a teacher at the family school for instructing young ladies. A teacher that comes from the slums, no less. Oh romance novel, you do propound the most preposterous plots. Also, I would like to state that Griffin is not really a rakehell as the description would have you believe. There are simply too many things going on in this novel for its own good - we have issues with Harriet's family, Griffin's rumored murder of his brother for the dukedom, his proposed marriage to a completely unsuitable socialite, Harriet's position in his household, the issue of Edlyn's questionable birth and further behavior...too much. The book barely has time to cover these. And there are only three sex scenes, which was perfectly fine with me. For a romance novel though, it's generally a sign of shoddy writing if you can only squeeze in one actual penetration during the entirety of the novel. That sounds incredibly vulgar, but there it is.
 I will give Hunter props for the undeniable humor of her novels. She also cleverly used Mary Shelley's Frankenstein quotes in a sort of interesting plot device. This is something she has never done before, so I was suitably impressed at her literacy. While the plot was once more cut short and stymied, it was still entertaining. I always feel like she should put more effort into character and plot development, but that's an old concern. Since I've already addressed it, I'll let be.
 I liked the characters, as they were given, although I found a disturbing lack of consistency in Primrose. She was touted as a strong woman with a wealth of willpower, but she seemed to break down into feebleness at the first opportunity. I had difficulty believing that, but other than that there was really no issue. Harriet is one of my favorite females Hunter has written, I believe. An interesting mix of proper lady and streetrat. (Did I just hear someone shout Aladdin?)
 Overall: B
 I can't in good conscience give this more, but as it's one of her better recent efforts, I'm going to recognize that.

Tamora Pierce: The Will of the Empress

• Mass Market Paperback: 560 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Paperbacks; Reissue edition (October 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 054507455X
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Daja, Briar, Tris, and Sandry have grown up and grown apart since their days together at Winding Circle, and Sandry's especially disappointed with the change. When Sandry's uncle requests that her three old friends accompany her on a visit to Sandry's vast lands within the Empire of Namorn, the young mages discover that they've landed in a trap. Namorn's iron-willed Empress has plans for Sandry and her companions, and she has wily and powerful mages to help her. But so, of course, does Sandry--if only she can get them to work together . . . .


Ah, hello Emelan. It's nice to see you again. But wait - everything has mysteriously changed. Sandry, Tris, Daja, and Briar are finally reunited, but a schism has formed. As Sandry will need their help to maintain her freedom on her visit to her cousin, the Empress of Namorn, they need to repair the damage, and fast.
 My biggest, and perhaps only, problem with this book was the inexplicable damage to the relationships among the four. So they traveled, and they saw and did things that were horrible and scary. However, after all the time spent developing their bonds, one would think that they would bind closer together after experiencing horrific encounters. Instead, they all become somewhat encased in their own heads and forget that they are friends/siblings first and foremost. What? I simply found it hard to believe that these four people, who had been through hell and back together (they all helped Tris kill a pirate fleet, for God's sake), would suddenly completely forget the personalities of the others so completely. I have four best friends who have been my friends for fourteen years. We've grown up together, and if something bad could happen to a person, it's happened to one of us. We don't see each other constantly like we used to, as we've all moved in different directions and developed, but we are still each other's best friends and we never forget each other. Supposedly these four are even closer than that. So I had difficulty with the sudden veering of their relationship. I understand that it was a necessary plot device and that these are essentially young adult novels meant to teach some sort of lesson about human emotion and development. Thus, I'll excuse it, though it did seriously bother me for the first half of the book.
 Aside from that, Pierce is her usual brilliant and lovely self. I never feel like I'm reading a YA novel when I read her books (except for Melting Stones). She just has a way of making you believe her characters and love them with all their flaws. Plus, she's just got a mind like a labyrinth. I've always been impressed with her ability to create a completely encapsulated world that is fully fleshed out. And each one is a little different. I love it. SPOILER ALERT One of the coolest things she did this time around, in my opinion, was Daja's romantic development. I won't say more than that, but it was surprising as I can't think of another similar circumstance in her other books. Not off the top of my head, anyway. The Circle books are different from her others in that their generally weren't romance plot lines as the characters were too young. They're eighteen now, though, so that changes to an extent. Daja definitely got the brunt of it, and I love the way Pierce handled it.
 Plus, she delivers a marvelously satisfying conclusion. The reader feels like the struggles have been overcome, lessons have been learned, and the characters will continue to exist and develop without our eye constantly on them. To me, that is a great talent.
 Overall: A
 Pierce is brilliant, and I will pretty much always give her high marks. The reason this isn't an A+ is the aforementioned strange character development.