Kitty's Greatest Hits (Kitty Norville) by Carrie Vaughn

 

I got Kitty's Greatest Hits for the Cormac story. I am fascinated by assassins -- Gin Blanco (Elemental Assassin), Edward (Anita Blake), Nadia Stafford, and Cormac. Something about the mindset just sets my mind to spinning.

As it turns out, I enjoyed all of the stories in this compilation. The Cormac story was icing on the cake, so to speak.

Il Est Né
A werewolf turned and left alone, with no one to teach him, happens upon Kitty while she's in exile one Christmas. A nice short adventure.  9 of 10

A Princess of Spain
This one was probably out of character for the rest of the book, but it was a nice historical piece. 8 of 10


Conquistador de la Noche
Rick's origins, how he was turned, and his first few weeks. 10 of 10

The Book of Daniel
How Daniel survived the Lion's Den. Nice. 10 of 10

The Temptation of Robin Green
I wish we had been given more clues about what year this may have happened. I'm guessing somewhere between the late sixties and present day. Rick makes an appearance, but it would have been a decent story even without Rick.  9 of 10

Looking After Family
The first few months after Cormac's father died. We see Cormac and Ben, both around sixteen years old. We see the difference in how they are treated, sickly Ben and healthy Cormac. One must do algebra at the table while the other goes out and helps with the farm. A poignant ending.  10 of 10


God’s Creatures
I had read this one before -- Cormac on a job, paid by a rancher to take care of a werewolf who has been killing his livestock. 10 of 10

Wild Ride
Remember T.J.? The wolf who helped Kitty so much when she was first turned? Before she left the pack? This is how he was turned. I thought it would be sad to read it, and it was... but in a way it makes it easier that he's gone.  9 of 10

Winnowing the Herd
Kitty at a mandatory business party, with vegetarian fare. She's not in a good mood. I get the feeling this is a scene from a book that got cut, not so much a short story.  7 of 10

Kitty and the Mosh Pit of the Damned
A nice short story, with enough going on it could have been expanded to a full length novel, except that Kitty solves the problem in one scene. Good plot, a sort of new creature for a bad guy. For this universe, anyway.  10 of 10

Kitty’s Zombie New  Year
Kitty at a New Year's party hosted by Matt. We see Matt in almost every book, I wouldn't mind learning more about him. He's stuck with her, even though he's had the bejeebers scared out of him a few times doing it.  This is another story that could have been stretched out to a full length novel, but Kitty solves it in one scene.   10 of 10

Life is the Teacher
We get to see how Emma, the human who belonged to Allete, is doing now as a vampire.  8 of 10

You’re On the Air
A short story showing immediately before and after someone calls into Kitty's show.

Long Time Waiting
The story of Cormac in Prison. Easily a 10 of 10, though there are perhaps a few questions still unanswered.

--
If you've read my reviews for long then you know that I generally do not like anthologies. But there is an exception to every rule, and this is it. I'm giving Kitty's Greatest Hits a 10 of 10.

• Book Rating: Kitty's Greatest Hits: 10 of 10
• Series Rating: 10 of 10

The books in this series are:

1. Kitty and the Midnight Hour (2005)
2. Kitty Goes to Washington (2006)
3. Kitty Takes a Holiday (2007)
4. Kitty and the Silver Bullet (2008)
5. Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand (January 2009)
6. Kitty Raises Hell (February 2009)
7. Kitty's House of Horrors (2010)
8. Kitty Goes to War (2010)
9. Kitty's Big Trouble (2011)
-. Kitty's Greatest Hits (Aug 2011)
10. Kitty Steals the Show (2012)