Down These Strange Streets by Patricia Briggs, Carrie Vaughn, Charlaine Harris, etc.

 

I'm not a fan of anthologies, and while Down These Strange Streets did have one really good story and two decent stories, I'm not sure it was worth the hardcover price. I wish I'd waited for the paperback. Granted, I only read four of the stories, but those were the four I was interested in. Here are the stories:

• Dead By Dahlia by Charlaine Harris
• The Bleeding Shadow by Joe R. Lansdale
• Hungry Heart by Simon R. Green
• Styx And Stones by Steven Saylor (a Gordianus story)
• Pain And Suffering by S.M. Stirling
• It's Still The Same Old Story by Carrie Vaughn
• The Lady Is A Screamer by Conn Iggulden
• Hellbender by Laurie R. King
• Shadow Thieves by Glen Cook (a Garrett story)
• No Mystery, No Miracle by Melinda Snodgrass (an Edge story)
• The Difference Between A Puzzle And A Mystery by M.L.N. Hanover
• The Curious Affair Of The Deodand by Lisa Tuttle
• Lord John And The Plague Of Zombies by Diana Gabaldon
• Beware The Snake by John Maddox Roberts (a SPQR story)
• In Red, With Pearls by Patricia Briggs
• The Adakian Eagle by Bradley Denton

And here is a brief review of the four stories I read:

Dead By Dahlia by Charlaine Harris
I didn't enjoy this one. Perhaps there is a different editor here than Mrs. Harris usually has, but the writing just didn't seem to be of the same quality I'm used to seeing from her. And the story was incredibly weak. I knew who had done it from almost the very beginning. It was more than the plot being weak... the story was weak. This entry gets a 5 of 10 from me.



It's Still The Same Old Story by Carrie Vaughn
A nice Rick story. Nothing earthshattering here, but it was an enjoyable read. The plot wasn't strong here, but the story was very strong. We already know Rick is a stand up guy, and this story just goes to further that knowledge. Yeah, he's a vampire and he doesn't hesitate to kill when he has to, but he's also got a heart, even if it doesn't beat anymore. He has managed to hold onto a good bit of his humanity, and that's got to be hard when you have to watch the humans in your life constantly grow old and die while you stay the same. I'll give this one an 8 of 10.



The Difference Between A Puzzle And A Mystery by M.L.N. Hanover
Set in the same universe as the Jayné Heller'/Black Sun's Daughter books, this one packs a bit more punch than the two previous books. It has a strong plot, and interesting characters, as well as a good bit of morality food-for-thought. This story gets a 9 of 10.



In Red, With Pearls by Patricia Briggs
The best story of the four, it gets a 10 of 10, easily. This story gives us a mystery from the viewpoint of Warren from the Mercy Thompson series. Warren and his boyfriend Kyle are an item in the series, and it's nice to see them outside of the main series. If you aren't familiar with the characters -- Warren is a werewolf, Kyle is a lawyer. As Warren points out, that makes them both a predator. The story also involves Elizaveta Arkadyevna, and is a fairly twisted plot by the time things come to an end. I guessed part of who-done-it, but then missed a huge part of it. A thoroughly enjoyable story.

I'm not going to give Down These Strange Streets a rating, as I didn't read the whole thing. I will say that if you are debating about whether to shell out the hardcover price, you may want to wait for the paperback. I don't believe we learned anything in these four stories that will be critical to the series that they are a part of.
 

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)

 

Kitty's Big Trouble (Kitty Norville, Book 9) by Carrie Vaughn

 

Kitty's Big Trouble gets a bit of a slow start, but once the action begins it's one of those can't-put-the-book-down-for-any-reason reads.

Here is the blurb:

Kitty Norville is back and in more trouble than ever. Her recent run-in with werewolves traumatized by the horrors of war has made her start wondering how long the US government might have been covertly using werewolves in combat. Have any famous names in our own history might have actually been supernatural? She's got suspicions about William Tecumseh Sherman. Then an interview with the right vampire puts her on the trail of Wyatt Earp, vampire hunter.

But her investigations lead her to a clue about enigmatic vampire Roman and the mysterious Long Game played by vampires through the millennia. That, plus a call for help from a powerful vampire ally in San Francisco, suddenly puts Kitty and her friends on the supernatural chessboard, pieces in dangerously active play. And Kitty Norville is never content to be a pawn. . . .

I adore The Monkey King, and I'm very familiar with most of his legends. I also speak a little Chinese, and I've spent a decent amount of time in China. So the legends Kitty is learning about in the story, I already know. And I loved the way Carrie Vaughn captured the essence of Monkey. His mischievousness, his love of the fight for the sake of the fight -- the dance of it, and yet his reticence at striking a fatal wound.

Oh, and Cormac is back. I love that he's got their back again. I can't wait to read his story, it's supposed to be in Kitty's Greatest Hits, due out in August.

Kitty and Ben are still a solid couple. I had concerns about how Cormac was going to adjust to them when he came back, but it's fine. I'm glad for that -- it's great to have the three of them together again, even if Cormac has changed a great deal.

I have no idea why anyone would sign off on this title, though. Kitty's Big Trouble makes no sense for the contents of the book. We've had Kitty goes to Washington... this could have been Kitty goes to San Fran Chinatown. Or Kitty goes Underground. Or Kitty makes even more friends and allies.  But Kitty's Big Trouble? Ack.

As for the writing elements:

• The plot was great and did a lot to further various plot arcs running through the series.
• Pacing had issues in the beginning but then went full blast once things get moving.
• Prose and dialogue were fine.
• Character development was great - especially what Ms. Vaughn did with the various legends she brought into the picture.
• World building was also well done.

I wavered between a 9 and 10, and I'm settling on a 10. If I weren't so familiar with the legends I think the story would have been an 8 or possibly a 9, but being familiar with them really brought things to life for me. The series has been a 10 of 10 in the past and will remain there.

• Book Rating: Kitty's Big Trouble: 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)

.

Dark and Stormy Nights - Anthology by Jim Butcher, Carrie Vaughn, Lilith Saintcrow, PN Elrod, etc.

 

I read four of the stories in the Dark and Stormy Knights anthology.

A Questionable Client by Ilona Andrews is the story of the first time Kate met Saiman. We've heard bits and pieces of this story as the series has progressed, now we get the whole story. I doubt it would be that good as a stand alone story if you aren't familiar with the Kate Daniels series, but as part of the series it was a nice short story.

Even Hand by Jim Butcher is told from the viewpoint of Marcone, and I very much enjoyed the story. If you aren't going to buy the book and just have time to read one story while standing in a bookstore somewhere, this is the one you should read. In my opinion, of course.

God’s Creatures by Carrie Vaughn is a Cormac story, one I'm assuming happened long before he went to jail. He's on a solo job, and we get an idea of how he works. Or worked, I guess. It's further insight into how he thinks... the morals of a paid assassin.

Dark Lady by P. N. Elrod is a Jack Fleming story. If you like historical gangster stuff then you may enjoy this series, and this story. Imagine a vampire mixing it up with the gangsters and you've got an idea of the basis for the series.

Other stories in the anthology include The Beacon by Shannon K. Butcher, Even a Rabbit Will Bite by Rachel Caine, Beknighted by Deidre Knight, Shifting Star by Vicki Pettersson, and Rookwood & Mrs. King by Lilith Saintcrow.

Here's the blurb:

They’re the ultimate defenders of humanity—modern day knights who do dark deeds for all the right reasons. In this all-star collection, nine of today’s hottest paranormal authors bring us thrilling, all-new stories of supernatural knights that are brimming with magic mystery and mayhem.

John Marcone sets aside his plans to kill Harry Dresden to go head-to-head with a cantrev lord in Jim Butcher’s Even Hand. Kate Daniels is called upon for bodyguard duty to protect Saimen, a shifter she trusts less than the enemy in Ilona Andrews’ A Questionable Client. Cormac must stop a killer werewolf before it attacks again on the next full moon in Carrie Vaughn’s God’s Creatures. And in Vicki Pettersson’s Shifting Star, Skamar gets more than she bargained for when she goes after a creature kidnapping young girls—and enlists the aid of her frustratingly sexy neighbor.

When everything’s on the line, will these knights complete their missions and live to fight again another day? Find out in Dark and Stormy Knights!

I'm not sure how to rate an anthology, so I'm not going to try. For the most part I'm not a fan of anthologies in general. Especially a story that is an intrinsic part of a series storyline. Kim Harrison is terrible about that - making it so that if you missed an anthology piece then you are completely lost when you read the next book in the series. Charlaine Harris has done it a few times as well. Of the four stories I read, I think there is information in Jim Butcher's story that will probably be important in a future book, but I don't believe there is anything in the other three stories that would be important knowledge for upcoming books.

.

Review: Kitty Goes to War (Kitty Norville, Book 8) by Carrie Vaughn

 

I am constantly amazed at how Carrie Vaughn manages to create plots that keep this series hopping. The Kitty Norville books are not "different book, same stuff". Each book heads off in a unique direction, each is a surprise. 

I complain in some series about the lack of character growth. There are no such complaints in Kitty Goes to War. And it isn't just Kitty growing - Ben has spent a couple of books growing into a confident werewolf, Cormac is out of prison now and we get to see how the experience has changed him and how he is going to deal with a life where he can't walk around armed all of the time. And Kitty's pack continues to evolve into a healthy pack. Oh, and Kitty keeps making friends, in some cases powerful friends, which I think someday is going to be a really big deal.

Kitty Goes to War has two major plots - one that is also part of the ongoing series arc, and one that is probably mostly restricted to this book.

Here's the blurb:

Kitty Norville, Alpha werewolf and host of The Midnight Hour, a radio call-in show, is contacted by a friend at the NIH's Center for the Study of Paranatural Biology. Three Army soldiers recently returned from the war in Afghanistan are being held at Ft. Carson in Colorado Springs. They're killer werewolves—and post traumatic stress has left them unable to control their shape-shifting and unable to interact with people. Kitty agrees to see them, hoping to help by bringing them into her pack.

Meanwhile, Kitty gets sued for libel by CEO Harold Franklin after featuring Speedy Mart--his nationwide chain of 24-hour convenience stores with a reputation for attracting supernatural unpleasantness--on her show.

Very bad weather is on the horizon.

The blurb gives a decent idea of the two plots - the out-of-control special forces highly trained bad-ass werewolves, and a disagreement with the CEO of Speedy Mart.

But there is also the human part... Kitty and Ben's relationship, Cormac fitting back into society, Kitty and Ben as Alpha couple over the pack. And.. more. Maybe human wasn't the right word... but calling it the 'touchy feelie' parts didn't work, either. Also, I don't want to give spoilers.

As for my usual rundown: both of the major plots are excellent, pacing is exceptionally well done, prose and dialogue are always beautifully done with Ms. Vaughn. I can't say enough good things about the character development in this series or in this book. Seriously, character building is incredible for every character who gets more than a few paragraph's mention. And finally, while the world-building may not be terribly unique (it's basic werewolf and vampire rules with some wizards and such thrown in), it's very well done, and draws on mythologies and legends enough to give it that hint of believability.

I can easily give Kitty Goes to War a 10 of 10, and I'm moving the series from a 9 of 10 to a 10 of 10.

Book Rating: Kitty Goes to War: 10 of 10
Series Rating: Kitty Norville: 10 of 10





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

Kitty's House of Horrors (Kitty Norville, Book 7) by Carrie Vaughn

Kitty's House of Horrors, the 7th book in the Kitty Norville series, is very aptly named. This book would make a nice horror movie. I hate horror movies, but I liked this book. Maybe it's because there was no suspenseful music?

I believe that Kitty's House of Horrors is setting us up for a longer plot arc that will likely span several books. The stage is being set for an eventual showdown, one that is probably many books away.

Kitty spends most of her time away from Ben in this book, which means there is almost no relationship stuff going on.

Before I get too much further, here's the blurb:

REALITY BITES Talk radio host and werewolf Kitty Norville has agreed to appear on TV's first all-supernatural reality show. She's expecting cheesy competitions and manufactured drama starring shapeshifters, vampires, and psychics. But what begins as a publicity stunt will turn into a fight for her life. The cast members, including Kitty, arrive at the remote mountain lodge where the show is set. As soon as filming starts, violence erupts and Kitty suspects that the show is a cover for a nefarious plot.

Nefarious plot, indeed. As is always the case with the Kitty books, this was an entertaining read. Pacing was mostly good, dialogue was good, funny moments were great, horrific moments were suitably horrific.

I'm giving Kitty's House of Horrors an 8 of 10, and the series will stay at a 9 of 10 for me. I have high hopes for the next book, as something happens at the end of House of Horrors that sets us up for some interesting stuff in future books.

Book Rating: Kitty's House of Horrors: 8 of 10
Series Rating: Kitty Norville Series: 9 of 10





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)

Book Covers: Divine Misdemeanors and Kitty's House of Horrors

I thought I'd go looking for the covers for the books I'm most Anxiously Awaiting.

First comes Divine Misdemeanors (Meredith Gentry, Book 8) by Laurell K. Hamilton. Yes, I know, it's being released today, but it will be later tonight before I can get started on it, so I'm still anxiously awaiting it. I had intended to re-read Swallowing Darkness, but it hasn't worked out for me to do so. I love this series though, so I'm sure I'll be fine without the re-read.

We saw the first chapter of Kitty's House of Horrors in the previous book, Kitty Raises Hell, and there was just enough there to make me want more. The blurb for this one is:

Talk radio host and werewolf Kitty Norville has agreed to appear on TV's first all-supernatural reality show. She's expecting cheesy competitions and manufactured drama starring shapeshifters, vampires, and psychics. But what begins as a publicity stunt will turn into a fight for her life. The cast members, including Kitty, arrive at the remote mountain lodge where the show is set. As soon as filming starts, violence erupts and Kitty suspects that the show is a cover for a nefarious plot. Then the cameras stop rolling, cast members start dying, and Kitty realizes she and her monster housemates are ironically the ultimate prize in a very different game. Stranded with no power, no phones, and no way to know who can be trusted, she must find a way to defeat the evil closing in . . . before it kills them all.

We have less than a month before Kitty's House of Horrors is released. I don't think I will re-read any books before this book's release, but I'll probably do a 20 minute skim of Kitty Raises Hell (Kitty Norville, Book 6)

I plan to do a cover or two (or three) a day for a while. Some covers actually tell us about what is in the book, some just remind us of what is in the series, and some have nothing to do with the book(s). I think these two covers fall into the second category. We are reminded of Merry's men who can feel pain but can't be killed in the first cover, and in the second cover we are reminded that Kitty is a strong and independent woman, who happens to turn into a werewolf occasionally.

Tomorrow I'll do the covers for two books that actually tell us something about what is in the book, and one book's cover that tells us nothing about anything.

Kitty’s House of Horrors Cover

The book cover for Kitty's House of Horrors by Carrie Vaughn has been released. I was really hoping for some more hints about the book, but I guess we have to wait a bit for that.

There was an excerpt in the last book, Kitty Raises Hell, but I want more.

Kitty Norville short story

Carrie Vaughn has posted a short story online from the Kitty Norville universe. Conquistador de la Noche is the story of Rick's origins.



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)

Review: Kitty Norville Series by Carrie Vaughn

There are currently six books in this series, with the seventh book due out in January of 2010.

A number of people recommended this series to me before I finally tried he first book. I don't like some of the sillier books out there, where you hear more about fashionable shoes than you hear about the plot. I can't stand shallow protagonists who worry about hair and clothes and shoes when they should be worried that their life might be in danger. And, unfortunately, that's the idea the titles of the first few books gave me. I mean, really. A werewolf named Kitty?

I couldn't have been any more wrong. Kitty is not shallow, not at all. When she needs to dress up she is capable of doing so, but her normal work attire is jeans and a t-shirt. Her name is really Katherine, but everyone (including her parents) call her Kitty. Her name was Kitty long before she was turned into a werewolf.

This series focuses on the werewolves (since that is what Kitty is), though there are other shapeshifters as well, and there are vampires. We run into a few other mythological creatures in the course of the books, but I won't talk about them so I won't spoil any plots. The next book, Kitty's House of Horrors, is supposed to be a Big Brother type reality show, except everyone in the house will be some sort of supernatural, or have some sort of supernatural ability. There is no telling what mythologies the author is going to have fun with in that book.

One of the things I really enjoy about this series is the growth we see. The Kitty we see in books five and six are so far removed from the Kitty we first met in book one, that if you didn't read what had happened to her in the interim to help her grow up, you wouldn't think it was the same person.

Another thing I enjoy is that the author doesn't use constant conflict with friends and family in order to fill space. Kitty has a pretty normal relationship with her parents. She wasn't raised by someone other than her biological parents, she wasn't abused by anyone, there are no childhood traumas that she must try to overcome. She had a normal childhood and now she has a decent relationship with her parents and sister. And when she dates someone she acts like a responsible grown up. When she finally gets serious about someone, they both act like responsible grownups. Yes, there are arguments in the relationship, but they both work towards resolving the argument. It's a nice breath of fresh air.

This series gets a 9 of 10. The plots are good, the characters are likable and are well fleshed out, and the flow of the series works well.




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)

Review: Kitty Raises Hell (Kitty Norville, Book 6) by Carrie Vaughn

To all of those authors who think you can't have a happily married heroine and keep things interesting - you need to read this book to see how it is done.

I admit, I was a bit disappointed that it took Cormac out of the running when Kitty officially married Ben in Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand. But she's happy, and they are there for each other, and they love each other. And they make a good Alpha pair too, apparently. And that added to the book, it didn't take away from it. They don't get along perfectly all of the time, but they are working towards making their marriage work, so when they fight they fight with the purpose of finding a way to make up. They aren't just tearing each other down, they are trying to resolve the reason they are fighting. And they don't get mad at each other over silly things. And they don't do silly things to provoke the other. They are two grown and rational adults trying to make a relationship work. How refreshing.

But, on to the plot of this book. Wow. I mean, really. Wow. But I'll start with the blurb:

Sometimes what happens in Vegas doesn't stay in Vegas.

Kitty and Ben flee The City That Never Sleeps, thinking they were finished with the dangers there, but the sadistic cult of lycanthropes and their vampire priestess have laid a curse on Kitty in revenge for her disrupting their rituals. Starting at the next full moon, danger and destruction the form of fire strikes Kitty and the pack of werewolves she's sworn to protect.

She enlists the help of a group of TV paranormal investigators - one of whom has real psychic abilities - to help her get to the bottom of the curse that's been laid on her. Rick, the Master vampire of Denver, believes a deeper plot lies behind the curse, and he and Kitty argue about whether or not to accept the help of a professional demon hunter - and vampire - named Roman, who arrives a little too conveniently in the nick of time.

Unable to rely on Rick, and unwilling to accept Roman's offer of help for a price, Kitty and her band of allies, including Vegas magician Odysseus Grant and Kitty's own radio audience, mount a trap for the supernatural being behind the curse, a destructive force summoned by the vengeful cult, a supernatural being that none of them ever thought to face.

Can I just say that the blurb does not begin to do justice to what happens? There is a lot going on in this book, but it works. It's a lot, but not too much. And Kitty makes some new friends, again. She's good at that. It seems just about everywhere she goes she meets people and forms a bond of friendship with them. I guess fighting off supernatural stuff together is a good way to form strong bonds, but still, Kitty seems to just draw friends to her.

Kitty Raises Hell has a lot of Kitty and Ben (obviously), a decent amount of Rick, a little bit of Sean (who is now the manager of New Moon), and two visits with Cormac. There isn't much of Kitty's family, just a few phone calls and a quick conversation with her sister. Oh, and one of the friends she met in the most recent book, Odysseus Grant, makes an appearance as well. (What would she do without all of these friends she's managed to collect?)

The plot is good, the subplots are good, the supernatural bad guy is one that I don't believe I've seen pop up in other urban fantasy books yet, the conversations are engaging, and there is a bit of humor here and there amongst the drama.

In the past I've given this a series rating of 8 of 10. I'm going to raise it to a 9. And I'm going to give this book the same rating:


Book Rating: 7 of 10
Series Rating: 8 of 10

There was an excerpt of book 7, Kitty's House of Horrors, included at the back of Kitty Raises Hell. It looks like in the next book Kitty is going to be in a house with a dozen or so other supernaturals... kind of like Big Brother, maybe? Remember Jeffrey Miles, the "talks to dead people" guy? It sounds like he's going to be there, and maybe someone she met in this book as well, so at least she'll have friends.




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)

Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand (Kitty Norville, Book 5) by Carrie Vaughn

Amazon normally gets books to me on the release date, but this time they got it to me on the day after the release. Which was annoying, since this is a book I've been anxiously waiting for, having re-read the other books in the last couple of weeks. So, of course, I read it in one sitting last night.

I had a feeling that since two books were being released so close (Kitty Raises Hell is due out February 24), that the two books were probably written as one story and then split into two books when it grew too long. Having read this book, I'm pretty sure I'm right about that. That being said, the ending to this book does pretty neatly wrap up the Las Vegas portion of the adventure. Sure, there are some unresolved issues, but this is a series so I guess that's kind of to be expected. And, best of all, we've only got one month until the next book, so I'm okay with it.

Before I go any further, here is the blurb for Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand:

Already the alpha pair of Denver's werewolf pack, Kitty and Ben now plan to tie the knot human-style by eloping to Vegas. Kitty is looking forward to sipping fru-fru drinks by the pool and doing her popular radio show on live TV, but her hotel is stocked with werewolf-hating bounty hunters. Elsewhere on the Strip an old-school magician might be wielding the real thing; the vampire community is harboring a dark secret; and the irresistible star of a suspicious animal act is determined to seduce Kitty. Sin City has never been so wild, and this werewolf has never had to fight harder to save not only her wedding, but her very life.

As the blurb says, Kitty meets a few more bounty hunters in this book. With Cormac temporarily out of the picture I guess the author had to bring in the possibility of being shot with a silver bullet from somewhere else. Besides, I'm pretty sure that Cormac wouldn't shoot Kitty now that he considers her a friend, not even if she went off the deep end.

The author did some more world building in this book, which will only make things more interesting in the long run. There were at least two new kinds of supernatural stuff introduced and it will be interesting to see where the author heads with it. I saw some similarities to Obsidian Butterfly (part of the Anita Blake series), though we won't know for sure how similar until the next book.

I'm still confused about the title of the book, where was the dead man's hand? Maybe I'm being dense and missed something? Anyone out there want to help explain it?

In the past I've given this series a rating of 7, and I've gone back and forth about whether or not to raise that. In the end, I'll raise the series rating to an 8 of 10 even though Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand gets a 7 of 10. I do recommend the series, it's a good series and a good read. The characters come alive, the plots are good, the descriptions are well done, and the various societies (vampire society, wolf society) are fully fleshed out and well explained.


Book Rating: 7 of 10
Series Rating: 8 of 10

After reading the blurb (and first chapter) of Kitty Raises Hell, I have high hopes that the next book could be a 9 or 10.




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)

Kitty Norville Series by Carrie Vaughn

This is a series about a werewolf. Her name is Kitty Norville and she's a DJ at a radio station.

One night Kitty starts talking and taking phone calls instead of playing music, and before she knows it she is hosting a radio show that talks about supernaturals. As a werewolf she's pretty qualified to have such a show... but she doesn't tell her listeners what she is. At some point most of them figure she's probably some sort of supernatural something or other though, and that's part of the story.

There are four books in the series so far (plus two due out early next year) and the author manages to make each book take off in a different direction. It's not like one long story broken up into four books, though obviously there are some things that we have to wait from one book to the next to find out. Kitty grows stronger physically, mentally, and emotionally. And we get to hang on for the ride.

One of the books, Kitty goes to Washington, explores in depth how human society might deal with supernaturals coming out of the closet, so to speak. If humans suddenly had to deal with the fact that there were such things as werewolves and that a coworker or a neighbor or maybe even their doctor was one... how would they react? That is there in the other books in smaller amounts, but the second book takes a hard look at that in particular.

I didn't read these books for a while because the titles just didn't sound like something I would want to read. When I finally did get around to the series though, I enjoyed it. Kitty is her name, short for Katherine, and that was her name before she was turned into a werewolf. But yes, she hears more than once about the humor of a werewolf named Kitty.

This series has werewolves and vampires in it. And another sexy hitman who specializes in monsters. Not quite as scary as Edward from the Anita Blake series, but maybe a little more realistic.

Series Rating: 7




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 (February 2009)
6. Kitty Raises Hell (March/April 2009)