Bloodstone by Nancy Holzner
Series: Deadtown #3
Published by ACE
Published on: September 27th, 2011
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Pages: 323
Format: Paperback
Source: Borrowed
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Boston’s diverse South End is known for its architecture and great restaurants, not its body count. So when mutilated human corpses begin turning up in the area, the entire city takes notice. The killer—dubbed the South End Reaper—uses a curved blade for his grisly work. And even though there’s no real evidence pointing to a paranormal culprit, the deaths are straining the already-tense relations between Boston’s human and inhuman residents.
As the bodies pile up, Vicky, her formidable aunt Mab, and her werewolf boyfriend Kane investigate, only to find that the creature behind the carnage is after something much more than blood…
The primary plot of this book is brimming with mythological and monstrous (paranormal to be politically correct like some characters in the book) beings. But based on the cover and the blurb you will probably have already heard about these genre staples. Where this book shines and where its cover and market may give it too little credit are in the familial interactions that occur- although, of course, as would be expected mediated by some unbelievable event- when a young girl comes of age, exhibiting powers that her mother has gone to great lengths to prevent from not merely showing themselves but also influencing her daughter. As much as one can commend Vicky Vaughn for having a grasp of demons, demi-demons, werewolves, vampires, and Old Ones, the legendary vamps, none of which she has that great of a grasp on anyway, which is where her great-aunt, Mab, comes in, Gwen, this supernatural child-to-be’s mother endures the worst torment. It is easy to forget that having one’s own life threatened is not the end of the world. It is far harder for a parent or a lover to remember that it is not the end of the world when their other halves are threatened. Beyond this anecdotal sprig of emotion, Bloodstone evinces all the intriguing world-building, political commentary, and imaginative sequences that one would expect from the urban fantasy genre.
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Recommended:For those familiar with the architecture of Boston
Like this, like that:Charlie Madigan series by Kelly Gay and the Persephone Alcmedi series by Linda Robertson
Oh I can’t wait to start this one, received it yesterday, and I already have the fourth. I hope I’ll enjoy it as much as you do.