One Good Book Deserves Another

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Megan Chase, Book 3
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Formats: Mass Market Paperback, Kindle


I don't know if Demon Possessed marks the third and final book in an urban fantasy trilogy or if the original three-book arc of the Megan Chase series is a stepping stone for further development of these characters. Honestly, it could go either way. I will say that what exists with Personal Demons, Demon Inside, and Demon Possessed is a satisfying enough (and occasionally frustrating enough) arc of character/story development that it feels complete. I sure wouldn't mind more about Malleus, Maleficarum, and Spud though - I love those demons!

Where the first book, Personal Demons, introduced the characters, world, and mythos, and was a tight, conflict- and plot-driven urban fantasy that deals with Megan's past, and the second, Demon Inside, is a similarly driven urban fantasy that deals with Megan's present, Demon Possessed is only about 55% (the first 50% and the last 5%) is conflict- and plot-driven. The rest is a largely aggravating relationship-driven melodrama that looked to address Megan's future but did nothing to endear Megan Chase to me as a character. I haven't much cared for her since Personal Demons, actually. I barely tolerated her weeping and whining in the second book. I actively loathed her at times in this one and felt she either represented or acted out almost every negative stereotype that exists for a woman in a relationship. As a fan of both urban fantasy and paranormal romance, I have little affection for a character as consumed by her own stubborn humanity and resistance to change in the face of all logical - and emotional - reason to take life by the throat and triumph in the quest for your own life, pleasure, love, and satisfaction. And I detest hypocrisy in all forms, as well as the lack of any ability or interest in compromise. Because of this, Megan really offended not only the kick-ass heroine-lover in me, but the soul-deep romantic, as well. That's a pretty hard thing to overcome. In fact, there were more than a few times in Demon Possessed that I would've been perfectly okay with her timely demise. That's probably not what the author was going for.

All that being said, there were several redemptive aspects of Demon Possessed. While I wish there had been a better mix throughout the whole of the book that presented the balance between the relationship conflicts with Greyson and the external conflicts of someone else trying to kill her (though that theme is getting a wee bit old by now) instead of so much of one being the sole focus of the first half of the book and so much of the other being the sole focus of the second half, overall both aspects really were important to the arc of the series. Combined, they did finally seem to achieve the goal of waking Megan up a bit to the reality of the world around her and the people inhabiting it and forced her to embrace both in a far more proactive, positive manner. I'll never fully understand why it took three books to do so, but that was the author's choice. Personally, I think the series would've been significantly more compelling if that sort of wake up call had happened in the second book and the third gave the reader some time with a stronger, more emotionally secure and powerful heroine...instead of a hypocritical, internal, insecure girl more likely to vomit on your shoes or sob on your shoulder when things got the toughest. But...that's just me.

And while I may have an issue or three with some of the choices Stacia Kane made for the character development of the star of her series, and one or two with the slight feeling of repetition in the formula of each book, I have no issue with her ability to spin an interesting and rich narrative with a complex mythology, a lot of danger, and a threat around every corner. There was nothing at all, however, I liked about the relationship conflict in this book. Honestly, it did little but piss me off and make me feel like the author was trying to emotionally manipulate me...that's significant because a good book is supposed to manipulate your emotions - while not making you feel like that's the intent.

Because the relationship between Grey and Megan was finally addressed (I've been not-so-patiently waiting), and because of one particular scene with Malleus, Maleficarum, and Spud that absolutely should not be missed, I rated this particular book a 3.5 stars...but as a trilogy, I think I'd only rate the entire reading experience as a 3 stars, simply because the story was well told, but not to my personal preference for the darker urban fantasy, and the lead character never really redeemed herself to me, even with the choices and progress made.

Megan Chase Series:
   

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Megan Chase, Book 2
Rating: 3 Stars
Formats: Mass Market Paperback, Kindle


Demon Inside, the second in what is at this point the Megan Chase trilogy, is a fast and furious race from start to finish and strictly on plot alone, it is a fantastic continuation of the series. Dangerous and filled with a heated intensity, it grabs you by the throat from the first page and doesn't let you go before the last, no matter how long ago you should have put the book down and gone to bed. A word of caution, though...it isn't a stand-alone book, as there is far too much that isn't explained and it does simply pick up three months after the point where Personal Demons leaves off, so you really should start there.

I loved Personal Demons despite a few issues with the plot and some technical stuff, and consider it a five star read. I thought the plot and writing mechanics in Demon Inside were awesome - even better than the first - but I can only rate it three stars, because in this book, I didn't like the Megan Chase, PhD. character at all. In fact, and very unfortunately, in Demon Inside Megan manages to encapsulate just about every single one of my personal bugaboos for a heroine in an urban fantasy series.

That was so frustrating, because I totally appreciated what was going on - thought it was awesome to see the development of Megan's life given her relationship to Greyson and the friendships that sprung up in the first book, as well as characters like the brothers Malleus, Maleficarum, and Spud, and the personal demon Roc (not even going to try the rest of that name), who I find oddly adorable. I liked taking a look back into Megan's past and getting some questions answered about how that whole thing with the Accuser really started. And Grey was just as deliciously laconic as he was in the first one. Demon of few words, that one.

But...seriously...what the hell happened to Megan in this book? She was fiesty, sassy, and wordy in Personal Demons. She was totally out of her element with everything going on, but she was obviously a fighter. Sure, I never really bought her psychic therapist profession - she never struck me as particularly cerebral or understanding of the human psyche, but she still had a spine, more than a little sarcastic wit, and a tendency to snipe that was sort of endearing. So who the hell was the screaming, crying, self absorbed, prone to stupidity, immature damsel in distress posing as Megan Chase in Demon Inside?? For someone who was so adamant about not being Grey's arm candy, she sure did an excellent imitation of one.

I wish I was kidding. I wish I was exaggerating for effect. I'm not. Whenever something sudden and dangerous popped up, Megan was screaming her head off (or was thinking if she started screaming she wouldn't be able to stop). When the screaming was over, the crying started - or the sobbing. And when faced with worries and questions about the changes going on in her life, she totally internalized them instead of, oh, I don't know - being a mature and healthy adult (therapist, remember?) - and asking those in the know about what was going on with her. I totally resented the tension that created between her and Greyson because of it. She's a human now neck deep in demon politics - do you think she could get over herself long enough to look around and start asking the tough questions? More than once I felt like shaking her and telling her to put on her big girl panties and deal with it! And I'm not the PhD.

I understand the need for character development, and I do understand some of her issues in this book. Some were organic to the story and made sense. Some. Most of them just made Megan seem like a totally self-absorbed and petulant child who isn't getting things her way, so she's damaging a whole race of creatures because of it, and she's damaging her relationship with the demon who she's obviously in love with - and I don't care how reticent and mysterious he is, he loves the batty woman right back. And now that I think of it, it bothers me how little Megan cares about demon culture and history. I would've loved to have learned a little more about the mythos and history of the demons, but because Megan couldn't seem to care less about that, and the book is told from a very narrow third person perspective focusing exclusively on Megan's thoughts and feelings, unless she asks and investigates, the reader isn't ever going to know. That's a shame.

Before I go on another Megan-induced rant, I do want to mention there were a few aspects of Demon Inside - most notably the big conflict at the end - that felt a bit too similar to the big conflict at the end of the first book. Almost like SSDD (Same Stuff Different Demon). It wasn't completely, but there were echoes, for sure. One major point that bothered me in both books is actually a pretty prolific issue in the genre as a whole - urban fantasy tends to be riddled with these virtually unstoppable and indestructible baddies who have rained down death, dismemberment, and destruction. Well...they're unstoppable and indestructible until the big showdown with the protagonist. Then, no matter how many times the bad guy's beaten the protagonist to a pulp from cover to cover, the protagonist defeats the bad guy (and his army) and remains remarkably unscathed, all things considered, at the end. To a degree, that has to happen. The better books give solid reasons why it happens. This one just had an appetizer from hell (that'll make sense when you read it). I didn't totally buy it.

I appreciate as a reader there was a small resurgence in Megan's character towards the conclusion of the book, but no reason as stated lets her off the hook for how utterly mealy-mouthed she was for the first 80-85%. I give her a single star, because I really did hate her character several times through the book. Every other aspect of the book gets a five star - perhaps a 4.5 in reality, but still. I averaged the two and ended up with a 3 Star overall read for Demon Inside. I can only hope Megan's character is a bit more the Megan we met in Personal Demons when going through Demon Possessed (Megan Chase, Book 3).

Megan Chase Trilogy:
   

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Megan Chase, Book 1
Rating: 5 Stars
Formats: Paperback, Kindle


Ya rolls the dice, ya takes your chances...or something like that. Trying a new author is always a crap shoot, regardless of the quantity of positive reviews, regardless of summaries, blurbs, and testimonials. Sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you don't. Luck be Stacia Kane's Personal Demons tonight! I've read some really good books this year, books I was pleased with, books I even loved, but I have to admit, this is the first book in a while that I got really excited about while reading it. The story is unique, the mythology - while not completely fleshed out yet - intriguing and original, and the characters definitely interesting (and sexy).

Megan Chase, PhD., is a therapist with a bit extra who's just recently started a weekly radio show with a rather auspicious tag line about helping to slay a caller's personal demons. Innocuous enough for us, but if you're a demon...

Soon Megan is seeing all manner of crazy things and the tall, dark, and handsome (if a bit smokey) Greyson Dane is showing up on her doorstep warning her not to make any deals with the devil, so to speak. She's confused and perplexed...right up until full-on terror comes knocking. As it turns out, it seems the demons of the world have taken her tag line rather personally and someone has decided to do unto her before she does unto them. Grey, a fire demon himself and not exactly prone to fear a singular human psychologist, steps in to lend a hand - and three demonic bodyguards - to keep that from happening.

As the plot unfolds and a murky past comes back to taunt her, Megan is drawn further and further into a world she had no idea existed and yet somehow isn't totally surprised about...but maybe that's because some part of her, perhaps the psychic part, always sensed something else out there. Now that something is trying to kill her and all she has to trust are demons who aren't exactly interested in selflessness.

Admittedly, Personal Demons is by no means a technically flawless book. The beginning is a bit plodding (until one night-of-the-living-dead moment) and I never totally bought Megan as a therapist with a PhD. She seemed through the book to be a bit more layman than therapist, and there were a couple of moments where I saw some less then astute behavior in dealing with things. I also question a couple of the plot devices that introduced the reporter Brian Stone and kept him in the sometimes foil, sometimes friend position. I also can't say that I totally buy into the connection between events in Megan's past and her present. I thought it seemed just a bit too ...something...convenient maybe - though definitely not for Megan. There were also some weird time jumps, where scenes got skipped over, and some of those scenes I think I would've preferred seeing written out - like the dinner with the meat pies, for one. I think if those had been written out it would've given the book an added dimension and let the reader get more familiar and comfortable with the characters.

All that being said, there was a bunch of positive stuff, too. I loved the Misters Brown! Malleus, Maleficarum, and Spud - three cockney demons with hearts of gold! I thoroughly enjoyed the slow development of the relationship between Grey and Megan and was pleased where they stood at the end of the book, given the week or so they've known each other. Much more realistic than some love-at-first-sight thing while acknowledging that lust at first sight with some affection is far more believable. I thought the opportunity for future development and continuing mythology including Tera and the witches, as well as the psychic reporter Brian was fantastic. On the plot side of things, I was very pleasantly surprised by the successful maintenance of tension and increasing danger, and there's a scene towards the end (without giving spoilers) that was written well enough that even I was feeling a little ill and very threatened. The story progression was increasingly intricate and the blending of a couple of separate plot points flowed together organically.

I certainly am aware the sum of the critical aspects could very easily bring down my rating of this book, but in this case, it didn't. I admit, I submitted five stars based on emotion, not on technical superiority. I loved the book, even with it's flaws, and I'm very interested in continuing this delightful urban fantasy series.

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Mercy Thompson, Book 5
Rating: 4 Stars
Formats: Hardcover, Kindle, Mass Market Paperback (NYR)


Sinking into a Mercy Thompson book feels very much like returning to a much beloved and slightly glossier (okay, and a bit more dangerous) home after a long trip away. It's comfortable, even when the characters aren't in the most comfortable situations, and it's fun, even when what's going on is in no way fun. That's the gift Patricia Briggs brings to her readers. She is excellent at her craft. Sometimes it's hard to believe this is only the fifth book in the Mercy Thompson series, because I feel like I've known these characters - Mercy, Adam, Samuel, Zee, etc. - forever. They feel like old friends...well...old friends you wouldn't necessarily want over to dinner if the moon is full, anyway.

In Silver Borne, Mercy is dealing with the growing relationship between her and her mate, the Alpha of the Three Rivers pack Adam, and the problems that relationship is causing within his pack, but in typical Mercy fashion, she doesn't just have a small helping of trouble on her plate - it's a plate of trouble big enough for a werewolf - and in this case, the added helpings of trouble are the suicidal Samuel and the missing Phin, bookstore owner and part fae who lent Mercy a book about fae and who has now disappeared.

I'm fairly convinced by now that Briggs doesn't tell a bad story, and parts of this book I absolutely loved. The growth in Mercy's character continues to impress me, especially after a lifetime of independence and a horrifying rape in a previous novel . She's one of the few urban fantasy series heroines that continues to grow and evolve in very organic ways during the series, and I appreciate that as a reader. I was particularly delighted with everything in this book related to the pack and Adam and her struggles with Samuel. Spending some time with Sam was a real treat. Seeing Ben's growth and glimpsing some of his vulnerability and dedication to his pack was a joy. Experiencing Mercy's intelligence and her willingness to open up even more of herself to Adam was fantastic.

I wasn't totally convinced about the issues with the fae, about Phin and the book he lent her. I'm not sure why that aspect of the book didn't totally work for me, except it almost seemed like a bit of an afterthought, even after the stakes were raised and Mercy was pulled into it in a big way. I question the manner in which Briggs decided to write the conflict there, and without giving spoilers, it's hard to elucidate more than that. I can only say that while the conflict was ongoing, I wasn't as emotionally invested as the characters were, and didn't feel the tension that I've felt in each past book when Mercy is dealing with bad things that can eat her. I also missed Stephan in this book, but I don't criticize the book for it - I just really like the character.

Regardless, Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson series and her Alpha and Omega series are always must-buys for me, because I just love how Briggs tells a story. The combination of her imagination and her writing style never fail to give me a good time while reading and my only true complaint is that River Marked (Mercy Thompson, Book 6) won't be available until January 25, 2011. Oh, the cross we bear!