Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

4.5 stars, I just love this series. My favorite thing is that Kara is both a real woman and very firmly the hero of these books. She's a regular woman, not a superhero, she's vulnerable, gets her feelings hurt, gets frightened, eats comfort food, has a temper, is just totally real. And she doesn't turn to anyone to solve her problems. So many fantasy books, especially those with hot demons, have the heroine "forced" into letting the demon solve everything for her, and then she gets to be grateful to him and lovey dovey yada yada. Kara is gradually forced to ask Rhyzkahl for help, but it happens slowly and logically and she does have real doubts about his intentions, not showy doubts like in so many other books. And when she accepts help, it doesn't end up taking away her power, she's still completely fierce and the center of the story. The same thing goes for Ryan, and for her other work colleagues, when she works with people she works with people, but they don't overtake her.

I also like the character development across the series, including the supporting characters. For example, her sergeant, Cory Crawford, has had a good story arc of his own as he's gone from a bit of a hard ass to a caring guy and honest cop just trying to deal with this crazy stuff.

Another thing that makes the book and the series great is the details, they're perfect without being cumbersome. It's small things like when one of the bodies was found in the middle of thick bushes and Kara laughs when the coroner's driver shows up with lopping sheers but asks if anyone has a chainsaw; it's a brief moment but it shows the realism and the background that the author has both as a policewoman and as a morgue assistant to put moments in that just ring true. Also, I really appreciated that moment more because I recently read the author's My Life as A White Trash Zombie, a very different style book with it's young, sarcastic heroine, but also filled with a lot of heart, and it sure made me sensitive to the plight of morgue drivers!

Finally, I loved the cover, the publishers finally got it right by acknowledging that the books are about a kick-butt police woman and not paranormal romance. Kara is the star, it's intense urban fantasy with a romantic element, like most urban fantasy. I'm not saying that the demon isn't hot, because he is. Kara's having some fun with him too, woo hoo! And the triangle with Ryan is tense, if slow to build. But that's one aspect of the story only and I really appreciate that it's building slowly and really showing a great part of Kara's growth as this recently isolated woman becomes more experienced at juggling having dear friends, colleagues that she can depend on, and pretty serious romantic interests as well. I'm glad that the cover finally reflects that Kara is primarily a police woman who happens to be an arcane practitioner, and that the book is mostly about her trying to solve a case, not about her being sexy with someone as the previous two covers seemed to imply.

Long review, sorry! Summary - Kara's the center of the story and a terrific hero, read the books.