The Isis Collar
Cat Adams
Tor, Mar 13 2012, $14.99
ISBN: 9780765328731

Dottie Simmons a level eight unregistered clairvoyant warns half vampire-half Siren Celia Graves that a bomb has been planted in a school. Civic minded Graves asks Principal Sanchez to dismiss the kids but the school official says no as she sees no threat except for armed Celia. Desperate to save the children especially eight year old Alex with Siren blood, Graves calls her late former BFF Vickie’s lover Heather Alexander to get the law enforcement official to evacuate the school that no longer had its magical shields deployed. Heather says she is unable to do so as security guard Jamisyn escorts Graves from the school. When the bell rings ending the day, the magic explodes leaving everyone inside except for Graves functioning in ultra -slow motion.

Graves is unaware she suffered injuries too as she has memory problems and cannot heal her wounds from the explosion. The real intent soon becomes clear when a zombie pandemic spreads from the school’s ground zero to the entire country. Graves and the Feds search for an antidote to the plague and hunt the bombers while the heroine’s personal relationships are a shamble as her vampire side, her alcoholic mother and the ghost of her sister who died when she was at eight years old make demands on Graves while her boyfriend has vanished.

The fourth Blood Singer romantic urban fantasy (see Blood Song, Siren Song and Demon Song) is a terrific entry as the frustrated heroine struggles with making sense of a chaotic world. The school scenario sets the pace of the strong storyline as Graves cannot persuade Sanchez of the pending peril. Series fans will appreciate this engaging entry, which climaxes nicely while also setting up the next thriller.

Harriet Klausner

Inked Magic
Jory Strong
Berkley, Feb 7 2012, $15.00
ISBN: 9780425245378

In San Francisco Etain the tattoo artist has the uncanny paranormal power of seeing what a person she touches with her palms has imprinted in their last recall memories. Ironically she uses her gift to help the police and the FBI solve crimes as that is part of her DNA make-up; but is somewhat distant from her father the police captain and her brother the Fed as neither understand the post-traumatic stress cost of touching skin.

Etain meets club owner Cathal Dunne, the son of a mob boss and Elf Lord Eamon the restauranteur. Cathal (and his dad) demands Etain use her skill to identify the punks who raped his cousin leaving her to die. Eamon demands the changeling Etain become his consort. At the same she struggles with the four males in her life (including the two family law enforcement officers) the FBI deploys Etain to help them catch the serial Harlequin Rapist, unaware that this psychopath becomes the fifth man in her life as she is his intended next victim.

The key to this super romantic investigative urban fantasy is that the males have different yet alpha personalities, which anchors the Strong San Francisco setting. The heroine is a brave person who knows first-hand the true nightmarish psychological meaning of the skin game on her mental state, but does what she can to bring justice to victims. Readers will enjoy the engaging Inked Magic.

Harriet Klausner

In The Lion’s Mouth
Michael Flynn
Tor, Jan 17 2012, $25.99
ISBN: 9780765322852

The galactic war between the Confederation of Central Worlds and the United League of the Periphery continues unabated. The ULP Kennel employ top secret Hounds to give them an edge in the hostilities while the CCW Lion’s Mouth use Shadow of the Names to strengthen their operations. Hounds and Shadows are enemy undercover operatives.

Thus when Ravn Olafsdottr the Shadow arrives at the stronghold of Bridget ban the Hound, she wonders why she would risk her life as both sides know to shoot first. Ravn explains to her adversary how she captured Bridget’s missing former lover Donovan buigh who the Hound has been searching for. Whereas Bridget understands captivity (see Up Jim River) and knows her daughter Mearana the harpist wants her to reconcile with Donovan, Ravn further says Donovan is in the middle of a potential civil war within the Lion’s Mouth.

The third far future outer space CCW-ULP thriller (see The January Dancer) is an entertaining tale uses “archaic” earth references as key elements in the multiple viewpoints. The theme is a civil war, but Michael Flynn keeps it fresh with twists, spins and nonlinear narration. With a nod to the author’s Firestar saga, fans will enjoy a trio In The Lion’s Mouth with Hounds and Shadows as our guides.

Harriet Klausner

His Dark Bond
Anne Marsh
Kensington Brava, Feb 1 2012, $14.00
ISBN: 9780758266798

Three thousand years ago, the revolt in Heaven by the fiercest warriors the Dominion led to Michael the archangel tossing them down to earth with their wings removed. The only way back to Heaven is if they bond with their specific soul mate. In 2090 the first bonding occurs.

In M City, Zer the leader of the Fallen knows Michael’s lieutenant Cuthah is raising an army of the Fallen who have turned rogue. They also learn he has killed their soul mates for centuries. Currently Zer’s number two Nael has a list of four names of alleged soul mates. On it is university Professor Nessa St. James who is studying genetics. Zer insures her funding and lab are shut down even as she is coming to identifying a thirteenth tribe of Israel lost in history. She turns to the Genecore Foundation for support, but Zer grabs her; she tells him to F off. He kills two rogues and takes her to his club. She is upset he killed two rogues, but he insists they came to drink her dry. Zer says she is a bond mate who will be matched to one of the Fallen; any of them except him.

The second Bond futuristic urban romantic fantasy (see Bond With me) is a terrific thriller as the concept of a bond mate saving a fallen angel is cleverly developed making along with the genetic research the storyline feel plausible. The lead protagonists are a solid pairing of a leader and a scientist both in denial. Although the villain proves weak and futuristic dystopian Moscow underdeveloped, fans will enjoy Anne Marsh’s second bonding tale.

Harriet Klausner

Immortal Hope
Claire Ashgrove
Tor, Jan 3 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9780765367587

In 1119, the archangels warned the Knights of the Templar not to dig beneath the Temple Mount. They ignored the archangels and excavated holy relics. Their punishment for their disobedience is to combat Azrael’s demons until they become evil Knights of Azrael; as each demon slain places a darkness on their soul until they are engulfed. By 2011, six Templars remain loyal though time is running out. Their only salvation is to find the Seraphim before Azrael obtains the eight remaining relics needed to defeat the Almighty.

In Atchison, Kansas Professor Anne MacPherson has six weeks left to complete her Knights Templar thesis. Cursed Templar Knight Merrick du Loire believes Anne may be his salvation; as she possesses a relic that Gabriel gave to her to protect when he saved her from her Salem witch-hunt. Attracted to Anne, Merrick must take her to the Temple Mount for her to heal whomever she is supposed to save. If she chooses him, she has marked him for death while he fears for his cousin who is on the edge of turning. Meanwhile Azrael is coming.

The first Curse of the Templars urban fantasy is a super tale in which readers will believe in the curse, centuries old knights, demons, and a brave bookworm professor who cannot hurt a fly but carries a sharp sword. Claire Ashgrove deftly sets her background especially the curse and the Templar past in the first page. With a deep mythos, sub-genre fans will relish this action-packed thriller as Merrick faces twisting paradoxes before and after he meets his beloved salvation. Sub-genre readers will appreciate this terrific tense thriller as Merrick has a reason to live, but believes death not love is his salvation.

Harriet Klausner

How to Worship a Goddess
Stephanie Julian
Sourcebooks, Dec 6 2011, $14.99
ISBN: 9781402251504

Lucy Aster happens to be Lusna the Etruscan Goddess of the Moon. She is a big hockey fan going to She goes to every Railers’ game as she enjoys the gracefulness of the sport even at the minor leagues’ level of her favorite team; as she has for the past two years. However, Lucy knows Brandon Stevenson born in 1976 as opposed to her two millennia plus life is the puck she follows.

Most fans are unaware that the players perform bird watching. Brand has only looked at one fan in the stands for the past two years. Feeling like a stalker, he finds her remote quaint bar, Brand and Lucy meet following her singing. They make love, but she erases his memory though he has quite a hangover. The next day while playing Trenton he is distracted because his goddess is not in her seat. After the game and a vicious hit, he works his way through last night and returns to the bar he should not have remembered. At the same time, an underground stalker plans to devour Lusna whose power is waning. However neither her hunter from hell or the Etruscan Goddess of the Moon factored in her brave soulmate; who is ready to do more than hip-check their opponent.

The latest Forgotten Goddesses (see What a Goddess Wants) is an entertaining amusing urban romantic fantasy starring two wonderful protagonists and a vile villain coming for her. The sex mixes enhances the improbable pair in love as he remains resolute as her defenseman against a seemingly invincible foe. Stephanie Julian writes a delightful twisting paranormal Stanley Cup winner.

Harriet Klausner

Immortal Rider
Larissa Ione
Grand Central, Nov 22 2011, $7.99
ISBN: 9780446574471

As the world turns ugly, The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse ride once again. One brother Reseph has turned into Pestilence as his agimortus broke his seal, but another Ares was saved by his fiancée Cara Thornhart (see Eternal Rider). A third rider Limos, though she, Ares and Thanatos defeated Reseph-Pestilence for now, fears she will fall to the dark too as Satan demands she become his wife and her seal if broken frees Famine.

U.S. Army R-XR solder Arik Wagner attends the engagement party of Ares and Cara. He walks outside onto a beach to get away from super-powered a-holes, but the object of his penis follows him. Limos challenges him to fight, which leads to a kiss. His final thought was her shouting at him not to say her name. The other two horsemen explain to human Aegis leader Kynan Morgan that an angry jealous Satan has captured Arik for kissing his bride and will torture him in Hell until he says her name, which will make him one of the lost minions. Limos cuts a deal with Pestilence to save the world and Arik though her cost is her soul.

The second Lords of Deliverance romantic urban fantasy is a superb post apocalyptic thriller that grips the reader from the first apparently fatal kiss to the final confrontation. The story line is fast-paced and contains the twist of a Horsewoman as Famine. The cast is fully developed and the twisting story line is loaded with action at time fueled by betrayal. However, it is the dark world of Larissa Ione that readers will want to ride alongside of the Horsemen (and horsewoman) of the Apocalypse,

Harriet Klausner

In The Bleak Midwinter
M.R. Sellars
E.M.A. Mysteries/Oak Tree, Nov 1 2011, $16.95
ISBN: 9780979453380

On December 22, 1975, Santa sexually assaulted her at school. He threatened to kill her parents if she told them what he did. That night while her mom purchased groceries, her little sister wanted to visit Santa. Merrie Callahan never wanted see Santa ever again, but was forced to escort Elizabeth to visit him. He turned out to be her predator and Merrie vanished for thee days.

Decades later, the residents of Hulis, Missouri are living out a nightmare just as they did when Merrie was abducted. FBI Special Agent Constance Mandalay investigates. She learns that though thirty-five years passed since the rapes, Merrie believes it is December, 22, 1975 before Santa brutalized her. Sheriff Skip Carmichael explains to the Fed that every anniversary of Merrie’s trauma leads to her falling into a catatonic state for three days. On Christmas Day in the shack where Merrie was sodomized, someone chops up a man using an axe exactly like Merrie did and the body parts are in the same place when she counterattacked her abductor years ago. Constance senses the townsfolk conceals something critical from her; when the FBI Agent learns what it is, her belief system is shaken to the core in spite of her case work with Wiccan practitioner Rowan Gant.

M.R. Sellars has written an exhilarating supernatural mystery that will have readers wondering what is going on in Hulis, and when we figure that out, the author twists the entertaining police procedural into a new direction. Constance has been a recurring support character in the RGI whodunits (see Blood Moon), but proves she can run the show as a pragmatic independent investigator who prefers denial of the supernatural though the supporting evidence in this case and her work with Gant forces her to accept an inconvenient truth.

Harriet Klausner

The Infernals
John Connolly
Atria, Oct 18 2011, $22.00
ISBN: 9781451643084

In Biddlecombe, England a few years ago, tweener Samuel Johnson and Boswell the dachshund prevented the demon Mrs. Abernathy AKA Ba’al from opening The Gates of Hell. She craves revenge for her humiliating defeat at the hand of the mortal child and his mortal dog and her demotion by the Great Malevolence who rules Old Nick’s Place.

Nearly blind Samuel asks Lucy Highmore for a date before his friend Thomas Hobbes tells him he asked the letter box out. The opportunity has finally arrived after a few years of impatience for Mrs. Abernathy to claw the punk who thwarted the invasion. The Large Hadron Collider has been reactivated allowing Mrs. Abernathy the energy to pull Samuel and Boswell, Police Constable Peel and Sergeant Rowan, Mr. Happy Whip the ice-cream man, and the performing troupe of Mr. Merryweather’s Dwarves into Hell where she has him on her home turf where her allies the Infernos wait no longer. Once again, Mrs. Abernathy underestimates her young opponent who has a contingent of supporters brought from earth accidently by the demon and one friend Nurd the hapless demon on his side.

This is a whimsical young adult lighthearted fantasy filled with satirical and slapstick humor competing for top billing against the encroaching evil darkness. Fast-paced and loaded with jocularity as puns are everywhere, readers will enjoy the rematch between the powerful demon and her Infernals vs. Samuel and his retinue because at stake is two realms.

Harriet Klausner

The Immortality Engine
George Mann
Tor, Sep 27 2011, $24.99
ISBN: 9780765327758

Although special agent Sir Maurice Newbury and his assistant Miss Veronica Hobbes have solved some complex cases (see The Osiris Ritual), he has turned to opium. Part of his rationalization is the drug gives him psychic powers. However, deep down he knows the cause is his belief that his sidekick is an informer to Queen Victoria. In fact Veronica remains clueless that she is a prime cause for her partner’s addiction as her focus is on her frail sister Amelia who suffers from seizures that include prophecies. At the Grayling Institute, Dr. Lucien Fabian provides Amelia with special experimental care to induce her visions.

Scotland Yard Chief Investigator Sir Charles Bainbridge drags Newbury from an opium den to identify a murder victim; the CH believes the corpse is that master thief Edwin Sykes. Newbury confirms the deceased is Sykes, but something seems off kilter though he is unsure what. When a robbery that only Sykes could have done with the technology deployed leaves the three sleuths stunned.

The third Victorian Newbury-Hobbes mystery is an exciting alternate historical thriller. The lead protagonists have personal issues as he has become an opium eater and she is paralyzed by fears for her failing sister. The Sykes enigma is deftly handled as The Immortality Engine is a wonderful steampunk who and how investigation; vastly different yet as much fun as the occult themed The Osiris Ritual.

Harriet Klausner