Warning: this book is fucking amazing. Buying it will result in loss of sleep and/or serious distraction from so-called important things like work, school, housework etc.
I admit I’m a harsh critic; I give five star reviews very sparingly. But this book deserves the uncommon, five stars.
If you like character-led urban fantasy and/or paranormal romance that makes you laugh and makes you cry, then you need to read this book. Of course, as this is the ninth in the series I would recommend starting at the beginning with number one. I should say that the first couple of Charley books were not quite as good, in my opinion, but it wasn’t long before they evolved into something magic.
As with the previous 8 books, the number one reason why I loved this is the characters. I have said it before and I will say it again, there is no more likeable character in all of urban fantasy than Charley Davidson. She is hilarious, humble, compassionate, and the best friend anyone could have. In this book, which had a nostalgic quality to it (more on this later), I found myself wishing to be Charley’s best friend Cookie Kowalski for the umpteenth time.
You hear a lot of reviewers say that the characters in books are so real and believable but I have never cared about the fates of any character cast like the one Jones has crafted. She expertly combines character building asides into the ongoing plots and juggles several familiar characters effortlessly. Her characters are never two dimensional, never clichéd, and you can’t help but love them as much as she clearly does.
This book follows the events that occur when Charley loses her memory after the trauma of having to give away her baby daughter. As it becomes clear that she is not going to regain her memories until at least the end of the book, I found myself a little bit frustrated at first. There was something slightly implausible in the way all the people from her real life had insinuated themselves into her new amnesiac life and in how she kept overlooking their deceptions, but after the initial surprise at the direction Jones had chosen for this book, I got over it.
Yes, the book is a bit of a filler, in which not much happens to advance the greater plot and instead actually stalls its progress, but as long as that means we get more Charley books, who cares?
As the book went on and we get to see all the familiar characters through the fresh eyes of amnesiac Charley, it began to feel like a nostalgic return to the earlier books, before the epic gods and demons backstory began to propel the story towards its no-doubt cataclysmic conclusion (hopefully in the far distance future).
After the birth of Charley's daughter, who is prophesied to be the one to end Satan, the days of Charley and Cookie investigating cases with the help of ghosts are numbered. How much longer can Charley continue to live her ‘normal’ life now that she knows she is a god? In this book, we the readers get to revisit the halcyon days when Charley was mostly ignorant of her true nature and powers, and I for one am thankful.
Because it was always in the smaller, human moments that these books excelled. Sure, the fantasy elements are great. Gods, demons, the son of Satan, alien superbeings, ghosts, hellhounds, it’s all there, and it’s thrilling and surprising, but the truly moving aspects of this series have always been the subplots about human darkness and light and the evanescence of human life.
Jones is a skilled storyteller who manages to weave several smaller plot strains together with the overarching story of Charley trying to regain her memory amidst an interdimensional conflict, every one of them compelling and emotional reading. I was moved to tears repeatedly during this book, but as usual what prevented it all from becoming melancholy was Charley’s quirky, upbeat personality.
As always, the hilarious moments made the darker moments more touching, and left me craving more of the uniquely riveting highs and lows that these books bring. The only question now is, what on earth am I going to do until the next one comes out??
As always, comments welcomed. Follow me on Twitter @H_Y_Malyk.
No comments:
Post a Comment