Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison. Eos, 2004 (Rachel Morgan Book 1)
Rachel Morgan decided that she has had enough working for Inderland Security (an agency something like our FBI). This fiery, red haired witch is not used to doing scut work and she's sick of it. Usually she goes after black-art and unlicensed witches - big stuff. But tonight she's been sent to an ugly area, in the rain to collar a leprechaun for tax evasion. It can't get much lower than that. She quits I.S.
Two co-workers, Ivy the vampire and Jenks the pixie decide they will join her. This isn't a problem for Jenks or Ivy but, unfortunately for Rachel, Denon, her boss-from-hell, threatens to put a death bounty on her head if she breaks her contract with I.S. The feisty, fearless Rachel is not deterred even though she knows this is no idle threat.
Ivy finds housing for all of them in an old, unused church in the Hollows (that place across the river from Cincinnati where most Inderlanders - witches, vampires, werewolves, etc choose to live). Not surprisingly, more than once Rachel discovers she's under attack from nasty creatures who hope to collect the I.S. reward money.
To save herself and get rid of a bad guy at the same time, Rachel, with the help of her two friends, sets out to find evidence that the well-known and prosperous Trent Kalamack is running Brimstone - the drug du jour. By bringing Trent to justice Rachel hopes such heroics will take I.S. off her back permanently. Naturally things become much more complicated and dangerous than anyone ever anticipated.
Harrison has created an urban fantasy world with a brilliant aura of reality. Readers are totally immersed in Rachel's realm and empathize with her frantic hope to simply survive. Part of the fun of reading Harrison's novel is watching the author get Rachel into really deep dodo and then find some clever way to get her out.
I read this book not long after publication, but this is the first time I've written about it. I'll be reading the rest of the series in order since I know that the characters and story line follow a definite course.
Dead Witch Walking (Eos, 2004) is book one in what has become a popular series. Book six, The Outlaw Demon Wails, came out in February of this year.
4 comments:
This is the book that got me in the genre!
I am actually listening to it on Audiobook at the moment...It is really cool go back to the beginning...
It's a great introduction to the urban fantasy world.
My first was Guilty Pleasures (Book 1 Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series) by Laurell K. Hamilton. What a smart, sexy story!
Good to hear from you!
I don't think I would have carried on with the genre if I had picked up Guilty Pleasures as my first introduction to Urban Fantasy.
Don't get me wrong...I like the Anita Blake series but it wouldn't have pulled me in like Kim Harrison did.
I think the 2nd series I got hooked on was the 'Dark Hunters'. That and Lynsay Sands gave me alot of Amazon recommendations to work with ;)
Hamilton's Guilty Pleasures (Anita Blake series) was published in 1993 thus is one of, if not the, earliest of the genre. And it is also quite edgy compared to many other works.
There aren't many lovers like Jean-Claude!
I also enjoy the works of Sherrilyn Kenyon and Lynsay Sands not to mentions MaryJanice Davidson, Charlaine Harris, and too many other to name...
So many good writers! So many good books! So little time!
Post a Comment