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serru's review against another edition
4.0
The best book in this series so far, and also my favourite so far, because this one is far more character-focused than the previous three. The chapters also alternate between Cal's and Niko's perspectives, so we finally get to see inside the mind of the normally stoic and impenetrable Niko. And oh boy, the things we see. It turns out the perfect Niko isn't so perfect after all, and that this whole time, Cal's just been hero-worshipping him throughout the previous books. I enjoyed seeing that Niko also has a funny and sarcastic side, and that he holds Cal in the utmost respect, which I should have known but was surprised by, because in Cal's POV, Cal tends think the worst of himself.
The plot in this one is the strongest so far as well, with several genuinely surprising twists. There is a moment at the end that I honestly gasped in shock when I read it!! Aside from the main monster/case-of-the-week plot, the book also addressed the trauma and trust issues the brothers have. And they have them in spades!! It was good to see the author acknowledge this and have the consequences play out in this book.
My one disappointment is that the women in this series are still so poorly fleshed out. Although we learned more about Promise's backstory and her relationship with Niko, I felt like all of it was done primarily to drive the plot in certain directions, and little attention or consideration was given to Promise herself as a character. I also just don't really get why she and Niko like each other-- the reasons given in the story weren't enough to me. This was okay in the previous books because we only ever saw their relationship through Cal's limited perspective, but I thought we'd get a lot more than we did with Niko's POV this time around. Delilah remains the most fun female character and my personal fave, and I hope we see more of her in the future. (Also, girl can eat a whole pound of bacon in one sitting... can George do that??)
The plot in this one is the strongest so far as well, with several genuinely surprising twists. There is a moment at the end that I honestly gasped in shock when I read it!! Aside from the main monster/case-of-the-week plot, the book also addressed the trauma and trust issues the brothers have. And they have them in spades!! It was good to see the author acknowledge this and have the consequences play out in this book.
My one disappointment is that the women in this series are still so poorly fleshed out. Although we learned more about Promise's backstory and her relationship with Niko, I felt like all of it was done primarily to drive the plot in certain directions, and little attention or consideration was given to Promise herself as a character. I also just don't really get why she and Niko like each other-- the reasons given in the story weren't enough to me. This was okay in the previous books because we only ever saw their relationship through Cal's limited perspective, but I thought we'd get a lot more than we did with Niko's POV this time around. Delilah remains the most fun female character and my personal fave, and I hope we see more of her in the future. (Also, girl can eat a whole pound of bacon in one sitting... can George do that??)
mary_soon_lee's review against another edition
4.0
This is the fourth book in the Cal Leandros horror/urban-fantasy series, and my favorite installment so far. From book one, I liked the brother-brother friendship between Cal and Niko, and now, several books later, I love it. Against a backdrop of horror, which is not my usual taste in fiction, their unbreakable friendship is a pure delight. There are many things I care about in stories: prose, plot, setting, breadth of imagination, discovering things I didn't know about. But if I like the characters enough, that overrides everything else. And I have reached that point with these books.
All that said, and despite this being my favorite book in the series so far, I wouldn't recommend starting here. The action picks up immediately where book three ("Madhouse") ended, so I would either begin there or with book two. If you are a firm horror fan, beginning with book one ("Nightlife") would make most sense, but I, who am not a firm horror fan, liked that first book substantially less than the others. (Without delving into spoiler-ridden details, I will say that there was a stretch of more than a hundred pages that I found unpleasant to read.)
One of the reasons that I preferred this book to the earlier ones is that it switches between Cal's perspective and Niko's perspective, and I thought that worked very well. The books in general have a nice progression, both in storytelling, such as the introduction of Niko's point of view in this book, and in the ongoing situation. Some series fiction, especially detective fiction, is much more static: a mystery/crime is solved during each book, but the protagonist returns to their baseline at the book's end.
For anyone else who enjoys the Cal-Niko friendship, I very highly recommend two other series that are on the border between dark fantasy and horror: the Los Nefilim series by T. Frohock, and the Tarot Sequence by K. D. Edwards. Both series are anchored by characters that I love, characters who care about each other, characters that I still think about after the book is finished.
About my reviews: I try to review every book I read, including those that I don't end up enjoying. The reviews are not scholarly, but just indicate my reaction as a reader, reading being my addiction. I am miserly with 5-star reviews; 4 stars means I liked a book very much; 3 stars means I liked it; 2 stars means I didn't like it (though often the 2-star books are very popular with other readers and/or are by authors whose other work I've loved).
All that said, and despite this being my favorite book in the series so far, I wouldn't recommend starting here. The action picks up immediately where book three ("Madhouse") ended, so I would either begin there or with book two. If you are a firm horror fan, beginning with book one ("Nightlife") would make most sense, but I, who am not a firm horror fan, liked that first book substantially less than the others. (Without delving into spoiler-ridden details, I will say that there was a stretch of more than a hundred pages that I found unpleasant to read.)
One of the reasons that I preferred this book to the earlier ones is that it switches between Cal's perspective and Niko's perspective, and I thought that worked very well. The books in general have a nice progression, both in storytelling, such as the introduction of Niko's point of view in this book, and in the ongoing situation. Some series fiction, especially detective fiction, is much more static: a mystery/crime is solved during each book, but the protagonist returns to their baseline at the book's end.
For anyone else who enjoys the Cal-Niko friendship, I very highly recommend two other series that are on the border between dark fantasy and horror: the Los Nefilim series by T. Frohock, and the Tarot Sequence by K. D. Edwards. Both series are anchored by characters that I love, characters who care about each other, characters that I still think about after the book is finished.
About my reviews: I try to review every book I read, including those that I don't end up enjoying. The reviews are not scholarly, but just indicate my reaction as a reader, reading being my addiction. I am miserly with 5-star reviews; 4 stars means I liked a book very much; 3 stars means I liked it; 2 stars means I didn't like it (though often the 2-star books are very popular with other readers and/or are by authors whose other work I've loved).
cwebb's review against another edition
1.0
Couldn't finish this one. It'sonly book 4 in the series, and halfway through it's still only referencing the previous three books IN DETAIL.
That just doesn't work for me.
That just doesn't work for me.
ckjaer88's review against another edition
4.0
Great installment, and I'm excited to see where the story goes next.
surfmonkey01's review against another edition
4.0
The series continues to improve with each book. Cal has grown up a little, and is far less angsty now. Oh, there's still angst, it's just in smaller amounts than before, with some newfound maturity to balance it out. And we finally get to go inside Niko's head! His "voice" is a little dry, but the insight is greatly appreciated. I thought one or so things resolved a bit too easily in the end, but with the stakes as high as they were, there really wasn't a truly plausible way for the good guys to win out in the end, so I guess I'll allow it. Looking forward to see where the series goes from here...
gilmargirl's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
faehistory's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
wetdryvac's review against another edition
5.0
OK, that restores some faith in the series. A grim but fun run with character development.
infinite_harness9030's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0