Author: Cat Adams
Publication: Tor Books; First Edition edition (March 1, 2011)
Description: In a world where magic is real and the supernatural is almost normal, bodyguard Celia Graves has survived a vampire attack which made her a half-vampire and awakened her latent Siren abilities. She’s battled a Siren Queen to the death and twice faced down a demon that wants to kill her--slowly. She’s also had her heart broken--twice--by her old flame, magician Bruno DeLuca.
Perhaps the worst thing was the discovery that Celia’s life has been warped by a curse laid on her during childhood--the cause of everything from the death of her little sister to the murder of her best friend the same night that Celia became an Abomination.
An ancient rift between the demonic dimension and our own--sealed during the destruction of Atlantis--begins to open, threatening to loose all the demons of hell on humanity (including the one personally bent on destroying Celia). Celia’s hellish recent experiences have given her the unique combination of abilities needed to close the rift. But to overcome the curse, which nearly guarantees her failure, she’ll need to join forces with people she no longer trusts...and put people she has come to care about directly in harm’s way.
My Thoughts: This was a strong third entry in the Celia Graves series. Celia is a wonderful character. She is strong and resilient. I liked her determination to remain herself no matter what new challenge was thrown at her. She's a vampire but she doesn't drink blood. She survives on nutrition shakes (don't give her banana!) and pureed foods that friends prepare for her. She is a siren and a member of the royal family but she is careful not to take advantage of the attraction men feel to her. She is also a loyal friend to Dawna and Emma who were damaged as a result of being too near Celia in her last adventure and are now dealing with the trauma.
I liked her relationship with her ex-fiance Bruno and her new love interest John Creede. Both men are powerful mages and very involved in stopping the demon outbreak. This isn't a good time for a new relationship and the relationships with both men reflect that reality.
Some interesting characters include her friend Vicki who is a ghost and who was a clairvoyant in life. She was also incredibly wealthy and left her friends large amounts of money. However, that is still tied up in court because Vicki's mother who is a famous actress is contesting the will. One plot thread has to do with finding out why Vicki left one-quarter of her estate to a stranger.
I think that the only problem I had with the book is that it had so many characters. I think every character Celia met in the first two volumes of this series made an appearance and had some sort of problem in this episode. It sometimes made it difficult to remember what was going on. On the other hand, that some thing made the story quite realistic. Most of us don't have our problems one at a time but, thankfully, most of us don't have the number or severity of problems that Celia faces.
I enjoyed this entry into the series and look forward to further adventures. I recommend this one to lovers of urban fantasy. Celia Graves is a great character to get to know.
Favorite Quote:
Jones was shaking his head silently, disbelief plain on his face. It made me shrug and comment, "Hey, you're a mage, he's a vampire, and I'm a vampire-siren-human. Why not ask a ghost to help free a werewolf?"This one follows:
Awesome review! So can't wait to read this one, so I had to just skim it a little! :)
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