Vicious Vampyres: Skinwalker

So dear readers, I have started a new series of books --  I know I know, such a hussy for a group of paranormal series.

This new series is the Jane Yellowrock series from a Southern author named Faith Hunter.  I think I'm noticing a trend of Southerners on my bookcase...hmmm....  As you may imagine from the title of the first book, she is a skinwalker - a Native American shape changer.  As you may imagine, this has fostered an interest in learning more about the stories of the People, but I have yet to get myself in gear to go learn about it.  I want to though as there is such a rich heritage of the Cherokee / Native American tribes about their past and their spirits.

So, back to Jane and her story.  Jane is a skinwalker but her day job is a rouge vampire hunter.  She in fact is hired by the big kahuna of the New Orleans Vampire Council to hunt down a rogue that threatens their safety.

In this world, the vampires have come out of the coffin as well.  They had to do so because Marilyn Monroe was a vamp and bit Kennedy and was staked by the FBI.  Thought it was  a great way for them to go really.

As you may know from my other posts, while I do enjoy the surface story about the paranormal, I really enjoy some of the bigger picture stuff - for instance, the socio-political implications of the paranormal in the everyday lives of the people in these worlds - the convoluted power plays and internal politics of vampires in their kisses - the supernatural as a trope in the collective unconsciousness - blah blah blah.

Faith Hunter does an admirable job with the vampire politics of her vampires in New Orleans.  I totally think that the political plays and the major families not only harken back to an earlier time in our own human history, she deftly weaves them back into false history......PS - False History is one of my favourite things, dears.  Can't even.......don't even get me started on Kiki & Herb...... another time......

Jane is down in New Orleans looking for the threat, and finds herself embroiled in vampire politics and power plays, and getting the hot eye from a mysterious fellow by the name of Rick La Fluer.

She also learns more about her own personal past and the spirit she shares a body with, her Beast.

I like the sassy mix of Jane's internal dialogue and the external adventure.  Definitely a worthwhile read for you dears.  Drop a bitch a note about what you think after you read it.

Talk soon,
RHW






Skinwalker (Jane Yellowrock, Book 1)
By: Faith Hunter
Published: July 7, 2009, ROC
ISBN: 978-0451462800

Vicious Vampyres: Dead Until Dark

"Ahhh, Sookie" --

Alan Ball got that one right.  This series, from the fertile imagination of Charlene Harris is amazing.  Though the covers suck (sorry, Charlene) what is between the covers is a great adventure both endearing and amazing, wandering through supernaturals and humans.

Sookie Stackhouse is the main character, a hard working bar waitress in backwater Louisiana, she is a happy waitress, except she can hear other people's thoughts. 

The world she is in met Vampires 3 years prior to starting the series, in the "Great Reveal" vampires all came out as it were to society.  This has proven a great vehicle to speak about public relations, group consciousness and of course, human intolerance.  One of the many things that draw you to Charlene's story is the fullness of Sookie herself.  She is a strong southern girl, raised with manners, and beauty, and now thrust into a dark whorl of politics and greed.  This causes her to grow from her humble beginnings and actually start getting some respect in the supernatural world.

The first book is really almost the prologue to the long and involved journey our main character must take.

In this first book, we discover her "problem" as well as that it does not work on vampires.  When a certain vampire, Bill Compton makes her acquaintance, she falls for his southern seduction faster than you can say "Craw-Dad diner".  She finds herself protecting him from blood drainers, who sell the vampire blood as a drug.

Since I mentioned Alan Ball at the top, I feel I should provide a disclaimer --  I like Alan's True Blood series a lot.  I have a problem watching it sometimes though as he takes many liberties with the story spine of Charlene's.  Not to say that it is bad but I just have a hard time reconciling his story with her story.  It's not so far off to be un-enjoyable but enough that it jars me a bit out of the telling.  I find Pam's character on the TV show great and Alex Skarsgaard def is a great choice for Eric.  Joe Manganiello is amazing (he's pretty in real life too).   My jury is out on Anna.

While I am not providing a huge plot here, as so many people have gotten into the story, you already know how the first book comes out,  Sookie saving the day but in peril for her life.

Get started with the books, even if you were only into the TV show -- they're worth it.

 



Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood)
By: Charlene Harris
Published: 2001, Ace Books
ISBN: 0441008534

Delicious Druids: Hounded

Writing all about my book hobby is an entertaining respite from the stresses of the everyday.  It's frankly also a great way to exercise my aging faculties upstairs.  That all being said, and again, drowning in guilt around my failure to update this blog for a bit, I have reread some great books leading into my 2012 bonanaza of fantasy.

One of the series I dug out of the metaphorical cupboard (I mean, how would you store books in a cupboard....what a waste.....china is much better there, I promise), was the new series written by a writer out of the American southwest, named Kevin Hearne.  The first book in his series is named Hounded and I enjoyed it immensly.

Why you may be tempted to ask?

I'll tell you why;  it combines a couple of passions of mine.  Let's break it down:

Number A - The book has Druids in it - In fact, the main character is a Druid.  Who doesn't love Druids (well, excepting the Romans)?

Number B - The book uses mythology as a backdrop and as a story telling method.  Yes my friends, mythology still exists past those drabs and dribbles from Bullfinch and Edith Hamilton (and her bad cover art).


Number C - The characters are all quite well written and the story line is engaging.  Oh yes, yes, yes!  Rah Rah Rah, or as my favorite lady, the mysterious Poetry Lady BFF would say, U-S-A U-S-A.  I could chant that all night.

Number D - It made me have to start a new type of post, hence the Delicious Druid tag.  I love Druids and could write all day about that.

Number E -  There are some spicy comic relief bits that tickle those grey cells.  Ok since I started making italicized points after my point, I will say I never know to use grey or gray (Thank you, thank you; I'll be here all year)
 
Alright to summate - the main character of this here yarn is named Siobhachan O'Suileabhain which is a delicious ryme muddle that in your mouth out loud - it's fun,  and is the last of the Druids.  How did he survive, you may ask?  He was in hiding from one of the Celtic gods throughout the ages since there seems to be a disagreement on the finer points of having and wielding a Fae artifact, namely, a really cool sword.

In his adventures you meet a really friendly set of werewolves, an odd old vampire, and oh yes, demons and witches!  He's basically writing for this here blog!  OMG!  They are all great well flushed out characters and the comic relief is brought up the back by a talking dog.  Loves it lots.

I wholly encourage reading his series, the Iron Druid series as it's fun sexy and flirts with mythology.  I got wet from all the references to my favorite supernatural community members and then brings it up the back with a ka-pow by using mythology.

Epic battles, saucy wenches, a thoroughly modern voice and diction. Oh, and better cover art than post of his contemporaries.


I may be in love.  <3


XX
RHW

Hounded (The Iron Druid Chronicles, Book One)
By: Kevin Hearne
Published: May 3, 2011, Del Rey
ISBN: 978-0345522474

Oldsy Timsey: Scions of Shannara

It seems that with the New Year in full swing we are going back to the beginning.  This time, we are exploring one of the longest most important series in fantasy genre - Terry Brooks' Shannara series.  I will admit we are starting with the Heritage of Shannara trilogy rather than the books that started them all but I was digging around at my parent's house over the holidays and came across my copies of these books from the 90s when they were first published.

This book lands firmly in the moment when the Federation is taking over the Four Lands.  We meet again with the Ohmsford family and the current Scions, Par, Coll, Wren and Walker Boh.  Allanon's shade is sending imagery to their dreaming selves, summoning them for a congress with him at the Hadeshorn.

There he reveals a new threat to the Four Lands - the Shadowen and the tasks that the scions with magic, Wren, Walker, and Par face.  It is a very well written book, and the imagery of the loss of magic in the land is dishearteningly akin to how our world is currently looking with its dreary outlook.

I found it a little wistful to go back to Shannara after all these years.  I think that in fact this series really did get me interested in Druids in the first place.  Before you get all high and mighty on me dearest reader, for falling under an author's spell rather than the ancient Druids of old here on Earth, let me remind you that we all learn in our formative years the stories of the old via a story teller.  Whether that be Disney or Mr. Brooks, it always happens that we hear a story for the first time, which interests us in a topic that we continue to explore as we age.

Ahem, now that I'm done with my little tirade......  It was nostalgic and like a warm hug to get back into this series, and I am looking forward to the other two books in the series to arrive back to my home from the 'rents house after I found them.  (Media Mail is slow, dears).  I will keep you posted.

The Scions of Shannara (The Heritage of Shannara)
By: Terry Brooks
Published: March 1990, Del Ray
ISBN: 0-345-37074-0

Happy New Year

Happy New Year Dear Readers!

May your light be burning into the dark.

On my end, as the magic of the turning of time collects, I am making my own resolution - to begin anew with my reviews and feedback on the paranormal world of books.

With sadness, I had been kept away from my blog project due to changes in the real world.  Now that we are in the time of new beginnings and resolutions, I am back to make this a part of my life again and hopefully yours.

Many Horrors & Kisses,
Yours Faithfully,

The Red Haired Witch

Vicious Vampyres: Guilty Pleasures

So.... I want to start at the beginning of another series that I have deep affection for and want to share with you, out there in the dark. (Yes, a little too much Norma Desmond in my life....what can you do).

It was the pictures that got small, dammit!

I digress....

So this series is one of my favorites and is definitely in the 101 of my literary cannon.  We meet Anita Blake, Animator and Vampire Hunter.  She is a small woman based out of St. Louis, MO.  In her world, vampires have come out of the coffin and weres have left the kennel and the world knows that they all exist.  While Vampires are considered legal citizens, weres have a more difficult time, especially in the Western States where varmint laws are still on the books.

Anita is an animator - that is, she raises the dead.  Using her natural affinity for death, she is able to raise corpses to testify at court cases, get knowledge from their lives and generally be a way to safeguard against the misuse of their estates and wills.  She is living her very black and white life until she is made to go with her best friend Catherine on her bachelorette party to one of the vampire owned bars in the edges of St. Louis, Guilty Pleasures.  There she meet Jean-Claude the sexy vampire owner of Guilty Pleasures.  A trap is sprung.

From there, a vampire she knows, the manager of Guilty Pleasures, Jean-Claude involves her in the caper affecting the vamp community.  Someone is killing vampires and the police are not getting to a solution;  who better to ask for help than the local vampire hunter?

This is the beginning of Anita's descent into the world of the supernatural, leaving her to decide what makes her human and what makes them monster.  I have to say that her journey through the series looking into both herself and past and her growing awareness of what makes someone a monster is a telling quandary for me. 

Indeed, in modern life, we far too often see people labeled monsters and far too many as good that perhaps upon greater reflection would be opposite.

Listen here, dear readers:  I can emphatically tell you that this series is most welcome addition to any one's book list.  While I happen to like the former designs of the book cover than the one below, it's the words that matter, not the cover.

Talk soon,
RHW

Guilty Pleasures (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter)
By: Laurell K. Hamilton
Published: August 3, 2004, Berkeley Trade
ISBN:978-0425197547

Weirding Witches: Dead Witch Walking

Hello Dear Readers --
I have been excited to come back to one of my fav authors - Kim Harrison and visited in on the trio of Rachel Morgan, Ivy Tamwood, and Jinx the pixy.
In her first book of the series, Dead Witch Walking, we are submerged into the world of post-Turn Cincinnati, OH.  On the Turn, all the supernatural citizens "came out of the closet" as it were, after the human population of the earth was decimated by a genetically engineered virus named Angel that was transmitted via tomatoes some thirty years behind us.

Rachel, Jinx and Ivy are working for the I.S. - Interlander Security - an CIA for the supernaturals.  They decide on the first night to leave and Rachel is slammed with a death threat from her former employer.  She manages to evade them and get her contract bought off by the human version of the IS - the FIB - Federal Interlander Bureau.  By hook and crook we are introduced to Rachel's new world of freelance and the mysterious first citizen of Cincinnati, Trent Kalmack and finds out he is running brimstone and bio drugs.

This book weaves together action, adventure, a healthy dose of paranoia, and an interesting alternate history.  These three along with their two main antagonists, Trent Kalmack and the demon Al are introduced.  Since I've read the next several books, I'll tell you Kim did a great job of setting herself up for a nice long series of awesome  books.

Werq!
RHW








Dead Witch Walking (The Hollows, Book 1)
By: Kim Harrison
April 27, 2004
Harper Voyager
ISBN: 978-0060572969