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Monday, February 13, 2012

The Scent of Shadows (Signs of the Zodiac Series #1) by Vicki Petersson


Publisher's Blurb:
When she was sixteen, Joanna Archer was brutally assaulted and left to die in the Nevada desert.
By rights, she should be dead.
Now a photographer by day, she prowls a different Las Vegas after sunset—a grim, secret Sin City where Light battles Shadow—seeking answers to whom or what she really is . . . and revenge for the horrors she was forced to endure.
But the nightmare is just beginning—for the demons are hunting Joanna, and the powerful shadows want her for their own . . .
 

Review:  This is my first review for a dark fantasy book.  Dark fantasy, according to Publisher's Weekly, is a blend of "fantasy, comic book superheroism and paranormal romance, but holds no promise of a happily-ever-after".  And I would say that is entirely accurate based on The Scent of Shadows.  I tend to avoid all fantasy novels because they bore the crap out of me, to be completely honest.  While I appreciate the elaborate world-building, and incredibly descriptive pages detailing clothing, weapons and whatnot (same reasons I can't read Tom Clancy and Stephen King - why write a paragraph when one can drone on for 3 pages?), I am a straightforward, action-oriented gal and that's how I like my books, too.  So I found myself wanting to put this book down and walk away during the parts that dealt with elaborate rules, complicated alternate world structure, and sudden new abilities that manifested JUST IN TIME to save our heroine (like Joanna suddenly being able to melt a weapon that is about to cause her death.  How timely!  How convenient!  How totally tossed in there to advance the action and save our heroine!). But what kept me reading was the outstanding action, and a compelling, well-developed kick-ass heroine who, while a mere mortal, trained to such an extent that she was a true warrior before ever metamorphosing into something more.  Joanna is a fascinating character - she is tough and determined but beneath that steely exterior is incredible pain.  Her father has never wanted her, shortly after her brutal attack her beloved mother abandoned the family, and her first love disappeared from her life as well.  Her sister Olivia is the only person in her life who loves her, and who she loves back.
The book starts with a bang, as Joanna is attacked by a paranormal being, and her first love pops back into her life, on the eve of her twenty-fifth birthday.  And as she soon learns, this birthday is significant because she is about to change into a superhero who must choose sides between the dark and light Zodiacs.  There is a Zodiac troop guarding each major city from their evil Shadow counterparts, and both sides want Joanna because she's special.  Over the next 24 hours Joanna is disowned by her billionaire father, learns he's not really her father, learns her mother is still alive, reunites with her first love, watches as her sister is murdered, murders her sister's murderer, and decides to join the good Zodiac troop, who promptly knock her out and give her extensive plastic surgery to turn her into an Olivia lookalike. 
And there's still 250 pages left!
So, if you like your paranormal stories a little gritty, crave lots of bloody action, and love elaborate paranormal worlds with lots of complications, rules, and surprises, this is the series for you.  Add in compelling writing, fascinating characters, really intriguing subplots, and a little sexy romance and this was one exciting read.


Check out the author's website at http://www.vickipettersson.com/.

1 comment:

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