City of Ghosts (Downside Ghosts, Book 3) by Stacia Kane Paperback: 416 pages Publisher: Del Rey Available: July 27, 2010 Genre: Urban Fantasy Book received from: Purchased by reviewer

IT’S A THIN LINE BETWEEN ALIVE AND UNDEAD.

Chess Putnam has a lot on her plate. Mangled human corpses have started to show up on the streets of Downside, and Chess’s bosses at the Church of Real Truth have ordered her to team up with the ultra-powerful Black Squad agency to crack the grisly case.

Chess is under a binding spell that threatens death if she talks about the investigation, but the city’s most notorious crime boss—and Chess’s drug dealer—gets wind of her new assignment and insists on being kept informed. If that isn’t bad enough, a sinister street vendor appears to have information Chess needs. Only he’s not telling what he knows, or what it all has to do with the vast underground City of Eternity.

Now Chess will have to navigate killer wraiths, First Elders, and a lot of seriously nasty magic—all while coping with some not-so-small issues of her own. And the only man Chess can trust to help her through it all has every reason to want her dead.

Reviewed by: Fiction Vixen

City of Ghosts is one of those books that needs to be discussed the moment you finish reading it.  You know, those really intelligent conversations where you blurt out things like, “OMG! WTF! Can you believe how that all went down?”.  It doesn’t matter who you have this discussion with, anyone will do.  You just need to have it.  Even if it’s with your unsuspecting husband who has no idea who Terrible is and why you’re so excited about him. (Sorry hubs) I actually had many moments like this throughout the book but after finishing, I was literally exhausted, and found it difficult to talk past the lump in my throat. It’s not often that I read a book and have to put in down for breaks because my muscles are tense and my jaw hurts from gritting my teeth.  Even a few days after finishing City of Ghosts, this book is still with me, I am still thinking about it.  I feel like the grit of this story is all over me and I’m not ready to wash it off just yet.

City of Ghosts is the third installment in the Downside Ghosts series.  With each book in this series Stacia Kane pushes the limits just a little further. I continue to be impressed with the superior story telling, and the incredibly vivid, crisp writing.  Once again, Stacia Kane brings the Downside to life by immersing me deeply into a complex, gritty world that is steeped in fantasy, horror, and mystery. The level of violence in City of Ghosts goes well beyond what we’ve seen in the previous books, and I admit I was pushed slightly out of my reading comfort zone.  However, the violence never felt gratuitous and simply thrown in for shock value, but instead it felt appropriate for the dangerous world in which Chess Putnam lives.

Within the sometimes shocking violence, and suspense, Stacia Kane weaves a deeply complicated relationship between Terrible and Chess that will tear your heart to pieces.  Their relationship has been building up to an emotional boiling point in the previous two books but City of Ghosts brings it on an emotional level like no other.  Chess and Terrible are both flawed but not beyond what is forgivable, and amidst the constant threat of danger, the desire to love and be loved is present within them.  The range of emotional turbulence in their relationship kept me on the edge of my seat and absolutely breathless.

If the series were to end here, I would be deeply disappointed, however the ending of City of Ghosts is intensely satisfying and left me in tears.  Thankfully, this is not the end for Chess, Terrible and the Downside Ghosts series.  Stacia Kane has confirmed there will be a 4th and 5th book, she just needs to write them.

If you have not read this series, get thee to a book store now!  This is one of the best Urban Fantasy series I’ve read and City of Ghosts is on my top ten favorite books for 2010.

Favorite Quotes:

She’d never been able to resist temptation—especially an unhealthy one—and at that moment he was another pill, another line; one she needed, one she would die if she couldn’t have, and her entire body was already vibrating in anticipation.

Oh, yes. Terrible’s eyes narrowed; he gave Chess the kind of look most people reserved for ax murderers. Ax murderers who killed children. And kittens. She shivered.

Purchase a copy of City of Ghosts

Other books in the series:

• Unholy Ghosts
• Unholy Magic

Other reviews on GoodReads

Visit Stacia Kane at:

Website | Blog |Twitter | Facebook | GoodReads

Check out my guest post with Wicked Lil Pixie over at SmokinHotBooks. The top 10 reasons you NEED to read Unholy Ghosts by Stacia Kane.

There are some fabulous book releases coming and Tuesday can’t get here quick enough for me!  Here are just a few I’m looking forward to:

 

City of Ghosts (Downside Ghosts, Book 3)

By Stacia Kane 

Review coming soon on FVBR

IT’S A THIN LINE BETWEEN ALIVE AND UNDEAD.

Chess Putnam has a lot on her plate. Mangled human corpses have started to show up on the streets of Downside, and Chess’s bosses at the Church of Real Truth have ordered her to team up with the ultra-powerful Black Squad agency to crack the grisly case.

Chess is under a binding spell that threatens death if she talks about the investigation, but the city’s most notorious crime boss—and Chess’s drug dealer—gets wind of her new assignment and insists on being kept informed. If that isn’t bad enough, a sinister street vendor appears to have information Chess needs. Only he’s not telling what he knows, or what it all has to do with the vast underground City of Eternity.

Now Chess will have to navigate killer wraiths, First Elders, and a lot of seriously nasty magic—all while coping with some not-so-small issues of her own. And the only man Chess can trust to help her through it all has every reason to want her dead.

 

As Lie the Dead (Dreg City, Book 2)

by Kelly Meding

Review coming soon on FVBR

Evangeline Stone, a rogue bounty hunter, never asked for a world divided between darkness and light . . .

. . . or the power to die and live again in someone else’s borrowed body. After a murder plot meant to take her out leaves an entire race of shapeshifters nearly extinct, Evy is gnawed by guilt. So when one of the few survivors of the slaughter enlists her aid, she feels duty-bound to help—even though protecting a frail, pregnant shifter is the last thing Evy needs, especially with the world going to hell around her.

Amid weres, Halfies, gremlins, vamps—and increasingly outgunned humans—a war for supremacy is brewing. With shifters demanding justice, her superiors desperate to control her, and an assassin on her trail, Evy discovers a horrifying conspiracy. And she may be the only person in the world who can stop it—unless, of course, her own side gets her first.

 

 

Shadow Fall 

By Erin Kellison 

Review coming soon on FVBR

Sacrifice

Custo Santovari accepted pain, blood, even death, to save his best friend. But a man with all his sins just isn’t cut out to be an angel.

Mystery

One moment he’s fleeing Heaven; the next, he’s waking up stark naked in Manhattan. In the middle of a war. Called there by a woman who’s desperately afraid of the dark.

Shadow

It gathers around Annabella as she performs, filled with fantastic images of another world, bringing both a golden hero and a nightmare lover.

Wolf

He pursues her relentlessly, twisting her desires even as she gives herself to the man she loves. Because each of us has a wild side, and Annabella is about to unleash the beast.

 

 

A Wild Light (Hunter Kiss, Book 3)

by Marjorie M. Liu

Review coming soon on FVBR

For too long Maxine Kiss has felt an inexplicable darkness inside her-a force she channels into hunting the demons bent on destroying the human race. But when she finds herself covered in blood and crouched beside her grandfather’s dead body with no memory of what happened, Maxine begins to fear that the darkness has finally consumed her.

 

 

 

Water Bound (A Sea Haven Novel)

by Christine Feehan

Review coming soon on FVBR

Off the shores of Sea Haven, a beautiful diver rescues a man from drowning, a man with no memory of who he is-or why he seems to possess the violent instincts of a trained killer. But soon, he and his savior will be engulfed in a storm of dizzying passion and inescapable danger…

 

 

 

 

Eternal Kiss of Darkness (Night Huntress World, Book 2)

by Jeaniene Frost

Chicago private investigator Kira Graceling should have just kept on walking. But her sense of duty refused to let her ignore the moans of pain coming from inside a warehouse just before dawn. Suddenly she finds herself in a world she’s only imagined in her worst nightmares.

At the center is Mencheres, a breathtaking Master vampire who thought he’d seen it all. Then Kira appears – this fearless, beautiful….human who braved death to rescue him. Though her burns for her, keeping Kira in his world means risking her life. Yet sending her away is unthinkable.

But with danger closing in, Mencheres must choose either the woman he craves, or embracing the darkest magic to defeat an enemy bent on his eternal destruction.

 

There are so many more great books to look forward to, these are just a few I’m excited about.  What’s on your Tuesday wishlist?

Unholy Magic by Stacia Kane Paperback: 368 pages Publisher: Del Rey Available: July 6, 2010 Genre: Urban Fantasy Book received from: Random House

ENEMIES DON’T NEED TO BE ALIVE TO BE DEADLY.

For Chess Putnam, finding herself near-fatally poisoned by a con psychic and then stopping a murderous ghost is just another day on the job. As an agent of the Church of Real Truth, Chess must expose those looking to profit from the world’s unpleasant little poltergeist problem—humans filing false claims of hauntings—all while staving off any undead who really are looking for a kill. But Chess has been extra busy these days, coping with a new “celebrity” assignment while trying on her own time to help some desperate prostitutes.

Someone’s taking out the hookers of Downside in the most gruesome way, and Chess is sure the rumors that it’s the work of a ghost are way off base. But proving herself right means walking in the path of a maniac, not to mention standing between the two men in her life just as they—along with their ruthless employers—are moving closer to a catastrophic showdown. Someone is dealing in murder, sex, and the supernatural, and once again Chess finds herself right in the crossfire.

Reviewer: Fiction Vixen

To say that I love the Downside Ghosts series is a ridiculous understatement.  Two books in and I think it’s safe to say I am fully addicted, complete with the sweats, itching and panic after having read the last page in Unholy Magic.  I tried to read slowly, I did, but it was so-damn-good!  368 pages was not enough, I needed more. Now. 

I’ve tried many different ways to summarize this story but I feel in doing so I’m just giving too much away.  Since I can’t figure out how to summarize without spoiling in some way, I’ll just get right down to my thoughts. 

In Unholy Magic Chess is still very much addicted to drugs and still associating with both her regular drug dealer’s main muscle Terrible, as well a rival drug lord Lex.  She lives a dangerous, chaotic life with no clear indication that things will settle down anytime soon.  A good deal of her chaos is self imposed but such is the nature of the life of a drug addict. However in Unholy Magic, things get a bit more personal.  We get a glimpse into Chess’s tragic background and a better understanding of they reasons she abuses drugs.  Chess uses the drugs and both creates and allows chaos in her life as a way of coping—or perhaps not—with things that are just too big to handle.  Chess has really grown on me as a heroine which is actually quite surprising to me since there were several times in this book where I literally wanted to wring her neck.  She is a mess and makes bad decisions left and right.  But on the other hand her basic moral core is solid and underneath it all she is quite vulnerable.

Chess is not the only character that has grown on me.  I liked Terrible in Unholy Ghosts but I’m going to put myself out there and say I’ve moved on to loving him after reading Unholy Magic.  We get to know a lot more about Terrible and although his reality is danger and violence, somehow after pealing back his layers and getting to look a little deeper it’s easier to sympathize and understand who he is.  He still had a moment or two that made me say, “Oh no he didn’t!” but Terrible wouldn’t be Terrible unless he actually did.  (I’m still firmly supporting team Terrible)

When it comes to mystery and suspense, Stacia Kane writes with gusto.  She is a master of surprises and she simply does not hold back, pushing the boundaries with every turn of the page.  This book will make you shiver, shudder, cringe and wince but at the same time, you’ll find yourself caring deeply for characters that are far from perfect and who’s redemption seems questionable at times.

In trying to come up with an adjective to describe the over all tone and feel of this story, I came up short.  Gritty seems weak in reference to this book and just does not cover it.  I had a brief twitter conversation about the Downside series and I eventually came up with this: Unholy Magic spits on gritty and calls it’s mother names.  Yes, this book is that bad ass!  Stacia Kane has written an amazing, spine tingling novel in Unholy Magic, taking me by surprise by surpassing even the brilliance of it’s predecessor Unholy Ghosts. 

 

Favorite Quotes:

“Ain’t think I hear you right,” Terrible said in calm, quiet voice.  “Wanna loud up?”

She took a deep breath.  It felt weird to be telling him this, to be telling anyone this, but she owed him.  She had a secret of his now, one so big it was pushing one of her out to make room. 

 

Purchase a copy of Unholy Magic

Other books in the series:

• Unholy Ghosts Book 1 – May 25, 2010 *My review here*
• City of Ghosts book 3 – July 27, 2010

Other reviews on GoodReads

Visit Stacia Kane at:

Website | Blog |Twitter | Facebook | GoodReads

Unholy Ghosts (Downside Ghosts, Book 1) by Stacia Kane  Paperback: 352 pages Publisher: Del Rey Available: May 25, 2010 Genre: Urban Fantasy  Book received from: Random House

THE DEPARTED HAVE ARRIVED.

The world is not the way it was. The dead have risen, and the living are under attack. The powerful Church of Real Truth, in charge since the government fell, has sworn to reimburse citizens being harassed by the deceased.

Consequently, there are many false claims of hauntings from those hoping to profit. Enter Chess Putnam, a fully-tattooed witch, freewheeling Debunker, and ghost hunter. She’s got a real talent for nailing human liars and banishing the wicked dead. But she’s keeping a dark secret from the Church: a little drug problem that’s landed her in hot and dangerous water.

Chess owes a lot of money to a murderous drug lord named Bump. And Bump wants immediate payback. All Chess has to do is dispatch a very nasty species of undead from an old airport. But the job involves black magic, human sacrifice, a nefarious demonic creature, and crossing swords with enough wicked energy to wipe out a city of souls. Toss in lust for a rival gang leader and a dangerous attraction to Bump’s ruthless enforcer, and Chess begins to wonder if the rush is really worth it. Hell, yeah.

Reviewer: Fiction Vixen

I think most people will say they like it when an author takes risks, goes for something different and writes outside the box.  After reading Unholy Ghosts, I have to wonder if Stacia Kane is aware there is a box.  Really, Unholy Ghosts pushes the limits in what we’re seeing in Urban Fantasy today.  If you’re looking for a typical gorgeous, kick ass urban fantasy heroine who competently slays the bad guys and makes sweet hot monkey love to a sexy supernatural god-like hero then move along folks, there’s nothing to see here.  This is a dark, gritty, urban fantasy set in a post apocalyptic ghetto-like world drenched in violence and drug use.  It’s not pretty or shiny in anyway. 

Chess Putnam is a witch working for the Church of Real Truth as a Debunker.  When the Ghosts rose and wiped out a huge portion of the population, it was the Church and it’s magic that harnessed them and saved the world.  Now the Church is government and it has sworn to protect the citizens of the world from the spirits that wish to do them harm.  If Chess investigates a ghost report and determines it’s a hoax, she gets a nice hefty bonus.  Unfortunately, she spends the majority of her income on her drug habit.  

Now, I am not usually one to get behind a drug addicted heroine.  Just thinking about drug use and the yuck that comes with it turns me off.  And, I’m not going to lie, I had some serious trouble engaging with Chess in the beginning.  Well, as long as I’m being honest, I cringed and winced my way through this book every time Chess popped a pill or snorted a line.  I can’t help it, the Just Say No campaign of the 80’s and 90’s made an impression on me.  However, I think the drug use was appropriate (can illicit drug use be appropriate?) in the story and it really would have lost some of it’s edge without it.  I waited for the miraculous healing rehab magic but it never came.  Chess is just as addicted at the end of the story as she is in the beginning with even more access to her drug of choice than ever thanks to a sort of double crossing she did.  I’ll still hold out hope she’ll work through her addiction throughout the series, even if I have to call A&E and schedule and intervention.  I do have to thank the author for sticking to her guns in keeping her heroine true. High five Stacia Kane.

Chess owes a huge debt to her drug dealer Bump and he offers her a way to work off what she owes.  He wants to re-open an small abandoned airport for the purpose of flying in drugs but it seems some paranormal activity is causing him some problems.  He can’t exactly call in the Church to check it out so he strong arms Chess into solving his ghost problem.  Chess soon comes to realize that the ghost problem is worse than she thought when she discovers evidence of black magic on the scene, something that is forbidden by the Church.  To make her problems even worse, a rival gang wants stop Bump from using the airport and they are willing to cut Chess a deal she might not be able to refuse to get her to flip sides.  Chess is a resourceful girl and has had more than her fair share of hard knocks. She’ll have to figure a way to play both sides and stay alive.

If you need a little romance with your urban fantasy, then don’t worry, Unholy Ghosts has got that too.  There is a touch of romance although it’s not all that romantic in the usual sense. Chess finds herself attracted to Terrible, her drug dealer’s main muscle.  He’s feeling her too but after a drug hazed encounter, their relationship has become awkward. Terrible, every bit as tough and terrible as his name implies also has a bit of a soft vulnerable side when it comes to Chess and after their encounter, Chess has to tread lightly since involvement with him would be nothing but trouble.  Lex, the rival gang leader who is causing Chess all sorts of stress has romantic intentions toward her as well.  Between you and me, I’m on Team Terrible.    

Unholy Ghosts is one of the best Urban Fantasy stories I’ve read this year.  It’s rich with details, the suspense is heart stopping at times, and the world building is fabulously unique.  Don’t let my rant about the drug use deter you from reading this book, you would be missing out if you did.  While I don’t necessarily adore the heroine, I don’t have to approve of every action or behavior in a novel to love a book and I’m a big girl, if I choose to, I’ll get over it.  Stacia Kane has taken some risks with smashing results.  Luckily, I don’t have to wait too long for more from The Downside series, books 2 and 3 will be both be released in July, 2010. 

Favorite quote:

“And you look like Elvis vomited you up,” she managed. “So?”

 

Purchase a copy of Unholy Ghosts

Other books in the series:

• Unholy Magic book 2 – July 6, 2010
• City of Ghosts book 3 – July 27, 2010

Unholy Ghosts on GoodReads

Visit Stacia Kane at:

Website | Blog |Twitter | Facebook | GoodReads

 

****GIVEAWAY****

I have one extra copy of Unholy Ghosts to giveaway.  Your comment about this book or the review is your entry. 

Giveaway is open until June 18, winner announced the following day.  Open to all, good luck!