Unholy Ghosts - Stacia Kane

I've read some amazing Urban Fantasy this year. The genre continues to expand, and the variety that we're starting to see really excites me. Not only are we starting to see people branch out from vampires and werewolves, we're starting to see even more interesting vampires and werewolves. Unholy Ghosts by Stacia Kane is one of those books that makes me really excited about the future of the genre.

Chess is a debunker for the church. She goes into people's homes and either confirms real hauntings, or finds out if the clients are trying to fleece the church for money. When she owes a lot of money to a drug dealer, she finds herself stuck between two of The Downside's biggest drug dealers. One top of all of that, there's a strange ghost tormenting members of the church. Chess suddenly has more trouble than she knows what to do with, and has to find a solution that will work for everyone.

Chess is an intriguing character. She's an unrepentant drug user. She makes some bad decisions as a result, and even acknowledges that she probably shouldn't be using before work, but doesn't let that detract from getting her next fix. The drug use is handled neutrally. Kane doesn't glamorize it, and she doesn't demonize it. It speaks for itself, and it's clear that Chess would be better off without the drugs, but that doesn't stop her. I thought Kane did a great job with the subject matter. At some point Chess is going to have to deal with addiction, and I look forward to seeing how she does that in future books.

There's more to Chess than her drug use. She's completely devoted to the church. She's had a rough childhood, and while some of the that is hinted at, a lot of her past issues still remain a mystery. It's curious that she lives in The Downside (the rough, poorer part of town). He education sets her apart from her neighbors, as evidence in simple things like her speech. If it weren't for the church, she probably wouldn't be that different from the people she surrounds herself with.

Unholy Ghosts has some of the strongest world building I've ever seen in an urban fantasy world. Kane uses blurbs at the start of each chapter to give the reader insight into the church that governs the world. The settings in the book are just as important and interesting as the characters. Kane paints a very vivid picture of The Downside, the seedy area with its own rules, and even its own dialect. The Downside is definitely not a place I would want to wander into at night. In contrast, there's the residential part of town that feels more like our world.

Unholy Ghosts is a dark blend of urban fantasy and horror. Kane has created a unique world, and characters that stick with you, even when you don't initially think they will. Stacia has put up the first five chapters of the book online as a preview. Go check it out, and then go buy the book.

Mind Games by Carolyn Crane

I had been eyeing Mind Games by Carolyn Crane for a few weeks, and then I saw Vicki Pettersson tweet that she loved the book. I picked up a copy and bumped it up on the to be read list. (Vicki has great book recommends. I picked up Night's Cold Kiss by Tracey O'Hara after hearing her talk about it, and it was awesome too.)

The premise of the book is interesting. Justine is a hypochondriac. All she wants is to live a life without constant fear. Not only is she afraid that a blood vessel is going to burst in her brain at any second, she's also worried about the 8 year long crime wave that has been terrorizing her city. Highcaps (people with supernatural abilities like telekinesis) have been using their powers rob, kill, and frighten the citizens of Midcity. When she meets Packard, she's given a chance to cure herself of her hypochondria. Packard gives her a way to channel all of her fear into criminals, essentially becoming a sort of superhero.

Justine is different from other urban fantasy heroines. Most of the time, these woman are bad ass bitches, ready to kick the ass of anyone that's standing in their way. They make bad decisions, they don't show their emotions, and they're always ready for a fight. Justine is almost meek. All she wants is to have a normal, quiet life with her boyfriend Cubby. I really loved that Justine was naive about using her new powers and getting involved with The Disillusionists.

Crane creates an interesting cast of characters, and her choice to use people's fears as a weapon to fight crime is intriguing. The material is dark, but Crane is able to balance the darkness with the sometimes almost comic book feel of the story. For instance, The Dissillusionists hang out in a super tacky restaurant. The restaurant serves as part command central, part hang out. There's also a lot of ambiguity going on in the book. Justine questions whether she's fighting on the right side of justice, and as the book progresses the reader can't tell either. Crane keeps you guessing through the whole book.

The book had a few only minor issues for me. The first was the present tense narrative. It's not my favorite narrative style, but after the first 50 pages I completely forgot about the tense and was able to get completely engrossed in the story. I also felt that the resolution at the end happened a little fast, but I really think that the fast resolution sets up a lot more drama for book two. By the time I finished the book, the resolution didn't seem like an issue at all. It was worth it for the potential it creates for book two.

Double Cross, the second book will be out in September of this year. Do yourself a favor and pick up the first book now. Crane has created a unique urban fantasy world that is different from anything else that I've read.