Witchling

Author: Yasmine Galenorn
Published: October 3, 2006 (Berkley)
Category: Urban Fantasy
Series: Sisters of the Moon #1
Rating: 7/10

The cover says that this is paranormal fantasy, but it really isn't, and Yasmine Galenorn has said so on her website. The series is actually urban fantasy and now that I view it as such, I like the book more, and got over some of the relationship issues that were bothering me. When I believed it to be paranormal romance, I was saying to myself, "This isn't much of a romance." I almost stopped reading it as well because I really don't need to read about another heroine who cares more about her shoes than the demons that might be attacking her, but it really picked up and I couldn't put it down!

We’re the D’Artigo sisters: Half-human, half-Faerie, we’re savvy—and sexy—operatives for the Otherworld Intelligence Agency. But our mixed-blood heritage short-circuits our talents at all the wrong times. My sister Delilah shapeshifts into a tabby cat whenever she’s stressed. Menolly’s a vampire who’s still trying to get the hang of being undead. And me? I’m Camille—a wicked-good witch. Except my magic’s as unpredictable as the weather, as my enemies are about to find out the hard way...

At the Wayfarer Inn, a portal to Otherworld and the local hangout for humans and beasties alike, a fellow operative, Jocko, has been murdered. Every clue points to Shadow Wing, the soul-munching, badass leader of the Subterranean Realms. He’s made it clear that he aims to raze humankind to the ground, turning both Earth and Otherworld into his private playground. Our assignment: Keep Shadow Wing and his minions from creeping into Earth via the Wayfarer. The demons figure they’re in like Flynn. After all, with only my bumbling sisters and me standing in the way, how can they miss? But we’ve got a secret for them: Faulty wiring or not, nobody kicks ass like the D’Artigo girls...

The good: The action sequences are well written, without being graphically violent or overly complex to the point where you don't know who's killing what and how they're accomplishing that feat. Galenorn brings in all sorts of creatures, one of which is a white dragon with a dry sense of humor, and I think we'll get to see him again in one of the future novels. Future novels? Yes, this is going to be a series, with at least six books planned out, two per sister. I was thinking there'd be nine because the sisters are tracking down nine magical seals that will prevent Hell from busting loose on Earth and Otherworld.

The bad: It may not be bad yet, but Camille's involved with two men at the same time. She's sleeping with her ex-boyfriend Trillian, a Svartan (one of the dark Fae and sex with them is almost addictive) and Morio, the fox demon assigned to help them by one of the Fates. As this isn't a romance and it's not the last time we'll read a Camille-centric book, she hasn't decided what to do about her two men. I'm just hoping Galenorn doesn't pull a Laurell K. Hamilton and make Camille into the next Meredith Gentry, sleeping with anything that has a penis (and I'm not sure it's limited to that).

The second book, Changeling, is already out, so that's on my "to buy" list.