Personal Demon by Kelley Armstrong

Hope Adams, a rare Expisco half-demon, has inherited a hunger for chaos from her demon father. When Benicio Cortez asks her to go undercover in a new supernatural gang for the Cortez Cabal, it's an opportunity to feed her addiction to chaos and to pay back the favour she owes the Cabal. But before long things are spiralling out of control and Hope is out of her depth. If she's to get out of this alive, she'll need more than her attraction for chaos. It will be up to Karl Marsten (werewolf) and Lucas Cortez (sorcerer) to help her survive.

I have to admit Hope is not my favourite Kelley Armstrong character. I've got the anthology with her introductory short story in my TBR pile (possibly another book for TBR day). I think I considered her my Paige Winterbourne. So I was kind of going into this thinking I wouldn't like it, or perhaps I would be disappointed. (This is the second book I've read recently where I've been underwhelmed at the prospect of the heroine, and the second time I'm happy to have been proved wrong.) :)

I know I've said this before, so feel free to skip this paragraph, but as a Kelley Armstrong fan, the thing I love about her writing is how quickly she can get you into a character's head. So almost despite myself I'm sucked into the story.

Kelley Armstrong plays a tight line in this book. Too far one way and Hope loses all sympathy with the reader. One thing Hope proves over and over throughout the story is that she's not the best judge of anyone's character. She makes assumptions about Karl's feelings but is quick to accept other people (the gang members) at face value. So I find what I like most about Hope is how her relationship with Karl is explored.

I've liked Karl since his first appearance in Bitten, so love the expanded role he now has in the series. And he and Hope make a great pair, they are two flawed people who ultimately find a home in each other.

"I've never lived with anyone, Karl."
"Neither have I."
"I drool in my sleep."
"I know. It's cute."

Karl is much older than Hope, and it's his experience of having to deal with his werewolf side that allows him to help Hope with her chaos addiction. Hope is an addict, she suffers from an addiction which she can't get away from because it's genetic. In the same way that Karl can never get away from his werewolf.

Lucas Cortez is the second narrator of Personal Demon. This dual protagonist approach allows us to experience two different sides to the story. I'm always glad when we find out more about the Cabals, since reading Industrial Magic (Book 4) it's a part of this world that fascinates me. So one of the major things that lifted this story for me is the further insight into the workings of the Cabal. You can almost feel the tentacles of the Cabal structure pulling Lucas in. And it's also pretty obvious (to me anyway) that he would be a worthy successor to his father.

This dual narration also allows us to 'see' Karl from both Hope and Lucas's point of view. Okay, it's obvious Karl is my favourite character. :)

Although I think you could read this book and enjoy it if you've not read any of the other books in the series as Hope is a relatively new character and Karl has only played a small role in the other books. There is an awful lot here that picks up on events and characters from the previous seven books. There are references back to events in Books 2,3,4 and 7. There's also a very nice (but brief) update on Clay and Elena.

And once again I find myself counting down the days 'til the next Kelley Armstrong release.

No Humans Involved by Kelley Armstrong

FANGIRL ALERT FANGIRL ALERT FANGIRL ALERT

Okay, I thought I should make it clear that I have a little bias here. So for anyone who may be reading these reviews with the view to getting an objective opinion. This one might not be as objective as usual - though reading through it just before posting, I think it is. :) (Note to self I must find another word to use instead of love - LOL)

A quick summary of the plot - Jaime Vegas (necromancer) hopes taking part in a television programme which intends to raise the ghost of Marilyn Monroe will lead to her being offered a show of her own. However, before that can happen she finds out the gardens of the house she is staying in hold a far nastier secret. Jaime calls on her fellow supernaturals for help – Jeremy Danvers the alpha werewolf and Eve Levine her 'ghostly' contact on the other side. It quickly becomes apparent that something evil is at work and Jaime may need to push herself and her powers farther than she’s dared to before.

I loved this book. Jaime is one of my favourite Otherworld characters, maybe because with her insecurities she is the most human of the supernaturals we have met. And I think of all the characters she is the one I can relate to. I think the scene I love most in Haunted (Book #5) is when she's on the phone to Jeremy wincing at the words coming out of her mouth yet unable to stop herself talking. And here we have a whole book of her. :)

Her relationship with Jeremy is touching and believable and takes a big step forward. He, the alpha werewolf who gives no outward signs of his feelings and Jaime who almost seems to overflow with emotion at times. I have been looking forward to them appearing in a book together ever since it became apparent how she felt about him and I think the relationship works beautifully. I always find it a worry when I really love a character and I know they're getting their own book. I have a tendency to be disappointed because I've built my expectations up so high, but that didn't happen here.

Kelley Armstrong’s characters are always a delight to read, every one an individual with their own motivations, quirks, fears and desires. As a bonus they also talk like real people – not just like characters in a book. (My favourite one-liner being Eve’s sock puppet reference towards the end of the story.) We also get a sneak peek at how Marsten and Hope’s relationship has been developing, which makes me look forward even more to the next book. (My second favourite line being Marsten's comment to Hope about checking her security.)

Some readers may question the presence of Lucas and Paige as they do seem slightly superfluous to the storyline. However, Savannah is necessary to the plot and without her adoptive parents it would be harder to explain why she suddenly appeared. So I can understand why they are included, though they don’t appear to contribute much to the story. For the first time I almost like Savannah, I think partly because of the way she doesn't insult Jaime. Maybe she's slowly growing out of that horrible teenage brat phase she was in. Though I still don't think I'm quite ready to read a book about her yet.

I can't end this review without mentioning Jaime's other relationship - the working relationship she now has with Eve. The final scene of them together I loved - LOL it made me think of Cagney and Lacey, or Charlie's Angels (except there are only two of them.) Although I guess it won't happen for a while (we have Hope and Cassandra's stories to come first) I very much look forward to the next time we catch up with Eve and Jaime.

If you’ve not read the previous six books of The Otherworld series and don't want to start at the beginning this is a pretty accessible entry. (Though I would really recommend checking out the other books, especially Bitten.) There are references to characters and events from previous books but the main plotline is pretty much standalone. Bitten remains my favourite Otherworld book, but No Humans Involved definitely makes my top three. And I’m already looking forward to Book 8.