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slc333's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this one. I liked the story, I like the development of Ari & Nola's partnership from forced together by their respective superiors and annoyed (and in Ari's case sceptical and disbelieving) to acceptance, trust and then romance. I would have like to see a little more of the romance though. This definitely NOT a romance - any action between Ari & Nola is fade to black. It is an urban fantasy/mystery story. I loved the glimpses into Nola's eccentric family and hope to get more of them in future novels. I also found Ari an interesting character and will enjoy seeing more him too. Nola & Ari and VERY different yet they work well together and complement each other.
melbsreads's review
2.0
It was...okay. I didn't hate it, but I won't be tracking down the subsequent books in the series.
I thought it was promising but hampered by half-hearted world building, and characters that weren't particularly likeable. Ari seemed to spend most of his time "growling" under his breath, which I found irritating. Nola has an eating disorder that she's in denial about, and yet from the sound of it, none of her family have really tried to help her. And despite a big romance between Ari and Nola, they have very little chemistry.
The use of "agency" shorthand in the story was frustrating, because I kept having to stop and flip back to find out what they were talking about. Nola's big Irish Catholic family had - not surprisingly - so many members that it was tricky to keep track of them all and their different supernatural powers.
Basically, too much detail, not enough actual plot.
I thought it was promising but hampered by half-hearted world building, and characters that weren't particularly likeable. Ari seemed to spend most of his time "growling" under his breath, which I found irritating. Nola has an eating disorder that she's in denial about, and yet from the sound of it, none of her family have really tried to help her. And despite a big romance between Ari and Nola, they have very little chemistry.
The use of "agency" shorthand in the story was frustrating, because I kept having to stop and flip back to find out what they were talking about. Nola's big Irish Catholic family had - not surprisingly - so many members that it was tricky to keep track of them all and their different supernatural powers.
Basically, too much detail, not enough actual plot.
survivalisinsufficient's review
3.0
On the one hand, entertaining enough, and with an Israeli and set in San Francisco (though am I really supposed to believe that Israelis would want to send someone away because they have a problem with him being too blunt? That is not a thing in Israel.) On the other hand, why give the badass heroine anorexia? Distracting and not dealt with well.
dovekie's review
2.0
The mystery aspect of this book is a lot of fun, and dragged me all the way through to the end. Unfortunately, I hated the love interest and all the cute relationship stuff made me want to throw the book at a wall. He's a humorless self-involved controlling jerk with anger issues, and watching the protagonist lust after him made me ill. Unfortunately, the book is very well-written, which makes it hard to put down. It does have occasional logic problems, but overall it's an engaging read.
jna99's review
3.0
The book itself was really interesting and has a great plot and premise. However, as with most books starting a series, the book was kind of tedious, and I had to push myself to keep going. I was glad I did, and I can't wait till the next one gets here from Amazon.
krisrid's review
1.0
I usually like paranormal fiction, and this one sounded like something a little different. Unfortunately, it had nothing to keep me interested at all, and was ultimately a miss for me.
These stories usually have a male and female character who start out either not liking each other, or have some sort of conflict that ramps up the sexual tension between them, and sets the stage for them to eventually get together. This book has the two characters who don't like each other, but for me there was absolutely zero chemistry between them - zip, nada. These two characters - Ari and Nola - just came across as two people who don't like each other and are forced to work together anyway. There was not the slightest indication for me that there was something happening between them in spite of themselves.
As far as the plot goes, it was really dry. I got a full third of the way through the book, and it felt like all that happened was Nola and Ari either driving, or walking around San Francisco. The story suggests that they are investigating the case at hand, but it didn't feel like anything actually HAPPENED in the first 110 pages of the book. I kept waiting for them to find something or come across someone who knew something, but there was just more wandering around of two people I didn't particularly like, and who didn't particularly like one another.
When I realized I was forcing myself to keep reading and that I really didn't care about these people or their seemingly randome wandering around the city, I gave up. Just not a book I enjoyed, unfortunately.
These stories usually have a male and female character who start out either not liking each other, or have some sort of conflict that ramps up the sexual tension between them, and sets the stage for them to eventually get together. This book has the two characters who don't like each other, but for me there was absolutely zero chemistry between them - zip, nada. These two characters - Ari and Nola - just came across as two people who don't like each other and are forced to work together anyway. There was not the slightest indication for me that there was something happening between them in spite of themselves.
As far as the plot goes, it was really dry. I got a full third of the way through the book, and it felt like all that happened was Nola and Ari either driving, or walking around San Francisco. The story suggests that they are investigating the case at hand, but it didn't feel like anything actually HAPPENED in the first 110 pages of the book. I kept waiting for them to find something or come across someone who knew something, but there was just more wandering around of two people I didn't particularly like, and who didn't particularly like one another.
When I realized I was forcing myself to keep reading and that I really didn't care about these people or their seemingly randome wandering around the city, I gave up. Just not a book I enjoyed, unfortunately.
lauraellis's review
4.0
I love large families, at least in movies and books, but some authors don't handle them well, feel the need to get everyone out there right away (or worse, mix up who did what and who is related to whom, but you the reader know; this spoiled a very promising mystery series for me once, and I never could go back to it). Kerr handles it very well. The reader encounters or learns of the family members very naturally, as our heroine thinks about them, or as she encounters them. I really admire that. The story is very good to, and I look forward to reading more.
Kerr is a versatile author. This is her second sci-if series, of the paranormal sub genre I guess. She has another, which is space dominated, starting with Polar City Blues, which I adore, and her writing style and voice are very different. Then there is the Deverry series everyone else loves (I tried one book and didn't get any farther) and for which she is most famous. Keep writing non-Deverry books, Ms. K. (As well as Deverry books, because why be selfish and deprive all your other fans). And I'd really like a third Polar City book!
Kerr is a versatile author. This is her second sci-if series, of the paranormal sub genre I guess. She has another, which is space dominated, starting with Polar City Blues, which I adore, and her writing style and voice are very different. Then there is the Deverry series everyone else loves (I tried one book and didn't get any farther) and for which she is most famous. Keep writing non-Deverry books, Ms. K. (As well as Deverry books, because why be selfish and deprive all your other fans). And I'd really like a third Polar City book!
veronica87's review
2.0
Flat characters that never sprang to life, awkward sentence structure, stilted dialogue, and a generally boring plot ensure that I won't be reading more in this series anytime soon.
librarycatnip's review
4.0
This novel is a solid UF read by an established fantasy writer. Set in San Francisco, the narrative is mystery driven, with a nice romance that compliments it well.
alesia_charles's review
5.0
I was hoping for a good book out of experienced author Kerr (even though I got bored with her Deverry fantasy series well before it finished up), and I was not disappointed. And for once, I even had some clear ideas about *why* I liked it.
1. The characters. First-person narrator Nola O'Grady is smart, self-motivated, and knowledgeable about her areas of expertise, but not without flaws. Her expertise doesn't, however, extend to every possible permutation of paranormal phenomena. She is a bit too determined to be self-reliant (although given her mother, that seems understandable); and also rather too determined to stay a size 4.
Ari Nathan, the other major character (and love interest) is also well-drawn, though as he's seen entirely from Nola's point of view some of her opinions can't be relied on. He wrestles creditably with the news (and evidence) that some paranormal stuff is real. But what I found particularly entrancing is not that he's Israeli, but that the fact that he's Israeli occasionally trips up his interactions with Nola - that is, he's actually written as having a different cultural and historical background than an American. That's a feat worthy of a standing ovation in any book, in my not especially humble opinion; in a work of American speculative fiction, which often seems to believe that everybody's really an American at heart, raucous cheers are in order.
2. The paranormal aspect of the setting. In this iteration of a paranormal real world, most people can't perceive paranormal things, which is what I prefer (how else can this stuff be kept secret?). Different people who can perceive them, have different talents to different degrees, and if you train at them, you generally get better at them (another plus). The general tendency appears to be inheritable. Nobody actually knows everything about paranormal phenomena, and some of what they think they know may be wrong. The "Agency" Nola works for deals with incursions of what they call Chaos, trying to keep the balance between it and Harmony. Yes, not a new idea, but one that I like.
3. The plot. Devoid of stupid-for-the-sake-of-the-plot. Sometimes, the bad guys just outmaneuver the good guys; sometimes, the good guys overestimate their own abilities; sometimes, there's no way to see what's coming (despite the best of efforts). Lots of problem-solving, consulting resources, investigation. Good stuff, more than one thing going on, plenty of tension without being exhausting. The romance was there but not (I'm glad to note) take over the whole plot or devolve into sweaty sex scenes.
I found the bureaucratese used by the Agency to describe the "Talents" and various "procedures" amusing (and very believable), though I daresay it might annoy some folks.
Overall, an excellent example of the urban-fantasy type, and the second volume is already on its way to us through the mail.
1. The characters. First-person narrator Nola O'Grady is smart, self-motivated, and knowledgeable about her areas of expertise, but not without flaws. Her expertise doesn't, however, extend to every possible permutation of paranormal phenomena. She is a bit too determined to be self-reliant (although given her mother, that seems understandable); and also rather too determined to stay a size 4.
Ari Nathan, the other major character (and love interest) is also well-drawn, though as he's seen entirely from Nola's point of view some of her opinions can't be relied on. He wrestles creditably with the news (and evidence) that some paranormal stuff is real. But what I found particularly entrancing is not that he's Israeli, but that the fact that he's Israeli occasionally trips up his interactions with Nola - that is, he's actually written as having a different cultural and historical background than an American. That's a feat worthy of a standing ovation in any book, in my not especially humble opinion; in a work of American speculative fiction, which often seems to believe that everybody's really an American at heart, raucous cheers are in order.
2. The paranormal aspect of the setting. In this iteration of a paranormal real world, most people can't perceive paranormal things, which is what I prefer (how else can this stuff be kept secret?). Different people who can perceive them, have different talents to different degrees, and if you train at them, you generally get better at them (another plus). The general tendency appears to be inheritable. Nobody actually knows everything about paranormal phenomena, and some of what they think they know may be wrong. The "Agency" Nola works for deals with incursions of what they call Chaos, trying to keep the balance between it and Harmony. Yes, not a new idea, but one that I like.
3. The plot. Devoid of stupid-for-the-sake-of-the-plot. Sometimes, the bad guys just outmaneuver the good guys; sometimes, the good guys overestimate their own abilities; sometimes, there's no way to see what's coming (despite the best of efforts). Lots of problem-solving, consulting resources, investigation. Good stuff, more than one thing going on, plenty of tension without being exhausting. The romance was there but not (I'm glad to note) take over the whole plot or devolve into sweaty sex scenes.
I found the bureaucratese used by the Agency to describe the "Talents" and various "procedures" amusing (and very believable), though I daresay it might annoy some folks.
Overall, an excellent example of the urban-fantasy type, and the second volume is already on its way to us through the mail.