Today’s hottest urban fantasy authors come together in this delicious brew that crackles and boils over with tales of powerful witches and dark magic!
In Charlaine Harris’ “Bacon,” a beautiful vampire joins forces with a witch from an ancient line to find out who killed her beloved husband. In “Seeing Eye” by Patricia Briggs, a blind witch helps sexy werewolf Tom Franklin find his missing brother—and helps him in more ways than either of them ever suspected. And in Jim Butcher’s “Last Call,” wizard Harry Dresden takes on the darkest of dark powers—the ones who dare to mess with this favorite beer.
For anyone who’s ever wondered what lies beyond the limits of reality, who’s imagined the secret spaces where witches wield fearsome magic, come and drink deep. Let yourself fall under the spell of this bewitching collection of short stories!
Anthologist Elrod (My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding) taps into the urban fantasy craze with a mixed bag of wizardry, mystery and glamour. The best include Patricia Briggs's wistful "Seeing Eye," wherein blind witch Wendy Moira Keller helps werewolf Tom Franklin search for his missing brother, and Jim Butcher's funny "Last Call," which finds wizard Harry Dresden hot on the tail of Meditrina Bassarid, a wicked wine-loving maenad who wreaks havoc in a Chicago bar. In Rachel Caine's romantic "Death Warmed Over," Holly Anne Caldwell, a resurrection witch, falls in love with Andrew Toland, a corpse from 1875, while Elrod's "Hecate's Golden Eye" tells of a 1937 hunt for a curious family gem. Though not particularly groundbreaking, these tales will easily keep paranormal mystery fans entertained. (July)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Elrod ("The Vampire Files") curates another urban fantasy anthology featuring a mix of marquee names and newcomers. Unlike in his previous collections (My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding; My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon), the theme—witches—is looser, allowing the contributors freedom to expand upon their current popular series. Best-selling authors Patricia Briggs (Bone Crossed) and Jim Butcher (Turn Coat) open the anthology with stories set in familiar worlds. While Briggs's "Seeing Eye" is not tied to either of her current series, the themes are similar, and her weres make an appearance. Butcher's "Last Call," the highlight of the collection, finds wizard detective Harry Dresden tracing a batch of tainted beer to a Chicago Bulls game. Faith Hunter's promising new series featuring skinwalker Jane Yellowrock is launched in the surprisingly touching "Signatures of the Dead." The only misstep here is Karen Chance's (Curse the Dawn) contribution, "Vegas Odds," which focuses on a drawn-out fight scene at the expense of character development. VERDICT Readers will pick this one up for the popular authors and be pleasantly surprised by the tyros. Highly recommended.—Nanette Wargo Donohue, Champaign P.L., IL
