2011 modern fantasy novella, side story between fourth and fifth in
the Kate Daniels series. Dali Harimau, vegetarian weretiger, finds her
pack leader (and crush) passed out in her house. A new magical threat
needs a competent magician not only to handle it but to work out
what's going on.
On the technical side, what I like best about these stories is
the occult detection: starting with a set of observations, the
protagonists have to work out just what sort of magical entity is
causing the trouble, and how to do something about it. The authors are
managing to keep this basic shape of plot fresh, not only by
plundering the world's mythologies but by tying each case to its
specific person who thinks in a specific way.
There also has to be a reason for the Obviously Perfect Couple not to
have got together before now, and this does a pretty decent job with
that – and again keeps it distinct from the reasons for the other
couples we've met in the series.
The plot is straightforward, but handled well; the team that's Ilona
Andrews always manages to keep their writing clear and enjoyable; the
supernatural beastie is one that's new to me, but seems to be
broadly true to the legends (as in, one can see how a thing like this
might have given rise to a legend like that).
This probably isn't the best place to start the series; there's only a
brief introduction to the principals, whom we're supposed to have met
before in the novels. Still, the new reader shouldn't be completely
lost.
For paper purchasers, this is in the anthology Hexed. Followed by
Magic Slays.
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