RogerBW's Blog

2014 modern fantasy novella in the Kate Daniels series. Dali Harimau, myopic vegetarian weretiger sorceress, looks into a missing grandmother.

The first part of Dali's story was in Magic Dreams, and you should probably read that before this even if you're not going through the whole series as I am. Once more there's occult detection, and if the first part of the problem is fairly straightforward, the way it develops is rather less so: it's a fine lesson in how to introduce complication to a story without devaluing the progress that has been made so far. (And the eventual reason for the evil plot is perhaps a bit of a stretch, but does more or less make sense.)

At the same time, Dali has to negotiate her relationship with Jim, the Pack's chief of security; there's a certain amount of trouble with self-image (of the "I can't see why he's interested" flavour), but at least it makes sense (in a society that mostly values physicality and combat, she really doesn't do those things). Jim's side of the question is perhaps a bit too straightforward, but once again the composite that is Ilona Andrews manages to write a couple that's not just like all their other couples.

For paper purchasers, this is in the anthology Night Shift.