Joanna was raped as a teenager and now finds strength in hunting down other attackers and enacting some retribution on them. She finds herself caught up in a world of demons, shadows and light. She has to survive the first few days before she can become fully involved. Her sister gets pulled into the plot and things get more and more complicated.

It's not a bad read but not exceptional. There are some interesting twists and further books may improve things. ( )

Lost me somewhere between the main character assuming her sister's identity and the love of her life going off the deep end thinking that she's dead. May pick it up again to finish it off . . . one day . . .

I'm always on the hunt for a good urban fantasy. This one came with
two glowing recommendations (on the cover) by one of my favorite
authors, Diana Gabaldon, and also Kim Harrison. Some of the reader's
reviews were mixed so I kept my expectations in check as I started
reading. The result: I liked this book.

It starts out kind of like the movie Point of No Return, and morphs
into graphic novel (sans graphics of course). The writing is good if
a bit uneven in places, but overall compelling. I did think the
author was overfond of the f-word, and there are some dark parts to this story that are meant to be upsetting. But I'm very interested to learn
more about the mythology Pettersson has created and learn more about
her characters. The romance element was not the focus of this book, but is particularly intriguing.
Here's hoping the rest of the series is as good. ( )

I came across Viki Pettersson through an anthology called 'dates from hell' and was intrigued. I can't believe how good it is! I mean 12 signs of the zodiac and good and bad sides sounded a bit lame, but I was very impressed that has now moved to a keeper pile. Onto the next in the series! ( )

The premise: By all rights, Joanna Archer should be dead. She should've died at sixteen after a brutal assault in the Nevada desert, but she's alive, and she's spent every moment since then making herself hard as stone. A fighter. She's also a photographer who combs the Las Vegas streets at night, looking for the man to attack her, looking for the chance at revenge.

But she's not the only hunter in town. Just shy of her 25th birthday, there are other, darker things in the shadows that want Joanna Archer dead. And some of those things want her for something much, much worse . . .

My Rating

Give It Away: I'll make one thing really clear: if you want urban fantasy that DOESN'T involve the usual fangs, fur, or fey, this is a must-have. Superhero urban fantasy is a pretty original thing, and the world-building is interesting, though I don't have it all straight in my head yet. I realize I have a bias against superheroes, hence my rating. While I wasn't completely enamored of the voice or the protagonist (who does at least change and grow through the book, so that's a perk) which made the book not as addictive as it could've been, there's are things this book does chillingling well, like Joanna's identity. I may read forward in the series, but there's certain things that I want to be spoiled on before I read forward to see if it's going to be emotionally satisfying for me to go on. Like I said, there's a lot of interesting stuff going on, and it's definitely original for an urban fantasy, but I'm not pulled in, not yet.

The full review, which does include spoilers, may be found at my LJ. As always, comments and discussion are most welcome.

OH: and if any of you would LIKE to give me the spoilers I'm seeking, would you please list them in my journal instead of the community? That way, people in the comm are completely safe from spoilers if they want to be. Thanks!

REVIEW: Vicki Pettersson's THE SCENT OF SHADOWS

Happy Reading! :) ( )