An early work in the urban fantasy genre, this one includes a Wiccan and the paranormal branch of the Dallas PD as they search for clues to a string of mass sacrificial killings. What stood out for me was the range of people who formed the "extras" in this book, everything from a young girl on her 17th birthday who meets the great evil at the beginning, to the cigar-chomping Chief of Police of Dallas, to a pesky reporter who ventures a little too far into areas he was exploring. And the characters in the extras were a good mix of men and women, something that was burgeoning in the late 80's when this book was written.

The idea was an original one: "something" is woken from a long slumber and it begins its rise to power through its old way of blood sacrifices. We see a few of the victims, dislikable types who wish to harm others or who do not care what harm is done to others as long as they get their way in the world. Detective Mark Valdez is a likable fellow who knows that what he is facing is way out of his league, so he brings in his long-time Wiccan friend, Diana Tregarde, with her paranormal abilities. And having two main characters who are just friends is a relief, and means that the plot is about solving the killings rather than "will they or won't they."

I also enjoyed Diana's networking into different areas of Dallas' paranormal community, and how they confirm that what she is facing is bigger than anything she has experienced before. Many of them have fled or gone into hiding because of the reach of this great evil that is working in the City. And both she and Mark are treated as valued members of the Dallas PD without any hesitation for their paranormal work.

What did not work well for me was the amount of time spent detailing Diana's inability to solve what the Great Evil was. I could have done with less reading about mass killing/ritual sacrifice and more about how they worked to defeat it. It was not until 3/4 of the way through the book that Diana and Mark meet with a professor who states the obvious, and it is only then that the spell of confusion surrounding Diana melts away. Which of course puts them on the right track, and good triumphs over evil. A good re-read and a good venture into this genre for this fantasy author. ( )

The best of Lackey's exotic magical books. The historical details are fascinating and the plot very believable. ( )

“Burning Water” is the first of the fantasy books by Mercedes Lackey about her character, Diana Tregarde. It takes place in 1980’s Dallas, Texas.

In this book Diana, or Di, teams up with an old friend of hers, a Dallas homicide detective, Mark Valdez, to investigate a series of murders in Dallas that involve magic and the supernatural. Valdez knows Di is a powerful witch, so when he suspects there’s a magic aspect to the murders he asks his chief to let him call Di in as a consultant. For the whole time they’re investigating they know there’s magic, but they have to keep reporting to the chief as though there isn’t, because who would believe that?

We know from the first chapter that the supernatural villain is based on Aztec mythology.

I was disappointed by the deus ex machina ending, feeling like that left the story kind of flat.

I didn’t like the depiction of white Texans in the story, their dialogue all made them sound like cartoon caricatures of Texans. Maybe many Texans talk like that, but the only Texan I personally know certainly doesn’t, he speaks English like the well educated person he is with barely an accent.

Overall, the book was alright. I was entertained for a few hours reading it. If I hadn’t already bought the two follow up Diane Tregarde novels, I’m not sure this book alone would’ve motivated me to buy them. ( )

One of Misty Lackey's best. Diana Tregarde, mystical worker teams with Detective Mark work together to solve a mystery that involves the Old Gods of Mexico. ( )

This is the first book in the Diana Tregarde series but the book didn’t quite feel like Di was the main character. It was more about Mark and his observation of Di as she helps him solve some killings in Dallas. The book was released in 1989 and you can tell it was. There are some definite points that show its age but that also help give it a fantastical feel which is exactly what this book is – paranormal goodness.

The book is really good and full of action, history and relationships. The story starts off immediately and it doesn’t really ever ease up on the intensity until the last few pages of the book. Both Mark and Di are very interesting characters and the author establishes the length of the relationship and you never doubt it because of the ease they have with each other. The mystery is a little obvious and there were times I wondered why Mark and Di didn’t see it. The author tried to explain it away but it still seemed too obvious.

The friendship between Mark and Di was so refreshing because it was a man and woman true friendship. No gay best friend, no secret love for each other, no friends with benefits -- just a good friendship built over years of knowing each other.

I actually had to deduct a whole star for the ending. I can’t really get into too much other than to say it was less than satisfying. I also think the Kindle version needs some editing as there several editing errors in the book.

Overall a really good book and I look forward to reading the next one in the series.
( )