There is more focus on characters here with Simon addressing his criminal past, Connor dealing with his own issues and Jane trying to be good but still a little evil. There are old and new enemies and while there is still some of the silliness of the first novel it's much less present here. The slapstick is downplayed in preference to Strout's wit. ( )

Though still crafting oddball events and giving his main character plenty of recriminatory moments, Strout steps Simon Canderous up a notch, moving his soggy-behind-the-ears rookie to a moderately-moist-behind-the-ears rookie. There is still lots of red tape and bureaucratic finagling and mangling, weird ghosts and possessed statues, vendettas and opportunities for batting practice, but the most challenging aspect for Simon: dealing with his former cult member girlfriend in an actual relationship. The slap-happy romp continues in this second caper, just mind that when you rip off the red tape you don't take skin with you. ( )

Simon Canderous is back and he's still inundated by paperwork! Well, that never ends. He also has to work the booth at ComicCon although the Inspectre is there so it might not really be a punishment for...something or other. It's on the way back that he and Connor end up at a crime scene wherein all the bodies have been drained of blood. So obviously a vampire attack. That's what Simon says. But then someone from his past--who happens to have a vampire fetish--turns up. Oh, and Jane seems awfully close to her new boss, Wesker. Simon's really not having a good day. (Does he ever?)

This and the previous book are way fun and full of laughs (and the best ever fight with villains--not the so much how as the where) and lots of Buffy/Angel references. Kinda has that feel about them. I really like them. ( )

Simon Canderous is back still fighting evil and paperwork with the Department of Extraordinary Affairs (DEA) in NYC. This time he and his partner, Connor, are investigating some particularly gruesome deaths and working the company booth at a Sci/Fi convention. At the same time, Simon is having his first long-term relationship, ever, and that is complicated by the arrival of a female associate from his criminal past.

I really enjoyed this book. I love Simon and the cast of characters. The situations he manages to get into are really funny and there is a lot of action. It is light urban fantasy and very readable. ( )

Deader Still is the sequel to Anton Strout's debut novel Dead to Me. This time, Simon Canderous of New York's Dept. of Extraordinary Affairs is up against another batch of supernatural baddies, including a possible vampire invasion. Of course, the DEA is a government agency, so he also gets to fight red tape and budget troubles. And then there's tension with his girlfriend, ex-cultist Jane, not to mention some leadership troubles with his partner Conner...

Simon's a fun character. His psychometry gives him the ability to see an object's history by touching it, and his retractable bat gives him the ability to see a zombie's insides by whacking it. These two tools, along with a steady barrage of pop culture references, are pretty much what see him through the story.

This is a fun read that doesn't take itself too seriously, and never pretends to be anything but what it is. The pace moves right along, running poor Simon a little ragged in the process, but providing plenty of action. If you liked Dead to Me, it's a safe bet you'll like this one even more. We pick up some threads from the first book, and we also see Simon growing a bit. He knows how to control his powers better now -- well enough to maintain an actual relationship for the first time in his life. (Hard to keep a relationship going when you're accidentally reading your lover's secrets from everything you touch.) Of course, since this is Simon's first relationship, he gets to make all the fumbling mistakes most of us made as teenagers, which is a little painful at times, but understandable.

No book is perfect. If you want deep, serious, intense urban fantasy, this might not be the book for you. But the only real complaint I had was a minor quibble, that the Buffy jokes started to get repetitive. Hopefully Simon can expand his pop culture references a little more for book three.

The last page gives us the hook for the next book, but since the major conflicts of this book are all resolved, I won't complain too much about being left hanging on this new crisis ... assuming Anton hurries up and gets the next book out soon. ( )