Lisa Shearin

I liked this book, but was able to put it down for days at a time; it just didn't keep me like the previous installments. I think part was due to the fact that I felt the author chickened out of the 'darker' relationship between Raines and Tam in favor of the 'good guy' Mychael, by making him more mysterious and with some shade to his past. That was just a cop-out in my opinion.
I would also like to see some more satellite character development and not just descriptions.
Okay--this sounds like a harsh commentary on the book, but in general its a fast read with lots of action and it was well written.… (more)

I love Lisa Shearin's Raine Benares books, but I was off-put by The Grendel Affair "The first in a new series." I stopped reading it because to me, this book seems like an early writing attempt, unearthed and brought forth, on the success of the Benares books. I don't know if that's the case, but there are a couple of annoying shortcuts employed in this book, that I've encountered with newbie novelist before.

First, The character introduction feels truncated... We're brought in to the story after that protagonist has made The Big Life Change. We're quickly told how the protagonist came to be in the new life circumstance that drives the plot, rather than reading through the change with her. I prefer to read boos in order, so whenever I run in to this it leaves that bothersome itch in my brain- "Hey you've accidentally started reading the second book in the series. Put it down! All the backstory you're missing is in the first book!"

Then there's the "baldly state that your character looks like actor X " approach to character description. One example, "Kinda like Mr. T without the bling." supports the theory that this book wasn't written in this decade. I don't mind that an author has an actor in mind for the character and intimates the resemblance to the reader. But I found the approach to be clumsy and a bit of a jarring shortcut in this book.

Basically, I think Lisa Shearin is a talented story teller and has done better work. I'm actually rather hoping that The Grendel Affair IS a revamp of an early manuscript, published now that she's established a following. In that case, the next book will be much better than this first in the series.
Perhaps, I'll fight my sequential book preference and give it a try.… (more)

A magical prequel featuring pirates, goblins, elves and stolen souls. Raine Benares is the only (or at least mostly) law abiding member of a criminal family. Distancing herself from the family business sees her making a living as a seeker - a person who finds and retrieves stolen goods, missing items or kidnapped people.

In this first case, Raine is charged with finding some stolen jewellery and teams up with her cousin, Captain Phaelan Benares - second most feared pirate of the seven kingdoms - and newcomer to the city, the infamous Tamnais Nathrach - the ex right hand and magical enforcer of the goblin queen. And Raine needs all the help she can get because it's not just stolen jewellery she's after - but stolen souls.

I really liked this. The banter between Raine and Phaelan and Tam and the rest is snarky and hilarious. The mystery was interesting and the world building was well done - even if not anything particularly original. It was full of action and adventure and a great start to a new urban fantasy series. 4 stars.… (more)