On This Page
Description
The author of the bestselling Dead Witch Walking makes her hardcover debut with this spellbinding new supernatural adventure featuring the highly original Rachel Morgan.Things are going well for Rachel Morgan, witch, independent runner, and one-third of the runner service Vampiric Charms. She's got a business, friends, even a semi-regular—and always-sexy—boyfriend. So what if Kisten is a vampire? So's her roommate Ivy....
But an unexpected call for help sends her out of Cincinnati on a show more desperate trip to rescue the son of her business partner Jenks. It's fun at first, even with dealing with a human-sized Jenks (you cannot believe how much trouble a 6-foot pixy can cause, especially when he looks like a supermodel...), but the road trip quickly turns dangerous when confronting an old love becomes a fight for survival.
For seeing Nick Sparagmos again is the least of Rachel's problems—the ancient, mystical statue he has stolen holds the key to sinister, wild magic that can change humans into Weres. And for the first time in milennia, the Were packs are banding together to overthrow human and Inderlander alike. The fight that follows will shake Rachel's very soul...and she will never be the same.
. show less
Tags
Recommendations
Member Recommendations
housewench Both of these books in their respective series drag their protagonists from the comfort of home, away where they've little support. Both heroines must deal with werewolves in ways that make them rethink themselves, and who they are, before they can return safely home.
42
Member Reviews
"Let's take a look at my track record. I live in a church with a vampire who is the scion of a master vampire who would just as soon see me dead. I date her old boyfriend, who used to be said master vampire's scion, and my ex-boyfriend is a professional thief who calls demons and trades information about me for tips to steal artifacts that can start an Inderland power struggle." This is the shape of Rachel Morgan's life as we go through the fourth book in Kim Harrison's series about the Hollows and the Inderlanders who inhabit it.
In fact, in this story we take a road trip away from Cincinnati - Rachel receives news that Nick (her old flame) and Jenks' son Jax are in trouble, and sets out to help them. Since Ivy is supposedly unable to show more leave Cincinnati - otherwise Piscary gets pissed - Rachel invokes black demon magic in order to make Jenks...more useful. In the course of the story Rachel beats two Were alphas, discovers the existence of the Focus which could cause widescale warfare between Weres and Vamps, takes her relationship with Ivy to a new stage, and ogles Jenks......a lot!
There is a lot going on in this book, and it rapidly became my least favourite so far. I enjoyed the interaction between Rachel and Jenks - particularly because his presence was so missed in the previous book - and the uniqueness of his situation in this book. It was also heartbreaking to realise along with Rachel that Jenks actually counts as an old pixy. I liked the set up of the plan, and cheered the double cross of Nick.
However, there were many things I disliked or got tired of. Weres aren't really my thing, and so I found it difficult to stay interested in the main part of the plot. I ended up wanting to shake Rachel, because she came distinctly whiney in this book. Everything needed double or triple analysing and, because we're stuck in her head since it's all first person, we got to hear it all again and again and again. The Focus was suddenly thrust in as a new point having never been mentioned at all in any prior books, and hence came across as an extreme plot device. I also disliked the way Nick was treated - I mean, I never really liked the guy from the get-go and was relieved when he upped and left in the last book and paved the way for Kisten. But no one deserves to become such a jerk from being a fairly nice guy - it's almost as though Harrison got sick of the character herself or wanted to open the path for something else to happen in Rachel's future and so needed to get rid of Nick.
Still, with all that said, this is still a great series and it sounds like there are explosive events ahead of Rachel - especially now that she has more of a handle on what makes her tick. show less
In fact, in this story we take a road trip away from Cincinnati - Rachel receives news that Nick (her old flame) and Jenks' son Jax are in trouble, and sets out to help them. Since Ivy is supposedly unable to show more leave Cincinnati - otherwise Piscary gets pissed - Rachel invokes black demon magic in order to make Jenks...more useful. In the course of the story Rachel beats two Were alphas, discovers the existence of the Focus which could cause widescale warfare between Weres and Vamps, takes her relationship with Ivy to a new stage, and ogles Jenks......a lot!
There is a lot going on in this book, and it rapidly became my least favourite so far. I enjoyed the interaction between Rachel and Jenks - particularly because his presence was so missed in the previous book - and the uniqueness of his situation in this book. It was also heartbreaking to realise along with Rachel that Jenks actually counts as an old pixy. I liked the set up of the plan, and cheered the double cross of Nick.
However, there were many things I disliked or got tired of. Weres aren't really my thing, and so I found it difficult to stay interested in the main part of the plot. I ended up wanting to shake Rachel, because she came distinctly whiney in this book. Everything needed double or triple analysing and, because we're stuck in her head since it's all first person, we got to hear it all again and again and again. The Focus was suddenly thrust in as a new point having never been mentioned at all in any prior books, and hence came across as an extreme plot device. I also disliked the way Nick was treated - I mean, I never really liked the guy from the get-go and was relieved when he upped and left in the last book and paved the way for Kisten. But no one deserves to become such a jerk from being a fairly nice guy - it's almost as though Harrison got sick of the character herself or wanted to open the path for something else to happen in Rachel's future and so needed to get rid of Nick.
Still, with all that said, this is still a great series and it sounds like there are explosive events ahead of Rachel - especially now that she has more of a handle on what makes her tick. show less
I love, love, love this series! It is easily in my top two that I’ve read in the last couple of years. There’s tons of action, a little bit of romance, and more witches, vamps, weres, and pixies than you can handle. Harrison has created some surprisingly complex characters that grow, change, and adapt in book after book. Especially Rachel, who continues to find out that some people aren’t what they seem, and that it’s hard to live your life in black and white — sometimes those shades of gray are necessary. Jenks takes a pretty (ahem) big part in this one as he searches for his wayward son, something that could have been really gimmicky but instead worked seamlessly. There’s so much packed into this book, it’s hard to show more believe it only takes place over the course of a week. I have a feeling I’ll be listening to the next book sooner rather than later. show less
Kim Harrison always produces reliable escapist literature, so that didn't let me down. I had a few complaints with this book, the most central being that Harrison is playing the lesbian erotica card, even while denying she is denying her main character's potential bisexuality. Rachel is SO sure that she is exclusively straight, but, reading her reactions to Ivy, I am not. Here's the thing, I know Harrison wants me to be unsure. I get it, wavering sexuality is exciting. This is maybe true for the first few books, but by now I am sort of fed up with it. Also, I have a little bit of an issue with the "forbidden" nature of Rachel's relationship with Ivy. The hesitancy is entirely due to gender, not at all to having sex with a vampire, as show more Rachel has no qualms (well, comparatively) with Kisten. So, I am wondering, is Harrison just having a hard time making the jump to lesbian erotic scenes because she thinks her audience can't handle it? Is she hesitating because she doesn't want to compromise the old-school sexuality of her main character? Or, maybe worse, is she exploiting the sexual pull of lesbianism without following through and showing us a healthy, working lesbian relationship (which isn't nearly as sexy as some vaguely lesbian scenes and may, in fact, be disgusting to some readers, even those who lap up Rachel's brief interactions with Ivy, accepting them because of their transience)? In other words, is she devaluing a relationship between Ivy and Rachel by refusing to develop it as she did Rachel's heterosexual relationship with Kisten? Harrison has built some pretty deep contradictions into Rachel's sexuality, and I am not sure that she is prepared to write about their natural conclusions. show less
To me this was the most powerful of the series. (I have not read part 5 though.) Reading this is like sitting and talking with Rachel at a coffee shop...Rachel being one of those people you find interesting, but mostly at a distance. Here Harrison takes a bit deeper into Rachel's twisted pysche. We see her agonizing about her relationship with Ivy, and about the extent to which she is drawn into circumstances which include practicing black magic, using her friends, and eventually planning a mercy killing.
Rachel goes with Jenks to pull his son out of Nick's grubby paws. Nick is in trouble with Weres over an item he stole for them, then decided to keep for himself. Rachel throws herself into danger, first to find Jenks son, then to save show more Nick. And then she throws herself into danger to undo the damage Nick did.
Nick is the surprise here, and right up to the end. He is a minor character in this book, but at the end you realize why Harrison keeps him off the to side, emotionally speaking.
This book is a great guilty pleasure. show less
Rachel goes with Jenks to pull his son out of Nick's grubby paws. Nick is in trouble with Weres over an item he stole for them, then decided to keep for himself. Rachel throws herself into danger, first to find Jenks son, then to save show more Nick. And then she throws herself into danger to undo the damage Nick did.
Nick is the surprise here, and right up to the end. He is a minor character in this book, but at the end you realize why Harrison keeps him off the to side, emotionally speaking.
This book is a great guilty pleasure. show less
This is an entertaining, engaging read. I absolutely have grown to adore Jenks, Ivy, etc. Rachel does some self-realization in this book that we, the readers, realized a long time ago. Unfortunately Rachel comes across more as a self-pity party than anything else. The action is packed, and the scenes of her with her friends are among the best. Here she reunites with her estranged partner Jenks to rescue her ex-boyfriend Nick, who has turned into a class A jerk. (Ok, maybe he has always been a jerk, but now even Rachel can't deny it) Her feelings for Nick ring true, as many women will tell you. Even when a relationship is beyond done, even when you know your ex isn't a good person, there are still those past flames that you would go show more through hell and high water for, and Rachel does. Jenks and his son Jax provides some much needed comic relief. Kiston is missing from most of this book and Rachel's relationship with Ivy takes a turn. We are left with some teasers for the next books, but they aren't exactly uplifting. I will go into her next book eagerly, if slightly apprehensively. show less
I had such a good time with this book. I read the first few books in this series years ago and didn't continue for one reason or another. Most of the series probably hadn't been written at that point. A couple of years ago, I decided to start working my way through the series again by listening to the audiobooks. I think that this might have been the first time that I read this book and I really enjoyed it.
This book picks up shortly after the events of the previous book. Rachel learns that Jenks's son Jax might be in trouble along with her ex-boyfriend, Nick, and she feels compelled to help. Rachel enlists the help of Jenks as backup and with the aid of a couple of demon curses, they head off to rescue the pair and things get show more interesting very quickly.
I really enjoyed the way that Rachel and Jenks worked together in this book. Jenks is such a great character and I tend to enjoy the scenes that he appears in and he was in the bulk of this book. I really appreciated the changes that Jenks went through in this story and I think that we really got to know him a lot better. I also found the developments in Rachel's relationship with Ivy to be intriguing and look forward to seeing how things play out later in the series.
This story was really exciting. There were some pretty intense scenes where I was a bit worried about the fate of Rachel, Jenks, Ivy, and the rest of the group. I wasn't sure how they would get themselves out of some of the situations in this book. I also felt like there were some pretty pivotal moments in the characters' personal lives and there were a few rather surprising revelations.
Marguerite Gavin did a fantastic job with the narration of this book. I think that she is the perfect narrator for this series. She handled all of the different character voices wonderfully and added a lot of life to each of the characters. I love how much emotion and excitement she is able to express with her reading. I feel like her narration added to my overall enjoyment of the story.
I would recommend this series to others. This series is full of wonderful characters facing some pretty exciting situations. This is a series that you will want to read in order but that shouldn't be a hardship since all of the earlier books are just as good as this one. show less
This book picks up shortly after the events of the previous book. Rachel learns that Jenks's son Jax might be in trouble along with her ex-boyfriend, Nick, and she feels compelled to help. Rachel enlists the help of Jenks as backup and with the aid of a couple of demon curses, they head off to rescue the pair and things get show more interesting very quickly.
I really enjoyed the way that Rachel and Jenks worked together in this book. Jenks is such a great character and I tend to enjoy the scenes that he appears in and he was in the bulk of this book. I really appreciated the changes that Jenks went through in this story and I think that we really got to know him a lot better. I also found the developments in Rachel's relationship with Ivy to be intriguing and look forward to seeing how things play out later in the series.
This story was really exciting. There were some pretty intense scenes where I was a bit worried about the fate of Rachel, Jenks, Ivy, and the rest of the group. I wasn't sure how they would get themselves out of some of the situations in this book. I also felt like there were some pretty pivotal moments in the characters' personal lives and there were a few rather surprising revelations.
Marguerite Gavin did a fantastic job with the narration of this book. I think that she is the perfect narrator for this series. She handled all of the different character voices wonderfully and added a lot of life to each of the characters. I love how much emotion and excitement she is able to express with her reading. I feel like her narration added to my overall enjoyment of the story.
I would recommend this series to others. This series is full of wonderful characters facing some pretty exciting situations. This is a series that you will want to read in order but that shouldn't be a hardship since all of the earlier books are just as good as this one. show less
This series drives me effing crazy... but I keep coming back. This installment sees some forward motion with some of the more interesting character development/relationships (read Rachel and Ivy) but the pace is so slow and repetitive at times it becomes frustrating. Other than that I love the kind of campy humor (I had some lol moments that were surprising and unexpected) and will prob read the next one despite wanting to throw the book (my phone) across the room every other page.
Members
- Recently Added By
Lists
Best Urban Fantasy
632 works; 77 members
Bloody Good Vampire Books
394 works; 26 members
Best Heroine in Combatant First
62 works; 1 member
Best BRUTAL of Urban Fantasy
244 works; 1 member
Saiyuki Reload Best Summer Reads
159 works; 2 members
Books Read in 2020
4,379 works; 124 members
Paranormal investigators and space detectives
274 works; 9 members
Author Information
72+ Works 54,560 Members
Some Editions
Awards and Honors
Awards
Series
Work Relationships
Is contained in
Dead Witch Walking, The Good the Bad and the Undead, Every Which Way but Dead, A Fistful of Charms, and Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil by Kim Harrison
The Hallows Books 1-12, plus short stories: This Witch for Hire, Dead Witches Tell no Tales, For a Few Demons More, Outlaw Demon Walls, White Witch-Black Curse, Black Magic Sanction, Pale Demon, Perfect Blood, Into Woods, Ever After, Undead Pool by Kim Harrison
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- A Fistful of Charms
- Original title
- A Fistful of Charms
- Original publication date
- 2006-06-27
- People/Characters
- Rachel Morgan (a witch); Jenks (Rachel's pixy partner); Ivy Tamwood (Rachel's living vampire partner); Trenton Aloysius Kalamack (elf); Jax (pixy, Jax's oldest son); Kisten Felps (living vampire) (show all 29); Marshal (witch, owner of Marshal's Mackinaw Wrecks); David Hue (insurance adjuster, were); Nicholas Sparagmos 'Nick' (magic-using human); Brett (were); Ceridwen Merriam Dulciate 'Ceri' (elf); Josephina (pixy, Jenks' little daughter); Rex (a homeless female orange kitten); Aretha (a pregnant wolf); Matalina (pixy, Mrs. Jenks); Walter Vincent (were, alpha of Brett's pack); Pam Vincent (were, Mrs. Walter); Debbie (Marshal's assistant); Karen (were who wants to be David Hue's alpha); Randy (were); Becky (human, waitress at the Squirrel's End bar); Terri (human, grocery store employee); DeLavine (one of Chicago's higher master vampires); Peter (DeLavine's scion); Audrey (Peter's woman); Jin and Jen (the first of Jenks' sea monkeys to hatch); Dr. Lynch (high-blood living vampire); Ralph (living vamp, I.S. officer); Jhan (pixy, Jenks' child)
- Important places
- Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; The Hollows, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Mackinac Island, Michigan, USA
- Dedication
- To the man who invariably says, "Really? Okay," instead of, "You want to do what?"
- First words
- The solid thud of David's car door shutting echoed off the stone face of the eight-story building we had parked beside.
- Quotations
- 'I was a sucker for a smart man, especially when the brains came packaged in a body that was carefully maintained' Rachel
'One person can't hold anything, but two can have the world' Jenks
I glanced at the men behind him, then extended my hand again. 'Rachel Morgan,' I said more confidently than I felt. 'And this is Jenks, my partner.' This was weird, civilized. Yes, I've come to rob you, sir. / How delight... (show all)ful; won't you have some tea before you do? - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)I hit the off button mid-protest. Tossing the phone to Ivy, I smiled.
- Publisher's editor
- Gill, Diana
- Blurbers*
- Gabaldon, Diana
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 4,364
- Popularity
- 3,412
- Reviews
- 93
- Rating
- (4.09)
- Languages
- 8 — Czech, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 33
- ASINs
- 12