Every Which Way But Dead

C+ (Okay).

A witch private detective sides with her enemies in a gang war.

Two things that make this better than book 2: (1) It's not a mystery, so it isn't able to fail at that, and (2) it's finally becoming clear that Rachel is a dick to everyone because she's a flawed character, not because Harrison doesn't know how to write normal human interactions. On the other hand, the way this book handles abuse is really upsetting, especially since everyone's attitude to Piscary basically negates everything that was accomplished in the previous book. And it's just not fun the way the first book was. This is a mafia book; the story still revolves around magic and demons, but its very serious and dark in a Scorsese Does Fantasy sort of way.

(Jun. 2026)

There's a new underground player in the Hollows, and he's putting his own brand of Brimstone on the streets. People are beginning to die. Both Piscary and Trent want the new competition out of their city, and Rachel is about to end up in the middle of it all. To make matters worse, every time she taps a line she risks calling Al across the ley lines. Rachel can't escape the demon forever, but she doesn't plan on becoming a tool for him either. Rachel is going to have to make some tough decisions, ones that will scar her forever.

I confess the reason I love this addition to The Hollows series is Kisten. I need a Kisten in my life. He can be a royal pain, but deep down he knows that Rachel is broken inside from failed relationships. He's show more not about to walk into one with Rachel and expect her to change, or give him something she isn't able to. And while he can be pushy, he also knows the clear signs of when to back off and respects them. Being a living vampire, yes he wants blood, but he's willing to go without it for Rachel's sake. Though lately it's been hard for her to say no.

Rachel is learning to toughen up in this novel, even if it has to be beaten into her. Each time she goes toe to toe with Al, it's nothing but page-turning action. Watching her try to outwit him and find whatever loopholes are exciting to read. She's also taking on increasingly harder runs allowing the reader to see how much she is beginning to change as a character. Even if it means some of her morals are starting to be compromised.

The farther Rachel journeys down her path, the more involved the world-building becomes. We start to learn more about Rachel's father and what exactly happened to him. And the Ever After is no longer just something to be seen through second sight. It becomes a tangible area that begs to be explained in future novels. There is a rich history there, just begging to be tapped into.

As always, The Hollows is an adrenaline filled ride. I can't wait to continue to the next! show less

Questo nuovo capitolo della saga “The Hollows” non delude minimamente le mie aspettative. Anzi. La trama, come sempre, è adrenalitica e intricata abbastanza da non permettere al lettore di allontanarsi. Impossibile staccarsi dalle pagine di “Le creature della notte” prima di aver letto l’ultima, proprio impossibile. C’è maggiore azione, rispetto al precedente e i personaggi abbandonano definitivamente la lieve rigidità che li aveva caratterizzati fino a quel momento.

Ormai il “team” collaudato nei primi due libri interagisce senza il minimo problema e con assoluta facilità. Gli intrecci dei rapporti fra le diverse razze è assolutamente intrigante e sensuale. Come il trio Rachel, Ivy e Kisten che nulla a che vedere show more con un “normale” triangolo. Se siete stanchi anche voi di trovare il solito schema lei, lui e l’altra/altro questo è il libro adatto per divertirvi ed affascinarvi. Il rapporto fra i vari personaggi è straordinario e la capacità dell’autrice di trovare sfumature diverse per ogni rapporto è assolutamente magistrale. L’introduzione di nuovi personaggi, come David il licantropo, non appesantisce minimamente la trama ma, anzi, rende il tutto ancor più interessante.

La capacità di Rachel di ficcarsi nei guai con i demoni è ormai appurata e stupisce sempre il lettore come, ogni volta, riesce a trovare un scappatoia grazie alla logica (dell’autrice) in situazioni apparentemente senza fuga.

Trent, da dispotico e sì, ammettiamolo, stronzo sta diventando sempre affascinante. Affascinante come trovi, intrigante, Rachel ma continui a dispetto di tutto e tutti a non fidarsi e a sfidarla continuamente. Sarebbero una coppia esplosiva… chissà.

Nick, per fortuna, pare che si sia tolto definitivamente dalle scatole. Non che fosse un “brutto” personaggio ma, semplicemente, non riuscendo a inquadrarlo neanche approssimativamente riusciva a scatenare semplicemente diffidenza e astio.

A questo punto non possiamo che attendere con ansia il quarto libro della saga con la speranza che, oltre a presente, l’autrice decida di svelarci qualcosa di più anche sul passato “comune” di Rachel e Trent. show less

I was extremely excited to dig into this one after the massive ending of the second. As I wanted, it starts with Rachel and Algaliarept and their 'deal', which was a fascinating turnout. Setting the tone for the rest of the book was perfect. I was happy to get plenty of Al time, and thrown in with this was a new, intriguing character and back history.

In this book the pot is heating up about Ivy and Rachel's unconventional relationship, a new man in town who's wanting a piece of Cincinnati's pie, a new relationship forming that I have been wanting for several books now *yum*, and Rachel trying to get her life sorted out in the middle of all this. There's always a war erupting somewhere.

Character wise Nick is showing new sides and I show more found it very touching on Rachel's emotional struggles with all that. It holds a convincing realism that made me grow even closer to her as a character. Al has a lot of page time, which is excellent. Trent is here and in yummy form as he and Rachel are forced to work together again and have intriguing turnouts. Ivy is growing on me more and her relationship with Ivy definitely keeps me on my toes. We get to meet her father and sister and have a new character come into town to create minor irritants for Rachel. Ceri is an awesome addition and makes an impressive appearance and entrance.

Honestly the characters are so great in this series that you have to really think about it to even pick a top favorite out of the group.

Out of the first three books ( I love the first two ) this is my favorite of the beginning trilogy. It's incredible with emotions, actions, events, magic, fascination, betrayals, secrets uncovered - revealed - and hidden. The pacing and tension is strong, whether the scene is focusing on revelation and experience, or else outright action and eek moments.

As I've said before, the magic in this series is in-depth, inventive, and nifty. Harrison has a talent with characterization, dialogue, and slips humor in all the time without it feeling forced. It comes naturally with Rachel, but the book is also a serious one at the same time in a dark, gritty world.

The 'date' was fun and intense, and the beginning opens with such a strong bang that I'm both pleased and impressed that the book is able to follow it's lead without losing steam. Kim Harrison takes time to really dig deeper into existing relationships while there is no mystery this time, but still a lot at play and fascinating.

As with the other books, this one is not only incredible, it's even more so. The characters we love are here but even more so, and the additions of any new ones doesn't take away from the story at all or make it distracting. This one makes it easy to feel, read, and experience the magic The Hollows promises. show less

I started reading this one on a plane and the flight just (pardon the pun) flew by. The other passengers probably thought my giggling was a bit strange -- good thing they didn't know I also had the urge to bite them! I enjoyed the first two books in this series, but Harrison really seemed to hit her stride with this one. My only criticism is that for some reason this book had far too many typos of the variety produced by the typical spellchecker (e.g. "base" for "bass"); only a minor distraction, though.

Every Which Way But Dead by Kim Harrison is the third installment of the Rachel Morgan (The Hollows) saga. Let me start off by saying I LOVE THIS BOOK. I love this series. I love this author. Alright, now that I'm done with that- on with my review.

Rachel Morgan is a sassy, kick-ass witch and she has done something silly to put away one of the biggest, baddest vampires out there- She made a deal with a demon. So you can forget about broomsticks and pull out some lucky charms because she's gonna need them.

Piscary, the big bad vampire that rules The Hollows has finally been convicted of some heinous crimes thanks to Rachel. That's right, Rachel promised to be a demon's familiar if he testified against Piscary. It worked. But now it is show more Rachel's turn to hold up her end of the bargain. Can she weasel out of being the familiar of a demon, escape the red tinged ever after AND keep her soul intact?

In the process of becoming Algaliarept's familiar she releases the previous familiar, Ceri, from a grim fate. Rachel is now faced with escaping Al's grasp and keeping Ceri from Mr. Kalamack... Ceri is a great character, she's beautiful, smart and learns to stand her own pretty quickly. I found myself craving to know more about her- I mean, come on, she was a demon's familiar for 1000 years! I hope we get more information on her in the books to come. She is simply fascinating.

Jenks, my beloved pixie, did not play a big part in this book. I was sad about this- he's an awesome character and integral part to my Hollows experience! I can always use more Jenks and less Ivy. Anyway, he finds out that Rachel knows what type of creature Trent Kalamack is but didn't trust him with the information. His ego and trust in Rachel is bruised and he takes his family and moves out of the church. This was only okay with me because another fun character was introduced- David Hue. David Hue is a lone werewolf and quickly becomes a close, trusted friend. I'm hoping that he becomes a big part of Rachel's story. I love you, David Hue. I love you, too, Kim Harrison for creating wonderful supporting characters!

Why am I so enamored with the characters in The Hollows!? I either absolutely love them or hate them. (I hate Ivy, Rachel's roommate. She annoys the CRAP out of me. However she was much less annoying in this book than in the previous two.) I'm not saying much about Rachel's man, Nick. He's boring and she has moved on. On to Kisten. Oh, Kisten. For you paranormal romance lovers- Chapter 21 is for you. It's delicious. Steamy and delicious!

This is one of my favorite series and I've only read 3 of the books so far. I can't wait to keep going. Kick-ass fight scene? Check! Sarcastic banter? Check! If you love action, magic, humor and brilliant creatures- read this book. Kim Harrison brings all that and more to the table in magnificent, magical levels. show less

Book 3. I started off my book 2 review for The Good, the Bad, and the Undead by stating that Ms. Harrison managed to defy the laws of diminishing returns and created a book 2 that was even better than its predecessor. I can only begin this review by repeating that observation, as Every Which Way but Dead raises the ante even more.

At the end of book 2, Rachel manages to thwart death at the hands of the Master Vampire Piscary, but only by striking another deal with the demon Algaliarept. Rachel’s practice of “act now, think later” has saved her skin a number of times, but this time she fears she might have gone too far. In exchange for Big Al (her nickname for Algaliarept)’s testimony against Piscary, Rachel has agreed to become show more his familiar—provided that she gets to keep her soul. Every Which Way but Dead opens with Big Al coming to collect. He drags along his current familiar of 1000 years, Ceri—who is a haggard, haunted young woman, with an aura coated so thick with demon smut it is completely black. Rachel takes pity on Ceri, and manages to rescue her by swindling Al and also manages to resist being pulled into the Ever After (aka demon land). As it turns out, Ceri knows all of Big Al’s tricks, how to stir demon curses, and becomes a formidable ally for Rachel, and a major character going forward in these books.

Rachel also has some serious man trouble on her hands. After pulling magic through familiar and boyfriend Nick by accident in book 2, Rachel finds herself in emotional limbo. She and Nick had a great thing going, but now he can’t shake the memory of her accident, and pulls away from Rachel. Finally he decides that he has to leave town for a while to ‘take care of some business’, and Rachel is forced to come to terms with the fact that their relationship is over. Meanwhile, vampire Kisten—former scion of Piscary and good friend to Ivy—has his designs set on Rache. Especially after the hot little elevator interlude in The Good, the Bad, and the Undead.

When I started this installment to the Rachel Morgan series, I feared that it would just be more of the same old same. Rachel fights the same demon and manages to keep her butt out of the Ever After, more unresolved tension with Ivy, unresolved sexual tension with Kisten, same old grudging problems with Trent Kalamack…but Ms. Harrison manages to pick up all these storylines and push them forward, taking Rachel into new territory without feeling recycled. Rachel begins a romantic relationship with Kisten and allows herself to be seduced by him, causing more complications with the jealous Ivy. There’s a serious fallout between Rache and Jenks after yet another demon attack, and Rachel finds herself in the middle of a new power struggle in Cincinnati since she put Piscary behind bars. A whole new species joins the main cast with David Hue, werewolf and claims adjustor, as he tracks down Rache after the fish incident at the beginning of book 2 (really, how does Ms. Harrison keep track and maintain all these separate plot lines? It’s awe inspiring).

Needless to say, there is nothing boring about this book!

Fans of the first two books will not be disappointed—Ms. Harrison just keeps getting better.

Notable Quotes/Parts: I was completely shocked that Rachel would allow herself to be seduced by Kisten, especially given Ivy’s strong feelings and possessiveness. The scene is pretty…intense. Kisten takes to wearing ‘caps’ as a safety precaution so that he won’t break Rachel’s skin. Ivy, while she can understand Rachel and Kisten having sex, will never forgive Kisten if he bites her. I love the idea that the sharing of blood is more than just sexual, but a way to show trust and love—and that is what Ivy desires with Rache.

Also, we finally get a glimpse of the Ever After in this book…and it’s terrifying.

Additional Thoughts: I have previously remarked about Ms. Harrison’s strength in setting down rules—every action has a reaction, every act has a consequence. I love the concept of auras, and that for every dark spell or demon mark Rachel has, there is a price to pay and a mark on her aura. The image of Ceri’s aura, forever tainted black from 1000 years of demon smut is effective, and very scary stuff.

Verdict: Obviously, I loved it!

Rating: 8 Excellent

Full Review at:
http://thebooksmugglers.blogspot.com/2008/03/book-review-every-which-way-but-dea... show less