Summon the Keeper

Oh, yes, very much love. I liked Claire, I like how she's not so good at working with normal things because her job as a Keeper means she usually comes in after the fact and cleans up messes. She worries about things, she's competent in some areas and not great in others, she's got trouble with her much-younger sister (can I ever relate!), she makes mistakes and she fixes them.

I thought I'd hate the cat, but, no, I didn't. He had that whole "wise otherworldly supernatural cat" thing going on, but it was tempered with enough normal cat issues (he's old, he hates his geriatric cat food, he wants a steak) to actually make me like him.

Jacques--the ghost--was annoying and very much not my type. I couldn't understand why Claire went for him show more at all. Personally, I would have exorcised his ass and sent him on his way, not scattered his anchors throughout the hotel so he could go everywhere. Her attraction to him felt forced. I can fanwank it, but I shouldn't have to.

Shut up, all of you, I fell in love with Dean. I mean, come on. He's perfect. Okay, no, he isn't perfect, he goes through that "I did one wrong thing, I'm a bad evil person" phase, but, um, used to that. He cooks, he cleans like crazy, he's about the definition of protect and serve and we all know how I feel about that. And, oh, he blushes. The whole thing he and Claire were doing, not recognizing their attraction, denying it, flailing because they don't know what to do, really worked for me. Mostly it worked because it wasn't the focus of the story, but it did exist, and it was there. It was neither overly concentrated on nor ignored. (Though, we had our clue when the first thing Claire did was notice he was very grounded--hi, ping my attraction meter--and the second was check out his ass.) show less

A light horror/fantasy novel about a Keeper (member of a run-of-the-mill "secret organization that protects the universe!") who unwillingly inherits a bed-and-breakfast with a portal to Hell in the basement. Wacky hijinks ensue.

Hell is the best character in the book: it talks to itself in ALL CAPS and sulks whenever things aren't going its way. I loved Hell; Hell made the book for me. The other characters were a little less special -- Huff likes to give her characters one trait and one conflict and, by god, they are going to reinforce that trait/conflict over and over like a sledgehammer to your brain. But the writing is snappy, plus you've got a chatty Hell who knows his Orson Welles movies! Who could ask for anything more?

Gentle humour, light romance, ghosts, vampires, werewolves, Gods, a Hellpit that tempts IN BLOCK LETTERS inside your head, a talking cat, a nice Newfoundland boy and a Keeper struggling with the right way to use her power to save the world and run a guest house.


I love Tanya Huff's humour. It's energetic, confident, gentle, witty and almost always travels the path less travelled by.

In this light little book, she manages to summon up a whole new occult world, filled with new takes on all the things that haunt our dreams, position them over a not-quite-sealed hell mouth and populate it with a powerful, likable women who is focused on saving the world (again) but is distracted by the nice and or charming men she finds herself cohabiting show more with.

I loved that our heroine, champion of humanity against the forces of darkness and wielder of arcane power, calls her mum to get advice on what to do next and is afraid of nothing except perhaps what her incredibly powerful little sister might do if left unsupervised.

Then there's the cat who is... everything I always expected cats would be if they deigned to talk to us and if they accepted responsibility for a young Keeper with the power to fight Hell and win but with a limited ability to understand other people as anything other than Bystanders.

There's humour that uses the energy the stereotypes for both Newfies and Canucks while managing to debunk them and take away their power to demean.

There's also a fair amount of slapstick, pratfallish fun.

If you're in the mood for a smile and some entertaining urban fantasy trope twisting, this book won't let you down. show less

This book started out so well. A witty voice, great writing, a talking cat... What's not to like? Unfortunately, it fell apart for me in the middle. While the main plot line with Aunt Sara and the gate to hell was interesting, I felt like much of the book had nothing to do with those central issues. Claire does renovations, pines after a guy and a ghost, deals with a nosy neighbour, and welcomes a series of guests who are just passing through. I thought 60% of the story could have been cut without detracting from the main plot line at all. The whole thing felt episodic and pointless, for the most part. I liked the author's writing style quite a bit, but I will not be continuing with this series.

Claire Hansen is a Keeper, a person of the lineage who is responsible for repairing holes poked into the fabric reality and keep things running smoothly for the rest of humanity. Keepers are "summoned" to where they are needed and Claire finds herself summoned to the Elysian Fields Guest House to seal a hole in the basement. When the current proprietor abruptly ups and leaves, with all the paperwork putting ownership on the B&B in Claire's name, Claire finds herself stuck running the place while also trying to figure out how to close the site.

Summon the Keeper is the first in the Keeper's Chronicles trilogy by Tanya Huff. The story is a lite and fun Canadian Urban Fantasy full of humor, magic, holes to other dimensions, retired show more Olympians, a talking cat, a lusty French ghost and a handsome handyman who even does windows. My favorite things were Austin the cat (obviously) and Hell constantly arguing with itself. In fact, I think I enjoyed all the supporting characters more than I liked Claire, whose personality I found off-putting at times. The plot meanders around while magical hi-jinks ensue and the humor almost downplayed just how potentially world ending the situation was. I liked the way the story was wrapped up and am looking forward to seeing where Claire, along with Dean, are summoned next. show less

My older sister gave me the sequel, THE SECOND SUMMONING, which kept me laughing aloud. I'm pleased to say that the first book is just as funny. I went grocery shopping after I bought it and it kept me civilized while I waited in the checkout line. (I was kind to two of the other women in line and shared some of the snarky comments about the nasty thunderstorm at the beginning.)

Claire, the keeper, is stuck in a magical situation she considers a waste of her talents. Dean, the normal human employee of the Elysian Fields Guest House, is obviously the hero of a book aimed at women because he's good-looking, well-built, super nice, patient, handy in the kitchen, a Mr. Fix-it, and a great housekeeper. Austin, Claire's talking cat, says the show more kinds of things one could imagine one's cat saying if the cat spoke Human. He also gives good advice, although he probably shouldn't tease the doberman next door. Is there an imp in the house, or is it just mice? No doubt you'll have your own list of people you wouldn't mind seeing ride the elevator. Claire's mother and younger sister are fun characters. Jacques the ghost reminds me a little of Pepe Le Pew. The guests who come to stay at the hotel are interesting. Mrs. Abrams could be considered the Neighbor from Hell, if a hole to Hell weren't already in the basement. (Hell has some great lines, by the way). Let me publicly thank my sister for sharing this series with me. If you could use a laugh -- and who couldn't? -- treat yourself to both books.

Yay! Mr. Hess apparently read the book at least enough to make an appropriate cover. I recently read a mystery that had a short-haired brown tabby on the cover when the book clearly stated that the cat was a gray tabby Maine Coon (not a shorthair by any stretch of the imagination), so I appreciate Mr. Hess' effort. show less

I went into this book knowing only that there was a hole to hell. That's it. And boy, did it surprise me.
Hell, was funny. Claire was badass. Austin, I want him as my pet. Dean and Jacques? Lovely and too pure for this world (maybe not so much in Jacques' case).
It was a really fun read, surprisingly wholesome too.
I am definitely reading more about Claire, Dean and Austin's adventures and more about this author. I am a new fan.