From the Bookshelf

This last week, I finished up Firestarter.  This is kind of a cross between a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, and the sort of gothic/steampunk'y Robert Downey, Jr., Sherlock Holmes movies.  The main character, Miranda, can control fire.  She also happens to be pretty good with a sword.  As a child, before she learns to control her fire powers, she wound up burning down a warehouse of her father's, setting the family on desperate times.  She's now been betrothed to Benjamin Archer, who is basically wiping all her father's debts clean in exchange for her hand in marriage.  Archer's got a big secret - and he's the Beast of the story.  He is large and menacing and wears a black mask that hides most of his face.  Intertwined with this story are clues about a secret society looking for the key to immortality, a shadowy twin of Archer's, a bunch of dead bodies of society members, and tantalizing hints to what Archer's secret is.

I REALLY enjoyed this book.  The clues to all the mysteries were doled out with just enough pace to keep me staying up too late reading this book.  The characters are nicely developed, the story lines are interesting, and when Archer's secret is finally revealed to Miranda, it's both worse and better than you could imagine.  Definitely a two thumbs up on this entertaining read!  (Checking off one more slot on my TBR challenge list).

I just started Stormwalker, but already this is another one I've got to force myself to put down at night.  It's set in Arizona and the main character in this one, Janet Begay, is a member of the Navajo Nation, but she's another gal with heavy-duty powers: She can harness electrical storms.  She uses her powers to slay things that go bump in the night, and I've just been introduced to two new characters - the shapeshifting Coyote, and her on-again/off-again boyfriend, Mick, who is definitely not what he seems at first glance.  I'll keep y'all updated on this one - it's the first in a series, so there may be more from this author in the future too!

All for now...

 

Comments

[Kristi aka FiberFool]

Hmmmm, Firestarter sounds kind of interesting. I'm pretty picky on the urban fantasy stuff, but your descriptions sounds promising!

[DebbieB]

You reminded me of the Tony Hillerman "Navajo Mysteries" series, which I loved reading. I think I need to pull them out and do a re-read. He gave such a great feeling for the area and the people.

[Laurie]

Marked to read on Goodreads.