CE Murphy - Heart of Stone

Okay, so jogging through Central Park after midnight wasn't a bright idea. But Margrit Knight never thought she'd encounter a dark new world filled with magical beings - not to mention a dying woman and a mysterious stranger with blood on his hands. Her logical, lawyer instincts told her it couldn't all be real - but she could hardly deny what she'd seen...and touched.
The mystery man, Alban, was a gargoyle. One of the fabled Old Races who had hidden their existence for centuries. Now he was a murder suspect, and he needed Margrit's help to take the heat off him and find the real killer. And as the dead pile up, it's a race against the sunrise to clear Alban's name and keep them both alive... 

Comment: In the past, I have liked reading the Walker Papers series by author CE Murphy, although the last book could have been better for me.

This Negotiator trilogy seemed to be different, after all it would last through less books, and by the blurbs it would center a little bit more on romance? Well, I thought so.

Unfortunately, I think it's one of those cases of too much time gone from the "peak potential", meaning the timing when certain books mean/say more to you than eventually sometime later.

In this first book of the trilogy we meet Margrit Knight, a young woman who works as a lawyer for legal aid and often defends accused people, something that doesn't suit her sort of boyfriend Tony, a cop.

Margrit is a very independent woman despite sharing an apartment with her closest friends and that is more obvious in her non afraid personality, a trait we can understand as soon as the story begins for she is running alone at night in a potentially dangerous park near her house. It's there that one night she discovers a murdered woman and that starts the adventure of Margrit's life...

This story is labeled paranormal romance and urban fantasy but there is a clear focus on the second designation. The romance that readers can perceive is very subtle, often not evident or likely at all and for me part of why I wasn't impressed probably comes from that.

Margrit is indeed a fascinating woman and the author made a rather obvious effort to let us know Margrit is a woman of color in a setting with mostly white people and with a hero even more different than she is (he is apparently a gargoyle), so that the impact of how unique everything is stands out even more.

The issue of this book for me isn't Margrit herself or her actions/behavior although that could be somewhat negative because she seems to know all the steps, she is in control of many aspects but I never felt I was connecting with her. I still wouldn't know how to characterize Margrit beyond the superficial.

For the biggest issue is that this is a paranormal setting, there are "rules" or elements that should give the reader a clear idea of this world but everything is super secretive, the hero isn't very talkative, some plot development comes from visions some characters give the others... it's all very unclear on how it works and I wasn't very convinced about why I would need to care for some things.

I suppose I could say the writing wasn't always very captivating because the subjects weren't well presented. Comparing with the author other work I'm familiar with, it can be easy to say this is from the author's beginning of career. However, it is proof for me that the unsteady way the plot develops makes it too difficult to engage with what is happening and enjoy.

From the blurb description, one can infer Magrit is brave and smart and cares about those around her, even the hero she doesn't know well yet. Of course her attitude towards him has to be part of the story, otherwise the romance wouldn't have meaning but from this book alone I wouldn't be able to say it's a romance that has the strength to work out, we barely see any connection between them...

As for the future, I know Margrit is supposed to get together with the gargoyle hero but this means we still have some love triangle to push through and I don't have the patience for that.

It's a pity for me that the paranormal characters populating this world weren't portrayed in as more captivating manner, nor the world in which they now live by having adapted to the majority of humans. There's potential here but unlike other PNR/UF series, I think it wasn't used well.

There were time I was bored while reading, that I didn't see why some details would matter. I often thought about skipping and that can't be terribly positive.

I said above that having waited so long (10 years or so) to read this book was probably a mistake. I'm not as dedicated to PNR or UF these days unless it's part of a favorite series. I know part of my problem is my own perspective and not just the story alone. Still, I can't find any will to read more about these characters so I'll stop here. The cover is pretty, though.

Grade: 4/10

CE Murphy - Shaman Rises

For over a year, Joanne has been fighting the Master—the world's most abiding evil entity. She's sacrificed family, friendships, even watched potential futures fade away…and now the Master is bringing the final battle to Joanne's beloved Seattle.
Lives will be lost as the repercussions of all Joanne's final transformation into her full Shamanic abilities come to her doorstep. Before the end, she'll mourn, rejoice—and surrender everything for the hope of the world's survival. She'll be a warrior and a healer. Because she is finally a Shaman Rising. 

Comment: Here it is the final installment of the Walker Papers series which I have been reading for years. At first I wasn't very motivated but ket going and a couple of books were really special and addictive. The plot was riveting even if the execution sometimes left me thinking of what could be different. Anyway, I kept going, had a wonderful time with some books and a more boring one with others. Unfortunately, with this last book I was a bit more bored than surprised.

Joanne has reached the end of her self discovery as shaman. She knows what's she's doing most of the time now but she still has the Master to defeat, the enemy that has making things bad for her and her friends since the beginning. Joanne starts the ultimate fight on the day after her fried Gary telling something that should be impossible, but with Joanne nothing is truly impossible. But will Joanne accomplish her win without losses?

Like I said, I was bored with this book and I wasn't expecting that for the last installment of the series. Throughout all the books this aspect has been evident because the author made Joanne the first person narrator so we have to always follow what she's doing and thinking and when she is fighting in other plans or having doubts or even self learning we have to go with her every time. The same thing happens here, and maybe it's my way of seeing things but I had the feeling it was a bit more than in some of the other books. 
Joanne is fighting a bad being so there's lots of fighting, not physically all the time, mostly in the  shaman planes but it's action and it's like the reader can't stop to breathe. Joanne is always on the move and if not fighting, doing something else, or helping or talking or thinking. There's no time out unless something bad really happens, in which case we have to suffer her loss or her disappointment.

I can't say it's only negative things, after all I've been following the series for quite a while, but this last book was boring, I had a hard time concentrating on the words and in not putting the book aside.And even the little good scenes, or more easy ones seemed to be less, probably because of the huge task Joanne had to achieve. But in terms of reading, it was tiring to keep with action all the time.

Then there's the negative things, like death. I suppose it would have been too much to ask for Joanne to keep her friends with her and everyone who mattered. At least Morrison is still on the picture a is Gary. But there's death and disappointments and the final scene with it's hopeful vibe wasn't enough for me.
I guess I can't complain because it's the way the author writes and has always presented a book at least in this series, but personally I hoped for more than all the challenges to overcome and the unhappy solutions to some of those problems.
Still, a positive mark because it's solid. But I hoped for better.
Grade: 6/10

C. E. Murphy - Mountain Echoes

Joanne Walker has survived an encounter with the Master at great personal cost, but now her father is missing-stolen from the timeline. She must finally return to North Carolina to find him-and to meet Aidan, the son she left behind long ago.
That would be enough for any shaman to face, but Joanne's beloved Appalachians are being torn apart by an evil reaching forward from the distant past. Anything that gets in its way becomes tainted-or worse.
And Aidan has gotten in the way.
Only by calling on every aspect of her shamanic powers can Joanne pull the past apart and weave a better future. It will take everything she has-and more.
Unless she can turn back time... 

Comment: Another series updated.

This is the 8th book in the Walker Paper series by CE Murphy, a story about Joanne, a shaman finding out about her powers and the voyage she makes to acceptance. In this book Joanne has already accepted her shaman heritage and in the last couple of books she has been fighting the Master,a spiritual enemy that wants to bring darkness to the world.

In this installment, Joanne arrives the reserve where he spend some part of her adolescence and where her biggest tribulations happened. Since then, she has understood and got over some of her issues and she's in a better place now to confront this part of her past.

Now that she's talked to her mother, she goes to the place where her father is, hopefully to help him too. Morrison also makes an appearance so they can deal with what is between them as well. And Joanne meets Aidan, the boy that's part of her life like no one else could ever be. Will Joanne be able to win another fight against the Master?

Once again, I enjoyed a book by this author. She has a talent to structure, making her work steady and reliable even in the parts where the descriptions of the fighting  and the shamanism could get a bit more confused. I think this wasn't the strongest book although it presented many good elements. I liked it but I confess I expected to be more awed by what could happen, especially in what concerned Joanne and the people she was going to meet. I thought it was all smooth, I wanted to see more of the reactions and the feelings in everyone involved. Joanne had a difficult past in Qualla, the reserve where she went to. I thought we'd see a lot more of dealing with what happened until Joanne left for good and what it meant, but surprisingly, all the conversations were quick and almost too easily dealt with.

Joanne is mush more confidant in her powers and her abilities so this shows in the way she acts. I still think it's believable but I can't help but notice that some of those around her don't seem to find it weird how her powers work and how she went from someone so awkward to this new strong person. Of course, she has to, th whole point id for ehr to grow up and the reader has to understand the message that only by working on something can we achieve some sort of control of an ability we might have, but in some parts of the story this doesn't seem so obvious, I think the author could have worked a bit more this thing.

I liked how Joanne and Morrison talked and spent some time having a conversation about their feelings, about what it means and their fears about how easy it would be for them to hurt each other. I think it's much more easier to accept their I love yous instead of an instantaneous HEA then and there.The romance is believable and made me smile, especially when Joanne made Morrison a wold again.

This book deals with one side of Joanne's powers and to be honest it was a bit too much for me. I mean, thinking about the spiritual imagery of it was fine, fun, surprising, but there were some aspects that seemed too much for me. It's a bit linked to what I said before about Joanne's control of her abilities. Still, I don't think it was enough to put me off. It's in the same level of surprise as were the adventures of the other books at the time, so...

I think it's a strong solid book, not as god as others, but still good.

It end with a bomb sentence and I can't wait to see what happens in the final book. I hope it's a proper last book, with a matching HEA too.

CE Murphy - Raven Calls

Something wicked this way comes...
Suddenly, being bitten by a werewolf is the least of Joanne Walker's problems.
Her personal life in turmoil, her job as a cop over, she's been called to Ireland by the magic within her. And though Joanne's skills have grown by leaps and bounds, Ireland's magic is old and very powerful....
In fact, this is a case of unfinished business. Because the woman Joanne has come to Ireland to rescue is the woman who sacrificed everything for Joanne -- the woman who died a year ago. Now, through a slip in time, she's in thrall to a dark power and Joanne must battle darkness, time and the gods themselves to save her.

Comment: This is the seventh book in the Walker Papers series by this author. It's a urban fantasy series full of adventure and magic.

In this book, Joanne flew to Ireland to understand better her maternal heritage and to try to help her mother's spirit before evil claims it. Joanne also tries to find a way to solve her little werewolf problem which bothers her a lot.

I've been a fan of this series since book #1, because in each book Joanne learns something else about her shamanic powers and her way of seeing her life, of dealing with herself.  In this book she returns to Ireland to look for her mother's spirit before The Master, the evil influence that has been around in previous books, claims it. She wants to help her mother and try to come to terms to the way of their relationship in the past was. This book is all about forgiveness and learning to cope with things you can't change but can accept before moving on.

Joanne has the help of a family member, a kind of goddess, a real goddess and Gary, who comes to Ireland to help. By having all this help, she's also has the responsibility to see them well by the end of things. Joanne is a very responsible person even if in the past she didn't see herself like that. I liked how her understanding of things was slow for us to enjoy the changing in her temperament, in her personality. The author obviously takes her time in making her main character change, which makes it even more believable.

We also see many characters from other books and even references to others we know, so I think despite this book can be read as a stand alone, it's still preferable to read them all, because many little things have a deeper meaning that someone new to the series won't pick up.

Concerning her romance with Morrison, which we finally saw a bit more of in the previous book, we keep seeing her thoughts about it and at some point she says she can't wait to get him on a bed. Yay! I sure hope things in this department won't take long because sexual tension has been simmering, they have said they love the other one and I think it's about time for the next step. Plus I'm a sucker for HEA's and these two deserve one.

By the end of this book I was already eager to get my hands on the next one. I already pre-ordered it and everything. 

I keep thinking this is one of the most solid and well structured series out there, with a great narrative and strong character development. I recommend it to everyone.

CE Murphy - Spirit Dances

For Seattle detective Joanne Walker, spring is about new beginnings. She's mastered her shamanic abilities (mostly), survived a cannibalistic serial killer (barely) and now she's facing the biggest challenge of her career -- attending a dance concert with her sexy boss, Captain Michael Morrison. But when the performance -- billed as transformative -- actually changes her into a coyote, she and Morrison have bigger things to deal with.
And there's more. Homeless people are disappearing, a mystical murder puts Joanne way out of her jurisdiction and with the full moon coming on, it's looking like the killer is a creature that can't possibly exist.
But Jo could probably handle all of that, if one ordinary homicide hadn't pushed her to the very edge....

Comment: This is the 6th book in the series. This time Joanne, our heroine, has to fight a being that steals the energy of a group of performers in a show Joanne attended and then the life of the main actress. But Joanne also has to deal with her little problem of beginning to shape shift during that same show...

This sixth book presents a more confidant Joanne, someone that still has a lot to learn but after so many adventures and experiences, she feels more capable in her powers and how to deal with the problems she faces.
The book starts with Joanne going to a dance performance with her boss, Morrison. She had been given tickets by a lady she helped and while asking if there was any ethical problem by accepting, she ended up sort of asking Morrison to go with her and they go. During the show, Joanne starts to transform into a animal, sees the main actress die because all her energy was stolen by someone and even helps a woman with her breast cancer problem. In the same night, she shows Morrison the Sight.
So, Joanne has been very busy but the problem begins when she tries to understand why she would become an animal due to the energy exchanged and created during the show. This leads Joanne to even bigger problems and the knowledge that her mother's spirit might be trying to tell her something...

So, this book started of amazingly. Finally Joanne and Morrison seem to be in sync and try to have a evening together although they both see it as just using a gift and not as a date. During the show, the usual strange things happen around Joanne but she tries to help and in th end she shows Morrison how the Sight feels for her, leading to an intimate moment between them. This slow dance with them is getting better and better.

With the help of her partner Billy and his wife Melinda, Joanne also makes interesting developments in the search for the killer who stole the energy from the dance group. While investigating, Joanne discovers the person who does this wants the energy to end a curse and release a bigger evil into the world. She also is getting little clues that a spirit is helping her understand just how awful her enemy is, the reader has been feeling this since a couple of books ago. When Joanne finds out who the villain is, she's shocked because it was someone she didn't see coming for several reasons.
Of course, in the end Joanne ends up saving the day and getting to the point where she can't avoid her maternal heritage anymore and makes a deliberate but final decision about her life.

However, the really best, most wonderful part of this book was that finally, let's scream hallelujah, there is a God, Joanne and Morrison finally, at last, admit to the other they like each other. When Joanne makes her decision Morrison actually says it was about time and they kiss and it's amazing!!
I don't recall any series, at least in paranormal or UF, that the main couple only exchanges a kiss during a series and this one is going to its 7th installment and they haven't gotten to it yet. I'm not sure if it's annoying because we want to see them sharing that or refreshing because they didn't and when they do it's got to be great...lol

I have high hopes for the next book and I'll be getting it as soon as I can.

CE Murphy - Demon Hunts

Seattle police detective Joanne Walker started the year mostly dead, and she's ending it trying not to be consumed by evil. Literally.
She's proven she can handle the gods and the walking dead. But a cannibalistic serial killer? That's more than even she bargained for. What's worse, the brutal demon can only be tracked one way. If Joanne is to stop its campaign of terror, she'll have to hunt it where it lives: the Lower World, a shamanistic plane of magic and spirits.
Trouble is, Joanne's skills are no match for the dangers she's about to face--and her on-the-job training could prove fatal to the people she's sworn to protect...

Comment: The 5th installment in the Walker Paper Series.
This time Joanne faces a being that eats the flesh of dead people and she has no idea how to stop this. And the only way of stopping the bad guy from killing even more and to protect those around her, she has to go to the Lower World and she knows despite embracing her shaman side lately, she still has a lot to learn before she can be successful in a place of such magic she can do more harm than good if she doesn't know what she's doing.

I have to confess...the biggest reason I read these books is to see if Joanne gains some romance in her life. She does in this one hallelujah, but...not with the guy she ends up with. I know the person she's with in this story is someone important to her, someone she trusts and who knows what's to know about her and even more I know it's not something definitive because after all, she still has feelings for her boss, but it still bothers me a little bit that a heroine (or a hero, for that matter) has intimacy with someone not his/her intended. I'm all for attempting to be happy if the person you don't have but want isn't available. Sometimes people just have to move on with their lives.
But this is fiction and I'm old fashioned. I like the fantasy. The magic of it. I like the illusion that when a character meets their special person, soul mate, mate, beloved, significant other, whatever, their feelings can't be "used" so to speak, in somebody else. And this happened here. Rationally I get it and Joanne deserves someone, but....but she's in love with someone else, that should gain more points than admiration and joy...right?
Ah well..this was the only thing that annoyed me a little bit and not that much because I just know she will have to end up with her boss, somehow (or else I'll scream), eventually. But until then...hummmm
The story...well, it's fun and it presents an interesting plot line. I thought it had once more some scenes where isn't that easy to separate the reality from Joanne's trips to the astral planes and Lower World specially because some scenes kept changing sets and it was almost like ping pong, so a bit confusing. But overall, not badly done. Some people from Joanne's past make an appearance and it shows us more about her personality. I liked knowing more about her feelings and how she has to deal with what she always saw and what really happened..it's called growing up lol, but it was interesting.
Still, I don't consider this one of my favorites. It has some things I didn't enjoy that much so the good parts were a bit overshadowed for me, but this is a continuous series, she would have to deal with some of this stuff at some point.
Now I can't wait for the next one...I keep thinking, will this be the one where she confesses she's in love with him? Lol

CE Murphy - Walking Dead

For once, Joanne Walker's not out to save the world. She's come to terms with the host of shamanic powers she's been given, her job as a police detective has been relatively calm, and she's got a love life for the first time in memory. Not bad for a woman who started out the year mostly dead.
But it's Halloween, and the undead have just crashed Joanne's party.
Now, with her mentor Coyote still missing, she has to figure out how to break the spell that has let the ghosts, zombies and even the Wild Hunt come back. Unfortunately, there's no shamanic handbook explaining how to deal with the walking dead. And if they have anything to say about it -- which they do -- no one's getting out of there alive.

Comment: The 4th book in the Walker Paper series.
In this book Joanne has to fight evil ghosts and strange zombies, all because of Halloween. It all starts after she organizes a party and suddenly dancers are screaming inside a giant cauldron. Apparently the cause is the ghosts that tried to steal the dancers' bodies and occupy them. But things aren't that simple and the ghosts are children that just want a chance to live, but the reason they're dead proves hard to explain.
Joanne also has to deal with her feelings for Thor, her new boyfriend and what it means to have someone she cares about but who she doesn't trust yet.

Well, another great book by this author. I enjoy this series more and more with each book because the stories are interesting and all the loose ends are pretty tidied int he end. And while Joanne is dealing with all we also see a little bit more of her past choices, her thoughts and her continuous developing feelings for her boss. I was a bit worried at the beginning of this novel about Joanne's personal life in the matters of the heart because she seemed so desperate about her love in the previous book and if she had a boyfriend in this one, no matter how friendly..well, I knew it had to be one of two things, or she totally and unbelievable changed her mind or she was still in love with the other guy and this one was yet just a friend while she was trying to picture him in another position and failing. Ha. I knew it.
In terms of plot, I was convinced about all her struggles to try to solve the problems and I liked seeing Cernunnos and Suzanne (from book #1) showing up again and even helping in solving the mystery of who was the true guilty..yes because we suspect someone and after all it can't be that one. I think the end was sweet and I was also a bit sad over something because in the end the real hero was someone we didn't imagine and it allowed some heartfelt scenes between Joanne and other characters.
I think the author has managed to keep up with the interest and the desire to see Joanne triumph. She also mixes up the plot and Joanne's life in a very balanced way, which makes the book addictive and not boring. There's always something happening, and there's always the hope to know more about Joanne so, it's like we have to see what happens next while waiting to read the next scene and it's this over and over, very well done.
I'm very happy to be reading this series, much more than what I expected and trust me, it does get better wit each book.

CE Murphy - Coyote Dreams

Instead of powerful forces storming Seattle, a more insidious invasion is happening. Most of Joanne Walker's fellow cops are down with the blue flu--or rather the blue sleep. Yet there's no physical cause anyone can point to--and it keeps spreading. It has to be magical, Joanne figures. But what's up with the crazy dreams that hit her every time she closes her eyes? Are they being sent by Coyote, her still-missing spirit guide? The messages just aren't clear. Somehow Joanne has to wake up her sleeping friends while protecting those still awake, figure out her inner-spirit dream life and, yeah, come to terms with these other dreams she's having about her boss....

Comment: I've become a fan of this series so now I have to read everything. This is the greatness and the curse of beloved series...you just can't resist them.
In this new story, Joanne is having some strange dreams and her guide, Coyote, still hasn't appeared. Then almost everyone at the station where she works is getting to sleep and she doesn't know what is going on but she figures it has to do with something she's done because everyone affected it someone connected to her or who helped her before in her shaman travels into the astral plane.
Also, she wakes up in bed with a guy and she doesn't recall why it happened until she remembers the redhead with her book, Morrison, and how they were so cozy together.

Well, I must say this series is getting so much better with every book. The first one was rather confusing but the last two were great. The action makes more sense, the transition between our world and Joanne's astral plane seems more smooth and obvious too. I think this is key to the series better progress. I think it was very tiring in the first book to try to follow the transitions but in this book it's better and the reader can easily do it.
In terms of plot, once again I was surprised to see how well the author mixed the storyline with Joanne's lessons-to-learn. What I mean is, things happen and of course there's something Joanne need to learn or to accept or to understand before she can move forward in her attempts to save the world and I like that special balance between life and feelings the author has inserted. Joanne certainly isn't perfect but she tries and even her mistakes don't seem vicious because she had a good heart.
In terms of personal stuff...well...Joanne is...how to say it without spoilers...well she admits something and because of this, she reacts violently in one scene because of a little thing concerning the person she has feelings for. Her reaction was powerful, heartfelt, emotional and it's so similar to someone who has gone through it, it's a remarkable scene indeed. I think it was the strongest scene in the whole book. Joanne has finally admitted something important but then...things don't always work the way we think and now I can't wait to read the next book to know what's going to happen.
I think this story is strong and balanced and interesting. This is definitely a world worthy of reading about.

C.E. Murphy - Thunderbird Falls

For all the bodies she's encountering, you'd think beat cop Joanne Walker works in Homicide. But no, Joanne's a reluctant shaman who last saved mankind three months ago -- surely she deserves more of a break! Yet, incredibly, "Armageddon, Take Two" is mere days away.
There's not a minute to waste.
Yet when her spirit guide inexplicably disappears, Joanne needs help from other sources. Especially after she accidentally unleashes Lower World demons on Seattle. Damn. With the mother of all showdowns gathering force, it's the worst possible moment for Joanne to realize she should have learned more about controlling her powers.

Comment: This is the second book in the walker papers series. I've read the 1st book last month and liked it enough to keep reading. I have to admit it, this one is much better than the first one.

In this story, Joanne, the main character has to help more people with her shaman powers but she's been avoiding them because she isn't yet sure she wants to believe in all that has happened so she doesn't control her powers. Then her spirit guide disappears after an unfortunate encounter with a strange thing in her astral plane and from then on Joanne seems to be on her own but apparently she's not...

In this book we see Joanne still struggling to accept and learn about her shaman powers. In the first book we've learned some things about her, so we know why it's difficult to her to trust her abilities to help others.She does some things she's not very aware of because she hasn't learned to control her powers and part of why this happens is due to her fear of failure, of doing something she's not ready for. But she did a sort of commitment in the previous book and now it's expected of her to go on.

I think it's important to say although books can be read out of order it's much better to not do it, because many things can get lost in the way. Besides, Joanne kind of evolved from one book to another...as well as the writing itself. In the fist one everything is confusing, new world and all that, but with just one more book the difference is obvious and this book, from the writing point of view is much more approachable.

Joanne also does some inner healing. She learns it's ok to take time to find more about what she can do, but of course this happens after she makes the mistakes...but with mistakes we learn.

Like I said the writing is much better, all difficulties of understanding what she's doing,t he transitions between the real world and Joanne's astral plane were hard to understand in the previous book but in this one it's like they slide easily.

I'm very curious to see if there's even more development in the next book and I'll be reading it next month.

CE Murphy - Urban Shaman

Joanne Walker has three days to learn to use her shamanic powers and save the world from the unleashed Wild Hunt. No worries. No pressure. Never mind the lack of sleep, the perplexing new talent for healing herself from fatal wounds, or the cryptic, talking coyote who appears in her dreams. And if all that's not bad enough, in the three years Joanne's been a cop, she's never seen a dead body -- but she's just come across her second in three days. It's been a bitch of a week. And it isn't over yet.

Comment: Another book read because of a book club. Actually I've had this one for - let me check - yep, more than one year in my TBR list because a friend whose taste is similar to mine in most things said it was very promising.
The book is about Joanne, she finds out she's a shaman, someone that has healing powers and fights her battles in an astral dimension. This is clearly a first book because it starts out a bit confusing and with lots of details that are explained throughout the story. Joanne seems to be a very normal person, apart from her powers. She's a mechanic for the police and she has friends, a boss who is aways close to fire her and a distant family she doesn't talk about.
The book starts when she's returning from her mother's funeral in Ireland - Joanne is part Irish, part Native American, and she sees something from the plane, a woman running from someone else and people think she couldn't but she is proven right with the help of the cab driver who takes her to the place where she saw the woman. From then on, Joanne has a series of adventurous and finds out more than she probably wished for about her powers.
I was sympathetic to Joanne's trials during the book because it was clear she didn't want her powers or her new duties but she accepts both anyway because she's that type of person. With this comes facing a whole new set of things, among those her inner darkness -metaphorically of course - and we find out things about Joanne that... well I wasn't expecting, and her character became much more intriguing.
The plot is quite interesting, it offers a lot of mythical lore about Celts and native American legends...ok, not a lot, but enough to give the story the necessary background to go forward. I like this part because it's interesting things and some I wasn't aware of. There was also a bit of mystery in there and in the end it surprised me too, the author has done a good job, rather subtle, not something purposely looking like suspense, but it gives a nice feeling to the story and it's something to hope to see again in the following books.
Then there's the lack of romance in this book, although her love/hate relationship with her book does offer some interesting possibilities. We realize Joanne's has had a not so good experience with love in the past but still she shows apparent stability and isn't against a romantic relationship, although she doesn't actively look for one, it's something we just see. This is another reason to keep reading.
There are some questions marks about Joanne's life that I'm curious about, so I'll keep reading. I know the same person who suggested it to me has said the books get better so I'm also hopeful.