It’s the introduction to Kali James, a setup novel and it takes its time getting there. Specifically, spending so much time on the fact that she’s a costume designer and wears vintage styles and expensive clothing. So instead of building layers of world foundation or setting, we get clothing. A little bit would have been fine.
Kali is unaware of the fact she’s a necromancer, so the whole ghosts following her everywhere or asking for help while she ignores them, seems a bit ludicrous. That it takes a witch to say basically “ hey, hon, you’re a necromancer” feels far fetched .
There’s a murder, mystery and a goat shifter who gets her own series. For me , I find her annoying because she’s got little history but takes zero responsibility for her actions. So the author doesn’t give us much reason to connect with her.
I’ll give it another book but there’s so many more out there that read similar to this that it’s not a standout in my opinion.
Reluctant paranormal finds out there’s a whole different world out there. Plus she’s got a goat shifter bff. Investigates murder mystery. And ghosts!
Two things are impossible to walk away from: death and vintage clothing. Trust me. I’ve tried.
Moving across the country and opening a costume shop was supposed to be my chance for a normal life. What I wanted was a fresh start, one where the biggest danger would be a carelessly wielded sewing needle.
What I got was the ghost of a murdered reporter demanding justice, a stony-eyed enforcer I’m not sure I can trust, and a power I can’t control. Oh and my new goat shifter BFF? Hell-bent on trouble.
Now, my hunt for the killer threatens to expose a supernatural community determined to safeguard its secrecy at any cost. My only chance to survive is to embrace the legacy I’ve spent my life running from.
Fastening the Grave is the first book in the completed Kali James series, featuring a reluctant necromancer who finds herself in a world of werewolves, vampires, and ghosts. If you like your urban fantasy with quirky characters, a side of supernatural mystery, and an opposites attract slow-burn romance, this is the book for you.
It had been a while since this terrific series has been updated and through author’s comments at the end, I found out that, sadly, her long-time friend and co-author, Jilleen Dolbeare, had passed away last October 2025 from cancer.
Jilleen Dolbeare wrote many great urban fantasy series as well as the wonderful collaborations with Heather G. Harris. She’s going to be deeply missed by so many. My sympathies to her family and friends.
I’ve loved this series from the beginning when Bunny first arrived in hidden paranormal town of Portlock, Alaska. She was a newly turned (against her will) vampire with a rescue German Shepherd in tow, and became a part of the town and small Sheriff’s Department, solving mysteries and magical crimes in a very different way, involving mythical creatures and fantastical monsters.
And finding love and a mate along the way with a vampire Prince.
The characters are beautifully written, the mysteries are often heartbreaking and complicated, and stretches over multiple books. Even the smallest of roles and characters can become endearing, and pop up later to fill in narrative holes left by characters who have been lost. It’s done well, emotionally satisfying and makes the story feel more like a real community.
The Vampire and the Case of the Ghastly Golem is a great story. Full of loss, grief, high suspense, mystery and multiple storylines. Bunny and her co-workers and friends face one murder after another. These are people who have deep roots within their community. Harris makes the reader feel that loss, the impact just as deeply.
As the hunt for the killer continues, along with the investigation, there’s another important plot line happening. Connor’s father’s coming to the town. He’s got major plans for Connor, maybe for Bunny too. None of them good or in keeping with what either one wants.
That continues to be the next novel’s theme.
Who the villain is surprised me. And the outcome left other questions in place to be answered by the characters and story further down the series itself.
Heartbreaking, well written, detailed and beautifully executed.
I’m so sorry for Heather G. Harris for having to go on with this series without her friend and writing partner. But she wrote a very wonderful story that felt like both of them were very much together here in every part of the story and character.
Highly recommended. And go check out the other books by Jilleen Dolbeare as well as the charity that’s been set up in her name for Indie Fantasy authors .
bodies are bad. Dead bodies that break the laws of magic are worse.
Finding a dead fox in someone’s garden isn’t normally a police matter. Finding a dead fox shifter who should have turned human the second he died? Yeah, that’s more my department.
Remmy has no wounds, no blood and no obvious cause of death. He’s simply dead, trapped forever in his fox form. Apparently there’s only one thing that can do that to a shifter: drain every last drop of magic from them.
Great. Because what Portlock really needed was another magical murderer.
I’ve got an eidetic memory, a badge and two extremely questionable sidekicks. One is a traumatised werewolf who prefers being a German Shepherd, and the other is an ever-growing lynx with a criminal disregard for personal property. Between us, surely we can crack one impossible murder.
Then some local teenagers report seeing a huge creature stalking through the woods, covered in branches and leaves with blazing red eyes.
And red eyes are always bad.
I’m starting to think our mysterious monster and our dead shifter might be connected, which means I need to find whatever is prowling Portlock before anyone else ends up magically drained.
Unfortunately, murder isn’t my only problem. Connor’s father, the Vampire King of the US and an all-round arsehole, has announced he’s coming to town. And he’s bringing the other vampire leaders with him.
So now I have a supernatural killer to catch, a creepy forest monster to find and the most powerful vampire in America heading straight for my home.
Portlock has survived murderous shifters, deadly conspiracies and more supernatural disasters than any tiny Alaskan town has a right to. Hopefully we can survive this too.
Preferably without anyone else turning up dead.
Dive into this fast-paced urban fantasy series if you love mystery, humour, found family, and a slow-burn romance.
Don’t miss the rest of the Portlock Adventures!
The Vampire and the Case of her Dastardly Death, a prequel.
The Vampire and the Case of the Wayward Werewolf, Book 1.
The Vampire and the Case of the Secretive Siren, Book 2.
The Vampire and the Case of the Baleful Banshee, Book 3.
The Vampire and the Case of the Cursed Canine, Book 4.
The Vampire and the Case of the Perilous Poltergeist, Book 5.
The Vampire and the Case of the Cozy Christmas, Book 5.5.
The Vampire and the Case of the Hellacious Hag, Book 6.
The Vampire and the Case of the Malevolent Mermaid, Book 7.
The Vampire and the Case of the Ghastly Golem, Book 8.
Sean Cunningham is another new discovery for me in urban fantasy fiction and I am absolutely loving his characters and universe I’ve found in the first story in his new Storm Herald series, Storm’s Edge.
It’s an action packed urban fantasy thriller, full of paranormal beings who battle mythical creatures, seek to obtain clients magical objects even investigating murders. All the while they are hiding their own problematic dark backgrounds.
The main character is a woman whose identity and past history is slowly being revealed over the course of the series. But who she was is a persona of enormous power and dark energy. On the wrong side of the line. Now she’s called Vanessa Montiero, not as powerful but strong enough. Vanessa works temporarily both for a coffee shop and as a courier who takes less than legal jobs. It’s a living and keeps her out of the notice of others.
Until it doesn’t.
I’m surprised by how much I’m enjoying this character and the storylines here.
First of all, no romance. She exists first as a solo character, and then, reluctantly, as perhaps someone who might consider her to think of one or two of the other characters she’s gathering around her as friends.
Not that she’d ever come out and acknowledge that.
Vanessa is a hard personality. The past is one she’s working to overcome, as well as a core that thrives on violence. As the story continues, she has to develop and adapt to her changing circumstances, and that’s means that instead of being able to always battle her way through a difficult situation, she has to learn how to handle it differently.
And Cunningham has just the other characters to assist her in this change in perspective. Including a vampire who’s not exactly the poster boy for the species himself, Leo.
With every new character, there’s a good chance they might not make it through to the end. Cunningham exhibits a willingness to take his characters out of the narrative, even when we’re getting fond of them.
Be warned.
I hope Vanessa stays romantically free, that’s a great element here. The story is exciting, fast paced and very well executed. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the next book and see what happens next.
I hope the author has more than 3 books planned for the series.
Highly recommended and yes, when I’m done reading this, I’ll head to the writer’s other series too.
She just wanted to stay hidden. They had other plans.
Vanessa Montiero has spent a year keeping her head down – slinging coffee by day, running courier jobs by night. It was enough to stay off the radar of the people hunting her. It was safe.
Until a wealthy eccentric offers her more money than she’s seen in months to extract one girl from the Brotherhood: a gang of street-level warlocks who burn through their girlfriends like batteries to fuel their magic.
Simple job. Get in, get Mia, get out.
Except Freddie Wright isn’t about to let his “crucible” walk away. And the magic he wields is far more dangerous than anyone realised.
With Leo at her side – a vampire who’d rather cook you dinner than drain you, and whose strange abilities make him an outcast even among the undead – Vanessa will face necromancers, ancient vampires, and relentless warlocks, all while keeping one traumatised girl alive.
But the thing that made Vanessa so good at violence never really left her. Unleashing her old self might be the only way to save them – or it might shatter the life she’s worked so hard to build.
Storm’s Edge launches the Storm Herald series with brutal fight scenes, morally complex characters, and a London where magic hides just beneath the surface. Perfect for fans of Alex Verus, Kate Daniels, and The Dresden Files who like their urban fantasy served with found family forged in fire.
Join Vanessa on this action-packed urban fantasy adventure across London today!
I enjoyed Black Moon Rising, the first in the Riley Blackthorne urban fantasy series by J. L. Brannick. Brannick’s another new urban fantasy author for me so I was excited about this book.
The character of Riley Blackthorne doesn’t disappoint here. She’s 24 I believe, trying to finish her degree in college while staying under the “radar “ of law enforcement agencies of all kinds due to her as yet unregistered powers.
That’s about to end.
Werewolf children are missing and the Alpha needs her help with the investigation. He won’t take no for an answer.
I absolutely love Riley. Life has been tough for her, she’s been raised by her uncle. Her background is filled in more in the second novel than the bits the author allows here. But it’s tantalizing hints that give depth to Riley and strengthens her character. She’s independent, intelligent and with the ability to make decisions for herself.
She’s absolutely the best thing about the book.
Now to the most problematic. That would be the Alpha. And their dynamic. Conall Segerson is the overbearing Alpha here. I’m sure in the trope he’s the powerful dominating male. But let’s be real.
In any other context, he’s toxic. He doesn’t let her make her own decisions. He withholds key information “because it’s for her own good “. He isolates her because it’s for “her own welfare “. And continues to ignore real issues within his pack that put her life at risk.
And when things go south, as they do.
It’s all about what his “wolf” wants and what he wants. Not exactly what is good for her.
Hint: This aspect of the series and the characters relationship is going to be even worse in book 2.
So for every character, Ash, or the hellhounds, that I found engaging, there was Conall sapping the joy right out of the narrative because I found his so offensive.
Yes to her. Yes to the plot minus any aspect of the story about Conall.
It ends on a cliffhanger. Which you know won’t end well for her.
The other books are out. Read it for a terrific woman character, and an interesting plot. The author has spent some time defining her different types of Cognizant traits. Check out the beginning of this book. Too bad she didn’t start with DARVO.
The federal agents waiting outside my ecology classroom are here for me.
One of them is an enraged Alpha.
I’ve been dodging the agents for days, and Conall Segerson seethes with impatience. His Pack children are disappearing, but the wolf shifter has few clues and no leads.
He doesn’t care about exposing an unregistered, no-name Cognizant like me if it will help him find his missing cubs.
As we race to recover the children, I become an invaluable tool in his arsenal.
His wolf’s obsession.
And a target.
Conall pledges to protect my secrets, but enemies are closing in. And the most vicious betrayals are those we never see coming.
*The first book in the thriller urban fantasy romance series where a deadly investigation leads to seduction and betrayal.
Black Moon Rising is book one in the Riley Blackthorne Series. For fans of smart, STEM FMC’s and urban fantasy romance. This book ends on a cliffhanger and contains power imbalances, a slow-burn romance, spice, and violence.
