Karen Chance

Cassandra Palmer is a clairvoyant. Do not call her a witch. Yes, she sometimes shares her sensorium with a lecherous ghost, but don’t call him her familiar. And yes, vampires are sexy, but she would not want to marry one. Touch the Dark by Karen Chance is an urban fantasy that reminds me of works by Jim Butcher in which the quotidian modern world is filled with all manner of paranormal beasties. It is R-worthy chick-lit, but not bad for all that. Touch the Dark has spawned a series that now has a dozen titles, not counting a handful of interstitial works.… (mer)

The only thing Mircea wants is for Cassie to be safe and guarded and not lifting a finger. Yeah, that really doesn't work for her, not because she doesn't want to swim and sun and laze all day, but rather because the bad guys just come to her instead.
When an important meeting with the Circle goes wrong Cassie is dragged all over the place. Power struggles, a mole and an angry god... what more do you want?
I can tell you this: that last part just killed me :D Was laughing so much :D

Worldbuilding:
All scenes and environments were clear and well detailed. Really well done if you know there is so much action going on and we, the reader, needs to know where the hell we are :)

Character development:
OMG, Pritkin and Cassie were hilarious in this instalment!! Cassie made it quite clear what she thought about the other sex and it had me giggling like a teenager :D
We learned a little more about the players on the board, even some hint of another well-loved character from Mircea's life (if I remember correctly at least).
This instalment focussed more on the Circle instead of Apollo, though he did get some screentime :) Then again, the Circle showed us why you have to be a lunatic to even remotely consider joining the Corps.
A new bodyguard Marco joined the team to try and keep Cassie safe, but come on... why are they kidding? That woman is a magnet for trouble.
The characters, main or side, all felt alive and believable (though utterly crazy of course).

Pacing and flow:
As we've come to expect from Cassie... there is never a dull moment. A ton of action going on, superbly balanced with conversation to keep the story moving forward.

The book:
The book was well written with no (noticeable) errors. There is sex described (if that is important to you).
The book is 386 pages long, spread over 28 chapters and told from Cassie's point of view.

Final thoughts:
Was it me or was that ending a tad... anti-climatic? I mean, yes, a lot of stuff happened, but... I was left hanging.
Nevertheless, still one of my most favourite series to date. Can't wait to reread book 5!… (mer)

With a very happy and content sigh, I read the last page of the book (again).
I would like to say that my first thought was: 'omg I forgot pretty much everything that happened in this book.' But of course, it wasn't, it was the second thought. The first was more among the lines of 'Holy mother of... Mircea I have missed you!! And Pritkin, don't forget about him, though he was a real dick.'

Worldbuilding:
There is a lot going on, and as a first book in the series, there is always the necessary groundwork to be laid out. But really, it didn't feel like that. We learned through memories Cassie revisited about her time with Tony, how she got to meet Mircea and how she got stuck with Billy but never did it feel it was forced upon you as a reader. It followed a very natural flow and integrated perfectly in the story.

Character development:
What's not to love about the characters?
(yes yes, sometimes even the bad ones, except Tony)
Cassie gets thrown into a near-constant fight for her life right from the get-go. Her abilities acting in strange ways, assassination attempts and let's not forget a volatile battle mage thrown in the mix would make anyone question themselves what the hell is going on. I like Cassie because she doesn't wait for anyone to come and save her, nope, she does that herself, thank you very much. Well... with the help of her friend (and ghost), Billy. All she wants is to be free and left alone, but apparently, that is too much to ask for.
An impressive cast, with many delightful diverse individuals, makes me want to read the rest of the series asap. I just want to get to know them all over again. But Mircea *sigh*...

Pacing and flow:
It was over way too fast :) And I say that not in a bad way, it wasn't rushed at all, it just flowed its natural course. That course was just rife with a lot of action :)
Be advised you won't put this book down before the end, that's all I'm saying.

The book:
The book itself was well written with no (noticeable) errors. There is sex described (if that is important to you).
The book is 307 pages long, spread over 14 chapters and is told from Cassie's point of view (POV).

Final thoughts:
This book really had it all, I loved it from start to end. So yeah, it really does deserve that 5* shine and a spot in my all-time favorites list.… (mer)

Cassie has a whole lot going on... The vamps want to have her under their thumb, the mages want to kill her and get the power to go to one of their choosing, Myra is trying to kill Mircea, the geis is triggered and all over the place... and I haven't even mentioned the fey!

Worldbuilding:
Sooooo much happened in this instalment. We shifted to many different times (god knows how the Pythia keeps track of who and what!?) but apart from being curious where and when we ended up this time, I never felt confused or lost due to the great descriptions and information I got while reading. As always the author has great attention for details, making it much, much easier for readers to follow the story.

Character development:
Cassie didn't really have the time to think about all the implications of being the chosen heir for the Pythia, she's too busy saving herself, Mircea or her friends. That said, she rolled with the punches, learning as she went.
I had totally forgotten about Mac (this is a re-read) and his tattoos. Such a cool guy :) So it was strange to see him being friends with Pritkin, who was, for once, not trying to kill Cassie (well...ish).
While Mircea was in the picture a lot, it was mostly in the 1880s where Cassie had to save his ass from Myra, her evil co-Pythia heir. I have to say though that I liked it that he was so much like his modern self even that long ago, for me it means that he managed not to get jaded (too much) and held on to his core beliefs and principles... go Mircea! (*swoon*)

Pacing and flow:
Well, there was a lot of action, I don't even know if there was a time where Cassie and the gang couldn't just relax and take a breather (well, okay, that one time, but that doesn't count). So yes, a lot of action! Fortunately, there was a good balance between everything going on and conversations and the transitions felt smooth.

The book:
The book itself was well written with no (noticeable) errors. There is sex described (if that is important to you).
The book is 374 pages long, spread over 15 chapters and from Cassie's POV (point of view).

All in all:
I'm happy I'm re-reading this series to pick up where I left off since I just can't remember a single thing from this instalment! I loved it! :D… (mer)