Akiva Reads

by Carrie Vaughn

DAMMIT, I just lost everything I typed. mopes

I just read six of these in a row, and I think I'm done for now. I'll spare you separate reviews of all of them.

One of Vaughn's more... unique... writing traits is a tendency to wrap up major plotlines halfway or 75% of the way through the book. No way was that the end, you think, they only thought they defeated the baddie, and it's going to come roaring back when we least expect it. But no. The third book was a particularly strong example: you discover who, how, and a little of why, but in the end it isn't enough to save the day after all. It does serve to make a simple series of books a little less formulaic, so I don't really object.

I think my favorite remains the first one, with its unique take on domestic violence. When reading, you can generally spot an abusive relationship a mile off: you have fairly dispassionate access to all the abuser's actions at once, and you're not quite as subject to their charms. The Midnight Hour suckered me in, though: Well, they're werewolves, they have an animalistic side, I can't understand exactly how their social system works, isn't this just how you run a pack? Nope. Carl may be a werewolf, but his (and other pack members') manipulation and control tactics are inescapably human. You realize along with Kitty that just because you're not strictly human doesn't mean others are allowed to treat you inhumanly.