URBAN FANTASY REVIEW: Greywalker series - Kat Richardson

BOOK BLURB:
GREYWALKER:
Meet Harper Blaine. She also sees dead people…Harper Blaine is a small-time private investigator trying to earn a living when a low-life savagely assaults her, leaving her for dead. For two minutes, to be precise. When Harper comes to in the hospital, she begins to feel a bit ...strange. She sees things that can only be described as weird-shapes emerging from a foggy grey mist, snarling teeth, creatures roaring. But Harper's not crazy. Her "death" has made her a Greywalker - able to move between our world and the mysterious, cross-over zone where things that go bump in the night exist. And her new gift (or curse) is about to drag her into that world of vampires and ghosts, magic and witches, necromancers and sinister artifacts. Whether she likes it or not.

REVIEW:
Having heard from friends who also know their supernatural onions that this was a worth giving a go, I jumped at the chance. Whilst one of the Seatle Writing Grrl’s you find a heroine who strikes out on her own in a pretty unique series that isn’t afraid to try something different. The characters are fresh and there’s emotional as well as physical struggles through out the tale which allows the reader to get a good hold of the principle protagonista. It’s a cracking offering and one that swiftly made me get out there and obtain the other books in the series. A good start and one that you’re never sure where it will lead which will allow Kat the chance to keep breathing freshness within instead of having to fall for a formulaic script as those who came before have had to do.

POLTERGEIST
Meet Harper Blaine. She doesn't just see dead people… Harper Blaine was your average small-time PI until she died - for two minutes. Now she's a Greywalker - walking the thin line between the living world and the paranormal realm. And she's discovering that her new abilities are landing her all sorts of "strange" cases. In the days leading up to Halloween, Harper's been hired by a university research group that is attempting to create an artificial poltergeist. The head researcher suspects someone is deliberately faking the phenomena, but Harper's investigation reveals something else entirely - they've succeeded. And when one of the group's members is killed in a brutal and inexplicable fashion, Harper must determine whether the killer is the ghost itself, or someone all too human.

REVIEW:
Grabbing this novel within ten minutes of finishing the first offering (hey I wanted a loo break as well as the chance to make a cup of tea), I pretty much sat and read the book cover to cover and ended up drinking cold tea. That might not sound so inviting but any book that can distract me and make me forget about the world around me is definitely something worth the mentioning. Once again Harper is thrust into the world between where things that we write off as a trick of the light do come through and memories as well as energies have power. Unique is pretty much a word that you’ll hear bandied about with Kats name and with a kick ass heroine along with a hardy tricksy and at times mischievous character pet you’ve got something that you can’t help but fall in love with.

UNDERGROUND

Harper Blaine was just an average small-time private investigator until she died - for two minutes. Now Harper is a Greywalker, walking the thin line between the living world and the paranormal realm. And her new abilities are landing her all sorts of strange cases.

In the cold of winter, Pioneer Square's homeless are turning up dead and mutilated, and zombies have been seen roaming the streets of the underground - the city buried beneath modern Seattle. When Harper's friend Quinton fears he may be implicated in the deaths, he persuades her to investigate their mysterious cause. But when Harper turns to the city's vampire denizens for help, they want nothing to do with her or with the investigation. For this creature is no vampire. Someone has unleashed a monster of ancient legend upon the Underground, and Harper must deal with both the living and the dead to put a stop to it . . . unless it stops her first.

REVIEW:
Having loved the previous two books in the series I took a break for a few days before starting this offering in case I was just in a good mood for the time of year (hey we’re talking British Summer here folks, that rare and wonderful thing where you get three hours of sunshine against seven days of rain. LOL) so was a tad worried when I started it that I really couldn’t get straight back in to the tale. I was wrong on that front as I was immediately hooked and yet again found my time was literally sucked through a portal to end up quite late at night and me suddenly thinking where had my time gone. A great series and one that I really can’t recommend enough for those looking for something different in the Supernatural genre. What Jim did for Wizards, Kat has done for her own unique outlook on the world. Definitely a tale worth the read and definitely a high quality series to compare others by.

VANISHED

For Seattle investigator Harper Blaine, her own case may prove the most difficult to solve. Why did she - as opposed to others with near-death experiences - become a Greywalker? When Harper begins digging into her own past, she unearths some unpleasant truths about her father’s early death as well as a mysterious puzzle. She sets out to find his ghost but encounters only a void where he should be, leaving her with more unanswered questions.

Before she can continue her search, Harper gets an offer she can’t refuse to go to London and pursue an investigation on behalf of some very demanding vampires. But there are unpleasant surprises waiting for her, and Harper soon discovers her present trouble in England is entangled with her dark past back in Seattle - and her ultimate destiny as a Greywalker.

REVIEW:
When a character changes location within a tale, you know that the author is either going to botch it or they're going to turn a gem in. Clearly from this offering, Kat has done not only her research but got the full flavour of the London down to a T. With many years of history to delve into as well as some classical characters to utilise the events that unfold within link beautifully to not only whats come before but allow the reader a bit of backstory on Harpers childhood. Its exquisitely written with growth to keep Harper fresh as well as allowing emotional aspects to work thier way through. For fans of the genre, Kat is an absolute must read and is a series that I won't hesitate to recommend to other fans. Cracking stuff.