Tink's a Disney Whore!

A witch, an elf, a living vampire, and a pixie get into a powdered blue Buick…

No, it’s not the beginnings to a horrible joke, but the start of Pale Demon, book nine of the fantastic Hollows series by Kim Harrison.

Book Blurb From Borders.com:

Condemned and shunned for black magic, Rachel Morgan has three days to get to the annual witches’ conference and clear her name, or be trapped in the demonic ever-after . . . forever after.

But a witch, an elf, a living vampire, and a pixy in one car going across the country? Talk about a recipe for certain disaster, even without being the targets for assassination.

For after centuries of torment, a fearsome demon walks in the sunlight—freed at last to slay the innocent and devour their souls. But his ultimate goal is Rachel Morgan, and in the fight for survival that follows, even embracing her own demonic nature may not be enough to save her.

Complete fan girl squeals and happy dances all around. From the moment I finished Black Magic Sanction last February, I’ve wanted to read this book. Each Hollows addition is better than the last and Pale Demon is once again my favorite so far. Why? Because of a certain cookie-sniffing shoe maker.

Tink’s a Disney Whore! Yes, I mean Trent Kalamack. Ever since we first met him in Dead Witch Walking, I’ve loved the chemistry in every scene with him and Rachel. They’ve out right hated each other, have both tried to kill the other and yet can work together when the situation calls for it, to both their dismays. So when Kim announced that Pale Demon was going to lock the two of them in a car for 2300 miles, my first thought was “this is gonna be good.” Understatement. What I loved was that we don’t see the polished professional Trent personifies as he pursues political office (say that three times fast), runs illegal Brimstone smuggling operations and tries to find the cure to the curse demons have placed on the elven race. We see Trent disheveled, embarrassed, making mistakes and otherwise being…human.

And Rachel notices too.

Rachel herself faces trial after trial as the Coven tries to stop her from getting to the conference to clear her name (the Coven can’t be trusted), as assassins hunt Trent for reasons he won’t disclose (typical), as Al tries to convince her to shun reality, embrace her inner demoness and join him in the ever-after (the most likely outcome of the conference), and never mind about the day-walking demon that has just placed her at the top of his want list (all in a day’s work). There’s always something or someone gunning for Rachel, trying to kill her, subvert her, manipulate her…and she survives. She takes what is thrown at her, reacting by the seat of her pants and often making bad decisions, but she survives and rises to protect those around her, even when they don’t want her protection (*cough* Trent *cough*). Rachel will always put others above herself and that’s what I love about her. When the cards are on the table and she knows she’s beat, she’ll sacrifice herself to make sure everyone else survives. We need more heroines like her.

And I want more Trent. When’s book 10 come out?

Pale Demon releases on Tuesday, February 22nd from HarperCollins. ARC provided by NetGalley.

Kelly Metz enjoys reading, writing, photography, her family and annoying her baby brother, who, while younger, is now over a foot taller than her and can punch much harder than when he was little. She spends her free time engaging in various torture activities, demon summonings, zombie raisings and spell casting. And writing when she gets bored with those. You can find her online at www.kellymetz.com or follow her on twitter at www.twitter.com/bwlrgrl300

great things are coming from Maria Snyder

Wow oh wow oh wow!!!!  We found NetGalley and based on our blog and our profile, we have been lucky enough to get to read some amazing gallies instead of waiting and hoping for arcs.  First one finished: Outside In by Maria Snyder.

We've been fans of Maria's for awhile now and have been lucky to have her come to the stores we work at to sign, do meet-and-greets, and have book release parties.  We know we're not the normal fans and maybe the gushing praise will turn some off. Well, I don't care.

Trella's back and not sure where she fits in her newly free world.  The pressure makes her start to crack.  While the Committee seems to work slower than our current Congress, Trella is craving to get back to exploring the Inside. The empty space discovered at the end of Inside Out is far more expansive than they could have imagined.  She also finds yet another secret area; this one contains what appears to be vehicles of some sort and weird symbols that may be the answers they've been arguing about in Committee meetings.

While the entirety of Inside waits for those they put in charge to actually do something, Trella's trying to come to terms with the fact that Dr. Lamont, the traitor in Trella's mind, just might be her mother.Saboteurs, Outsiders, and heartache seem to follow Trella and her band of merry men wherever they go. In the end, it's really about finding her place in her society and doing what's best for all......once she figures out what that might be. There's plenty of action, conspiracy, and yes a bit of love to make this a great read for teens & adults alike as well as keep either boys or girls glued to the pages. Ms Snyder once again manages to find a new spin on teen angst, the journey of self-discovery, and her magical ability to fully engross a reader in the world she's created.

While reading the advanced galley has been exciting, it has shown me that I will not be an e-book convert. Sure, a handheld device might be better than reading on my computer I have reaffirmed that I would rather have a paper copy of a book any day. I'll keep reading however I can so we can share new titles and authors with all of you.

Outside In comes out March 1, 2011. You can check out an excerpt and see where Maria Snyder is appearing on her website: http://www.mariavsnyder.com/. ARC provided by NetGalley