Death's Daughter (Calliope Reaper-Jones, #1)

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Death's Daughter (Calliope Reaper-Jones #1)

by Amber Benson (Goodreads Author)

3.23 of 5 stars 3.23 · rating details · 1,615 ratings · 338 reviews

Buffy fans will go wild!

SHE WAS TARA ON BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER.

Now she’s the author of Ace’s hottest new series— killer novels featuring Calliope Reaper-Jones, who doesn’t want to be daddy’s little girl anymore...
View our feature on Amber Benson’s Death's Daughter.

Calliope Reaper-Jones so just wanted a normal life: buying designer shoes on sale, dating guys from Craig’s...more

Paperback, 368 pages

Published February 24th 2009 by Ace (first published January 16th 2009)

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Community Reviews

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Feb 28, 2009 Tim Simard rated it 4 of 5 stars

Review final version:
I came at this one from the wrong point of view & with the wrong attitude. Like any first installment, quite a bit of background info must be introduced & that can slow a storyline down to a crawl. As I read this book, the character grew and I grew right along with her. Now, I find that I care about the characters & want to see how they develop. And there are so many places this one can go! I eagerly await the next installment!

Review version 2:
The more I read thi...more

7 likes · like · see review

Mar 17, 2009 Cathy rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, mythology, paranormal, urban, series-reminder, read-in-2009

It's really a 2.5, but I just couldn't give it my average/3 rating. The main character is a wise-ass, but not clever. As much as I hate to do Buffy comparisons, the author was Tara on Buffy and has written a character who's clearly supposed to be very similar to Buffy. Smartass, dumb blond moments (although not a blond I think, but there sure are some dumb comments), etc. The thing is, the book doesn't have the Buffy wit or heart. It's got the fluff but no substance to hold it up. I like the ide...more

5 likes · like · see review

Apr 04, 2009 Amanda rated it 3 of 5 stars

I had my doubts about this book for the first 100 pages. Calliope Reaper-Jones is a shallow, silly, whiny girl. She is obsessed with designer-brand fashion and she's kind of a fat person hater/sizist. I'm all about fleshed-out characters; protaganists with real flaws and pecadillos, but if there is nothing to like about the hero, how can we become invested in their journey? Also, while I am always a huge fan of a female hero (I am a BIG believer in running the "Bechdel Test" on everything I read...more I had my doubts about this book for the first 100 pages. Calliope Reaper-Jones is a shallow, silly, whiny girl. She is obsessed with designer-brand fashion and she's kind of a fat person hater/sizist. I'm all about fleshed-out characters; protaganists with real flaws and pecadillos, but if there is nothing to like about the hero, how can we become invested in their journey? Also, while I am always a huge fan of a female hero (I am a BIG believer in running the "Bechdel Test" on everything I read/watch), I was disappointed to find Callie perpetuating the same traits that are often attributed to women in popular fiction: a shopaholic, neurotic, boy-crazy, cry baby whose only physical downfall is her (ultra cute) clumsiness, which of course is most prevalent when is she is in the company of handsome men.

However (I'm so glad i get to write that...), Ms. Benson did not lie when she says that you actually get to see the character of Callie Reaper-Jones grow as she goes along her hero's journey. I think the character actually does develop, and without losing the sense of the person she was at the beginning of her adventure -- no one is perfect afterall.

The concept of the story is great, and I really, really enjoyed they way the author pulls from religion and mythology in creating this magical universe. As a matter of fact, I thought some of the strongest characters/concepts are the ones that have a foothold in legends/allegories that most people are at least a little familiar with (Kali springs to mind).

Sometimes the way that Reaper-Jones speaks/thinks gets a little precious for me. Her speech is sprinkled with lots of 'likes' and she uses very dear colloquialisms and put-downs. And I really could have done without the cover! It's very cheesy, the woman looks a little too old to be Callie and I don't really appreciate being given the image of the character before my brain can put it's own together based on descriptions in the book (especially an image that I don't necessarily agree with); it was especially bothersome since I think the cover woman looks a lot like Elizabeth McGovern (who is gorgeous, just not Death's daughter-like in my opinion).

I think this book was a good set-up for the rest of the series (trilogy?) and I will be willing to follow Calliope on her future escapades.(less)

7 likes · like · see review

Mar 15, 2009 Daniel rated it 3 of 5 stars

An interesting introduction to what I hope becomes a longer series. Amber Benson creates a universe similar to Piers Anthony's On a Pale Horse. Like that series, the role of "Death" is suddenly forced upon the main character, who quickly must learn to cope with a multitude of other Powers who might have other agendas.

The story weaves numerous pop culture references with a first person point of view that quickly lets the reader identify with the main character.

The writing style makes me wonder...more

1 like · like · see review

Feb 04, 2013 Cary Morton rated it 5 of 5 stars

For my complete and honest review: http://wp.me/p37Zro-9b

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Jan 03, 2013 Angela rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: supernatural

Not a bad beginning to a series at all.

Calliope Reaper-Jones is literally Death's Daughter. Add the Devil sulking about, and his son, plus God kinda makes an appearance, and all sorts of gods and mythical monsters (I want offspring of Cerberus I can name Runt), and I really can't wait to read the rest of the series. The ending of this has me wondering about the other books, since it ends in a very defined way, and hopefully Amber won't keep using kidnapped Death as the catalyst for everything.

Ca...more

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Aug 09, 2012 Marsha rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: literature-fiction, mystery-thriller, supernatural, series-entry

The heroine of this book isn’t your typical cool, leather-clad, butt-kicking, foxy superhero. In fact, she’s rather whiny, out of shape and plain. She’s gullible, tends to get giggly with attractive men, shrill with anger and shirks her responsibility to the family business—which is Death, by the way.

With that, the story gets vastly more interesting as does Calliope Reaper-Jones. I’ll admit that this character initially annoyed me with her emotional problems (especially her immature attitude aro...more

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Jul 23, 2012 Rasheta rated it 1 of 5 stars

I'd give this book zero stars if I could and it would still count as "rating" it. However, I can't.

Let me just say that I really wanted to like this book the concept is really interesting. The daughter of death! How cool is that. I mean Terry Prachett writes about Deaths grandchild and does it well so I was looking forward to something at least that good. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.

First, I didn't finish the book. I made it half way through and realized if I tried to read any more of it...more

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Jun 27, 2012 Smith rated it 4 of 5 stars

Having read several other series along these lines I was preparing for a major case of boredom. I wasn't bored at all and even laughed. Did I think the lead character in need of some major therapy to deal with her issues? Yep. Was she annoying and useless at times? Yep.

So why on earth did I give it a 4?

Because she redeemed herself. Repeatedly. Like any human struggling with serious issues who is really working to get well, she made progress even if she would regress to her old comfortable beha...more

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May 22, 2012 Rebeka rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, urban-fantasy

Let me begin by saying I only finished the first chapter. That's ridiculously little to judge any book on, and I personally hate not finishing a book that I start.

But I couldn't make myself keep going. There were a number of syntactical and grammatical issues I felt her editor should have caught, which were frankly annoying to find. One or two small mistakes in a four-hundred-page novel is understandable, but not five or six in the first chapter.

Besides this, the protagonist, Calliope Reaper-Jon...more

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Apr 05, 2012 E.V. rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: no-more-shit

You'd think the titular character would possess some brains and a little gravitas, considering she is the daughter of Death. But she doesn't. Well, that's fine - dumbot characters can be fun too - but she isn't. She is a boring moron who gets overwhelmed by smudged mascara and messy hair.

The plot propels her into a situation where her family entrusts her to save the day and their lives, in the form of completing complicated tasks with her limited brain power and physical abilities. This is a ra...more

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Feb 03, 2012 Erika Gill rated it 2 of 5 stars

I came into this book with absurdly high expectations, which was totally unfair to Amber Benson. Like most, I loved her in Buffy and expected Joss Whedon-esque humor and darkness and campy fun.

What I got was...different. Because she is not Joss Whedon (stay with me here, I don't plan to Captain Obvious my way through the whole thing) and well, she's also not a bad writer. It's just that I have no interest in reading about a self-absorbed fashion glutton with a mediocre sense of humor. But I fini...more

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Nov 08, 2011 Paradoxical rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011-reading-list, books-otherwise

Death's Daughter is about Calliope, a girl who tries desperately to remain normal, even growing up in her unusual circumstances. Seeing as her father is Death, that is a it of an understatement. Flat out? She will annoy you. She's whiny, she's shallow, and her witticisms aren't witty. At all. She's an idiot, and it really pains me to read about a main character who is so... so dull when she could have been so much more.

Basically her father and sister have been kidnapped, and if she doesn't want...more

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Jul 21, 2011 Kendra Recht rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: urban-fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Funny story: one day, I sat next to Amber Benson on a train. She told me about her books; I was curious, and therefore went out and bought the first two books of her series: Death’s Daughter and Cat’s Claw. So I finished reading the first one, and these are my thoughts.

The premise is pretty imaginative. It follows Calliope “Callie” Reaper-Jones, who is one of Death’s three daughters. Death, in this world, is run by a corporation, of which her father is the head. It deals a lot with mythology, an...more Funny story: one day, I sat next to Amber Benson on a train. She told me about her books; I was curious, and therefore went out and bought the first two books of her series: Death’s Daughter and Cat’s Claw. So I finished reading the first one, and these are my thoughts.

The premise is pretty imaginative. It follows Calliope “Callie” Reaper-Jones, who is one of Death’s three daughters. Death, in this world, is run by a corporation, of which her father is the head. It deals a lot with mythology, and she uses all different kinds of mythology: Greek, Norse, Hindu, Christian, you name it. I’m a sucker for mythology done right, and I think Amber did a pretty good job with this. Kali is one of the best characters in the book, and even the Devil is done interestingly. I like the way she dealt with the family’s history, the way Hell was conceptualized, and the way no one religion was ranked better than another. I particularly liked the fact that God was not a nameless, faceless being that showed up only in rhetoric, but was actually a character, if a minor one.

One thing I particularly admired about the characters was that none of them were too perfect. Callie’s very flawed, and can sometimes be annoying because of it, but no one can accuse Callie of being a Mary-Sue character, which means quite a bit in this genre. Even when she does have powers, she does not quite know how to use them accurately, and she makes enormous blunders. She is often emotionally weak but can pull through for herself, her family, and her friends in times of dire trouble. This is the kind of hero(ine) I like to see.

There were some negative aspects of the book: Callie sometimes reads like a high school valley girl rather than someone in her mid-twenties; she focuses too much on fashion and labels, and sometimes the references to clothing and shopping and designer can be too much, even for someone like me who does recognise all the labels. When Amber told me on the train that it was like “Neil Gaiman meets Devil Wears Prada” I wasn’t quite sure what that meant; now I get it. Sometimes Callie's material concerns can be rather amusing; other times, they bog down the prose and make me feel a lack of description acutely (although for the most part, the description's more than adequate for this kind of novel).

Another part I didn’t like was the clunky handling of romance. Callie is, granted, hitting a dry spot in her life, and Daniel can, admittedly, seduce people with his powers, but she thinks about sexing up almost every main male character (as long as they are attractive). There’s a moment in which she’s saved by a bogus semi-sexual ritual, and I felt a little cheated by that because … honestly, there are so many ways to deal with a situation like that, and a sexual/romantic way of dealing with it seems like just an excuse to raise the heat. I also wasn’t sure why Daniel was so interested in Callie, or why he was so mind-bendingly impressed. Impressed is one thing. Impressed in total hyperbole is another.

My final pet peeve with this book was something that an editor really should have dealt with: there are a lot of italicised words. I’m not counting titles of books/movies/etc or internal thoughts. I’m talking about sentences such as this which have too much dramatic emphasis put on random words. Okay, so that’s a bit of an exaggeration. But there were pages in this book (a tiny paperback) that had six italicised words that did not need to be italicised. That’s a huge issue with me, but clearly I got used to it at the end because I kept reading.

All in all, though, I think Death’s Daughter was decently entertaining; it’s not meant to be the next Wuthering Heights. It’s supposed to be a fun, action-packed beginning-of-the-series book. I’ve heard that the second one is more focused and better written, so I’m interested to read and see. It's sitting on my bookshelf, waiting, but sadly I haven't quite had the time to read it yet. Judgment will be appropriately passed afterwards.(less)

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Jul 11, 2011 Allison rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: so-bad-i-couldn-t-finish, genre-supernatural, the-worst-of-the-worst

Calliope Reaper-Jones is a bitch, plain and simple. While I will admit I enjoyed her snark and her attitude, it grew old when I was able to see the character as a whole. A lot of people have said that Calli grows as a person as the books progress and I believe them, but I don't have the patience or time to devote to a series with a main character I HATE.

For a start, Calli is obsessed with shopping, makeup, designer clothes and men! Given, she hasn't had a successful date in awhile, but she make...more Calliope Reaper-Jones is a bitch, plain and simple. While I will admit I enjoyed her snark and her attitude, it grew old when I was able to see the character as a whole. A lot of people have said that Calli grows as a person as the books progress and I believe them, but I don't have the patience or time to devote to a series with a main character I HATE.

For a start, Calli is obsessed with shopping, makeup, designer clothes and men! Given, she hasn't had a successful date in awhile, but she makes it clear that she has no trouble going on dates and finding partners to hook up with. Early on in the book she explains that this dry spell is due to the fact that she works so hard and doesn't have any time to meet people because when she gets home she's soooooo tired.

Her job? A perfectly normal job as a personal assistant at a Home and Garden company for a nice woman named Hyacinth. In the one day at work, we find that she works eight hours driving to starbucks, picking up drycleaning, and, oh yeah, writing emails and googling things like organic dim sum. How strenuous! Although she works 40 hours a week, she confides that she takes long breaks and trips to "the kitchen", yet she's too exhausted to do anything.

But my biggest issue with this character- what little of her I could stand, anyways-was how sizeist she was. Now, don't get me wrong...I understand that some aren't always tolerant of larger people, and I think that's normal, but it seems like Calli really goes out of her way. To give you some idea what I mean, I've listed some examples all from the first three chapters of the book. I'm sure I've missed a few...the book is literally filled with them.

-When a monster appears in her hall, she refers to it as a male and goes on to explain that "she assumed it was male because no self-respecting woman would ever allow herself to be that chubby".

-When her blind date, Brian, shows up (tolerating her weirdness due to the monster in her hall, AND saving her from falling face-first on the floor) she discovers that he is fat and ugly, immediately dismisses him as a potential boyfriend due to his appearance ALONE. She also mentions his "fat fingers" a few times.

-On her way to work on the subway she complains about an obese hispanic woman who is occupying both seats. Although I get how annoying that can be, I don't think it needed to be mentioned. At all.

The last and, in my opinion, worst example of the character's sizeism is when she discusses her boss, Hyacinth. From what we can see, Hy is a nice woman, a good boss, and a stylish full-figured woman, with a good attitude. Despite all of this, Calli absolutely hates her for the simple reason that Hy is so happy with Calli's work that she's decided to keep her on at the company, instead of pass her to another publisher in the fashion industry.

In response, Calli questions whether or not Hyacinth's "glandular problem" is real, points out that her boss wears knock-off clothing, and that the non-fat decaf latte Hy orders is just for show. Without any proof at all, Calli speculates that Hyacinth dumps the coffee everyday for something less healthy simply because if she were really drinking the low-fat coffee, she wouldn't be FAT.

I tried to sit through this book, I really did, but it just was NOT happening. Ah well, not every book is a winner!(less)

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Jun 02, 2011 Jami Zehr rated it 4 of 5 stars

Death's Daughter is aptly named. Amber Benson (of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame)has branched out into chick lit after spending time playing such characters. This story is about Callie, the middle daughter of Death who is the president of Death, Inc. an arbitrator of justice independent of God or the Devil. Callie has moved to the Big Apple to live her dream life, leaving her family issues in the past, until she is called back to help the family business. She must complete three nearly impossible...more

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May 28, 2011 cecilia rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: blue-covers

When a Forgetting Charm is needed to have a normal life, obviously Calliope should know better than to believe "normal" would last forever. Family always keep track of their own - and when Death gets kidnapped and you happen to be the daughter of Death, be sure that the higher beings will come to fetch Calliope to take over the business until her dad is found. But taking over is no easy matter - Calliope must complete three tasks to prove her worth, or else forfeit to the Devil's protégé who may...more

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May 10, 2011 Rochelle rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: don-t-read

The fact that this book got published is an insult to all authors and readers who have come before. The tone is snide, selfish, snobbish, and rude. The complete and total massacre of the English language should shame the writer and the editor. This book was so bad that I threw it away instead of selling it to a used bookstore as no one else should be traumatized by it.

" I mean, I hadn’t had a real date in, well … It was so pathetic an expanse of time that I didn’t even want to talk about it." --...more

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Sep 23, 2010 Matt Randall rated it 4 of 5 stars

Amber Benson...actress, screenwriter, director, and now author. She seems to be a jack of all trades, but she's far from a master of none. I fell in love with her when she played Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and I've enjoyed all of the movies she's been in. I wasn't sure how she'd do as an author, though. I admit I approached Death's Daughter with a bit of trepidation.

While Benson does seem to like semi-colons a bit too much, I found her writing to be overall really good. The story she weav...more

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Jul 11, 2010 Dawson rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I know that a lot of folks have written that they disliked this book because the main character, who's head we live in (as it is written in the first person), is kind of annoying. I must admit, I liked that about Calliope. She's flawed, and silly, and she whines about bad situations, and has a crush on just about every boy she meets. And this makes her immensely human in my eyes- ironic, considering said book places an emphasis on her non-humanness. It has occurred to me while reading it, that w...more I know that a lot of folks have written that they disliked this book because the main character, who's head we live in (as it is written in the first person), is kind of annoying. I must admit, I liked that about Calliope. She's flawed, and silly, and she whines about bad situations, and has a crush on just about every boy she meets. And this makes her immensely human in my eyes- ironic, considering said book places an emphasis on her non-humanness. It has occurred to me while reading it, that was perhaps Miss Benson's very intention. That for all Calliope's lack of humanity, for all that she is Death's Daughter and being faced with seemingly insurmountable tasks she must complete, even as she walks casually through Hell and discusses favors and payment with everyone from Cerberus to Gods she is still, in every moment, just a person: a flawed, silly person, who makes mistakes and sticks her foot places it doesn't belong while trying her very best in a bad situation. How can one not relate?

That said, I enjoyed this book immensely. Honestly, more than I expected to (I have to admit, I'm skeptical of actors who take up writing). It's a fun read, and while for the most part what one would call fluff, it had some deeper undertones that struck a chord in me. Moments where the greatness of the mythology involved and the story being told (usually masked behind Calliope's urban sarcasm, and silliness) peeks out at you and says something profound that you weren't expecting.

The only small critique I might send the author's way is that she seems a most up-front kind of individual and the story might benefit from a bit of subterfuge...it's told in a very straight-forward style, leaving little to the reader's imagination, and while Miss Benson's engaging speaking style comes through and mutes the effect (like hearing a story related by an old friend), I think the tale might have more impact in some places if some details were left to the reader's imagination.

A solidly enjoyable read, that I certainly recommend. I have Cat's Claw to get started on next, so more reviews to come.(less)

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May 18, 2009 Michael Spence rated it 3 of 5 stars

As Amber Benson's books page attests, she's no stranger to either the screen or the press. Death's Daughter is a solo effort (as opposed to her collaborations with Christopher Golden), and it's a fun one. Deftly combining ingredients from fantasy, Greek & Hindu lore, and modern "chick-lit," Ms. Benson creates a heroine who one day suddenly (re)discovers, to her dismay, that her family is high-up in the personal eschatology business.

Yep, that's "Reaper," as in "Grim." Her dad. Who has gone mi...more

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May 01, 2009 Kelly rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: cute-hellhounds

(3.5 stars) She thought the devil wore Prada...until she met the real one!

Before I begin this review, a confession: I'm a sucker for any novel containing cute hellhounds.

Calliope Reaper-Jones is living the life of a typical New York office flunky, dealing with a diva boss, less-hunky-than-advertised blind dates, and a lust for designer clothes she can't afford. That is, until her father, who happens to be the Grim Reaper himself, is kidnapped and Calliope is swept back into a dangerous supernatu...more

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Mar 25, 2009 Jess rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009, paranormal-romance

Okay so I have mixed feelings about this one. I really liked the concept and thought it was pretty unique, at least out of the books I have read. Calliope is going about her normal life, and weird things start happening to her. She's trying to get into her apartment and she thinks she sees a huge monster down the hall. She's at work, and voices start talking to her in the bathroom. Suddenly, she picks up a cupcake that is laced with something and she remembers.

Three years previous to that moment...more

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Mar 12, 2009 Elizabeth rated it 3 of 5 stars

I'll begin by saying that this isn't the sort of novel I usually read (in fact, it may be the only fantasy novel I've ever read), and I didn't expect to enjoy it very much. However there had been so much mention of it on Twitter and similar sites, I decided to give it a go. I'm delighted I did, because I ended up enjoying it in spite of myself.

I found the beginning chapters very difficult to get through. To the author's credit the story moves quickly from the start, and I didn't ever feel like I...more

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Apr 03, 2013 Deanna rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: No one

Shelves: audiobook, library

The plot of the book is pretty basic and right from the title you have an idea of what is going to happen. Death is a family man and the whole death industry is nothing but a business run by immortals. Anyways, something tragic happens and one of death's daughters (the black sheep of the family) returns to save the day. It starts off pretty promising, a lot of comedic moments and a little bit of intrigue.

However, Calliope Reaper-Jones, said daughter of death and main character of the book (and a...more

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Mar 01, 2013 Ash rated it 2 of 5 stars

Death's Daughter is about Calliope Reaper-Jones, a 24 year old girl working as an assistant living in New York City. She is a perfectly normal girl except for the fact that she's Death's daughter. specifically her father is the CEO of Death and when he, Callie's older sister, Thalia, and all of the members of the executive board get kidnapped, Callie must step up to the plate to not only save them but to also take over as Death.

Callie is joined by Jarvis, her father's faun executive assistant, R...more Death's Daughter is about Calliope Reaper-Jones, a 24 year old girl working as an assistant living in New York City. She is a perfectly normal girl except for the fact that she's Death's daughter. specifically her father is the CEO of Death and when he, Callie's older sister, Thalia, and all of the members of the executive board get kidnapped, Callie must step up to the plate to not only save them but to also take over as Death.

Callie is joined by Jarvis, her father's faun executive assistant, Runt, one of Cerebus' pups, Clio, Callie's younger sister, and the mysterious Daniel, who is the self-proclaimed devil's protege. Callie will have to go through hell and back, completing the three tasks that must be done in order to wear the crown of Death, clear her good name, and save her family.

I thought this book would be better. I liked the character, Callie, in the short story that was in An Apple for the Creature. In that, she was smart and highly capable. In Death's Daughter, she was very immature, whiny, incredibly selfish, and dumb. All the time I was reading, I was thinking too myself: "why should I care about her?" I get that she was not a hero but she didn't invoke any empathy from me.

Why was she so sex starved? I get being attracted to men but it was literally every guy she wanted to molest. WTF? It grew very tiresome very fast. Callie had no redeeming qualities about her and, with exception of Jarvis, Kali, and Runt, all of the characters were annoying especially Daniel. What was his point?

Callie's character was self-aware which was supposed to be endearing but it became fustrating because she knew that she knew better. I think Benson might have been influenced by her Buffy days to create a character like Buffy season one: very pretty, not to academically smart but noble. But Buffy was 16 and Callie is 24. In my opinion, Callie lacked Buffy's heart.

Be that as it may, I still have hope for Callie, still judging from the short story, that she grows up and becomes more responsible. Hopefully, the whininess and the sex craze will stop in the other books.(less)

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Jan 11, 2011 Ithlilian rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: urban-fantasy

I was a bit put off at the beginning of this novel with the partially ditzy main character that was stuck in a bad job. It didn't help that she erased memories of her family. I was able to get over the semi-unlikable main character and was interested in the tasks she had to complete to free her father. I felt the novel dragged a bit after the three tasks were complete, and the person behind the kidnapping was fairly obvious, but that didn't stop me from eating the novel up. I read it in one sitt...more

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Aug 12, 2012 Jen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: supernatural-fantasy

Hearing that Amber Benson (Tara from Buffy) wrote a series intrigued me. I really like Amber's work in television and movies, so I was interested to check out her work as a writer. I had no expectations and maybe that's a good thing?

Calliope Reaper-Jones is Death's daughter. She has decided that she wants nothing to do with the supernatural world and even cast a spell on herself to make her forget about everything "unusual" in her background. She's the type of character that you are either going...more

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Jul 11, 2010 James rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, read-in-2010

I think this book was targeted more at teens than adults. Even if the characters are older, the strength of the story is weak.

There's quite a few things I didn't really like. First off, every single pantheon appears to actually exist. Norse gods, Greek gods, Egyptian, Hindu... They're all equally valid and exist. But above it all, God and the Devil rule. Huh? There's a huge difference in afterworlds. Does Hades just rule over a bunch of dead Greeks, and act as a middle manager for Satan? Actuall...more I think this book was targeted more at teens than adults. Even if the characters are older, the strength of the story is weak.

There's quite a few things I didn't really like. First off, every single pantheon appears to actually exist. Norse gods, Greek gods, Egyptian, Hindu... They're all equally valid and exist. But above it all, God and the Devil rule. Huh? There's a huge difference in afterworlds. Does Hades just rule over a bunch of dead Greeks, and act as a middle manager for Satan? Actually, Hades would work for both God and the Devil, since he managed the Elysian Fields as well as Tartarus. This discrepancy is never really explained or explored.

And magic... Well, magic just happens. No weird languages, no various steps and components. People just...do stuff. And there's really weird things about it. Calliope can summon just about anything she can imagine. To me, this represents a nearly infinite ability to do just about anything. Got a problem? Just summon up whatever you need to solve it. If she really thought about it, she could summon instructions telling her how to use whatever it is she summoned in the first place as well. Something else that's interesting... Someone seems to interfere with what it is Calliope summons at one point, and she gets something she wasn't expecting. I'm not sure how that happens. It implies that someone else had an idea as to what Calliope would be summoning, which doesn't seem to work, or that they could intercept that summoning and replace it with something else extremely quickly (since the summoning seems to happen instantaneously), or some third option that I haven't quite figured out yet. In all cases, it seems highly unlikely, but it's actually a major plot point.

There's a magical binding used in the book. Apparently, you just can't magick it off. But Calliope's sister solves it by summoning bolt cutters. Ordinary, mundane bolt cutters. Not a very strong magical binding, if you ask me. Makes me wonder why some characters, imprisoned for nearly eternity, didn't just try to bite their way to freedom.

I've got the second book of the series on hold at the library, so I'll probably read it, but I've got low expectations for it as well.(less)

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Jun 02, 2009 Mary (BookHounds) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: borrowed

Calliope Reaper-Jones, longing for a normal life and a glamorous career, is called into the family business when her father, Death, is kidnapped and, in order to step into the CEO slot on the company board, must compete against the Devil's protégé to find three objects of power in hell. Original.
Calliope Reaper-Jones so just wanted a normal life: buying designer shoes on sale, dating guys from Craig's List, web-surfing for organic dim-sum for her boss... But when her father -- who happens to be...more

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About Amber Benson

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Death's Daughter (Calliope Reaper-Jones #1)

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