In this second installment of the Kate Daniels series, Andrews deepens and strengthens everything that was good in the first. The world building makes more sense, the monsters are just as wild and creative and yet just as believable. The action is intense and the characters real (quite a feat considering how imaginative some can be.)

My favorite part of it all, however, is the heroine, Kate, she is strong, determined yet with a kind and caring heart and a snarky sense of humor that is laugh out loud funny. I found myself doing just that many times. But there are moments that are also deeply poignant. Her honest but sad appraisal of her life actually left me teary. She is the kind of heroine we all would want to be and one we could actually allow our kids to read. I also loved Curran, although I still think his relationship with Kate is much too scarce. We only see him three or four times in the entire book. He is a character rich with potential whose motives and feelings have thus far been untapped. Nevertheless, there is always hope, on to the next chapter!