Hunting in Hell

De la Roca Chronicles #1-2

by Maria Violante

***Praise For The De la Roca Chronicles***

"... Action packed fantasy adventure with a strong female antihero..."
-D. L. MORRESE,
Author of The Warden Threat

"... just the right pacing ... The way this author, Violante, describes new worlds and planes is brilliant..."
- TERRA HARMONY,
Author of The Akasha Series

"Gritty, imaginative and entertaining ... reminiscent of King's Gunslinger ... foreign, alien and fantastic..."
- M. PAX
Author of Semper Fidelis

"Compelling and well-written ... a great read..."
- CHARLES M. PULSIPHER
Author of The Crystal Bridge

" ... I was hooked from the start ... so luminous, I can only think that she paints pictures in her head as she writes."
- MICHAEL OFFUTT
Author of Slipstream

***

Fans of the mercenary De la Roca can now enjoy HUNTING IN HELL, a two-book volume that includes both HUNTING THE FIVE and HONOR IN HELL. Follow the demon mercenary from the American Southwest to Hell - and back.

PART ONE: HUNTING THE FIVE

It's a side of the southwest never glimpsed by mortal man - a heartless, barren outback riddled with ruthless demons. In its ignorance, humanity is powerless to stop these escapees from Hell and the havoc they create with their dark magic. Good thing De la Roca isn't human. A gunslinger with no memories of her previous life, she has fought for the last three hundred years on the forefront of a supernatural war, relying only on her wits, her reflexes, and her own demonic powers - all to pay for her own release from Hell. The Angels wouldn't send her in alone and unarmed, though; Alsvior, her gifted - if contrary - steed, and Bluot, a legendary revolver with an unquenchable blood-lust, have been with her every step of the way - alone with a series of terrible nightmares that might hold the keys to her past. Then, an Angel appears with a bargain that seems to good to be true - five final targets, and she is free from her penance. Quickly, she discovers that her old methods are not up to the task, and she's forced to team up with a mysterious gatekeeper and another mercenary - both of which need her for their own plans. With time running out, she has to figure out who to trust and who to kill, and fast, before she's demon-food.

PART TWO: HONOR IN HELL

Can anyone be trusted? Betrayed by both Laufeyson and the Mademoiselle, and sent on a quest by an angel that might actually be her enemy, the demon mercenary De la Roca bolts into Hell with murder in her heart. Her simple mission for revenge quickly spirals out of control. Between the Consortium of power-hungry angels, the serpentine Oracle, a strangely absent God, and the knowledge that her mount just happens to be a man under a curse, just about everyone around her has a secret - and most of them are trying to get her killed. Unless, of course, she can kill them first.

Genres: Horror, Fantasy

292 pages, Paperback

First published April 26, 2012

About the author

Maria Violante is the best-selling author of several urban fantasy and science fiction novels.

Her most recent series, The Markers, is published by Hartwood Publishing.

Books by Maria Violante (currently in print):

BirthMarked (Hartwood Publishing)
Monsters and Markers (Hartwood Publishing)
Witness (Hartwood Publishing, previously two separate volumes with Liquid Silver Books)
Gambler's Luck (Hartwood Publishing, previously Liquid Silver Books)

Books no longer in print:
Wit Awakening (now part of Witness; see above)
Wit Transforming (now part of Witness; see above)
Hunting the Five
Honor in Hell
Seven Sacrifices

Reviews

[Houa · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was a good storyline, throughout the story, De La Roca figures our who she was & what had happened to her. I liked it, though the ending wasn't how I expected it to be, but I still liked it. Good plot.

[Kimm · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found that the story captured my attention immediately - I liked the main character De La Roca very much. Somewhere or other I had gotten it into my head that I had read she was not a very likeable character. Perhaps I'm confused and getting my titles mixed up, but I found nothing to dislike. She was tough, but not over-the-top unbelievable bad-ass. Each chapter was very short so I never felt pressured to keep going til the end as I sometimes do with less interesting stories. In fact, I found myself reading more than I intended, and staying up later than I intended because the author was able to keep my attention. My very favorite character was De La Roca's horse, Alsvior. Not only was he loyal and magical and tough, but he was unintentionally comical as well. I could read a book just from his point-of-view. Ms. Violante writes beautifully, intelligently, and the world she builds is incredible. True, I did find myself confused about who was who, what was what, etc. quite often, but I blame myself for that, not the author. Due to the main character's situation, the book has to be this way. We are learning along with De La Roca and she herself is confused. At times, I felt I needed more info ... that somehow I should have read a certain book before this one to know what was going on. There are layers and layers here and we are thrown into the story that happens to be kinda the middle of a story. All is made clear(er) as we read on. Again, I blame myself for not fully appreciating this, not the author for her style of writing. I think Ms. Violante will enjoy a success with her characters and storyline here. I would love to see this in graphic novel form!

[Sadie Forsythe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hunting the Five: 2★ https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Honor in Hell: 3★ https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The links about are the individual reviews for the two books contained in this compilation. I'l give Hunting in Hell a three star. In order to do this I am generously choosing to ignore the break in the middle that separates it into two books. The second book picks up exactly where the first ends and seamlessly continues the story that was left completely unresolved at the end of book one. Unless I'm not being completely clear here. I'll reiterate. Hunting the Five and Honor in Hell TOGETHER form one book...well, the first third (probably, maybe less if this is to be more than a trilogy) of a story. Neither is a stand alone book and neither wraps up or concludes. You might notice I am less than happy about this.

Having had my little rant. The writing is pretty good, the story seems interesting (hard to really say without and ending) and it's well edited.

[Eva · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you liked the Lilith Saintcrow Dante Valentine series or want something to read after The Hollows from Kim Harrison, or if you’re a fan of Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld of Women series, then you’ll be fond of De La Roca. I would also say it’s a natural “what to read next” after you’ve finished the Sonja Blue vampire series, and if you long for old Anita Blake, you’ll enjoy these books. It’s not your typical “smart-ass female lead” urban fantasy that you see too much of on the bookstore shelves, but it’s familiar enough that you’ll find the usual elements you go for when reading an urban fantasy. In fact, it’s more like an epic fantasy “quest tale” rather than the traditional revenge or mystery tales that we see in urban fantasy, which is good because it’s different.

[The TBR Pile *Book review site* · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://thetbrpile.weebly.com/1/post/2...

It had all the makings of a mind blowing story arch, but there were things that derailed me and I never fully got back on the train. There were frequent POV shifts, and tenses, and too much information. At times I felt like I was being deluged by things that weren’t being properly explained. I also felt a bit bereft at the end. After the lengthy journey I’d taken with the
lead character, De La Roca, I didn’t feel a connection.

That being said, there was plenty to like about this book.

[Teawench · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this, love it even, but I just couldn't. What's not to like? Badass heroine, demons, angels, fighting, and a horse that turns into a guy! But the characters were pretty flat. The ones I liked most were secondary characters at best. There was a lot going on but it was more the MC reacting to things rather than her doing anything on her own. The POV changed too many times. There were parts where I lost track of who was saying or thinking what.

[E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my usual read. Read this book with both my girl (18) and my boy (16). After reading, I looked for other books in the same genre. Loved the fact the book is written in short stories. A lot easier to get through. Kids liked it. Fast paced, lots of action. Not a "predictable" book. Pick it up even if not your usual read, you won't regret it.