It can happen, that the one or the other book from a series is not what I had thought it would be. That the special something is missing. Compared to the other books in that series. Well, this one is one of those. Although it was entertaining and action-filled, I was missing the special something. The cherry that tops the icing on the cake if you like. Maybe the next will hit that mark again …
One Grave At A Time*
by Jeaniene Frost
Night Huntress Series #6
Publisher Avon Books on August 30, 2011
Genre Vampire
Pages 384
Format Paperback
Source Publisher*
✶✶✶½
Having narrowly averted an (under)World War, Cat Crawfield wants nothing more than a little downtime with her vampire husband, Bones. Unfortunately, her gift from New Orleans’s voodoo queen just keeps on giving—leading to a personal favor that sends them into battle once again, this time against a villainous spirit. Centuries ago, Heinrich Kramer was a witch hunter. Now, every All Hallows Eve, he takes physical form to torture innocent women before burning them alive. This year, however, a determined Cat and Bones must risk all to send him back to the other side of eternity—forever. But one wrong step and they’ll be digging their own graves.
Story
A ghost makes life difficult for Cat and Bones. Unfortunately, not a harmless one, but one with a murderous past and present. Every year, on Halloween, he starts his brutal and pathological activity again and three innocent women have to lose their lives – and Cat doesn´t like that at all. But the hunt for the “witch murderer” turns out to be not so easy, especially since the newly appointed commander also throws stones in the way of her old unit. But the godmother Death is not punished with impunity and her anger quickly makes it clear whose side she is on.
Style
Charming, funny, and very action-packed. The author gives a sly insight into the life of the spirits. The reader experiences the unusual and rather nerve-wracking life of the former godfather Death. If the other novels in this series were otherwise full of passion and fighting spirit, this volume is rather civil – despite some action-packed passages. There are few passionate scenes between Cat and Bones, but the reader learns an incredible amount about ghosts, the way a medium works, and which herbs and tinctures are effective against these invisible contemporaries. The style of writing and speaking is simple, direct, and again wonderfully unconventional. However, I couldn´t help feeling that something was missing here. The plot remained – despite several very action-packed scenes and lively dialogues – strangely dull. The book is, as contradictory as it may sound, absolutely entertaining, varied, and delicious in tone. And the reading pace is fluent and yet – the icing on the cake – that was missing this time.
Characters
A lot of anger, destructive anger, and centuries-old hatred and feelings of revenge run like a red thread through the figures created by Jeaniene Frost – if only with some of them. There is a minor figure, the ghost of Elisabeth, who during her lifetime was tortured and abominably tortured and finally burned by an inquisitor and whose spirit she has been chasing for centuries. At some point, I asked myself: What does this ghost figure do if Cat and Bones actually succeed in catching and making this pathetic ghost inquisitor harmless? Will she then find a new occupation or content for her ghost existence? And to my unbelievable pleasure, Bones only a few pages later speak to Cat about exactly that topic and has a very interesting conversation with her about what he wants Cat to do, should they never be able to catch this spirit. The word “never” got a completely new meaning for me and the character of Bones reveals to the reader a hitherto completely unknown side of himself – what a positive surprise.
Conclusion
The novel is entertaining and a pleasant pastime, even if it didn´t inspire me as much as the other volumes. Hence the weak rating. But the charm and wit of this series can also be felt here. Just read it yourself.
Happy reading
*I read the German edition by Penhaligon on September 2011
Jeaniene Frost
Jeaniene Frost is a New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author whose works include the Night Huntress series, the Night Prince series, and the Broken Destiny series. To date, foreign rights for her novels have sold to twenty different countries. Jeaniene lives in North Carolina with her husband Matthew, who long ago accepted that she rarely cooks and always sleeps in on the weekends. Aside from writing, Jeaniene enjoys reading, poetry, watching movies, exploring old cemeteries, spelunking, and traveling – by car. Airplanes, children, and cookbooks frighten her.
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