Ace, 2011
ISBN: 0441020429
Available: paperback and multiformat digital

The fifth book in the Kate Daniels’ series has hit streets and readers want to know: Can Kate adjust to her new life as female alpha of the pack and mate to the Beast Lord (a werelion) of Atlanta? And after fighting gods, rabid werewolves and family, where can Andrews take readers now?

In Magic Slays Kate, trying to establish her own merch/PI business after quitting the Order of the Merciful Aid when she found out about their anti-supernatural stance, takes a case to find a lost inventor and a lost machine from the Red Guard (and elite group of ex-military and ex-cop merchs) instead Kate finds out disturbing details about her own past that make her question her relationship with Curran, when she’s not too busy trying to find out why vampires and werecritters are going rogue, wards to keep bridge trolls from rampaging are vanishing, and why no one knows what the missing invention did.

Despite Kate finally jumping into real personal connections Andrews keeps true to both the action-packed reputation of the series, and Kate’s combination of total combat prowess, but completely scarred emotions. Readers will be pleased to find that love doesn’t magically make either Curran or Kate completely open and trusting people and their lives without self-induced complications. Andrews’ prose sizzles and her plots keeps readers glued to the pages. Highly recommended for public collections as a representation of some of the best writing modern UF has to offer.

Contains: sex, violence, language

Damnation Books, 2011
ISBN: 9781615723478
Available: Trade paperback & multiformat digital

The problem with writing a traditional [vampire/zombie/werewolf/serial killer/etc] tale these days is that the mythos of most of these creatures are so ingrained in us that “traditional” often translates to boring. If you slap a howling werewolf on the cover readers know what your bad guy is and spending two hundred pages with your characters still in the dark can easily become tedious rather than a delightfully gory romp through a dark night. This is the most glaring problem with By the Light of the Moon, which stars a paranoid newspaper reporter, his girlfriend, and a small town cop squaring off against a vicious, strong, mysterious creature who gets really hungry every full moon.

It also doesn’t help that the best (and sometimes only real) descriptions come from the characters telling each other how poignant that scene is, or how relevant this fact is. By the Light of the Moon is not a bad book. Kerr’s strength is his characterization, and he recognizes how to strike all the dramatic moments. The book’s greatest flaw is that it does nothing new with the mythos and lacks an atmosphere that would make up for it. Given its higher small press price tag, it’s not the best option for public collections, but werewolf fans, especially the die-hard werewolf-monster-killer fans will dig it.

Contains: violence and language

Berkley, 2007
ISBN: 0425216594
Available: paperback and multiformat digital

Anthologies like On the Prowl are becoming more common these days, particularly in urban fantasy and paranormal romance. On the Prowl is a shape shifter-themed collection of four novellas by authors writing in pre-established worlds. It features a prequel to Brigg’s Alpha and Omega series, set in the same world as her Mercy Thompson books; a side story from Wilks’ Lupi series, set between the third and fourth books but starring a secondary character; a story set in Karen Chance’s Dorina Basarab world but led by side characters; and a short story from Sunny that’s little more than a summary of the first four of her Monere books wedged between sex scenes.

The stories vary between very good (Briggs and Chance) to “you probably need to be a fan of the series” (Wilks) to terrible (Sunny). While these types of books are more for series completists than public collections they can help fans of the genre or a particular theme learn about new authors whose works they might love. On the Prowl is recommended for collections that have a lot of paranormal readers, and of course to librarians (and booksellers) themselves who like to have an understanding of the variety of books on the shelves. It’s a decent “sampler” of paranormal works that requires little investment and can certainly spark the urge to go out and try new books.

Contains: sex, mentions of abuse, some violence

Ace, 2011
ISBN: 0441019730
Available: Hardcover and multiformat digital

Just as Lord of the Rings established a plethora of fantasy standards Patricia Briggs’ Mercy Thompson series has left its mark on urban fantasy. In this sixth book of the series, Mercy has made her commitment to the local werewolf alpha, Adam. In fact, after a surprise wedding (like a surprise birthday party), Adam whisks Mercy off on a ten day camping trip in a plush trailer lent to them by the fae. Since the fae never give anything for free, both Mercy and Adam are suspicious, but determined not to let that ruin their alone time. Then a river monster, an ancient Native American cannibal, rises and claims Mercy as its own.

Briggs is excellent at drawing in both readers and multicultural magical elements. In this story she isolates Adam and Mercy from their pack, and sets them up against what might as well be a god. Briggs reminds readers that they don’t need European vampires and Nordic werewolves for intrigue and adventure: America has plenty of secrets all its own.

This series is very popular, for good reason. It strikes a perfect balance between urban fantasy elements—romance, mystery, horror and magic. It is led by strong, but not perfect characters whose power might set them apart with a less talented literary hand. Instead Briggs keeps them human, valiant, noble, challenged and even light-hearted. Readers looking to try out urban fantasy would do well to start here, and a librarian on a tight budget will most likely see this series gives a high interest value for the money.

Contains: violence, language, sexual situations