Category: urban fantasy

As I worked, my hands brushed the stone of the building. The granite sang under my fingertips. The music from the orchestra's performances had long ago permeated the rock and now ran through it like a vein of ore.  I closed my eyes and flattened both hands against the rough stone. The sound was so rich, so pure, so beautiful... (pg. 38, Spider's Bite by Jennifer Estep) Gin is a Stone elemental who, among other powers, can actually hear stones, from the pavement on the road to the Appalachian mountains. I love the concept and I especially appreciated this description of the Ashland Opera House, that each of the performances has been absorbed by the building, become part of it. Are there any buildings that "speak" to you, even if not so literally? Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Play along. I cheated, but the rules are easy. Grab your current read, open to a random page, and give...

Vicki of Reading At The Beach hosts A-Z Wednesday. Today's letter is U. Apparently I don't read many books whose titles begin with U. I only found one that I've read since I've been keeping track, and it wasn't one I enjoyed much, so I'm pulling one from the never-ending to-read list. Unclean Spirits by M. L. N. Hanover In a world where magic walks and demons ride, you can't always play by the rules. Jayné Heller thinks of herself as a realist, until she discovers reality isn't quite what she thought it was. When her uncle Eric is murdered, Jayné travels to Denver to settle his estate, only to learn that it's all hers -- and vaster than she ever imagined. And along with properties across the world and an inexhaustible fortune, Eric left her a legacy of a different kind: his unfinished business with a cabal of wizards known as the Invisible College. Led by the ruthless Randolph Coin, the Invisible College harnesses...

Vicki of Reading At The Beach hosts A-Z Wednesday. Today's letter is M. I read this one in July of 2008. It's an urban fantasy, the first in a series. It  has a slightly different spin on creatures like vampires and weres and how they co-exist with humans. Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start. But then technology returns, and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose, leaving all kinds of paranormal problems in its wake. Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercenary who makes her living cleaning up these magical problems. But when Kate's guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta's magic circles. The Masters of the Dead, necromancers who can control vampires, and the Pack, a paramilitary clan of shapechangers, blame each other for a series of bizarre killings—and the...