Hard Spell by Justin Gustainis

No, I haven't gone to the dark side. Just because I've read a few urban fantasies lately doesn't mean I'm turning to books about vampires and werewolves. I'm a fan of those urban fantasies that clearly define good vs. evil, and, often, have a detective searching for answers. In my mind, Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden is just as much a detective as he is a wizard. And, I love the dark humor in so many of these books.

Justin Gustainis' Hard Spell is scheduled for release next Tuesday. It's called "An Occult Crimes Unit Investigation." What fan of Dragnet or crime fiction can turn down a book that starts like this? 'This is the city - Scranton, Pennsylvania....Scranton's got a "live and let unlive" relationship with the supernatural, just like everyplace else. But when a vamp puts a bite on an unwilling victim, or some witch casts the wrong kind of spell, that's when they call me.'

"My name's Markowski. I carry a badge.

"Also a crucifix, some wooden stakes, a big vial of holy water, and a 9mm Beretta loaded with silver bullets."

I was hooked on the very first page. Markowski, a Detective Sergeant who chose to work in the Occult Crimes Unit Investigation, partners with other officers to investigate crimes involving "supes," the supernatural element. After WWII, vampires, werewolves, witches, and others found it easy to get to the U.S., and they can be victims of crime as much as they can be the villains. It's a crime against a supe that brings Markowski into the worst case he's ever investigated. A wizard has been tortured and killed to give up a valuable item that could prove to be a powerful weapon for the killer.

The death of that wizard is a case that bothers Markowski, and it only gets worse as it spirals out of control. Between a white witch that disappears, dead vampires, and a wizard Markowski doesn't quite trust, he has his hands full. It's going to take all the skills and knowledge he's acquired over the years, along with cooperation from other police departments to bring this case to a successful conclusion without allowing a killer to have unlimited power.

Stanley Markowski is a fascinating person, a man whose history has a darkness to it, secrets he seldom shares. But, he's also a good detective, a solid cop who knows how to work the system, and make it work for him. And, that means he works the police system, as well as the supernatural system.

Hard Spell combines the best of a police procedural with the grittiness and dark humor of urban fantasy. The body count is high, and the deaths are gory and brutal. This is a blue collar police department, with plenty of coarse language and sexual innuendos. The female detectives are as libel to be crude as the men. But, then there's the wonderful, irreverent humor. Scranton's SWAT team is the Sacred Weapons & Tactics Unit. And, when they're working, The SWAT team is accompanied by a Prayer Team, three clergymen who work together to pray while the police work. Markowski's take on that is, "How somebody figured that God would pay more attention to a group effort than if each of these guys prayed separately wasn't real clear to me, but I'm just a simple cop, not a theologian."

Justin Gustainis' Hard Spell isn't for everyone. But, anyone who appreciates the darkness, the perverse humor, and the solid police work of a good urban fantasy will welcome this first book in the Occult Crimes Unit Investigation series.

If you'd like to see the book trailer for Hard Spell, I'm sharing it here.




Justin Gustainis' website is http://www.justingustainis.com/

Hard Spell by Justin Gustainis. Angry Robot. ©2011. ISBN 9780857661159 (paperback), 394p.

*****
FTC Full Disclosure - The author sent me a copy of the book, hoping I'd review it.

Homecoming Day by Holly Jacobs

If you're looking for a holiday book, Holly Jacobs' new romance, Homecoming Day, is perfect for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and St. Patrick's Day, since it includes all of them.  "Homecoming" has nothing to do with football in this story.  In the Keller family, a large family of adopted children, and every stray that Abe and Deborah Keller could bring into their lives, Homecoming Day was a day of celebration.  It meant that the children had finally found a permanent home with people who loved them.  A year ago, I reviewed my first book about the Kellers, Unexpected Gifts, about the romance that led to the marriage of Eli & Zac Keller.   Homecoming Day is the story of two lonely people, Laura Winston and Seth Keller. 

Laura Winston's parents were both dead, but she thought she'd finally found the family she craved with her fiancé, Jay Martin, and his parents.  When she learned she was pregnant, everyone was overjoyed, and she and Jay moved their wedding date up.  Laura always knew Jay was in danger in his job as a policeman, but she never expected he'd die before their wedding, of bacterial meningitis.  She not only lost him, but she lost his parents, when his mother refused to take him off life support, and ordered Laura out of their lives.  So, once again, Laura Winston was alone, with only her unborn baby, and her job as an art teacher.

It was Laura's job that took her to the police station when one of her students, JT, was picked up, and called her.  Fortunately for both JT and Laura, it was Lieutenant Seth Keller, the new liaison between the department and the school district, who was responsible for JT.  The widower took an interest in the troubled young girl, and he and Laura teamed up to help her with her problems at home and school. 

Seth understood Laura's loss and pain, since he lost his own wife in childbirth.  That didn't stop him from falling for her.  But, before Seth and Laura can deal with their feelings, they have to deal with other relationships; Laura's anger at the Martins, and Seth's alienation from his parents.

Holly Jacobs is my favorite romance writer.  Her characters lead ordinary lives in and around Erie, Pennsylvania.  They're teachers, cops, grocery store owners, social workers.  But, they come to life in Holly's writings as people with problems, yearning for love.  She's dealt with issues of illiteracy, teenage mothers, disability, adoption, loss.  And, every day is a Homecoming Day of the heart in one of Holly Jacobs' books, including this one.  

Holly Jacobs' website is http://www.hollyjacobs.com/

Homecoming Day by Holly Jacob.  Harlequin, ©2010. ISBN 9780373716777 (paperback), 249p.

*****
FTC Full Disclosure - The author sent me a copy of the book, hoping I would review it.

Death Notice by Todd Ritter

Sunday Salon provides the perfect opportunity to introduce debut authors.  And, I can think of some journalists who have successfully written crime fiction.  Michael Connelly, Brad Parks, and Hank Phillippi Ryan are names that immediately come to mind.  I know there are dozens of others.  Now, Todd Ritter has the opportunity to join their ranks with his mystery, Death Notice.

There had never been a murder in the quaint town of Perry Hollow, Pennsylvania.  Police chief Kat Campbell knew the history of the mill town, since her grandparents met at the lumber mill, and her father was once the police chief.  And, she recognized most of the residents of the small town.  So, Kat was as shocked as everyone else when a trucker found a coffin at the edge of town, with a local farmer in it.  The murder was horrible enough to call in the sheriff, who turned it over to the Pennsylvania Bureau of Criminal Investigation.  As head of the task force, Nick Donnelly suspected the death was at the hands of a serial killer dubbed "The Betsy Ross Killer," due to his skill in using a needle and thread on his victims.  But, even Nick wasn't prepared when Henry Goll walked in the door, with a warning.  Goll wrote the obituaries for the local newspaper, but he had never received a fax that predicted a death before.

Donnelly's task force was expected to handle the investigation.  However, Chief Campbell became a partner in the case when she insisted on protecting her town.  She pointed out she knew the citizens.  But, she couldn't protect everyone from a killer determined to spread terror.  And, she and Donnelly reluctantly accepted Goll as part of their case when the killer seemed to target him to receive messages.

Ritter avoids rookie mistakes in this compelling mystery.  Kat, Donnelly, and Goll are all fascinating characters with weaknesses that make them all the more interesting.  Kat, with a special needs child, is particularly aware of her complex role as a single mother and a police chief.  And, each time I thought I knew where the case was going, the author threw in a twist.  Those twists made perfect sense at the end of this successful debut. 

Since I often review cozy mysteries, I feel compelled to say some of the details in this book can be grisly.  But, it's a well-written crime novel, riveting enough that I read it in one sitting.  So, I'll put you on notice.  Todd Ritter's Death Notice will be joining the ranks of other successful first novels by journalists turned mystery writer.

If you're a fan of authors' websites, as I am, check out Todd Ritter's at http://www.toddritteronline.com/.

Death Notice by Todd Ritter.  St. Martin's Minotaur, ©2010. ISBN 9780312622800 (hardcover), 336p.


*****
FTC Full Disclosure - Library book

Night Calls by Holly Jacobs

Maybe it was the last book about a dog that made me pull Holly Jacobs' Night Calls off the shelf at the library.  Look at the face on the cover.  You have to be a little nuts to love that face.  And, Jacobs' characters, Cassie Grant and Jonathan Cooper are both a little nuts in this enjoyable romantic comedy.

Cassie Grant is the DJ on a radio station in Erie, PA, WLVH.  She's on Night Calls, a radio show where she talks about her belief that true love exists, and really matters.  Coming from a family where three generations eloped, Cassie expects to do the same with her fiancé, Gene.  Instead, when there are glitches in her travel plans, Cassie realizes she doesn't love him, so she dumps him, and resolves to become a spinster, get a dog, and devote herself to her radio career.

Ah, that dog.  Dudley, an Old English mastiff, is already enormous when Cassie brings the puppy home.  And, Dudley falls hard for Cassie's neighbor, Jonathan.  Cassie and Jonathan have been friends since the day she moved in, but her broken engagement causes uneasy feelings.  It's not quite as easy to be pals when they start to see each other as a man and woman, not just easy-going friends that share dinner and conversation.  But, Cassie wants happily-ever-after in her life, and Jonathan, a divorce lawyer, wants an eventual relationship, but doesn't believe in true love.  

Suddenly, Cassie's life is becoming complicated.   "As a woman who had decided to stay single and become a new millennium career woman, she had way too many men on her mind.  There was her ex-fiancé who wanted to get re-engaged.  Add to that her neighbor who she thought was her friend, but turned out to be a kissing fiend.  And then there was Dudley, her slime factory, bed-hogging puppy who sat on people's legs and broke basement doors."  And, if her social life doesn't work out, there's always that radio contest at work in which someone can win a date with Cassie.

If you haven't discovered Holly Jacobs' romantic comedies, start with Night Calls.  If you love romance, humor, and dogs, it might be right up your alley.

Holly Jacobs' website is http://www.hollyjacobs.com/

Night Calls by Holly Jacobs.  Thomas Bouregy & Co., ©2006. ISBN 9780803497641 (hardcover), 192p.

*****
FTC Full Disclosure - Library book.