future technology: Ruby's Reads: Book Review + Giveaway: Grave Dance (Alex Craft No ...

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Ruby's Reads: Book Review + Giveaway: Grave Dance (Alex Craft No ...

Publisher: Penguin Group
Publication Date: July 5, 2011
Format: Mass market paperback
Status: Second in the Alex Craft series, following 2010's Grave Witch.
Source: Received from the publisher for review
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Ghosts, Fae, etc.
Location: Nekros City (Fictional)
Other Info: Kalayna Price is also the author of the much beloved (by me) Haven series: Once Dead and Twice Bitten.
Description (from Goodreads):
After a month of down time, Grave Witch Alex Craft is ready to get back to solving murders by raising the dead. With her love life in turmoil, Alex is eager for the distractions of work. But when her new case forces her to overuse her magic, it might be the last mystery the Grave Witch ever gets to solve...???? You may or may not be aware of my great appreciation for Kalayna Price's Haven series--it is my personal favorite between the two she's published. The Alex Craft books, while imaginative and well-written don't appeal to me, character-wise, as much as Kita and Nathaniel do. My old prejudice against the Fae probably pays a part here, too. The Alex Craft books feature a love triangle, and I fear I am firmly entrenched on the losing side--a habit I abhor.
???? As the description says, Grave Dance picks up a month after the events of Grave Witch. We find Alex in a better place financially--work has picked up and she's semi-notorious. Unfortunately, her recently awakened Fae side has been making a nuisance of itself in any number of ways. All of which are about to come back to bite her in the butt.
???? I didn't dislike this book, but my primary enjoyment of it doesn't come from Alex's first person narrative. What I like best is the secondary characters. Roy, the ghost, her friend Holly, her recently rediscovered (and now Changeling) best friend, her landlord Caleb, and the her friend, John, the policemen. I spent a great deal of time speculating on a secondary romance that was either completely in my head, or is going to take some more time to come to fruition.
???? I often felt that I could leave or take Alex, which was a bit odd because she possesses a great many of the attributes I like in a heroine. I also remember liking her better in the first book. In Grave Dance, there was a disconnect. At times, I felt like she was a pale imitation of Merit from the Chicagoland Vampires series. They have plenty in common (familial estrangement, unhealthy eating habits), but Alex can't really live up to the awesomeness that is Merit. Neither, unfortunately, can her love interests live up to swoon-worthy Ethan.
???? I used to think of myself as a person who enjoys love triangles, but the way this book handles the theme is a perfect example of why they are also frustrating--and risky for authors. Keep in mind this is my opinion, okay? Love triangles work when it's clear which party will win out. When a reader becomes invested in one half of a triangle (as they invariably will be), they will only find satisfaction if the series ultimately goes their way. This is why the Merit/Ethan/Morgan triangle worked for me--there was never any question in my mind who Merit would end up with. Ditto Mercy/Sam/Adam. It's a phenomenal thing when an author can maintain the tension of a love triangle while still conveying the outcome. It's a dangerous widow's walk--with too obvious on one side and frustratingly vague on the other. The Alex Craft books lean heavily on the too vague side, which makes me disinclined to become invested in the stories.
???? I think my dissatisfaction with this novel is based on two personal preferences: my feelings about love triangles, and the fact that most of it revolves around the Fae and Faerie. They were definitely a presence in the last book, but Grave Dance takes things up a notch, Faerie-wise. However, I hope you'll still give this series--and the Haven books--a try.

I have copies of the first and second books in the Alex Craft series available for giveaway--Grave Witch and Grave Dance.

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