I really tried to like this book, I did. Even after the poor beginning, I checked the reviews and gave it a second chance. And a third, and a fourth...The problems with this book are:1. The characters - they are very poorly developed and Jimmy Black is not exactly likeable. He sounds like a teenager with pimples who has no clue what he's doing or why. 2. The language is basic and I have encountered more than a few weird grammar constructions. It might be just me, but "I had to eat something" sounds better for me than "I was going to have to eat something" (or something similar). 3. The female characters are just like some cartoon Barbies with no personality whatsoever. They don't seem to think for themselves, they change their mind without any logical explanation and so on. I recommend the writer to read Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card.4. The description is very, very poor. I recommend the writer to read "Description" by Monica Wood - I think it's a must. And I think a good description would manage to give the reader the 3D image that is completely absent from this book.5. The dialogue is basic and it doesn't sound like real life dialogue. It gives you the impression of watching a B-movie. Again, I recommend the writer to read Dialogue by Gloria Kempton, it might help a lot.6. The plot has no twist, no surprise, nothing... You have to torment the characters more, make them fight more, surprise them more. Take one of the villain and make him be the closest friend of the hero or somebody he knows, or... I don't know, something... Surprise me, don't make me watch a linear plot. "Plot" by Ansen Dibell is a very good book that might help. Also, Jim Butcher's blog about writing.7. The main characters don't seam like real detectives, or vampires - just some teenagers who have no clue what they're doing and that's alright, BUT doesn't explain why the other characters allow their involvement in the whole story.SPOILER AHEAD! 8. There are a lot of contradictions in the text, and I mean A LOT. In the beginning, Jimmy and Greg cannot defeat Belial in the girl's body. At the end, Greg defeats her all by himself in her very own body... which is supposed to give her A LOT more power. Again, Phil tells Jimmy that the forces that will awake are out of their league, THEN he defeats Baal almost on his own. And so on... I recommend the author to draft character sheets, plot sheets and to keep track of everything all the time. This would be all, I guess. I do hope this review will be helpful for the writer because I am a future author myself and I rather have a bad review that helps me grow than a very positive one that doesn't tell me a thing about my style, my evolution and my chances of improving my writing. Jimmy Black doesn't know how he let himself get caught by some scrawny, geek teenager. But he knows one thing - he sure as Hell isn't changing him into a vampire! When the kid tells him about a witch cursing his entire family, Jimmy can't help but be curious enough to get involved, and drag his partner Greg into it right beside him. Pretty soon the guys are using all their combined vampire detective skills and snark to help solve the case of a bunch of missing kids. But things might even be too complicated and dangerous for a couple creatures of the night with a demon bent on starting the apocalypse as the Big Bad. Maybe with the help of a confused and bitchy police detective, a fallen angel, a priest and a witch they can solve the case and stop the world from ending. Who knows, maybe they'll get a little lovin' in the bargain too! I wasn't sure what to expect from two vampire private detectives, but I got more than I even subconsciously thought I would! Jimmy and Greg are two snarky, nerdy vampires who still look exactly the same as they did before they were changed - in other words they're not sex gods like vamps are supposed to be. Jimmy likes watching Buffy and Dexter and is the brawns of the operation. Greg is the computer hacker/genius and is eternally unlucky in love. I hadn't read the synopsis too closely and was surprised at the major role demons and fallen angels played in the story. Reading this book was like watching an episode of Supernatural. The priest (whom they call Dad) was a childhood friend and still thinks the boys are worth saving, still good guys (also Father Mike is a total bad-ass, which is awesome). My favorite thing in this novel was the obvious strength of the relationships between Jimmy, Greg and Father Mike. The dialogue is a bonus and kept me on my toes. Jimmy was my favorite character, but I'm guessing that was mostly due to him being the primary narrator of the novel. The surprise redemption of a not-so-good, but not-so-evil after all character at the end of the novel was a beautifully written scene that had me smiling. The mystery of the missing children and the demon possessions was well executed, but the ending with Jimmy and the lady police detective felt more than a little clichéd and sort of forced to me as a reader. All in all it was an interesting book and I will probably be reading the sequel. I'd recommend it to fans of the T.V. shows Supernatural and Angel, along with a good shot of (and someone out there is gonna kill me for this comparison!) your favorite cozy mystery series. It just has that slightly formulaic feel to it, but not in a bad way! :)VERDICT: 4/5 Stars*I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book was published December 21st, 2012.*
What do You think about Hard Day's Knight (2010)?
Light fast read. Tries a little too hard at being funny and ended a little too preachy.
—ouranos
