Ill Wind: Book One of the Weather Warden

I confess: when I first read the blurb about this, it didn't jump out at me. My suspicions were furthered when it took me about 50 pages to get into it. But man, when I did, I did! This book shot off like a rocket and was almost impossible to put down. One of the best things about this is Caine's very fast and witty writing style. I'm amazed at all the jokes that go by in ordinary prose, subtle and hilarious. Example: while changing clothes in her car, Jo notes to the reader that getting one's pants off in the backseat of a Mustang isn't easy--not that she hasn't had practice. And just like that, the joke sneaks by and the action continues. It's wonderful. The whole book breezes through like that. The other awesome part here is just how tight the story is. The concept is great--and as someone else said, it's a refreshing change from vampires--and is told in a series of present-time action spliced with flashbacks. At first, I thought the flashbacks were just backstory, but they end up working into the ending climax in a very neat way. Excellent writing. So yeah, I could go on and tell you about the loveable characters and how neat it is to quantify magic scientifically, but well, I think you've already gotten the idea. And really, reading more of this review would waste your time from reading the book.

I have become quite addicted to books that have stories of various types of paranormal characters living secretly or openly in our modern world, and interacting in and affecting the lives of us mere mortals. It seems to have become a fantasy subgenre, first with the gentler tales of authors like Charles DeLint and Emma Bull, more steeped in traditional fantasy, but taking a darker, more kick-butt action orientation with the huge success of Laurel K. Hamilton's series of Anita Blake and Merrie Gentry books. Ill Wind, the first book in the WEather Warden series by Rachel Caine, definitely falls into this second category. The book's protagonist, Joanne Baldwin, works for a secret agency that employs agents' supernatural abilities to control and mitigate the worst of Mother Nature's depredations against humans, including weather, forest fires and earthquakes. Joanne's speciality is weather control and she is one of the strongest and most powerful Wardens in the agency. This ultimately makes her a target for someone within the agency who has plotted against her, and as the book opens, Joanne is on the run not just for her life but for control of her very soul, trying to find the one person she believes can help her. She is pursued not only by Agency operatives who believe that she killed her own boss, but the forces of nature itself, which are always oddly attracted to Wardens but seem to be targeting Joanne in particular. The book was suspenseful and I had a hard time putting it down. There were some nice twists in the plot, including a resolution that I absolutely didn't see coming, but which nicely sets up further books in the series. While it is another variation on similar themes worked by Hamilton, Jim Butcher, Kim Harrison and others, it's a good variation and worthwhile on its own. And if you are like me and can't get enough of these kinds of books, this is a series well worth checking out!

I picked this one up due to Jim Butcher's testimonial on the front cover. If you like his stuff (e.g., Dresden Files) this one will be right up your alley. This is another alternate America where magic actually works genre where wardens (e.g., weather, fire, etc.) keep Mother Nature from wiping humanity off the face of the earth. The concept is reasonably creative but the real strength lies in the interesting, original characters and the authors refreshing wit. The writing style is truly engaging and fun. In this one, our hero Joanne Baldwin is on the run from the wardens who believe that she murdered her boss, hoping to find the one person who can protect her from false accusations and, more importantly, save her from the Demon Mark that is slowly destroying her. There are hot women, fast cars, and all kinds of fun twists and turns in the plot. It's great fun. Heartily recommended!

I'm a writer, and I'm jaded; I've read 2-3 books a day for 26 years. Few authors can catch and keep my attention. Rachel Caine put her hands around my throat and she squeezed. This went way beyond can't-put-the-book-down, she induced a state of reader coma so deep that I was sure if I stopped reading the story would go on without me and I'd never know if the characters survived. I finished it, then I re-read it. Do yourself a favor, ok? Buy it. HJ

Fantastic - really! A great book, a great read, a real page-turner - one of those books where I rush to the end of a page to see what will happen on the next page. The premise is made believable (weather is caused by evil somethings, djinni can be sources of power to magicians - including weather wardens), a secret coven (?) of weather wardens, housed at the UN Building, really save the world - almost daily.This author makes her world and premises believable, her characters human (even the djinni), and the dilemmas truly frightening. As twists in the plot reveal new information and new factors they fit in nicely - no deus ex machina for this author. Lots of adventure, lots of risk, many moments of humor along the way, and a happy and tricky ending which I won't reveal. I will be watching eagerly for the next book in this series and will buy it on the spot.