Night Shift (Jill Kismet, Hunter, Book 1)

Saintcrow's Jill Kismet novels read like early Anita Blake: fun, witty, fast, and dark. For those of us who mourned as Blake devolved into the author's Mary Sue erotica, Kismet may form a first-class replacement. Even in this first book, she's already shown more character depth and vulnerability than Anita. The over-the-top wise-cracking dialog and supernatural battles make for an excellent escape. Highly recommended.

I enjoyed this book. It had the right amount of action and movement to keep me interested until the end. If you go expecting War and Peace, you'll be disappointed. But if all you want is a fast paced read, this might be the book for you.

As a young girl she lived in the streets selling her body to anyone who had the cash to pay for it. Her life changed for the better when she met Mikhail, who taught her to be a hunter; a person who works the darkside keeping humans safe from hellbreed (demons). She performs the exorcisms that the priests cannot or will not. Ironically the Church believes she is doomed to hell because she kills and consorts with the damned. Life is about to turn depressing for Jill Kismet even though she has a link to a hellbreed Perry who has given her extraordinary powers. Five police officers were killed by what seems likea hellbreed and a rogue were-shapeshifter. Jill knows these are her natural enemies. As the murders continue Jill thinks the hellbreed is protecting the Were especially when she learns who the father of the damned is. As Jill struggles to end the killings, someone decides to end Jill. Lilith Saintcrow always provides a spellbinding action packed urban fantasy that contains a touch of romance, which enhance the plot. However it is the locale where magic works and human authorities deal through liaisons with the supernatural in a realm that seems real because the crimes committed by the paranormal come across as genuine and the subsequent investigations feels authentic. Jill is a strong protagonist who takes on the hellbreeds to protect humanity especially the children. She chose to link with Perry so she is a better fighter though she knows that will probably damn her; at least the Church says so. Her efforts on the NIGHT SHIFT make for an enjoyable urban fantasy investigative thriller that shows why this reviewer is a huge fan of Ms. Saintcrow. Harriet Klausner

I picked Night Shift up because I really enjoyed Lilith Saintcrow's Dante Valentine series. It took me about fifty pages to really get into this new book but once I was in I was hooked and it was really worth it. At first I wasn't sure how I felt about the story's main character Jill Kismet, but she really started to grow on me. As her story and past unfolded I really started to like her. I enjoyed seeing her strengths as well as her weaknesses exposed as the book progressed. I also quite enjoyed Saul as a character and hope to see more of him in the next book. The story is very fast paced and the world setting is very dark and gritty. I found it all very enjoyable and interesting and I am looking forward to the next book already. If you like dark urban fantasy this is a great book for you.

Lilith Saintcrow has crafted another hit series with the debut of Night Shift. Determined, yet slightly vulnerable, hellspawn hunter Jill Kismet, works with Were-cat FBI agents to hunt a rogue Were and the hellspawn that is involved in several gruesome murders. Saintcrow crafts depth in her heroine showing her to be a damaged, but determined woman who keeps going and going long after anyone else would have given up. Kismet's personality quirk provides comic relief as she flings bad jokes and puns with a "Get it? Arf, arf," after each one. The protagonist is instantly sympathetic through Saintcrow's smooth use of flashbacks providing the back-story necessary to understand how Kismet became a hunter. Interesting characters are peppered throughout the story allowing Saintcrow a colorful palette of people from which to choose to focus on as the series continues. Dominic and Harper, two Were-FBI friends, bring Saul, hunky country Were, when they journey to St. Luz to investigate the murderous rampage. Through flashbacks, Kismet's deceased teacher, Mikhail Tolstoi is introduced. The reader also meets Pericles (hellspawn Kismet is indebted to), Galina (the local Sanctuary leader), a plethora of human police and forensic agents, as well as exorcists Avery, Eva, Benito, and Wallace. Lyrical language and movie-worthy fight scenes are staples in Saintcrow's novels, and this one is no exception. In Night Shift, Saincrow's usual beautiful language is complemented with almost Chandleresque noir phrases: "No matter how tired I am, dusk always wakes me up like six shots of espresso and a bullet whizzing past" (47). Her fight scenes contain blood spatters that hang in the air and a billowing coat that snap out parachute-like when Kismet jumps from roofs. The scenes are so well painted it is like reading a graphic novel. If Night Shift is any indication of the quality of the remainder of the series, Jill Kismet just may supersede Dante Valentine as Saintcrow's greatest heroine. The second novel in the series, Hunter's Prayer, also an Orbit release, will be available August 26, 2008.