The Better Part of Darkness

Don't waste your money or time

Awesome doesn't even begin to describe The Better Part of Darkness. Kelly Gay has created a whole new world, completely unique from any other urban fantasy novels. I could not wait to see what happened which caused me such inner turmoil as I never wanted the book to end. I sincerely hope Charlie Madigan is around for a good long while. Kelly Gay has won herself a fan in me.

This being Kelly Gay's first novel she hit a homer right out of the ball park. I loved this book. I couldn't put it down and had to struggle to not think about it when I was trying to go to sleep at night. If you love a novel where a strong main character kicks major butt then this is it. Witty humor and constant emotion runs through the pages seamlessly and will have your attention from page one.

The Better Part of Darkness by Kelly Gay A female cop still takes heat in our so called enlightened society. Gay shows how hot it can get in a future that has put Charlie Madigan on the front line with an alien partner and a refusal to admit who she truly is. Plenty of action in a good mystery with scifi and urban fantasy co-mingled. If you read my reviews at all, you know I like butt kicking females. It has been suggested that my family contains some delicate flowers who have the propensity and audacity to compete and win against the "stronger" gender. Charlie Madigan is a butt kicker, par excellent. Gay grounded the character with self doubt, a deep loyalty to those around her and an abiding affection for her daughter. Threats to family lie in the arena of unimaginable retaliation and revenge; I feel the author captured that essence with a lot of realism. Kelly Gay did a marvelous job painting the scenes. You felt like you were looking over Hank's shoulder as he backed up Charlie. I highly recommend the book.

This was a phenomenal start to a new dark urban fantasy! Detective Charlie Madigan of the Integration Task Force, was revived from the dead eight months ago, after having been savagely killed on the job by an "off-worlder....... Thirteen years ago a scientist discovered Charbydon, a parallel world to earth. Charbydon is sectioned into two disgruntle civilizations, Charbydon and Elysia. Ever since the great revelation, "off-worlders" have been coming to earth in droves for citizenship. Atlanta's underground has become home to countless powerful mythical beings, some looking for a peaceful new home, and some looking to dominate earth. Ash, a highly deadly and addictive drug also makes its way onto earth's soil. Once Ash is ingested, it's only a matter of time before the user expires in a glorious haze of euphoria. The distribution of Ash touches Charlie's life personally when her beloved daughter's babysitter falls into an Ash induced coma. The clock is ticking for Charlie to try and find an antidote. Unfortunately for Charlie, the dark-powers-that-be move devastating obstacles in her way to ensure her failure. For the first time in Charlie's life she decides to lean on her friends and together they pool their earthly and other-worldly powers. During this time Charlie makes a strange discovery about herself and soon discovers that her resurrection from the grave wasn't without a price......... This book is on my short list of highly anticipated new releases. This action-packed, police procedural fantasy was so original, interesting and fascinating; I completely devoured it and could hardly put it down. Charlie Madigan is a tough, smart and formidable heroine with twisted-humor that kicks butt and takes names. The dark world that Kelly Gay built is so dismal, bleak and mysterious it felt like danger lurked around every corner. I highly recommend this book to fellow dark urban fantasy readers and anxiously await the next book The Darkest Edge of Dawn due out 8/31/2010. I also recommend: Bitter Night: A Horngate Witches Book Mark of the Demon Dying Bites: The Bloodhound Files Magic Bites (Kate Daniels, Book 1) On the Edge (The Edge, Book 1)

The Better Part of Darkness, told from Charlie Madigan's point of view, was an exciting, fast-paced read for me. I finish this book in nearly one sitting. What kept me glued to the pages was how clues were dropped at just the right place, and the mystery just kept building. The pace of was perfect. The unique world and atmosphere of this book had the right combination of dark and gritty paranormal aspects. The biggest attention grabber for me was the colorful personalities of the characters. From Hank, Charlie's gorgeous off-world partner to Byrn, her eclectic sister who runs a herb shop in the Underground. Charlie, mother of a pre-teen, is a gusty heroine, who has heart. But she's tough as nails when the situation calls for it and it's called for many times. She presents everyone with a tough exterior and acts like she can handle whatever comes her way on her own, but on the inside she is always questioning herself. I could see Charlie as a real person. The thing that can make a book really pop for me is when the bad guys are truly evil and vile. You get that kind of scary here. So when your reading a scene with the bad guys, your on the edge of your seat with worry and dread. More than once I was wondering how Charlie was going to save herself. The ending left me feeling very satisfied but full of anticipation for the next book. This was a story that left me thinking about it long after I finished reading it. I will be picking up the next book in Charlie Madigan's universe. This one is going down in my top 10 reads of this year.