Vanished: A Greywalker Novel

VANISHED provides a fine urban fantasy telling of a small-time PI who died for two minutes - and became a Greywalker, moving between the living world and the psychic universe. Her new abilities are bringing her all kinds of strange cases - and her own case investigates her transition to becoming a Greywalker in this blend of intrigue and fantasy: a pick for both mystery and fantasy libraries alike.

The protagonist Harper (is a greywalker; she can work the dimension between the ordinary and the far shores, the Grey, full of ghosts and nasties) takes a job in London for the head vamp of Seattle. Some of her background has been surfacing and in this story we see more emerge. Excellent characters and nicely written. It helps to have a map of London (Goggle works great) handy but it isn't necessary. The author as usual has done a great job of background research so the story flows smoothly. The plot is very good as is the major sub plot. But warning this book ends in a not quite cliff hanger. It can be read by its self but I would recommend the earlier books in the series mainly because they are excellent reads and will help make sense of the characters. Overall a highly recommended read.

In Seattle, the perpetrator failed to give private investigator Harper Blaine the two minute warning when he slammed her temple; for 120 seconds she was dead. However, unlike most people who suffer a near death experience only to come back to their mortal lives, Harper returned differently as a Greywalker who travels both sides of the boundary between the living and other realms (see GREYWALKER). Her investigations have taken one hellish twist from cheating spouses to cheating paranormals (see POLTERGEIST) who she can see, but these monsters see her too. Two years since her death, Harper has a dying need to know why she didn't just come back like most. A call from the dead leads Harper to investigate her heritage with a focus on the pivotal event before her short-lived death; the demise of her father when she was young. In Los Angeles her mom says he killed himself. Harper reads his tormented writings in which he claimed the monster was coming and he feared for his sweet Harper. She tries to meet her dad's ghost, but frighteningly he is nowhere as if his spirit VANISHED. However, her mind is taken off of her confusion when vampires order her to London to look into a bloody mess. Harper uncovers a connection between England and Seattle that makes her wonder whether her "genes" made it inevitable for her to walk the grey line. The latest Greywalker investigation is a terrific tale that takes a deep personal spin for the heroine as she inquires into her heritage in an attempt to better understand what happened. The story line is fast-paced and filled with plenty of action as for instance a plane ride to Los Angeles leads to a teenage female ghost popping in wet over Oregon with no one else on board able to sense her. Kat Richardson is at her best with this super urban investigative fantasy as the worlds of the grey and paranormal come figuratively alive through the intrepid but mentally tired heroine. Harriet Klausner

Vanished is the 4th book in Kat Richardson's Greywalker series, and continues the adventures of Harper Blaine, a PI from Seattle who, in the first book, had a near death experience which leaves her with the unwelcomed ability to walk on both sides of life and death, in a sort of in-between odd place called "the grey." If you are familiar with "The Zone" in Tarkovsky's film, you get a vague idea of what the grey might be like, except that it is also filled with ghosts, monsters, and all kinds of dreadful things. In this fourth book, Harper must go to London to solve the mystery of some disappearing assets, along with checking on an old friend who has been troubling Harper's dreams of late. Also, Harper explores her past, especially issues involving her late father, that may explain something about why Harper, of all people, became a Greywalker. That is enough information! You don't want a spoiler! Suffice it to say that the book is full of wonderful adventure, the usual interesting characters that we really care about, and a storyline that doesn't falter at any point. Obviously, it would be good to start at the first book and read forward if you haven't already sampled Kat Richardson's writing. But it will be worth the time. This is good adventure and great fun! I can hardly wait for the next one!

Harper Blaine solves all kinds of weird and creepy cases as a Seattle P.I. When she died for two minutes, Harper became a Greywalker and has been seeing all sorts of dead creatures ever since. When a former (and dead) old flame contacts Harper about her past, she decides to go investigate her father's death. And she's shocked when she hears the truth. Then, head vampire Edward sends her to England to investigate a missing vampire colleague. She goes, if only to check up on Will, another former (living) boyfriend of whom she's been having strange dreams. In this latest installment, we get a deeper look into Harper's past and what helped to shape her into the person she is - her demanding and overly-dramatic mother, her father's tragic death, and other childhood trauma. And as events unfold in this story, Harper discovers that someone has been pulling the strings behind the scenes for a while. She discovers more about her father and more about her destiny as a Greywalker. There are plenty of twists and surprises in this story, coupled with fantastic characters that make for exciting reading. Harper travels from Seattle to L.A. to London along her journey of discovery. And Richardson's narrative gives the reader a feeling of being right there with Harper. Vanished is full of thrills, chills and mystery. And this is easily my favorite in the series so far. Greywalker a unique urban fantasy series that won't disappoint.