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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Welcome to the rip-tide life of Dakota Frost!, March 7, 2010
This review is from: Frost Moon (Skindancer, Book 1) (Paperback)
"Frost Moon" grabs you by the neck and throws you head first into the rip-tide life of Dakota Frost, magical tattoo artist and skindancer. This dark urban fantasy by Anthony Francis challenges you from the start to keep up or drown, tangled in the hidden roots you can feel lurking just under the surface.
Dakota is part of the Edgeworld--an alternate-world subculture that is populated by weres, vampires, witches, magicians, and the occasional agent of a secret government law enforcement agency--set in Atlanta, Georgia. As a magical tattooist, Dakota inks powerful designs into her own skin and that of her clients. Whether for protection or control, these magical tattoos can take on a life of their own.
In "Frost Moon", Dakota is recruited by law enforcement to consult on evidence from a serial killer who is murdering Edgeworlders for the very same kind of tattoos that Dakota creates. And there are only days left until the next murder is expected to occur. The story launches from there. Much of the plot is invested in Dakota's process of tracking down people to consult on new magical tattoo designs and the dangers she encounters along the way. And oh, what trouble she gets into with the numerous supporting characters that are tossed into the mix, seemingly at random.
The biggest criticism I have for this book is that time is unbelievably condensed, with too much happening in too short of a time frame. At times, the plot feels excessively full with too much going on while still being delivered in a rather brusque tone. Francis struggles with the balance between too much information/action and not enough, a hazard of creating his own world for this series, though he manages to pull most of it together at the end.
Overall, a good read. I look forward to seeing what is in store for Dakota Frost in the next book of Francis's Skindancer series.
Note: This review is of the "Early Reviewers" edition of this book via LibraryThing. (*** 1/2 )
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting read, but a bit slow, June 5, 2010
This review is from: Frost Moon (Skindancer, Book 1) (Paperback)
I think the author has created a very promising "Edgeworld" for a continued fantasy series. I quite enjoyed the idea of skin-dancing and magical tattoos, and loved the uber-Liberal Dakota (the first line is the best!), but I never got to a part in the book where I was waiting with great anticipation to see what happened next. I found it a bit slow and filled with somewhat irrelevant details (honestly, the whole bit about Savannah didn't pan out at all, as her protection proved all but worthless) but I was interested in seeing how it ended.
The author ties things up fairly well, and didn't surprise me (I knew who the bad guy was, so no Scooby-Doo ending here), and I found the characters of Dakota and Cinnamon both likable. The only other complaint that I had is the notion that a 6'2" woman covered in tattoos and a purple Mohawk is turning heads from Feds to wolves to karate teachers, but I guess she just has a universal appeal that I didn't quite see. It's not at the top of my list, but I'd recommend it to those who like urban fantasy.
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77 of 99 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Great premise...lacks in execution, July 8, 2010
This review is from: Frost Moon (Skindancer, Book 1) (Paperback)
I picked up this book because the premise sounded great: a magical tattoo artist who helps the police with a serial killer who's hunting people with magical tattoos. Unfortunately, it goes downhill from there. When not making sophomoric grammatical errors, the author is busy going into explicit detail about people and events that do not further the plot. While reading, at times I felt like saying, "Okay...where is he going with this?" and at others I was like, "Huh, how'd we get from there to here?" There were several world-building items that needed more clarification, and others that needed much less. Another reviewer wrote that Francis needs some work with the balance of world-building and plot-building scenes. I would have to agree.
Another thing that bothered me was the overabundance of the author's political and social values that seeped into the book. Okay Francis, I get that you're a left-wing social progressive, but I don't need to be reminded of it on every other page. I read urban fantasy to get away from politics, not to be preached at about your views on religion, gay marriage, liberal politics, and driving an eco-friendly vehicle.
The final straw was the pedophilia. Yes, you read that right. The main character is openly bisexual. And I mean in-your-face bisexual. Her ex-girlfriend plays a major role in the book and she quite frequently talks about how sexy her ex looks. I admit that I like my heroes and heroines to be heterosexual, but I probably could have handled the bisexuality if Francis hadn't brought a child into it. Oh yes, he goes there. He has a THIRTEEN YEAR-OLD GIRL talk about getting into the main character's pants - and this is after we learn that the main character was initially attracted to the child. Sorry, that was pretty much it for me. That's not sexy; that's sick.
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