Most Helpful Customer Reviews
36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"A maid cannot kill you with a tube sock... I can.", March 3, 2010
This review is from: Roadkill (Cal Leandros, Book 5) (Mass Market Paperback)
If you're a fan of sparkly vampires or damsels in distress, then pass right on by this product--- you'll find no bodice-ripping in the Cal Leandros series unless it's from a sexy-as-hell Asian werewolf ripping off her own clothes in preparation to dole out some gratuitous violence. Rob Thurman takes no prisoners with her brash, unapologetic writing style. While many fans (and critics) draw parallels between this book series and the cult show "Supernatural", the similarities end with the summation "Two brothers, one with evil genetics, battle the forces of darkness and deliver sassy one-liners while doing it". From that point on, Rob makes the concept her own.
While most writers in this genre are male (the females tend to stray more into paranormal romance territory), Rob puts on her ass-kicking boots on the first page and never takes them off. You won't find frills, sentimental monologues, or cheesy admissions of love. What you WILL find are loving descriptions of Desert Eagles and assault knives, hilarious quips and sarcastic one-liners, and a great ensemble cast. Rob takes myths that have been turned into parodies and clichés in the genre and flips them on their heads; she draws from lesser-known mythologies and throws random monsters into the mix, and you will find zombies whose flesh melts off their skin when they attack, mummified cats who have a higher kill count than a gamer playing "Halo", and pucks that look like walking Trojan advertisements. You'll find a fully-human brother who can strangle someone to death with a tube sock, and a half-evil brother who can open portals to Hell at the mere thought. You'll also encounter kamikaze werewolves, pacifist werewolves, and an evil gypsy woman.
Now pack as many of them into a vintage El Camino as you can, and put them on the trail of a healer who plans to unleash a plague upon all of humanity. Throw in a bag of Cheetos and you have "Roadkill", the latest in the badass Cal Leandros series.
Scenes will make you laugh out loud, scenes will make you tear up a little bit. But most importantly, every single page will have you eagerly turning to the next. Take this ride that Rob Thurman's offering up; you won't regret it.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
OK, but not as great as the previous books, March 11, 2010
This review is from: Roadkill (Cal Leandros, Book 5) (Mass Market Paperback)
As book 5 of a series, I'm sure anyone who has followed Cal and Nik this far will buy and enjoy this book as well. With that said though, I didn't like Roadkill nearly as much as the others. In the prior books, I felt that Cal and Nik's strong personalities were well balanced with the other characters. In this one, however, that balance felt off. Two of the visiting characters felt like Cal & Nik knock-offs and Goodfellow was completely off his game. The dialog ended up consisting of far too much bickering for my taste.
I'll happily pick up book 6 when it comes out. I just may end up skipping this one if I re-read the series down the road.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
4.5 stars, it's getting dark out here..., March 23, 2010
This review is from: Roadkill (Cal Leandros, Book 5) (Mass Market Paperback)
Hmmm...Thurman definitely ended this with a very dark edge. And that is saying something considering the villains Cal and Niko have faced, including their own issues. The novel begins more or less like usual: the guys take a case with a near-indestructible enemy, and learn that the Kin know about Cal and Delilah. Promise skips this mission, but since the enemy is an anti-healer, they need a healer to help combat him. I was glad to see the werewolf cousins, Rafferty and Catcher, return. Their story has been a loose thread since the beginning. I wanted to know why Catcher is stuck as a wolf, and why Rafferty feels responsible - and we do. And it's pretty damn clever to boot.
In Deathwish (Cal Leandros, Book 4), Thurman shook up the format by having Niko alternate with Cal as narrator. She does so again here, only this time Catcher alternates with Cal to tell the tale. I'm split over this. On the one hand, I like seeing Cal's actions through others' eyes. Especially since Catcher doesn't love Cal like Niko does, so he's more objective. And able to see the slow changes in Cal that Niko can't or won't see as the plot moves along. On the other hand, this shifted the dynamic of the story making this as much about Catcher and Rafferty as about Cal. With the Auphe gone, readers might've expected Cal and Niko to "go forth and be supernatural protectors of the realm." Instead, Thurman throws a curveball by introducing a very dark thread for Cal when unexpected side-effects to gating start to manifest. I'm not sure I like this theme, since I can't see how it can be resolved with my favorite anti-hero still intact. Thankfully, I have faith in the author! It does add a new dimension to the brothers relationship as we see just how far Niko will go to protect his brother, even from himself.
In direct contrast to the dark storyline, Thurman keeps the black humor rolling. Cal's famous sarcasm is as sharp as ever, and his thoughts about sex, now that he's getting some, are frequent and hilarious. Niko wastes no time cuffing him on the back of the head when he requires it either. Goodfellow, while not adding anything to the plot or story (which was somewhat disappointing), does add laughs as he wrestles with, oh the horror, monogamy! The ending was an action-packed, exciting battle where all plot threads converge to one showdown.
Overall, though the pacing of the book wasn't as tight as the previous books (mainly because they spent so much time chasing the enemy across country so we could have therapy time), the plot was well done, the ending spectacular and the characters true to form. I can't wait for the next book.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
![[Start the discussion]](http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/x-locale/communities/discussion_boards/start-new-discussion-sec._V192250339_.gif){kind=small}
