Title: Black Dog Blues
Series: Kai Gracen 01
Author: Rhys Ford
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Length: Novel (277pgs)
Publisher: Coffee Squirrel Press (22nd June 2013)
Heat Level: Low
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥4 ½ Hearts
Reviewer: Pixie
Blurb: Ever since he’d been part of the pot in a high-stakes poker game, elfin outcast Kai Gracen figured he’d used up any good karma he had when Dempsey, a human Stalker, won the hand and took him in. Following the violent merge of Earth and Underhill, the human and elfin races were left with a messy, monster-ridden world and Stalkers were often the only cavalry willing to ride to someone’s rescue when something shadowy and dark moved into the neighborhood.
There certainly were no shortage of monsters or people stupidly willing to become lunch for one.
It was a hard life but one Kai liked. And he was good at it. Killing monsters was easy. Especially since he was one himself.
After an accident retired Dempsey out, Kai set up permanent shop in San Diego, contracting out to the local SoCalGov depot. It was a decent life, filled with bounty, a few friends and most importantly, no other elfin around to remind him he wasn’t really human.
That was until a sidhe lord named Ryder arrives in San Diego and Kai is conscripted to do a job for Ryder’s fledgling Dawn Court. It was supposed to a simple run; head up the coast during dragon-mating season to retrieve a pregnant human woman seeking sanctuary with the new Court then back to San Diego. Easy, quick and best of all, profitable. But Ryder’s “simple” run leads to massive trouble and Kai ends up being caught in the middle of a deadly bloodline feud he has no hope of escaping.
No one ever got rich by being a Stalker. But then hardly any of them got old either. The way things were looking, it didn’t look like Kai was going to be the exception.
Purchase Link: US: http://www.amazon.com/Black-Blues-Gracen-Series-ebook/dp/B00DK3DPSI
UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Blues-Gracen-Series-ebook/dp/B00DK3DPSI
Review: Elfin Kai was won in a poker game by a human Stalker, Dempsey, and was trained to be a Stalker; he is the only Elfin Stalker in southern California. Now with Dempsey retiring due to injury Kai has set up shop in San Diego, contracting out to the local SoCalGov depot to kill the monsters that were released when Underhill merged with Earth. Kai is so merged in the human culture that he sometimes forgets he was Elfin but when he is contracted to work for sidhe lord Ryder he is reminded of his past. Kai’s new contract was supposed to be an easy run, but heading up the coast during dragon-mating season to retrieve a pregnant human woman is anything but simple when he is dragged into a bloodline feud and his own past comes back to haunt him.
This is an absolutely brilliant Urban Fantasy story that has danger, horrible monsters, tempting sidhe, and intriguing heroes. Kai has a mysterious past that is filled with horror, he wants nothing to do with any other Elfin and is perfectly happy with his life in the human world, it is dangerous but nothing that he hasn’t faced before, and he lives by his own rules. Being forced to take a job for the sidhe lord Ryder is far from his idea of fun but if he doesn’t do it, his Stalker license could be pulled, gritting his teeth he sets out on an action packed journey that brings his bloody terrifying past back to him.
Kai is a brilliant character, he faces so much in this story, and his reactions are just perfect. Kai is scarred by his past in more ways than one and his fears reach out and grab you, he has good reason to never want to see the Dusk Court again. Kai’s sexuality is fluid, male/female doesn’t matter to him he enjoys both, but some people he will steer clear of. Ryder and the other characters are there but more in the background, this is Kai’s story and although it is a great with the action, danger and Kai’s history being revealed, nobody really jumps out like Kai does so we are left wondering as to who could really catch Kai’s eye because it isn’t only Ryder who wants a taste of Kai. It left me wondering just what direction this series would head in with Kai’s love interest because Kai seemed much more receptive to the females, because even with his detailed reaction to Ryder he still seemed to welcome the females touch more than Ryder’s.
This story is very much focused on the Urban Fantasy with any romantic/sexual interest taking a back burner, the imaginative settings and terrible creatures pull you into an exciting adventure and discovering Kai’s life is interesting. There’s plenty of danger from the black dogs, dragons, Dusk sidhe and Dawn sidhe and Kai is dragged into the Elfin world even as he tries to stay out of it. We get a dark gritty story that makes you wonder as you turn the page just what Kai will face next, and you wonder just how much more his poor body can take before it gives up.
I recommend this is you want a dark, gritty, danger filled Urban Fantasy, incredible world building, fascinating characters and just a slight hint of sexual attraction.