AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: Grave Witch
Title: Grave Witch
Author: Kaylana Prince
Audiobook Narrator: Emily Durante
Series: Alex Craft (Book 1)
As a grave witch, Alex Craft spends a lot of time talking to the dead. Sometimes, she helps the police catch killers. Ir doesn't always pay the bills, but it's something she's very good at. When her sister begs her to look into the death of a local politician, Alex finds she can't turn her down. Then she sees sees the body and immediately notices that something very, very wrong. Before she knows it, Alex is pulled into the investigation of a supernatural serial killer with dark methods. If she's not careful, her search just might kill her.
So far this year, I've read a handful of paranormal books. The ones that continue a series that I know and love, I've enjoyed. The ones that don't, I've been less that fond of. At first I assumed that this was due to picking up bad books, but with Grave Witch, which is a pretty well liked title, I've beginning to wonder if I'm simply getting pickier with the genre. Perhaps it's because the paranormal genre has gotten to be a pretty crowded field in the past few years, but if an author wants to make an impression on me, he or she should probably bring something new to the table, worldbuildng wise. And while Grave Witch isn't a bad book, it mostly treads familiar ground. Yes the background information on Nekros City (where the book is set) is pretty cool, but thanks to the work of authors like Seanan McGuire, Jim Butcher, Patricia Briggs, Kelley Armstrong, and Kim Harrison especially, it all seemed rather familiar. I've already seen beautiful yet dangerous fae, necromancers that can communicate with the dead, witches caught up in chaos, and wings of the government dedicated to dealing with the supernatural. I'm not saying that no author can ever use these tropes ever again. You don't grow to love a genre when you dislike its base trope. In fact, I don't think that Price necessarily does a bad job, but she never really sold me on why this series was worth my time when I've already read other books that have dealt with these situations before.
I think I could have been more forgiving with the book had the storyline been really exciting, or the characters memorable or compelling. And while the murder mystery plotline is perfectly serviceable, I did come up against a few speed bumps as far as the characters went. Alex Craft isn't a bad heroine. As someone who's been through tough financial times in my early twenties, I could sympathize with her and her monetary struggles. At the same time, Alex can feel a bit like a doormat, and on a couple occasions she acts so empty headed that at all of the sympathy I possessed for her was quickly used up. I also had issues with the main love interest Falin, who I found to be kind of an ass. An example of this can be found in the scene where Alex has performed some heavy duty magic (I won't spoil what or why) which results in her having a seizure and ending up temporarily unable to do much moving around. Falin's response? He yells at her and handcuffs her. Excuse me? She just had a seizure! The second love interest, Death, is more interesting but we don't get to spend as much time with him. This was fine, as I liked the fact that he was kind of mysterious.
Thoughts on the Audiobook: This is my first experience with Emily Durante, and much like the book itself, I didn't find her to be a bad narrator, but there wasn't too much about her performance to get excited about.
Final Thoughts: I feel kind of strange criticizing Grave Witch, as I know it has a lot of fans, including people I really respect. Still, while it wasn't a horrible book, it didn't bring anything new to the table, worldbuilding wise, and the characters occasionally really frustrated me. One thing I will admit is that this book does have a really well done sex scene, but ithat's not enough to keep me reading this series. It's also worth admitting that when it comes to the urban fantasy/paranormal romance spectrum of the genre, Grave Witch is more towards the romance side of things, while I usually prefer books on the urban fantasy side. This would explain some of my frustration with the book. If you're more into paranormal roamnce, maybe this series will suit you better than it did me. Three Stars
Author: Kaylana Prince
Audiobook Narrator: Emily Durante
Series: Alex Craft (Book 1)
As a grave witch, Alex Craft spends a lot of time talking to the dead. Sometimes, she helps the police catch killers. Ir doesn't always pay the bills, but it's something she's very good at. When her sister begs her to look into the death of a local politician, Alex finds she can't turn her down. Then she sees sees the body and immediately notices that something very, very wrong. Before she knows it, Alex is pulled into the investigation of a supernatural serial killer with dark methods. If she's not careful, her search just might kill her.
So far this year, I've read a handful of paranormal books. The ones that continue a series that I know and love, I've enjoyed. The ones that don't, I've been less that fond of. At first I assumed that this was due to picking up bad books, but with Grave Witch, which is a pretty well liked title, I've beginning to wonder if I'm simply getting pickier with the genre. Perhaps it's because the paranormal genre has gotten to be a pretty crowded field in the past few years, but if an author wants to make an impression on me, he or she should probably bring something new to the table, worldbuildng wise. And while Grave Witch isn't a bad book, it mostly treads familiar ground. Yes the background information on Nekros City (where the book is set) is pretty cool, but thanks to the work of authors like Seanan McGuire, Jim Butcher, Patricia Briggs, Kelley Armstrong, and Kim Harrison especially, it all seemed rather familiar. I've already seen beautiful yet dangerous fae, necromancers that can communicate with the dead, witches caught up in chaos, and wings of the government dedicated to dealing with the supernatural. I'm not saying that no author can ever use these tropes ever again. You don't grow to love a genre when you dislike its base trope. In fact, I don't think that Price necessarily does a bad job, but she never really sold me on why this series was worth my time when I've already read other books that have dealt with these situations before.
I think I could have been more forgiving with the book had the storyline been really exciting, or the characters memorable or compelling. And while the murder mystery plotline is perfectly serviceable, I did come up against a few speed bumps as far as the characters went. Alex Craft isn't a bad heroine. As someone who's been through tough financial times in my early twenties, I could sympathize with her and her monetary struggles. At the same time, Alex can feel a bit like a doormat, and on a couple occasions she acts so empty headed that at all of the sympathy I possessed for her was quickly used up. I also had issues with the main love interest Falin, who I found to be kind of an ass. An example of this can be found in the scene where Alex has performed some heavy duty magic (I won't spoil what or why) which results in her having a seizure and ending up temporarily unable to do much moving around. Falin's response? He yells at her and handcuffs her. Excuse me? She just had a seizure! The second love interest, Death, is more interesting but we don't get to spend as much time with him. This was fine, as I liked the fact that he was kind of mysterious.
Thoughts on the Audiobook: This is my first experience with Emily Durante, and much like the book itself, I didn't find her to be a bad narrator, but there wasn't too much about her performance to get excited about.
Final Thoughts: I feel kind of strange criticizing Grave Witch, as I know it has a lot of fans, including people I really respect. Still, while it wasn't a horrible book, it didn't bring anything new to the table, worldbuilding wise, and the characters occasionally really frustrated me. One thing I will admit is that this book does have a really well done sex scene, but ithat's not enough to keep me reading this series. It's also worth admitting that when it comes to the urban fantasy/paranormal romance spectrum of the genre, Grave Witch is more towards the romance side of things, while I usually prefer books on the urban fantasy side. This would explain some of my frustration with the book. If you're more into paranormal roamnce, maybe this series will suit you better than it did me. Three Stars