Rachel Morgan has fought and hunted vampires, werewolves, banshees, demons, and other supernatural dangers as both witch and bounty hunter—and lived to tell the tale. But she's never faced off against her own kind . . . until now. Denounced and shunned for dealing with demons and black magic, her best hope is life imprisonment—at worst, a forced lobotomy and genetic slavery. Only her enemies are strong enough to help her win her freedom, but trust comes hard when it hinges on the unscrupulous tycoon Trent Kalamack, the demon Algaliarept, and an ex-boyfriend turned thief.It takes a witch to catch a witch, but survival bears a heavy price.
I've been with Rachel Morgan since the beginning and Harrison has done a great job at creating an enjoyable and compelling character. Having a heroine balancing on the knife's edge of good and evil makes for a more interesting ride I think. Who want's a character who has no faults, no doubts that what she does it right? Instead Rachel jumps between her demon teacher Al and her somewhat ghostly former love Pierce, trying to decide what's best for her. Throw in a not-quite-dead vampire and a pixy friend and you've got the kind of urban fantasy that stays with you. This latest book was dense - very dense. Don't plan on it making any kinds of sense if you haven't read the others first. There is just too much character back story for that to work. Once you get past that, I found myself dealing with a whirlwind; Rachel is working as hard as she can to not dig herself any deeper into a hole only sort-of of her making. This book is not really about romance, it's about her finding herself and making decisions independently about what is good or evil for her - not what is good or evil by everyone else's definition.
Overall Feeling - Thumbs up. A lot of fun, Black Magic Sanction has enough action for anyone and enough plot to confuse the hardiest of fans. Stay the course and pay attention and you end up making your way through a grand ole time.
Series - 1) Dead Witch Walking 2) The Good, the Bad, and the Undead 3) Every Which Way But Dead 4) A Fistful of Charms 5) For A Few Demons More 6) The Outlaw Demon Wails 7) White Witch, Black Curse 8) Black Magic Sanction
