A Kiss of Shadows: Not my cup of mead

A Kiss of Shadows by Laurell K. Hamilton

Laurell K. Hamilton promises a story of modern-day faeries and their complex court intrigue, which in theory is right up my alley, but I didn’t really get into A Kiss of Shadows.

By about page 100, my significant other was laughing because I kept yelling aloud, “Is she going to sleep with HIM, TOO?” The entire plot of the book seems to consist of Merry’s sexual adventures. That would be OK if it were good erotica, but there is far too much gory violence to sustain the sexy mood. To sum up the book: Sex scene, gore scene, sex scene, gory sex scene…well, you get the picture.

For urban faerie adventures with more plot, try Charles de Lint (Jack of Kinrowan), Emma Bull (War for the Oaks), James A. Hetley (The Summer Country), Diana Wynne Jones (Fire and Hemlock), or Nancy Springer (Fair Peril).

~Kelly Lasiter

Okay, I should have known better. I mean, look at the covers, right? But I gave A Kiss of Shadows, the first in Laurell K. Hamilton’s Meredith Gentry series, a try because it was the only fantasy novel available for free download from my public library that I hadn’t read yet. The story sounded interesting and I figured that I should give an LKH book a try. So, this was my first LKH book. And my last.

I read 100 pages before I quit. It was competently written, the dialogue seemed natural, and the pace was quick. But, the purpose of the book was glaringly clear from the first page. Let me sum up the major “plot” points of the first 100 pages for you (it’s written in the first person):

• A description of how hot I look at my professional job in my way too short skirt, black thigh-high stockings, and high heels.
• My graphic conversation with the wife and mistress (who may be lovers) of a man who’s a sadist.
• A very long description of my getting dressed up and wired (by a man), while everybody watches and admires how hot I look, so I can go meet the sadist.
• My kinky evening with the sadist which ended up with him being murdered and me going to the police station.
• How all the policemen couldn’t keep their hands off me ’cause I’m so hot, even though they think I might be a murderer.
• How I went home and wanted to sleep, but my lover Roane [hee hee] wouldn’t let me ’cause I’m so hot.
• The details of my night with Roane and how it was so good that Roane turned into a seal and left me for the ocean, but I’m fine with that.
• How my boss woke me up so he could get me out of town because the faerie queen now knows where I am, and I was naked and he admired me ’cause I’m so hot.

I gave A Kiss of Shadows a fair chance, but this one obviously fits into the category of “I really want to write erotica but I don’t want to be called an erotica writer so I’ll stick a faerie princess in it and call it fantasy instead.” Yuck.

Lesson learned, and I didn’t have to spend any money. I recommend that you don’t either.

~Kat Hooper