Lilith Saintcrow | Fantasy Literature: Fantasy and Science Fiction Book and Audiobook Reviews

SFF Author: Lilith Saintcrow

(1976- )
Lilith Saintcrow writes dark paranormal fantasy for adults and she writes YA paranormal under the name Lili St. Crow. Saintcrow was born in New Mexico, bounced around the world as an Air Force brat, and fell in love with writing when she was ten years old. She lives in Vancouver, WA with her children, a houseful of cats, and assorted other strays. Here’s Lilith Saintcrow’s website.

Working for the Devil: Loved the audio, but not the story

Working for the Devil by Lilith Saintcrow

Dante Valentine is a freelance Necromance — clients hire her to communicate with dead people so they can solve murders, settle estate disputes, etc. When the Devil wants to hire Dante to find a rogue demon named Vardimal Santino, and to recover the important object he’s stolen from Hell, he gives her no choice but to obey. Dante doesn’t want to work for the devil, but she does want to keep living. To help with that, the Devil assigns her a bodyguard — the demon Japhrimel.

Dead Man Rising: Unpleasant in every way

Dead Man Rising by Lilith Saintcrow

Dead Man Rising is the second book in Lilith Saintcrow’s DANTE VALENTINE series. Dante, a freelance necromance, has lived through her first assignment for the devil. (She didn’t want to work for him, but the devil can be very persuasive.) Now Dante’s brooding because her demon lover is dead and she’s just had a nasty surprise about her own heritage. When her friend Gabe, the police investigator, calls to tell her that her old school friends are being brutally murdered,

Steelflower: Fun Sword & Sorcery style romp

Steelflower by Lilith Saintcrow

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I opened Steelflower. The cover art looked like your standard urban fantasy cover: a feisty female with an exotic looking sword, shot from the back. The plot description on the back cover sounded like someone’s novelization of a roleplaying game — elvish sellsword meets crude barbarian and they join up to defeat the evil badguy — but what I found inside was a fun sword and sorcery style romp with interesting main characters and non-stop action.

Ruth Arnell´s rating: 3.5 | Lilith Saintcrow | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Night Shift: Fun, but not original, urban fantasy

Night Shift by Lilith Saintcrow

Lilith Saintcrow is the perfect name for an author of urban fantasy.

Like most of the novels that I’ve read that are classified as urban fantasy, supernatural thriller or paranormal romance, Night Shift has its good and bad qualities. What I like about the book was its darker vibe, the emphasis on action instead of romance or comedy, the intense pacing, Jill Kismet’s noir-esque narrative voice, and Lilith Saintcrow’s piercing prose:

The arkeus took shape, rising like a fume from dry-scorched pavement,

Robert Thompson´s rating: 3 | Lilith Saintcrow | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Hunter’s Prayer: What’s the point?

Hunter’s Prayer by Lilith Saintcrow

“I am not a nice person” — Jill Kismet

Jill Kismet is a Hunter — she keeps her city safe by tracking and destroying the creatures of the Nightside — those things that come out of hell to prey on humans. The cops call on Jill when there’s a crime that seems to involve paranormal beings. Jill takes care of it while the cops cover it up. Jill’s a badass — she can beat up anybody — but she also has some special powers of sorcery and healing which she got by making a bargain with a hellspawn named Perry.

The Red Plague Affair: Steampunk with a mythological twist

The Red Plague Affair by Lilith Saintcrow

It is never easy to start a series with a sequel, and The Red Plague Affair is the sequel to the first book in Lilith Saintcrow’s BANNON AND CLARE series, The Iron Wyrm Affair, which introduced these characters. (The Damnation Affair is a related novel set in the same world with different characters.) I haven’t read The Iron Wyrm Affair, but The Red Plague Affair was still pretty accessible.

Marion Deeds´s rating: 3 | Lilith Saintcrow | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Spring’s Arcana: Slavic gods on a road trip

Spring’s Arcana by Lilith Saintcrow

2023’s Spring’s Arcana by Lilith Saintcrow has atmospheric language and lovely descriptions. This is Book One of a duology, THE DEAD GOD’S HEART. The book is a road trip, taking us through exquisitely described scenes of fantasy, magic and mundanity. The language is gorgeous, but the story feels derivative, and the protagonist faces very little direct danger. The book ends abruptly midway through the main character’s quest, with the words “To be Continued.” Read it for the beautiful language,

Marion Deeds´s rating: 3 | Lilith Saintcrow | SFF Reviews | no comments |

The Salt-Black Tree: Magical cars are cool

The Salt-Black Tree By Lilith Saintcrow

The Salt-Black Tree came out in 2023, three months after Book One of THE DEAD GOD’S HEART duology. Three things are obvious. One: This was written as one longer book. Two: it would have worked better if it had been published that way. Three: Magical cars are cool.

Book Two opens with a repeat of the final chapter of Spring’s Arcana. After finding another part of her arcana as the emerging goddess of spring,

Marion Deeds´s rating: 3 | Lilith Saintcrow | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |

Death’s Excellent Vacation: A good audiobook for your next vacation

Death’s Excellent Vacation by Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P. Kelner (eds)

Even paranormal creatures need to get away from it all sometimes. In Death’s Excellent Vacation, editors Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P. Kelner present a collection of thirteen stories tied together by the theme of “vacation.”

The “headliners,” as evidenced by whose names are in big type above the title, are Harris, Katie MacAlister, and Jeaniene Frost. Each of these three authors contributes a vignette from one of her popular series: Sookie Stackhouse,

Bill Capossere on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil: Ambitious, atmospheric, and ultimately unevenJuly 3, 2025
We’re in total agreement David!
David C Walton on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil: Ambitious, atmospheric, and ultimately unevenJuly 3, 2025
I felt just the same. The prose and character work was excellent. The larger story was unsatisfying, especially compared to…
Marion Deeds on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil: Ambitious, atmospheric, and ultimately unevenJuly 3, 2025
Hmmm. I think I'll pass.
Sandy Ferber on The Druid Stone: Ugony and the EcstasyJune 30, 2025
COMMENT Was I hinting that? I wasn't aware of it. But now that you mention it.... 🤔
Paul Connelly on The Druid Stone: Ugony and the EcstasyJune 30, 2025
So it sounds like you're hinting Fox may have had three or so different incomplete stories that he stitched together,…

SFF Author: Lilith Saintcrow

Working for the Devil: Loved the audio, but not the story

Dead Man Rising: Unpleasant in every way

Steelflower: Fun Sword & Sorcery style romp

Night Shift: Fun, but not original, urban fantasy

Hunter’s Prayer: What’s the point?

The Red Plague Affair: Steampunk with a mythological twist

Spring’s Arcana: Slavic gods on a road trip

The Salt-Black Tree: Magical cars are cool

Death’s Excellent Vacation: A good audiobook for your next vacation

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