fantasy book reviews science fiction book reviewsparanormal romance urban fantasy book review Angie Fox 1. The Accidental Demon SlayerThe Accidental Demon Slayer by Angie Fox

Lizzie’s long-lost grandmother reappears in her life, turns out to be a witch, and informs Lizzie she’s destined to be a demon slayer. A demon pops out of Lizzie’s toilet. Lizzie suddenly gains the ability to understand what her dog is saying. Her grandmother introduces her to her coven of elderly biker witches. Oh, and there’s a hunky griffin shapeshifter.

If this sounds a little chaotic, that’s because it is. Angie Fox bombards the reader with one wacky event after another in The Accidental Demon Slayer, and the plot feels like a random string of these odd events rather than a coherent whole. Biker Witches Mystery by Angie Fox

Characters are inconsistent; for example, the biker witches know Lizzie has just found out she’s a demon slayer, but then berate her for not already knowing all about demon slaying. Action scenes are confusing to follow. The witches use roadkill in their spells — which does make a sort of sense, as it’s an easy way to get those eye-of-newt type ingredients — but it’s mostly played for gross-out gags.

The dog is cute, but that wasn’t enough to keep me interested in The Accidental Demon Slayer. I’ve had trouble getting into other “zany” paranormals before, and I’m beginning to think this style of urban fantasy just doesn’t agree with me. I like humor in my urban fantasy — but as the garnish, not the entrée.

Published in 2008. It’s never a good day when an ancient demon shows up on your toilet bowl. For Lizzie Brown, that’s just the beginning. Soon her hyperactive terrier starts talking, and her long-lost biker witch Grandma is hurling Smuckers jars filled with magic. Just when she thinks she’s seen it all, Lizzie learns she’s a demon slayer—and all hell is after her. Of course, that’s not the only thing after her. Dimitri Kallinikos, a devastatingly handsome shape-shifting griffin, needs Lizzie to slay a demon of his own. But how do you talk a girl you’ve never met into going straight to the underworld? Lie. And if that doesn’t work how dangerous could a little seduction be…?

Author

  • Kelly Lasiter

    KELLY LASITER, with us since July 2008, is a mild-mannered academic administrative assistant by day, but at night she rules over a private empire of tottering bookshelves. Kelly is most fond of fantasy set in a historical setting (a la Jo Graham) or in a setting that echoes a real historical period (a la George RR Martin and Jacqueline Carey). She also enjoys urban fantasy and its close cousin, paranormal romance, though she believes these subgenres’ recent burst in popularity has resulted in an excess of dreck. She is a sucker for pretty prose (she majored in English, after all) and mythological themes.