Review: How it all began
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 27, 2012
The pieces of Perry and Dex's off color and rather unusual backgrounds are slowly coming together.  Who would have thought that it would be The Crazy Clown Lady--aka Pippa Lindstorm, aka Perry's Grandmother and Dex's one time nanny--that related it to us?This well written novella could almost be called a prequel.  It's basically a message to Dex (which was mentioned in an earlier installment of the series) relating how he and Perry are tied together and how Pippa was involved.The story itself is tragic.  Pippa had the same issues as both Dex and Perry now have and it, quite literally, ruined her life.  We got snippets of the true Pippa from On Demon Wings but Old Blood really gives flesh to what is a very tortured character.  She's not just the Crazy Clown Lady who pops up on Perry unexpectedly to drive her nuts.  Pippa is much more than that.  She's much more complex.  She was once a young girl who had her own hopes and dreams and watched them shatter before her eyes, one after the other.  Partially because of bad decisions (of which she made many as she freely admits) but mostly because of her special ability.I think the thing that really grabbed me most about Old Blood is the voice of the character.  It's all told in first person, like the rest of the series, but completely through Pippa's perspective, from the time she was a little girl in Sweden to her last days in a mental institution...and beyond.  She reads as uniquely as Dex, Perry and the rest of the characters Halle has written over the course of the series.  It shows how versatile she is.  While Perry and Dex are mysterious and self doubting and curse like sailors on shore leave, Pippa is prim and proper and has been given her own unique and consistent voice throughout.Included in the ebook is a preview from #6, Into The Hollows.  That's a nice little treat.  It picks up right where Demon Wings leaves off and really left me with a feeling of wanting to know what torturous misadventures she's going to be putting Perry and Dex through this time.I'm still amazed that we, the fans, have been given seven novels and novellas over barely the course of a YEAR. Some authors take months and years to accomplish what she's done in a year and it's pretty staggering. Considering Halle has a day gig, I'm wondering if she ever actually sleeps.  I'm also left wondering if she had a path for this series to travel from the get go because, after reading each subsequent novel, it reads like it was all mapped out from the beginning with little breadcrumbs being dropped throughout.  There's just no doubt that she's a talented author with a gift for words, plotting, organization and a tremendous imagination.I think that Old Blood would read well enough on its own as a stand alone story but it has more impact for people who've been reading the series because they know who's giving the narrative, who it's intended for, and most importantly, why.