Review: Everything but the kitchen sink
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 06 27, 2014
For a relatively short book, Conn introduces tons of elements -- many of which don't sit well together.  We've got druids, shamans, ghost shamans, wizards, werewolf wizards, "Lycans" from another dimension, demons, elves, shapeshifters, a cheating boyfriend, burglars, and the fae.  Whew.Ravena is a young woman on the run from a jerk of a boyfriend.  She's immortal and a shapeshifter, but she likes to pretend that she isn't.  Her father is a powerful Scottish druid and her paternal grandmother is an immortal Native American shaman shapeshifter (how the dad wound up in Scotland, I have no idea, but fortunately genetics still allowed Ravena to have "cornsilk" hair).  When she visits her father, she quickly gets caught up in a trainwreck of a plot that involves centuries of animosity between two families -- Quinn is a wizard werewolf who has been transported to another realm and Andrew is the descendant of his enemies who is seeking to use fae relics to reclaim what he considers his birthright, high status in the Lycan realm that his grandfather was banished from.Enough yet?No, there's more.  An enemy from the past of Ravena's family is also involved and when Quinn and Ravena meet, "her wolf" takes over.  "Her wolf" is written as a completely separate character in an annoying stylistic choice that reminds me of the worst of Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake phrasing.  Ravena's wolf is always mewling or sighing or whimpering or aching for Quinn's touch.Ravena is able to travel between our world and the realm where Quinn has been banished for decades and decades.  During this time, he's been fighting the same demon enemy every night.  Because he never bothered to talk to this enemy or even pay attention to what he is doing, he is unaware that his enemy isn't really his enemy.  Given that there are no real problems or drama in this realm other than the demon, it's awe-inspiring that Quinn managed to avoid tripping to this fact.So . . . evil werewolves and spirits are fought, love is made, fae relics are discovered and then the book just cuts off.  You have to continue the series to get even the most basic parts of this plot resolved.This was a very jumbled and unsatisfying read.