“A Local Habitation” by Seanan McGuire (Daw, 2010)

Ace Faerie Private Eye October Daye is back with her second mystery to solve, and this one’s a doozy.  As Toby tries to settle down, licking her wounds from her last escapades in Rosemary and Rue, she is asked by her liege, the Duke Sylvester Torquill of the Shadowed Hills to check on his niece, Countess January O’Leary of Tamed Lightning, better known as Freemont, as he hasn’t heard from her in some time.  Taking a sidekick along – Quentin — to show him the ropes, she finds herself caught up in way more than she bargained for.

Arriving at Tamed Lighting, Toby finds what appears to be a simple company that produces computer fantasy games, except that all the employees aren’t human, in fact there’s not a single regular human that works there.  Then there’s the quiet way everyone acts around her, as if they’re hiding something.  Then the first person turns up dead.  As Toby unravels the mystery, it turns out bodies have been piling up, but when she tastes their blood to find out what happened to them, she gets nothing.  They are empty husks with no story to tell of their demise.  The mystery grows further when Toby finds herself under attack from someone or something.

A Local Habitation is a great sequel to Rosemary and Rue, ratcheting up the action and fear as Toby once again finds herself fighting for her life, while readers learn more of the complexities of this world that Seanan McGuire had created.  The good news is, after finishing A Local Habitation, as readers attempt to catch their breaths, they won’t have to wait long, with An Artificial Night due out in September.

If you liked this review and are interested in purchasing this book, click here.

Originally written on March 11th 2010 ©Alex C. Telander.

For an interview with Seanan McGuire check out BookBanter Episode 15.

Advertisements