Finally! Here is what all those genre books are attempting to be-- you know the ones: first person narrator, a scrappy loner woman who fights with both fists, (or in this case, big-ass knife) and magic, in a world where humans co-exist with supernatural beings.

Basically, Anita Blake without the part where you want to slap some sense into Anita. Also without the smut, but Hamilton's smut is kinda skippable, so I didn't miss it.

Major points for things not done: Kate is not terribly attractive, and knows it, and isn't very bothered by it, every costume change is not described for the delight of the reader, and vampires are not in the least creatures of terrible sexual magnetism.

I know I describe this book mostly in terms of all the ways it is superior to a very bad book, but honestly, if you read the first Anita Blake book and thought "ooh, how interesting!" only to be disappointed, try this one. I can't guarantee it won't disappoint on the sequels, but I'm definitely going to keep an eye out for them.