That's What I'm Talking About...: ARC Review & Giveaway: Downpour

Monday, August 1, 2011

ARC Review & Giveaway: Downpour

Edit Post

Downpour

Author: Kat Richardson

Release Date: August 2, 2011

Publisher: Roc

The Greywalker Novels #6

ISBN: #978-0451463982

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Format(s): Hardcover (368 pgs), e-book

Book Source: Publisher

About the book:

After being shot in the back and dying—again—Harper’s recovery has been hard. She’s lost a great many of the powers she’d acquired since first becoming a Greywalker, and Harper knows that if she dies again, she won’t be coming back.

Her only respite from the chaos is her work. But while conducting a pre-trial investigation in the Olympic Peninsula, she witnesses the ghostly echo of a fatal car accident for which there are no records. Worse still, the victim of the wreck insists he was actually murdered, and that the nearby mountain resort—called “Blood Lake” by locals—is to blame.

The picturesque area is as unlikely a haven for conspiracy and malignant magic as Harper’s ever seen. But she soon learns that the icy waters of the lake hide a terrible power, and a host of hellish beings. And both are held under the thrall of sinister mages who will use the darkest of arts to achieve their fiendish ends…

What G & U are talking about:

Downpour is the sixth book in the Greywalker Novels. Let us first say that Una has not read any of the previous books, however, Gikany was able to read the first book in the series. Even though there are references to previous experiences and moments, we feel it isn’t necessary to read the first five books to enjoy this one. However, to get the full impact of the series, we would recommend starting from the beginning.

Downpour starts off with our heroine, Harper Blaine, doing some less than fabulous legwork for a pretrial hearing. During the course of this, she runs across some strange creatures and power lines in the Grey. The Grey is an alternate, paranormal dimension that Harper can experience and witness ever since she died (in a previous novel). These events cause her to take a deeper look into her surroundings, which leads her to a ghost and a murder mystery. What could be classified as a straight-laced detective drama/mystery is made more suspenseful and engaging with the element of the paranormal. It creates a thoroughly grounded but surreal urban fantasy.

Gikany and Una enjoyed Downpour. The mythology is very interesting and the way the paranormal is weaved into this urban fantasy is mesmerizing. The mystery was a bit simple (there were some obvious clues) however it did not detract from the overall intrigue of the world, Ms. Blaine’s abilities, or the resolution of the mystery. Ms. Richardson’s descriptions are quite vivid giving what is called the Grey a picturesque feel even with the threat of power it holds.

Harper Blaine is fresh and fascinating. It seems we have another world where our main character has found herself suddenly in an alternate reality of which she now must be a guardian. Because of the interesting allusions made to what we assume happened in the previous novels, Una and Gikany are eager to read the previous novels. We especially want to see how she deals with the changes that have occurred to her abilities in the Grey. Harper is down-to-earth, funny, but with a strong edge that makes it so easy to walk in her shoes. Considering how little advice her “boss” in the Grey gives her, it is amazing to watch as she makes her way in this world.

Downpour is well paced and hard to put down. We found it to be a gripping, nail-biting page-turner. With the vivid illustrations of the Grey, it truly makes it effortless to find yourself in this world. Gikany and Una have added this to our “series to follow” and look forward to seeing what happens to Harper in the next Greywalker Novel.

Their Rating:

Loved it - enthusiastically recommend (A)

GIVEAWAY: I will be giving away one (1) copy of Downpour by Kat Richardson starting today. All you need to do is leave a comment at the end of this post to enter. You do not need to be a GFC Blog Follower, but it is appreciated. Contest is open to United States mailing addresses only. Contest runs until Thursday August 4, 2011 at 9:00 PM EDT. If your email is not part of your profile, please leave it so I may contact the winner. One entry per person. One (1) winner will be selected from eligible entries using random.org. I am not responsible for items lost in the mail. Pssst... be sure to read the comment section for a little bonus to this giveaway!

Labels: 4.5 stars, contest, giveaway, Greywalker Series, Kat Richardson, ROC, urban fantasy

22 comments:

Michelle O'Boyle said...: Hey,

Great post and love the giveaway. I love Kat Richardson!!

Michelle (@OBoyledBooks)

OBoyledBooks [at] gmail [dot] com; August 1, 2011 5:04 PM
Kat Richardson said...: This is so lovely of you! Thanks. if you like, I can send the winner a signed bookplate for their copy.; August 1, 2011 5:05 PM
Joan B said...: Have not read Kat Richardson...am looking forward to reading her books after reading these reviews!; August 1, 2011 5:09 PM
Una said...: Usually when jumping into a well established series, the having "missed out" on the earlier books typically hurts the reading. It didn't this time...there was enough information to understand and continue with the story, but missing just enough to make you wan to go back and read the other books.; August 1, 2011 5:11 PM
Michael O'Reilly said...: I'm looking forward to this book!; August 1, 2011 5:16 PM
lingeorge said...: I love this series! I can't wait to see what Kat puts poor Harper Blaine through this time.
GFC + email follower; August 1, 2011 5:22 PM
les121 said...: I love this series so much!! Thanks for the giveaway :)

drakeLa90 at aol dot com; August 1, 2011 5:25 PM
betakwn said...: One of my favorite series. I always await the next book eagerly. Love the giveaway idea! Kudos.; August 1, 2011 5:27 PM
angel6171 said...: Love this series so much!I always pre-order it!; August 1, 2011 5:51 PM
Jennifer G. said...: Great giveaway!
www.booksandbarks.com

jgriffin1018@gmail.com; August 1, 2011 6:33 PM
Angela Brown said...: Awesome review! Sounds like a great book and a great series. Kat, you rock adding your special addition to this giveaway.

Angela B
GFC follower
tomewriter@gmail.com; August 1, 2011 10:14 PM
Elisa N. said...: I love the Greywalker series! Great review, I am so happy they are still going strong. I just finished #3. Thanks for the giveaway!; August 1, 2011 10:47 PM
Barbara E. said...: I haven't had a chance to get started on The Greywalker Novels yet, but the more I hear about them, the more excited I am to get started reading them.

Barbed1951 at aol dot com
GFC follower; August 1, 2011 11:02 PM
Rummanah Aasi said...: I'm always looking for a good urban fantasy series to get into and the Greywalker series looks awesome! Please count me in.; August 1, 2011 11:19 PM
donnas said...: Sounds good. Thanks for the chance!

bacchus76 at myself dot com; August 1, 2011 11:37 PM
Laura said...: Wow, glad I stumbled on this blog. This series sounds right up my alley. I will definitely have to check it out - and great review! Can't wait!

writingwhat (at) gmail (dot) come
will be a follower (ha, so not something I have ever said) after this is posted!; August 2, 2011 12:08 AM
m.ceschini said...: This series sound amazing. Thank you so much for the chance to win!

m.ceschini@msn.com; August 2, 2011 12:55 AM
rissatoo said...: I'm really looking forward to reading Downpour. I've enjoyed this series quite a lot! So... I'll keep my fingers crossed,' cuz I either have to win it, or wait 'til the library gets it out to us not-so-very-patient-readers. *sigh* I hate being broke! And waiting! :p

Thanks for sharing the great review and giveaway chance!

rissatoo (ATgmail DOTcom); August 2, 2011 1:04 AM
Melissa said...: Cool giveaway! I'm up to book 4 in the Greywalker series. I love it!

MELISSAMDC104@YAHOO(DOT)COM; August 2, 2011 9:34 AM
Kermit said...: Looks like I have some catching up to do on the Graywalker series. I just learned about Richardson from some of the other spec fic authors I follow on Twitter, who give her ringing endorsements.

Color me interested. My address is chaos the third at google's popular mail service that starts with a g. Not spaces, of course. =); August 2, 2011 7:01 PM
JenM said...: I remember reading the first book in the series and I think I have one or two others sitting around. This would be a good excuse to get back into it. Thanks for pointing out that you don't have to read the books in order.

jen at delux dot com; August 3, 2011 2:12 AM
oneinamillion21 said...: I haven't ever read anything by Kat Richardson but it sounds like a great book so I would love to win it and I am also going to go look her up and look at my local library for the first book int he series. My email is sweetreaderma@yahoo.com; August 3, 2011 4:14 PM

Disclaimer

About our reviews: The reviews posted here are the writer's own honest opinion of the book, not a judgement on the subject matter or author. We read for pleasure and at the request of authors and publishers. We do not receive compensation for our reviews, other than the copy of the book to read for the review.

----------

We try to keep posts on the blog PG-13, however the material reviewed and discussed is intended for adults (18 years and older). Please consider this if you choose to read and/or follow my blog. Thanks for stopping by!