Stake Out (Paranormal Detective series book #1) by Lily Luchesi.
Half human and half vampire, Detective Angelina Cross teams up with Danny Mancini, a human who is a retired former Chicago Police detective, to hunt down and kill Victor, an old rogue vampire wreaking havoc in the city. The organization they work in is the Paranormal Investigations Department (PID), a secret division of the FBI that works to solve paranormal cases. Danny agrees to work as a detective for the PID on a temporary basis because the vampire they are hunting is one that he witnessed murder a young woman and was the reason for his early retirement.
The vampires in this series are pretty traditional in their physiological characteristics, but, rather than being unrestrained predators, most are law abiding citizens who have integrated into society and do not prey on humans, rather, surviving on animals and blood banks instead. Angelina, being a dhampir, is not as constrained by the limitations of full vampires, she can eat human food and must, she can be out during the day but must be protected from the sun, and her powers are not as strong as a full vampire.
The character development was well done. Angelina has human emotions and it easy to empathize with the feelings she has. Plot development was a good mix of paranormal activity and detective work. The story line flowed nicely at a pace that was quick to read without feeling rushed and kept me turning the pages.
I did see a few copy edits that were missed but nothing that made me stumble in my reading or have to reread the section.
Miranda’s Rights
I am a detective novel enthusiast, as well as a paranormal fan. Put the two together and it makes for an interesting and enjoyable read.
In this second novel in the Paranormal Detectives series Angelina and Danny again partner to solve the mystery of who and why they are being targeted.
The plot development is again well done. Good action, good story line that flow easily. I like the character development combining some dysfunctional relationships with highly trained paranormal warfare skills into both the protagonists and antagonists. Danny is fully human but has the ability to see past and future events in vivid detail. This gift can have adverse effects on him. Angelina is a dhampir a couple hundred years old, Camille is a relatively new vampire and Fiona an old dark magic witch. There are minor characters that include fae, werewolves, demons and references to other paranormal beings.
Overall I really enjoyed this book, though as a warning there is a cliffhanger – to be continued…
Life Sentence is scheduled for release later this summer. I will be reading it to find out the rest of the story!
Enjoy!
Grandma Peachy
