Title: Iron & Velvet
Author: Alexis Hall
Series: Kate Kane, Paranormal Investigator #1
Genre: urban fantasy, f/f, action
Word count: 77,200 (309 ms pages)
AMAZON: Kindle
AMAZON: Paperback
Description from Riptide Publishing: First rule in this line of business: don’t sleep with the client.
My name’s Kate Kane, and when an eight-hundred-year-old vampire prince came to me with a case, I should have told her no. But I’ve always been a sucker for a femme fatale.
It always goes the same way. You move too fast, you get in too deep, and before you know it, someone winds up dead. Last time it was my partner. This time it could be me. Yesterday a werewolf was murdered outside the Velvet, the night-time playground of one of the most powerful vampires in England. Now half the monsters in London are at each other’s throats, and the other half are trying to get in my pants. The Witch Queen will protect her own, the wolves are out for vengeance, and the vampires are out for, y’know, blood.
I’ve got a killer on the loose, a war on the horizon, and a scotch on the rocks. It’s going to be an interesting day.
There were some definite Britishisms in this book, which threw me a little bit (American here), but once I got into the flow I really enjoyed the world of Kate Kane. It took me back to the early days of Anita Blake, before the erotica happened, back when it was a female protagonist kicking ass and taking names.
Kate Kane is a PI that has suffered the loss of relationships and people she loved, yet she’s moving on with her life. She’s a tough person that’s not going to let the world get her down. Except she’s been asked to investigate a murder by the Prince of Cups, Julian Saint-Germain, a sexy vampire that seems to want to get into her pants. And Julian is a woman that’s really hard to resist.
The writing style is modern. There’s no vampires wandering around wondering what a light bulb is or befuddled about motorized vehicles. There’s lots of attractive ladies, dead bodies, and Kate Kane, who’s looking to make enough money to pay her bills and keep her business going.
It’s a fun and fast read that takes place in an interesting world I wouldn’t mind exploring more of.
Main Cast:
Katharine “Kate” Kane
Prince of Cups, Julian Saint-Germain
Ashriel
Nimue
Tara Vane-Tempest
Prince of Swords, Aeglica Thrice-Risen
Patrick Knight
Elise
On-screen sex: yes, but mostly fade-to-black
Heat level: kissing, petting, oral
Rating: 4.5
