Evil Ways by Justin Gustainis

January 2009, Solaris
Paperback, Review Copy
Dark Fantasy

(As I reviewer from England, I may have different spellings (mostly not typos) - watch out for the extra u!)

Summary from Solaris

Supernatural investigator Quincey Morris and his partner Libby Chastain, investigate a series of murders where white witches are being hunted and killed - and Libby may be next on the list. From Iraq to America, a trail of clues is pointing to eccentric billionaire, Walter Grobius, a man fascinated with a devastating evil that can be traced back to biblical times. What's more, it seems he may well be involved in a sick scheme for white supremacy across the USA, and Morris and Chastain find themselves in their most epic case as they look to prevent the apocalypse from being released.

Evil Ways continues the electrifying new series of supernatural thrillers following the exploits of investigators Quincey Morris and Libby Chastain

Somehow I nearly read this book twice. Please don't think its a dull book. It's very memorable. I read a lot of books, half the time while I'm feeling sleepy. I picked the book up, started reading and it felt familiar. So I skipped a few chapters thinking I'd started it but hadn't finished. Ending up skim reading until the end of the book, and finally figured out that I read it before :) I liked the second, brief, read as much as the first.

I haven't read previous adventures of Quincey and Libby. Think of it as the TV series Bones, with magic thrown in. It's really cool! Libby has some powers (and impressive back up in her coven) - I doubt few people can claim to have a water sprite help ward off an intruder. That water sprite fought back. (There were other great moments in the book, but for me, that was the coolest scene). Quincey I think is a bit out of his depth compared to Libby, but it is his tactics that in the end help solve the investigation, and save Libby in the process).

The friendship between Quincey and Libby is realistic for me: there's a bit of friendly banter, and they understand (most of the time) each other's capabilities. That doesn't mean they won't push their abilities to the limits - as people who fight crime I think it's in their nature to take risks. They aren't immune from making mistakes - the mistakes could cost them their lives, and seriously hamper the investigation. I think it's right to say this is a thriller, because something happens in every chapter, and almost on every page.

Content: Sensual to highly sensual (not always in a nice way) strong adult scenes especially when the bad guys are around. These have the impact intended, and led to lots of whoohoo's when the book concluded. It did keep me gripped to my seat, and glaring as life made me put the book down. Language is quite strong in areas too. Violence = violent rating, but well within context.

Evil Ways has two of my favourite genres combined: fantasy and thriller. I'm looking forward to reading more stories with the white witch Libby and the resourceful Quincey. (The purple cover got my vote too!)