Doyce Testerman

Calliope Jenkins is the sort of private detective who prefers to kick you in the chest first and ask why you've stopped by her office later. Her partner/ex-boyfriend has just been reported murdered while thousands of miles away on a case he told her nothing about, and a mysterious guy called Vikous appears who promises to lead her to answers. After assaulting and pepper spraying the poor funny-looking fellow, our marvelously short-fused protagonist agrees to be lead on a dangerous and magical journey involving several varieties of familiar and unfamiliar mythical beings, who it turns out have hidden and sometimes merged into human society.

It's a largely fun and entertaining read, but overall the story lacks a comprehensible motive for the whole thing. It's a confusing wet noodle of an ending, and the apparent crux of Calliope's adventure here seems contradicted by some key facts in the set up.
If the point is to test whether Calliope will betray the dragon to Faegos in return for Josh being brought to life, and Vikous is part of this plot and does this sort of "morality test" thing all the time as is implied, why would Faegos kill Vikous while presenting Calliope with the deal? And what exactly is gained by Vikous with this test? Relevance or something like that is mentioned, but, how so??? And if Calliope is such an awesome singer that imperious dragons become slave-like in their devotion to her in short order after hearing her sing, why was this former bar band singer a failure at it in the "real world"? And why on earth would Faegos have imagined that Calliope could gain secret knowledge of the dragon anyway? … (plus d'informations)

An urban fantasy more in the vein of de Lint and Gaiman. (I wonder if I might have got more out of this were I American and steeped in its cultural landscapes.) An interesting world - of "hidden things" - and it's explored with grime and rough edges, not to mention a heroine whose kickass actually makes sense, and who rubs people the wrong way in a genuinely sandpaper, rather than cute, way. But overall, I found the story quite thin and lacking in the sort of emotive resonance I would've preferred to make the finale really sing.… (plus d'informations)

You may also read my review here: http://www.mybookishways.com/2012/08/hidden-things-by-doyce-testerman.html

When Calliope Jenkins gets a call very early in the morning from her ex and work partner, Josh, she’s not sure what to think. He’s obviously following a lead, but what? And why did he tell her to watch out for the hidden things right before hanging up the phone? These are certainly the questions that are on Calliope’s mind when she gets the news the next day that Josh has been found dead, and she’s the last known person to have talked to him. Dealing with the aftermath of Josh’s death is enough to handle, not to mention his wife’s grief and bitterness, but there’s also the mysterious figure (with rather big feet) that keeps showing up at the most inopportune times. As Calli sets out to find the truth about what really happened to Josh, she quickly realizes that reality seems to be slipping, and things are never quite what they seem.

What a gem of a debut! At the start of the novel, Calli’s pain where Josh is concerned isn’t entirely evident, but as the story unfolds, it becomes clearer and clearer just how much she cares for him, and her grief is a tangible thing, interspersed in interludes that complement, but never interrupt, the action. Twists and turns don’t even begin to describe this one. Calli’s journey back to Iowa is fraught with danger, so good thing she has a guide in the form of Vikous. He would be the one with the big feet, that looks suspiciously like a clown. He’s grumpy as hell, but there’s a certain charm to him. A certain odd, creepy charm. Calli is snarky and confrontational, and I adored her. Strangely enough, she and Vikous made a pretty great team. Lest you think that this book is about finding Josh’s killer, it sort of is, but really, it’s about Calli’s journey back to the hometown, and family, that she thought didn’t want her anymore. And what a journey! It turns out that you can go home again, but to tell you more would be to reveal much of the awesome that this book is made of. The cover will give you a hint, and I dare you to get through this lovely, soaring book without at least tearing up a little (I may have teared up a lot.) You also may find yourself with a huge, silly grin on your face at the end. Testerman writes with a fluid, sure hand, and your brain will rebel at the thought that this book is a first novel. Can you tell I loved it? I did, and I can’t wait for more from this author!… (plus d'informations)