this book was hard for me to get into. it just didn't flow like the first one did, until the end. now I really want to read the next book. ( )

Poor Jack, he made a deal, an unbreakable one to save his life. Now this deal will be the end of his life. He has a reason to live, Pete. His magic is not going to get him out of this. he'll make another deal. This deal, is not made with truths and fairness. His crow magic is drawing unwanted attention. Around him it draws two faced liars, demons, shadows and the black beady eyes. Nothing is easy or clear.
Pete has left the force, and works wit Jack as a ghost buster duo. Her magical developments just did not fit within her job description. She fights Jack, his demons and the outside world to keep some function of a life for them. Not and easy task when the demons are this monstrous. Her loyalty and resolve will be tested and tortured. Her heart beats for Jack no matter what the cost.
The journey goes from England to Bangkok from the bedroom to the blackness of the other. The story is heartwarming, heartbreaking and filled with dark. The world building complete and fascinating. The story flowed and was very enjoyable. I am thrilled because the first book in the series stumbled in the second half. A dark mystery urban fantasy with a touch of romance. ( )

Not a terribly interesting book.

The author has made the hero so angst-ridden it was just annoying. And for someone supposed to be so "bad ass", he really doesn't accomplish much, just lurches from disaster to disaster, being rude to other characters in a way we're supposed to find amusing and to show how tough he is. The female character was better, but not so much in evidence. ( )

In the last book, Jack Winter came back from the dead to help Petunia “Pete” Caldecott in a case of missing children and hunt sorcerers that was under the command of a powerful sorcerer-ghost that the previous 16-years old Pete had bear witness him killing Jack. After banishing the ghost with her innate powers as a weir, Pete quit being a cop and move in with Jack and started a business of exorcising ghost and medium for the living to support themselves. A year later, unbeknownst of her, Jack hadn’t really told her that he did died on that day but was brought back to life after making a deal with a demon. With the 13th anniversary of the summoning looming around, Jack had to face the consequences in which he had to surrender for his soul or Pete’s life which will be in a precarious situation.

In the last book, Jack Winter was a character that was an intriguing on its own. He carried the weight of the dead between his shoulders and drown himself with heroin to completely avoid seeing dead people; crowding him and sucking the life out of him. With Pete back into his life, he found peace and ability to control his talent enough to be useful. With the book completely being narrated by him, Jack’s characterization was enhanced while Pete became the observer or a side character in the story. Inside the mind of the crow-mage, we found Jack to be layered with lies and half truths, constantly being tempted by the need for his drugs, his constant moody and the sarcasm to hide the constant anxiety inside him. His fond feelings for Pete that had became obvious enough that his enemies uses the knowledge to manipulate him. Basically, Jack is a wreck in every way and boy, he does knows it.

The story is set quite linearly and in a way affected by Jack’s decisions in everything. In the beginning, he became a mentor for Pete who was trying to control her talent while acting as a guidance counsellor for Jack in every step of the way. Curiously enough, Jack sees her as a lighter shade of everything in his dark world. He often referred to her as an innocent and tried to protect her in every way even though its clearly a bad idea.

The dialogues were a bit confusing since the story was written using American English but the dialogues are British English with slangs and infectious cursing that even I rarely online-curse actually blasted f-words like no tomorrow. So for some people who had difficulties in understand the sarcasm, I do recommend watching BBCs shows and educate yourselves. The setting held noir overtones in mind and the constant anticipation of doom that was always penetrated through the psyche of the narrator (Jack) made the story enjoyable to psychological mystery fans. In every way, Jack held desperation as an ace in his hand to plunge head first through every desperate encounter that he had. Often times, he was on the verge of breakdown with his only thought was Pete’s well being as his salvation. Honestly, Jake’s a romantic. And boy he took 400 pages to notice it. Most of the time, Jack had became enraptured with the idea of saving her from a certain darkness but although he tried to fight his way from his past, he couldn’t escape death.

Plot-wise, the book was engaging to the last end of the page albeit it does move a bit slow. The dialogues are heavy with profanities and at times, dark humour. Kitteredge focused Jake’s story and the world building in the book that some may feel dissatisfied about the progression but frankly it does provide the baseline to the next novel. ( )

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This is one of those books that gets part of its "gritty" from what I've come to think of as the "fuck factor" i.e. the number of times the characters use the word fuck per page (and it is pretty much per page.)

(this applies only to use of the word for uses other than actual sexual intercourse.)

Mostly former heroin addict and mage Jack Winter is the POV character and this is his story arc. I wavered between three and four stars, but this ends in an ending that isn't, clearly setting up the next phases of the bigger story.

Interesting magic, interesting world, pretty good use of integrated references to varying myths (Hecate, the Morrigan and hell to only name a few).

I don't know how well done the strongly emphasized colluquial British usage is see the "ff" above. It got a little boring.

On the other hand, while I got really annoyed at the main male character and wondered some about the sense of the main female character (Pete) I never even thought the eight deadly words. And I really want to know what's next ( )