Find the Author: Website, Twitter, GoodreadsHe lives to kill monsters. He keeps his city safe. And his silver hollow-points and back-from-the-dead abilities help him take out any kind of supernatural threat. But now an immortal evil has this bad-ass bounty hunter dead in its sights. . .
Ever since a monster murdered his family, Deacon Chalk hunts any creature that preys on the innocent. So when a pretty vampire girl "hires" him to eliminate a fellow slayer, Deacon goes to warn him--and barely escapes a vampire ambush. Now he's got a way-inexperienced newbie hunter to protect and everything from bloodsuckers to cursed immortals on his trail. There's also a malevolent force controlling the living and the undead, hellbent on turning Deacon's greatest loss into the one weapon that could destroy him. . .
So still not a bounty hunter, but this story is really good. There are better names than bounty hunter. In fact here are a couple of names: “Savior of women” and “Vampire Hunter”. Even “Savior of a mythological figure and a very pointy stick” but not a bounty hunter. Why you ask? Killing or capturing a specific individual usually leads to some form of payment to a bounty hunter. No where unless I missed it did he get anything other than his ass handed to him at times.
That is not anything to really sniff about so overall it is a really good story with a unique spin. Deacon is more than he appears, he has a priest that drinks and smokes and is a total bad ass, he has a little girl who works for him that can handle a gun better than many grown men, and he has the jokes. Yes this story has a dark nature to it, in fact the reason he is even a Main Character is dark. The reason is dark enough that many may run and hide. Deacon doesn’t run, he takes what is given to him and he survives the best he can. The belief that the Comet is the best car Mercury had is a major flaw. The Cougar of the same generation is a better car, but no one can be right all the time.
This story’s main element and spin is that it takes you from twilight loving glittery okay vampires, to a world that the vampires are evil. Vampires seem to be intelligent creatures and not just animalistic blood drinkers. Many instances in this book remind us that Vampires are evil, pure evil. We also learn that Angels are not pure good. Although that premise is a little difficult to swallow when you get down towards the end, but it also gets a little preachy so there is that. Not preachy in the “You are all going to die for your sins” but the “you DO exist, wait… What did you do?” After Deacon heard the story, he should have followed with a slap to the back of his head al la Gibbs in NCIS.
Oh and prostitute vampires who are the blood letters. Yeah… let that sink in, because it is apparent that they service humans and probably weres so I don’t get if humans get a little kick by banging a vampire and drinking her blood, or if the vampire gets something out of it by releasing blood. Also why were there not any male prostitutes? Obviously not in the club that Deacon went to, but why? and why does every brothel have to have a dungeon, it is really kitchsy. Obviously I don’t know what classier joints have. Apparently most of the dungeon related items are in each room.
There is nothing overly about relationships formed, and the dialogue is real. See back to how this is a dark story. Here is something that I actually really enjoyed. You know about Werewolves, tigers, bears, lions Oh my right? Well this story has Were-Gorillas and Were-Spiders, and spoiler alert – the main were-spiders names is Charlotte. Yeah, right in the feels on that one.
Overall I think this is a good story and I will read more in the series. The only thing that I would really like changed is the series. Another issue I just realized, the Occult does not mean what I think the author thinks it means. I will gladly look past that in the future books, but I may still complain, because why not :).
About James R. Tuck
I am the author of the Deacon Chalk: Occult Bounty Hunter series. Book one, BLOOD AND BULLETS, will be out from Kensington Publishing February 7, 2012.
I write DARK URBAN FANTASY. It is gritty, it is violent, it is bloody, it is DARK. The monsters are monstrous and they do Very Bad Things. The good guys are Big Damn Heroes.
I write the ultimate thrill ride in the form of a book, just for you. I want you turning those pages as fast as you can while precariously balanced on the edge of your seat.
