I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
"Bargain"
by
Kelley Armstrong
urban fantasy in a PDF edition that was published by the author on December 2005 and has 10 pages.
Explore it on Goodreads
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Broken, Personal Demon , Living with the Dead, Men of the Otherworld, Tales of the Otherworld, Frostbitten, Dates from Hell, Exit Strategy, Made to Be Broken, The Reckoning, Spell Bound, The Gathering, The Awakening, "Hidden", The Calling, Aftertaste, Kisses from Hell, The Rising, Omens, Wild Justice, Enthralled: Paranormal Diversions, Visions, Deceptions, The Masked Truth, City of the Lost, Empire of Night, Forest of Ruin, Betrayals, A Darkness Absolute, Indigo, Rituals, The Unquiet Past, This Fallen Prey, Stolen, Rough Justice, Dime Store Magic, Industrial Magic, Haunted, Broken, Waking the Witch, Portents, Missing, Alone in the Wild, Watcher in the Woods, Otherworld Secrets, Wherever She Goes, "The Case of the Half-Demon Spy", "Escape", Otherworld Chills, A Stranger in Town, Hex on the Beach, "Recruit", "Checkmate", "Framed", Cursed Luck, High Jinx, Bitten, Driven, "Forsaken", The Deepest of Secrets, "Dead Letter Days", Men of the Otherworld, The Boy Who Cried Bear
A free short story, 5.3 in the Women of the Otherworld urban fantasy series, revolving around a diverse group of strong, smart, and skillful supernatural women and their equally talented mates. The focus is on Xavier, a very detached half-demon.
If you’re interested, there is a chronological listing of the Otherworld books on my website.
My Take
“Bargain” is the set-up for Broken, 6.
It was that third person protagonist point-of-view from Xavier’s perspective that lets us in on his very different back story. Now I want to meet his family and find out if they know what his “career” is all about.
There’s no real action, not as we would think of it. Meetings at Starbucks, strolling through a downtown scene of scurrying worker bees. There’s a bit of speaking, and most of it is character-driven. Xavier’s grifter character as he works through the parameters and assessments he considers as he plots to gain Elena’s help. Y’know . . . criminal business versus regular business.
And now you’ll have to read Broken to find out what Xavier really wants . . .
The Story
Xavier needs help, and he needs to work it so that Elena Michaels will want to ally with him.
This is gonna take a lot of thought . . .
The Characters
Xavier, despite his scar, is a born grifter, but a lousy thug (Stolen, 2). He has three, successful, older siblings. Feathers is Xavier’s business partner.
Tommy, a thief and fellow Evanidus half-demon, is a friend of Xavier’s (with the perfect job). Roy is a whipped-cream-slurping toady who owes Xavier a favor.
Elena Michaels is the only female werewolf and part of the Danvers Pack at Stonehaven. She’s married to Clay Danvers.
Lucas Cortez rebelled from his father and the Cortez Cabal and dating a council delegate, Paige Winterbourne, a witch. Savannah is the little girl (and witch) Paige took in, whom we first met in Stolen.
Robert Vasic, a Tempestras half-demon professor of demonology is the go-to guy on research issues, and no longer the council’s half-demon delegate — having passed the job on to his stepson, Adam Vasic, a fire half-demon who’s friends with Paige, Lucas, and Savannah.
David Hargrave is a man-killing mutt. The Cabals are like a mafia family only composed of sorcerers. A Ferratus demon can harden their body.
The Cover and Title
The cover has a black background with red words from the Hell Letter and a white silhouette of Jack the Ripper centered at the bottom. At the top is the author’s name and the title in white.
The title is what Xavier is seeking, a “Bargain”.
