ghosttie
Dante Valentine is probably the most self-indulgent character name ever, but it makes sense coming from Lilith Saintcrow - probably the most self-indulgent nom-de-plume ever.
Dante Valentine is probably the most accurate portrayal of a woman I've ever read. She does completely illogical things at completely random times, and even she doesn't know why.
I stayed with the series through all five books, but I can't say I don't wish I hadn't.
After getting past the ridiculous character name, the first book had enough good ideas and was well written enough that I bought the second book, and so on. But by the fifth book I was thoroughly sick of Dante's garbage. If we had been dating, I would have dumped Dante in book five.
The first book by a new author is usually promising but shaky. This book is pure genius.
The characters are well rounded, the dialogue is natural, the world is detailed and realistic, the plot is layered and fearless.
I could not put it down.
The only thing I don't like about this book is the title, and the author has already done a lot better with the title of the sequel Red Seas Under Red Skies