Grave Witch

This book is bad, but it does have some redeeming features:

1) It's not JUST an excuse for an PNR romance. Yes, it does have a romance, it is a PNR Romance after all, but it's not in your face like all the other books in this category. As soon as you see the handsome jerk who keeps getting in her way you know they're gonna bang.

2) It almost manages break a barrier into an acceptable novel. It almost nails:

- the 1st person narrative, which you could say its cheating, as it is a very easy way to create attachment to the protagonist, but it doesn't quite get there

- the characters: their descriptions, backstory and mainly dialogue are lacking depth. Alex is the daughter of the Governor, who renounced her as a child because of her powers. All of a sudden her sister is calling her asking for a favor. And that's all you get about the family relationship. Her friends are also briefly mentioned, as is her sexual life; the author just wanted to make sure to point out she is not a puritan.

- the world: Alex Craft is a grave witch, someone who can raise the dead to talk to them. There are a few witches with this power, and there are some other magical people in the world, like the Fae.

- show don't tell: as much as a cliche it is to point this out, it is one of the signs of a great author when you don't feel the info dumps thrown at you. But the times she is exercising this skill it felt too generic. I didn't care for her “see beyond the grave power”

- pacing: at one point Alex is using her power in a body to raise its shade, then comes a detective and he is pissed because she doesn't have permission to do that, so she leaves, fall down the stairs, and that ends up saving her life. This was all crammed in without enough development. Many scenes like this.

- the sex scene: I skipped these, about 10 min I think. It felt like the author hold herself the whole book wanting not to be just another cheap PNR romance, and then she rewarded herself with chocolate at the end.

- the plot: broadly speaking so I don't spoil much, but the assassin collecting stuff to perform a ritual because he is evil and wants to rule the world, nothing interesting here. Oh, and death is in love with her. This may have sounded nice in the author's head, but she didn't translate it well into words.

Also, holding out on information from the other characters does not a good plot make.

Plenty more to comment, this is a good book to break down all its flaws. But as I said, it almost manages to be good. I hold Mercy Thompson as the gold standard for this type of novel. The narrator is the same, which helped me keep reading when it was clear I wouldn't like the story.