Honestly, I’m so biased, but Kim Harrison will never disappoint. We have our 16th installment of The Hollows series with Trouble with the Cursed. While my last review of the 15th book Million Dollar Demon indicated some lackluster aspects, Harrison came back in typical witchy style. Continue reading to get my take on this latest book from the Hollows of Cincinnati.
Summary
Rachel Morgan, witch-born demon, has one unspoken rule: take chances, but pay for them yourself. With it, she has turned enemies into allies, found her place with her demon kin, and stepped up as the subrosa of Cincinnati—responsible for keeping the paranormal community at peace and in line.
Life is . . . good? Even better, her best friend, Ivy Tamwood, is returning home. Nothing’s simple, though, and Ivy’s not coming alone. The vampires’ ruling council insists she escort one of the long undead, hell-bent on proving that Rachel killed Cincy’s master vampire to take over the city. Which, of course, Rachel totally did not do. She only transformed her a little.
With Rachel’s friends distracted by their own lives and problems, she reaches out to a new ally for help—the demon Hodin. But this trickster has his own agenda. In the end, the only way for Rachel to save herself and the city may be to forge a new understanding with her estranged demon teacher, Al. There’s just one problem: Al would sell his own soul to be rid of her. . . .
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
World-building
You’d think with 15 books that Kim Harrison has built her world, you’d be wrong. The universe feels like a gift that just keeps giving. With every book, there is some new aspect of the magics, supernatural politics, and of course new baddies. While returning to the Hollows feels like returning home at times, Harrison is always able to keep things fresh.
At the same time, while new people, problems, etc. are being introduced, it never feels like Harrison has written herself into a corner. Nor is the world overwhelming or crowded, but just very well developed and thought out.
Character Growth
Something I have always appreciated in the Hollows series is the ability to see continual growth and challenges for our characters. Nothing stays static. Trouble with the Cursed in particular had some really important and devastatingly heart-wrenching moments within and between characters. At times my heart was really pounding, and it had nothing to do with me running on the treadmill while listening to it on my kindle.
While in Million Dollar Demon I had some qualms with the absence of certain characters, these were assuaged and to a certain extent explained. As a long-time reader, I greatly appreciated that. I felt heard! This is definitely an aspect of a long-running series that there may be too many characters to give them all their due attention. I was overjoyed that I did not have to have that internal justification when reading Trouble with the Cursed.
Overall
Like many, I am so glad Harrison decided to continue her series after an 8-year hiatus. Reading her books is like talking and adventuring with old friends. I honestly took forever to read this, just because I did not want it to end. If you were a bit disappointed with Million Dollar Demon, I get it. But DO NOT miss the opportunity to read Trouble with the Cursed as it will melt any disappointment away! If you’ve never read The Hollows series, where have you been? Go to your nearest library and get at least the first three to binge-read!
Find Trouble with the Cursed on Goodreads, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository