When Blood Calls

By: J.K. Beck

This was an interesting book. This book has it all...vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters, poltergeists, para-humans, a gryphon, and a multitude of blue and orange beings with copious supernatural abilities. The plot was creative and very well executed, with a twist at the end that I never saw coming. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and am eagerly looking forward to continuing the series. I also appreciated the author's interpretation of the paranormal world and how the law functions in such an environment.

That being said, there are a few (minor) issues I have with this book. First of all, I felt that the relationship between Sara and Lucius was purely physical, and not the deep lasting love that the author would have you believe. This didn't make me like the story any less, but I do wish their relationship would have had a little more substance...something worthy enough to last, even if the physical attraction between the two ever faded.

Second, I would have liked to have learned about the bad blood between Lucius Dragos and Ryan Doyle. While it is mentioned that the two have known each other for centuries and that they used to be friends, the author never tells us what transpired between them that caused them to hate each other all these years. I kept hoping I would learn their story, but alas, I never did.

Third, I would have liked to have known how some of these paranormal creatures (the half eagle/half lion gryphon comes to mind here) were able to successfully move about in the world without letting on to the ignorant humans that such creatures exist. Evidently these supernatural beings take great care to hide their existence from the humans, yet it is unclear how some of these beings are able to hide what they are. I would have liked to have read about how some of the more outrageous creatures remain undetected among the humans.

All in all, this was a very unique and refreshing approach to a topic that has often been overdone and overworked to the point of ennui. Two big thumbs up from me!