Darkling by Yasmine Galenorn

Darkling is the third of Yasmine Galenorn's Otherworld novels featuring the D'Artigo sisters; Camille, Delilah and Menolly, following Witchling and Changeling. She follows the convention established in the first two by having the third of the sisters act as the narrator. Camille; a witch, narrated Witchling and the story in Changeling was told by middle sister, the shapeshifter Delilah. Darkling is Menolly's turn. The title refers to the fact that Menolly is a vampire.

The stories told in the books tend to reflect the personalities of the girl telling it. Camille is the big sister and a little more serious than her siblings, and Witchling as the opener had a lot to acquaint readers with so was related in that way. Delilah is lighter and more fun than her sisters, plus the fact that when she gets stressed she defaults to the form of a highly strung tabby cat provides for some amusing moments. Delilah, despite being the middle sister and taller than the other two is still seen by them as the baby, something that frustrates her, but she doesn't seem to be able to shake it. Menolly, partly because of her nature, she was made into a vampire against her will, has a darker, edgier style and voice to her.

The story in Darkling was definitely the darkest of the three so far. The war in Otherworld has ramped up and despite the girls being Earthside, they're right in the middle of it, and it doesn't help when Menolly finds out that her hated sire; the depraved and sadistic Dredge is a major player, plus she's tied to him because of what he did to her. When he and his minions start targeting humans as foot soldiers in the war he and his allies are waging both on Otherworld and Earthside the D'Artigo's and their friends go in all guns blazing, it only gets worse when one of the girls' friends; a full blood human dress shop owner gets pulled into the mess. Menolly needs to find a way to get free of Dredge once and for all, and take him down in the process.

Yasmine Galenorn really lifted everything up a notch in Darkling. Not only was there a darker, edgier style to this one, some heavy hitters also appeared (Morgana Le Fay and Loki to name two). That the author seems to be comfortable when writing about vampires shouldn't surprise, they're a staple of urban fantasy, and her other series; Indigo Court, largely focusses on them.

Readers got their first real look at Otherworld, it was very completely realised and wonderfully written. I hope the girls can visit again, so we can see more of it in the future. Maggie, the orphaned gargoyle baby, took her first steps, and I still have the belief she'll surprise the girls before she's fully grown. My favourite character remains Iris; the girl's protective Finnish house sprite (she's a type referred to as a Talon-haltija). Although I felt Darkling was the best book of the three I've read, Delilah remains my favoured narrator. From what I've found out about book 4; Dragon Wytch is narrated by Camille, so they may be cycled around like that now each girl has had a go. Be interesting to see more than one narrator in a future volume, or maybe even someone other than one of the sisters. I'm putting in a vote for Iris right now.

Changeling by Yasmine Galenorn

After reading the excerpt of Changeling in the back of the first of Yasmine Galenorn’s Otherworld books (Witchling) was rather intrigued to read the whole book. The series is largely about the D’Artigo sisters, 3 half fae girls from Otherworld who work Earthside for the fae/human organisation OIA. All of the sisters have specific qualities that make them valuable assets for OIA. The oldest girl Camille, is a witch. The youngest; Menolly, is a vampire and middle sister Delilah can change into a cat. The first book was told from Camille’s point of view and interestingly Galenorn decided to change that for the sequel and use Delilah as the narrator.

I haven’t actually seen a writer do this before, and it interested me to see how differently it would read with a new narrator and an alternative point of view. I have to report that I prefer Delilah as a narrator to Camille. I found Camille a little dry at times, but Delilah’s a delight and has a lighter touch. Although it’s nor imperative to have read Witchling to enjoy Changeling, it does help, because Delilah assumes knowledge of the reader from the first book without totally explaining everything.

This time around Delilah is approached by the attractive representative of a were puma clan in her capacity as a PI and a were to find out who or what is picking off members of his tribe. A little investigation points to the Hunter Moon Clan; a tribe of were spiders, as the culprits, but they’re in league with a dangerous Otherworld faction who are actively involved with trying to destablise the Otherworld political scene, plunging Otherworld into a war and causing ructions that if they spill Earthside could be catastrophic for all involved.

The D’Artigo girls, along with their own talents, can call on some more than useful allies; Delilah’s boyfriend the dashing and determined OIA FBH (full blooded human) Chase, Camille’s dual love interests; the Svartan Trillian and the kitsune Morio, as well as the sisters’ friend Smoky the dragon. It’s a wild and fun ride. Full of action, thrills, laughs and s. Be warned the Otherworld books are labelled as paranormal romance, but they’re definitely urban fantasy. There is some romance and sex, but it’s part of the story, not the driver.

I tended to prefer Delilah’s narration, her stuff as a cat is priceless, and from my brief observations of cat behaviour, very accurate. The dynamics and interaction between the siblings also seemed very real and was interesting to read, it added depth to the story. I also have to mention the inclusion of the orphaned gargoyle baby that Camille rescued in Witchling; Maggie. She was a part of the story and not just forgotten about or aged up quickly to make her easier to write. She behaves just like a baby would be expected to, although I think she’s going to turn out to be far more powerful and important than any of the girls imagine. The girl’s home help and surrogate ‘aunt’; the Finnish house sprite Iris, played a larger part in Changeling than in Witchling and this was a good move on the author’s part, because I really took to Iris, and I don’t think I’m alone in that.

Very much looking forward to Darkling which will be narrated by Menolly, the sister as yet that we know the least about.