Reviewed by Sarina

TITLE: The Necromancer’s Dance

SERIES: The Beacon Hill Sorcerer #1

AUTHOR: S.J. Himes

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 225 pages

RELEASE DATE: February 25, 2016

BLURB:

In a world where magic is real and evil walks amongst humanity, a young sorcerer is beset upon by enemies, both old and new. Angelus Salvatore is the only necromancer in all of Boston, and his name is whispered warily by the undead and fellow sorcerers alike. He and his brother Isaac are the lone survivors of an attack by an army of the undead, in which Angel used a spell so powerful it forever marked his place in history. Now, years later, Angel struggles to balance his career as a teacher of the higher magical arts, his role as big brother, and a tenuous relationship with an Elder vampire from the local clan. When his brother’s boyfriend is used as a pawn in a mysterious plot to draw Angel out, Angel is once again drawn back into the old hostilities that fueled the Blood Wars and led to his family’s death. Leaning on others for help is something Angel cannot do, and while he searches for clues into who may be targeting him and his brother, Angel finds his heart steadily growing occupied with Simeon, Elder and vampire. Dealing with death magic and vampires on a daily basis may leave Angel jaded when it comes to life and staying that way, but the more time he spends fending off the ancient vampire’s attention and affections, the more he realizes he wants to give in. Can Angel find out who wants him dead, and keep his heart safe in the process? How can he fall for a vampire, when his whole family was torn apart by an army of the undead? Death stalks the streets of Boston’s historic Beacon Hill….and there is no one more suited to battle against death than a necromancer. MATURE CONTENT Contains graphic violence, male/male sexual contact, a cranky necromancer, a sexy Irish vampire, and a pesky demon.

REVIEW:

After surviving the un-survivable, Angel Salvatore has made a life for himself away from the power struggles and bloodshed that resulted in the death of his entire family save for his younger brother, Isaac. Now, ten years later, Angel’s past has come back to haunt him in the form of someone who apparently wants him dead and isn’t afraid to go through others in order to get to him. Already dealing with stress from his job and a failing relationship with his brother, dodging attacks and hunting down a killer is the last thing he needs to be worried about. Add in a sexy vampire he’s been trying, and failing, to stay away from and Angel will need all the help he can get if he wants to make it out alive a second time.

Its always nice to sink your teeth into a novel by a new author and in this case, it was a complete pleasure, as well! This book was so good it was a little surprising that I hadn’t heard more about it before now. I really enjoyed the world building; it was nice to see the vampires and other paranormals so firmly acknowledged and established and I found the social structure of the vampires to be unique both within and outside of the clan itself. The characters were also all really well developed and I found myself interested in learning more about the main characters but also the secondaries; I don’t think there was a single character that I really dismissed from my musings while reading.

The set up for the story was great and I liked how the author used well placed forays into the past in order to establish how certain characters met and to divulge what happened when Angel’s family was killed. Sometimes those types of flashbacks can be a little distracting or can detract from the story but I found that wasn’t the case here at all. The author hooked me fairly quickly into the story and I was riveted to the pages all the way to the end with absolutely no regrets at how I had spent my day.

This was a great story with both characters and a plot that I thoroughly enjoyed and if you enjoy paranormal or urban fantasy books I would really recommend you check this one out. I’m already looking forward to delving into the next book in the series and after enjoying this one so much, I can’t wait to look at what other books this author has on offer as well.

RATING:

BUY LINKS: 

S.J. Himes

Amazon