Reviewed by Annika
TITLE: Dancer of Death
SERIES: SPECTR Series 2, #2
AUTHOR: Jordan L. Hawk
NARRATOR: Brad Langer
PUBLISHER: Widdershins Press
LENGTH: 3 hours, 40 minutes
RELEASE DATE: February 2, 2015
BLURB:
Revenge. Murder. Ballet?
Vampire spirit Gray wants to hunt demons. Unfortunately, the foolish mortals at SPECTR have put his host, Caleb, their lover John, and their partner Zahira on desk duty. Gray longs to leave Charleston with John, but if they flee, SPECTR will make them the hunted.
A series of paranormal murders returns the team to the field, at least temporarily. Ballerinas are being murdered by a vila, a demon that kills with dance. If they can’t stop the deadly attacks in time, one of Zahira’s friends may become the next victim.
And while they track the demon, an unknown entity has begun to track Gray….
REVIEW:
After the bridge take-down in Mocker of Ravens John, Caleb and Gray are on desk duty. Something all of them hates. But their boss is not happy and they ever want to have a hope of getting out in the field again, they need dance by his pipe. The call comes in the middle of a night a demon is leaving dead dancers strewn around and needs to be stopped. Clues lead them to a ballet studio and one of their dancers, but finding them is easier said than done. Especially since there’s an unknown entity lurking behind the scenes, distracting them at some inopportune moments.
You know, I kind of enjoy the friction between our main characters. It’s not always sunshine and roses anymore – at least when it comes to their relationship. The rest of their lives have always been a kind of a mess with demons and attacks and betrayals, but the two and three of them have always been solid. In this second series we see the growing plains of their relationship, how their individual wants and needs don’t always combine. Caleb wanting a normal life, with friends and without demon hunting and all things SPECTR. Gray on the other hand hates being side lined and pushes for going out on the field again killing demons. Grudgingly accepting that the ones that can still be exorcised aren’t food. John, just like Gray, John wants to be out on the field doing what he does best. He miss having a team that trust and likes him, being shunned in the office. So they have a few things to figure out, and it will take time, but in the end they’ll be stronger for it.
I also really enjoy Zahira. She’s got spunk, she’s a fresh wind and I think that with some more experience under her belt she’ll be a force to be reckoned with and will one day take on the world’s injustices. It’s going to be fun seeing her evolve in the coming books.
So far these books mostly reads like single stories and not one overall story as the first series. That might change though, when we go further along in the story. I mean their lives move forward and one book builds on the previous ones, but the continuance isn’t immediate. There’s an underlying feeling, at the moment very quiet, but I’m guessing it will build towards something epic at the end of the series – Hawk never disappoints on that.
Brad Langer is an intense narrator and feels every word he speaks. He takes the listener along for a ride every time. He makes you feel the intensity of the fights, the heart pounding in your chest when it looks like game over. He’s engaging and it never lets up, just like the stories he’s telling. A great fit if you ask me.
RATING: 
BUY LINKS: