Book Review: Light My Pyre by Kat Kinney

Genre(s): Urban Fantasy / Fantasy Mystery / Paranormal

Book Synopsis:

EVERWOOD FALLS… a small supernatural community tucked up in the Colorado Rockies where witches, werewolves and vampires can live without fear of discovery, and those with curses they can’t control are sent to keep the existence of magic from being revealed to Mundanes.

As a prince of the fae High Court, Asher Heath has always been caught between two worlds—the kingdom of faerie where his fire magic is unparalleled and the human realm where he works as a firefighter. But two months ago, he lost control of a blaze his fae magic was supposed to contain, with tragic results. With his magic poisoned by a demon curse, he can’t risk getting close to anyone… including Gwyn, the fierce and beautiful dragon shifter he encounters out in a thunderstorm in the woods. But trouble has followed Asher to Everwood Falls. An arsonist is setting fires around town using demon magic to possess their victims—and their targets get bigger every time.

Gwyneth Drake doesn’t need a prince to save her. She shifts into a twenty-foot fire-breathing dragon who can fight her own battles. A fierce advocate for the dragon community, she was forced into hiding when an ex tried to sear her dragon from the skies. Now dragon blood has been found at one of the arson sites and she and Asher will have to work together to stop the arsonist before they strike again. Someone from Gwyn’s past may have followed her to Everwood Falls, and they’re too close to the case for comfort…

With a herd of enchanted elk, carnivorous spruce trees, and sentient pumpkins that stalk the local landscaping, Everwood Falls is a quirky mountain town where fangs and fur mean found family.

Review:

The first thing I have to say is that I love the fact that this book is set in the mountains of Colorado. I’m from Colorado and have lived most of my life here, so the setting felt like home (and I appreciated that the author didn’t stereotype the state, because there is so much more to Colorado than what Hollywood would have you believe.) Everwood Falls is depicted as the classic mountain town, complete with gift shops, candy/sweet shops, and a pizzeria. Even the arsonist’s threat in the book felt real; Colorado is arid, and we have trouble with wildfires every summer. This book did a wonderful job of describing the setting accurately.

Beyond that, Everwood Falls is filled with supernatural folk. The main characters are a fae and a dragon-shifter. The lead detective is a demon. There is a pack of werewolves, a witch coven, merpeople, and the owner of the local pizzeria is a vampire. I loved that there were so many different types and that they all found a way to work and live together. It felt like a modern mountain town, just with fantastical residents. It was so much fun!

I think my favorite character in the cast was Daisy, the Irish Wolfhound with a penchant for eating socks. I liked so many of the characters, but Asher’s dog really brought something to the story that made me smile—and laugh on more than one occasion.

The mystery element to the story was done well too. It always makes me happy when I can’t guess who is responsible or what their motive is until it’s revealed, and this book managed to surprise me on both counts.

I really enjoyed this one.

Author’s Amazon Page: Kat Kinney

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