Unholy Ghosts: Stacia Kane

"The world is not the way it was. The dead have risen, and the living are under attack. The powerful Church of Real Truth, in charge since the government fell, has sworn to reimburse citizens being harassed by the deceased. 

Enter Chess Putnam, a fully tattooed witch and freewheeling ghost hunter. She’s got a real talent for banishing the wicked dead. But Chess is keeping a dark secret: She owes a lot of money to a murderous drug lord named Bump, who wants immediate payback in the form of a dangerous job that involves black magic, human sacrifice, a nefarious demonic creature, and enough wicked energy to wipe out a city of souls. Toss in lust for a rival gang leader and a dangerous attraction to Bump’s ruthless enforcer, and Chess begins to wonder if the rush is really worth it. Hell, yeah."

Jackpot! This is just what I've been looking for. Urban Fantasy with a strong female protagonist that smashes all the tired stereotypes. Bloody fantastic. Kane wipes the floor with all the fluffy, squealy, 'kick ass' PNR crowd. There are no dreamy gentleman here to be swooned over, no teenage dreams and lusts, just hard hitting dark reality. Urban Fantasy for Grown-ups.

Kane's world building is hugely entertaining and so easy to immerse yourself in, the future dystopia and the roles of the ghosts and the Church are compelling, but but far the coolest thing about Unholy Ghosts is the characters. Chess is brilliantly flawed, an addict whose habit dictates a huge proportion of her actions. It makes her stand out from the UF crowd and she really is a breath of fresh air to read. Terrible is an invention of pure genius, a wonderfully complicated and surprising individual. Full marks. I couldn't have loved this more.

Fans of Daniel Polansky's Low Town will find similarities to rave over here I think. Don't pass Kane over as one of the fluffies, this is really something special. I can't wait to get my paws on the rest of the series now. Wonderful stuff.