Review--Undead to the World by D.D. Barant

Vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters, ghosts--profiler Jace Valchek thought she had seen it all. Until now...

Jace’s return to Kansas is an instant reminder that there really is no place like home. The tavern is still brimming with losers, practical jokers, and motorcycle chicks. Even the town’s only Goth is still wearing eyeliner. But just as Jace is about to click her heels and hightail out of there, she’s roped into a brand-new case. Somebody is possessed. And the bodies are piling up…

They call him the Gallowsman. According to legend, he was sentenced to hang—though his crimes still have not been specified. When he was strung up to die, his spirit stuck around waiting for people to hang themselves…so he could steal their bodies. Now, with the undead rising up and going on a rampage, Jace must put her own neck on the line. Can she get the Gallowsman to give up the ghost?

To sum up D.D. Barant's Undead to the World, I'd have to say it was pretty epic, if a mite confusing. Jace is still our heroine, but she's not quite the same. The cover description kind of gives you that heads up but I still wasn't prepared for a Jace living in Thropirelem, Kansas who worked as a waitress part-time and worked in a hardware store the other part of the time. Yeah, confused is a nice way of putting things.

But I always find it best to just roll with it and see where things go, which tends to be the best thing to do. Jace was once in a mental institution but was released on the condition that she never watched the show she was obsessed with and caused her breakdown. That show is called The Bloodhound Files--sound familiar?! Ironically, that heroine is named Jace too and she lives in a world populated by vampires, werewolves and golems; she chases down the bad guys and basically fights crime.

Then one night when she was watching the show, for she never truly gave it up, she's shocked when one of the characters talks to her. Literally, she turns and strikes up a conversation with Jace. Obviously Jace begins to re-question her sanity.

She begins to encounter some situations with some of her "neighbors" who start to go a little batty (or hairy) and attack her, yet she's able to defend herself. Soon her memory returns and she's determined to get back home but she's going to need help. Although it will be very hard for her to figure out who she can trust because not everyone is who they appear to be. With the use of some magic, she's able to communicate with her friends back in her real Thropirelem and they somehow cross over into her demented world spiritually and possess their counterpart.

Of course there's still the very real and ghostly threat of the Gallowsman who's haunting her town and killing people. He's pretty much on his own killing spree and he has no intentions of letting Jace and her friends leave.

This was quite the exciting read! You never knew who was who or who you could trust. I couldn't always recall certain characters or names when they popped up, like names from previous books other than the last one I read this week. Which was both good and bad I suppose, because then when one of the townspeople is revealed to be so-and-so it was shocking! Although, there were times that I still didn't realize who they were due to memory lapses and all. But at other times there were hints or you could just recognize the name.

The mystery to this one was good, if a little chaotic! Since from the beginning we have no idea what's going on, you pretty much focus on the Gallowsman part of the story, but then weird things start happening with some of the townspeople, such as they begin to remember who they are--such as a oire or throp--and that they don't like Jace for some reason.

There was a good dose of action as well! It starts out a little slow since the reader has that discombobulated feeling, but once the story gets rolling, things getting exciting because we want Jace to get back home. As for romance in this one, there was pretty much none. But the story was still good, especially considering this is the series finale.

Although, I have to say D.D. left me shouting a bit at the end, because well, it was warranted! It's the cliffhanger of all cliffhangers and what's worse is that it's the last book. There are no further answers. I guess it's one of those types of endings that the reader can create for their self, but still. It was a tad frustrating to not know the final ending in its entirety. Much like the series finale to Angel--which still blows my mind from having just watched the series last year!

But overall this was a pretty enjoyable read! The series has been quite a ride--I do at least remember enjoying the previous books, otherwise I wouldn't have finished the series! It's definitely an entertaining one at that as well. Good storylines, mystery, a bit of romance mixed in, some action and humor to balance it all up! A perfect read! Or yes, a GREAT read!


Overall Rating 4.95/5 stars--yeah, a weird rating but that ending really threw me! Still kind of reeling from it, but it didn't detract from the rest of the story!