Review--Viper Moon by Lee Roland

IN THE SMALL TOWN OF DUIVEL, MISSOURI, DARKNESS AWAITS...

Cassandra Archer is the Huntress. She has faithfully served the Earth Mother for years, rescuing kidnapped children from monsters-both human and supernatural-dwelling in the ruins of the Barrows District of Duivel, Missouri.

When Detective Flynn's twelve-year-old sister goes missing, he suspects she was taken to the Barrows, and he goes to Cass for help. The two clash, but Cass still finds herself irresistibly drawn to the tough, no-nonsense cop.

After another child goes missing, all clues point to a cataclysmic event during the next dark moon. Cass and Flynn must race against the clock to save the children and prevent a sacrifice that could destroy the entire town...

Lee Roland's debut Viper Moon was very thrilling! I will admit that I was first drawn to the cover. What more could an urban fantasy reader ask for? Heroine wearing the black leather, carrying her weapon, dark city background and the dark colors and snake just add to the mystic! And also the fact that it takes place in Missouri, albeit a fictional place, I was ready to dive in!

The novel takes off with a bang as we get a glimpse of the life Cass leads. She lives a pretty dangerous life trying to save children that are stolen or lost. There is a bit of world building to the novel but nothing too complex. Even getting the details to Cass's mission and working for the Earth Mother was explained rather nicely.

So far there aren't any typical villainous monsters in the book, like vamps and weres, but there are monsters. Nothing detailed or anything, just monsters that have to be destroyed for they are a part of the kidnapping of children. There's definitely more than one evil in this book and at times Cass must work with the lesser evils to get the job done.

For instance when a criminal's son is kidnapped next, he hires Cass to find him. But strangely Cass doesn't always take the money she's owed. She definitely has a strong moral system which while can be a pinch annoying definitely helps strengthen her character.

The characters were great! I loved the building of Cass and Flynn's relationship. True it happens quickly time wise, but it still develops wonderfully in the book pages. And there's also Michael, owner of the Archangel! Gotta love that. The Archangel is a club and Michael is the owner. His true identity is still a bit of mystery but what's not a mystery is that women love him, except for Cass. She's a challenge for him, so there's definite sexual tension between the two and while Cass admits to feeling a mild attraction, there's not much there for her. Not like there is with Flynn.

Don't want to keep digging into the details there, so I'll cut myself short. Basically this book was just awesome. Some things that were hard to digest--but not incredibly hard--were the concepts of the Earth Mother and what her role in the game plays. There's definitely some loose threads at the end, but nothing major. And there will be a sequel so yay!

If you're looking for a truly stellar UF novel with a kick-a$$ heroine who deals with things other than vampires, than this is definitely a novel you want to check out!

Overall rating 4.5/5 stars