Title: Red-Headed Stepchild (Sabina Kane #1)
Author: Jaye Wells
Publisher: Orbit
Publication Date: 2009
Paperback: 325 pages
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Source: Own Copy
Reviewed by: Carolyn
RATING: 8/10 – brilliant, couldn’t put it down.
GOODREADS SUMMARY:
In a world where being of mixed-blood is a major liability, Sabina Kane has the only profession fit for an outcast: assassin. But, her latest mission threatens the fragile peace between the vampire and mage races and Sabina must scramble to figure out which side she’s on. She’s never brought her work home with her—until now.
REVIEW:
‘Red-Headed Stepchild‘ was such a fab read! It’s the first in the ‘Sabina Kane’ series and what a fantastic start. I was pulled into Sabina’s life from the get-go and I liked her immediately.
Sabina Kane is an assassin, which means she’s one tough cookie. She fights hard and enjoys it, but to do this she has to sacrifice her personal life and do the bidding of her grandmother, the head of the Dominae, to the point that she will kill even her friends. She’s also a ‘half-blood’ – half vampire and half mage. This is a difficult place to be as both are on the verge of war…with each other. Sabina’s sassy, snarky attitude is just perfectly written and exactly how I like my urban fantasy heroines.
He grabbed my arm and spun me around into a choke hold.“If you wanted foreplay, you just had to ask,” he whispered in my ear.By adjusting my weight, I managed to flip him over my shoulder easily. His body hit the ground like a sack of potatoes drenched in too much cologne. He lay still for a moment, shocked by the impact. I placed the heel of my boot against his neck.“You need to learn some manners,” I said. “And while you’re at it, try a breath mint.”
However, although Sabina is a loner her character development is evident as the story progresses. In her fight to eliminate the enemy, in the form of vampire villan Clovis, Sabina meets a few people on the way who change her life. She begins to realise that having friends isn’t such a bad thing and it was great to see her grow and become fond of them all.
‘Red-Headed Stepchild‘ is definitely an urban fantasy but it also has a lot of humour. I usually prefer my UF to be on the darker, grittier side but with this book there are so many really well written light-hearted moments that I couldn’t help but love it.
Most of these moments come in the form of a demon-cat, ‘Mr Giggles’, who is in fact a huge Mischief Demon called Giguhl, who was sent to kill Sabina. Unfortunately he doesn’t succeed and instead becomes Sabina’s familiar. To disguise himself to the outside world he transforms himself into a cat, and then for some unknown reason cannot transform back. It gets even funnier when Sabina tries to use magic she’s never used before to turn him back into his very large, powerful imposing demon self, only to remove all the fur from Giguhl’s cat body, to his utter embarrassment, revealing shiny wrinkled skin!
These moments were great and had me smiling and chuckling to myself. Having said that, if they weren’t included it wouldn’t have influenced the plot as the demon’s role doesn’t impact Sabina’s mission. Also, I wasn’t sure about this amount of humour in my urban fantasy at first, but only a short way into the book I was so enjoying Ms Wells’ writing and the witty dialogue she used between the demon and Sabina that I couldn’t imagine this sub-story not being there.
The other characters were also very well-rounded. Vinca is a sweet faery, more correctly a nymph. She’s sweet and bubbly, but not as innocent as she looks as Sabina finds out when they go for a drink together…She’s Sabina’s first real ‘friend’ and it takes some getting used to, but Sabina soon warms to Vinca’s peppy nature.
Clovis, on the other hand, is vile. He’s the vampire villan who wants to rule over all the dark-races and he immerses himself in this role. I didn’t like him one bit and I felt all of Sabina’s disgust when he drinks from her. She’s been sent by her Grandmother – who is an evil piece of work, I might add – to assassinate him, but while on the mission she discovers many unknown truths about her vampire family that leave her reeling and unable to fulfill her mission.
Now we get to the hero hottie, Adam – one word…Yum! Adam is a powerful Mage who has been sent to deliver Sabina to the mage family she never knew. Adam is a great character, just yummy, and delicious, and have I mentioned yummy? There is lots of sexual chemistry between Sabina and Adam and it begins with the love/hate kind – my favourite. They argue and fight and pretend they dislike each other immensely but it’s obvious these two are hot for each other. Despite the fact there is this romantic aspect to ‘Red-Headed Stepchild‘ it doesn’t dip too far into the paranormal romance genre and feel it’s still firmly within the urban fantasy camp.
VERDICT:
I really loved this book! With such great characters, an exciting story with a fast-paced, action-packed plot, and a hint of romance, ‘Red-Headed Stepchild‘ is a must read for any urban fantasy fan.
You can find out more about the author here:
Books in Series Order:
1. Red-Headed Stepchild
This book counts towards the following BCC reading challenges:
13 Comments
Great review! I have this one on my tbr list & I'll definitely have to get it soon
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While I thought Red-Headed Stepchild was a bit slow getting started, I liked that Sabina's mean loner status and desperate loyalty to her grandmother were explained and thought she developed as a character quite naturally. I really enjoyed Mage In Black and am excited about Green-Eyed Demon.
Jennifer (An Abundance of Books)
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Thanks for this great review. I bought "Red-Headed Stepchild" two weeks ago and it's good to hear that others enjoyed it.
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I liked this book too but Mage in Black was even better! The world that Jaye created is very fun and keeps you engaged. I am so glad you enjoyed this one
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sounds good. I am adding this one to my list for the book challenge. I always love a good talking cat! lol
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Oh I love the sound of this – definitely on my to buy list
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Aleksandra – Thanks! Oh definitely get to it soon, it really is fab!
Jennifer (An Abundance of Books) – I thought it was fast-paced throughout, it's funny how a book can be interpreted in such a different way. I'm half way through Mage in Black now and I'm really enjoying it
Sabrina (About Happy Books) – You're welcome! I'm glad you've already bought it, I'm sure you will love it. It's a really great read. Sabrina is a fab character
Felicia the Geeky Blogger – Thanks, I'm really enjoying The Mage in Black too, I have Green-Eyed Demon at the ready!
Becca B – The talking demon-cat is just so much fun. Not a necessary addition but a fantastic one all the same. I wouldn't want it any other way, one of my fav characters
Laura (BCC) – You will love it!
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This looks like an AWESOME read! Loved the quote you added too. Might read this for the Urban Fantasy challenge. =)
Great review.
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I've read all three books (Have been lucky to get an arc of Green Eyed Demon) and the series just gets better with each book. You can trace Sabina's character evolution throughout and the snarky remarks are hilarious. Good review!
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Dazzling Mage – It is a great read. If you enjoy UF then I'm sure you will love this. So many great quotes I could have chosen but I really liked this one
Mel – I have Green-Eyed Demon for review too and I can't wait to get to it. I'm half way through The Mage in Black and I'm really enjoying it so far
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I'm happy to read such a positive review of this one! I got a copy of it a while ago, even though I hadn't heard a lot about it. And the demon-talking-cat? Sounds funny!
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Hmm, hadn't heard of this one yet. Think I'm gonna have to pick it up.
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Kay – Infinite Shelf – Definitely read it soon, it really is great. And the talking demon-cat is so funny and cute!
Misty – Yes, do! If you enjoy UF then I can't see you going wrong with this one
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