Although you might be most familiar with reading reviews of romance here on Being Anne, I’m really delighted today to be sharing my review of something very different indeed. It’s (particularly appropriately, at Samhain…) publication day for Wildest Hunger by Laura Laakso – the fourth book in her quite wonderful Wilde Investigations series, published as an ebook and in paperback by Louise Walters Books. My thanks to Louise for my advance reading e-copy – but I did also buy a signed paperback for the full experience of that lovely cover by Jennie Rawlings. You can buy your kindle version (and paperback) from Amazon – but I always think it’s so much nicer to buy direct from the publisher (e-book here – an e-pub version you can send to your preferred device – and paperback).
When I read the first book in this series, Fallible Justice, I said that it was simply one of the best and most original books I’d read in a very long time. Urban fantasy, paranormal crime, Old London with its magic and paranormal races living alongside the world of humans, the shamen, mages and feykin – so many miles away from my usual reading, but the writing and the vividly imagined world absolutely blew me away (you’ll find my review of that one here). The second, Echo Murder, was perhaps even better – rich descriptions that invoke all the senses, small details that make an unfamiliar world entirely real, rawness and real emotional depth (review here). And then came the best of them all (so far) – Roots of Corruption, a wholly gripping story, and the writing more stunning than ever (review here). There was also a 3.5 – a novella, a bit of a diversion – that I thoroughly enjoyed but didn’t manage to review, The Doves in the Dining Room.
You could perhaps (just about…) start with this latest book, but I’d really recommend reading the whole series from the start, and in order of publication – immerse yourself in Yannia’s world as a Wild Folk in an urban setting, get to know the characters and understand the relationships, and you’ll love this series as much as I do. You can buy all four novels in paperback for £30 direct from the publisher (worldwide, other than EU – insurmountable post-Brexit complications!) – a special treat to yourself for Christmas perhaps?
But enough – let’s take a closer look at the latest..
“Blood is all there is.”
“What happens when the blood is not enough?”
The oldest and gravest of the Wild Folk laws dictates that human flesh must not be consumed. When half-eaten bodies start turning up between Old London and the North, Yannia Wilde knows the killer can only be one of her kind. When Yannia’s betrothed, Dearon, insists on joining forces with her and Karrion, things get even more complicated.
While Yannia tries to balance tracking down the killer with the tension between her, Dearon, and Karrion, another case in Old London draws her attention. A West Mage Council member, whom Yannia exposed as a Leech only days before, has gone missing, and his girlfriend is found murdered in his flat. Is the Leech, a master of deception, capable of murder, or has someone framed him?
Caught in the web of Old London’s political intrigue, Yannia must learn to play the game and to choose her allegiances with care. But to catch a predator of her kind, she must also embrace her wildness and set aside everything that makes her human.
The brilliant fourth novel in the paranormal crime series Wilde Investigations.
Struggling to recover from the trauma of her near-death experience in the Unseen Lands – the scars it left are deeper than the healing lacerations on her hands – Yannia is pleased to have a regular income and relatively untaxing employment vetting the members of the High Council of Mages in an uneasy alliance with Lord Ellensthorne. Until she picks up the unmistakeable scent of a Leech from one of the new members, Gerreint Lloid – and having passed on the information, Lloid’s girlfriend is found murdered, he is the prime suspect and missing, and she becomes increasingly convinced that her intervention might have brought other forces into play.
But another case then takes precedence – a missing child, feared murdered, and the police call on her tracking skills as she returns from a visit to the Wild Folk enclave. With the support of her bird shamen assistant Karrion – also shaken by their past experiences – and her Wild Folk betrothed Dearon, she finds the dismembered and partly eaten body. But this isn’t the only one – there is a dangerous predator on the loose, one of her kind with a taste for human flesh, and she’s uniquely placed to put a stop to their relentless progress as the danger comes ever closer to home.
“A taste for human flesh” – now that would usually have me backing off straight away, but I knew I was in safe hands with this exceptional author. As the discoveries become increasingly gory, and the tension and threat steadily crank up, it’s the characterisation and the world-building that I particularly love. There’s the relationship between Yannia and Karrion that has developed through the previous books – he’s fiercely protective of her, there’s a real affection between them, and a lovely lightness and gentle humour in the way they tease each other (yes, he still hates pigeons…). But things are complicated by the presence of Dearon – a darker and more shadowy figure in the earlier books, this time we get to know him and his complicated relationship with Yannia rather better. And all the other characters I’ve loved are here too – Lady Bergamon with her quiet wisdom and healing powers, Wishearth always watching among the flames and helping keep Yannia safe.
Although the world is an unfamiliar one, it’s easy sometimes to forget that the individuals aren’t human – but there’s the starkest of reminders when, to hunt the killer, Yannia is forced to become a predator, changing form, following the smell of blood. It’s quite wonderfully done – the continuity of her heritage, the memories of all she’s left behind, nature taking over, the sense of power, the wildness, the understanding of the harmony of life and death. The writing really is exceptional – you can feel the throb, the exhilaration of the chase, every sense brought into play. But there’s a quieter side too, a focus on the ordinary and the way she’s adapted to life in the city – the domestic detail of her life, the effects of her disability, the hours of internet searching and sifting through paperwork, the caring for her new puppy with its excursions in and out of the window.
The product of an extraordinary imagination, the whole story really is thoroughly gripping, emotionally engaging, and so wonderfully told – I found it totally stunning, immersed throughout in the world the author created. I read from cover to cover in a single sitting – and really didn’t want the experience to end. Totally unforgettable, highly recommended, and one of my books of the year.
About the author
Laura is a Finn, who has spent most of her adult life in England. She is currently living in Hertfordshire with a flatmate who knows too much and their three dogs. Books and storytelling have always been a big part of her life, be it in the form of writing fanfiction, running tabletop roleplaying games or, more recently, writing original fiction. When she is not writing, editing or plotting, she works as an accountant. With two degrees in archaeology, she possesses useful skills for disposing of or digging up bodies, and if her internet search history is anything to go by, she is on several international watch lists.You’ll find Laura on Facebook, and she tweets @LLaaksoWriter.
