HER FIERCE CREATURES by Maria Lewis from Piaktus Publishing #BookReview #Fantasy

HER FIERCE CREATURES by Maria Lewis

Piatkus, 387 page p/b, £9.99

Reviewed by Pauline Morgan

It is never a good idea to jump into a series just for the finale. Some series writers continue the development of their characters through a growing number of volumes, and there is always something to add to the creation. In other cases, the story arc has a definite conclusion. If there are any more stories to tell within the created world, they would require new characters and a change of setting and direction. Her Fierce Creatures is theeighth and final volume in the Supernatural Sisters series.

            Other volumes in the series have introduced the reader to the four main players in this volume. Tommi Grayson is a werewolf, Caspar von Klitzing is a witch whose twin brother Barastin is a ghost, Dreckly Jones is a sprite, and Sadie Burke is a banshee. The back stories of these four have all been told in previous volumes. The supernatural community has long been governed by the Trieze (thirteen) who are guided by the Three, triplet seers. Over the series, it has become clear that that Three are dying, and the Trieze will do anything to prevent this, to the extent of abducting other supernaturals and experimenting on them to find a cure.

            Gradually, after the previous seven novels, the situation comes to a head. The Trieze had exiled many supernaturals to Australia and New Zealand in the past, little realising that those they considered trouble-makers would actually try to shift the balance they were desperately trying to maintain. To complicate matters, Banshee Sadie is pregnant with triplets, the three that will replace the dying seers. The Trieze believe that killing Sadie and her babies will restore the balance and save the aged Three. To this end, Sadie is hidden in New Zealand under the protection of a pack of werewolves.

            Meanwhile, others are planning action, partly to distract the Trieze from Sadie but also because they object to their own kind being abducted and experimented on. The main stronghold for this is deep underground in Scotland, a heavily defended prison called Vankila. Only one person has ever escaped from there, Sprite Dreckly, who was born in the place and has an idea of its layout. The plan is to attack from the inside, so to this end, Werewolves Tommi and Ben Kapoor plan to be arrested. As a further distraction and to divide forces, other Trieze strongholds will be attacked simultaneously. Caspar plans to lead the attack on the Trieze headquarters in Transylvania, where the Three are sequestered. Her job is not so much to kill them but, with the help of Barastin, to persuade them that it is time to let go and move on to the next stage of existence.

            As with any good series, readers will have invested emotionally with particular characters, and it is a brave author who is prepared to sacrifice some of them. War has been declared, and as in the case of every conflict, not everyone survives. There are casualties, and for most of the survivors, a very changed world.

            Since this is the culmination of the series, it is not a good place to start, but for those who do not want to invest their time in all eight volumes, it is worth reading The Rose Daughter (Dreckly’s story) before embarking on this one.