ARC REVIEW The Turn by Kim Harrison

Prequel to Kim Harrison's the Hollow series, I love this series. I found The Hollow series at a time in my life when I had no money and I was practically stuck at home alone with a toddler. Books were my escape and the Hollows series was one of my favorite escapes. (thank you Library) I typically get bored with book series that follow one person throughout the whole series, The Hollows is one of the exceptions. After reading what books there were of the Anita Blake series (I got bored and disappointed in them), The Hollows was a breathe of fresh air. I quickly fell in love with all the characters and have a love/hate relationship with Trent; and as aggravating as the characters get sometimes I keep coming back for more. I am so emotionally invested in the characters and now we have the beginning of it all.

I have seen several reviews complaining that the beginning of the book was slow and so detailed but it needed to be. You can't have a "how it all started" book without going into detail of it got started. You can't just wash over it and get to the action, you need the build up and character development especially since they are new characters; well some of them are new. With the introduction of the two main characters Trisk and Kal and going back to the late 60's as a reader we needed to understand how it was back then for the Inderland community and being a woman. Not to mention the Elf politics that Trisk is having to deal with and the scientific jargon. I personally loved the detail Kim Harrison went into when explaining the tomato and the virus, I would not have been happy if it was just implied and not really explained.

Felecia Eloytrisk Cambri (Trisk) is at the top of her class but she has strikes against her, one she's a woman and the other she's a dark elf. She gets a pity job offer just because the college wants to keep it's 100% placement rating. But it turned out to be the best thing for her she excelled and left her lifelong rival in the dust. But Elf politics, and uber paranoid leaders send Trisk's lifelong rival Trenton Lee Kalamack, Kal (not Trent remember that Trent and Rachel are not that different in age) to go in a check her work with the promise that if he has to fix it it becomes his with only his name on it. Trisk calls upon a demon (yes that demon, I loved seeing him) and makes a deal. But Kal's petty jealousy and desire to be better than everyone else screw everything up.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one it was so nice going back to the beginning and seeing how it all started. Seeing Tanaka as a teenager was fun as well as some other characters in their younger years. I am definitely going to have to go back and reread the series.