Subject: Prograde Reviews--Tanya Huff:Blood Lines

From: [email-masked] (Humphrey Aaron V)
Date: 19 Mar 94 20:20:42 GMT

Tanya Huff:Blood Lines

A Prograde Reviews by Aaron V. Humphrey

[ some spoilers; also minor spoilers for _Blood Price_, 
     _Blood Trail_, and _Blood Pact_ ]

Sometimes I wonder how long Huff will be able to pull this off.  In the
first book in the series, _Blood Price_, we have a vampire and a demon.  In
the second, _Blood Trail_, we have werewolves.  In this one, we have a
mummy.  And in the next, _Blood Pact_, we apparently have zombies.

But I get ahead of myself.  Vicki "Victory" Nelson is a former cop, who
quit the force when her vision started to deteriorate, and now has a P.I.
business.  Her sometime partner is Henry Fitzroy, bastard son of Henry
VIII, and a vampire.  And then there's Michael Celluci, Vicki's former
partner, still on the force; he knows about Henry, but tolerates him
somewhat.  The lover's triangle between them provides for some interesting
dynamics.

The mummy in the book is a priest of a minor god called Akhekh, god of
despair.  He was entombed for years, imprisoned by a magical seal; now some
unsuspecting Egyptologists at the Royal Ontario Museum(did I mention this
was taking place in Toronto?)have broken the seal.  He is much weakened,
but after claiming a couple of victims he is able to leave the museum,
covering his tracks by erasing memories behind him.

Meanwhile, Henry Fitzroy starts having dreams of the sun.  He begins to
wonder if, after all this time, he is secretly yearning for death; this
disturbs him, and Vicki as well.  Celluci, who is investigating the deaths
in the museum, becomes suspicious when people there forget things they told
him about earlier...

The mummy, which goes about using the name of Tawfik(not his real name),
starts taking control of the provincial government and police force; he
also senses Henry's presence and tries to lure him over to the Dark Side. 
And, at Akhekh's bidding, he has his minions make Vicki's life a living
hell, and gets her arrested for child molesting.

_Blood Price_ had some weak points; _Blood Trail_ was distinctly better;
and now I think Huff has come into her own with this book.  Tawfik is a
believable and nasty nemesis, the interactions between the main characters
are wonderful, Vicki comes up with some great lines, and you're not sure
they're going to triumph until the last minute.  (Okay, there's a sequel,
and besides we _know_ they're going to win, but it's damn close.)  I'm
looking forward very much to the next book.

%A Huff, Tanya
%T Blood Lines
%I Daw
%C New York
%D January 1993
%G ISBN 0-88677-530-2
%P 271 pp.
%S Victory Nelson, Investigator
%V Book 3
%O Paperback, US $4.99, Can $5.99

--
--Alfvaen(Editor of Communique)
Current Album--The Beautiful South:Welcome To The Beautiful South
Current Read--Nicole Luiken:Running On Instinct
"curious george swung down the gorge/the ants took him apart"  --billbill