Grave New World

With this fun but uneven outing, Lunetta, Lynn, and Quinn launch a paranormal mystery series about Paige Harper, owner of Down & Dirty Supernatural Cleaning Services, which specializes in mopping up supernatural messes. While cleaning up after a “supe,” Paige stumbles on a dead body—and her fae ex-husband, Jax, is standing over the corpse. While Paige is tempted to let Jax rot in jail for his past lies and cheating, she doubts he’s capable of murder. As she investigates, Paige is thrown into the world of human vs. supe politics and encounters an ever-growing list of men, both supernatural and human, who either want her dead or in their beds. The authors’ joy in this heavily layered paranormal world and Paige’s romantic escapades shines through, though the pacing often feels unbalanced with too much plot crammed into too little space. Paige is an admirable heroine––unapologetic, sex positive, and independent––yet deeply prejudiced against supes. Fans of Ilona Andrews and Shelly Laurenston will appreciate this fierce, wise-cracking protagonist, and though this installment is rushed, the complex worldbuilding offers plenty of potential for future volumes. (Self-published)