Grave Ransom

Dark urban fantasy fans will delight in Price’s fifth Alex Craft, Grave Witch novel (after Grave Visions). Alex and her friend Rianna are the owner-operators of a specialized investigation agency in the fictional city of Nekros. Alex is having a bit of a hard time adjusting to the recent blossoming of her fae nature, which comes complete with her own castle in a pocket of faerie. Things are going well in her life and with both her current beau, Death, and her former lover, the fae Falin. Then she takes what is supposed to be a simple missing persons case that quickly takes a strange turn, with souls showing up in deceased bodies not their own. If necromancy is involved, Alex is going to have to pull out all the stops just to survive, and her various relationships may not weather the storm. The story is filled with fast-paced action and creepy, immersive worldbuilding, and the plot twists with surprising regularity. There’s a slight lack of cohesion to the story that leaves more questions than answers, but strong characters more than make up for it. Agent: Lucienne Diver, Knight Agency. (July)