Kitty and The Midnight Hour
by Carrie Vaughn

The first book in a promising series by a new author – this is one you don’t want to miss! Carrie Vaughn has brought fresh blood, so to speak, to the horror/paranormal genre by introducing Kitty (Katherine) Norvile, a bright and bubbly young blonde who is too sweet and soft for the life of a werewolf. Yes you read that right, Kitty the werewolf. Not very scaring sounding is she? Kitty is at the bottom of her pack’s hierarchy and she likes it just fine, it means someone is always there to protect her.

One night during the graveyard shift at the radio station she works at Kitty decides to skip the music and open up the phone lines to her listeners out there. She gets the ball rolling by asking the bizarre and strange questions (does Bat Boy really exist?) and before she knows it she’s a hit with her own syndicated show.

Of course not everyone is please Kitty is talking about the paranormal out there. Enter Cormac, a hired gun who specializes in Lycanthrope killings and he’s been paid to off her on the air. If that wasn’t enough stress for one girl to go through Kitty also has to deal with becoming the Denver police’s paranormal expert, a werewolf serial killer, and dangerous pack politics.

This book is anything but typical and there is certainly never a dull moment. The knight in shining white armor isn’t actually very ethical and there is an extreme possibility he might opt to kill the damsel in distress rather than save her. And the heroine? Well this is the most amazing and intriguing part of this book. The current fad of the horror/paranormal romance genre right now is “butt-kicking” femme fatale or quirky girly heroine. While I’m all for a tough female lead, it gets old and redundant when one can just guess what their appearance and attitude will be like. Vaughn has managed to give us a breath of fresh air with Kitty Norvile. Kitty is both girly and soft, the reader cannot help but to feel a strong protective urge yet at the same time you see this girl taking steps to grow up and shake off the confines of a sheltered childhood. In short, Kitty is much closer to your average Jane and readers will love her for that.

One thing that I really loved about Kitty’s character is that she starts off very submissive and afraid of her own shadow. She runs to her best friend T.J. and her pack’s alpha for help continuously in the beginning, it’s her nature and as she’s still a new werewolf she’s unsure of her world still. After getting her own radio show Kitty begins to get more of a backbone and to essentially find herself. It is very interesting to watch her development and growth throughout the book. Never once does Vaughn stumble in her characterization of Kitty.

To top it off, Kitty is a very upbeat and numerous character to follow. Kitty has a smart mouth which lands her in quite a bit of trouble but at the same time there is a well of wisdom and knowledge that peaks through her veneer. All of Vaughn’s characters were nicely fleshed out and the political scheming and under handedness of some of the characters will amaze and astound readers. There are many surprises, a ton of adventure, a truckload of laughs, and a dash of romance all rolled into this heavenly book which will delight readers non stop.

Joana’s rating: