I had to sit with this novella for a while after finishing; mainly to make sense of how I felt about it, or if I even understood it enough to form a valid rating. But ultimately, that was the problem I had with this story. The premise sounded great, but ultimately the quest isn’t all that inspiring, and many times I had to re-read sentences to understand what was happening, just for the author to have moved on to another topic in the next sentence, making for jumbled paragraphs and a reading experience where I never once felt really enmeshed in the story. And while the book deservedly gets praise for how it blends traditional epic fantasy prose with modern day vernacular, I personally found the shifts to be rather jarring. It’s clear that the author set out to craft a really vivid and rich world for the reader to get swept up in, only to make it really uninviting by burying it in a murky and obscure narrative.

I devoured this book on the beach. Which may seem a bit odd considering that the story takes place in the gloomy, often wet, underbelly of Victorian London, but go with me on this one. I loved Ingrid and Byrnes as a leading couple. You get the cool, collected blue-blood (not a vampire), who is desperate to get “revenge” on the hot-blooded, strong willed, and flirtatious verwulfen (think werewolf but without the actual shift) because she’s the only one to truly best him. Then throw in a really well-crafted paranormal murder mystery plot on top of that. I thought the romance itself was steamy when needed, and sweet and tender as the couple grew, making it both a slow burn romance, and just the right level of animalistic passion at the same time. Personally, I like my romance books with a heavy dose of plot that isn’t centered on the couple hooking up, and “Mission: Improper” delivered on all fronts!

Edi Nari just wants to be left to her own devices and continue her studies at the mage’s academy. But when her friends are brutally slain in front of her, she’s thrust into a mission to save her nation from the mad lich’s intent on unleashing the undead and destroying everyone, all at the behest of something far more powerful than the lich she works for, and those she has to face. “The Lich’s Thrall” is a dark fantasy adventure story that focuses on Edi’s journey from ostracized student, to a strong-willed sorceress that is capable of standing up for herself against all odds, and finally is given the answers to secrets her family has held on to for decades. Watching Edi go up against countless gruesome undead was exciting, namely for the uniqueness of the creatures she faced. I also appreciated that, come the end of the book, I didn’t feel like there were any questions left unanswered, even if I would have liked more of a character arc for Edi and some of the people she goes on her quest with.

This is the first reimagining of “The Nightingale” I’ve read, so I wasn’t too familiar with the original Hans Christian Anderson version going in. But the author did provide the original short story at the end of the novella, which was a lovely touch as it let me better see how this version and the original connected without spoiling anything. In the original, you have the Emperor of China who covets beautiful things; his gardens are impeccable, as are his palace and clothes. So, when he hears tale of a nightingale whose songs far surpass the beauty of the royal palace, he has to have such a prize for himself… I won’t say what happens next because I don’t want to give spoilers, but Williams does a wonderful job expanding on the short story by weaving in some courtly intrigue, and the plight of Kari, who needs to find a new purpose in life when she learns she will not be taking over the family business. There’s magic, too, but honestly, I don’t consider anything but the Nightingale itself to be a source of magic in this novella.

Picture this: a massive asteroid is careening toward Earth and only one person has the technical know-how in order to save the planet. Then, fast-forward sixty some odd years, to where the world has been saved! Mission accomplished! But now the scientist that saved the world feels threatened, so, naturally, she reaches out to the person who ran her security while she was saving the world. Only problem is, she’s dead when he arrives. Thankfully, in the years following saving the world, our MC (who is unnamed the entire story…) became a detective, so he should be able to handle this, right? Well, sort of. For a book featuring a trained detective, he acts more like a private investigator. A really grumpy, gloomy, cynical middle-aged PI who often wallows in self-pity, but, you know, still a PI. This book sounded so interesting! But I don’t think it delivered on what the synopsis promised, which was a letdown.