Title: Mortal Sins
Author: Eileen Wilks
Series: World of the Lupi #5
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Animagus, Paranormal romance
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Berkley Sensation
Year: 2009
5th sentence, 74th page: But Georgetown University Hospital had a couple of rooms that were circled and heavily warded.

Welcome to the “strange magic [and] fantastic realms” of Eileen Wilks’s world of the lupi, where some sins are so dark and unlikely, no one thought to forbid them…

FBI agent Lily Yu is in North Carolina with her lover and mate, Rule Turner, Lu Nuncio of the Nokolai werewolf clan. He is there to take custody of his son from the boy’s grandmother. It’s a purely personal trip until Rule, in wolf form, finds three bodies in a shallow grave. They carry the stench of death magic, which makes the murders a federal crime. Lily takes charge of the investgiation and soon realizes that nothing adds up – not the motives or the main suspect, who is behind bars when death strikes again.

But murder, however bizarre, is an everyday affair for Lily, who was a homicide cop before being recruited into the FBI’s Magical Crimes Division. A more personal shock arrives in the form of Rule’s son’s mother. Why would she now challenge Rule’s plan to bring his son to live among the Nokolai? But family matters must take a backseat when the violence escalates, and there’s no rhyme or reason for the next strike – by a killer who may not even be of this world…

This is one of those series that I pick up and put down, but I’m slowly working through. This week I decided that it was time to pick up Mortal Sins, the book I am currently up to. Now I’m wondering why I ever put the series aside in the first place (I’m just easily distracted I suppose). I love Lily and Rule’s pretty damn good too. The storyline always captivates my attention and takes me on a great journey that I don’t in slightest bit expect.

There were two main threads to this storyline. Firstly there is Lily’s race to save the people of Halo and figure what’s causing so many deaths. For me, this takes up the majority of the story. After all, you follow Lily around and that’s the main focus of her actions throughout. Homicides and crime stories are captivating enough, but tie in the use of death magic and superstition against lupi, and the storyline gets a lot more intense. The entire time I was reading this, I was holding my breath, waiting for he next person to go crazy…

The other storyline is that of Rule and his son. A simple issue of changing his custody turns into something a lot more intense when his son’s mother gets involved again. I was actually quite blown away by this twist and sat there a little overwhelmed when I first read it. Although it isn’t the primary storyline, it is definitely the more emotional and powerful one. Something that helped me to get completely wrapped up in and swept away by the storyline.

Image source: Dear Author

Title: Cyncerely Yours
Author: Eileen Wilks
Series: World of the Lupi #4.5
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Animagus, Paranormal romance
Pace: Fast
Format: Free online short story
Publisher: Eileen Wilks online
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: His face wasn’t.

Cynna and Cullen’s wedding day is like everything in their relationship – not quite going according to plan.

I always love a good wedding story or scene. After all, there is so much potential for things to go wrong! Wilks’ use of Cynna and Cullen’s wedding as a source of new beginnings and endings was a really sweet notion too. The explanation of some of the practices that we tend to take for granted (a white wedding gown for example) helped to show that, although some of the characters aren’t Christian, the rituals and meanings hold a place within our lives. Even for those many people who get married these days, there are aspects of this ritual that have a purpose and a place beyond the religious connotations.

It wouldn’t be a World of the Lupi wedding if everything went smoothly though. And, staying with the tradition of beginnings and endings, Cynna’s past comes back to haunt her – literally. The true purpose of this, which is, of course revealed at the end of the short story, truly helps to close the door on an aspect of Cynna’s past. And it is this great symbolism that weaves through the whole story that makes it a literary wedding that I’m going to remember for a long time.

Image source: Goodreads

Title: Good Counsel
Author: Eileen Wilks
Series: World of the Lupi #4.2
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Animagus, Paranormal romance
Pace: Fast
Format: Free Online Short Story
Publisher: Eileen Wilks Online
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: Sure.

This snippet takes place after Night Season (World of the Lupi, #4) and just before the free short story, Cyncerely Yours (World of the Lupi, #4.5). It’s more of a scene than a complete story, but I thought readers who’ve enjoyed the series might enjoy listening in on Cullen’s counselling session with Father Michaels.

Although Cullen and Cynna agree to become married at the conclusion of Night Season, it is kind of hard to imagine that either one will truly carry through with it. That is until the short story, Good Counsel. It is in this six pages that Cullen truly shows his commitment (and love for) Cynna and the degree to which he’ll go to make her happy. Throughout his discussion with the Catholic priest, he is able to be clear sighted and honest – he doesn’t really want to get married, but it is important for her, so therefore he’ll do it. The idea of acceptance by one’s community and the importance of this in such a thing as a wedding is also beautifully and succinctly investigated.

I have had some slightly unpleasant experiences with the Christian faith and very early on decided that it wasn’t a religion for me. However, Cullen’s descriptions of the importance of it and the Abe’s easy acceptance of diversity and the unconventional relationship he is about to officiate goes a long way to restoring my faith in such an organisation. Although Cullen is himself not Christian, he is able to understand many of the principals and governing ideals, and the reasons why it is such a cornerstone in Cynna’s life. It is this easy acceptance on behalf of both Cullen and Abe that I most loved about this short story.

Image source: Pinterest

Title: Night Season
Author: Eileen Wilks
Series: World of the Lupi #4
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Animagus, Paranormal romance
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Berkley Sensation
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: Rule said Cullen had a habit of picking up strays.

Pregnancy has turned FBI Agent Cynna Weaver’s whole life upside down. Lupus sorcerer Cullen Seabourne is thrilled to be a father, but what does Cynna know about kids? her mother was a drunk and her father abandoned his family. Or so she’s always believed…

As Cynna is trying to wrap her head around this problem, a new one pops up in the form of a delegation from another realm. They want to take Cynna and Cullen back with them – to meet her long-lost father and find a mysterious medallion. But when these two born cynics land in a world where magic is common-place and night never ends, their only way home lies in tracking down the missing medallion – one also sought by powerful beings who will do anything to claim it…

Blood Lines left off on a bit of a cliff-hanger for Cynna and Cullen. So, although Lily and Rule make an appearance in Night Season, it is nice to spend some more time with this incredibly unique couple. I also loved revisiting Kai and Nathan (albeit briefly) throughout this series. The novella Inhuman introduced these incredibly different characters, and vastly expanded the World of the Lupi universe. All in all, this story took a slightly different turn from the rest of the books, and it offered a refreshing outlook into a series that anyone would quickly become enthralled by.

I love the idea of a number of different realms, with different rules and levels of magic, and completely different natives. The anthropologist in me is fascinated by Wilks’ construction of so many different cultures and social realities. Edge, to me, highlights the fact that we all have prejudices, and they can be immensely derogatory to a group of individuals. I loved that even Cullen, who has been on the receiving end of such typecasting, feels for the humans who are in a similar position in Edge.

Cynna’s pregnancy is an important topic throughout Night Season. As someone who is terrified of getting pregnant accidentally, I can completely understand her fear and trepidation at this immense challenge that she is about to face. I always love when I can relate so completely to character’s – not that they are horrible mothers, but they are fearful. I have never met a woman who is willing to say that motherhood is an all-enjoyable experience. Everyone is fearful and worried about such a ginormous task, and I think that acknowledging this is so important for those of us who may be facing such a journey in their futures.

Image source: Amazon

Title: The New Kid
Author: Eileen Wilks
Series: World of the Lupi #0.1
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Animagus, Paranormal romance
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Eileen Wilks Online
Year: 2013
5th sentence, 74th page: He was a heterosexual misfit.

This short story takes places in Rule’s past, specifically January 10, 1976 during his Sophomore year of high school in a small town near Clanhome. It’s a fun look into a time when Rule wasn’t Lu Nuncio yet and was just learning how to integrate with humans.

Sixteen-year-old Rule is everything I imagined him to be and more in this great short story. Wilks leaves a comment at the top of the tale that suggests it be read after a few of the novels, get to know Rule before flashing back to his past. And honestly, it is a great suggestion. I have just read this short story after reading the first four books, and although it made his actions a little more predictable, it also made the story all the more enjoyable and the nuances of the characters a little more potent.

I love any story that investigates the cultural norms that we take for granted and turn them onto their head. The cliques that often categorise are of course prevalent in a story about a sixteen-year-old. But, it is the way in which Rule views them that provides a different kind of insight. His willingness to do what is right and break free of the clicks is also such an incredibly attractive quality. That, although from the novels, I already knew he possessed, made me fall for him a little more.

Image source: Eileen Wilks