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Liked It “The eighth book in the Dirk & Steele series may just be one of Liu's best! Even better is that there aren't too many people that wouldn't be able to just jump in with this one. Yes, there are characters from previous D&S entries, but there's enough exposition that one wouldn't have to go back and...” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“The Dirk & Steele series makes you think about what is real and possible . . .is everyone who or WHAT you think . . . great series . . . great story.”
Hylon K wrote this review Sunday, June 28 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“The eighth book in the Dirk & Steele series may just be one of Liu's best! Even better is that there aren't too many people that wouldn't be able to just jump in with this one. Yes, there are characters from previous D&S entries, but there's enough exposition that one wouldn't have to go back and read all the books to catch up (but trust me, you'll want to!)
bookbabe wrote this review Monday, December 29 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
A woman awakes in a hotel room when the fire alarm sounds. She realizes there are dead bodies on the floor, blood everywhere, and she has a gun. She has no memory of who the men are, how she got there - or if she killed them. Her only clue is a scrap of paper that says RUN. She manages to escape the hotel and finds herself in on a dark street, trying to break into a car, when the car's owner appears and stops here. He doesn't have her arrested, nor does he take her to a hospital, something she fears although she doesn't know why. She just knows she needs to get as far away as possible. And why can't she remember anything? It's all completely blank...
The car's owner is none other than Lannes Hannelore, one of the gargoyle brothers first introduced in the novella "A Dream of Stone and Shadow". In that story, an evil witch had imprisoned the brothers, all but Charlie, who's heart she tore out each day (it grew back, so she was able to do this for a long, long, time). Lannes is definitely what one would call a tortured soul, both literally and metaphysically. He's been spending most of his time on the island that his family owns, safe from all those who might hurt him. He's come to the mainland to visit his friend Frederick and is about to head home when he spots the woman trying to break into his car. He can sense that she needs help, but he's afraid to offer it. Once burned, twice shy and all that.
For her part, the woman is just as tortured. She has no memory of her life, but she can spout out little facts about things here and there. When Lannes reads her mind (through the ability of touch, but not in a Vulcan-mind-meld kind of way), he's able to determine that her memories are truly gone; they've been excised from her brain. As events unfold, the possibility presents itself that the woman herself might have cut out the memories. What is she running from? And what kind of life will she have if she can't remember who she was?
The Dirk & Steele series is one of my favorites, and this particular book was one of the better offerings. As these are usually a mix of romance and action, I'm always waiting to see when the leads will "hook up" - some authors have the action, so to speak, happen at the oddest moment! "Wild Road" was a bit different; I almost thought there wasn't going to be any sex this time. Sure, lots of romantic tension and possibilities, but the act itself? It was looking doubtful. I wasn't disappointed, though, because Liu did have a wonderful, very romantic scene at almost the end of the book. And surprise, surprise, it made total sense where it did, being one of the first moments the characters are finally at a safe place and have let down their guard. Very nice touch.
The plot twists are interesting, and the action is exciting. The only thing that detracts from this book is that only two other D&S characters make appearances. I've come to really like the whole team and was at least hoping to hear some of Roland's snarky banter. Oh well. I'm sure Liu will include them next time.
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“A woman wakes in a smokey hotel room with no memory of how she got there - no memories at all, actually. A note pinned to her jacket reads simply, "Run," and there are three dead bodies on the floor. So run she does! She ends up bumping into Lannes Hannelore, one of the few remaining gargoyles in the world. In spite of Lannes's fear of letting anyone get to close, for reasons of his own, he feels compelled to help this woman. They soon find themselves on the run from an unknown assailant who can find them anywhere they go. Their only solution is to track him down themselves and try to unravel the mystery of the woman's identity along the way.”
Dawn H wrote this review Friday, November 21 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A steamy paranormal mystery/romance.
BeckyL wrote this review Monday, November 10 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
A woman wakes in a smokey hotel room with no memory of how she got there - no memories at all, actually. A note pinned to her jacket reads simply, "Run," and there are three dead bodies on the floor. So run she does! She ends up bumping into Lannes Hannelore, one of the few remaining gargoyles in the world. In spite of Lannes's fear of letting anyone get to close, for reasons of his own, he feels compelled to help this woman. They soon find themselves on the run from an unknown assailant who can find them anywhere they go. Their only solution is to track him down themselves and try to unravel the mystery of the woman's identity along the way.
Latest in the series but can be read at any point. I jumped in with this as my first with no problems. ”
“Another Dirk & Steele Novel. What I love about this series is you do not have to read them in order and every book is about a different life form. This one is no exception, finally I have a book about my secret fantasy of Gargoyles. Gargoyles were always protectors and this one isn't any different. Lannes Hannelore was born to protect mankind from demonic forces and when he finds a strange woman covered in blood, desperate and alone, with no memory or past, he is drawn into a mystery that makes him question all he knows. Lannes will risk his heart, his secrets and his very soul in order to save someone who could be the love of his life....or the end of it. A great wonderful book!”
judy5611 wrote this review Friday, October 10 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I can tell that I missed a book or two in between. I'm thinking that there is a book out there about Charlie, it might even be the one I have still to be read. This was a library book and it came in faster than expected in my queue. It was able to stand on its on despite these clues. Mystery was interesting, romance a little lacking, more tidbits about Dirk & Steele added. I have forgotten though if there are things I should know about Riktor.”
Tami H wrote this review Saturday, October 4 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Marjorie M. Liu has written another breathtaking novel, a mixture of suspense and romance, trust and betrayal, fear and love, and very strange things. To really appreciate this book, you really should read the whole series in order, even the anthologies in between. Lannes is the brother of Charlie, the hero in the anthology Dark Dreamers. A link to the woman is Soul Song, and to know the significance of the secondary characters like Ricter, you should read The Last Twilight. Although he appears in every book, this last one is the most important to his current status. And finally the anthology in My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon is necessary for the end of the story.
Aurian wrote this review Saturday, September 13 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Lannes is a bookbinder/restorer by trade, something he can mostly work at from home. But when his childhood friend Frederic invites him to Chicago, to safe his family bible, Lannes visits his friend. And when the job is finished, they go out for something to eat and some music. A woman there hits on Lannes and he gets very uncomfortable, she might see the illusion if she keeps touching him and feels skin instead of a shirt, or discover his wings! So they return back to Fredericks home, and Lannes decides to go out for some fresh air, up in the sky. Then he sees someone is trying to steel his car, an old Impala, and he wants to prevent that. He is not prepared for what he discovers. A woman, covered in blood, barefooted, threatening him with a gun. He is not afraid, a gunshot won’t kill him. But she can’t follow through and when she stumbles away, he follows her, offering her his help, to take her to the hospital, and when she denies, to take her home with him, care for her.
The woman is afraid, she doesn’t know herself, and she doesn’t want to endanger this stranger, she is a murderer after all. But then she collapses, unconscious onto the pavement, and Lannes takes her with him. While he is bandaging her feet, she wakes up, having no choice but to stay with the stranger and this old man, who are being nice to her. Lannes has read her mind while she was sleeping, and find her memories are missing, not because of injury, but they are cut out completely. Something that will never be restored. But he also feels no malice from the woman, and he has the urge to help her. And gargoyle instincts are very good and powerful. He has never been attracted to a human woman before, so why this one, why now? He has only been free from the witches clutches a few years. Is this another trap to catch him and his brothers?
Then suddenly the front door opens, and when Lannes investigates, all he finds is a note, saying find Orwell Price. And Run. The name doesn’t ring a bell, and Lannes calls Charlie, his brother, working for Dirk and Steele detective agency. If they want to find out who took this womans memories, they will have to follow the instructions. First they put Frederic somewhere safe, then Lannes and the woman go to the address Charlie gave them. The old man seems to recognize the woman, she is the twin of someone he knew a long time ago, who died then. And then someone takes over the womans mind, and she kills the old man. Lannes tried to stop her, but she also has some psychic powers and he just has to watch. But he feels it is not the woman doing this, someone else is inside her. And when the old man is dead, that someone is gone too. And the woman is back, screaming for the horror of what she just did! They can’t stay there, and Lannes calls Charlie again, to clean this up, and for protection. They did get some answers from Orwell Price, and they head south. But they are not safe on the road, people are trying to kill them. Someone else is determined to prevent the woman to find him. Someone else able of controlling strangers to do as he pleases. Simon. Simon Says. When Lannes is shot, they are found by an old woman who takes them to her place. She claims to be send by Charlie, but she is not. The woman takes care of Lannes now, and finds her hands disappearing when she wants to clean his wounds. Wounds she doesn’t see, but can feel, and bleed. Clothes she sees and aren’t there, and something leathery on the man’s back. Wings? But she has encountered so many strange things the last few days, nothing surprises her any more. But this kind man who protected her from the bullets, and who believes in her, she has to take care of, human or not.
When Lannes wakes up, almost healed, they find the old woman in the library, where she tells them more of the things happening. And when the intruder in the woman’s mind appears again to kill the old woman, she is to late. Poison has been taken, she is already dying. To prevent the innocent young woman to have to kill again.
Leaving the dead woman’s house, they finally decide the woman has to have a name, and they decide on Lethe. And from then on, they are on a wild road discovering the truth about what happened 70 years ago, when a prank done by children went horribly wrong and a young girl died.
Threads from other books twine in this novel, a plot you could never have dreamt about, it is just too strange. It took me a while to get really into this novel, mainly because I didn’t have much reading time this last week to just keep on reading. It just was a strange book. A strange story, that kept being a bit distant, mainly because of the mentioning of “the woman”. You can’t get close to someone who doesn’t have a name. But Lannes just got more and more real. Kind and strong, and while he fears what he is feeling, he acts on it. And Lethe has no choice but accept his help. She has no clothes, no money, no identity. But when Lannes keeps protecting her, asking nothing in return, she starts to trust him, feel for him. He doesn’t lie, not even to protect his own secrets. She can feel him in her head, his emotions, as Lannes can feel her, read her thoughts when they touch.
How strange this book was in the beginning, halfway through it got to me. And the ending was even more weird, but things started to come together, and they made sense. It shows again how great a storyteller Marjorie M. Liu really is. She has to plot books back for things in coming novels. I am still a bit stunned right now.
All in all, great characters, great secondary characters, a plot I can’t reveal but is absolutely great. And the love between Lannes and Lethe just develops as it should, and is growing on you. All I can say is: read those books! No two are the same.
4,5 stars.”
“The book opens with the heroine waking up in a hotel room with a murdered man. She has no memory whatsoever, knows nothing but that she should run. And, oddly, she knows how to do that, how to escape notice and avoid police and all the things she should do. The hero is a gargoyle who's left his isolation to come visit a childhood friend. A friend who is now an elderly man, while the hero is just now reaching maturity. The hero binds his gargoyle wings and hides them and his rough-hewn appearance with an illusion, but he has to be careful not to let people touch him, because the illusion is only visual. The heroine tries to steal his car, he stops her and offers to help. And this sends them off on the titular Wild Road as they try to figure out who wants to either kill or control her, and keeps killing the people she goes to for answers. The Dirk & Steele folks are pulled into the story, mysteries are revealed and villains are punished. Liu likes really complicated plots and characters, but while this one went in some complicated directions, it was followable. I liked it. ”
Gail Dayton wrote this review Saturday, October 18 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A woman awakes in a room filled with smoke and bloody dead bodies. Pinned to her clothes is a piece of paper with one word...Run and no other memories. Lannes Hannelore lives a lonely existence resorting old books because going out in public means wrapping himself in the illusion of a human. Lannes is a gargolyle...a dying race who protects mankind from evil.
Beyond Her Book wrote this review Monday, August 25 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
This latest installment in the Dirk and Steele series is now my favorite. A tricky process to have the woman go without a name through the book, but it only made me feel her frustration at not remembering anything. Gargoyles have always fascinated me anyway and I was drawn to Lannes struggle with the fear of who and what he is mixed with the desire to just spread his wings and be. Their relationship was satisfying on so many levels, but the mystery and action made this book cause another sleepless night (in a good way). Intense action, riveting mystery and heartfelt romance.
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“As a Marjorie Liu, Dirk & Steele fan I was happy to see this on the bookshelves on my local bookseller. I swooped in bought it, carried it home and happily read it.
July L wrote this review Wednesday, August 20 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
This book Wow #8 was about one of the Hannelore brothers who happen to be gargoyle.
Lannes Hannelore sees a woman breaking into his car. When he attempts to stop her he realizes that she is covered in blood. He offers to help her. She tells him that she doesn't have any memory at all. One of Lannes gift is to read minds. And she truly is amnesic. No memory at all. He will be drawn into a mystery that actually connects them. This story is quite bizarre.
I thought it was great! I can't wait for the next...”
