I've loved every book in this series. Vaughn is a solid writer and Kitty Norville is a strong, interesting, and complex protagonist. I like Vaughn's twists on common tropes and in the past I tore through these books in record speed (for me anyway). But Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand just doesn't hold up to the first 4 books in the series. I bought this two months ago and the first 6 or 7 chapters just never grabbed me and yanked me through like the previous books. I think the problem, for me, was that I didn't really understand what Kitty's goal was in this book. And I didn't understand the goal because the problem of the story doesn't really show up until close to the 1/3 mark. Up until then it's just Kitty and Ben on a bad vacation which didn't make for very interesting reading. Having said that, when the story finally does begin, it's quite good. It brings in some new mythology into the series and I'm excited to see where Vaughn takes it. I've already bought the next two in the series because she's earned my trust with the previous books. I know she can pull off a great story and I have high hopes for the next book in the series. This one, however, just didn't quite work for me. PS: Just to clarify, I'm using the Goodreads star ratings system. Two stars doesn't mean it's terribly, it was just "okay" for me. If using another system, I'd give it 3 stars out of 5. I'm sorry, but I do NOT get this Kitty and Ben thing. They never have any relationship problems, ever. No bickering over silly things, no talking about feelings, nothing. And how often to you hear the phrase "I love you" come out of either of them? Never. Once, Kitty said it to Ben (at the end of the last book), and he's never once said it to her. The whole relationship seems so unrealistic. All they do is take care of pack stuff, radio show stuff and have sex. What kind of marriage is that?
Do You like book Kitty And The Dead Man's Hand (2009)?
The hilarity of this book's premise does not disappoint. It makes complete sense to me that Kitty and Ben would try running off to Vegas for a wedding. It also stands to reason that things go haywire from there. I love the gradual expansion of the cast of characters, this is one thing that I think makes Kitty's job as a radio talk show host believable in that she builds contacts. That the network begins to show itself here is really awesome.
—jjuicooooooo
What I like the best about this series is that Kitty is both scared and curious enough to get in trouble. I appreciate that she doesn't take the people trying to help her at face value and that she asks a kazillion questions. But I hope that at some point she grows up and becomes a bad butt alpha female. If not this series is going to get old by the end of the next book. It is time for some growth.
—petoons7
Not my favorite of the Kitty series. A little rambling and anti-climactic.
—Milou
