Circle of Death by Keri Arthur

                          


I received Circle of Death as an Advanced Review Copy. Thank you to Miss Arthur and Bantam Dell Books for this opportunity.
I do not go too deeply into the storyline to keep from giving away the story.

Kirby is sent on the run for  her life after finding her best friend brutally murdered. Because of her past, she has learned to only trust herself and one other person, and that person was just murdered.
Doyle is an agent from the Damask Circle. He and two others are sent to prevent the murder of certain witches. His job is to protect Kirby and find the killer before any other witches are killed.
Can Kirby learn to trust Doyle? Can she trust the fire that is growing between them? Can Doyle keep Kirby safe, find the killer and show Kirby that she can trust him with her life AND her heart?

This was my introduction to Keri Arthur's writing. I absolutely loved this book! It has action, suspense, and romance. Miss Arthur wove these three together seamlessly. Nowhere in the story did it ever feel forced or like the author was having trouble figuring out what to do next. The characters are developed and described in natural progression. While she needs to delve into Kirby's past, the transition is flawless. I never got confused about whether the story was in the past or present.
I particularly liked the way Miss Arthur wrote witches, vampires, and shapeshifters as cooperative cohorts instead of the traditional adversaries. The story contains good witches, vampires, and shapeshifters as well as evil witches, vampires, and shapeshifters.
I have read where Miss Arthur was compared to Laurell K. Hamilton (one of my favorite authors). I personally disagree. Miss Hamilton has shown in her writings that good and evil may not be so "black and white". While Miss Arthur has a clear line between good and evil. But even though they both write paranormal romance, their style, in my opinion, is so different that comparing them is like comparing peanut butter and jelly-they may go well together, but they are created by totally different items.
After reading this story, Miss Arthur has been added to my list of favorite authors.