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The Better Part of Darkness Charlie Madigan Book 1 Kelly Gay Books

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The Better Part of Darkness Charlie Madigan Book 1 Kelly Gay Books

A somewhat dark fantasy. Charley Madigan is a cop and a single mother working in a supernatural Atlanta. Atlanta is a gateway city to a world of darkness and a world of light. Charley is in denial about a lot of things like her own power, what happened to her when she died and was mysteriously resurrected, and her feelings about her ex-husband. When a new dangerous drug threatens Atlanta Charley begins an investigation that might get her killed again.
I actually started this book a few years ago and couldn't get into it. I started again and was able to finish it. I enjoyed it some but it still didn't stand out to me. I can't decide if I'm going to continue with the next book.


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The Better Part of Darkness Charlie Madigan Book 1 Kelly Gay Books Reviews

Wow. Wowsa. Wow. I think I found my new favorite heroine. But I can't decide if it's the main protagonist of The Better Part of Darkness or Kelly Gay herself for creating such an amazing character. The book opens up right at the start of an investigation and as a reader I was quickly introduced to Charlie, a tough as nails cop who was likeable right from the start. In the next moment she shows her vulnerable side which is brought about by the presence of her daughter Emma. There is also self-depracating humor in her voice, irony and sass. She is jealous and can be shut off from others, while still holding them accountable. So very flawed and human and extremely likeable due to her honesty and self awareness.

The setting of Atlanta is quickly established as a realm where the veil between the worlds has been breached and is now populated by Otherworldly creatures, good and bad alike. Now Charlie and her partner, Hank, a siren, are thrown into an investigation that takes them further and further into an insidious plot. The story weaves and dodges and spins. I never saw anything coming and just when I thought the author couldn't possibly throw any more rocks at Charlie, she has to run from boulders. The secrets and reveals are astounding and I watched as Charlie discovered her own inner strengths to try to overcome the issues that are thrown at her.

I love the relationships that Charlie has with her sister, her ex-husband and especially her daughter. The link described by Charlie and the feelings for her child are so specific and sweet and this is what feelings should be like between parents and their kids. I also love the dynamic between her and her sister. There is a closeness and a bond. Mutual respect with a dose of misunderstanding, just like real siblings. Her complicated emotions toward her ex-husband also come into play as well as with her partner. How do you choose between trust and love and forgiveness? All of these dynamics are wrought with tension and drama and come into play directly to the story.

The writing is lovely. Gay grounds her character in the moment and the setting and her descriptions of the night skies or the park grounds are that much more beautiful against the grim setting of the plot.

The ending held some surprises for me. Some events are settled, while others will be left for Charlie and her loved ones to deal with. I want to say that some things are left open for the future, but most first books in a series do that. The Better Part of Darkness does it with so much more finesse.

My only complaints are that I wasn't sure at every turn why she was talking to certain people but in all fairness that could have been because I was just reading it so fast because I wanted to see what happened next.

Gay is able to include so many elements and emotions within these pages without bogging the story down. I love the mythology and the plot, but what I really loved is that Charlie is written with so much heart.
I read THE BETTER PART OF DARKNESS and its two currently-released sequels, THE DARKEST EDGE OF DAWN and THE HOUR OF DUST AND ASHES back to back, and my comments in this review will be spoiler-free but cover all three.

I'm used to books where the scrappy hero/heroine saves the day against incredible odds - Charlie Madigan limps away from most confrontations having lost more than she's gained. When the going gets rough, Charlie caves. When the big baddie attacks, her first comment is, "Uncle!"

This is especially frustrating because Charlie is supposed to be very powerful. We find out early on in the first book that Charlie died and was brought back to life by magical means. Her resurrection left her changed, equipped with magical power that she doesn't know how to harness or direct with any finesse. She trains quite a bit but three books down the line I've noticed that

(1) Almost every enemy she faces shrugs off her magical attacks as though they're inconsequential
(2) Using magic leaves her drained and vulnerable - but she always does it anyhow, because she can't help it
(3) She seems just as out of control magically at the end of book three as she did at the end of book one.

That's all really frustrating. And it's a core problem with the series - though, actually, the books are incredibly fun, easy reading. The plotting doesn't really satisfy but I'm sold on the characters.

Charlie is a winning leading lady, trying to balance life as a reckless, act-first-and-think-later detective with her responsibilities as a mother and sister. She has a lovely relationship with her daughter, Emma, a character smart and interesting enough to helm her own series.

Her partner, Hank, is a siren. Most women can't resist his angelic looks and compelling voice; after working at his side for two years, Charlie is a little too good at resisting it. Hank is wonderful, and every scene with him positively sizzles. The other main contender for Charlie's romantic attention is her ex-husband Will, a handsome and charismatic fellow whose addiction to black magic eventually led Charlie to divorce him. He struck me from the beginning as being beyond redemption, but that gives him his own seductive power and for all his flaws he loves Charlie.

While each book in the series wraps up the main plot that fuels the book, the threads are so closely tied that the three books I read felt like one long novel and Kelly Gay has a devilish way of finishing each book with a hook that leads you into the next. It worked on me, pulling me through the three available installments with hardly a pause, and I'm eager to continue with the series.
A somewhat dark fantasy. Charley Madigan is a cop and a single mother working in a supernatural Atlanta. Atlanta is a gateway city to a world of darkness and a world of light. Charley is in denial about a lot of things like her own power, what happened to her when she died and was mysteriously resurrected, and her feelings about her ex-husband. When a new dangerous drug threatens Atlanta Charley begins an investigation that might get her killed again.
I actually started this book a few years ago and couldn't get into it. I started again and was able to finish it. I enjoyed it some but it still didn't stand out to me. I can't decide if I'm going to continue with the next book.