Dragon Justice [Paperback]

This is one of those cases where I there series has degenerated quickly from what had been a promising start. This book was a white-hot, convoluted mess of a story. I have a pet peeve about the growing trend for authors to do lots of perspective shifts rather than following the primary character, and this was really, really bad in that respect. They follow Bonnie for a while in 1st person, then bounce around between other random characters (at least 4 of them) for short periods of time in 3rd person, bounce back to Bonnie, then back out again. There were three or four plot-lines going on, any of which could have or SHOULD have had an entire book, and all of them were handled badly and none of them really reached a satisfactory completion. The author had major events happen that wound up being rushed through. She had events in this book dependent on events in her Retriever series so if you haven't read that, you're kind of up the creek. Characters show up and leave without any real explanation of why they were there. There were a couple of dragon-related scenes that were included that made absolutely no sense in the great scheme of things, even by the end. The one plot-line that the author did actually kind-of tie up was only achieved by a surge of magic-babble, where Gilman came up with a complex addition to the magic-system of her world that was rather arbitrary and seemed thrown in because she couldn't figure our a real way for the heroes to solve the case. And speaking of arbitrary, it would be remiss of me to fail to discuss the incredibly forced main romance for our heroine. Gilman painted the heroine as a bisexual, independent woman. As far as "bisexual" goes, I'm glad when an author actually takes a chance like that with a main character, except this author didn't actually take a chance. The character hasn't actually been involved with another woman except to make reference that she COULD in the future or HAD in the past. But in any of the PRESENT stories? Not a chance. Instead, Bonnie is pretty much forced into a relationship through magical means, indicating that even the author had no real reason why the two characters would wind up together. There is absolutely no chemistry between the two characters caught up in "the Merge," but we are forced to endure the relationship anyway. The secondary characters, who have up until now been an important part of the chemistry of the book, were inconsequential in this one. So instead of the intriguing who-done-it kind of story that Gilman started off with in this series, she wound up delivering a confused hodgepodge of stuff than happened with no real identity.

Normally it would be unlikely that I would continue to read a series after something I considered this messed up, but the first few books in the series (keep in mind that I haven't read her other series) indicated that Gilman can really write. This book just felt like it was rushed to the publisher without any real plan to it. She would actually need to spend an entire novel just explaining all the things she missed in this one.

This is the 10th Cosa Nostradamus, and 4th P.U.P.I, novel. Several of the key ongoing plot threats are brought to a conclusion in this book, and some new potential plot threads are set up to replace them. In internal chronology, this is the first PUPI book to be set after the final Retrievers book, the first three took place between, or concurrent with the Retrievers books. We get to catch up with Wren Volare, and get an almost unavoidable face-off with Ben the security wizard trying to protect a target from Wren the legendary Rertriever (he ultimately fails, of course). The plot thread of Ian Strosser's sister, which has been a main underlying plot thread from the beginning, is (apparently) wrapped up, and Wren (of all people) becomes a mentor.

For those who have never read any of Gilman's previous Cosa books, the Cosa Nostradamus is their own name for the people (using the term loosely) who can use or are magic. The Cosa is divided into three main groupings, council (the human magic users who acknowledge and fall under the control structure of the various Councils who regulate magic users), lonejack (basically all the human magic users who aren't council), and the Cosa Cousins (all the more or less non-human people)

Two human magic users, Ian Strosser (council) and Ben Venec (lonejack), start an organization they name Private Unaffiliated Paranormal Investigations (PUPI). PUPI is not a police force, and has no affiliation with any governing or enforcement group (the the P_ and the U of the name). They hire several human magic users (referred to as Pups) in their early 20s, and train them to be a CSI for magic related crimes. They will do an investigation for anyone who asks (but they do expect payment), and present their results. Their purpose is not catch the perpetrators, or punish the guilty, just to0 determine the truth and give that to the person or persons that hired them. The viewpoint character is Bonita Torres (council) who is one of the Pups. She was introduced in the Retriever books as Wren's next door neighbor.

This being Luna (Harlequin), there is, of course, a romance plot, but Luna has always been lenient with its authors in not requiring them to make the required romance plot the main focus of the books.

Dragon Justice is the fourth book in Laura Anne Gilman's Paranormal Scene Investigations Series, after Hard Magic, Pack of Lies, and Tricks of the Trade. She's been building this urban fantasy version of New York City and its world for quite a while, ever since the first book in her Retrievers series, Staying Dead. And what a world it is! If you love urban fantasy I dare to to read the words "Cosa Nostradamus" without your imagination opening up into a smile of wonder. Concept and pun in one single phrase.

Dragon Justice, being the fourth book in the PSI series, builds on everything that came before. (See my review of Tricks of the Trade for details about prior events in the series)

It helps a LOT to have read the other books in the series. That's no hardship. This series, both these series, are awesome. But it makes it damn difficult to write a review as though this book stands alone.

Dragon Justice has the feeling of a middle book in the story arc. Each individual book in the Paranormal Scene Investigations Series uses a police-procedural-type framework -- the PUPIs are investigators, after all. So there is a crime that needs to be investigated. But that's not the biggest part of this particular story.

The big things are the forces moving in the background. Ian Stosser and Ben Venec are the two "Big Dogs" at PUPI, and they go off in different directions. Ian gives everyone a vacation so he can take care of some family business. Alone.

Ben goes to Philadelphia to work on a private security contract at a small museum. Ben turns out to be much smarter than Ian. He invites Bonnie Torres, one of the PUPs, to come to Philly. Whatever Ben's original motives might have been (and yes, they were exactly what Bonnie is hoping they were) when a dead body turns up, the PUPIs start an investigation. The victim wasn't Talented, but Talent seems to have been used to kill him.

While Ben and the team are working in Philly, Ian is in New York City dealing with problems of his own, and they are big ones. Two of the biggest; money and family. It takes a lot of capital to start up and investigative service like the PUPIs, and it requires a lot of specialized equipment. Expensive. The Cosa has some very unsavory characters in it, including loan sharks. Bloodthirsty ones who demand actual blood.

And then there are the long-standing problems that Ian has had with his sister Aden, problems that go way beyond sibling rivalry. Aden believes that only the Cosa Council should have the power to police and punish Council members who commit crimes. Ian knows the system is broken, that's why he started the PUPIs in the first place. Ian believes in that old principle from Spider-Man, "with great power comes great responsibility."

Aden thinks the Council is capable is watching over its members, and that no one else is fit to judge them, because the Council members are the most powerful Talent-users. Aden has forgotten the principle that "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." She's tried blackmail, she's tried boycott, she's tried a smear campaign. Nothing has stopped her brother. She resorts to finding people with even greater power than the Council, not thinking that anyone with that much power won't stop Ian with just a warning.

If someone wants PUPI stopped so badly that they will kill for it, then something truly evil must be coming. Bonnie and Ben need even greater help to save themselves and their friends from what Bonnie's sense of kenning sees in the future. But the price of enlisting the aid of Bonnie's friend Madame, the dragon who watches over New York, is very, very high.

Sometimes the myths are true.

Escape Rating A: There is a LOT going on in this story, and it all matters. It also ties into the original Retrievers series, with cameos from not just Wren Valere, but also her partner Sergei Didier and the demon P.B. (Someone really needs to make a P.B. plushie!)

The depth of the world having already been built really tells. Things feel solid. The reader knows who Founder Ben is, what Bonnie means about needing to top up her current, or why all the PUPs need to restock on food as much as they do. Current uses real energy. The interactions between Council and Lonejack and Fatae are already well-established.

And Ian Stosser is an idiot. He built up this entire organization, and then he continues to handle too many things as if he has no backup, and no responsibilities to anyone other than himself. I know the character is that way for a reason, and I still want to reach in and shake some sense into him. Idiot.

There's also some foreshadowing that old enemies from the earlier series are building for a comeback. This is not a good thing for Bonnie or her world, however excellent for the story. But I bet things are going to get darker before they get lighter again. I can't wait for the next book.

Soon, please?

Originally Published at Reading Reality