Kitty's Big Trouble

April 4, 2011
Vaughn delivers a solid ninth Kitty Norville adventure (after Kitty Goes to War) for the werewolf talk radio personality's faithful fans. The opening quest to prove that General Sherman was a werewolf proves little more than a perfunctory appetizer to the real plot. A powerful vampire summons Kitty to San Francisco to keep a powerful artifact out of the hands of returning villain Roman. As Kitty, hubby Ben, and Ben's cousin Cormac tangle with preternatural creatures and Chinese gods, Vaughn keeps a good balance between upping the ante and turning Kitty and company into caricatures of action heroes. This refreshing froth of light entertainment avoids werewolf dominance clichés and obvious racial stereotypes in favor of communication, action, and adorable old-married-couple sweetness.

May 15, 2011
Vaughn continues her winning streak of good storytelling in the ninth adventure of Denver radio talk-show host and werewolf Kitty. While trying to find evidence to support her theories about werewolves in history, Kitty, accompanied by mate Ben and vampire slayer Cormac, goes to a site where Wyatt Earp supposedly eradicated a community of vampires. There they discover that one of the undead, wearing an ancient coin as a sign of his fealty to the evil vampire Roman, is still a threat. Summoned to San Francisco by good vampire Anastasia, the trio travels through the treacherous labyrinth of tunnels below Chinatown, looking for a magical artifact. Kitty is a multidimensional character who loves Ben in both his human and wolf forms and is influenced by her inner wolf. Cormac becomes even more mysterious, especially when hes possessed by the ghost of a Victorian woman who performs magic. Throw in Chinese myth and folklore and Jackie Chanstyle fights, and this is entertaining fantasy and escapist fare.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)