[Mini-Review] First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones

Title: First Grave on the Right

Author: Darynda Jones

Series: Charley Davidson #1

Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy

Published: January 1st, 2011

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Format: Paperback, 338 pages.

First Grave on the Right is the smashing, award-winning debut novel that introduces Charley Davidson: part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper.
Charley sees dead people. That's right, she sees dead people. And it's her job to convince them to "go into the light." But when these very dead people have died under less than ideal circumstances (i.e., murder), sometimes they want Charley to bring the bad guys to justice. Complicating matters are the intensely hot dreams she's been having about an Entity who has been following her all her life...and it turns out he might not be dead after all. In fact, he might be something else entirely.
This is a thrilling debut novel from Darynda Jones, an exciting newcomer to the world of paranormal romantic suspense.
First Grave on the Right is the winner of the 2012 Rita Award for Best First Book.

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Review

My thoughts:

This was a great debut novel for the author. The main character, Charley, is as dynamic as it gets, the world is well thought out and the multiple plot lines are intertwined perfectly. 

I'd never read a book about the Grim Reaper before, but this one put it near the top of my most fascinating supernatural creatures list. 

The idea that the Grim Reaper is this unbelievably funny and sarcastic chick who barely knows what she's doing most of the time, works as a PI and has supernatural sex with a powerful, dark entity is just so out of the box that you wouldn't think it would work. But it does, amazingly. And there's a great balance between Charley's personal life, her Grim Reaper work, and her PI work, even when it all seems to come together rather abruptly. 

The secondary characters are interesting and full of quirks too, which makes this whole universe much more appealing and captivating. 

Overall, I think this a fantastic first installment for a promising series. 

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About the author

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier. As a born storyteller, she grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. She currently has two series with St. Martin's Press, the Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com.