The Grendel Affair

The Grendel Affair (2013) Lisa Shearin

I came across this on a book blog–although I have absolutely no idea which one it was. It was an early review (the book was published on the last day of the year), and it looked intriguing, so I put it onto my wish list. A month or so later, I saw it had temporarily dropped in price, so I pre-ordered it, and New Year’s Day as I was looking for something to read I decided to give this a try.

I finished it that day.

Makenna Fraser is a Seer for SPI (Supernatural Protection & Investigations). She grew up in a small town filled with supernatural creatures and people living hidden in plain sight, in a town that drew them in. So when she moved to NYC, she wasn’t particularly surprised to find the supernatural. What did surprise her was that there was group dedicated to both helping the supernatural hide and protecting humans from some of the more unsavory creatures and people who would prey upon them.

I think her background is something I especially liked. She grew up knowing about the hidden supernatural but not about an agency dedicated to the supernatural.

I also liked that her powers were–not minor, because they weren’t small–but that they were passive. She could see things, but couldn’t use her magic to fight. That didn’t make her weak, but it was a nice change to have a heroine who was physically normal (so to speak) and had to live by her wits more than power.

Actually, I enjoy the same in heroes as well.

There was another aspect to her growing up in a small town that was well done as well. She had grown up with guns and target shooting etc but discovers that shooting in the country is very different from reacting in a real life situation.

Being able to clear a line of beer cans from an old washer would never save anyone’s life, and I’d never actually heard of a deer taking a hunter hostage and using him as a shield while being hoisted into a helicopter. So I could hit a target. Big deal. That didn’t teach me when to shoot, when to hold my fire; or if I did shoot, the why and how of that decision, a split-second choice that could mean life or death for another SPI agent, me, or a friend who was in the right place but at the worst time.

I’ve heard many many people say, “well, if she’d had a gun…” or “if I’d been in that situation…” but I don’t think most people could, in fact, react heroically in such situations. I believe that it takes lots of training to be able to act and react in such situations. So I really appreciated her reactions when she was placed in danger. She didn’t scream or faint or wait for a hero to rescue her, but she also had what felt like a real reaction.

So, I thoroughly enjoyed this story, and look forward to more books.
Rating: 8.5/10

Published by Ace

 
 

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