Dhampir by Barb & J. C. Hendee
A few weeks ago I was browsing my local bookshop when I happened to notice a hardback book with a pretty cover. The two people on the cover and the dog which looked remarkably like a wolf, attracted me. So I ended up looking it up on the internet and discovered that the novel was book six in a series (as if I needed to start reading another series:) It had good reviews so in the end I went ahead and ordered the first novel and have not regretted it. The book is very well written and enjoyable. I finished reading it last night and just got the second novel in the series.
The novel involves a woman called Magiere, the Dhampir in the title, and her half-elf companion, Leesil, settling down in a village to retire but unfortunately her reputation as a vampire hunter follows her. The characters are rich and very well drawn. At first Magiere and Leesil don't appear in a very good light but as the novel progresses they became more likeable. The writers even manage to make the bad guys sympathetic which rather surprised me. I think though if anyone does decide to read it they should probably stay away from the reviews as some of them seem very spoilery. The notes on the cover describe the book as a cross between buffy the vampire slayer and lord of the rings, so if you liked both those then you'll probably like this as well. In fact the way I actually picture Leesil is rather like Orlando Bloom from Lord of the Rings.
I've been thinking that getting one of the Sony Readers may solve my storage problems, since I don't really have much room for all my books. Does anyone have one? Are they any good? Of course the ebooks themselves don't really seem to be much cheaper than the actual books (which I would have expected them to be). On the other hand I could try and go to the library and save myself a bit of money.