With it being almost Halloween, I have been craving some paranormal stories. When I saw this ARC, I was instantly interested. This is available as a Read Now option on Netgalley, so I grabbed it immediately. I am not familiar with this author, so I was not sure what to expect. Luckily, he writes well and I enjoyed this more than I hoped.

Sully is a powerfully witch that works for the IBI (Imperial Bureau of investigation) for the British Empire. It is her job to deal with the worst paranormal attacks in the American colonies. When a string of mass murders continues to happen, it is up to Sully find and stop the killer. But soon Sully realizes she may be dealing with a magic never seen before. Can Sully crack the case before it is too late?

This book has a ton of supernaturals which I loved. Witches, vamps, skin walkers, demons, it was a great mix and they fit into this world in ways you would not expect. For one, vampires are considered very lowly. They are banished, killed, hunted and at best ignored, pending what part of the world you are in. Humans know they are living with things that go bump in the night but the witches and other magic users keep them in line. I really got immersed in this world and thought it was well done. I don’t remember ever quite reading a book like this before, and considering all the paranormal books I have read, I’m pretty impressed.

Sully has to be the biggest badass witch I have ever read about. I just loved her character. She is awesomely powerful but she is not invincible. I liked that even with all her power, her life was still on the line, it made the story more exciting.

There is not really a romance in this book. Sully’s ex-girlfriend is still in the picture. They have a very complicate relationship after her ex left her at the aisle for a man. Now that Sully’s ex has “changed” they are back in each other’s life. Feelings are still involved but hurts run deep, will they be able work it out? I do have to mention one small complaint; we don’t know why Sully’s ex “changed”. It is glossed over but never explained, I hope if there is a sequel, we can find out why and how it happened.

This book had a ton of paranormal action, and I ate it up. I also liked how the mystery of who the killer was evolved. Talk about a big twist. I did not ever expect who was behind all the killing. I loved how the story played out, thought it was great. This book absolutely leaves an opening for a sequel. It does not end on a cliffhanger, but you want and need to know what happens to Sully next.

I am pleasantly surprised and happy how much I enjoyed this book. I easily recommend it to paranormal and urban fantasy fans. Also, there is a giveaway for this book until Nov 20, if you are in the USA. Penman, if you are reading this review, please write a book 2. I don’t want this story to be over and I need more with Sully.

An ARC was given to me by Netgalley, for a honest review.

The Year of the Knife is by G D Penman - who I assumed was going to be a woman, but actually is a bloke with a very impressive beard. It's a joyful romp - one to pick up in the middle of the night when you're worried about something, or to read in a waiting room - enough action to engage, but a sense of being in safe hands.

Sully is the protagonist. She's great. A tough woman doing a man's job in a man's world. Its alternative reality time - a version of our world, where magic is real, organised, and built in to the system; the British Empire is alive and well and keeping its boot on the throat of all those pesky foreigners; Europe is cut off because of severe Demon infestation, and sexism is alive and well. Even more alive and well than in our reality. Sully works for the IBI (Imperial, not Federal...) and she has magic in her very bones.

Now, I like a bit of supernatural policing (Rivers of London! John Connolly!!) and I like an alternate reality, but I wasn't sure if this was going to work. It did coax me in, though, and once there I stuck with it for the ride. Like I said, it's a romp, there's some real humour in there, and it has a few jabs at prejudice and racism (always satisfying). There were some moments of violence that I might have found disturbing if we hadn't been galloping on to the next scene. And I will never look a macaws in quite the same way again. 

I'm wondering if he's left room to make this the start of a series? The ending felt like it had the potential to be the beginning of something new.