Muddy Waters (Otherwhere #1)

I really enjoyed this book, the main character Tessa is very easy to like and connect with straight away.I loved her sense of fun and her love of bourbon,good brand by the way! and her cat and her way of looking at the world,and what a world , this writer isn't short of imagination.I loved all the different types of people human and most definitely not human,like the old vampire not at all as vamps are portrayed on film.The pace of the book and the story was really good as well.All in all a cracking read , fun and enjoyable, not just for the intended YA group either, I am far from that and didn't feel the book was too young for me, I look forward to reading more by this author .Thanks to Netgalley and The Publisher for an ARC in return for an honest review.

What a fun urban fantasy! The protagonist Tess is released by the FBI from a mental institution after being there for five years for being accused of murdering her entire family. But she was framed. So she works supernatural cases for the FBI while trying to find who killer her family and framed her. There were a few things I didn't understand, like how religion works after the Rift (or that the author poked fun at certain religious groups), but otherwise it was an enjoyable read. I especially liked the Otherwhere scenes. And of course, the dark elf Qull. Would've loved to see more of him. I can't wait to see what happens next.

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A rollicking fun read! Thompson has created an intriguing world where magic, humans, and paranormal entities all co-exist on Earth and also on "Otherwhere" - an alternate dimension from which all supernatural powers originate.

Main character Tessa Riddick (a witch wrongly accused of killing her entire family) teams up with Dark Elf Qyll Toutant of the FBI's Supernormal Investigations Department to solve a string of murders targeting "supernormals." Romantic tension crackles between the two. During their investigation, they run into plenty of obstacles - not the least of whom is the Holly King (basically a super-sexy Santa figure brimming with magical powers. HELLO, Santa!).

Thompson's cast of characters is unique and fascinating, and I'm happy to know that I'll learn more about them in the sequel. Muddy Waters has a very satisfying ending but is also a great introduction to a series. Looking forward to the next Otherwhere novel!

Loved Tessa as a main character, interesting, fun and completely relatable. Plot was really interesting, subplots cropping up and loved the final twist because I was not expecting that at all after what had happened. The world-building was something I really enjoyed, although it could turn into an info-dump at times (Tessa and Qyll at the very start of the novel where Tessa explains about the rift to Qyll was a pretty obvious example). Qyll was also a fairly bland character, who was delayed to crucial plot points in order to give Tessa time to shine. I never really got a sense of him as a character at all.
Did enjoy the book and would be interested in a sequel, mostly for the interesting world-buidling.

What a great read! This novel pushed all of the right buttons for me and urban fantasy. Quickly paced, complicated heroine, great dialogue. Plus I loved the alternate version of Louisville (my brother lives there).

One thing that really made the book stand out was the inclusion of the history, newspaper bits, and quotes at the beginning of each chapter. It gave a good peek into this story's alternate timeline. The police procedural bits reminded me of earlier examples of paranormal / urban fantasy (early Anita Blake, for example) and this definitely was a plus for me. I loved it and look forward to reading more from this writer.