Joe Alberg is a good cop. He’s moved from the nasty desolation of Chicago’s inner city to the small mountain town of Northern Fork, in hopes of finding a place where people don’t indiscriminately shoot each other in drive-bys or stab their parents over a vial of crack. In fact, until he comes in contact with the D’Artagan family, most of his investigations have been in the vein of juvenile misadventures and beer-fueled redneck arguments.
The D’Artagans are not just any Virginia family, however, and neither is the crime which takes place at their centuries-old compound, Raven’s Winter. What makes the D’Artagans special? Well, just for starters, they are the cornerstone of a coven of witches – a coven that imported Raven’s Winter, block by block, all the way from Ireland. The Covenant, as they are known, has seen their share of tragedy in the past, in the form of the tragic murder of two of their own just a few years ago.
To make matters worse, the murders of Amerina D’Artagan and Richard Allgood were immediately followed by a brutal dog attack on a coven member – and the dogs belonged to Amerina and Richard’s daughter, Emily.
Now Emily is back in Northern Fork after spending six years at the College of William and Mary. When the Covenant gathers to welcome her home and celebrate Samhain at the same time, it doesn’t take long for death to return to Raven’s Winter. A Covenent member is killed, and the death looks suspiciously like the dog attack from years ago.
When Joe and his partner, Sammy Carr, are called upon to investigate, Joe finds himself increasingly drawn towards the mysterious Emily. His feelings for her are complicated by the casual relationship he has with another woman, and also by the bigotry and intolerance demonstrated by some of the townsfolks. After all, Joe’s a nice Jewish guy, and he’s lusting after a Pagan, which raises more than a few eyebrows in Northern Fork.
Dancing With Shadows combines mystery, mysticism, family secrets and some soft-core erotica. Well thought out, likeable characters, particularly Joe and his partner, Sammy, compliment the plot line nicely, making this novel a good overall read. Pajot has done a fine job of telling an intriguing story. The mixture of traditional Celtic lore and contemporary mystery work together beautifully.
While the tale itself is definitely appealing, there are two areas where Dancing With Shadows falls short. Because the residents of Raven’s Winter speak in an archaic pattern, there are sections in which the narrative appears in a prosaic style that is a little awkward to read. I suspect that this would probably sound beautiful and bard-like if spoken aloud, but reading it on paper was a bit difficult, and unfortunately, it detracted a bit from the readability of the book.
Another stumbling block is the frequent appearance of typographical and spelling errors. Because Xlibris is a print-on-demand press, authors are generally required to do their own editing and proofreading before sending in their final galleys for printing. Dancing With Shadows would probably have benefited from a going-over by a professional editor or proofreader to catch these small mistakes.
Don’t let these issues deter you, though, because on the whole, Dancing With Shadows is a completely engaging tale. A quick Google showed that Pajot has written two more books about the folks of Raven’s Winter, and I’d be intrigued to see how those compare to the first. Overall, I’d recommend giving Dancing With Shadows a try – the quality of the story itself makes it a decent read.
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