chez_jae

Roadkill by Rob Thurman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I cracked and picked up Roadkill on Friday evening and finished it this morning. It's the fifth book in Rob Thurman's "Cal Leandros" urban fantasy series. Once again told in alternating first-person points of view, although this time, aside from Cal, there were some chapters written in Catcher's pov. Catcher is the werewolf cousin of healer Rafferty and he is stuck in his wolf form.

Cal is horrified and dismayed when his brother Niko agrees to meet with the Rom queen whose machinations nearly got Nik killed once before. It seems Abelia Roo needs a favor--someone has stolen a coffin from her clan, one that contains an anti-healer who makes the Pestilence version of the Four Horsemen seem like a mutton-bustin' toddler. Reluctantly, the brothers take the case, but it involves hitting the road to track down the thief who stole Suyolak, coffin and all. Coming along for the ride: Robin (whose main squeeze, Ishiah, wants him to try monogamy for a change), Salome (Robin's lethal, mummified cat), Delilah (Cal's main squeeze, who may or may not be planning to kill him), healer Rafferty (who saved Cal's life when Niko tried to kill him), and Catcher (Rafferty's all-wolf cousin). Only Promise (Niko's main squeeze) seems to have had the sense to sit this one out.

On a race against the clock, Cal and company are desperately trying to catch up to Suyolak. The seals on the coffin are failing, unleashing death and destruction in his wake. There are also some monsters to deal with along the way, not the least of which is Cal himself. The ease with which he can now open gates and travel through them is bringing his Auphe half to the fore, and as far as Cal is concerned, it feels good.

Mercy. Okay. To begin with, I can safely say this has been my least favorite book in the series so far. Fight scenes were not as prevalent, and I didn't like seeing Cal go off the rails. At his lowest point, he seriously contemplated killing his brother--the only person in the world he loves and trusts. I suppose that's what addiction can do to you, however, and Cal was definitely getting addicted to the high of being (half)Auphe. Catcher's pov seemed an odd choice, but it helped to get his perspective on his situation. He knew he was losing his human self to the wolf and that Rafferty couldn't fix him. In a way, it mirrored Cal's descent into his demonic half. This time, I really would have liked to get Niko's pov. What torture it must have been for him to see and feel Cal slipping through his fingers--the brother he's spent nearly his entire life protecting. It was a melancholy and at times depressing read. Rafferty was wallowing in self-recrimination as he blamed himself for Catcher's state, Robin was wallowing in woe as he sought to remain faithful to Ish, Niko was growing despondent as he watched Cal unravel, Catcher was fighting to hang on to his humanity for Rafferty, not for himself, while Cal (and Delilah to some extent) watched the world burn. I think only Salome had a good time.