Laurell K Hamilton's Mistral's Kiss

The Crown Princess of Horror brings us another installment of her Merry Gentry series. Mistral's Kiss sees Merry release even more of the magic of the Wild Hunt. Hamilton's knowledge of Scottish and Irish mythology is prodigious, and the way she molds classic critters and faerie tales to the mythology of her story is genius. Merry's power grows with each new sidhe she brings into their own, and more of the enigmatic Goddess and her Consort is revealed. Especially tantalizing is the implication behind the God's resemblance to Doyle, or vice versa, and with Merry's private admission that she would--given the choice--prefer Doyle as her king, the reader feels all of the mixed emotion that she must. It would mean giving up the moody and beautiful Killing Frost, but it would also place on the throne the man with the most wit, strength, politically savvy, and loyalty to Meredith. ...Hamilton's knowledge of Scottish and Irish mythology is prodigious, and the way she molds ...faerie tales to the mythology of her story is genius... The transformation of Sholto from a tragically deformed "Creature" to the true king of Sluagh, fully self-possessed and proud of his "terrible beauty" was honestly inspiring. The return of even more powers to Merry's men hints that there are still things from the past that the older ones have not seen fit to share with the younger generation. Whether it is out of condescension, mourning for the loss, or a little of both, is not yet clear. The author seems to have abandoned any pretense of making each book stand on its own. While Mistral's Kiss is not exactly a cliffhanger, there is certainly a great deal of conflict left unresolved. Not the least of these are the interminable (and increasingly ubiquitous) attempts to get Princess Meredith pregnant, and thus secure the throne. Also unfortunately, (from my point of view) capitalism is clearly at work in both the Anita Blake and Merry Gentry series. The erotic scenes have steadily escalated with each installment of both series, and her popularity has apparently grown in proportion. Hamilton appears to have the vices of her virtues. Having such a talent for vivid visuals, and sublime sex scenes, she has exploited those to the nth degree. So much verbiage is spent on perfectly detailing every trickle of sweat, each drop of blood, each glowing ring of every tri-color iris, that the newer novels can be read in real-time: the events occur in less than one day of the character's time. Well, the only criticism that counts to an author is whether you buy her product or not. And truth be known, leaving the resolution of this engaging plot a mystery feels too much like cutting off my nose to spite my face. I may complain all the way to the counter, but in the end I'm too much of a Merry fan to stop following the series.