Heart of the Demon

A skillful blend of gritty urban fantasy and taut romantic suspense redeems this slightly flawed novel. Every 73 years, a rift briefly opens, allowing supernatural creatures to cross over and join human society. Then a rogue group of preternaturals gets hold of a machine that could keep the rift open indefinitely. The result will be chaos. Demon Finn Evnissyen, Lucifer’s son, and fey Keira O’Brien, Finn’s ex-lover, have been separately tasked with infiltrating the group and foiling its aims. Ex-grifter Keira has a mistake in her past she wants forgotten, while Finn is tired of being under his father’s demonic thumb. Mutual distrust doesn’t stop mutual passion from reigniting as they work toward their goal. Garner has created a fascinating world, ripe with conflict, drama, and sensuality. However, Keira’s neediness and insecurity overwhelm her strong, independent characteristics, and savvy readers will have no trouble figuring out the bad guy early on. Agent: Susan Ginsburg, Writers House. (Mar.)