Deadly Curiosities

When previously non-magical items purchased from Cassidy Kincaide’s antique shop start displaying dangerous powers, Cassidy and her assistant manager, Teag, must investigate before their shop’s specialty in supernatural items becomes public knowledge. Joined by Cassidy’s centuries-old vampiric business partner, Sorren, and local Voudon practitioner Lucinda, the shopkeepers are quickly swept up into a series of mysterious murders and danger much larger than any of the shop’s everyday business. Martin (the Ascendant Kingdoms saga) weaves together fact, fiction, and the supernatural to create a realistic underworld for modern Charleston, S.C. The sense of danger is very real, both in Cassidy’s psychometric visions and during physical attacks, but so is the sense of protection and safety Cassidy’s friends and guardians provide. A few loose threads leave the impression that this is the first of many adventures for Cassidy and her team, and a refreshing lack of interpersonal and sexual drama will appeal to longtime fans of paranormal mysteries. (July)