Publish and Perish

Bornikova (a pen name for lawyer and prolific author Melinda Snodgrass) takes a darker tone for indomitable New York attorney Linnet Ellery’s third paranormal outing (after 2013’s Box Office Poison). Linnet’s client and friend, Jolyon “Jolly” Brynce, has been wounded and is in a coma; meanwhile, Linnet must rescue her former lover John O’Shea from the land of the elven Álfar. After that, she realizes that her boss, vampire David Sullivan, is in love with her—though human-vampire relationships are forbidden—and quits the firm to go solo. Her first client is scientist Kenneth Zhèng, whose explosive research findings threaten the existence of vampires and werewolves and may also provide a clue to Linnet’s extraordinary luck in evading attacks from anything supernatural. Nefarious forces are interested in his research and its implications, and they’ll do anything to get to Kenneth—and Linnet. Bornikova connects the many threads of her story with ease, weaving a clever conspiracy tale with the best elements of urban fantasy. Linnet refuses to let the men around her dictate her next move and comes out of some truly terrifying situations with her spirit intact—a good thing, since she’ll need all her vim and vigor for the showdown promised in the next book. (Apr.)