Up from the Grave

Emotional stakes and body counts are high in Frost's exciting and dramatic seventh Night Huntress novel (after This Side of the Grave). Vampire spouses Cat and Bones have faced multiple threats in their world of secret government organizations, ghouls, ghosts, and demons. Cat's special abilities stemming from her half-vampire origin nearly sparked an interspecies war. Now four of her former fellow agents have been reported killed in action. When Cat and Bones and their team search for the missing agents, they make a stunning discovery: CIA agent James Madigan has betrayed them and is now engaging in genetic experimentation with a terrifying agenda. Significant figures from the past books and companion stories play key roles. Leavened with strong emotion and dark humor, and featuring superior writing as well as a thoughtfully structured plot, Cat and Bones's final adventure is appropriately splendid and satisfying. Agent: Nancy Yost, Nancy Yost Literary Agency. (Feb.)