A Devil in the Details - A Jesse James Dawson Novel

Informationen zum Autor K. A. Stewart  is the author of the Jesse James Dawson urban fantasy series. She has a BA in English with an emphasis in literature from William Jewell College. She lives in Missouri with her husband, daughter, one cat, and one small furry demon that thinks it’s a cat. Klappentext View our feature on K.A. Stewarts's A Devil in the Details. When it comes to demons! always read the find print. Jesse James Dawson was an ordinary guy (well! an ordinary guy with a black belt in karate) until one day he learned his brother had made a bargain with a demon! Jesse discovered there was only one way to save his brother: put up his own soul as collateral! and fight the demon to the death. Jesse lived to free his brother-and became part of a loose organization of Champions who put their own souls on the line to help those who get in over their heads with demons. But now experienced Champions are losing battles at a much higher rate than usual. Someone has changed the game. And if Jesse can't figure out the new rules! his next battle may be his last... There’s a certain sound the human head makes when it hits the trunk of a tree. Meatier than a “crack”; not quite as hollow as a “thunk”—it’s unmistakable. And when it’s my head, I tend to take offense. I leaned against said tree and glared at my opponent until my double vision returned to single and the world swam back into focus. “That one’s gonna cost you, Crabby.” If looks could kill . . . well, first off, my life would be a lot easier. On the other side of the clearing, what looked to be a mutant crab-scorpion crossbreed rattled and hissed at me in annoyance as it tried to wipe the thrown dirt out of its stalky eyes. The silver light gleamed off its knobby black shell, giving it a metallic sheen. Its right pincer, large enough to neatly sever my thigh, clicked and clacked loudly. A drop of venom hovered at the tip of its thick segmented tail, the dangerous appendage arching high over its back and weaving like a snake in thrall. Taking a deep breath, I tossed my thick braid back over my shoulder, out of reach of grasping nasty things, and adjusted my grip on my sword. My breath and the cold night air combined to create frost in my beard, and I wiped it away with my free hand, flinging aside the pellets of ice. The crab creature got its vision cleared and gave a threatening stab of its tail in my direction. Now, I’m a believer in the power of positive thinking, but do you ever just have a sneaking suspicion you’re not winning? The distant whump-whump-whump of a helicopter broke the silence as it patrolled the camp’s perimeter and kept the paparazzi and innocent bystanders at bay. Any sane person or animal had long since fled the chill and the noise, which left just me and my definitely questionable grip on reality. The full moon was up in the sky somewhere, casting the world in blue-white serenity, while down here under the tree canopy I did the tango with . . . that. What I had here was a class two Scuttle demon, the category so named (by me) for the way they . . . well . . . scuttled. Only one rung up from primordial ooze on the demonic ladder, most times they were easily confused and taunted into carelessness. None of them would ever be a candidate for Mensa. Lack of intelligence didn’t mean lack of speed, however, or lack of armor. I was having a helluva time getting past that thick carapace. My blade already held quite a few nasty nicks from the attempts. Marty was going to kill me for hurting one of his precious swords. Still, the crab-demon had a few wounds. Intangible dark energy, which passed for blood amongst demonkind, slithered across the forest floor with eerie sentience, coalescing into a ball of black nothingness behind the creature. I’d heard that essence called voidblood, nether-essence, or some other poetic-sounding crap. To me, it was just blight...

Product details

• Authors: K A Stewart, K. A. Stewart
• Publisher: Ace Books
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback
• Released: 06.07.2010
• EAN: 9780451463432
• ISBN: 978-0-451-46343-2
• No. of pages: 320
• Dimensions: 107 mm x 170 mm x 21 mm
• Series: Jesse Dawson; Jesse Dawson; Roc Fantasy
• Subject: Fiction > Science fiction, fantasy