In the House of the Wicked
by Thomas Sniegoski
$10.48 (paperback)
Roc (Penguin USA)
August 7, 2012
Review copy received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Plot Description:

Once he was known as the angel Remiel, but generations ago Boston PI Remy Chandler chose to renounce Heaven and live on Earth, where he found a secure place among us ordinary humans…

Though he may appear human, Remy has always been able to rely on Remiel—the embodiment of his angelic nature—whenever the situation called for it. But now his human and angelic natures are sharing the same space, and Remy can feel himself becoming more and more volatile, no matter how hard he tries to control it.

Then Ashlie Berg, a young woman who is like a daughter to him, vanishes without a trace. Dropping everything, Remy plunges into a frantic search for her, hoping all the while that her disappearance has nothing to do with him—or what he is.

But his hope is short-lived. A once-formidable sorcerer has taken her. The man wants vengeance against those he believes wronged him—and Remy will be the instrument of his wrath, or Ashlie will most certainly die…

Review:
The adventures of PI Remy Chandler, who willingly chose to leave Heaven and live on Earth, continue in the latest volume in his series, the aptly titled In the House of the Wicked. This time around, Remy Chandler unwittingly becomes manipulated into getting mixed up with some powerful sorcerer rivals, Konrad Deacon and Algernon Stears, who formed a dangerous cabal who, with the help of lessons from a powerful Fallen Angel centuries ago, created life-sucking golems who looked completely real, and which drew energy from the living in an almost Lovecraftian manner. The bait? Ashley, the daughter of a close family friend, who Deacon kidnaps to lure Chandler. Her safety is his chief concern, so he stops at nothing to find her, and when he does, he learns that Deacon has a nefarious plot in place for him.

It was nice to see Remy’s struggle with maintaining his human aspects amid the fire of the Seraphim that screams to be unleashed, as well as his relationship with Linda, who he got together with in the previous book in the series, a sign that he has moved on, although he still pays tribute to his late wife, Madeline, and definitely hasn’t forgotten her.

The villains, Konrad and Algernon, were great, both very believable and hate-worthy, particularly Algernon, who has teamed up with some Grigori, who taught sorcerers like him how to create artificial life and to animate Golems in the first place. They’re out to get Remy because he destroyed their leader, Sariel.

There’s even a cameo appearance by a special character Remy wasn’t expecting to meet, which will make the sequel even more interesting. I can’t wait to see the burgeoning war that’s coming, the battlefield looking like it’ll be Earth, but there will definitely be both Heaven and Hell involved. Overall, In the House of the Wicked is another great addition to the series, and Sniegoski makes it easy for anyone who hasn’t read the previous books in the series to jump right in and have no trouble following along, or very little trouble. He grounds the reader very well in the previous books of the series and even reminds readers who have been following all the way through that there are some important points to remember, which always helps.

As well, I also liked the fact that the curse word count went way up in this entry And I thought the use of the hobgoblin with the heart of gold, Squire, was very well done, and Ashley proved herself to be more characterized than just the standard “rescue me” damsel in distress.

For the urban fantasy reader in your life who has perhaps never tried the Remy Chandler series, this book makes a great gift, not to mention it’s a great recommendation for some wonderful, action-packed holiday reading.