Kirsten Reviews: Nevermore by Rob Thurman

Nevermore by Rob Thurman

Cal Leandros #10

People die.

Everyone knows that. I knew it intimately as everyone in my life died thanks to my one seemingly harmless mistake. I'd brought down Heaven, lifted up Hell, and set the world on fire, all due to one slip of the memory.

I forgot the pizzas...

Caliban is a dead man. The Vigil, a group devoted to concealing the paranormal from humanity, has decided Cal has stepped out of the shadows once too often, and death is the only sentence. They plan to send a supernatural assassin into the past to take down the younger, less lethal Cal.

But things change when The Vigil makes one last attempt on Caliban's life in the present—and end up destroying everyone and everything he cares about.

Now, Cal has to save himself, warn those closest to him, and kill every Vigil bastard who stole his world. But if he fails, he and everyone in his life will be history…

Nevermore by Rob Thurman is the tenth book in the Cal Leandros series, and as this one ends on a cliffhanger, readers are likely to be more than a bit impatient for the next installment, which is set to be released next year, and according to Thurman, is likely to be the final book in the series.

The Vigil has at last decided to pay Cal a visit, and they’re sparing no expense, or being in order to see that he’s disposed of before he does any more to expose humans to the supernatural. When the Vigil uses their most powerful weapons against him, Cal is the only one left alive, which gives him one of two options, those being killing himself, or finding some way of altering past events so that this never happens. Unsurprisingly, Cal chooses to stick it out and try to fix things, while pissing off anybody he can in the process. On top of this, the Vigil decided, to be thorough, that it would be wisest to travel back in time and kill Cal when he was 18, and therefore not yet strong enough to destroy them. That leaves Cal of the present day no other option than following the Vigil back in time, and trying to protect his 18 year old self, and his brother Niko from being killed.

The time travel plotline allows for a great bit of self reflection on Cal’s part, and he has the opportunity to see just how much he’s matured - and so does the audience. The younger Cal and Niko also get a taste of Cal’s fighting skills, which have also improved substantially in only a few years. Of course, sooner or later, Robin shows up, and as always he brings more than a little bit of trouble with him.

There are more than a few funny scenes between all the angst - among them when Cal tells Robin he’d sleep with him if there weren’t extenuating circumstances, this after Robin has medicated Cal so that he’ll slow down and rest after not having slept or eaten for several days.

Anyone who isn’t fond of time travel stories may find that aspect of the story a hassle, but there’s plenty of other aspects of the plot to enjoy, and the villain’s reveal would be more impressive if they had gotten more attention earlier in the book. All told, if this is the penultimate Cal Leandros book, then it’s set events and characters up for one hell of a final showdown.
(Received a copy from the publisher)

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     Errant Dreams
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Previous Books:
     1. Nightlife
     2. Moonshine
     3. Madhouse
     4. Deathwish
     5. Roadkill
     6. Blackout
     7. Doubletake
     8. Slashback
     9. Downfall