Under Attack by Hannah Jayne

ORDER A COPY: Under Attack (Underworld Detective Agency)

Publisher: Kensington Publishing Company
Publishing Date:  November 1, 2011
Paperback: 322 Pages

Rating:  4.5 stars

She’s one of the Underworld Detection Agency’s best. But her job is really starting to bite . . . Sophie Lawson is a human immune to magic, which comes in handy for helping paranormal beings transition into everyday life. But fallen angel Alex Grace and his search for the Vessel of Souls is one curse she never saw coming. Suddenly an unexplainable string of killings and destruction has evenSan Francisco’s demons fearing for their immortal lives. And Sophie isn’t about to trust Alex’s all-too-vulnerable charm or his secret agenda. Now their hunt is revealing dangerous secrets about Sophie’s past, and a malevolent power hellishly close to turning one irreverent human into the ultimate supernatural weapon. . .

Sophie works for the Underworld Detection Agency along with her best friend and (vampire) roommate, Nina.  Sophie is quite surprised when her missing love and fallen angel, Alex Grace, pops back into town.   Alex wants Sophie’s help finding the Vessel of Souls.  If he can locate the Vessel, he can return to heaven and reclaim his wings.  Sophie will do anything to help Alex, even if it means losing him forever.

This was my first official “Urban Fantasy” book so maybe I don’t understand the genre.  I have noticed some not so flattering reviews of this story and personally I don’t understand it.  I thought the characters were so much fun that by page 21 I already downloaded the first book in the series, Under Wraps.  I spent this whole book either giggling or laughing out loud.  Sophie and her friends are a bunch of smartasses (my kind of people).    It was full of one liners and little zings. 

“Ooh, spooky.  A woman gets her coffee and then mysteriously leaves the coffee shop afterward.  How chillingly bizarre?”

“Remind me again why we’re friends?”  I asked.

“Because I pay half the rent and you can’t kill me.”  Nina grinned, her fangs pressed against her lower lip.  “So what happened after that?  Oh, let me guess – you found Excalibur in your blueberry scone?”

“Fine.  Then I won’t tell you that I ran into a hot fireman.”

Nina dropped her pen and her eyes went big and round.  I thought I saw a bit of drool at the side of her mouth.  “A fireman?  Really?”  Her eyes narrowed.  “I love fireman.  They taste so smoky and good.”

From the cover of the book I thought Sophie was an Agent/Cop for the Underworld Detection Agency.  She’s not.  She’s a clerk but that does lead to many interesting conversations with several of the supernaturals in need of assistance.

…processing the last demon request—a notice of intention to cease terror—offered by a fanged creature with an unfortunate underbite.

“You understand that by giving up your right to terrify, you are also giving up all under-bed, dark-corner, and closet access?”  I mumbled.

“I just don’t want to be the boogyman anymore.  I’m hoping to get this underbite worked on and I can’t get a dentist to even look at me without a cease notice.”

My one complaint is that Sophie cries a lot in this book.  She did have a lot of issues to deal with, and she was getting her ass kicked a lot.  Since she is only human, I am sure it hurt.  So I took off ½ a star for too many crying  jags.  Man up, Sophie, you’re making the humans look bad.

Again, maybe I do not understand the genre of Urban Fantasy.  It certainly was no Lord of the Rings adventure.  But it was a very entertaining and quick moving story with delightful and enjoyable characters.  It was so much fun to read!  I can’t wait for the next story coming out in May 2012.

Received copy courtesy of Kensington Books. Thank you!

Favorite Scene:

Alex and I shared some steamy moments and every glance or touch of his skin electrified me.  This moment was no exception—but he was bad news.  Fallen angels always are.  And his whole disappearing/reappearing thing really got on my last nerve.

And then I realized I was naked.

I sunk lower into the water, pushing the bubbles over my girly bits and glowering at Alex who looked at me, that obnoxious, adorable half-smile still playing on his lips.  He helped himself to a cookie.

What are you doing here?”  I snapped.

He chewed thoughtfully.  “I needed to talk to you.”

“I have a phone.  Or an e-mail address. Or, hell, a carrier pigeon.  Do you always have to show up in the bathroom?”

“I needed your undivided attention.”

I raised an annoyed brow.  “Or you needed a naked-lady fix.  And did you lose your ability to knock along with your wings?”

He grinned, took a swig of my wineglass. “Ooh.”  His blue eyes looked up, raked the ceiling.  “Is that an oh-eight?  It’s buttery.”

“Get out!”  I screamed, pointed a sopping bubble-laden arm at the bathroom door.  “I’m not going to talk to you while I’m naked.”

Alex’s grin widened. “So you are naked…?”

“I’m in the bathtub,”  I snarled.  “What did you expect?”  I was sitting forward now and vaguely aware of the cool air touching my breasts.  I hunkered down in the water again.  “You’re a pervert.”

Alex shrugged, finished my wine, and poured himself some more.  “Hey, I’m no angel.”