Release Day Review: Lake Silence by Anne Bishop

In this thrilling and suspenseful fantasy, set in the world of the New York Times bestselling Others series, Vicki DeVine and her lodger, the shapeshifter Aggie Crowe, stumble onto a dead body . . . and find themselves enmeshed in danger and dark secrets.

Human laws do not apply in the territory controlled by the Others–vampires, shapeshifters, and paranormal beings even more deadly. And this is a fact that humans should never, ever forget . . . 

After her divorce, Vicki DeVine took over a rustic resort near Lake Silence, in a human town that is not human controlled. Towns like Vicki’s have no distance from the Others, the dominant predators that rule most of the land and all of the water throughout the world. And when a place has no boundaries, you never really know what’s out there watching you.

Vicki was hoping to find a new career and a new life. But when her lodger, Aggie Crowe–one of the shapeshifting Others–discovers a dead body, Vicki finds trouble instead. The detectives want to pin the man’s death on her, despite the evidence that nothing human could have killed the victim. As Vicki and her friends search for answers, things get dangerous–and it’ll take everything they have to stay alive.

    

EXCERPT

Lake Silence
Chapter 1
Vicki
Moonsday, Juin 12

I wouldn’t have known about the dead man if I hadn’t walked into the kitchen at the exact moment my one-and-only lodger was about to warm up an eyeball in the wave-cooker.
Until that moment, I hadn’t known I had a scream that could crack glass; I hadn’t wondered if an eyeball would puff up and explode in a wave-cooker like those animal-shaped marshmallows; and I hadn’t realized my lodger—Agatha “call me Aggie” Crowe—was that kind of Crow.
She seemed so normal, if you overlooked her timely payment of the rent each week and the fact that she had taken up residence in The Jumble three weeks ago and seemed to be enjoying herself.
“You can’t eat that!” I tried to sound firm, like a responsible human and business owner should. In truth, I sounded a wee bit hysterical, and I wished with all sincerity that I had walked into the kitchen five minutes later.
Then again, since the kitchen was one of the common rooms in the main building, I could have walked in when Aggie was halfway through her lunch, which I’m sure would have been more distressing for at least one of us.
“Why can’t I eat it?” She looked at the eyeball rolling around in the small bowl that was now sitting on the counter. “Nobody else wants it. It’s starting to get squooshy. And the dead man doesn’t need it.”
The words got me past the physical evidence. “What dead man?”
“The one who doesn’t need the eyeball.” Little black feathers suddenly sprouted at her hairline, confirming the nature of my lodger. I was going to have to rework the rental agreement so that there was a space for unimportant bits of information like . . . oh, say . . . species.
“Where did you find the dead man?”
“On the farm track that runs alongside Crabby Man’s place.”
I should have pointed out that Mr. Milford wasn’t usually crabby, but he did get exercised when someone took one bite out of all the ripe strawberries or pinched fruit from his trees, since he and his wife needed the income they made from selling fresh fruit and homemade preserves. But there were other priorities.
“Show me.” I held up a hand. “Wait. And don’t nibble.”
“But . . .”
You can’t eat it. It could be evidence.”
Her dark eyes filled with reproach. “If I hadn’t wanted to warm it up because it was squooshy, you wouldn’t have known about the dead man and I could have had eyeball for lunch.”

Copyright © 2018 Anne Bishop.

**ARC provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review**

...they might have learned to mimic human behavior better than any other form of terra indigene, but they were, and always would be, predators. And human would always be their prey...

The Urban Fantasy genre has a very special place in my heart, and it's very difficult for me to find new ones that keep me interested. I started The Others series immediately after the first book Written in Red released in March 2013. I completely fell in love with the world Anne Bishop created. Everything fit perfectly together and I just couldn't get enough of it. It had multiple POVs, but it didn't matter because it was the only way the series could be told. It gave a perfect view into how all the different beings thought and (re)acted. It immediately became one of my favorite UF series. I couldn't wait to get my hands on the next books. So when the author announced that book five: Etched in Bone, would conclude Meg and Simon's story arc I was very sad but all good things must come to an end. 

When I saw that there would be a spin-off set in the same world I was over the moon. However, I did hope it would meet the epicness of the previous books. I shouldn't have doubted the author because it did meet every expectation I had for this book. I was sucked in right from the start and the new characters were all very intriguing and original. I felt a connection to them, and the mix between mystery and suspense was perfect. The main character, Vicki DeVine, is not someone you would usually find in the UF books, at least not as a main character. She has deep wounds that haven't healed yet, and it shows when she finds herself in very uncomfortable and horrible situations. She was a very refreshing and intriguing character. And all the side characters played a very important role as well. I especially LOVED Aggie Crowe–one of the shapeshifting Others.

The minds of the Others work in a completely different way, however they protect their own and have your back if they accept you into their circle. The Others were amazing and I loved how they handled things in this book. There was mystery, suspense, action, humor and so much more. I did not go into the plot because the blurb gives more than enough information. This book can be read as a stand-alone, however I would definitely recommend you read the previous books just to get an idea of the world Anne Bishop has created. Trust me, it is one of the most original and amazing worlds in the UF genre. So I really hope everyone (even readers who usually don't read Fantasy) give this series a chance.

New York Times bestselling author Anne Bishop is a winner of the William L. Crawford Memorial Fantasy Award, presented by the International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts, for The Black Jewels Trilogy. She is the author of the Novels of the Others series and The World of the Others series.

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