(As always this review is cross-posted from my blog)

This is an unusual Urban Fantasy story.  How is it unusual? Well while it is recognisably part of the genre it doesn’t use the usual suspects, or at least not by name.

There are no vampires or werewolves – at least not any obvious ones – and while several of the characters possess abilities which might be called magical I don’t recall once seeing the word witch or wizard. And the strange invisible hunting hounds are a really nice touch.

In other ways of course this is very much of the Urban Fantasy Genre. The protagonists are hunted by the antagonists because their strange gifts make them a danger to their plans. And of course a globe-spanning supernatural evil is threatening to erupt into the world.

The Good:

1. The writing is excellent and evocative so far (I’ve read as far as the end of the first ‘book’.)
2. Good Characterisation.
3. The antagonist is intelligent – and intelligent evil is awesome (in fiction anyway). Too often the bad guys in all types of fantasy are idiots, but this one actually thinks.
4. The plot is interesting – which is always important.
5. The site layout is clean and easy to navigate.
6. As always it’s free.

The Bad:

1. It’s currently on hiatus. This is why I haven’t started on book two yet, I’m waiting for the author to start posting again.
2. There was the occasional place where I caught myself skimming, so while the prose in general excellent (as I noted) it clearly failed to entice me in places. I’m afraid I can’t say why those bits that didn’t interest me as much failed though. It could be as ephemeral as personal taste, or it could be a symptom of a need for editing in places. On the upside these places were very few and far between.

Verdict:

I’m a big urban fantasy fan so maybe I’m a little biased, but I’d say that Nona Umbra is well worth a look. Go on – you’ve got nothing to lose.

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