Wrong Side of Hell

This was fabulous! I can't wait to read the rest of the books. Great start to a fantasy series.

Urban Fantasy is a bit like fast food. While it isn’t haute cuisine, it is fast, and if well done can be quite tasty. Sonya Bateman isn’t the next Neil Gaiman, but she is a good storyteller, able to put a slightly different twist on the human vs other scenario.

One nice difference is that she uses a male lead. Gideon has an amiable nature and an easy charm that keeps him from coming across too powerful. He is also clever, but pleasantly lacking ego. Also unlike the female leads in many urban fantasies, he does not have a harem of potential mates. All of this makes it easier to focus on the story. Various supernatural creatures have long been hunted by Milus Dei, a cult whose influence is wide reaching. Gideon is of interest because of his newly awakened ability to speak to the dead. His ability draws him into the conflict.

The story is pretty straightforward, but is nicely done. The writing is also quite professional. If you like urban fantasy, Wrong Side of Hell is a good choice, a pleasant change from the vast quantity of mediocre choices. It may not be great literature, but it is a fun read.

4/5

I received a copy of Wrong Side of Hell from the publisher and netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

—Crittermom
(10/11/16)

Gideon Black has lived a tough life so he finds ferrying dead people around Manhattan and living in his van to be his version of Paradise. And, if he can somehow figure out what happens to those dead bodies sometimes and helps the police, well, that’s not too weird and no one is getting hurt. One day, his whole worldview changes when he rescues a werewolf and the dead actually do start talking to him. Not only does he come to find out there are paranormal creatures living among humans, he is one of them. But those aren’t the only secrets revealed. There is an old faction called Milus Dei that know about the Others and want all Others eliminated. To further that end, they kidnap and torture Others to find a way to eliminate them. And, because he finally came into his heritage, Gideon now holds the key to getting rid of the Others once and for all. Will he be their latest victim, or can he be the Others key to getting rid of Milus Dei?

Urban fantasy is my favorite genre with some of favorite authors being Jim Butcher, David Coe, Jim C. Hines, and Kelley Armstrong, just to name a few in a very long list. I am always looking for new authors to fill the holes while I wait for these authors’ new books. Now, I have a new name to add to my list. This book was excellent. The plot moved along at a swift pace, the characters were well-drawn and interesting, and the book was very well written. The action was non-stop, but not so furiously paced that you felt you couldn’t keep up. And, in case you like a little romance thrown in, this book has the makings of one in future installments. The book really kept my attention from the beginning to the end, and I will definitely read the rest in the series. In fact, if I didn’t have other books I needed to review, I’d read them all right now. If you, too, need a new author of urban fantasy to fill the void while waiting on your favorite author’s new book, try this one. You won’t regret it. Highly recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley and Sonya Bateman/Red Adept Publishing for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review. This same review will be posted on both Goodreads and Amazon.

Engrossing supernatural story. Humor, drama and thrills. Sonya Bateman guides you through the supernatural world where nothing, and no one is quite what they seem. From werewolves in Central Park to Milus Dei in the ranks of government. What seemed like a life saving decision to Gideon's brother was Hell on Earth for Gideon. Finding his niche in carting around the dead, Gideon soon discovers that the dead still have something to say. The Boogeyman kinda creeped me out but he's supposed to do that. Gideon refuses to give up or give in to Milus Dei. Glad to know that this only the first in the series because this book was seriously addictive.

I really quite enjoyed this. I found it a fun, action-packed romp through NYC's paranormal population. Now, I also found it unrealistic, in that a group of seven took on an almost limitless enemy organization but, well, that's part of the fun isn't it? Who doesn't love rooting for the underdog?

I though Gideon an interesting character and I liked his narrative voice quite a lot. Similarly, I liked the side characters, though I thought some of them could have been a little more fleshed out and the villainous cult they pitted themselves against could have done with a bit more depth. They felt evil for the sake of evil, instead of dedicated to a cause. All in all, however, I will happily read more of Bateman's books.

Received a copy from Netgalley for an honest review. Gideon, saved by his fae full blood brother at his birth, has no idea what he is. Working as a body mover for the police, he saves a woman from the police. When the man aims the gun at him and says,"no witnesses", she changes into a werewolf and kills him. On the run from hunters who want all "others" dead, he is told he's deathspeaker, he can speak to the dead, and they can't lie to him. Great story, lots of action, no sex.

An interesting start to a new series. The action and the characters along with the writing of course, really kept me turning the page to see what happens next. So many times these types of books are from the female point of view, so it was a good twist to take it from the man's POV instead. Definitely look forward to reading more of this series, and found myself a new author, that I will look for again. Highly recommend this book.

This is an urban fantasy. No cliffhanger, no sex, lots of violence but nothing overly descriptive. It's part of a series and there isn't exactly a HEA, but everybody lives so that's a plus.

This story was pretty straight forward. It wasn't hard to figure out the players and the plot was simple enough. The whole story was an adventure - kind of a death at every turn kind of adventure. This world focused on the OtherWorld. Gideon is the main character and though he is clueless to begin with, it was a sink or swim sort of scenario. If he didn't figure out the puzzle, he was dead.

The secondary characters were ok. They were put together well enough, but I did have a tough time picturing them. I liked the story and it wasn't complicated. If you want a good book that is 98% action and adventure, this story would be right up your alley.

Stars: 4 out of 5

What a fun fast read it's been!

Gideon Black is a body mover, which means he is the person who chauffeurs the dead from hospitals to funerary homes, or from crime scenes to the morgue. He works nights, lives out of his van, and prefers the company of dead people to the company of the living. At least, the dead don't talk back… until one night the corpse of the cop he killed does exactly that. And after that things go from bad to worse for Gideon.

I liked how fast-paced and easy to read this book is. The action starts on page one and doesn't let go until the very end. Gideon is thrown head first into this new dangerous reality where fae and werewolves and boogeymen are real and are hunted down like vermin by a powerful organization called Milus Dei. Moreover, he discovers that he isn't who he thought he was and that his family (who are awful people by the way) isn't his real family. Oh, and Milus Dei wants him at all costs because he is the DeathSpeaker.

A lot to process in such a short time you would say? You would be right. And it's even harder to come to terms with this when your life suddenly becomes one nightmarish race for survival.

I must say that I like Gideon a lot as the protagonist. He has a sense of humor, even if it's gallows humor most of the time, and he doesn't sit and mope around when life throws him a curve ball. I like how he simply refuses to give up, no matter how many times he is beaten down. He just gets up, dusts himself off and keeps going, or crawls forward if he can't walk anymore. I also love that his resilience is explained by his backstory and well-woven into the plot. He comes from a family where weakness wasn't tolerated. He'd lived through terrible abuse and had learned to grit his teeth and ignore the pain, and grin at the face of the enemy through bloodied lips and broken teeth. So even though his upbringing was horrible, he wouldn’t have survived this story if it had been any different. I love it when a tragic backstory isn't just thrown into the book for character angst but is a driving force shaping his actions.

As I had mentioned before, it was a fast read… a bit too fast for my taste actually. This is the first book in a new series, and as such, it has to establish the world and the characters and make us want to follow along. In my opinion, the book did well on the last two, but not so much on the first one. We get almost no worldbuilding at all. All we learn is that there are the Others, who include fae, werewolves, boogeymen (excuse me, boogeypersons, let's be politically correct here) and some other unidentified supernaturals, and there is the Milus Dei - a human organization dedicated solely to the destruction of the Others… And that's it.

How did the Others end up in our world? How did the Milus Dei come to be? Why do they hate each other so much? Why does Abe trust Gideon so much that he is willing to cover up for him even when his direct superior gives him the order to arrest him? Who are the boogeypeople? We've only seen one so far and he seems more powerful than even a fae noble. Are there more? How didn't they take over the world yet if they possess such power? Not to mention that we get almost no backstory on any of the characters apart from Gideon and Taeral and maybe Sadie. It raises so many questions and gives no answers at all.

So while this book is a fast and fun read, it leaves you with the impression that you just ran in a dead sprint through a glass tunnel that allowed you very small and unsatisfying glimpses into what seems like a rather interesting world. I wanted to slow down and have a better look, but the story wouldn't let me.

But all in all, I admit that the book accomplished its purpose - I want to read the next one in the series. I just hope that we would slow down a bit and get a chance to learn more about this world and the characters.

PS. I received and advanced reader copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Gideon Black is transports dead bodies to the morgues and funeral homes as necessary. He becomes involved in transporting dead bodies from a what seems to be a serial killer. He is drawn into a world where there are werewolves and the fae. Apparently he is half fae and was exchanged for a human child to hide him. His human family are quite vicious and he has run from them for years. Meanwhile it seems Milus Dei (a fae) is looking for him and his unevolved powers.

This was a quick read and I was drawn into the world very quickly. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

A quick, fun read that kept my interest and will definitely have me reading more from this author.