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When Demons Walk is Patricia Briggs third novel and also the third in her loosely connected Sianim books. This is actually the most loosely connected of all as there are no recurring characters and it’s set in a different part of that world.

It’s also the most polished of the three books. As with her previous work, Briggs gives us a strong female lead character and pairs her up with an equally strong male character. The romance in this story is more of a background element than in previous books however. It’s there, but its more alluded to than focused on.

Sham is probably my favorite of Patricia Briggs heroines so far with her mixture of fire and self-doubt. Kerim makes for an appealing male lead too, managing to combine traditional romance hero features with a physical weakness that keeps Sham as the more active of the two.

The best thing about it though I think is that Briggs really seems to have found her style with this third book. The scenario which is a sort of fantasy/romance murder mystery. Steering completely clear of the world shaking, evil villain scenarios which she has previous used (and are after all a fantasy staple). This story which focuses mainly on character interaction seems to suit her much better. Another plus is that this time out the secondary characters are much better fleshed out. In particular Dickon and Talbot both develop distinct personalities as the story progresses.

All in all this was a really enjoyable read and I’m actually rather disappointed that Briggs chose not to explore the world of Sianim any further as I think there was plenty more opportunity for additional stories.

Buy When Demons Walk at Amazon

For more about this author see Authors I Enjoy - Patricia Briggs.