Death's Rival

I love Faith Hunter's books because each one raises the stakes (pun intended) a little higher. Death's Rival is the fifth book in this series, and I'm eagerly waiting for book six, Blood Trade, released on April 2, 2013. I recommend this entire series, and, although, you can pick up any Jane Yellowrock book to start, I urge you to go out and buy all five existing books and buy Blood Trade on April 2. If you're tired of vampire stories that romanticize the vampires, then Faith Hunter's series is for you.

"I'm Jane Yellowrock, and I used to kill vamps for a living. Until I started working for them. It wasn't easy money, and I'd dumped the contract with Leo Pellissier, the chief fanghead of the Southeastern U.S., when the retainer ran out."
p. 1, Death's Rival

At the age of twelve, Jane Yellowrock wandered out of the woods naked, unable to communicate, and without any memories of her former life. In her adult life, she knows she's a Skinwalker, the Cherokee version of a shapeshifter designated to protect the people, and she harbors the life of a mountain lion within her. The mountain lion, Beast, has her own thoughts and ideas, and Jane's pretty sure no other Skinwalker shared their body with another animal. Few people know she's a Skinwalker, and no one knows about Beast.

The combo of Jane and Beast makes an incredible fighting duo, but to say things aren't going well for Jane is an understatement. A plague-like disease has spread through the vampire community and the MOCs in the cities stricken with this disease have yielded their authority to an unknown vampire without following the rules of the Vampira Carta. Jane's guilt over losing several vampires and people on her watch plunges her back into the MOC's employ in order to find out who this mysterious master might be and where the disease came from.

And it gets worse. She has blood on her hands and the man she killed during her last contract is the key to all of Leo Pellisier's problems. Forget the fact that it was in self-defense. If Jane can't fix this, all of the vamps under the MOC of New Orleans' protection will die or become slaves to this unknown vampire. What that will do to the world, she shudders to think.

As Jane follows a trail to Sedona, Seattle, and back, she discovers dark secrets about her past and learns about the man who tried to annihilate her kind, the Skinwalkers.

For more about Faith check out her website.