42.
Author: Kim Harrison
Title: Black Magic Sanction
Publication: Hard back
Pages: 487 pages
Genre: Horror
Acquisition: Purchased February 23, 2010
Date Completed: May 22, 2010
Rating: 3 stars out of 5

I found it very difficult to invest myself in the latest Hollows book, Black Magic Sanction; although I purchased (and began reading) the book when it was first published in February, it has taken me until late May to finish my reading. Why? Because I found the first three hundred (plus) pages exhausting.

The narrative runs readers in circles. Rachel is dealing with the same problems time and time again, and never gains any grounds. The story itself jerks the reader from one place to another to another, and very little is actually accomplished or developed. Characters pop in and out seemingly at random, with very little rhyme or reason.

The most irritating aspect of this book is that Rachel herself has become stagnant. She's swamped by the same emotional and social difficulties that are introduced early in the series, and her inability to progress is the most exhausting aspect of the narrative.

However, a major character shift takes place around page 330 or so, and development truly begins. The final 160 pages move quickly, and Rachel herself seems to come alive again. Progress takes place in typical Harrison fashion, and the conclusion of the story is as successful as the beginning is tedious.