I feel like a complete idiot. When my book came out last April, I completely forgot to post about it here. IN MY OWN URBAN FANTASY COMM! Epicfail!

For Denver Sinclair, long-time conman, gambler, and recently-made vampire, there were worse things than sleeping late next to the woman you love, except when it’s close to dawn and the world is crashing down around you. Denver and his partner in crime, Lily Fong, are caught between hellfire and destruction as the Great San Francisco Earthquake of 1906 turns his carefully built life upside down.

He and Lily were so close to freedom from Denver’s Mistress, the cunning and cruel Lady Xue Ying. He’d gambled, stole and smuggled for Xue Ying, holding back a little with each con until he had enough to run far from Xue Ying’s influence, taking Lily with him. Just one more dirty deal on the Barbary Coast, and he could leave San Francisco…and Xue Ying… behind.

It was a dangerous con. The greatest con he would have ever pulled. Despite controlling most of San Francisco’s opium and shanghai trade, Xue Ying longed for more. Her capricious appetites and furious temper meant one thing for Denver; that she would never let him go. As far as Xue Ying is concerned, she’s owned Denver body and soul since long before the night she forced her blood on him and turned him into a vampire.

He had hopes Lady Xue Ying didn’t survive the Earthquake but Denver wasn’t taking any chances. He would take Lily and make a run for it, praying to the God he’d forsaken that they’d make it. With the US Army imploding the city around them and ravenous flesh-hungry ghouls plaguing their every step, Denver and Lily race through the ruined city for the promise of their new life together.

Still, Denver wonders if he’s finally run out of luck and drawn the dead man’s hand.

Dead Man's Hand on Kindle
Dead Man's Hand on Smashwords

The Paperback edition should be out this summer. I'll give a free ebook edition to the first 2 people to reply to this post. But if you take a free copy, you have to promise to write a review for Amazon, Goodreads and Smashwords for me - whether you like the book or not. . This giveaway is done, but there will be another next month.

Please spread the word about Dead Man's Hand.

Here are the reviews posted during April. Please note, this is not a comprehensive list of books I read in April, but rather the books I had the time to review before month's end.

1) Elizabeth Bear: Grail: Worth Reading, with Reservations
2) Maggie Stiefvater: The Scorpio Races: Excellent
3) Bill Willingham: Fables: Deluxe Edition: Book 1: Good Read
4) Sean Stewart: Mockingbird: Couldn't Put It Down
5) Patricia Briggs: River Marked: Good Read
6) Octavia E. Butler: Bloodchild and Other Stories: Couldn't Put It Down
7) John Green: The Fault in Our Stars: Couldn't Put It Down
8) Bill Willingham: Fables: Deluxe Edition: Book 2: Couldn't Put It Down
9) Kenneth Oppel: This Dark Endeavor: It's a Gamble
10) Lois McMaster Bujold: Paladin of Souls: Couldn't Put It Down
11) Ann Aguirre: Devil's Punch: Good Read
12) Bill Willingham: Fables: Deluxe Edition: Book 3: Good Read
13) Kit Whitfiled: In Great Waters: Good Read

As always, comments and discussion are most welcome. :)

Here are the reviews posted during March. Please note, this is not a comprehensive list of books I read in March, but rather the books I had the time to review before month's end.

1) Grant Morrison: Joe the Barbarian: Couldn't Put It Down
2) Mark Budz: Idolon: Worth Reading, with Reservations
3) Maria V. Snyder: Touch of Power: Worth Reading, with Reservations
4) Gail Carriger: Timeless: Couldn't Put It Down
5) Rebecca Guay: A Flight of Angels: Good Read
6) Elizabeth Bear: Chill: Worth Reading, with Reservations
7) Martha Wells: The Cloud Roads: Good Read
8) Margo Lanagan: Black Juice: Worth Reading, with Reservations
9) Seanan McGuire: Discount Armageddon: Couldn't Put It Down
10) Rick Yancey: The Monstrumologist: Good Read
11) Nick Spencer: Morning Glories: Deluxe Collection: Volume 1: Couldn't Put It Down

As always, comments and discussion are most welcome. :)

Seeking: Recommendations for Urban Fantasy written by male authors and preferably featuring a male lead character. Bonus points for non-caucasian characters.

Urban Fantasy is my comfort genre of choice but I'd like to break away from the overabundance of caucasian female characters and authors on my bookshelf.

Crossposted to bookish


Update:
I compiled a list of books I may be interested in reading based on everyone's recommendations as well as this list from Tor. I'm sharing my list here in case anyone else is interested.

Aaronovitch, Ben: Rivers of London aka Midnight Riot (Peter Grant, #1)
Acevedo, Mario: The Nymphos of Rocky Flats (Felix Gomez, #1)
Adams, Douglas: Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (Dirk Gently, #1)
Butcher, Jim: Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1)
Carey, Mike: The Devil You Know (Felix Castor, #1)
Connolly, Harry: Child of Fire (Twenty Palaces, #1)
Franco, Mark del: Unshapely Things (Connor Grey, #1)
Gaiman, Neil: American Gods & Anansi Boys
Gaiman, Neil: Good Omens
Gaiman, Neil: Neverwhere
Gaiman, Neil: The Sandman
Green, Simon R.: Something from the Nightside (Nightside, #1)
Green, Simon R.: The Man With the Golden Torc (Secret Histories, #1)
Griffith, Clay: The Greyfriar (Vampire Empire, #1)
Gustainis, Justin: Black Magic Woman (Quincey Morris, #1)
Hearne, Kevin: Hounded (Iron Druid Chronicles, #1)
Kadrey, Richard: Sandman Slim (Sandman Slim, #1)
Lint, Charles de: Dreams Underfoot: The Newford Collection
Lint, Charles de: Someplace to be Flying (Newford series)
Lukyanenko, Sergei: Night Watch (Watch, #1)
McCullough, Kelly: WebMage (WebMage, #1)
Miéville, China: Perdido Street Station (New Crobuzon, #1)
Moore, Christopher: A Dirty Job
Moore, Christopher: Bloodsucking Fiends (A Love Story, #1)
Peters, S.M.: Whitechapel Gods
Sniegoski, Thomas E.: A Kiss Before the Apocalypse (Remy Chandler, #1)

Here are the reviews posted during February. Please note, this is not a comprehensive list of books I read in February, but rather the books I had the time to review before month's end.

1) Charles Yu: How to Live Safely in a Science Fiction Universe: Excellent
2) Catherine Asaro: The Radiant Seas: It's a Gamble
3) Nnedi Okorafor: Akata Witch: Good Read
4) Justina Robson: Silver Screen: Good Read
5) Daniel O'Malley: The Rook: Worth Reading, with Reservations
6) Catherine Asaro: Ascendant Sun: It's a Gamble
7) Catherynne M. Valente: The Folded World: Good Read
8) Karen Lord: Redemption in Indigo: Excellent

As always, comments and discussion are most welcome. :)

Here are the reviews posted during January. Please note, this is not a comprehensive list of books I read in January, but rather the books I had the time to review before month's end.

1) Catherynne M. Valente: The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making: Excellent
2) Julie Cross: Tempest: Not My Cup of Tea (DNF)
3) Rae Carson: The Girl of Fire and Thorns: Couldn't Put It Down
4) Susan Cooper: The Grey King: Good Read
5) Catherynne M. Valente: The Girl Who Ruled Fairyland -- For a Little While: Excellent
6) Melissa Meyer: Glitches: Worth Reading, with Reservations
7) Meghan McCarron: Swift, Brutal Retaliation: Good Read
8) Sabrina Benulis: Archon: Problematic, but Promising (DNF)
9) Melissa Scott: Shadow Man: Worth Reading, with Reservations
10) M.L.N. Hanover: Killing Rites: Good Read
11) Susan Cooper: Silver on the Tree: Worth Reading, with Reservations
12) Ilona Andrews: Magic Gifts: Worth Reading, with Reservations
13) Robert Charles Wilson: Darwinia: Worth Reading, with Reservations

As always, comments and discussion are most welcome. :)

Here are the reviews posted during November. Please note, this is not a comprehensive list of books I read in November, but rather the books I had the time to review before month's end.

1) George R.R. Martin: Fevre Dream: Good Read
2) Brandon Sanderson: Elantris: Good Read
3) Melissa Marr: Graveminder: Below Standard
4) Alex Bledsoe: The Hum and the Shiver: Worth Reading, with Reservations
5) Laini Taylor: Daughter of Smoke & Bone: Couldn't Put It Down
6) Sam Cameron: Mystery of the Tempest: A Fisher Key Adventure: Worth Reading, with Reservations
7) Susanna Clarke: Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell: Not My Cup of Tea (DNF)
8) N.K. Jemisin: The Kingdom of Gods: Good Read
9) Richard Kadrey: Aloha from Hell: Good Read
10) Carrie Vaughn: Straying from the Path: Couldn't Put It Down

As always, comments and discussion are most welcome. :)

Here are the reviews posted during October. Please note, this is not a comprehensive list of books I read in October, but rather the books I had the time to review before month's end.

1) Seanan McGuire: One Salt Sea: Couldn't Put It Down
2) Ilona Andrews: On the Edge: Good Read
3) Nancy Kress: Beggars in Spain: It's a Gamble
4) Jo Walton: Tooth and Claw: Excellent
5) Gabrielle Zevin: All These Things I've Done: It's a Gamble
6) Neil Gaiman: Anansi Boys: Excellent
7) Jill Thompson: Delirium's Party: A Little Endless Storybook: Worth Reading, with Reservations
8) Kristen Painter: Blood Rights: Worth Reading, with Reservations
9) Jay Asher & Carolyn Mackler: The Future of Us: It's a Gamble
10) J. Michael Straczynski: Superman: Earth One: Excellent
11) Jo Walton: Farthing: Good Read

As always, comments and discussion are most welcome. :)

I use goodreads.com to keep track of the books I read. On this site, you can attach your own "bookshelves" or genre categories to any particular book. I'm embarrassed to admit that I don't know the don't know the difference between "paranormal" and "urban fantasy".

Would werewolves, vampires, and angels fall under "[urban] fantasy"? Does it depend on the context? On the publisher?

For instance, I just read "The Restorer" by Amanda Stevens and features ghosts in an urban setting, but is categorized as "paranormal".

How do you differentiate the two genres?

Hi everyone, really excited to have found this place. I have been searching for a good read or series about first nations (aboriginal/native american) themed stories. Would prefer that the primary characters are first nations; too often they are relegated to a secondary or sidekick roles.
Any suggestions?