Dead of Night: Cold Case Psychic Book 8, Pandora Pine

Past lives and enemies converge on the present and Ronan and Tennyson will have a foe to vanquish that has been following them through the centuries.  This time a coven of witches is caught in the crosshairs and they seek out Ronan's help.  But when his friends and loved ones seemingly abandon him when he needs them most, it might break not just his heart, but the thread that holds them all together.

Ronan's big mouth and fiery temper almost cost him everything in this one.  But it's Tennyson that I'm the most disappointed in.  His reaffirmation that they're a team over and over seems to fall by the wayside when he chooses their future child over his husband.  Without said husband, that future won't happen so he has a whole lot of perspective shifting to do before he can get back into my good graces.  I don't actually feel that he gets it together soon enough nor do I think he did enough groveling.

Everywhere you turn in this story it seems that what holds them all together is crumbling under the weight of a particularly powerful antagonist.  I had huge suspicions about a certain character but was completely surprised that they weren't the villain at all, but a true ally.  There was a very small suspicion about a random character but it seemed unlikely when I had my mind set on someone else.  At many points I was wondering when Ronan and the other characters would get out of their own way to track down all the leads sufficiently and it felt like procedures and follow-through were both light on the ground.  When everything finally fell into place it was a pretty good confrontation.  There were some predictable elements but also some surprises as well as new characters that I'm very much interested in.

Now a word of caution...  The new characters take this into the realm of fantasy and while I'm okay with that development in general, I don't know that it's really the right direction for the series and I'm pretty sure a bunch of people won't like the changes.  I'm withholding my final judgment on that until after I read Dead Man Walking.  I've read the novellas in conjunction with those new characters and I have to say that I like the men individually and am totally fine with the fantasy element but, again, keep those things in mind when they're introduced here in Dead of Night.

While I like certain elements of "real life" regarding Ronan and Tennyson's relationship, I would rather that they weren't so huge that they go from immense happiness and fortitude to almost completely losing one another.  Their relationship roller coaster goes through manic and depressive episodes that refuses to find a balance.  With that kind of drama competing with the supernatural drama that carries the series I feel like I'm being tossed all over the place, and not in a good way.  I'm hoping that with Dead Man Walking we get something a bit more settled on the home front so Ronan can deal with the threat against him as well as his estranged best friend.

*$3.99 on Amazon or FREE on KU!

For a closer look at the new members of the Cold Case Crew...

Spellbound gives us Tobin and Niall and introduces us to a couple of witches who become important to Ronan and Tennyson.

Blood Song answers the question of Luca's surprising visit in the woods and whether or not Cisco and Ronan can forgive and become friends.

Hunter's Curse answers the gargoyle question.