Kitty's Greatest Hits by
Carrie Vaughn
My rating:
5 of 5 stars
Now that I've finished the awesome
Kitty Norville series, it's time to read the two short story collections that are set in her exciting supernatural world.
This is the first one.
IL EST NÉ: David's wolf has taken control of his life, but one fateful Christmas he finds himself in a Waffle House with a werewolf named Kitty. Together, they embark on a bloody adventure...
A gory, sad and heartwarming story about two lonely wolves, and gaining control when the beast side is stronger than the human half. It was nice to see Kitty find someone during the holiday season while being far from her family.
A PRINCESS OF SPAIN: I really enjoyed this historical take on Catherine of Aragon and what happens when she's married off to the future King of England and finds herself alone in a strange, dark land...
Great way to cast the creatures of the night into the past, and the kind of role they could have played. 😁
CONQUISTADOR DE LA NOCHE: This is a fantastic novella! It's the origin story of Rick, the Master of Denver—aka Ricardo de Avila—and it's a bloody, violent and totally thrilling story. Loved this as much as I love Rick.
THE BOOK OF DANIEL: I didn't think I would enjoy the story of Daniel set in Babylon and featuring so much faith and political mayhem. But I did because this little shifter twist was awesome!
THE TEMPTATION OF ROBIN GREEN: Robin Green is a soldier working the night shift in a lab studying supernatural creatures. She never breaks the rules, until she crosses paths with a seal...
I love selkie myths and this tale was an original take, while also sticking to the familiar. Oh, and Rick makes an appearance! That was a lovely surprise.
LOOKING AFTER FAMILY: This is Cormac and Ben's origin story. They're both teenagers and Cormac has just moved in with Ben's family at their farm after tragedy struck, but they're not instant friends. THIS, is when THAT happens. Fantastic tale!
GOD'S CREATURES: Another Cormac story! And of course it was awesome. You know, for someone who hates the monsters, he sure as hell is as methodical and reckless as they are. Guess that's why he's THAT good.
I enjoyed the Catholic Church connection because it adds a lot to the way Kitty's world works.
WILD RIDE: I really enjoyed TJ's origin story because it's sad but hopeful, and revealed some pretty tough inner strength he didn't believe he had. Another fantastic and emotional story.
WINNOWING THE HERD: This was a fun little glimpse into how boring Kitty's life was before she was outed as a werewolf. I enjoyed her internal thoughts and how she separated herself from the humans during a staff meeting. Who can blame her? These forced social gatherings are shitty. 😅
KITTY AND THE MOSH PIT OF THE DAMNED: An awesome action-packed story about Kitty going to a concert in hopes of getting the popular band on their show. Devil's Kitchen are hiding a secret as big as the very mysterious bartender, Jax. Jax turned out to be such an intriguing character, wish he'd made it to the series.
KITTY'S ZOMBIE NEW YEAR: I didn't expect this story to be so sad on several levels. Firstly, because Kitty goes to a NYE party at Matt's house but feels so lonely. And secondly, because of how the zombie situation turns out. Terrific story, though.
LIFE IS THE TEACHER: This is such a great story about Emma becoming a vampire and dealing with having to let go of her past, accept that taking blood is now part of her life, all while engaging in a nice seductive game. Clever tale.
YOU'RE ON THE AIR: I always loved when Kitty got calls from the supernatural community, and this little tale is about one of those. Jake is a vampire but he works the graveyard shift at Speedy Mart and doesn't have much else going on. But after calling Kitty's radio show, his boring life takes an unexpected turn. One that reminds him what he is and what he can do. Such a fun story.
LONG TIME WAITING: Cormac's jail novella is fantastic! I've wanted to read this for ages and now that I have, I'm happy to report it was awesome as I hoped it would be. Sprinkle Cormac's bad luck with the very interesting Amelia, and this turned out to be a recipe for destruction. And an unexpected partnership that happens to be perfect.
Well, I took my time reading this collection of amazing short stories and I'm glad I did. I LOVED EVERY SINGLE STORY! They're all seriously awesome and Carrie Vaughn is a terrific writer. Love her style.
PS. Also enjoyed the story notes at the end of the book.