Review: Sins of the Demon by Diana Rowland

Title: Sins of the Demon (Kara Gillian #4)
Author: Diana Rowland
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Heat Index: 1 out of 5
Release Date: January 3rd, 2012
Word/Page Count: 320 pages
Format: Purchased

The homicide beat in Louisiana isn't just terrifying, it's demonic. Detective Kara Gilligan of the supernatural task force has the ability to summon demons to her aid, but she herself is pledged to serve a demonic lord. And now, people who've hurt Kara in the past are dropping dead for no apparent reason. To clear her name and save both the demon and human worlds, she's in a race against the clock and in a battle for her life that just may take her to hell and back.

After the dramatic ending of Secrets of the Demon, Diana Rowland is back with a vengeance with her fourth Kara Gillian novel, Sins of the Demon, that serves to keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page.

Despite all that has been thrown at her during the course of the past year, between murders with heavy demonic influence, her ties with a demon lord, and the discovery of another demon lord in hiding, Kara has managed to come out ahead. Unfortunately, someone is now trying to summon Kara from her world back to the demon realm.

If things weren’t tricky enough, Kara’s latest case is the first in a series of mysterious deaths, all with one link; Kara has a bad history with each and every one of them. While the murders are rooted in the Arcane, it isn’t exactly information she can pass along to the police force. Luckily she has her friends to back her up, but will it be enough to save Kara?

As anyone who follows the series knows, the previous book, Secrets of the Demon, left us with a bit of a surprise ending. This book picks up where the last one left off and does manage to fill in a little bit more about the revelation concerning Agent Ryan.

On the subject of Agent Ryan, I’m starting to like him more and more. We’re really starting to see his character develop, especially concerning his friendship with Kara. In earlier books, when there was a situation that would frustrate him, such as Kara spending time with demon lord Rhyzkahl, his immediate course of action would be anger. While this is understandable, especially given the circumstances, I like seeing him develop to the point where he is more willing to analyze a situation or at least try to put his friendship with Kara first over his dislike for the demons she surrounds herself with.

Speaking of Rhyzkahl, I do wish we would have had more of an opportunity to see him in this novel. He appeared in an early chapter, giving answers to Kara that only left us frustrated with more questions, before showing a display of temper that cools your affection for him. If anything, it feels like Rhyzkahl is being phased out while Ryan is brought to the forefront. I’ll withhold judgment, though, until the events of the next novel since I feel that Rhyzkahl might play a big part, given the final event in .

In regards to the mystery, I love that Rowland stepped it up and had her readers guessing at two different plotlines at once. Both were intriguing, both had you pinning your thoughts on one suspect then having to switch at the last minute. And Rowland does it in a way that, even after the book is done, you wonder how much deeper all the intrigue goes that wasn’t shown.

It was wonderful to get a chance to catch up with these characters, but it’s going to be hard to wait until 2013 for the next novel in this series.

Sidenote: I really do wish they would go back to the design seen on the first two books, Mark of the Demon and Sins of the Demon. This cover really just didn’t do it for me.