Review – Wicked Circle (Persephone Alcmedi, Book 5) by Linda Robertson (3/5 stars)

Reading level: Adult
Genre: Paranormal/Urban Fantasy
Size: 432 pages
Publisher: Pocket Books
Release Date: December 27, 2011
ISBN: 978-1451646955
Stand Alone or Series: 5th book in the Persephone Alcmedi series
Source: Borrowed from Library
Rating: 3/5 stars

This was the fifth book in the Persephone Alcmedi series. I thought it was the weakest book in the series so far. Robertson did some strange things in this latest addition to the Persephone series; the story is told from many points of view and this really made the book long and was really weird. Additionally Persephone is straying from her monogamous relationship into some very Anita Blake like territory.

In the last book Persephone helped Johnny unlock his marks and become the Dom Lupe. This book is more about Menessos. The head vampire honcho has heard the rumors that Menessos is marked and can be controlled by Persephone. As a result he has agreed to release some truth-seeking vampires so evil that they have been locked in stone for ages; these vampires will be sent to dig through Menessos mind and prove whether or not Menessos is under Persephone’s control.

The change in POV in this story is really jarring; all of the previous books have been from Persephone’s POV. Now we are seeing things from Persephone’s, Menessos’s, Johnny’s, and many other POVs. It really drags out the story and makes the book long.

This also makes the story a bit scattered. Persephone is trying to deal with Johnny’s change into Dom Lupe; Johnny is struggling with his aggression. Persephone is also dealing with Menessos and the threat that is coming towards him. Meanwhile we also hear from some strange investigator’s point of view; this ends up tying in with Johnny discovering some things about his past. But the story is pretty much going a billion directions at once.

Persephone is changing into something I hoped she wouldn’t change into…I really didn’t want this book to degenerate into a Anita/Jean-Calude/Richard love triangle and that’s where it is going. Johnny is a jerk for most of the book and so Persephone is naturally drawn to Menessos and ends up spending more and more time with him (why does the were in a love triangle always turn into the jerk?). Then another unnamed mysterious dark stranger enters the story and Persephone thinks he is pretty hot too. I really liked Persephone and Johnny’s nice steamy monogamous relationship and was disappointed with the path Persephone starts down in this book.

There were still some good things about this book. I still do like reading about these characters; they are intriguing and complicated. I enjoy Robertson’s writing style; she balances action scenes and drama well. I also enjoy all of the details she puts into the spell scenes and the witchcraft; you can tell she put a lot of thought, time, and research into this. Learning more about Menessos’s past was another fun thing.

Overall this was an okay addition to the series, but definitely my least favorite book of the series. The multiple POVs are jarring and drag the story out too long. The storyline is going in so many different directions that it felt scattered. Lastly Persephone is going the Anita Blake route with her lusting after and making out with multiple guys and I hated seeing that. I still did enjoying reading about these characters, I also enjoyed all of the witchcraft details that Robertson adds into the story, and I enjoyed the writing style. Will I keep reading this series? I am not sure at this point; I will probably read the next book but if the story continues down its current path then I am done with it.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– Horror and Urban Fantasy Challenge
– 150+ Books Reading Challenge