Mark of the Demon

Kara Gillian, Book 1

By: Diana Rowland

Narrated by: Liv Anderson

Length: 12 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's Summary

Cop and conjurer of demons, she's a woman in danger of losing control - to a power that could kill....

"Why me? Why now?" That’s what Beaulac, Louisiana, detective Kara Gillian was asking herself when an angelic creature named Rhyzkahl unexpectedly appeared during a routine summoning. Kara was hoping to use her occult skills to catch a serial killer, but never had she conjured anything like this unearthly beautiful and unspeakably powerful being whose very touch set off exquisite new dimensions of pleasure. But can she enlist his aid in helping her stop a killer who’s already claimed the lives - and souls - of 13 people? And should she?

The Symbol Man is a nightmare that the city thought had ended three years ago. Now he's back for an encore and leaving every indication on the flesh of his victims that he, too, is well versed in demonic lore. Kara may be the only cop on Beaulac’s small force able to stop the killer, but it is her first homicide case. Yet with Rhyzkahl haunting her dreams, and a handsome yet disapproving FBI agent dogging her waking footsteps, she may be in way over her head.

©2009 Diana Rowland (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

Oh Boy! A new series discovered!

First of all, I really liked this book. If your a fan of the paranormal genre then I think you'll like this one too. It's very mild in sexual content. It has a great plot and I'm looking foward to the other books in this series.

Now to my complaint. Why does Audible release books in random order? Book 2 of this series is not avaliable. This really irritates me. I have noticed this on other series too. For those of us with a touch of OCD books out of order tend to be a problem. I wonder what I have missed in the storyline because I liked the first book so much I will get book 3. UGH!!!!

good first book in a series i hadn't discoverd yet

Any additional comments?

I really liked this book. sure the lead female was a little weaker than I first expected but I feel like she had grown by the end of the book. I feel like as I get into the series she is really going to transform. not every lead female starts out of the gate kicking butt, they all got to start somewhere! I certainly wanted more by the time I was done with this one. lots of potential! The crime scenes were pretty descriptive and they talk about the torture of the victims, some may have a hard time with it but I never felt it was way over the top or just for shock value. the mystery and drama of it were done well. I am definitely getting the second one in the series and put the others in my wish list.

Really?

So, this story is about a homicide detective that can conjure demons. Within the first three chapters the lead character conjures a demon that vows to flay the skin from her bones. So she does what all respectable homicide detectives do; she has sex with it with in minutes of their first meeting. Additionally, the author needs to get a thesaurus so she can look up another adjective other than "f**king" . All of the characters use it constantly in both dialog and prose like it's required. So if you enjoy the work f**k, stories that lack believability, or soft core porn then this is your book. I am so glad I bought this one as a daily deal.

Buyer beware

When I ordered this book, I thought I was going to read a book about a strong intelligent female character that kicked butt, with the help of a demon. Instead, I got a weak female character who in real life would not have been the lead detective of a serial killer case because she lacked experience and intelligence. I know that sounds harsh but it is true and the character herself even believes it. Not only is she a novice detective but also a novice demon summoner, but yet she manages to summon a powerful demon lord and solve the case. Although the demon is interesting, he is too much of a cliche. He just so happens to find the character interesting so he doesn't kill her like all the others. Also, he wasn't summoned he just appeared. He then went on to stalk the main character. The plot moves along slowly and throws in graphic details of torture to shock and keep the reader interested. That didn't work for me. I think the author tried really hard, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to write urban fantasy or suspenseful thriller. I can't recommend this book to anyone.

expected more

After reading the white trash zombie series I expected a lot more from this book but Diana Rowland didn't cut it for me.
The story was painfully tedious and dull because of the main character acting as if she was oh so tough and intelligent and I don't know why but it bothered me a lot... And I can't recall if in the white trash zombie series she used "fuck" so much but it sounded just right and funny and in this book it was a torture because she used it too much and it sounded off... I don't know if it was because of the character or the narrator but either way it was exhausting.
I wanted to return this book almost at the beginning of it but I pull my will to finish it, since I don't like to leave a book unfinished, but thank goodness it doesn't have a cliffhanger or anything because that way I don't have to buy the next one...

How about NO.

What disappointed you about Mark of the Demon?

After devouring the White Trash Zombie series (which I picked up on a lark) over a couple of weekends I wanted more so I thought I'd give this a shot. Ok, well that was my bad. I mean the description doesn't actually lead you to believe that this is going to basically be a half assed story cobbled around several plotted scenes of demon sex. And not just like, "and then I boinked the demon." No, this is porn. You get lots of descriptions of masturbating and sex and all the stuff you normally get off any fan fiction site worth its salt. So yeah, it has all of that going for it. Couple that with a lead character who kind of just stumbles around between sex sessions randomly doing things and alternating between feeling sorry for herself and deciding that she is ready to take control of her life and then not doing it and you've got a recipe for...I dunno...Twilight maybe?

What could Diana Rowland have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Focus on the actual story. Focus more on the actual characters. Focus more on the magic and the characters use of it. Leave out the porn.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Very disappointed. This is more a cheesy "H" fan fic than a real book. Rowland can do better, I know because I've read it.

Any additional comments?

Don't mind porn in your book, give it a look. Want a solid story with a strong character? Look elsewhere.

Good But....

At first I had a hard time following the story. Seemed I needed more explanation to understand what was going on with the arcane side. As is happens, towards that end when things started getting good. The mystery takes over and I no longer needed to understand. I was to busy trying to figure out "who dune it". Rowland does try to recap at the end. But I am still a bit confused. I almost think this maybe done to have the reader learn with the main character. I will probably listen to this book again for clarification.

I enjoy romance with my supernatural reads. In my opinion this one could have had a lot more. I will probably read the next book as I found the mystery to be quite good. As this book is the first perhaps this will come as the series progresses.

Great narration as well.

Not sure if its worth a credit tho. I like my credits to be well spend with some great romance/paranormal. This book didn't have enough of both. I suggest a bogo or deal of the day.

ARCANE

HE WAS A LOT CUTER WHEN HE WASN'T BEING ALL FBI ISH.
Gentleman, take a look at who is giving this high praises. You will notice they all have female names, as I guess is normal for paranormal fiction. This is chick lit.

A VOICE COLD ENOUGH TO THAW THE ENTIRE CITRUS CROP IN FLORIDA.
I have yet to find something in paranormal that I like. I do like Rowland and the White Trash Zombie books, so I gave this a try. There are glimpses of her above par writing of the other series. I like her main character. The first chapter is real good. Then we go to Cliche Ville. Could there be an older more used cliche then, the local cops don't like the Feds? Is there a cliche older then a story about a female not taken serious, because she is female? I guess there are still females who like this old tired cliche story, for it sells. If she could have continue the book like the first chapter it could have been a great book, but chapter one is as far as it went.

I F##KED HIM, HE F##KED ME, WE F@@KED, OH F@@K!
What is the same is the potty mouth of the main character. Not a problem with me, my dad was a sailor, but it may be enough to bother some others. Also if you go over five minutes and do not hear the word arcane,check your player it as moved on to another story.

The narrator does not help, she reads in a monotone. If the main character is being attacked it is read in the same pace and tone as if she is talking on the phone.

Extremely awkward

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No, the story was not very well written and the reading of this book made it more awkward to listen to.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The idea behind this book was the most interesting aspect of this story, but the least interesting was the character development, they seemed very one dimensional and it was very hard to understand the motivation behind most, if not all characters actions.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Liv Anderson?

This is what made the book least enjoyable, the "unique" way that she decided to do different characters voices was imitated by myself and my friends for cheap laughs and it just kept me from connecting to the book in any way.

Could you see Mark of the Demon being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

No, not unless they changed the story dramatically much like they did to True Blood I could not see anyone watching this.

Rowland's Demons Are As Good As Her Zombies

I was drawn to the demon summoning aspect of this series because of its uniqueness within the Paranormal genre, and I also never miss an installment of Diana Rowland's WHITE TRASH ZOMBIES, so I knew that I'd make my way to KARA GILLIAN eventually. This story was way more serious than my previous experiences with this author's writing, but it was extra sexy as well which helped to even it out. At this point in time, I'm picking Ryan over Rhyzkahl, although neither has proven themselves yet, therefore things could go either way on the romance front. I liked Liv Anderson's narration, and have already purchased the second audiobook.

Mediocre start to a series that becomes stunning

In itself this is almost a fairly standard crime book with a demonic twist. In this book the emphasis is more on the work of our feisty detective as she tries track a serial killer with a little help from another realm.
This book is OK but nothing particularly special, however....

So far I have listened to the first 6 books and can say the series just gets better and better so its worth starting at the beginning and then working through the books.
From book 3 on wards I have immediately downloaded the next as it becomes really gripping and you need to know what happens next!

There is a bit of bedroom action, as seems the norm in most books of this type but I don't think its overdone, though Diana Rowland isn't at her best here as some of the dialogue is a bit cringe-worthy. Dianna's talents lie much more in the storytelling which in my opinion is far more important.

The Narrator Liv Anderson does a very good job - her voice is easy to listen to and she manages to give distinct voices to the major characters which makes it easy to follow.

I'd say this is the worst book of the series but its really essential to start here as too much background would be lost without, and its not by any means a bad book, just not in the same league as the later books in the series. I'd still say its well worth the credit though.

A delight!

I have read all of this series and I am a huge fan, I was well chuffed to see that it was now in audio format, the premise is what grabbed me at first a conjurer of demons a cop who does not really relate to everyday life, she prefers the company and challenge of summoning demons.
Gruesome ritualistic murders, an enigmatic FBI agent who does not add up and a very ancient demon you can see from the off set this series is going to be a corker, though I will say it now I am biased.

It's police procedural, mixed with an insidious evil, likeable characters including the manipulative powerful demon that you can't quite trust, it's multi-layered with a convoluted plot that sprinkles clues along the way that takes on to future plots.

Get it if you like your urban fantasy dark and gritty, and a series that just gets better and better with each book.

Too sleazy but with a glimmer of a story

Intro:

I have just listened to the 6th book in the series having been though a period where I have the opportunity to simply keep listening straight through. Interestingly this is a book series that gets better towards the end of the series - some authors start off strong and the story fades but this is the opposite. The series starts off cheesy, each book in the beginning of the series has just enough of a story to persuade me to try the next one. My opinion of the first book:

The Bad:

Too smutty and sleazy: Given the relatively small size of the book too much of it is taken up with erotic scenes where moving the story along would be more entertaining. I just ended up scrubbing through to the next scene - boring! If nothing else this book reveals that men are not nearly shallow enough.

The Good:

The writing is entertaining, the interplay between the characters is funny, there is good scene description. The irony is that fantasy authors tend to have decent scene description which is good but science fiction authors - where the story takes place in the far future and/or different worlds where scene setting is more important often don't bother. Lazy buggers.

The book is not boring, I know that doesn't sound like much but if you want to invest money/credits on books the last thing you want is a story that simply drags on and on where the writer can not engage the reader. This author does at least that.

The Narrator:

The narrator reads slowly and clearly, this is a good thing but I ended up listening to this book at x3 speed. She also manages to give each character enough of a unique voice that story comes alive.

Overall:

I gave this book two stars over all, it has a glimmer of a kernel of a story to it, which is why I kept going through the series. The last two/three books in the series are worth reading, readers can skip though the first lot of novels without loosing much since you get caught up in each novel anyway.

Awesomely well written, a great enjoyable read

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Very much so, I enjoy such books and Diana Rowland has a rare gift like few others, only authors like Ann Rice, Chris Fieldwater, especially his new up and coming book Eternally in Love. sensual, sexy and O my why a book, Kim Woods is another great author in the class of Diana Rowland, Truly a great book to listen to.

Who was your favorite character and why?

very much the lady detective Kara and the way she became entwined in the story.

What does Liv Anderson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

She is a great narrater and has a sensual voice, and carries the story extremely well

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Passions of the demon

Any additional comments?

A great read, I have only recently discovered this authors books and am the process of adding all her novels to over 370 plus audio books in my collection.

Great story! A strong female cop and sexy demons!

Where does Mark of the Demon rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

One of the best stories I have listened too.

What did you like best about this story?

Loved the supernatural mixed with a (gruesome) murder mystery. Great concept of demons not being creatures of hell but more like 'aliens' living in another dimension. The plot and characters are very interesting and i will certainly read the next in series. (The narrator ruined it for me which is why I will read the next one!)

Did Liv Anderson do a good job differentiating each of the characters? How?

Erm, really hate to be negative but the narrator ruined it for me. Not great at differentiating the characters so I found I had to play close attention to which character was talking. She could have changed pitch and used a different accent for the characters...

Original and wierd!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I assumed that this was going to be another detective and was in for big surprise!! More like Tolkein on acid. Certainly makes you reassess what is real... Stralings? Great

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

No

What about Liv Anderson’s performance did you like?

I was so into the story that I didn't notice her ... this is a good thing

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

No

Any additional comments?

None

Very original story

Would you listen to Mark of the Demon again? Why?

Yes I would definitely listen to this book again because there was so much in the story I know I'll hear new aspects that were missed the 1st time.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Mark of the Demon?

When Kara met The Lord demon

Which character – as performed by Liv Anderson – was your favourite?

All of them were great but Kara was my favourite

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Power has consequences

Any additional comments?

This book is excellent. It has an unusual twist on the paranormal genre as well as heroes that are flawed. Now that the second book is finally in audio format I'm relishing the thought of my new adventure with Kara.