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.

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.

Loved this book.

If you could sum up Mark of the Demon in three words, what would they be?

A super natural "who done it".

What about Liv Anderson’s performance did you like?

Good character voices. She keep you wanting to listen to more.

Any additional comments?

Can't wait for more books in the series. I'll put them on my pre-buy list.

Average story with profanity overload

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Yes! The mentally stultifying overuse of sh*t and f**k by all of the characters as exclamation, commentary, adjective, adverb, noun and verb resulted in a poverty of nuanced expression that made it difficult to proceed through the predictable story. I won't be reading the rest of this very average series.

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

More subtlety, less profanity and less predictability. The elements of the climax were obvious and completely foreseeable as soon as they were introduced into the story line. No surprises here. Furthermore, it was just odd that cursing at an unlikeable older woman was the event that allowed the protagonist (a police detective, no less) to feel like a "warrior woman" for the first time. She spent the climax being helpless.

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

The protagonist. Ms. Anderson's male characterizations had an odd buzzing rasp that was difficult to listen to.

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

Unfortunately, yes, in the Twilight genre but bloodier.

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.

Well worth it...

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

I would say within my top ten. This is my first book by Diana Rowland so I am really looking forward to continuing the story.

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

Oh wow, I'd say when Kara is attacked by the demon towards the end of the book

Which scene was your favorite?

I really loved the part where we got to see the other realm.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Don't judge the demon by the cover

Any additional comments?

Definitely a great first book to the series. I am looking forward to the next in the line. Well worth a credit!!!!

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.

Great book

The writer has an easy writing style that's easy to listen to and the narrator was great.

Shocks you out of your mundane reading rut!

Ready for a side order of demon with your next cop story? Pick up this one for a rollicking ride through a summoner's New Orleans world of cops & murder. Losing sleep never felt so good. Gimme the next book. Pleeeeeeaaasse!

Good start to a great series of books

What made the experience of listening to Mark of the Demon the most enjoyable?

The story is interesting and fun and you'll be hooked before you know it. The main character has relatable day to day worries and struggles and a fun and likable personality and humor. The arcane and otherworldly parts are well described and easy to understand along the way. I really liked this book ! But i have to say i found some of the policework parts a bit lengthy, but i think that's because i was so impatient wanting to know what would happen next in the other parts of Karas life.

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

She has a pleasant voice to listen to and is reading at a perfect pace and has different voices for all the different characters which makes it easy to pick up on who's talking. Also there's no annoying or distracting noises like in other audiobooks where the spit noises or gasping for air sounds makes it hard to stay inside the storys universe.All in all great job !

Rowland summoned up a GREAT series!

I am an urban fantasy addict. Lately, I have been restless and unfulfilled. I'm always desperately looking for new material. Unfortunately the results have been less than stellar and have left me totally disillusioned. So, I decided to take a chance on Mark of the Demon and boy, was I pleasantly surprised. I loved Ms. Rowland's writing style and the quirkiness of the main character, Kara Gillian. It was refreshing to see that the Gillian was not only strong but embraced her vulnerabilities as well. For once in a very long time I did not know who the killer was until the very last minute and was totally shocked and surprised.

Liv Anderson, did an outstanding job narrating this book :)