New Folklore in an Old Favorite

With 2011 almost over, a lot of people are reflecting on their favorites so far of this year; favorite movie, favorite song, favorite show. Or, if you're a bibliophile much like myself, your favorite book as there have been some great ones released this year, especially those that are continuing chapters in well established series (for example Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series or the Pendergast stories co-written by Lincoln Child and Douglas Preston).

My favorite book so far is one that continues the ever popular and best selling Sherrilyn Kenyon Dark Hunter series, Retribution. There are many reasons that this has been my favorite book this year thus far. First is that it hearkens back to the first few books on the Dark Hunter series with it's comedy, action, and witty banter. There were many readers disappointed in the book Bad Moon Rising and felt that Kenyon had lost her edge with that one, and that the series as a whole was spiraling down. While the next installment No Mercy met with favorable reviews, Retribution is a sure-fire hit making readers remember what drew them to Kenyon's voice in the first place.

One thing I found interesting about this book especially is how Kenyon integrates another mythology to her already Greek mythology heavy books and does it in a way that it doesn't seem hokey. In fact it makes more sense, given that the Dark Hunter that the book focuses on (William Jessup Brady, aka Sundown) was a cowboy before he became a Dark Hunter, would have a story more centered in Native American folklore than Ancient Greek. In that vein, the folklore that involved the main characters were explained enough to not leave the reader confused or unsure of how it tied in, but also didn't overtake the story and require a lot of history to explain what was going on.

Many readers may have been disinterested in the Native American folklore and wish that Kenyon stuck to the story's Greek routes. However the old aspects of her story telling are still apparent; the witty back and forth between the equally sexy hero and heroine. The action, the comedy (even if it is at sometimes dark), and the romance. And of course it wouldn't be a Dark Hunter book without visit from past favorites as well as an update on one of the best characters in the Kenyon universe, Acheron. Plus, Kenyon has always been verbal that the story overall will go through arcs and with each different one comes a whole new batch of characters, villains, situations, and thus story tellings as a whole.

There are many reasons I enjoyed this book and found it to be the best of the year. First is that it is centered around one of my favorite Dark Hunters. Second is as stated previously l I really felt that the way this story was told hearkened back to the first few novels of the Dark Hunter series and it showed when Kenyon is one of the top authors in her genre and of the writing game overall. I am also eager to see how this new arch is going to play out with the whole new folklore and the idea of the world ending in 2012 (because yes she does make mention of that). Previous knowledge of the series is not necessary to pick this up although it is highly recommend because of all the references to other characters and stories and be warned; if you weren't a fan of the Dark Hunter world you may very well become one.