Demon Trappers (1) - Forsaken / The Demon Trapper's Daughter by Anne Perry
And now to part one of the second-best demon series I ever read - The Demon Trapper's Daughter / Forsaken by Jana Oliver (in German Die Dämonenfängerin - Aller Anfang ist Hölle, in French Devil City). I read it in German, where it contained 436 pages. Originally published 2011.14 years to death (girls)
Our story starts the day the professional Demon Trapper Riley tries to get a minor demon out of a library in Atlanta. Everything goes to shit, thanks to a higher demon helping the minor demon. Riley didn't do anything wrong, but next to very few like her father, his partner Beck, Master Stewart or Simon no one actually cares about that. Suddenly, everything ends up in a catastrophe: Riley's father dies and leaves her with no family and a new teacher for professional demon trapping. But that teacher hates her... And Riley still needs enough money to survive, mustn't get in range of the demons and sit every night until full moon on the cemetery to watch over her Dad so no necromancer would get him. She's all alone, except for Beck and Simon. Beck, who broke her heart once, and Simon, on whom she has a crush - to the disapproval of Beck. Because he might have feelings for her or because he wants her to leave Atlanta?
This book is funny, fascinating, full of interesting ideas, how Atlanta would be in future and how the humans react to demons. It is wonderful! I especially like the details. What happens to the cars and the parking lots, how the metal is so much worth, the black market and what happens to the dead. The schools are well done, too, I like the wanna-be-vampire. And how Riley earns her the girl group's respect.
The whole supernatural world is mixed very well with the normal one. That's good, too. I especially like the witches part in this.
I'm actually sorry for the demons – do they really have to go through all the praying of nuns and monks, every time they're caught? By the way, I love Riley's pet(s) – Max and her little house-demons. The demons themselves are described so colourfully! The magpie's are so cute! The 3's not, but that's beside the point.
I like Simon. He's cool.
Paul's death is... hard. Not so much the death itself but Riley's reaction. I really felt with her – and with Beck. Beck is a very interesting person. He seems a total ass; impolite, dominant and uneducated. But he's also very protective and has his own kind of morality. I LOVE what he did for Riley with the demon. And it's really cool how he helped her with the spheres. I kind of thought that this mix-'em-thing would turn up later. Would have been kind of great.
Peter and Simi are kind of cool – just like Aiden and the necromancers. And I mean all of them, even Ozzy.
I give it a star for characters, style, plot, ideas and last, but not least, one for the future-Atlanta.