Better Part of Darkness worked for me and didn't work for me. It worked for me in that our protagonist, Charlie, makes a lot of mistakes and she pays dearly for most of them. She's not naive, or even particularly idealist honestly, and she knows that the world is in a horrible place, but that doesn't mean she shouldn't keep trying. She also makes choices that aren't usually seen of the 'hero'. All that was very refreshing and interesting for me. Apparently even I have limits on how many heroes/heroines can make really bad choices and still not pay for it. And I do mean really bad choices in Charlie's case. Not 'That was a stupid thing to do!', but the 'Oh. My. God. That was bad.' variety.

The problem I had was that for all the fun and interesting that was Charlie, she was possibly the only character I wanted to read about. There were plenty of other characters--informants, coworkers, her partner, bad guys, etc--which is probably what made it hard to want to know any of them. Aside from her daughter and her partner, everyone else just came and went. While this works great for later in the series, when Kelly may want to call upon them and dive a bit deeper, for a first book it clutters my attention. It felt like each time I met one person someone new popped up.

The amount of detail Kelly puts into her version of Atlanta is awe-inspiring honestly. I've been there twice in my life and can recognize some of the places that Charlie talks about 'from before' but this Atlanta is so different. Its almost a character on its own honestly.

In the end I had trouble enjoying this book because I was uncertain who was doing what and when, or who was who. I have a feeling when the second book is released Kelly will have a stronger grasp on who she wants to have running around in her world however and look forward to that book. ( )

I really enjoyed this book. I could picture everything the Author was trying to portray! One of these days I will get the funding and time to read the next book! ( )

I really wanted to like this book. The main character was original: divorced with a kid, so I assumed she'd be mature and avoid the silly whining, stupid mistakes and teen girl crushes of other twenty-something main characters. Wrong. She makes incredibly stupid mistakes. I never made it beyond halfway through the book but by then she'd managed to ditch her back up every chance she got and throw herself into suicidal positions. What mother does that? Oh -'and let's not forget her Mary Sue ability to develop weird new powers that make her uber special. And the way too special partner who will predictably become her lover. Too bad he's boring and there's no spark. Over all tried too hard and was way too cliched. ( )

Interesting new world by a new author. Little slow start, got into it, got slowed down for some reason and then finished it up. Read the preview for the next book and it should be good. We'll see. ( )

WOW! This book is amazing. I haven't read a book this imaginative in some time, which is definitely a good thing. I was starting to think the world ran out of creative ideas. The characters are awesome and richly developed; Hank is definitely by far my favorite. I also love how the characters are described as "beings from heaven and hell"; this book lends to both good and bad as well as the non-typical mythological creature...how often do you see a book with Sirens, let alone male Sirens. The plot is amazing and action packed from page one...just a totally awesome book. READ IT!!! ( )

4 ½ Stars
I'm so glad I finally read this book. Now I need to find the time to read the next ones. ( )

DNF

The heroine falls into the category of "too stupid to live" and I just can't watch her make stupid, illogical decisions and get led around by her nose anymore.

Gah. ( )

DNF

The heroine falls into the category of "too stupid to live" and I just can't watch her make stupid, illogical decisions and get led around by her nose anymore.

Gah. ( )

I had never really read anything by Kelly Gay before, so was curious when I picked up the first in this series as to what I would think. Fantasy of this type, admittedly, is my favorite. When it is done well, as with the works of Andrews and others, it is stunning. Or, it can be the biggest let-down you can ever imagine (I have checked out some real stinkers in my time).

One of the first things I noticed about this book is the fact that the main character is not only a kick-butt cop, and having just returned from the dead (drumroll please) she is also a single mother of a teenage daughter. Oh, the horror! LOL....

Like the Andrews "Kate Daniels" series, this series is set in an alternate, 'Post-Revalation' world. Gay's work is different and clever enough to stand on it's own as a changed Atlanta, which i was glad to see. In fact, the world building is the best part of the book in my humble opinion. Oh, it is a good book for a first of a series, it kept my attention throughout. But I am looking for that extra bit of "oomph" in the character building over the next books to push it into 5 star territory. With this start, I am hoping that I can soon award that extra star. ( )

This could have been a much better book but the main character spent half of the book whining about her personal issues. ( )

I am having a lot of trouble with this review. Might be because it seems to be more of the same. But, when a formula works, why mess with it? Maybe because we as readers like something a little different. Or, at least we *think* we do – then we go out and purchase more of the same.

I gotta say, this book reminded me a *lot* of Kate Daniels. But, maybe that was just the Atlanta setting. Or, maybe it was the mystifying powers that Charlie had. It certainly wasn’t the presence of a shape shifting cat. I really missed the shape shifting cat.

Ms. Gay does take an unusual step in her tale: the magical elements here in Atlanta (and one supposed the remainder of the earth) come from other planets. Specifically, Elysia and Charbydon. There are goblins and orcs and trolls aplenty. Of course, many of these types are uber villainous.

Charlie is a little unusual in the urban fantasy world. She is involved in *tons* of relationships. This made my little co-dependent heart *very* happy. First of all, she has parents. That are wonderful. And, a sister whom she adores. She has a precocious daughter with her ex-husband. That she still loves. And, she has a partner that is a siren. And, to round this off, she even has a decent boss. All of these people love her and rally round her. Which she often needs because she – wait for it – frequently gets in over her head. Which is, of course, why she needed to come back from the dead. Sound familiar?

I really did enjoy the gang that Charlie has around her – the unconditional love and support they offer her in her times of need. The back story of her husband, his cheating and their ultimate divorce was original to me. And, I thought I had heard it all. But, I found it fascinating. The obligatory ‘love triangle’ gets turned on its head a bit here with Charlie and her partner Hank – who is a friend – and her ex-husband. So, not really a ‘love triangle’ more of a ‘friendship triangle’. I will read on in this series – I am curious to see to where it goes.

While the familiarity to other urban fantasies cannot be denied, The Better Part of Darkness takes enough departures from standard stereotypes that I found it to be very enjoyable. And, the bath scene is priceless. Completely and utterly priceless. It is worth the price of the book just for that one scene.

Because I could walk away from this book, it didn’t quite meet my 4 star criteria – so I gave it 3.5 – which I then round up to 4 for the bath scene. (See how I cheat the system? Even *my own* system?)
( )

Charlie Madigan is the most frustrating heroine I've read so far. There were some I didn't like, some were too bitchy, some disappointed me later in the series and so on, but she seems to cover every single annoying thing. She was killed a few months ago and was returned with new abilities. The annoying thing is: every so-called victory was accidental or at least it seemed like it to me. She is constantly whining, getting beaten up. I won't take into account her love for her daughter since that is natural, nothing different from any mother. During one of the most terrible moments in her life, instead of constantly thinking about a person who is in danger, she is jealous of a woman who is helping her. And don't get me started about her as a detective. At least, not in this story.
I can't think of a female character I dislike this much.

So, why not lower rating? Well, pretty much everything else is great. The word building reminds me of [a:Mark Del Franco|221073|Mark Del Franco|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1261625442p2/221073.jpg]'s Connor Grey world. Instead of the fey, here scientists found two dimensions which humans associated with Heaven and Hell before and all the beings from there came to live in our world. It's a great idea.
All the characters (even the villains) were interesting. And this is the first book where the character and her ex-husband are still in love. I don't think I ever saw that before. Usually, they are either trying to hurt the heroine further, or she is still in love and he moved on or something equally depressing.
Hank, her siren partner, is probably more developed in later books.

Maybe I'll try the next. I am not sure. I wonder if she improves. ( )

While it was reasonably well written, I just didn't get into it. There was no great tension, nothing that had me on the edge of my seat and I just kinda limped through the book. I think I'll have a crack at the 2nd book as I did rather like Hank. ( )

Wow, what a ride! There are so many things to like about this book that I don't know where to start!

Charlie Maddigan is a single mother, a badass cop and she's got a bucketload of problems. She died a few months ago, and since she was revived she's been having nightmares that leave her shaking - and she's beginning to think that they're memories of her time while she was dead.

In a gritty future where two new planes of existence are co-existing with earth - the heavenly Elysia and the hell-like Charbydon - Charlie is a cop trained to take down Humans and "Aliens" alike.

I love the idea of heaven-and-hell dimensions that use creatures from our own mythological past. Justina Robson did something very similar in her Quantum Gravity series, and that remains one of my favorite book series to date.

Even better are the shades of grey for them all. Being from Charbydon doesn't make you evil, and vice versa.

Maddigan was a breath of fresh fucking air. I'm swearing in a review, but it needs it. Her thoughts and inner voice reminds me eerily of my own, which is a testament to how REAL this character is in her reactions. And reactions she has, for it seems every time Charlie starts to get her feet on the ground something goes wrong.

Charlie and her Siren partner, Hank, are investigating a new drug making it's way into Atlanta - a drug that looks like it's been brought over from Charbydon - and it's not mixing well with the locals. With Charlie and Hank trying to trace the drug to the source, they run into magical roadblocks and bad guys that may have a link to Charlie's death those months ago.

A fantastic read, I couldn't recommend this enough. ( )

I had never really read anything by Kelly Gay before, so was curious when I picked up the first in this series as to what I would think. Fantasy of this type, admittedly, is my favorite. When it is done well, as with the works of Andrews and others, it is stunning. Or, it can be the biggest let-down you can ever imagine (I have checked out some real stinkers in my time).

One of the first things I noticed about this book is the fact that the main character is not only a kick-butt cop, and having just returned from the dead (drumroll please) she is also a single mother of a teenage daughter. Oh, the horror! LOL....

Like the Andrews "Kate Daniels" series, this series is set in an alternate, 'Post-Revalation' world. Gay's work is different and clever enough to stand on it's own as a changed Atlanta, which i was glad to see. In fact, the world building is the best part of the book in my humble opinion. Oh, it is a good book for a first of a series, it kept my attention throughout. But I am looking for that extra bit of "oomph" in the character building over the next books to push it into 5 star territory. With this start, I am hoping that I can soon award that extra star. ( )

I had a muted response to this initial book, but plan on coming back for more.

Read Abigail's review at All Things Urban Fantasy. ( )

I read THE BETTER PART OF DARKNESS and its two currently-released sequels, THE DARKEST EDGE OF DAWN and THE HOUR OF DUST AND ASHES back to back, and my comments in this review will be spoiler-free but cover all three.

I'm used to books where the scrappy hero/heroine saves the day against incredible odds - Charlie Madigan limps away from most confrontations having lost more than she's gained. When the going gets rough, Charlie caves. When the big baddie attacks, her first comment is, "Uncle!"

This is especially frustrating because Charlie is supposed to be very powerful. We find out early on in the first book that Charlie died and was brought back to life by magical means. Her resurrection left her changed, equipped with magical power that she doesn't know how to harness or direct with any finesse. She trains quite a bit but three books down the line I've noticed that

(1) Almost every enemy she faces shrugs off her magical attacks as though they're inconsequential
(2) Using magic leaves her drained and vulnerable - but she always does it anyhow, because she can't help it
(3) She seems just as out of control magically at the end of book three as she did at the end of book one.

That's all really frustrating. And it's a core problem with the series - though, actually, the books are incredibly fun, easy reading. The plotting doesn't really satisfy but I'm sold on the characters.

Charlie is a winning leading lady, trying to balance life as a reckless, act-first-and-think-later detective with her responsibilities as a mother and sister. She has a lovely relationship with her daughter, Emma, a character smart and interesting enough to helm her own series.

Her partner, Hank, is a siren. Most women can't resist his angelic looks and compelling voice; after working at his side for two years, Charlie is a little too good at resisting it. Hank is wonderful, and every scene with him positively sizzles. The other main contender for Charlie's romantic attention is her ex-husband Will, a handsome and charismatic fellow whose addiction to black magic eventually led Charlie to divorce him. He struck me from the beginning as being beyond redemption, but that gives him his own seductive power and for all his flaws he loves Charlie.

While each book in the series wraps up the main plot that fuels the book, the threads are so closely tied that the three books I read felt like one long novel and Kelly Gay has a devilish way of finishing each book with a hook that leads you into the next. It worked on me, pulling me through the three available installments with hardly a pause, and I'm eager to continue with the series. ( )

I've somehow fallen in love with the urban fantasy genre without even realizing it. I was looking for books similar to the October Daye series and Kelly Gay's Charlie Madigan series kept popping up so I thought I'd give it a try. Turns out it's a good thing I did. Charlie's a single mom, a cop and all around awesome/badass lady. Gay's book is fun, a little dark and while not quite as good as McGuire's (but then again, who could compare?), I really loved it. I can't wait for the second book (but I'm going to have to). ( )

This is the first book in the Charlie Madigan series. I had been wanting to read this series a while since I am such a big urban fantasy fan. While this book wasn't exceptional, it was a solid urban fantasy with an interesting world. It was a fun read and I am glad I read it.

Charlie works for the police hunting down otherworldly beings. She is also a divorced mother of a pre-teen named Emma. When one of her daughter's friends is put into a coma by the strange drug known only as Ash; Charlie is determined to find out what Ash is and hunt down its source. Previously Charlie had died and was brought back to life under mysterious circumstances, as a result of this Charlie has been having horrible nightmares and developing strange powers.

There were some things I really loved about this book. I love the world-building. The idea of two parallel realities outside of our own, one representing heaven and one hell, was an interesting one and intriguing. I also loved how Charlie started manifesting strange powers and had to learn how to control them; her powers were interesting...if not all that well explained. I also loved that Charlie had a daughter to consider. To often in urban fantasy the main kick-butt woman is single and childless...it is just easier for an author to not have to deal with a child in the story. I liked the element of reality this added to the story.

I also had some problems with the story. Charlie is very much your kick-butt heroine-developing-strange-super-powers that I see over and over in urban fantasy. She didn't have a lot to distinguish her from many other urban fantasy heroines. Charlies also had a very serious problem with rushing into situations without thinking. The secondary characters would even stop and say "Charlie you need to step back and think about this"...still she would repeatedly charge ahead despite the consequences. I am hoping that in the next installment Charlie matures a bit and starts thinking before she acts.

That being said the secondary characters more than made up for Charlie. Charlie's sister Bryn is a powerful witch that I am dying to know more about. We also meet Aaron, a powerful and mysterious mage, who was an awesome character. Additionally we meet Rex, a demon spirit, who has quite a bit of depth for a demon. Even Emma, Charlie's daughter, is plucky and packs a lot of punch to her personality.

The story was engaging and fast paced. There were some excellent action scenes. The plot was well done; with a small objective that is concluded by the end of the book and a larger plot that will continue into the next book. This book is pretty much straight urban fantasy, not much romance at all.

Overall I enjoyed this story. The world is intriguing and creative, I loved watching Charlie gain her powers, and also really enjoyed a lot of the secondary characters. Charlie herself was kind of cookie cutter kick-butt charge-ahead urban fantasy heroine, but her support staff more than made up for that. I am hoping that Charlie will grow some as a character in future books and look forward to reading the next book in this series, The Darkest Edge of Dawn. ( )

Twitter-sized review: Hardboiled cop murder mystery combined with urban fantasy stylings in a wrecked version of Atlanta. Surprisingly awesome.

Longer notes: Honestly, the premise of this sounded like something I'd heard before, right down to the wrecked version of Atlanta (although in this case, it's less magic and more aliens who were the inspiration for demonic and angelic style myths). But once I got to reading the book, the world it described was different, interesting, and the lead character as a self-sufficient single mom cop actually worked pretty well. Humour, drama, and a lot of potential for more. I was shocked that the author managed to avoid having ridiculous urban fantasy style romances starting in the first novel, although it seems likely we'll be seeing some in later books. The next book is out, but the library hasn't gotten it yet and I'm antsy!

PS - Passes Bechdel. Which is actually disturbingly impressive for both urban fantasy and for woman cop novels. ( )

I decided to review the The Better Part of Darkness and The Darkest Edge of Dawn together because I couldn't help myself from reading the two books back-to-back. There was a very strong continuity between the individuals stories, and unresolved subplots from the first book were further developed & explored in the second book. Moreover, I found myself very engrossed by the series. I think what drew me in the most was the world-building. I was fascinated by the descriptions of the different alien races, their individual abilities, their unique cultures, and the mythologies associated with Elysia and Charbydon. I eagerly consumed all the little bits of information Kelly Gay provided along the way and kept looking forward to learning even more. Another element that had me intrigued was Charlie's multifaceted struggle. Throughout the two books, she constantly struggled with her body's supernatural changes, with balancing her work & family, with her tumultuous emotions, and with her decisions. This helped me connect more with the story and made me care about Charlie.

For the most part, I really liked the main characters. Charlie was well-developed and had depth to her characterization. I liked how tough and fearless she was, especially when someone she cared about was threatened. However, I did feel that she was way too hotheaded given her profession. Too many times, she rushed head first into a situation or ran her mouth off without analyzing the circumstances and considering the ramifications. This definitely diminished her credibility as a cop and investigator in my mind. I did though appreciate the fact that her partner, Hank, totally called her out on that kind of behavior. Unfortunately, Charlie did not seem to take it to heart and/or learn from it as much as she should have. Speaking of Hank...my oh my, he sure was a treat. Given his siren nature, he is not only ridiculously yummy looking but confident, sexy, and sensual as well. On top of that, he is a smartass with a sense of humor and a heart of gold. I adored the dynamic between him and Charlie. They clearly care deeply for one another and are completely loyal to each other as both partners and friends. I was amused by their occasional banter and the way they playful teased each other. And I most certainly enjoyed the growing chemistry and sexual tension between them that was introduced in the second book.

I did have some minor issues with the series. I thought that some of the supporting characters weren't fleshed out enough or didn't play a significant enough role in the story progression as they could/should have. I also wished there had been more suspense and more mystery. Some things were spelled out a little too easily or were quite predictable. Finally, a few subplot points felt a bit underdeveloped and were left dangling.

Bottom Line:

I would definitely recommend this to Urban Fantasy readers that enjoy eclectic world-building and incorporation of unique mythologies. This series has a good amount of action, entertaining character dynamics, and some interesting twists. The series has its shortcomings, but it also has lots of potential that promises more excitement to come in the next installment. ( )

Thought you had a rough day? Charlie has just had one, or a few, with just one thing after another coming up. It all started when she got the call of an unconscious girl on the bathroom floor at her daughters school, fearing she's another victim to ash. When she goes to investigate the scene she learns the girl is the girl who's babysat her daughter and is like a daughter to her. Then, her day just goes down hill from there; she gets beaten to a pulp by jinn, and her ex-husband wants to be with her again - after what he did. On top of all going wrong today the nightmares that started eight months ago, when she died, which have been haunting her every time she closes her eyes have pushed her to the exhausted state and now strange things are happening to her; emotionally and physically.

I enjoyed this book more and more as I read. I liked the world that Kelly has created here. She has taken the world we know and added a few extras to it. We have a sound explanation to where the different beings come from, and the abilities they have. Through these parallel planes we have mages, sirens, a being I like to call a vampire/elf mixed type but what Charlie calls aliens, and jinn along with a other beings as well. There was one small piece that threw me off only a few times and that was the sudden appearance of unexpected beings, or item. In these few moments I felt I might have missed a piece that would lead up to them, but this in no way affected the story happening.

Part of what I enjoyed the most was the storyline direction and mystery. Charlie was constantly in action and uncovering a piece of the puzzle. The story was constantly on forward movement, in a fast pacing. We got the pieces right along with Charlie as she went through the actions and we tried to piece them together, together.

The characters where great. As Charlie wasn't my favorite character in the story, it was no fault of hers. It was the secondary characters I enjoyed. They helped in drawing the character of Charlie. Her sister is a wonderful addition with her magic skills and friends. Her partner, Hank, is a nice addition with being a siren. Charlie's husband, or ex-husband...now he is one to watch as you read. And then we have Charlie's daughter, nice to see we have a main character who is a single mom and trying to make it work. And the relationship she has with her daughter is a great one.

In the end, I enjoyed the book very much and look forward to reading The Darkest Edge of Dawn. As the story here ends there is lots of room and a few questions to answer to follow through further in the series. Kelly has a great start to a fresh new series here. Kelly has done a wonderful job drawing a mystery in a fantasy world with enough similarities to ours, but with many amazing surprises. ( )

ehhhhh.....not great. Forgettable...so forgettable in fact that I picked it up off the shelf thinking "oh I need take this to work and read it." Well after I started reading it I figured out I already had but couldn't remember how it ended, skipped ahead to the end and said "yeah I read that but it must not have made an impression". ( )

I couldn't get in to this one at all. When the first chapter didn't grab me, I flipped through it a bit and checked out the ending (bad form as perhaps that is) but everything I read was just kind of meh. The various scenes I dipped into showed a vaguely interesting storyworld built up from a mix of mythologies, but it's this book's poor luck that I began reading it the same day Vaughn's Discord's Apple arrived in my mail. And I felt very strongly that if I was going to read one book rooted in Greek mythology, I'd rather that book be Vaughn's then Gay's. (And if I'm reading one book while longing to read a different book it's a very, very bad sign.)

Publishers, do take note that I'm now terribly sick of the Chris McGrath covers. His artwork has dominated the urban fantasy market for most of this decade and as this decade is nearly over, now is the perfect time to introduce something... not Chris McGrath. ( )

I'm ashamed to say that The Better Part of Darkness has been sitting on my shelf at my parents' place for a while. I bought it at the same time that I got Kelly Meding's Three Days to Dead (my review here) but it ended up languishing on the shelf. I think it's because I bought the two Kellys' books at the same time and I somehow convinced myself that I had, in fact, read both of them. I only realized my mistake a couple weekends ago, when I took The Better Part of Darkness on a trip, thinking it was going to be fun to re-read it. Ha. Mistake. But a very welcome one since I couldn't put the book down.

The Better Part of Darkness is Charlie Madigan's story. A divorced mom of one and a cop on the Atlanta P.D.'s Integration Task Force, she's on the front line dealing with off-world criminals. Recently returned from the dead, Charlie has nightmares and occasional bouts of super strength that she can't explain. While trying to cope with this, Charlie and her partner Hank, a male siren, are investigating ash, a new drug in Atlanta that seems to have off-world origins, and this gets Charlie in trouble with some of the big bads in town, including the local jinn tribe.

When I got in the bath with this book, I was a little confused because it was all so new and exciting. (Not a bad thing, but I was expecting the familiar and exciting.) Kelly Gay has created a compelling heroine with Charlie. She's a little too independent for her own good, she fights the good fight, she has a will-they-won't-they-I-kind-of-hope-they-do relationship with Hank, and she's distrustful of magic. All things I love in a protagonist. And on top of all of that, Kelly Gay has crafted a wonderful story full of twists and turns, many of them unexpected.

The supporting cast in The Better Part of Darkness is very strong. Hank is an interesting foil for Charlie and seems to have deep feelings for her. They may not be romantic at this point but it sure seems like things could change down the road. He should have some great scenes in the next book, based on events in The Better Part of Darkness. Charlie's family is also great. Her sister Bryn is unexpectedly layered and her daughter Emma reminds me of Alexis on Castle because she's so poised for her age. Charlie's ex, Will, is also a nice addition. It was great to see her struggle with the issues divorcees face, particularly when those divorces stem from your partner's addiction. This is something I haven't really seen in other genre books and so it added another layer to Charlie's backstory and also made her seem a lot more accessible and less remote. Some of the other characters who come in later on in the story are also quite interesting but I hesitate to discuss them since they veer into spoiler territory.

The Better Part of Darkness ends with a game changer. It's a bold decision for a debut novel and it's gotten me very excited about the sequel, The Darkest Edge of Dawn, which is out now and on my To Buy list.

I have a couple more points to touch on before I end this already lengthy post. The first is about the setting. I thought it was interesting that the book is set in Atlanta. I've never been there so I'm not sure if there's something about the city that makes it ripe for supernatural invasion (at least in literature) but it's the same city as Ilona Andrews' Kate Daniels books. I'm not saying that two series can't exist in the same city since that happens time and again, especially when the authors have created distinct worlds, but it was something that popped into my mind as soon as I read the blurb, possibly because I haven't seen Atlanta come up in many of the other stories I read.

The second, and last point, I have to make is about the cover. Cover art is so important for me and it really influences my buying decisions. I've bought books based on the cover alone and also hesitated over books with covers I didn't like. This cover has both good and bad qualities. The positive: I really like it because it portrays an urban fantasy/paranormal heroine without exposing (a) her midriff, (b) her boobs, (c) her long, long legs, and/or (d) her whole dang body. Granted, Charlie's showing a little tummy but she's definitely more clothed than some other ladies in fiction. (Am I alone in thinking there are way too many covers that exploit a particular body part instead of hinting at the story? I don't mind a little exposure if it's indicative of story content but hot chicks for hot chicks' sake gets a bit old.) I also like the graphic quality the image has since that helps set the book apart from many other covers, which tend to have a more photographic quality to them. The embedded images in the background are also really neat. The negatives are small and you may think I'm crazy for saying it. Charlie's hair really bugs me. And the longer I look at it, the more I'm irritated. It's something about how much hair is used outside of the ponytail on the right side of her face. It just has this weird late 90s vibe for me and it irks me inexplicably. The second negative is more of a wishful thinking type of thing. I wish that we could get a better look at Charlie's amulet (assuming that's what she's wearing in the image).

Also posted at http://ireadgood.wordpress.com ( )