Dark Around the Edges: Possession by Cari Z.
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Cambion is back in the 5th installment and if you’re not on the edge of your seat, why not! This is a great, punchy series that just gets better every episode. I honestly can’t recommend it enough. I’m enjoying reading short bits of it at a time and think it’ll hold up really well (if not actually better) when re-reading the whole thing at one time. It feels as though this was a novel that they split into parts for a serial so I’m kind of excited to re-read it all at one sitting. Anyway, in this installment Devon has been cambion-napped by his demon father, Cressidus, while Rio is struggling to find him. Time is running short and once Cressidus binds with Devon completely, all hope is lost.

This episode is pretty action packed. We start where the last one left off with Porter Grey bleeding out on a nasty motel mattress while Rio wants to torture the summoner for information. Rio is shut down on that path and he takes matters into his own hands. I liked this aspect of Rio and we learn more about his past and identity as a nephilim. Steven has a brief, but delightful, role and I’m sorry he was such a minor character. However I tend to favor him and he’s not an important part of the story as a whole so I can’t hold it against the book. Well I can, but I won’t, as long as he keeps popping up of course.

Anyway Devon is off being held in a cage and meeting his half-siblings. This part is gruesome, as to be expected, but interesting. The writing keeps this part engaging without gory and all the while maintaining a very creepy vibe. The edgy atmosphere is to be expected but I like that the demon has some subtly. He/she is over the top and predictably evil, but I’m curious to see where the story goes with Cressidus. Also, are demons sexless? I can’t figure out what the demon itself is even when ignoring the human host gender. It is of course a minor, unimportant detail.

Most of the story worked well for me and I liked the action and internal trains of thought, as well as the further characterization. The only thing that didn’t work so well for me was, ironically, Rio’s actions. They just didn’t make much sense to me. I’m not sure why they knocked out Maria, it’s not as though she could physically or otherwise prevent them from leaving. They also could have gotten the same information from Grey if she was awake or not, again it’s not like her saying no could stop them. I wonder if there’s some subtly I missed. Because of this it feels like the story is going in a new and different direction. Isolating Rio and Devon could be fun but I don’t know why it’s necessary.

With some of these unanswered questions, I didn’t enjoy this offering as much as previous ones. It’s a hazard of the serial when these cliffhangers come up. I trust the story and impeccable writing as much as ever so I’m happy to go wherever it leads. Until then everyone should be reading this. Well those that like their angels and demons a bit naughty and bloody anyway.

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