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Every Which Way But Dead (The Hollows, Book 3) | 
 enlarge | Author: Kim Harrison
Publisher: Eos
Category: Book
List Price: $7.99
Buy Used: $2.93
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Rating:  122 reviews
Sales Rank: 17769
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Pages: 501
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.2
ISBN: 006057299X
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
UPC: 099455006996
EAN: 9780060572990
ASIN: 006057299X
Publication Date: July 1, 2005
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Condition: Used Condition - GOOD can be a well cared for Book (including Audio) that is in great condition to a Book that may show some signs of wear. GOOD Books may be marked; have some spine or page creases; exibit signs of aging or an ExLibrary copy. ** Possible marking on cover. 100% Satisfaction guaranteed on all purchases. Delivery is 7-14 days for standard mail. **
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Product Description
Rachel Morgan's back! Bestselling author Kim Harrison returns with a new supernatural adventure that fans of Laurell K. Hamilton and Charlaine Harris won't want to miss. Some days, you just can't win. Witch and former bounty hunter Rachel Morgan's managed to escape her corrupt company, survive living with a vampire, start her own runner service, and face down a vampire master. But her vampire roommate Ivy is off the wagon, her human boyfriend Nick is out of town indefinitely and doesn't sound like he's coming back while the far-too-seductive vampire Kisten is looking way too tempting, and there's a turf war erupting in Cincinnati's underworld. And there's a greater evil still. To put the vampire master behind bars and save her family, Rachel made a desperate bargain and now there's hell to pay—literally. For if Rachel cannot stop him, the archdemon Algaliarept will pull her into the sorcerous ever-after to forfeit her soul as his slave. Forever.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 117 more reviews...
 a slow start, but the plot gets better halfway through July 18, 2005
R. Kelly Wagner (MD, United States)
77 out of 89 found this review helpful
In the first 275 pages of this third volume of the series, there's some action, but nothing actually happens. Rachel resists getting dragged into the ever-after by Algaliarept yet again; Rachel resists getting laid by Kisten yet again; Ivy manages not to bite Rachel yet again... same old, same old. However, about page 275, Rachel decides to let herself be seduced into sex, but not blood, by Kisten. (And if you are a prude about sex between vampires and witches, you shouldn't be reading this book, really.) After we get that out of the way, Rachel can start kicking ass, rounding up bad guys, trading smart-ass remarks with Trent Kalamack, and all the other fun stuff. Up until that point, I thought I was going to have to say that the third volume in the series isn't as good as the second, but based on the last 200 pages, it's the best yet.
We get to know more about Weres in this volume. In "The Good, the Bad, and the Undead" we got elves. This book, we find out lots more about the elves, and more about weres. In fact, at the end of the book, Rachel has a relationship with both Kisten and David (the Were insurance adjustor) but it is so VERY different from Anita Blake's relationships with her vampire and were! Those of you who follow the Anita Blake series will see what I mean - this is not a case of lust for every species she meets an alpha male of, unlike Anita. I really like the character David Hue - and there is apparently a whole subculture of werewolf insurance adjustors, which strikes me as a very funny idea. Closer to Tanya Huff than to Laurell Hamilton.
One small complaint I have about this series is that although it's set in Cincinnatti, we don't get much of a sense of the place. I happen to like to know more about the cities our characters live in; that's a personal thing. Some authors do it, some don't. Hamilton's St. Louis is sorta vague - could be any city that has nightclubs, and we only know it's St. Louis because she says it is. Jim Butler's Chicago, where Harry Dresden the wizard and his vampire friends and enemies live, and Tanya Huff's Toronto and Vancouver, on the other hand, are very clearly real places - we learn street names, characteristics of the city, peculiar idioms of the speech of the inhabitants, and so on. Harrison's Cincinnatti falls in between - we know this is a city with a river, and we hear a lot about baseball back in Volume 2, so we can narrow down where it is, but we still don't get much detail.
Among other things in this book, we get a 1000-year old elf, who then gets taken in for safekeeping by Mr Keasley across the street, who turns out to be a witch who doesn't want to let people know that's what he is. I suspect that in a later volume, we'll find out more about Mr. Keasley. We meet Trent's fiancee, Ellasbeth, as unpleasant an elf as you'd ever care to avoid. Most important, we meet the villain of the book, Lee Saladan, who shares a secret with Rachel...
A short observation that many of the vampire authors seem to have last names beginning with H - if you know of Hamilton and Harrison, but haven't read any Huff or Charlaine Harris yet, you'll want to check them out, too. On the other hand, there's Jim Butler, so it's not a 100% rule.
And, for those just finding out about this series, a few notes on how it compares to the overall vampire genre, a/k/a BunRab's Standard Vampire Classification: What is the vampires' position in the world; do they stand as an allegory for women's sexual fears; what powers do the vampires have; are there other supernatural characters; is the author dead serious, if you'll pardon the pun, or have a sense of humor? The answers, in this case: The vampires in this series can be either good or bad guys. Most of them have jobs; they don't exist merely to be evil and brooding, unlike some series which shall remain unnamed. They do have extra powers, which vary based on the age of the vampire and the living or undead status; in general these powers include the usual super strength, and once undead, they live very long lives, but there's no turning into bats, no invisibility or seeping like smoke between walls. These vampires' taking of blood frequently involves sex, but doesn't have to; they do need human blood to survive, unlike some (P.N. Elrod's vampires can survive quite well on animal blood, for example.) There are several other species of supernaturals besides vampires, the most notable of which is that the witches such as Rachel are a separate species, not actually human. Perhaps the least common additional species we have, not one we run across in other series, is the pixies, such as Jenks.
In sum: if you liked the second volume of the series, you'll enjoy this even more; if you haven't read the second volume yet, I'd recommend buying it as well and reading them in order, and if you read several vampire series, you should have at least as much fun as I have comparing the similarities and contrasting the differences in how the various authors treat their supernatural characters.
 Klutzes Can Be Witches Too! October 2, 2005
Marc Ruby™ (Warren, MI USA)
29 out of 39 found this review helpful
I'm going to buck the trend here. There are a couple of things that I found disappointing in what should have been a great book. If I get hammered a bit sobeit, but I think fans deserve more than an essay in occult dysfunction.
This has been a fairly solid series, with some interesting characters. A team of three 'runners' occupy center stage: Ivy the reluctant vampire to be, Jenks the motor-mouth pixie, and Rachel the earth/ley witch whose specialty is spending most of her time getting into situations where she can panic. Unfortunately, Rachel is the narrator, and gradually you will get tired of reading lines like "So like an idiot, I froze, and it smacked right into me." Rachel is spunky, self-reliant, and determined. So determined that she persistently jumps from one disaster to a worse one. For a while it's funny, then it's entertaining, and finally, you just have to shake your head in dismay.
This time her boyfriend leaves because he is terrified of her, so she misses him so much she starts up an affair with Kisten the most dangerous vampire in the city. The demon Algaliarept is hot on making Rachel into his familiar, and since she knows exactly what makes her vulnerable to him, that's what she keeps doing. She wanders into a struggle between to supernatural mavens of crime. Insisting that she doesn't kill people, the list of fatalities around her keeps mounting. She has an amazing ability to alienate friends as well.
Which doesn't mean that this is a bad book just that for all her pretensions, Rachel is no Anita Blake. It's obvious that Kim Harrison is setting her up to be the series sex star, but that really isn't enough. Thank goodness, though, most of the other characters are much stronger than Rachel, so, usually by accident, she manages to survive. What I don't know is if the series will survive another volume of plots that careen from one unnecessary problem.
Actually, I'm giving this book a three because late in the book she makes a genocidal decision for a selfish and silly reason. Haphazard plotting and gratuitous sex I can handle. But Kim Harrison isn't the kind of writer who can carry a character who is that hopelessly vicious. The result is that she blows by what is probably the most significant opportunity in the book. Well if you like a lot of action and 'no biting' sex, this will do for you. Hopefully the next book will work better.
 And they lived happily in the ever-after July 5, 2005
J. Holmes (Mobile, AL)
16 out of 18 found this review helpful
Kim Harrison has positively out-done herself this time. Every Which Way But Dead is the best in the Rachel Morgan/Hollows series to date. New friends, old friends, and a new romance to set the sheets on fire await in this latest installment.
Rachel made a deal with the devil -- a demon, actually -- and now "Big Al" is coming to collect. Our beloved heroine finds a why to stay one step ahead of the demon but karma has a way of finding you when you least expect it. And Rachel has quite a debt to repay. Yeah, he's a demon. Yeah, he's evil. But, you have got to like a guy who dares to wear lace while supplying some of the book's best one-liners and some of the most unforgettable scenes.
New friends are introduced and promise to make Rachel's continued existence all the more interesting. Many mysteries remain while many questions are answered along the way. Old friends return and offer a new view of their own lives and their ties to Rachel. Kisten and Ivy offer the most interesting twists and the most possibilities for the future. Both show their human sides and leave Rachel (and the reader!) craving more.
Filled with wit and seat-of-your-pants action, anyone who is already in love with this series is bound to enjoy this book. For those who are just beginning to explore the world of the Hollows, be sure to pick up the other two books -- Dead Witch Walking and The Good, The Bad, and the Undead -- to read first so the full impact of Every Which Way But Dead isn't lost.
The Life of a Demon Familiar July 17, 2007
Arthur W. Jordin (Smyrna, GA USA)
11 out of 13 found this review helpful
Every Which Way But Dead (2005) is the third Urban Fantasy in the Rachel Morgan series, following The Good, the Bad, and the Undead. In the previous volume, Rachel slams Piscary into unconsciousness and turns him over to the FIBs. Later she convinces the Howlers to pay her fee for searching for their mascot fish.
In this novel, Piscary is convicted for the murders of several ley line witches after the demon Algaliarept testifies against him. Now Rachel summons the demon to fulfill her promise in exchange for his testimony. She goes through the rites to become his familiar.
After accepting her service, Al no longer needs his former familiar, the elf Ceri. Despite his sadistic intentions, Rachel convinces Al to release Ceri and then she gets Ceri onto sanctified ground. Ceri is now free after a thousand years of service to the demon.
Although Ceri is rapidly adjusting to her new freedom, Rachel needs to find her another home. Jenks is frustrated because he can't tell what kind of creature she is. He knows that she is the same kind as Trent Kalamack, but Rachel prefers not to release that information and pixies are not known for keeping secrets. Besides, Rachel, Ivy and Jenks are not exactly a normal household living in a typical lifestyle.
Rachel invites Keasley, the old witch living across the street, to come over and meet Ceri. While Keasley is not exactly a typical inderlander himself, he is more so than the Vampiric Charms team. At first Ceri and Keasley are a bit reluctant, but soon find much to like in each other. Keasley returns home to install Ceri in his spare bedroom.
In this story, Rachel notices that an older Were has been following her and confronts him in a back corner of the zoo. David Hue is an insurance adjuster who has a few questions about the fish that Rachel had taken from Mr. Ray's office. It seems that the fish had been stolen and the original owner has filed a claim. He also has some papers for Rachel to sign concerning the final disposition of the fish.
Algaliarept cannot use Rachel as his familiar without taking her back to the ever-after and is less than happy about her refusal to cross over. One day, when Rachel uses the ley line in her back yard, Al unexpectedly appears and starts dragging her away. Since the backyard ley line is surrounded by sanctified ground, the nearest available ley line is eight blocks away and Al is determined to drag or carry her to it. But Ceri, Keasley and David form a circle to stop him and Rachel, as the de facto summoner, then banishes him back to the ever-after.
This story also tells of Rachel's troubled relationship with Nick Sparagmos. After he became her familiar, Nick was subject to seizures and other upsets whenever Rachel drew upon a ley line. Now that she is Algaliarept's familiar, that tie has been broken, but Nick still isn't returning home. Then Kristen takes her out on a date and she finds herself becoming more attracted toward him.
With Piscary in prison, the criminal underground in Cincinnati becomes more unstable. Rachel gradually becomes aware of a new player. She first learns of Stanley Saladan from Takata in regard to his annual concert. Then Kristen takes her to Lee Saladan's gambling boat. Later, Quen hires her to protect Trent during a meeting with Saladan.
As usual, Rachel gets into all kinds of trouble with both her friends and her enemies. Sometimes it is hard to tell one from another, since today's friend is tomorrow's enemy and vice-versa. Her life is so screwed up!
Highly recommended for Harrison fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of inderlanders, humans and romance.
-Arthur W. Jordin
bewitching dead and undead tale June 29, 2005
Harriet Klausner
9 out of 13 found this review helpful
Rachel Marianna Morgan worries about the ever-after as a familiar to Algaliarept though the deal she struck with the demon to save her family especially Ceri enables the witch to keep her soul. When Al realizes that Rachel still has free will, he rages in frustration and warns her that she is still his familiar though he cannot force her into his realm. Thus she must show caution or else Al will come back sooner than later for her.
Still that does not stop her from protecting the thousand year old elven child from her "master". When Al comes for her Rachel expects at a minimum she will turn back into a DEAD WITCH WALKING, but most likely worse. Rachel also deals with more mundane problems like her boyfriend dumping her, her roommate Ivy a vampire falling off the bloody wagon, and Kisten another vampire wanting to share a bite or two with her. Life or is that un-life is normal for Rachel as she deals with THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UNDEAD of otherworldly and human drug lords and howling insurance salesmen.
The latest Rachel Morgan tongue in cheek tale is a bewitching story that grips the audience from Al's first demand ignored by our heroine until the final altercations with combatants like Al, family members, and vampires. The story line is action packed, but as with the previous dead and undead tales, readers believe in the supernatural as the norm. The only criticism of this magnificent Morgan adventures is staying up all night to read it as Kim Harrison beguiles fans not to put down her latest thriller in spite of 500 plus pages until they finish.
Harriet Klausner
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