Book Review: The Lost by Vicki Pettersson

The Lost (Celestial Blues #2)
Griffin Shaw and his wife were both murdered fifty years ago. Now a minor angel, Grif's been granted permission to solve the mystery of his own death . . . if he helps the Pure angels guide those souls who might otherwise be Lost.
Souls like Jeap Yang, a drug addict in his final moments of life. Grif knows that death is coming, but he cannot intervene. However, Grif's mortal lover, reporter Katherine "Kit" Craig, isn't constrained by angelic protocol. If she can stop a death, she will.

But as Kit is about to find out, there are things more traumatic and evil than murder. A strange new drug is literally eating tweakers' flesh from their bones, and Kit's crusade to get it off the streets is set to propel her and Grif into a battle with a vicious drug cartel. They'll have to scramble to stay alive, stay together, and choose their own fate . . . before it's chosen for them.

If you are familiar with Vicki Pettersson’s Zodiac series then you know she doesn’t hesitate to deal out emotional devastation to her protagonists. She writes dark urban fantasy and that means characters must make hard decisions and sacrifices to do what is right. The Lost is the second book in the Celestial Blues trilogy, and what I love about trilogies is the series arc has to move at a fast pace. Vicki has crammed many complex and intriguing storylines into this trilogy including three series arcs: the mystery behind Griffin Shaw’s murder 50 years ago, Kit’s family past involving the murder of her father and the love triangle between Griff, Kit and the memory of Griff’s dead wife Evie. We get some shocking information in regard to all three storylines in this book and I for one am dying to know how this is going to play out.

Each book also has a thriller mystery that is solved by the end of the book. In The Lost, Kit and Griff stumble into a turf war between drug gangs. There is a new drug called krokodil that causes the flesh to fall off the bones of users. The mystery has some twists I didn't see coming and the gang leaders are truly dark and twisted characters. We also finally get to meet a fallen named Scratch, and I really liked this character and his role in the world building. Vicki nailed what a creature from the Eternal Forrest would be like.

I have a love hate relationship with this series and therefore this book. I love Griffin Shaw; he is a dark and tortured character that uses few words, but feels so deeply. His struggle is an amazing journey to experience. But… I don’t like the heroine, and Griff’s love interest, Kit. I get her character and that she is hurt and damaged on the inside so she over compensates by being bubbly and self-confident on the outside. I understand her purpose in this story, but she just doesn't work for me. She is supposed to be a smart reporter yet makes some stupid choices from a professional stand point and using her exaggerated sense of doing what is right to justify it. To me she seems like more of a plot device to move along the story of Griffin. Which is okay with me cause I “heart” Griffin Shaw HARD.


I might be harsh on the main heroine, but don’t let that keep you from reading this series. It is passionate and rich in so many aspects and like Vicki’s Zodiac series many times I wanted to throw the book across the room and shout NOOOOOO! Vicki has built an original and fascinating world involving angels that urban fantasy fans will enjoy. Did I mention Griffin Shaw’s character is and old fashion charming alpha? Well, he is <G>

I loved the description of Griffin’s wings:

“She cried out, but it was drowned out by another that squalled like a winter wind. The loosening of a thousand simultaneously unsheathed blades ripped the air behind her, and a thunderous crack sounded, like an old oak snapping at its base.”

:Swoon:

Grif trying to explain the fallen to Kit:

“The fallen angels hate God and everyone on His Christmas list. They especially hate humans.”

4 “Lost” Sheep

Sharon Stogner (edit by Kalpar)

About the Author:

website-fb-twitterI’m the author of the NYT-bestselling Signs of the Zodiac series – a six-book urban fantasy series set in my hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada.

I hold a BA in English, essentially qualifying me for nothing, which was why I opted for a decade-long career as a showgirl in the now-retired Folies Bergere. That’s fine; I’m now retired too, passing the time as a scribbler until I’m old enough to join the cast of the Palm Springs Folies (55 is the minimum age requirement). There I hope to once again fritter away my nights with sequins, eyelash glue, and my best girlfriends. You gotta have a dream, right? Besides, you know the saying: You can take the girl out of the show, but you can’t take the show out of the girl.

Since I’ve a few years yet before I can un-retire, I’m now writing a new supernatural noir trilogy, also set in Vegas, but with an entirely new world and cast of characters. Featuring a supernatural private eye, and a rockabilly reporter with a nose for trouble, the Celestial Blues series debuted with THE TAKEN, and will be followed by THE LOST in March, 2013.

I currently divide my time between my family in Las Vegas and Dallas. It’s a hell of a commute.

By the way, Pettersson is pronounced “Pet-ter-suhn” – it’s Swedish.

First book in the Signs of the Zodiac series