Under The Bones by Kory M Shrum

This is a series that needs to be read in order, yes there are flashbacks to help a reader new to this world out but they don't start until halfway through the book and may leave you a bit confused if you haven't read the first one.  Be warned though, this second book really isn't a patch on the first one. 

By now I think we understand that when Lou moves in to a dark area she can transport herself to anywhere in the world she wants - and even to another world.  At least once every chapter told from Lou's perspective we get retold this bit of information and it started to really, really irritate me.  There is also little to nothing in the way of character progression in this book.  Lou starts the book as a murderous machine and ends it as a murderous machine that may be about to acknowledge she has feelings for more than just her Aunt.  King is an alcoholic ex-cop who is really put through the emotional wringer in this novel, unfortunately he comes out the other side as an alcoholic ex-cop.  Konstantine might be the kingpin of a well organised cadre of thieves, murderers and drug dealers but he is at least in touch with his emotions; sadly this doesn't give you much room for manoeuver with his character.  There are then a few supporting artistes thrown in to the mix that have one character trait that defines them and that is it, all she wrote, so they feel cartoonish.

Whilst the ending is explosive and has a few surprises in it, I couldn't help but be reminded of the end of Scarface and it did have a set piece feel to it rather than a natural conclusion to this particular thread.  There is a plenty of action and some touching downtime spent with Lucy but, on the whole I found it rather a frustrating read and was more than happy to just dip in and out of it.