Sworn enemies for over nine hundred years, they have fought a secret war in the darkest shadows of the mortal world, pitting undead strength and cunning against feral rage and savagery. Now, in the hip Gothic streets of modern-day Budapest, the ancient conflict takes an unexpected new twist. Selene is a Death Dealer, a vampire warrior dedicated to the destruction of the hated lycans. Michael is a werewolf, an innocent American newly infected with the lupine curse. Against all reason and history, they find themselves drawn together even as the grisly inhuman war rushes toward its nightmarish climax. They have no idea of the power their unlikely union can unleash -- and of the terrifying secrets that will be revealed in the unearthly realm of...UNDERWORLD

    They're rather good examples of their genre, but still clearly amateur. Perhaps she was unwilling to lean too heavily on the work of the past, but there's no shame in borrowing from the masters, and it would have added greatly to the feel of the book. For the devoted fan of shapeshifter lore, Half Human, Half Animal is worth buying for the resource list alone. New fans to the genre could do worse than to start with this book, which covers a wider variety of myths and legends than the usual Euro-centric werewolf-exclusive fare. It's not the most elegantly written volume on the subject, as Hall seems to be finding her feet in this first literary excursion. Still, I'm looking forward to the second volume Hall claims to be assembling; with luck she'll have fully overcome her first time writer's foibles without losing her fan's enthusiasm for the subject. Half Human, Half Animal: Tales of Werewolves and Related Creatures will help round out any folklore fan's shelf.

    Ryan is human, promoted to detective by Internal Affairs. His first assignment is to investigate Frank's methods. Posing as the werewolf's new partner, wrestling with his own guilt and insecurities as a cop and as a spy, he assists Frank in a murder investigation while simultaneously gathering evidence against him. As Ryan and Frank search for answers, they discover that the governor could be the next target in a string of murders. With the politics of Boston hanging in the balance, the partners must tolerate one another long enough to find the killer before he can strike again.