Chaos Choreography (InCryptid, #5)

by Seanan McGuire

The fifth book in New York Times-bestselling Seanan McGuire's witty urban fantasy InCryptid series about a family of cryptozoologists who act as a buffer between humans and the magical creatures living in secret around us.

"The only thing more fun than an October Daye book is an InCryptid book." —Charlaine Harris, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of Sookie Stackhouse series

Destiny, Noun:

   1. The inevitable or irresistible course of events.
   2. The inescapable future.
   3. See also “Screwed.”

Verity Price is back on the West Coast and getting back into the swing of the family business: cryptozoology. She's rescuing cryptids from bad situations, protecting them from monster-hunters, and generally risking life and limb for the greater good, with her ex-Covenant partner/husband, Dominic, by her side. Her ballroom dance career is behind her...or so she thinks.

When Verity gets the call from the producers of Dance or Die, the reality show she almost won several years before, she finds the lure of a comeback impossible to resist, and she and Dominic are off to L.A. for one last shot at the big time.
 
Of course, nothing is that simple. When two of her fellow contestants turn up dead, Verity will need every ally she can find—and a couple she wasn't looking for—in order to navigate the complicated steps of both the tango and a murder investigation without blowing her cover. It doesn't help that her official family backup is her grandmother, Alice Price-Healy, who thinks "subtle" is something that happens to other people.

Winning this competition may have just become a matter of life and death.

• ISBN10: 075640813X
• ISBN13: 9780756408138
• Publish Date: 1 March 2016
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: DAW Books
• Format: Paperback (US Mass Market)
• Pages: 368
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780756408138

Reviews

[Quirky Cat]

Chaos Choreography is the fifth novel in Seanan McGuire's InCryptid series, and it looks like we're heading back to Verity's perspective! At this point, we all know that putting chaos in the title is going to be highly accurate for this character.

Verity Price thought she was content with her decision to give up dancing to focus on cryptozoology. Aka, the family business. That is, until she got an offer to pop back on Dance or Die, a reality show focused entirely on skill and dancing.

She couldn't turn it down. Ultimately though, it might just be a good thing that she was there. While there's no doubt that she's going to cause a lot of mayhem, odds are good that it will be less than what the snake cultists would do, if they had their way with it.

“Love what you do. Even if it’s not what you thought you’d be doing when you were a kid, love what you do. Eventually, it’s going to kill you, and it would be a real pity if you died doing something you hate.”

Is this really happening? Are we really heading back to Verity's perspective!? That was not something I expected. But I'm certainly not going to complain! Chaos Choreography is entertaining chaos, obviously, but it is still a delight.

Verity's passion for dance has really made her character stand out in a crowd (the crowd being in my mind, and full of protagonists that I adore). It's one of the many reasons I got sucked into this series so hard.

Naturally, visiting both her character, and her passion was exciting, to say the least. I don't normally dig the whole reality show vibe, but it worked well here. Partially because the characters genuinely seemed to care about one another, unlike what one would typically expect/see in a reality show.

“Maybe that was always the secret to a simple life. Reality was the complicating factor.”

There are a few side characters introduced over the course of Chaos Choreography, and I sincerely hope that we're not done seeing them! I know, it might be a long shot. But they were really well written characters, and I want to see what is happening in their lives, especially considering all the changes coming their way.

Up next is Magic for Nothing, another novel that is going to bring about major change. I say that because it's Antimony Price's turn to take the leading role, and I really have no idea what to expect from her character. Other than a lot of snark, that much I've already gathered.

Check out more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[kimbacaffeinate]

When Verity or should I say Valerie is offered the chance for a return season on Dance or Die, she pulls out her wigs and costumes before dragging her ex-Covenant husband, Dominic to Los Angelos.

At one time Verity considered pursuing dance and leaving the family business. While she is happy with her decision the opportunity to compete again is too great. Not wanting to deal with what-ifs, she along with Dominic and a small group of Aslin Mice head off to the competition. At first, things are wonderful as she is reunited with old cast members but when two contestants show up dead with strange symbols painted in blood she knows she is dealing with a cryptid problem.

Each book in the series deals with one Price and a cryptid-related mystery. Chaos Choreography was interesting in that we are dealing with a reality dance-off. It turns out some of the contestants are cryptids, including one of the announcers who asks Verity for a HUGE favor.

I really enjoyed the team that formed in solving this mystery. The murderer is specifically targeting contestants. Get eliminated...you die. It was suspenseful, but also had McGuire's signature form of humor as we dealt with dragons, gecko type creatures, snake lovers and more.  Verity consults with local cryptids and her family but to survive she will need to keep her wits about her and delegate.  I really felt like Verity came into her own in Chaos Choreography. She makes peace with herself and trusts others to handle missions. This was such a big change from Manhatten and allowed other characters to shine.

McGuire did an excellent job giving us a real feel for the on-camera excitement and demands of a reality dance-off. While we knew early on what the symbols on the body stood for we encounter plenty of twists and kinks as the team worked to stop the killer(s). The final scenes were climatic and had me holding my breath from who would be eliminated to preventing the next murder. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer

[MurderByDeath]

I originally read the first in this series with some trepidation, but the characters kept me reading and the Aeslin mice stole my heart.  That the plot was fun was just a bonus.   In this one though, the plot wasn't a bonus; it's what kept me reading through a setting that normally bores me (reality tv and dance competitions; a double whammy of yawn).  The setting is, in fact, what kept this book on my TBR for so long instead of being devoured immediately upon receipt.   I have to say, I didn't see that ending coming.  It was sort of awful, although everything moved so fast there wasn't much time to dwell on it.   So if that setting appeals, this book should be a huge winner.  Likeable characters, a really good plot and the Aeslin mice.  All hail the Aeslin mice!