Ward Against Death (Chronicles of a Reluctant Necromancer, #1)

by Melanie Card

[Angie]

From the very beginning, I knew Ward Against Death was going to be a winner. It reminded me too much of my all-time favorite TV show, Pushing Daisies, for me to not enjoy it. Just like the show, Ward has the ability to bring back the dead for a limited amount of time. His latest job is to wake a nobleman's daughter after her suspicious death. It doesn't go according to plan at all, since Celia claims to have been murdered, then jumps out of the window. Ward is responsible for her, so of course he follows, and she takes advantage of his commitment to the Oath--that he cannot deny any patient help. Celia is determined to find out who killed her and why, and she needs Ward's help, since she's kind of dead and all. What follows is an action packed adventure as Celia (a trained assassin) and Ward (definitely not an assassin) run all over the city to solve this case.

Ward Against Death was so much fun! I could not get enough! It's fast paced and has plenty of action sequences to hold your attention. While Celia and Ward get into a lot of scuffles during the book, it never felt repetitive or circular. They were always on the go, running into new foes, and discovering new information. It's not all fight scenes and blood though. There's a ton of awesome occult factors as well. Ward is a physician and a necromancer, which is not exactly smiled upon in their society, so when Celia's murder takes a paranormal twist, he finally has more to offer her (other than keeping her alive, of course). Ward is the brains, and Celia is the brawn. It's a dynamic that I could definitely get behind!

I absolutely adored both of our main characters. Ward Against Death is told in dual POV (with an occasional third from the villain), so we really get to know both of them. Celia is kick ass and smart. She has to be since she's from a long line of assassins. She may not have all of the answers, but she's good at acting like she has them until she can actually get them. Ward is her complete opposite. He has no fighting skills whatsoever, but he can use his hands for other purposes. Like surgery and mending wounds. He is very sweet and caring, and at times a bit bumbling. I found him so cute! Of course, there was a budding romance. It does start out with Celia trying to manipulate Ward's feelings to keep him close, but eventually she realizes that she does want him. However, they're relationship proposes a very important question: is it still necrophilia if one partner is the living dead?

Ward Against Death has almost everything I love in a book: an interesting fantasy world, likeable characters, romance, action, and the paranormal! There's never a dull moment as Celia and Ward work together to find her murderer and learn more about the Ancient people who used to dominate their city. It has the perfect balance of mystery, romance, and action. And zombies! I am very happy that I've finally started this series and I'm eager to dive into the next book to see what's in store for our reluctant necromancer and his kind of zombie.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.