MaryJanice Davidson: Derik's Bane

Berkley Sensation (Paperback), ISBN 0-425-19997-5

Werewolf Derek Gardner finds himself chafing under the Pack rule of his best friend and alpha Michael Wyndham. He almost feels like celebrating when Packmate Antonia experiences a vision in which a reincarnated Morgan Le Fay seeks to bring the world to an end. Her vision gives him a reason to escape the big mansion that houses the Pack -- and avoid a fight to the death with Michael.

Derek leaves Boston for Los Angeles to kill the reincarnation before she can cause too much trouble. But the flighty, distracted Dr. Sara Gunn can't possibly be a Big Bad World-Ender. She can barely concentrate on anything for longer than ten minutes at a time.

But killing her proves harder than Derek anticipated. Even calling upon all his heightened werewolf abilities, Derek can't scratch her, much less kill her. Indeed, he manages to knock himself unconscious after their struggles trash her room. He eventually tells her the whole story, which she instantly refuses to believe. But after a talk with her mentor at the hospital, she grudgingly admits something might be odd about her life.

Not only that, Derek isn't the only one on Sara's, uh, tail. Arthur's Chosen, a group of red-robed wackos also seek to kill Sara. Sara and Derek concoct a plan to head back to Boston and destroy the group. They set off on a cross-country road trip, slinging snarky comments back and forth and eventually winding up in bed together.

MaryJanice Davidson writes wonderful dialogue and banter, but a lack of substantial plot hinders this book (as well as the other three I've read and reviewed). Also the large print and extra white space between lines merely serves to make the book appear long; it probably condenses down to a mere 100 or 150 pages of regular type. Despite these problems, Derik's Bane still makes for a decent read -- good fluff. Just don't expect great literature.

Jen Foote

Jen Foote recently moved to central Florida, where she is a copy editor and page designer at a small daily newspaper. She is ecstatic to live an hour away from the ocean.

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