What do you think?
Rate this book
Jill Kismet #5
Heaven's Spite
When a new hellbreed comes calling, playing nice isn't an option. Jill Kismet has no choice but to seek treacherous allies -- Perry, the devil she knows, and Melisande Belisa, the cunning Sorrows temptress whose true loyalties are unknown.
Kismet knows Perry and Belisa are likely playing for the same thing -- her soul. It's just too bad, because she expects to beat them at their own game. Except their game is vengeance.
Nobody plays vengeance like Kismet. But if the revenge she seeks damns her, her enemies might get her soul after all. . .
Kismet knows Perry and Belisa are likely playing for the same thing -- her soul. It's just too bad, because she expects to beat them at their own game. Except their game is vengeance.
Nobody plays vengeance like Kismet. But if the revenge she seeks damns her, her enemies might get her soul after all. . .
193 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 1, 2010
32 people are currently reading
1419 people want to read
About the author
Lilith Saintcrow
139 books4,509 followersLilith Saintcrow was born in New Mexico, bounced around the world as a child, and fell in love with writing stories when she was ten years old. She and her library co-habitate in Vancouver, Washington.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews
October 31, 2010
OMG--I can't believe the ending (no, I won't give it away even though it made me want to throw the book across the room. And I know Lilith Saintcrow did it on purpose, too! Grr. Need the last book NOWNOWNOW!!).
As usual, with HEAVEN'S SPITE, Lilith Saintcrow writes an action-packed, edge-of-your-seat thriller that will keep you up late into the night. And then give you nightmares.
I love her writing, love her kick-butt female characters and the hot men who love them, love her fight scenes, and love the worlds that she creates. I'm sad to hear the Kismet series is coming to a close but, really, poor Kismet needs a break. She's been to Hell and back. She's battled more 'breed and Traders than she can shake her whip at. Time for a nice, quiet retirement where she can relax and spend some time cuddled in her Were's manly arms.
Too bad it doesn't happen in this book. At all.
All I can say is...AWESOME! Go read this series right now! (But be prepared to yell, "NO!!" at the end of HEAVEN'S SPITE. I'm just sayin'.) Thanks for an amazing ride, Lilith!
As usual, with HEAVEN'S SPITE, Lilith Saintcrow writes an action-packed, edge-of-your-seat thriller that will keep you up late into the night. And then give you nightmares.
I love her writing, love her kick-butt female characters and the hot men who love them, love her fight scenes, and love the worlds that she creates. I'm sad to hear the Kismet series is coming to a close but, really, poor Kismet needs a break. She's been to Hell and back. She's battled more 'breed and Traders than she can shake her whip at. Time for a nice, quiet retirement where she can relax and spend some time cuddled in her Were's manly arms.
Too bad it doesn't happen in this book. At all.
All I can say is...AWESOME! Go read this series right now! (But be prepared to yell, "NO!!" at the end of HEAVEN'S SPITE. I'm just sayin'.) Thanks for an amazing ride, Lilith!
January 27, 2016
I can see now why so many reviewers said they disliked the ending. If I didn't have the next book ready, published, and nearby, I would have went mini-ballistic Erin. Cliffhangers just suck.
Again Saintcrow pumps up the action almost non-stop - this time the gloves are off and Perry has finally revealed his full deck. Twists around all sorts of corners, a plot that leads Jill around on a frantic leash as she tries to stop an incoming hellbreed and find her beloved before it's too late. The villains are even bigger and badder than before in this one.
Jill...well, I just don't like her. I'm convinced now that Saintcrow can't write likeable heroines. That's it. I hated Dante much more, but Jill I don't care for much either. At least she's a lot more passable. Her emotions are dragged through the ringer in this one as she finds out a startling revelation about her former teacher, and has to face the possibility of being without Saul for good, to now having to face the inevitable about herself. Honestly, as weird as this sounds, I don't see why she would deserve much redemption. I think she's been corrupting herself a long time, so much so that I find it hard to believe how she can care for random strangers like she claims to. I see her wanting to protect the city more like a territorial, pride dispute by this point.
I still find some of the major story confusing, but I guess that's just me. Overall I dig the world the author has built, it's multi-layered, realistic to fit this kind of Urban fantasy, dark, gritty, twisted. She writes action scenes well, although I shudder at some of the dialogue. I think she writes supporting characters well and makes them more fascinating and likeable than her mains. I also think she has really overdone the description and updates on the rubys, hair sparkles, and scar effects now. Every action scene - well, almost every other page - has them doing something.
The new apprentice is promising, although I don't care much about that side storyline at this point, as I keep looking forward to seeing the wrapups for the main players who have been here since book one. I'm guess his introduction may possibly give her the ability to take a well-deserved break after everything is resolved.
There is the return of most major players, although Saul has a very short scene only as he complains about them again. Perry is twisted and fascinating on page, definitely a true villain. I would have been curious about darker elements if not for the ending, which ruined that possibility. But then again, there's a final book to read, and I'm not sure where it will go from there. Having an instinctual feeling I'm not going to be crazy about it. Don't know why, but as Jill always thinks, instinct is important.
Again Saintcrow pumps up the action almost non-stop - this time the gloves are off and Perry has finally revealed his full deck. Twists around all sorts of corners, a plot that leads Jill around on a frantic leash as she tries to stop an incoming hellbreed and find her beloved before it's too late. The villains are even bigger and badder than before in this one.
Jill...well, I just don't like her. I'm convinced now that Saintcrow can't write likeable heroines. That's it. I hated Dante much more, but Jill I don't care for much either. At least she's a lot more passable. Her emotions are dragged through the ringer in this one as she finds out a startling revelation about her former teacher, and has to face the possibility of being without Saul for good, to now having to face the inevitable about herself. Honestly, as weird as this sounds, I don't see why she would deserve much redemption. I think she's been corrupting herself a long time, so much so that I find it hard to believe how she can care for random strangers like she claims to. I see her wanting to protect the city more like a territorial, pride dispute by this point.
I still find some of the major story confusing, but I guess that's just me. Overall I dig the world the author has built, it's multi-layered, realistic to fit this kind of Urban fantasy, dark, gritty, twisted. She writes action scenes well, although I shudder at some of the dialogue. I think she writes supporting characters well and makes them more fascinating and likeable than her mains. I also think she has really overdone the description and updates on the rubys, hair sparkles, and scar effects now. Every action scene - well, almost every other page - has them doing something.
The new apprentice is promising, although I don't care much about that side storyline at this point, as I keep looking forward to seeing the wrapups for the main players who have been here since book one. I'm guess his introduction may possibly give her the ability to take a well-deserved break after everything is resolved.
There is the return of most major players, although Saul has a very short scene only as he complains about them again. Perry is twisted and fascinating on page, definitely a true villain. I would have been curious about darker elements if not for the ending, which ruined that possibility. But then again, there's a final book to read, and I'm not sure where it will go from there. Having an instinctual feeling I'm not going to be crazy about it. Don't know why, but as Jill always thinks, instinct is important.
February 27, 2014
Wow. Each time I finish a Lilith Saintcrow novel I'm left emotionally drained, and this time more than ever. I'm afraid to read on, yet I need to know what happens in the last installment... but I don't want the story to end. This world is terrible, terrifying, gory and dark, and from a hunter's (especially Jill's) POV, terribly unfair. Always fighting the tide of evil, yet walking the thin line between eternal damnation and a lonely, thankless existence as a hunter. I've become so invested in the characters, the good, the bad and the horribly, horribly evil. As for the cliffhanger ending: Excellent. Had I not known there was another book, it would even have been a good way to wrap up this series.
It's not unusual that bad stuff happens to Lilith Saintcrow's heroines, but this time Jill must come to terms with hidden secrets concerning people she's loved and trusted since Mikhail rescued her. Believe when I say that betrayal runs deep in this book. To make matters worse, Saul's abducted, forcing Jill to turn to her two most hated adversaries, the Sorrow, Melisande Belisa, and Perry, who's fighting another powerful Hellbreed, clawing his way out of Hell. Perry is scarier than ever. His professions of love are terrifying, and if I thought his boners were creepiest thing ever, his licking tongue is a good runner-up. Seeing Perry in victory mode is, well, hellish. I have a deep admiration for Jill in this book. She's a true fighter. Even when she's out of options, she keeps on fighting. This isn't just heavens spite, it's Jill's spite. I thought her choice at the very end was entirely fitting, and entirely Jill... But so heartwrenching for both her and Saul... One of the best cliffhangers I've ever read. I would have liked to know a little more about the caretakers role in all of this, though. 5+ stars.
It's not unusual that bad stuff happens to Lilith Saintcrow's heroines, but this time Jill must come to terms with hidden secrets concerning people she's loved and trusted since Mikhail rescued her. Believe when I say that betrayal runs deep in this book. To make matters worse, Saul's abducted, forcing Jill to turn to her two most hated adversaries, the Sorrow, Melisande Belisa, and Perry, who's fighting another powerful Hellbreed, clawing his way out of Hell. Perry is scarier than ever. His professions of love are terrifying, and if I thought his boners were creepiest thing ever, his licking tongue is a good runner-up. Seeing Perry in victory mode is, well, hellish. I have a deep admiration for Jill in this book. She's a true fighter. Even when she's out of options, she keeps on fighting. This isn't just heavens spite, it's Jill's spite. I thought her choice at the very end was entirely fitting, and entirely Jill... But so heartwrenching for both her and Saul... One of the best cliffhangers I've ever read. I would have liked to know a little more about the caretakers role in all of this, though. 5+ stars.
February 9, 2011
Brilliant. The Jill Kismet books, are in my opinion, where the Anita Blake books should have headed. Jill is as tough as they come. She's a hunter who fight's the nasties to keep her city safe. She's so kick ass, she needs her own definition. This book had me on the edge of my seat the whole time. I was reading as fast as I could, I had to know what happened next! There's so much action in the pages you have to hold on tight or you might get thrown off your seat. I love the way Lilith Saintcrow writes. It's dark, gritty, no holds barred, and in your face. If you've read Jennifer Rardin's Jaz Parks series, Adrian Phoenix's Maker's Song series or even Lilith's Dante Valentine series you must, must pick this series up. You will not be disappointed.
July 17, 2016
Saintcrow's Jill Kismet series is available bundled as a single kindle book, which i happened to pick up a very long time ago on sale. Re-reading the first book in the series recently was better than the first time I came across it, and I've ended up leaping into a series dive through the underbelly of Kismet's fictional Santa Luz for 5 books now. The episodic tales of battling the hideous evil of demons and their human converts have been plenty interesting, and many times a cut above my usual UF fare.
And gradually, partway through Heaven's Spite, a whole bunch of little threads cast throughout the past 4 books get jerked taut into a noose that Jill's going to have a hell of a time escaping. A solid summary of events spoils too much of the masterful way this noose tightens, so suffice to say if you've made it this far, book 5 is an unexpected payout of grand proportions, right up to the final drumbeat of the decidedly NOT cliffhanger ending.
And gradually, partway through Heaven's Spite, a whole bunch of little threads cast throughout the past 4 books get jerked taut into a noose that Jill's going to have a hell of a time escaping. A solid summary of events spoils too much of the masterful way this noose tightens, so suffice to say if you've made it this far, book 5 is an unexpected payout of grand proportions, right up to the final drumbeat of the decidedly NOT cliffhanger ending.
December 24, 2010
WOW! That's all I can think of saying at the moment. This is the fifth book in the Jill Kismet series and there was a lot going on. Jill was running around seeming to never stop. But it really seemed like she was at a disadvantage this book. Normally she has some idea what's going on behind the scenes with Perry. But this one she really just seemed confused. Of course Perry was screwing with her as per usual, the normal cast of characters was there to help her out when she needed it and there was a whole Saul storyline that was there.
And the ending... talk about being unfair. Mid Word we are left off with! And then it's even more confusing to have to read the little snippet from the next and final book in the series. Talk about being confused.
I can't wait for the next one! Although I'm sad to see this series end.
And the ending... talk about being unfair. Mid Word we are left off with! And then it's even more confusing to have to read the little snippet from the next and final book in the series. Talk about being confused.
I can't wait for the next one! Although I'm sad to see this series end.
April 27, 2019
I didn’t enjoy this book as much. I found Jill more annoying than anything. She was just unlikeable this book, with few redeeming qualities. And the book featured mostly her, so it was a tough read.
But the ending is such a cliffhanger! Honestly, it’s the saving grace of the book, and the only reason I plan to read the next one (which is the series finale). It was a well played ending.
But the ending is such a cliffhanger! Honestly, it’s the saving grace of the book, and the only reason I plan to read the next one (which is the series finale). It was a well played ending.
November 10, 2020
Much like the rest. Jill goes around and gets beat up a lot in order to save those important to her. It is a SEVERE cliffhanger though.
April 14, 2012
Lilith Saintcrow does not write happy characters living pleasant lives in easygoing situations containing happily ever after endings. Her characters tend to be damaged, flawed, angry yet spirited and keep themselves going almost in spite of themselves. Her villains are never straightforward, typical villians either - they are definitely evil {they are hellbreed, after all} and yet will sometimes be caught doing good deeds even if it's all for the wrong reasons.
That being said, Heaven's Spite is another very strong installment in a dark urban fantasy series. There is a strong horror aspect within many of Saintcrow's novels and this is no exception. People are getting ripped up and murdered left and right. There are evildoers, middle of the road people, desperately poor clawing their way through the day, the obscenely rich, and to balance things out there are the Hunters - the characters that are fighting a seemingly losing battle against the bad ones - the hellbreed and hellspawn that are preying on the innocent and not so innocent. These characters, Jill Kismet is the main character, never give up. They aren't angelic, they aren't wonderfully well behaved people; they are flawed and damaged but they are doing their best.
Saintcrow's writing keeps me interested. Her books are very dark, her characters are rarely happy, things frequently seem hopeless or doomed and yet she keeps things alive and vibrant with her action scenes, the constant atmospheric touches {i.e., the tinkling of the charms in the hunter's hair, the throbbing of the demon mark on Jill's wrist that changes with the situation and mood of Perry, the smells and sounds described throughout the book, etc}, the angry yet dark humor, thoughts and the unexpected snarky comments of Jill and crew. The very things that I've seen complaints about are the very things that, for me, add character and atmosphere to Saintcrow's novels. Not many writers can pull this type of thing off - the combination of despair and triumph, the building of scenes and moods with words, the feeling that you can not only picture in your mind what's going on, but you can hear the different sound, the charms and feel the sensations throughout the book, with every different scene - but Lilith Saintcrow sure can. Added to the atmospheric touches - even though her characters, plots, subplots and situations can seem bleak, hopeless or doomed, the fact that her characters are fighting against seemingly impossible odds and never ever give up makes me want to keep reading to see what is going to happen next - see if they make it
Lilith Saintcrow's Heaven's Spite was an extremely enjoyable read for me - the action, horror, suspense, fight scenes; the dialogue, utter lack of info dumps {Halleliujiah!}, the spirit of characters, the flawed and damaged characters, dark humor and twisted plots all combined into a hell of a read for me. The Jill Kismet series is the type of book/series that I like to keep around so I can relive the stories - in this case, the world of Jill Kismet and her hellbreed adversaries. The next - and final - book in the series is Angel Town.
That being said, Heaven's Spite is another very strong installment in a dark urban fantasy series. There is a strong horror aspect within many of Saintcrow's novels and this is no exception. People are getting ripped up and murdered left and right. There are evildoers, middle of the road people, desperately poor clawing their way through the day, the obscenely rich, and to balance things out there are the Hunters - the characters that are fighting a seemingly losing battle against the bad ones - the hellbreed and hellspawn that are preying on the innocent and not so innocent. These characters, Jill Kismet is the main character, never give up. They aren't angelic, they aren't wonderfully well behaved people; they are flawed and damaged but they are doing their best.
Saintcrow's writing keeps me interested. Her books are very dark, her characters are rarely happy, things frequently seem hopeless or doomed and yet she keeps things alive and vibrant with her action scenes, the constant atmospheric touches {i.e., the tinkling of the charms in the hunter's hair, the throbbing of the demon mark on Jill's wrist that changes with the situation and mood of Perry, the smells and sounds described throughout the book, etc}, the angry yet dark humor, thoughts and the unexpected snarky comments of Jill and crew. The very things that I've seen complaints about are the very things that, for me, add character and atmosphere to Saintcrow's novels. Not many writers can pull this type of thing off - the combination of despair and triumph, the building of scenes and moods with words, the feeling that you can not only picture in your mind what's going on, but you can hear the different sound, the charms and feel the sensations throughout the book, with every different scene - but Lilith Saintcrow sure can. Added to the atmospheric touches - even though her characters, plots, subplots and situations can seem bleak, hopeless or doomed, the fact that her characters are fighting against seemingly impossible odds and never ever give up makes me want to keep reading to see what is going to happen next - see if they make it
Lilith Saintcrow's Heaven's Spite was an extremely enjoyable read for me - the action, horror, suspense, fight scenes; the dialogue, utter lack of info dumps {Halleliujiah!}, the spirit of characters, the flawed and damaged characters, dark humor and twisted plots all combined into a hell of a read for me. The Jill Kismet series is the type of book/series that I like to keep around so I can relive the stories - in this case, the world of Jill Kismet and her hellbreed adversaries. The next - and final - book in the series is Angel Town.
December 13, 2010
At the beginning of this book Jill seems settled, you can really see how she has grown up over the series. Jill has finally accepted that she can love and deserves love with Saul, and she quits hiding her feelings for him. She seems to have come to terms with Mikhail's death and the circumstances around it. She has even accepted an apprentice and his teaching him her craft.
It is when people are happy that you know the crap is about ready to hit the fan, and boy does it. It seems like there is a big bad getting ready to be brought over and Jill isn't quite sure where to start, so she starts by protecting those she cares about and checking out the most likely sources, beginning with Perry. Perry and Jill have such a unique relationship, one with many secrets on Perry's side.
It seems like with every new piece of information Jill is pulled into a new direction. Jill being Jill doesn't always make the wisest decisions, and this time one comes back to bite her, leaving her with very few choices left. She comes to the conclusion that there is only one way out, it is a horrible way, but as we have come to know and love Jill, you realize that she is probably right, even though you really don't want her to be.
This book will keep you on the edge of the seat, the ending will have you wanting to throw the book across the room, because not only is there a huge cliff hanger, it ends in the middle of a word, leaving you pissed that the next book isn't out for a while and you have to know what happens next!
It is when people are happy that you know the crap is about ready to hit the fan, and boy does it. It seems like there is a big bad getting ready to be brought over and Jill isn't quite sure where to start, so she starts by protecting those she cares about and checking out the most likely sources, beginning with Perry. Perry and Jill have such a unique relationship, one with many secrets on Perry's side.
It seems like with every new piece of information Jill is pulled into a new direction. Jill being Jill doesn't always make the wisest decisions, and this time one comes back to bite her, leaving her with very few choices left. She comes to the conclusion that there is only one way out, it is a horrible way, but as we have come to know and love Jill, you realize that she is probably right, even though you really don't want her to be.
This book will keep you on the edge of the seat, the ending will have you wanting to throw the book across the room, because not only is there a huge cliff hanger, it ends in the middle of a word, leaving you pissed that the next book isn't out for a while and you have to know what happens next!
December 31, 2011
WOW! I loved this book - it's probably my favourite in the series. I had read the blurbs for the entire series before I started so I knew how this one ended (and that it was NOT the last in the series, thankfully) and it still managed to knock me back and left me just going, 'OMFG.'
I have to say that if I didn't have immediate access to the next in the series, I would have hated the ending - I am NOT a person who likes to be kept waiting at all. As it was I did get to start the next book straight away so I found it all quite fitting and exciting.
The book had it's usual Kick-ass fights, great detail, and interesting characters. What made me like this one more than the others was that it had alot of secrets revealed and showed alot of Mikhail and Jill's past, which I've been waiting for. The secrets were pretty shocking - or devistating, if you're Jill - and kept you wondering what would pop up to bite her next and just how much more she could take before she exploded.
The other thing I liked about the book was that it showed what I thought was an accuate look at Jill and Saul's relationship and still managed to end in a way that I found exactly fitting with how I pictured Jill's character. Jill simply could not have handled things any other way, being who she was.
I have to say that if I didn't have immediate access to the next in the series, I would have hated the ending - I am NOT a person who likes to be kept waiting at all. As it was I did get to start the next book straight away so I found it all quite fitting and exciting.
The book had it's usual Kick-ass fights, great detail, and interesting characters. What made me like this one more than the others was that it had alot of secrets revealed and showed alot of Mikhail and Jill's past, which I've been waiting for. The secrets were pretty shocking - or devistating, if you're Jill - and kept you wondering what would pop up to bite her next and just how much more she could take before she exploded.
The other thing I liked about the book was that it showed what I thought was an accuate look at Jill and Saul's relationship and still managed to end in a way that I found exactly fitting with how I pictured Jill's character. Jill simply could not have handled things any other way, being who she was.
February 21, 2011
There are no happily ever afters with Ms. Saintcrow. This latest installment in the Jill Kismet series just goes to prove it. We are left with a cliff hanger for the final installment in book 6.
From the very beginning of reading this series, it came across as watching a train wreak in slow motion. Some people live a charmed life. Jill leads a damned life. Her relationship with Percy has finally tipped. Percy's unholy desire to own Jill mixed with high sadomasochistic tensions is disturbing. I'm not sure if I should like it or not. I'm leaning towards not.
Ms. Saintcrow creates a world where it seems doomed to end. Traders and hellbreeds run amok. It doesn't appear there are enough hunters to keep the balance in check. The atrocities committed by the traders, hellbreeds and sorrows is gruesome, yet with such frequency that I'm now desensitized. Another virgin raped, mutilated and possessed? Oh well, more where that came from.
Lastly, I'm not sure why Saul stays with Jill. She's a lost cause.
From the very beginning of reading this series, it came across as watching a train wreak in slow motion. Some people live a charmed life. Jill leads a damned life. Her relationship with Percy has finally tipped. Percy's unholy desire to own Jill mixed with high sadomasochistic tensions is disturbing. I'm not sure if I should like it or not. I'm leaning towards not.
Ms. Saintcrow creates a world where it seems doomed to end. Traders and hellbreeds run amok. It doesn't appear there are enough hunters to keep the balance in check. The atrocities committed by the traders, hellbreeds and sorrows is gruesome, yet with such frequency that I'm now desensitized. Another virgin raped, mutilated and possessed? Oh well, more where that came from.
Lastly, I'm not sure why Saul stays with Jill. She's a lost cause.
January 30, 2012
This is book 5 in the "Jill Kismet, Kickass Bitch" series; Lilith Saintcrow's Dark Urban Fantasy about an extrahuman Hunter of creatures from the Nightside. Jill Kismet is the coolest supernatural cop I've ever read, she and all her friends feel so real. Jill and Rachel Morgan have to be my two favorite Paranormal/ DUF heroines! If you've read this far in the series then you already know how great the books are; unfortunately it ends with book 6 which was published in Nov 2011. Warning - this book of the series will make you cry.
November 2, 2010
I LOVE the Jill Kismet series and Heaven's Spite was well worth the wait. What a cliffhanger of an ending!!! I can't wait until the final book to see how this story ends. I totally recommend this series. I love lilith Saintcrow's style of writing, it keeps you interested until the very last page and then you want more!!
December 30, 2010
Every time I finish one of Lilith's books I am immediately beset by a woe that I must wait for the next. This series only gets better as it rolls along. Each book shows a great well thought out plot; strong, interesting characters and a world that is just different enough from our own to be interesting, and yet close enough to be scary.
February 12, 2022
Today’s post is on Heaven's Spite by Lilith Saintcrow. It is 320 pages long and is published by Orbit Books. It is the fifth in the Jill Kismet series and you need to have read the first four volumes to understand the story. The intended reader is someone who likes dark urban fantasy. There is foul language, no sex, and lots of voilence. The story is told from third person close of the main character, Jill. There Be Spoilers Ahead.
From the back of the book- When a new hellbreed comes calling, playing nice isn't an option. Jill Kismet has no choice but to seek treacherous allies -- Perry, the devil she knows, and Melisande Belisa, the cunning Sorrows temptress whose true loyalties are unknown.
Kismet knows Perry and Belisa are likely playing for the same thing -- her soul. It's just too bad, because she expects to beat them at their own game. Except their game is vengeance.
Nobody plays vengeance like Kismet. But if the revenge she seeks damns her, her enemies might get her soul after all. . .
Review- A fantastic novel in a great urban fantasy series. Jill has some big trouble in this volume with Belisa and the Sorrow is powerless. Jill has to fight herself to not kill the helpless Sorrow and she has to discover what Perry is really going for now. This volume is non-stop action from one scene to the next with Jill mostly chasing her own tail but it was a good volume and the ending was just incredible. While I did guess what Jill was going to do to stop Perry but reading was still shocking. The writing, per usual, is just wonderful with Jill continuing being the center of the story and pulling the reader along with her. Jill is not an easy character but I really like spending time with her and seeing how she saves herself and her city. I am looking forward to seeing how Saintcrow is going to finish this series out.
I give this volume Four out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this book with my own money.
From the back of the book- When a new hellbreed comes calling, playing nice isn't an option. Jill Kismet has no choice but to seek treacherous allies -- Perry, the devil she knows, and Melisande Belisa, the cunning Sorrows temptress whose true loyalties are unknown.
Kismet knows Perry and Belisa are likely playing for the same thing -- her soul. It's just too bad, because she expects to beat them at their own game. Except their game is vengeance.
Nobody plays vengeance like Kismet. But if the revenge she seeks damns her, her enemies might get her soul after all. . .
Review- A fantastic novel in a great urban fantasy series. Jill has some big trouble in this volume with Belisa and the Sorrow is powerless. Jill has to fight herself to not kill the helpless Sorrow and she has to discover what Perry is really going for now. This volume is non-stop action from one scene to the next with Jill mostly chasing her own tail but it was a good volume and the ending was just incredible. While I did guess what Jill was going to do to stop Perry but reading was still shocking. The writing, per usual, is just wonderful with Jill continuing being the center of the story and pulling the reader along with her. Jill is not an easy character but I really like spending time with her and seeing how she saves herself and her city. I am looking forward to seeing how Saintcrow is going to finish this series out.
I give this volume Four out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this book with my own money.
November 11, 2020
Heaven's Spite is the fifth and penultimate book in the Jill Kismet series written by Lilith Saintcrow. It centers on Jill Kismet, a Hunter, set in a world five hundred years in the future.
Jill Kismet chases down a trader that is set to murder his ex-wife. When Jill gets home, she finds her old nemesis, Pericles, menacing her new apprentice and offering up a so called gift. This gift turns out to be a talisman that was taken from her mentor by a Sorrows temptress named Melisande Belisa. Jill has no idea how Perry got a hold of it, but is determined to find out, and she has no trouble roughing up some Hellbreed to get her way.
Meanwhile, Jill is called to the scene of a quadruple homicide, and it's more than obvious that something otherworldly was involved and she is not quite sure what is going on, but this case will stretch her to her limits and beyond – and possibly threaten the one person she holds dear.
Heaven's Spite is written rather well. Saintcrow plops her heroine right down in the middle of the action in the world that is dark, seriously gritty, and violent cityscape and rarely stops in intensity. Jill is torn between finding out an explosive secret about her ex-love and mentor and saving her current love, the were-cat Saul Dustcircle. True to fashion, the narrative is filled with thrilling scenes, romance woes, supernatural creatures, and an epic cliffhanger.
All in all, Heaven's Spite is written rather well and is a good continuation to what would hopefully be a wonderful series, which I plan to continue in the very near future.
Jill Kismet chases down a trader that is set to murder his ex-wife. When Jill gets home, she finds her old nemesis, Pericles, menacing her new apprentice and offering up a so called gift. This gift turns out to be a talisman that was taken from her mentor by a Sorrows temptress named Melisande Belisa. Jill has no idea how Perry got a hold of it, but is determined to find out, and she has no trouble roughing up some Hellbreed to get her way.
Meanwhile, Jill is called to the scene of a quadruple homicide, and it's more than obvious that something otherworldly was involved and she is not quite sure what is going on, but this case will stretch her to her limits and beyond – and possibly threaten the one person she holds dear.
Heaven's Spite is written rather well. Saintcrow plops her heroine right down in the middle of the action in the world that is dark, seriously gritty, and violent cityscape and rarely stops in intensity. Jill is torn between finding out an explosive secret about her ex-love and mentor and saving her current love, the were-cat Saul Dustcircle. True to fashion, the narrative is filled with thrilling scenes, romance woes, supernatural creatures, and an epic cliffhanger.
All in all, Heaven's Spite is written rather well and is a good continuation to what would hopefully be a wonderful series, which I plan to continue in the very near future.
December 10, 2023
This one is much better than Flesh Circus. I really hate the ending. Cliffhangers piss me off. I have commented in the past about books that end in the middle of a paragraph or even sentence. This book ends in the middle of a word, no joke. That is really the only complaint about this book. It is what you have begun to expect from Jill and Lilith Saintcrow. Very fast paced and action packed. I will recommend to anyone else who hates cliffhangers to wait for the next book to come out so you don't have to wait to see what happens.
September 17, 2020
Action-packed urban fantasy. Great main character, amazing action sequences and I love the descriptions of magic. I've been trying to ration myself to one of these per month, but this one ended on a real cliffhanger so, screw it. On to Angel Town!
September 8, 2019
God, imagine reading this when it was released and having to wait for book six to come out after the ending in this one.
October 14, 2019
I just can't get enough of this series! Great characters and amazing plot lines!
May 28, 2020
oh shit
January 25, 2021
Why you gotta cliffhanger me like that?
April 21, 2023
3.5 stars
August 12, 2020
In Heaven’s Spite, Jill is drawn into a very complicated plot that may result in her absolute damnation. (Actually, she is pretty much already there according to the doctrine of her church as stated by the character.) It turns out that Perry,the demon crime lord she has a contract with has provided her with an artifact that had been stolen from her teacher by a leader of a religious cult of Lovecraftian inclinations. (Evil cult of evil matriarchal sorceresses who are compared to termites a lot. Like many evil cultists, they are trying to break their evil, evil gods out of some kind of dimensional prison.)
It turns out that Perry needs her help in order to deal with the arrival of his immediate superior. Jill is not inclined to trust the “gifts” Perry provides,but the arrival of a powerful demon to her city is not something she wants to deal with, so she wanders around shooting up Perry’s property in hopes ofcoming up with a solution. This leads her to the presence of the aforementioned cult leader, who is apparently a prisoner of Perry’s (and a gift of sorts forJill). Jill is less than impressed and continues shooting things up and threatening people, though she does not seem to get anywhere.
Perry decides to hold Jill’s boyfriend hostage, and Jill continues to go on a rampage, this time joined by a number of were-creatures who are not actually able to fight demons. (Apparently, this is because being ten times stronger than a human is and being nearly unkillable is not enough to take on Hellspawn. Go figure.) Jill manages to rescue her boyfriend but is unable to rescue her own soul. We are left with a cliffhanger of sorts, and the preview for the final book in the series.
This book is extremely transitional, with a jerky, fast paced style that expels all the exposition at high speeds. (While I do not have the problems with first person that some people do, I am beginning to appreciate why it is a form that many people dislike. Since we are limited to Jill, and she is such a deeply unlikable and self-centered character, we really do not get to know any of the other characters.)
While some of the worldbuilding ideas are very interesting, I find this to be a difficult series to read because there is much that doesn’t make a great deal of sense. For instance, the “Chaldean” cult, which apparently engages in kidnapping and other criminal activities as part of its religious practice, and the presence of “hellspawn” who are apparently by nature unable to participate as citizens of a nation-state. (Due to the fact that well, they eat people or turn them into super villains that have to be hunted down by supernaturally modified bounty hunters.)
I should point out here that this is my assessment based on what we see of them over the course of the series. Within the series, there is apparently a separate set of laws governing the behavior of supernatural creatures, and evil cults of sorceresses, though this is never overtly mentioned. It is interesting to me that the were-creatures have been coded as “Native American” and have for the most part, been confined on reservations despite not actively preying upon humans, while the demons are allowed to live in cities where they can make contracts and prey upon humans more or less freely. This is especially puzzling since the were-creatures are coded as “natural” and the demons as profoundly, inescapably “unnatural.” By “interesting”, I actually mean, “makes absolutely no sense, whatsoever.”
This is not a good book to start with for the series, since it is extremely ransitional and a set up for whatever the finale of the series is going to be.I only recommend this book if you happen to like the series.
It turns out that Perry needs her help in order to deal with the arrival of his immediate superior. Jill is not inclined to trust the “gifts” Perry provides,but the arrival of a powerful demon to her city is not something she wants to deal with, so she wanders around shooting up Perry’s property in hopes ofcoming up with a solution. This leads her to the presence of the aforementioned cult leader, who is apparently a prisoner of Perry’s (and a gift of sorts forJill). Jill is less than impressed and continues shooting things up and threatening people, though she does not seem to get anywhere.
Perry decides to hold Jill’s boyfriend hostage, and Jill continues to go on a rampage, this time joined by a number of were-creatures who are not actually able to fight demons. (Apparently, this is because being ten times stronger than a human is and being nearly unkillable is not enough to take on Hellspawn. Go figure.) Jill manages to rescue her boyfriend but is unable to rescue her own soul. We are left with a cliffhanger of sorts, and the preview for the final book in the series.
This book is extremely transitional, with a jerky, fast paced style that expels all the exposition at high speeds. (While I do not have the problems with first person that some people do, I am beginning to appreciate why it is a form that many people dislike. Since we are limited to Jill, and she is such a deeply unlikable and self-centered character, we really do not get to know any of the other characters.)
While some of the worldbuilding ideas are very interesting, I find this to be a difficult series to read because there is much that doesn’t make a great deal of sense. For instance, the “Chaldean” cult, which apparently engages in kidnapping and other criminal activities as part of its religious practice, and the presence of “hellspawn” who are apparently by nature unable to participate as citizens of a nation-state. (Due to the fact that well, they eat people or turn them into super villains that have to be hunted down by supernaturally modified bounty hunters.)
I should point out here that this is my assessment based on what we see of them over the course of the series. Within the series, there is apparently a separate set of laws governing the behavior of supernatural creatures, and evil cults of sorceresses, though this is never overtly mentioned. It is interesting to me that the were-creatures have been coded as “Native American” and have for the most part, been confined on reservations despite not actively preying upon humans, while the demons are allowed to live in cities where they can make contracts and prey upon humans more or less freely. This is especially puzzling since the were-creatures are coded as “natural” and the demons as profoundly, inescapably “unnatural.” By “interesting”, I actually mean, “makes absolutely no sense, whatsoever.”
This is not a good book to start with for the series, since it is extremely ransitional and a set up for whatever the finale of the series is going to be.I only recommend this book if you happen to like the series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 16, 2018
*** SPOILER ALERT ****
Fifth in the Jill Kismet urban fantasy series featuring a woman who hunts Others in Santa Luz.
My Take
Kiss drives me nuts…she knows she should stop to think and she never does. And it always gets her into trouble. Heaven's Spite is certainly no exception.
Perry's pulling some new surprises, Hellbreeds are committing mass murder, and altars are springing up all over town. It all points to a ceremony that will unleash a high-level demon on Jill's town.
When Saul and then Gilberto are kidnapped, Jill goes into an emotion-laden rampage.
When Mikhail's murderer, the Sorrows witch, shows up and unwanted revelations about Mik's tangle with Perry come out, Jill tips over the edge and disaster is encompassed in an abandoned nuthouse that is full of evil etheric energy.
Stay tuned for Angel Town , 6, to see if the trigger gets pulled all the way…
The Story
When a new hellbreed comes calling, playing nice isn't an option. Jill Kismet has no choice but to seek treacherous allies — Perry, the devil she knows, and Melisande Belisa, the cunning Sorrows temptress whose true loyalties are unknown. — Kismet knows Perry and Belisa are likely playing for the same thing — her soul. It's just too bad, because she expects to beat them at their own game. Except their game is vengeance.
Nobody plays vengeance like Kismet. But if the revenge she seeks damns her, her enemies might get her soul after all…
The Characters
Jill Kismet is a hunter of who assists the police of Santa Luz. Mikhail "Mik" is the Russian who rescued Jill. Saul is a cat shifter and Jill's boyfriend. Gilberto is Jill's apprentice.
Perry, a.k.a., Hyperion, is a demon who runs the Monde, a demon bar which Jill must visit on a regular basis.
The police in Santa Luz include…
…Montaigne is Jill's police liaison while Badger and Sully are detectives who work frequently with Jill.
Melisande Belisa is a Sorrows with whom Mik is in love. Hellbreeds are demons.
Fifth in the Jill Kismet urban fantasy series featuring a woman who hunts Others in Santa Luz.
My Take
Kiss drives me nuts…she knows she should stop to think and she never does. And it always gets her into trouble. Heaven's Spite is certainly no exception.
Perry's pulling some new surprises, Hellbreeds are committing mass murder, and altars are springing up all over town. It all points to a ceremony that will unleash a high-level demon on Jill's town.
When Saul and then Gilberto are kidnapped, Jill goes into an emotion-laden rampage.
When Mikhail's murderer, the Sorrows witch, shows up and unwanted revelations about Mik's tangle with Perry come out, Jill tips over the edge and disaster is encompassed in an abandoned nuthouse that is full of evil etheric energy.
Stay tuned for Angel Town , 6, to see if the trigger gets pulled all the way…
The Story
When a new hellbreed comes calling, playing nice isn't an option. Jill Kismet has no choice but to seek treacherous allies — Perry, the devil she knows, and Melisande Belisa, the cunning Sorrows temptress whose true loyalties are unknown. — Kismet knows Perry and Belisa are likely playing for the same thing — her soul. It's just too bad, because she expects to beat them at their own game. Except their game is vengeance.
Nobody plays vengeance like Kismet. But if the revenge she seeks damns her, her enemies might get her soul after all…
The Characters
Jill Kismet is a hunter of who assists the police of Santa Luz. Mikhail "Mik" is the Russian who rescued Jill. Saul is a cat shifter and Jill's boyfriend. Gilberto is Jill's apprentice.
Perry, a.k.a., Hyperion, is a demon who runs the Monde, a demon bar which Jill must visit on a regular basis.
The police in Santa Luz include…
…Montaigne is Jill's police liaison while Badger and Sully are detectives who work frequently with Jill.
Melisande Belisa is a Sorrows with whom Mik is in love. Hellbreeds are demons.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 25, 2017
That cliffhanger, haha, luckily I have the next book ready to go, or I'd be annoyed too! ;)
July 4, 2011
This was one of the more accessible books, meaning, while grim, the story is going somewhere and seems less like horror for horror's sake. And make no mistake my children, this is horror of the LKH Blake and Gentry series. More like Bleak Urban Paranormal Fiction. I have to give it to LSC for not making the demon afigure of unwilling fascination and sexuality. I'm so used to that trope in these books, that it is strange not to have it as an option here. I kept wanting to go there. But no, there is Good and there is Evil, and Perry is Evil.
I think the problem is that her lover, Saul is not drawn as as clearly or with the depth of Perry. She and Perry are in a struggle for her soul. Saul already has her heart; there is no drama, just contented home and hearth. When LS tried to inject uncertainty into their relationshp, a few books back, it just didn't work. It doesn't help that as a Were, he is no helpp with Hellbreed and that is Jill's primary enemy. He's Nelly and she's Dudly Do Wright always to his rescue. In this book, Saul is barely there. I'd like to have understood more about how she is training Gilberto and what that was like. Would have been interesting. It was nice that she got some help in the form of another hunter too.
No, the book is all about learning the truth about her first love Mikhail, Perry's machinations and Jill resisting an act which could damn her soul yet avenge her teacher. LSC never ties up all the strings, always leaves questions, so why Mikhail did what he did? W'll never know, likely.
You really need to read the preceding books in the series to get the importance of the events. However, i would skip Flesh Circus and Hunter's Prayer. Just too, too horrific.
Oh, and I thought this was the last JK book.Boy was i unhappily surprised to find there is one more, and it's not out for another4 months! Damn!
I think the problem is that her lover, Saul is not drawn as as clearly or with the depth of Perry. She and Perry are in a struggle for her soul. Saul already has her heart; there is no drama, just contented home and hearth. When LS tried to inject uncertainty into their relationshp, a few books back, it just didn't work. It doesn't help that as a Were, he is no helpp with Hellbreed and that is Jill's primary enemy. He's Nelly and she's Dudly Do Wright always to his rescue. In this book, Saul is barely there. I'd like to have understood more about how she is training Gilberto and what that was like. Would have been interesting. It was nice that she got some help in the form of another hunter too.
No, the book is all about learning the truth about her first love Mikhail, Perry's machinations and Jill resisting an act which could damn her soul yet avenge her teacher. LSC never ties up all the strings, always leaves questions, so why Mikhail did what he did? W'll never know, likely.
You really need to read the preceding books in the series to get the importance of the events. However, i would skip Flesh Circus and Hunter's Prayer. Just too, too horrific.
Oh, and I thought this was the last JK book.Boy was i unhappily surprised to find there is one more, and it's not out for another4 months! Damn!
November 2, 2010
Finished Lilith Saintcrow's Heaven's Spite and found out that there is only 1 more book to this series. Curious to see what she writes next, but moving on.
It wasn't too bad, but I have to admit sometimes some of the language distracts me. I guess because of the setting, it's something futuristic like, but not entirely. An alternate reality almost and some of the concepts get lost on me, despite the glossary in back. But it still makes a GREAT read and has it's enjoyable moments where my attention is fully focused on the book.
Since it's been awhile since I read Flesh Circus, I can't recall what has happened already, but Jill is trying to get through life as always. Her hunter skills are tested more forcefully this time around and her deal with Perry also comes back into notice.
Someone is planning to summon a demon, one that can't be allowed to be raised. He's bad, naturally, and Jill is going to do everything possible to make sure he doesn't enter their world and destroy any gateways that were created to allow him or other demons access.
But then something else horrible strikes Jill, the people she cares for become in danger. And it is that factor that drives Jill to the point where she loses her sense and goes in fighting, guns ablazing.
There was a healthy dose of action and an incredible cliffhanger! Totally threw me through a hoop! Luckily there was a sample of the next and last book in the series Angel Town.
Overall I give the book 3/5 stars, a good read even though I got distracted here and there.
It wasn't too bad, but I have to admit sometimes some of the language distracts me. I guess because of the setting, it's something futuristic like, but not entirely. An alternate reality almost and some of the concepts get lost on me, despite the glossary in back. But it still makes a GREAT read and has it's enjoyable moments where my attention is fully focused on the book.
Since it's been awhile since I read Flesh Circus, I can't recall what has happened already, but Jill is trying to get through life as always. Her hunter skills are tested more forcefully this time around and her deal with Perry also comes back into notice.
Someone is planning to summon a demon, one that can't be allowed to be raised. He's bad, naturally, and Jill is going to do everything possible to make sure he doesn't enter their world and destroy any gateways that were created to allow him or other demons access.
But then something else horrible strikes Jill, the people she cares for become in danger. And it is that factor that drives Jill to the point where she loses her sense and goes in fighting, guns ablazing.
There was a healthy dose of action and an incredible cliffhanger! Totally threw me through a hoop! Luckily there was a sample of the next and last book in the series Angel Town.
Overall I give the book 3/5 stars, a good read even though I got distracted here and there.
October 29, 2013
With this series I started out so excited but as the series progressed they just got harder and harder to read. I felt like Ms. Saintcrow was throwing us the same stuff over and over. She continually talked about saving people in a different storyline that the reader never gets to read or understand. We are thrown characters like we should know them because Jill has saved them before but we only get small blurbs of the fight that saved them. We are told over and over again that we don't want to know something and I really hate those filler lines because I feel like the writer is copping out of really explaining something with these words. Now, that is all the negative that I have about this book.
On to the positive. I really like Jill Kismet. She seems to really love her work and her town and she is doing it for righteous reasons. I like the interplay between her and Perry who is her rival and I like her love interest Saul. I was made to feel and understand her angst over him in the previous books and I understood the feeling of not being good enough for anyone because of her bargain. I think that throughout the books we begin to understand more and more about her relationship with Perry and with her now dead mentor Mikhail.
I would recommend this book to any person that likes paranormal but make sure you read the first 4 books or you will be totally lost.
On to the positive. I really like Jill Kismet. She seems to really love her work and her town and she is doing it for righteous reasons. I like the interplay between her and Perry who is her rival and I like her love interest Saul. I was made to feel and understand her angst over him in the previous books and I understood the feeling of not being good enough for anyone because of her bargain. I think that throughout the books we begin to understand more and more about her relationship with Perry and with her now dead mentor Mikhail.
I would recommend this book to any person that likes paranormal but make sure you read the first 4 books or you will be totally lost.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews