The Serpent in Heaven by Charlaine Harris
Sysnopsis:
Felicia, Lizbeth Rose’s half-sister and a student at the Grigori Rasputin school in San Diego—capital of the Holy Russian Empire—is caught between her own secrets and powerful family struggles. As a granddaughter of Rasputin, she provides an essential service to the hemophiliac Tsar Alexei, providing him the blood transfusions that keep him alive. Felicia is treated like a nonentity at the bedside of the tsar, and at the school she’s seen as a charity case with no magical ability. But when Felicia is snatched outside the school, the facts of her heritage begin to surface. Felicia turns out to be far more than the Russian-Mexican Lizbeth rescued. As Felicia’s history unravels and her true abilities become known, she becomes under attack from all directions. Only her courage will keep her alive.
Review:
The Serpent in Heaven is the fourth book in the Gunnie Rose seres. But as the previous books were from Lizbeth’s point of view, this novel follows her sister Felicia. And while I love the Lizbeth character, I think I enjoyed Felicia just as much, if not more – as she’s just coming in to her own and learning just how powerful she really is.
This story is back in San Diego, at the Rasputin school that Felicia attends. When she is abducted by persistent, mysterious attackers, she soon realizes that no where is safe. And it’s hard to know who to trust. I loved this latest installment from start to finish. Full of intense suspense, mystery, magic, and a bit of romance – Harris made a fantastic choice in switching up this exciting series. It continues to be a fun series with engaging characters and thrilling stories, set in a fascinating alternate early America. I’m hooked.