Dead Witch Walking

Written by Kim Harrison

Narrated by Marguerite Gavin

“It isn’t easy to write a protagonist that blends the best qualities of Anita Blake and Stephanie Plum, but Kim Harrison carries it off with style. This is a fun book! Read it!”
   — Jim Butcher, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author

In the Hollows, the vampires come out to play… and it’s always witching hour.

The first book in #1 New York Times bestselling author Kim Harrison’s Hollows series!

All the creatures of the night gather in “the Hollows” of Cincinnati, to hide, to prowl, to party . . . and to feed.

Vampires rule the darkness in a predator-eat-predator world rife with dangers beyond imagining—and it’s Rachel Morgan’s job to keep that world civilized.

A bounty hunter and a witch with serious sex appeal and an attitude, she’ll bring ’em back alive, dead . . . or undead.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: May 26, 2020
• ISBN: 9780063010284

Kim Harrison

Kim Harrison is best known as the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling Hollows series, but she has written more than urban fantasy and has published more than two dozen books, spanning the gamut from young adult, accelerated-science thriller, and several anthologies and has scripted two original graphic novels set in the Hollows universe. She has also published traditional fantasy under the name Dawn Cook. Kim is currently working on a new Hollows book between other, nonrelated, urban fantasy projects.

Reviews for Dead Witch Walking

[Anna Puchar-Krause · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Not sure if it's the narrator or the writing. However this book is absolutely pathetic and extremely annoying. I gave up and only made it to chapter 13.

[Heather Redetzke · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

TRIGGER WARNINGS: the whole series is full of problematic non-consensual power play turning into rape threat and/ or sexualized violence, and there is at least one rape in the series. A ton of body image issues for the already skinny main character and worry about her weight.

All that said, if you can ignore all the problematic issues, it’s a super fun series. A lot like True Blood, but even more fun. I’m an absolute sucker for a supernatural detective series with super fun sidekicks, and that’s exactly what these books deliver.

[thereadingmermaid · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Okay I tried. I tried so hard for over 2 months to like this book, but this book is so damn boring I want to scream! You could literally skip over entire chapters and not miss a thing. I'm still torn because I really really want to like this book but I know I shouldn't force myself. Perhaps I will set it aside for right now and pick it up at a later date.

[shelley · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I’ve read this book and listen to it. It’s a good book but the reason then I gave it one star is the narrator is awful.

[kewpie83 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I wanted to like this book, but I was left disappointed. It's a wonderfully imaginative world the author creates, but it takes a long time to get into it and while she describes it well enough for the reader to understand, I tired of it quickly. I'll admit, I was under the impression that a hot vampire or demon would come out of the woodwork, but I didn't find any of that in the book either.

Overall, not great, but good.

[Rama Mohamed · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I'm on chapter 6 and I hate ivys guts. She has absolutely no self control, and it's darn weird that Rachel is okay with getting constantly terrorized.

[thedivineoomba · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a book that is at more of the start of the urban fantasy genre - and as a result - not that derivative of the genre tropes. It also is written with an eye for detail, everything is tight, everything makes sense. The main character, Rachel Morgan, is competent, smart, and headstrong. However, she does listen, and learns from her mistakes. There were elements of the plot that were unexpected. I'm surprised that the hot mystery villain guy actually stayed in the role of villain - too many of these types of books have the heroine and the villain teaming up, eventually falling in love, in a morally complicated relationship. Of course, it isn't perfect. I found Rachel to date to quickly after her experiences, and with a guy who was in a predicament that he needs to mentally heal from. I found the description of all the men to be annoying. Does Rachel and Ivy really need to discuss every man that comes across their paths? However, at times, it does fall into a predictable trope of heroine is always on her, but manages to get a group of friends who will die for her. Also add in a father who died in a violent and mysterious way.Of course, you don't read these novels for their high literary value, but, for what it is, its well written, an interesting world, with interesting characters.

[crazybatcow · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I had started this book several months ago but just couldn't get into it - it seemed to take too long for the scene to take form for me, so I put it aside. Just recently I picked it up again and found it really engaging, once I got past page 40 or so. In fact, I think I read it mostly in one sitting once I got into it.The main character is interesting and strong, and there's some mystery behind the motivations of her "friends" - even her main enemy is shrouded in mystery. The world is kinda intriguing too. All in all it's a decent entry in the urban fantasy genre - not as cheesy or sexually explicit as most of them are.

[drakhir · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Well, it seems okay... a bit trashy, with far more mentions of flat chests in the first few chapters than was necessary. Now, I like trashy sometimes. But I do have a caveat - it has to be exciting. Stuff has to be happening. Spending 63 pages (which is as far as I got) quitting your job is too slow. The book seemed like a first draft. I can see a (good) editor saying, "Now chop chapters 1-3 to a quarter their size, and make chapter 4 a single sentence..."

When the explanation of the world situation began, it felt like a guidebook. Not connected to the story. And random. Like my sentence structure - chopped up and haphazard.

And the main character, Rachel. So far she sounds useless. I mean, really crap at her job. Twice she's been saved, and both times by something that within the context of the story was pretty dumb, and she should have noticed herself. The only thing telling us that she is any good is from her own mouth, once. I am disinclined to believe her. Rachel is far too obsessed with details of life that nobody gives a damn about - is that supposed to be some sort of character description?

The author is right about one thing - her heroine dresses like a prostitute. What was all that about? Some 'flirting with taboo' to make Rachel seem dangerous and sexy? Bollox.

If I'm reading an Urban Fantasy book, I want the adversary to be some Duke of Hell. Not a drug lord.

So I can't see this getting any better - I'm out

[skybalon · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Really about 3.5 stars. Good start but the story stalls sometimes into 'Romance' territory. The mythology doesn't always feel completely fleshed out, but it is not too distracting.

[sumisbooks · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Okay I tried. I tried so hard for over 2 months to like this book, but this book is so damn boring I want to scream! You could literally skip over entire chapters and not miss a thing. I'm still torn because I really really want to like this book but I know I shouldn't force myself. Perhaps I will set it aside for right now and pick it up at a later date.

[Annie · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

So damn boring. And the FMC is such an idiot it’s surprising she doesn’t die halfway through the book

[hexum2600 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This book is a mediocre ex-cop detective / magic novel. Think Dresden files but incredibly over the top changes to the world, characters with undiagnosed multiple personality disorder, and a terrible handle of normal plot progression (you know you can use the first 150 pages of the novel to do something, right? ).

Worst of all is the name dropping. At no point does this book feel like the other knows anything about Cincinnati or spent more than 5 minutes reading a Wikipedia page. What was she thinking? You just ate? How about I offer you Graeters ice cream? (one reference!) We are going to the airport? Wait, I need to say "we are going to the Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky Airport", that way it will feel like I'm building setting! (two references!). I could go to the store I MEAN FINDLAY MARKET (three references). Oh yes and Children's Medical Center, Eden Park, and "Newport Mall" all get name dropped as well without any use of the setting. It honestly felt like she thought she had to make a bare minimum number of name drops so people would buy that it was set in Cincinnati.

All in all this is a great high school sophmore attempt at writing a novel, and one day when she's all grown up she might learn to not follow patterns in her rhetoric textbook blindly and write.something worth writing.

[dawnleger · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Dead Witch Walking is set in a modern day alternate reality Cincinnati, Ohio where humans and non-humans live side by side after a killer tomato virus decimates the human population and gives non-humans the chance to step out of the shadows and become a known part of society.Rachel Morgan is an earth witch whose job as an Inderlander Security (I. S.) runner is going nowhere. Her boss does not like her and gives her the worst assignments imaginable, her only friend there is a living vampire named Ivy and no one will be her backup except for a pixie named Jinx, and he will only do it if he gets hazard pay. The only problem is if she leaves the I. S., it could mean her death…After her latest assignment to capture a leprechaun for tax evasion Rachel decides, she has had enough. When the leprechaun offers her three wishes to let her go she sees her way out of her contract with the I. S., only problem is Ivy and Jinks each want one of her wishes not to say anything, thinking that she is not important enough for the I. S. to care she agrees.Using her wish for the I. S. not to find out about the wishes Rachel quits and the I. S. is quite happy for her to go till Ivy quits at the same time, knowing that Rachel had something to do with their best runner quitting the I. S. has put a contract out on her.With no job and no place to live, after being evicted from her apartment for having a price on her head, Rachel moves into Ivy’s church in the hollows and starts their own independent runner agency along with Jinks.Thinking that the best way to pay off her contract before the I. S. hit men kills her, she needs one good tag to get her the money, Rachel decides to investigate Councilman Trent Kalamack, who Rachel believes is a brimstone drug lord, and comes to find out that he is much, much more.Dead Witch Walking is well written and sometimes quite hilarious, if you like books in the paranormal genre you will like this one and all the others in Kim Harrison’s Hallows series.Happy reading,Dawn

[eidzior_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Fans of Sookie Stackhouse will definitely enjoy this. It has a lot of the same elements of the "other" becoming exposed to the human race. This dabbles a bit faster in the realm of fairies and weres though.

I liked it. I hated the writing style but most people aren't reading this kind of book for the language so I tried to put that aside. The story was good although I really thought that one of the characters who was acting sketchy would come through with a good twist at the end and he didn't which was weird to me. Maybe that comes later in the series.

The characters are consistent although I kept forgetting what the big deal with tomatoes was and it was annoying to me how Ivy was so moody and I was annoyed about all the rules about vampires. I also didn't really get how witches were different than humans since they went to school to become witches. So...it's just education that makes them different?

Overall a good read for vampire fans, which I'm not really. I like Sookie Stackhouse though mostly because of True Blood. For me I would rather read Sookie but for those who have read all of those already, this is a more urban read.

[phoenixcomet · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I haven't read or listened to fantasy in awhile. An engaging story involving witch Rachel Morgan, an IS (Inderlander Security) runner who quits the IS to go out on her own, taking vampiress, Ivy Tamwood and Pixie, Jinx (Jenks?) with her. A bounty is placed on Rachel's head that the only way she can get out of is by taking down a biodrug runner, Trent Kalamac. Book 1 in The Hollows series.

[Kisha · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

You he story is good, but i will be sure to avoid the narrator in the future

[grapeapril75-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Check out my other listens at Eargasms Audiobook Reviews

Great series! Rachel is snarky and a kick a$$ chick! Jinx is hysterical and Ivy is a real bada$$!

Terrific concept and truly entertaining tale! Great story telling that draws you in and keeps you engaged the whole way through!

Can't wait to see where this series is headed!

[librarycatnip · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

First book of the Hollows. I am honestly not real thrilled with it, but many UF series take a book or two to really get off the ground. I find Rachel impulsive and annoying and the plot seemed to have some major holes in it, like why she thought the antagonist was running drugs in the first place.

We'll see how the rest go....

[suman · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Loved the story and the world building but hate the heroine character. No forethought or good skills, just muddled through. Jenks and his kids (tiny pixies)have better skills than her, the supposedly good witch.
There are more books in the series, hope the story/character gets better.

[lewispike · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It hits the ground running and pulls you along. I really wish I'd started it midafternoon instead of as a bedtime read - but at least I didn't have to get up for work the next morning after finishing at 5am!It inspired me to go out when I did get up to buy more in the series.Oh, and it was the first book I bought on the basis of a Suggester recommendation from LibraryThing.

[mzserena · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I accidentally bought this book right after I bought my Kindle and finally got around to reading it. I'd heard so many good things about the series that I h ad to at least give it a shot. I wasn't disappointed by the book, for sure.It wasn't what I expected, but then again, I didn't know what to expect from the book since I'd never really paid much attention to it until I bought it. I like the intrigue and the way the story progressed, but the ending really didn't seem to make a lot of sense. It was definitely something to make you want to read the next book of the series, which isn't a bad thing, but it didn't hold itself out as a solo book for someone who was just interested in giving the author a try.Will I keep reading the series? I'm not sure yet. I do want to know what happens next, but I'm not sure how much I care.

[orangejulia · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison is a brilliant bit of trashy supernatural fiction given to me in order to take my mind off things, which it succeeded at admirably. Essentially, the population of supernatural beings (vampires, weres, pixies, fairies, etc.) are at the same level as humans (though humans can also be spellcasters). Rachel worked as a supernatural bounty hunter until decided to go freelance with a vampire and a pixy. Rachel ducks an army of assassains, a evil businessman with his finger in various poisonous pies, and of course gets tangled up with a mysterious human who isn't afraid of supernatural beasties. Unlike Laurel K. Hamilton, Harrison doesn't have a veneer of plot surrounding a pornographic filling. This may not be War and Peace, but it is enjoyable does a good job of world building without clobbering you over the head with exposition. I'll continue with this popcorn like series

[conniejo_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I've been getting more and more into this sort of fantasy/horror genre lately, and I picked this one up with no prior knowledge when I saw the title of the newest book in the series, "The Outlaw Demon Wails," on the bestseller list. It made me laugh, and that was a good enough reason to buy the first one, I suppose.It was much different than I expected. I was kind of expecting another erotic fantasy title (especially given the tight leather pants and cuffs on the cover), but this one had no sex whatsoever, which was a breath of fresh air. She does a good job of explaining the fantasy setting in the real world (though I can't say the explanation was really my favorite), and a lot of the more major fantasy creatures are included, which I appreciate.Most important, it was very funny, and I loved the humor and sarcasm, especially since it was coming out of the main character's mouth every second. The main character and her pixie assistant do a good job of keeping things light, and there's also a lot of action and life-threatening situations, some very unique (at one point, she's transformed into a rat and thrown into the city's rat fights). The main character was really strong and likable, and I think I'll probably pick up more books in the series.

[sadbigbookworm42 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Well written and a good start to the series. It caught my interest right away. This was one of the first 'non-academic' books that I had read for a while at the time so I really enjoyed it. Charchater depth is OK but it gets better in the later books, I mean, it is the first of a series and to jam in a lot of character development would have weighted it down by a significant extent. Over all excellent and if you enjoy a good 'junk fiction' novel you will love this.

[kashicat · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book wasn't deep and meaningful or the Great Canadian/American Novel, but it was a light, enjoyable read.Start with a witch who leaves the equivalent of the faery world's FBI to go out on her own, in partnership with a vampire and a pixy. The FBI-equivalent puts a price on her head, so that pretty much everyone in the faery world (other witches, fairies, vampires, weres, a demon, you name it) are trying to kill her to collect the reward, while the rich criminal she's trying to catch wants to recruit her to work for him. Lots of action and little twists.And tomatoes are Teh Evol. (But I won't reveal anything more, just, you know, for the suspense and stuff.)Anyway, an enjoyable read. A nice book for the bus. I'll be checking out the other Kim Harrison books with the same characters.

[semperfiona · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Took me several weeks to finish because it just wouldn't grab me. It was good, just not compelling.

[c5ibarra · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Dead Witch Walking is the first book in the Rachel Morgan series. I’ve read so many rave reviews about this series and couldn’t wait to read it. Sony offered it as a free download so I had no excuse to put off starting this series any longer.I really wanted to fall in love with this series but only managed to fall in like. I found it difficult to keep up with what was happening at first. The author didn’t offer an explanation for how or why the preternatural creatures of the world had come out of hiding until a few chapters into the novel. I would have loved to have had an explanation sooner so that I wouldn’t have felt so confused. The book seemed to drag on at times. It easily could have been 50 pages shorter and still a good quality story. I felt it was an all around bumpy introduction to this series. This seems to be a common problem for first books due to all the information the author has to get across to the reader. It definately is not enough to make me give up on the series. I’ve heard it improves as it goes and I plan to read the next book with an open mind.I don't want to just focus on the negative so let me tell you what I liked about Dead Witch Walking. I really liked Rachel. She was so normal even though she’s a witch. She complained about her frizzy hair, lack of cleavage and was self conscious about her abilities to do “witchy” stuff. It made her easy to relate to. Jenks the pixy was a huge asset to the story and an excellent source of comic relief. I’m not sure how I feel about Rachel’s vampire roommate, Ivy. I’m definitely curious about her intense interest in Rachel. I’m looking forward to visiting The Hollows again in the near future.

[silvernfire · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was a little wary when I started this book: what if it was just a bad Laurell K. Hamilton ripoff? Well, it's clearly the same genre as the Anita Blake books, but Rachel Morgan is an interesting character in her own right. And Rachel's friends are distinct personalities as well (I confess, most of the men in LKH's books are blurring together in my mind by now). For a fantasy/horror novel, the explanation of why everyone knows there are magical beings in the world was quite science-fictional: a pleasant twist. No, this isn't a profound work of literature, but it's a fun page-turner and worth the time it'll take to read.

[raselyem7 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

First book of the Hollows. I am honestly not real thrilled with it, but many UF series take a book or two to really get off the ground. I find Rachel impulsive and annoying and the plot seemed to have some major holes in it, like why she thought the antagonist was running drugs in the first place.

We'll see how the rest go....