Kitty Rocks the House by Carrie Vaughn

Kitty’s having a hard time — Rick is distracted, a newbie is challenging her authority, her pack is clamoring for her attention, Cormac is killing the good guys, and her sister is having a mid-life crisis.

Title:  Kitty Rocks the House
Author:  Carrie Vaughn
Series: Kitty Norville Book 11
Publish Date: March 26, 2013
Genre:  Urban Fantasy
Source: Purchased

Publisher’s Description: On the heels of Kitty’s return from London, a new werewolf shows up in Denver, one who threatens to split the pack by challenging Kitty’s authority at every turn. The timing could not be worse; Kitty needs all the allies she can muster to go against the ancient vampire, Roman, if she’s to have any hope of defeating his Long Game. But there’s more to this intruder than there seems, and Kitty must uncover the truth, fast.

Meanwhile, Cormac pursues an unknown entity wreaking havoc across Denver; and a vampire from the Order of St. Lazaurus tempts Rick with the means to transform his life forever.

Possible spoilers beyond this point.

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Kat Mandu says…

Sometimes you just want to punch characters in their stupid faces. Though not the good ones, fortunately. In this book, Kitty meets a wolf who wants “to join her pack” but only ends up causing trouble. And Darren seems to be the least of her worries. Doesn’t mean he isn’t annoying. What’s worse is that Kitty is kinda uneasy around him to begin with, so when he starts challenging her, readers are kinda like, “Well, you asked for it.” Funny part is, Kitty knows she did too.

Things are getting darker in the Roman plot too. Allies and enemies are coming forth, some across continents. There’s even vampire priests! YES! Vampire priests, you say? Indeed… though they kinda add a little more conflict to the plot, trying to lure Rick away from Denver when they need him the most.

Either way, this was an enjoyable read. Less action than a lot of the others but it’s got a lot of stuff to set up. This is the eleventh book in the series, out of fourteen, so the plot is shaping up to end and cutting off a few loose ties.

This is also the last book I previously read in the Kitty series. So now I’m off to read Kitty And The Underworld and shall be totally surprised by the events!

I give Kitty Rocks the House four stars.

Invested Ivana says…

I don’t always pay attention to some of the more literary devices that may be used in my entertainment fiction; but, I felt that Kitty Rocks the House has such a strong theme, it’s hard to miss. It is, however, a little hard to define.

Kitty is experiencing how both her sister and one of her pack mates, Trey, is suffering because Kitty is spending her time pursuing the things she feels are important — namely her show and the war against Roman–rather than her familial or pack obligations. In turn, Kitty suffers because Rick, Master Vampire of Denver, chooses to pursue something he feels is important–namely the validation of his continued belief in God in spite of being a vampire — while ignoring some of his responsibilities. So, perhaps the theme is either being true to yourself, or something about responsibility. Do you pursue what you believe is right in spite of the damage it may cause others?

This is what Cormac and Detective Hardin so when they poke at Father Columban’s wards. Because they are curious — and think they are doing the right thing — they get a (supposedly good) vampire killed and cause Rick to leave Denver, leaving Kitty alone to deal with the city and the Long Game. I’m really surprised Kitty doesn’t get more upset about this, or even try to explain to Cormac and Hardin what they are doing. She just stands by and watches the chaos unfold. I don’t really understand her lack of reaction in that particular scene. I want to yell at both of them, to be honest.

The pack has argued with Kitty before about taking care of them, their pack, over trying to take care of the world’s problems, of Roman or the vampires. I think this is a good argument and one many people with responsibilities have to face. Someone has to tackle the big problems, stand up in the big fights; but, often it’s done at a cost, usually to the people around you and your responsibilities to them. Which to you choose?

Our reviews in this series…

• Kitty and the Midnight Hour
• Kitty Goes to Washington 
• Kitty Takes a Holiday
• Kitty and the Silver Bullet
• Kitty and the Dead Man’s Hand
• Kitty Raises Hell
• Kitty’s House of Horrors
• Kitty Goes to War
• Kitty’s Big Trouble
• Kitty Steals the Show

Other reviews…

• All Things Urban Fantasy
• Fangs for the Fantasy
• Gizmo’s Book Reviews

If you like this book…

…you might try Patricia Brigg’s Mercy Thompson series, Rachel Vincent’s Shifter series, or Eileen Wilks’s World of the Lupi series.