Wit and Sin

4.5 stars - My review cross-posted from Wit and Sin: http://witandsin.blogspot.com/2013/04/review-peculiar-pets-of-miss-pleasance.html

In the grim and often bloody world of Sang, real pets are a rarity. Pet shop owner Frannie Pleasance is used to taking in strays, but famed musician Casper Sterling is a far different breed from her usual kittens and puppies. But taking Casper on as a lodger might be more trouble than Frannie anticipated. Upon his arrival strange and dangerous things start happening. When someone sets Frannie’s room on fire, she’s rescued by Scottish firefighter Thom Maccallan, a man whose kind heart and quiet strength draw Frannie out of her shell. Yet if Frannie hopes to have a future with Thom, the two of them must first discover who is trying to kill her and why. The answer may lie with Frannie’s inconvenient houseguest…

Despite danger lurking in the shadows, The Peculiar Pets of Miss Pleasance is as warm and inviting as Frannie’s shop. In Frannie and Thom, Delilah S. Dawson has created two loveable, hardworking protagonists who are impossible to resist. Frannie’s been badly hurt in the past, but in The Peculiar Pets of Miss Pleasance she begins to start truly living again, and she does so without losing her innate kindness. Thom too has suffered loss and it’s the scars of his past which drive him to be protective of others. I love how patient and giving Thom is. He and Frannie are a truly wonderful pair and thus it’s easy to be swept away by their romance.

Casper Sterling — everyone’s favorite sexy musician from the first Blud book, Wicked as They Come — is an important secondary character in The Peculiar Pets of Miss Pleasance. Once again Casper is looking for love in the wrong place, and as much as I like him, I’m glad Ms. Dawson didn’t add a love triangle to this story. The fact that the rather colorful Casper doesn’t manage to upstage the quieter Frannie and Thom is a testament to Ms. Dawson’s writing. That being said, I did finish The Peculiar Pets of Miss Pleasance wanting to dive right into Casper’s book, Wicked as She Wants, for reasons I won’t spoil.

The Peculiar Pets of Miss Pleasance is a charming story I simply adored. If you haven’t read Ms. Dawson’s first Blud novel, Wicked as They Come, The Peculiar Pets of Miss Pleasance provides a taste of the world that is satisfying as a standalone but will have you craving more of the fantastic world that is Sang.