The Chalk Circle Man by Fred Vargas

Title: The Chalk Circle Man
Author: Fred Vargas
Series: Commander Adamsberg, #1 (I had thought Pars Vite, Reviens Tarde was #1 but it turns out that it was just the first to be translated into English.)
Genre: Mystery, non-US authors.
Setting: Paris.
Reason for Reading: I love this series!
Finished In: Days
Pages: 247
Copyright Date: 1996, the English translation is copyright 2009.
Cover: The words of the title are scrawled, seemingly dripping blood. A closer examination shows the Eiffel Tower and some trees in the background, also in reddish brown.
First line: "Mathilde took out her diary and wrote: 'The man sitting next to me has got one hell of a nerve.'"
Best part: This is a nice origin story, establishing the beginning of the relationship between Adamsberg, the quirky commissioner, and Danglard, his second-in-command in later books.
Worst part: Having already read the following books, I knew some things about where the plot was going that I might have preferred not to know.
Imaginary Theme Song: "Isn't It Romantic?"
Grade: B-
Recommended for: Fans of the series, definitely.
Related Reads: God Have Mercy On Us All and The Three Evangelists by the same author. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, although that one has a lot more violence.

Commissaire Adamsberg is a man with problems. No one trusts him in his new Paris assignment, the only underling he gets along with is a bit of a lush, his girlfriend left him, he can't keep his thoughts straight, and perhaps worst of all, he is the only one that sees the danger inherent in the mysterious chalk circles appearing all over Paris. Can he save the day before it's too late?

This is a truly satisfying addition to the series, though the second book is also a good place to start. B-.

Hard Magic by Laura Anne Gilman

Title: Hard Magic
Author: Laura Anne Gilman
Series: Paranormal Scene Investigations, #1
Genre: Sexy pentacle tattoo, slightly predictable since it's Luna Books.
Setting: Mostly New York City.
Reason for Reading: I found it in the browsing area at the Cambridge PL and thought it looked tasty.
Finished In: Days. I finished it on the plane to CA.
Pages: 329
Copyright Date: 2010
Cover: A woman with normal hair and no body mods wearing slightly punk clothes (the look screams "poser" to me to be honest) looks into the distance. Chainlink fence separates her from the reader, and the New York skyline is behind her.
First line: "The second body wasn't quite dead yet."
Best part: It was fast-paced and engrossing. Possibly the best "CSI, only with magic!" spin I've seen.
Worst part: Not a whole lot of substance.
Imaginary Theme Song: "I Wanna Be Sedated" by the Ramones
Grade: B-
Recommended for: Anyone who likes the genre, anyone who enjoys urban fantasy set in the Big Apple. If you enjoy Patricia Briggs or CE Murphy you'd probably like Gilman as well.
Related Reads: Staying Dead by the same author, the anthology Unusual Suspects where the protagonist made her debut, and the other mystery with magic anthology Murder by Magic. House of Cards by CE Murphy, Moon Called by Patricia Briggs.

Without going into tons of detail I'll just say that I think I'll like this series even better than her Retrievers series, which has been getting deserved attention in the past few years as the SPT genre has really taken off.