Author: Melissa F. Olson
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Published on: October 30, 2012 by 47North
Scarlett Bernard knows about personal space: step within ten feet of her, and any supernatural spells or demonic forces are instantly defused—vampires and werewolves become human again, and witches can’t get out so much as a “hocus pocus.” This special skill makes her a null and very valuable to Los Angeles’s three most powerful magical communities, who utilize her ability to scrub crime scenes clean of all traces of the paranormal to keep humanity, and the LAPD, in the dark.
But one night Scarlett’s late arrival to a grisly murder scene reveals her agenda and ends with LAPD’s Jesse Cruz tracking her down to strike a deal: he’ll keep quiet about the undead underworld if she helps solve the case. Their pact doesn’t sit well with Dash, the city’s chief bloodsucker, who fears his whole vampire empire is at stake. And when clues start to point to Scarlett, it’ll take more than her unique powers to catch the real killer and clear her name.
This is the book that started the author’s Old World saga. It’s an urban fantasy series set in our contemporary world, only with supernatural creatures. Witches, vampires, and werewolves are the three main races. The protagonist, Scarlett Bernard, plays a special role in this world. She’s a null, a rare being who can cancel out all magic within a certain radius around her. Scarlett works as a crime scene cleaner for the ruling members of Los Angeles’s Old World. She does this to erase all supernatural traces, keeping humans from learning about them.
Scarlett’s main boss is Dashiell, the cardinal vampire of LA. In this city, the three supernatural factions rule with about equal power. Scarlett works for them all. She hasn’t had any particularly noteworthy job, until now. Dashiell calls Scarlett to a crime scene in a park. There, she comes upon a scene so horrible it would shock even seasoned policemen. Unfortunately, rookie detective Jesse Cruz arrives before Scarlett can deal with the scene. Even more, a werewolf runs away right in front of Cruz’s eyes. Shell-shocked, Cruz makes a deal with Scarlett. He’ll keep quiet about the Old World if Scarlett helps him solve the case. With Dashiell’s reluctant blessing, Scarlett agrees.
During her down time, Scarlett shares an apartment with Molly. The latter’s a vampire who was turned around the era of the Jack the Ripper murders. Molly looks about twenty, which she feels is too young to be taken seriously in modern society. Because of this, Molly lets Scarlett stay with her for free in exchange for the null powers. When a vampire is around Scarlett, they not only become human, they resume aging. Scarlett doesn’t mind this. The two have become good friends. Scarlett is twenty-three, so they are close in age too. I liked Molly as a character. She’s a girly girl and loves movies.
Another supporting character is Eli. He’s one of the LA werewolves. Eli is the beta of the pack. Scarlett has an…interesting relationship with Eli. He’s her one-night stand who became more. Eli fell for her even though Scarlett wasn’t after romance. Things get a little awkward when Eli becomes Scarlett’s apprentice. She used to have a master, Olivia, who died a short while ago. Now Dashiell wants Scarlett to train someone else. Eli ended up being the lucky chosen. Scarlett likes him but doesn’t want a boyfriend who’ll even partly want her for her null ability. Most werewolves like this power, as being a werewolf is a constant hardship. Even in human form, they “feel” the wolf all the time.
Scarlett and Jesse start working together to solve the case. This further complicates her relationship with Eli a little. Jesse and Scarlett develop feelings for each other, though they keep things professional. Scarlett thinks Jesse would be better for her than Eli. As a human, Jesse wouldn’t have any special interest in Scarlett’s power. And though the latter is part of the Old World, she's not like the others. Scarlett has no powers other than being able to cancel out magic. Without her null ability, she's completely human.
Things take a dangerous turn after Dashiell learns more about the killings. The evidence seems to point to Scarlett as the culprit. Dashiell gives her an ultimatum. Unless Scarlett can bring him the true culprit in a few days, he will kill her. Dashiell’s coldness shocked me a little. As nulls are extremely rare, I didn’t think Dashiell would get rid of Scarlett so easily. He’s concerned that if he doesn’t find anyone to blame, the Old World will think he’s too weak to hold control of LA. So yeah, Dashiell is willing to kill Scarlett to save face. This was a huge contrast to the relationship between Maven and Lex in the Boundary Magic series. Maven was never this cold or ruthless, even when Lex crossed serious lines.
I found Dead Spots an enjoyable read. It was great to finally get to read the book that started the Old World saga. The first books I read in this fictional world were the Boundary Magic series. They take place years later, and some characters from Scarlett Bernard’s series make cameos. After reading their stories, I could see why this series is so successful. The characters are compelling, and their world is fantastic. Scarlett was just as great a protagonist as Lex Luther. I’m absolutely going to read the rest of her story.
My rating: ★★★★
4 stars - Definitely enjoyed it!
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