Draw One in the Dark

Sarah A. Hoyt

Nov 2006 · Baen Publishing Enterprises

About this ebook

Every one of us has the beast inside. But for Kyrie Smith, the beast is no metaphor. Since she was 15, when she first shape-shifted into a savage, black panther, Kyrie has questioned her humanity and moved from town to town, searching for a way to feel human again.

Kyrie's lonely life changes forever while waitressing at a cheap diner. Investigating screams from the parking lot, Kyrie stumbles upon a blood-spattered dragon crouching over a mangled human corpse. The dragon changes back into her co-worker, Tom, naked, dazed and unable to remember how he got there.

Thrust into a world of shape-shifting dragons, giant cats and other beasts waging a secret war behind humanity's back, Kyrie may find the answers she seeks¾with help from Tom, a mythical object called the Pearl of Heaven, and her own inner beast.

At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (DRM Rights Management).

"DRAW ONE IN THE DARK IS THE ONE NEW FANTASY NOVEL YOU HAVE TO BUY THIS YEAR!"-Dave Freer

"Analytically, it's a tour de force: logical, built from assumptions, with no contradictions, which is astonishing given the subject matter. It's also gripping enough that I finished it in one day."¾Jerry Pournelle

". . . deftly woven together . . . an interesting and strong story."¾ SFRevu.com

Ratings and reviews

A cute little urban fantasy novel set in Colorado about a group of shape shifters who don't realize there are others like them. Essentially it's a murder mystery where it appears a waiter (in dragon form) may have killed someone in the parking lot of local dive diner, and is helped out by another of the waitresses (a were-panther). There's also the detective (a were-lion) investigating several mysterious deaths in the area. Oh, and there is a Chinese Triad gang of dragons that is chasing after the dragon/waiter because he stole a magical pearl of theirs. The story was quick paced and held my interest. I haven't read multiple first person narrative in a long time, so it took a bit of getting used to. There was plenty of foreshadowing and many of the plot points seemed rather obvious. The biggest annoyance was the introduction of a new character a third of the way into the story. There were some romantic subplots but nothing too distracting. I'll likely read more from this author.

Awesome. Plan on not being able to put down from beginning to end in one sitting. Took me 14 hours but was well worth it.

Great shifter book!

About the author

S. M. Stirling is the author of the Draka trilogy. Set in a parallel universe, a nation founded on slavery and the United States battle for domination of the world. The trilogy was recently republished in one huge volume as The Domination. Stirling has also written Drakon, a novel of a Draka warrior hurled into our world, and edited a companion volume, Drakas! Among his collaborations are the popular General series with David Drake, the novel, The Children's Hour, with Jerry Pournelle, and the national bestseller, The City Who Fought, with Anne McCaffrey. He and his wife live in Santa Fe, NM.