I pre-ordered this the moment it was announced that Ilona Andrews had a new project coming out. I'd never read the other Kinsman stories, but I heard you didn't really need to. (It's true.) 

As a die-hard constant reader of Ilona Andrews, the plot felt familiar, and I mean that in a good, comforting way. I don't mean in any way to suggest that this work is derivative of their other worlds, but it reminded me a bit of the political order of the Hidden Legacy universe taking place in the space travel universe of Innkeeper with a type of techno weaponry like the blood armor in the Kate Daniels universe. (IA readers will get these references.)

For those of you who are not part of the "Book Devouring Hoarde" of die-hard Ilona Andrews fans --

(First off, why aren't you?)

This is a quick paced space opera with a huge amount of world building in a small space, lots of gory and well choreographed fight scenes, and a slow-growing romance between two tough and equally matched leads. It feels like a standalone -- the story is neatly tied up by the end -- and is a great entry-point into IA's titles if you're looking for a new urban fantasy author to binge read.