This is a short novel, about 60,000 words. On the outside, Dina Demille is the epitome of normal. She runs a quaint Victorian Bed and Breakfast in a small Texas town, owns a Shih Tzu named Beast, and is a perfect neighbor, whose biggest problem should be what to serve her guests for breakfast. But Dina is…different: Her broom is a deadly weapon; her Inn is magic and thinks for itself. Meant to … itself. Meant to be a lodging for otherworldly visitors, the only permanent guest is a retired Galactic aristocrat who can’t leave the grounds because she’s responsible for the deaths of millions and someone might shoot her on sight. Under the circumstances, “normal” is a bit of a stretch for Dina.
And now, something with wicked claws and deepwater teeth has begun to hunt at night…Feeling responsible for her neighbors, Dina decides to get involved. Before long, she has to juggle dealing with the annoyingly attractive, ex-military, new neighbor, Sean Evans–an alpha-strain werewolf–and the equally arresting cosmic vampire soldier, Arland, while trying to keep her inn and its guests safe. But the enemy she’s facing is unlike anything she’s ever encountered before. It’s smart, vicious, and lethal, and putting herself between this creature and her neighbors might just cost her everything.
“Andrews is an auto-buy no matter what the genre!” –Romantic Times“If there is one author that defines Urban Fantasy, it is Ilona Andrews.” –Annie Tegelan, Fresh Fiction
“One of the brightest voices in urban fantasy and one of my favorite authors. Ilona Andrews delivers only the best.” –New York Times bestselling author Jeaniene Frost
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Well written
I held off a long time on reading this gem, even though it’s been sitting on my kindle, taunting me, for months. Yet a recent book slump caused me to peck through my offerings…. and the rest, as they say, is history.
Unfortunately, despite the length, this series is not available on Kindle Unlimited. Yet, it is well worth the price. It is the kind of series you will read again in a few months, then again after that – and reread it once more when news of a new installment hits the web. There is something about Dina’s quiet strength and knowledge that seduces, even as the world being built around her and the other characters that proliferate her Inn, captivate.
For the same reason that books and shows about Space Stations become popular, this series has all the hallmarks of inventiveness and introductions. Because of it’s unique positioning, Earth is neutral in the cosmos, with certain individuals inhabiting this planet acting as hosts to the intergalactic guests that venture their way – in a type of neutral way station that offers rules ALL must abide by.
That is the long and short of it, though the details make it far more intriguing. Our myths and legends come from the sky, and those legends are alive and well, and often nothing like humans dubbed them. Vampires, werewolves, etc… the list goes on, and Dina handles them all. Her technology is so advanced and fluid it’s more magic than thought and her living Inn is as much a character in this Saga as the Innkeeper herself.
In a word… fascinating.
Perspective
Third Person, Single POV
Ending Type
Episodic
Rating
PG-15
Romantic Dynamic
M/F
Character Age Range
24+
I was really in the mood for something completely different from what I’ve been reading lately, so I decided to check out this series. I love urban fantasy but am not a fan of sex scenes, so that really makes it hard sometimes to find something that isn’t YA.
So far, the series starts off pretty good. It held my attention, I liked the characters, and I’m eager to read more. Honestly, the only reason I didn’t give this four stars is that the story just didn’t feel fleshed out enough. The plot is fairly simple with lots of mysteries but little true conflict. There’s a looming bad guy out to get our intrepid heroine, but she’s able to beat him pretty easily. There’s definitely a set up for a love-triangle, but it’s more based on lust than actual personality (as the main hero she’s currently smitten with isn’t terribly likable through most of it). Mostly, the plot was just straightforward without much in the way of bumps along the road. Usually, you get what they call the “try and fail” cycle, where the heroes make attempts to solve things and fail, and there isn’t a whole lot of that happens on the page.
But that said, I enjoyed it. The book is light, fun, and the world is unique and intriguing. I’m looking forward to the next book.
This book is possibly my favorite book of all time. Dina is so well-written, she makes me want to call her up to swap recipes and chat about life. She is very real.
One thing that I love about Ilona Andrews is the way they create worlds. Every series that they write is so believable, with an internal consistency that both reveals the characters, but also falls away to allow the plot to move forward. You’re not busy laughing at a particular feature that is completely unrealistic because of lack of research, and you’re never confused by over-explaining of a particular bit of scenery—I’m looking at you, Tolkien…never over it….!
This series in particular shines with an amazing amount of imagination, careful writing, deep humor, and the kind of characters that I want to live in my city and have as neighbors. Read it. It’s wonderful. You won’t be disappointed.
I really enjoyed this whole series. Fun and good-hearted as well as intriguing.
I love the unique world-building and twists on familiar supernatural creatures like werewolves and vampires. This ended up being more of a sci-fi / fantasy (sci-fantasy?) mash-up than I’d expected, and I LOVED it.
This is the second book I’ve read by the writing team of Ilona Andrews. I read this book in a day and enjoyed it. The story is about Dina, an innkeeper who keeps an inn for supernaturals. The inn is a sentient being that bonds with the innkeeper. The inn and the keeper enhance and need each other’s magic. The inn’s are supposed to be neutral, safe settings and the innkeepers are supposed to be neutral and able to keep guests safe but also keep them from causing problems for other guests and the humans in the area. The premise is unusual and the supernaturals are mostly aliens. The story is interesting, Dina is a good characters and the inn and beast add a neat quirk to the story! My one gripe are the gruesome descriptions of mutilated animals and people. The book started on that note and I almost put it down. Since I liked the first book I read by this author, I decided to give it a chance and ended up skimming the gory parts and finishing it.
Love anything from this author
I like the whole series, can’t wait for #5. One thing i enjoy, is seeing characters from her other series interact with the Sweep series. All 3 series are great in their own way. The story lines, characters given time to grow and always unexpected twists and i love the snarky humor.
The Clean Sweep series by Ilona Andrews is one of my all time favorites.
I appreciate not in your face romance with this. I love Dina’s base character as being incredibly grounded and self-reliant not necessarily in a stubborn sense but in the “I understand; I don’t need to prove myself because I already have” sense. The book gives a great intro to so many things and leaves us wanting more more more of the marketplace, merchants, and vampire politics – oh my!
I have read this one at least 4 times. I love it.
I really enjoyed this book and the only complaint I had was that it could have been longer. Dina the lead character is facing hard circumstances and deals with them without looking for someone else to provide the solutions. The secondary characters are interesting and not two dimensional. The world that has been created is interesting and leaves lots of scope for the future books (2 of which have already been written with more sure to come). I recommend this book and am looking forward to reading the next one in the series.
Just love Ilona Andrews books and this is no exception. Great new urban fantasy world with wonderful characters.
I absolutely love this series and can’t wait for the next book. Excellent characters and great writing.
Entertaining read, the rest of this series is even better.
Ilona Andrews’ Innkeeper Series, three books so far, is one of the most creative and entertaining series I have ever encountered. Dina is the Innkeeper for an intergalactic waystation/inn located somewhere inTexas.
Her adventures, while staying under the public radar and looking out for her space traveling guests, are highly addictive and so much fun to follow. If you enjoy action, fantasy, quirky humor, science fiction, and the continuous good verses evil struggle, I think you will become an instant fan. Ilona Andrews has written several other series, which are also outstanding entertainment. I highly recommend Clean Sweep and any other book written by Ilona Andrews.
This book checked all the boxes, and it’s a rare few stories that can do that. Well written Tough and resourceful main protagonist lady Worldbuilding that isn’t all scrunched together in the first few chapters It was falling in love with this story that made me go out and buy all of Ilona’s other books.
Not what you think and well worth reading.
The Andrews books are always a good read. This new series opener was a great introduction to a universe full of oddities. The action kept the pages going. I did finish this in a day. The only downside was waiting for #2, which is an excellent read as well.
Fabulous