Just two weeks ago we were talking about the death of the paranormal romance. When it was 60% of what was on the shelves, I frankly didn’t have much time for it. But now that it’s virtually vanished, I admit I’m curious… at least about some of the quirky stuff that appeared at the edges of the genre.

What’s guiding my interest? Sometimes it’s the author, sometimes it’s recommendations from reviewers I trust. Sometimes it’s just the cool covers. And sometimes, like with Caitlin Kittredge’s Hellhound Chronicles, it’s the fact that brand new copies of the opening volume are available for just $1.45 at Amazon.com (and Bookoutlet is selling the second one for just $4.79.)

The Hellhound Chronicles is more urban fantasy than paranormal romance (although the two are frequently indistinguishable.) It follows the adventures of the “hellhound” Ava, an indentured servant of an angel of death who tracks down errant souls and sends them to hell. When Ava meets up with a necromancer who tells her there’s a way out of her servitude, it leads to unforeseen consequences… and a series of misadventures involving the demon Lilith, the Walking Man, and zombie vampires. Melissa de la Cruz calls it “A riveting, fun and dangerous ride with angels, demons, necromancers and a badass heroine,” and Kirkus Reviews says it’s “A fast-paced read perfect for lovers of dark fantasy.” Here’s the back covers.

[Click the images for bigger versions.]

And here’s the publishing details.

Black Dog (344 pages, $14.99 in trade paperback/$7.99 digital, October 28, 2014) — cover designed by Adam Johnson
Grim Tidings (259 pages, $14.99 in trade paperback/$8.99 digital, April 19, 2016) — cover designed by Adam Johnson

Both books were published by Harper Voyager.

Caitlin Kittredge is also the author of the six volume Black London series, five novels of Nocturne City, The Iron Codex trilogy, and the Coffin Hill comic from Vertigo.

See all our recent coverage of the best in Series Fantasy here.