Stacks on Stacks on Stacks

Once upon a time, fairies were the stuff of bedtime stories and sweet dreams. Then came the mutations, and the dreams became nightmares. Mosquito-size fairies now indulge their taste for human blood—and for most humans, a fairy bite means insanity or death. Luckily, Annabelle Lee isn't most humans. The hard-drinking, smart-mouthed, bicycle-riding redhead is immune to fairy venom, and able to do the dirty work most humans can’t. Including helping law enforcement— and Cane Cooper, the bayou’s sexiest detective—collect evidence when a body is discovered outside the fairy-proof barricades of her Louisiana town.

But Annabelle isn't equipped to deal with the murder of a six year- old girl or a former lover-turned-FBI snob taking an interest in the case. Suddenly her already bumpy relationship with Cane turns even rockier, and even the most trust-worthy friends become suspects. Annabelle’s life is imploding: between relationship drama, a heartbreaking murder investigation, Breeze-crazed drug runners, and a few too many rum and Cokes, Annabelle is a woman on the run—from her past, toward her future, and into the arms of a darkness waiting just for her. . . .

It's funny, this is not the first book I've read by Stacey Jay. The first book by her I read was Juliet Immortal, and I hated it. I stopped reading after the first chapter. But then I found this book, and holy shit, it was a thousand times better. In my personal opinion, Stacey Jay is a much better Urban Fantasy author than a YA author.

Dead on the Delta is a fantastic Urban Fantasy, unlike others I've read before. That is due to the use of a rarely used (at least from what I have seen) aspect of mythology: Fairies. These are NOT your typical UF fey. These fairies are bloodthirsty, causing madness, death, or both in their victims. These fey have a taste for human flesh, causing numerous people to die. Most people fall into this category. But there are those who fall into a smaller category. That is where our protagonist Annabelle Lee falls. That category is of the immune variety. Annabelle is in fact immune, which gives her a job most cannot take: going out into the fey infested areas in order to clean up after crimes, including murders. I adored this book. You see, I'm a sucker for a good Urban Fantasy, and Stacey Jay gave me what I wanted. I loved this story, the town of Donaldsonville, as well as its inhabitants. This story is fucking crazy, even more so as you read the climax. All I will say is you will choke on your drink when you read to that point. That might seem a bit naive, but I certainly was shocked when I read the climax of this novel. The mystery surrounding Grace Beaucamp's death is one I desperately wanted solved, and wanted to solve. I also loved going on the journey with Annabelle, following her from place to place, as she also tried solving Grace's murder.

Speaking of Annabelle Lee, let's talk about our protagonist, shall we? As I said, she's a pretty typical UF protagonist. She drinks a lot,  has a low opinion of herself, has a messed up past, sarcastic/snarky, as well as the center of a love triangle (possibly square, but apparently that's more dealt with in the second book.). Despite her typical status, I really loved Annabelle. She snuck her way into my head and heart. I loved her snarky comments, and I loved her character development. She saw how her life was going, and went through some epiphanies. Annabelle is a character I rooted for, wanting her to be happy and to make it out of this mess alive. Although she doesn't kick a lot of ass, there is a potential for her to with certain events that happened near the end of the book. Now about Cane. I loved him. His chemistry with Annabelle was great, and I honestly felt for him as a character. He came alive on the page on his own, separate as Love Interest Number One. I felt so bad for him at times, others I wanted to kick his ass. Then there's Hitch, Annabelle's ex and possible love. I also loved his chemistry with Annabelle, leaving me up in the air on who she should be with. He started out as an asshole, but he really grew on me. His relationship with Annabelle starts out complicated, and gets even more so by the end. The rest of the characters were excellent as well. No one was underdeveloped, even the characters we're not supposed to like. I loved Fernando, who was great, albeit a stereotypical Gay Best Friend. I also loved Theresa and Marcy (poor Marcy!), and even the villains you felt bad for. 

Damn Stacey, you built one hell of a world. These fairies are NOT your typical fey. No, they bite, they kill, they swarm. Mosquito, which is used to describe them in the synopsis, is a perfect analogy for these suckers. Holy shit, these fey are fucking frightening! I was terrified as I read about them! The mythology was amazing, and I wanted to learn more and more as I read. 

I know I will be back for Blood on the Bayou, and I can't wait to dive back in to Annabelle's world.