The Castor books do not lack in excitement or movement, and this book is no exception. It picks up very nicely where book 4 left off; with Castor struggling with the ramifications of his decision to break Rafi out of the cell in which he was being held; and everything that happened after - culminating in the deaths and destruction of innocent people. By the time he picks himself out of the gutter of booze and vomit he has dumped himself in, it is because the demon possessing Rafi has it made it clear his spree has barely begun.

And for Fix, his chaos is just beginning. Juliet is loosing control - and Fix knows that he has no one to tame her once she does. Pen is furious with Fix for loosing control of both Rafi and his own life. And in order to get control of Rafi, Fix is willing to strike a deal with his own nemesis.

Mikey Carey does a fantastic job bringing this particular storyline to a irrevocable conclusion using some unexpected tactics. I hope he continues on with the series - Fix and Juliet remain interesting characters, and he still has the question to answer why ghosts have became so active. But if he does not, he just offered readers a great ending to a great series.

I am torn about this one. I would have been EXTREMELY disappointed if I had thought this was the last installment for Felix but I see on Goodreads that there is a #6 -- yay!! I really love the idea of these stories -- London, UK, and all Hell has broken loose. As in, ghosts, zombies, demons, werewolves, etc. are here among the living. I just thought this installment was too rushed. I was not satisfied AT ALL!! I needed more about my favourite characters, I needed more story, I needed more comeuppance for the not-so-nice guys. Looking forward to #6 and (hopefully) more to come after that. As stated, I really love Felix's whole world.

I don't quite understand why Mike Carey's Felix Castor novels aren't more popular with readers of urban fantasy. While certainly a darker and harder "feel" than Jim Butcher, I would fully expect fans of the Dresden Files to also enjoy the Castor books.

It's a shame, really, because Mike Carey is cranking out some fun stuff indeed. Perhaps it's too "English" for the readers, as London factors heavily into the books, and there are many English cultural references that American readers might not catch. I sometimes miss the political and pop references, but that certainly hasn't curtailed my enjoyment of the series.

In the latest installment, Carey brings about serious changes to three characters that I always want to read more about: Rafi, his friend possessed by Asmodeus, Juliet, the succubus that almost killed Castor and has since been (somewhat) "humanized", and Nicky, the zombie whose sole goal in his un-life is to preserve that decaying body at all costs.

Rafi's storyline is front and center, as Asmodeus has openly started a campaign to free himself from the shackles of Rafi's bodily prison, a mistaken prison courtesy of our hero Felix himself. I've always felt that the Rafi/Asmodeus storyline was "on hold" and this book sees Carey giving it his full attention and resolving it once and for all.

In addition, Nicky is losing his grip on halting the decay of his body, and Juliet is losing her grip on maintaining her hard-fought "humanity". Juliet's storyline is given more page time than Nicky's, but I felt both could have been fleshed out some more.

There's a lot going on in this book, and I felt it redeems some of the slow gloominess that pervaded the last book on the series. Carey is on firm ground and gives the reader a lot to chew on, with some great action and nice character development. Felix himself also goes through some changes as well, taking quite a beating in the process.

By the end I was a happy camper, having decided that book 4 was an anomoly and Felix Castor is back. I look forward to more by Mr. Carey and it cannot come too soon.

I am crushed this series is over at five books, I loved every minute of it. Felix Castor is such an engaging protagonist, and the world is lushly built. The stories are engaging and the way the whole thing ties together is well done. I could read five more of these happily!

I loved this series. Hope the author will write more of Felix Castor's adventures.

After having to abandon my last book out of complete disinterest, it was good to have another adventure of Felix to read. Felix has been on quite a roller coaster since his first book and has established both loyal friends and powerful enemies over these 5 novels. Not the least of which are pulling at him from both ends. Asmodeus is loose on the streets of London and Jenna-Jane brings Castor into the MOU to help him track the demon down. There are some spectacular moments between Jenna-Jane and Castor. Absolutely spectacular. And the final battle... it's brilliantly written, but took so long to reach I honestly thought the book would end on a cliff hanger.

This is the end of the Ditko story arc. I understand Carey is planning a new Castor adventure. I know I'd certainly welcome it.

A fitting and satisfactory end to the series 4.5 stars

In this last volume Carey focus solely on wrapping the Rafi/Asmodeus storyline which has been the overarching background story for all the previous novels.

As with the last 2 novels there's a clear progression in the quality of the writing and the pacing of the story, with the risk of sounding like a broken record this is the best novel min the series.

The story is brilliantly paced and the conclusion fantastic, although a little to the happy-ending side, but at least Carey avoid the Deux-de-machina temptation and stick with the rules laid out in the early novels.

This was my favorite of the series. I really wish there were more. About 4 years ago, the author wrote on Goodreads that there’s an idea for Book 6. I’m still hopeful. I liked this particular book & the series’ characters so much, I might even reread Book 1 soon.

Felix “Fix” Castor is a freelance exorcist in a world where ghosts, werewolves, and even demons roam free. Ajulutsikael is a succubus-turned-exorcist and one of his best friends. Others with prominent roles throughout the series are Pamela “Pen” Bruckner his landlady & unrequited love interest from college, Nicky Heath the zombie & owner of an abandoned movie theater, and Rafael Ditko who has become the unwilling host for a powerful demon parasite named Asmodeus (and Pen’s ex). This book also brought a cameo of Abbie Torrington from a previous book. (Book 4 did feel like a bit of a departure but brought some wonderful new characters who appear in Book 5. )

CWs: self harm, suicide, domestic violence, coma, alcohol abuse

A great end to the series. If Mike Carey wants to put out more Castor novels, consider me in line.

This was a fitting end to the series, one that I enjoyed along the way. If you liked the first four books, this one will not disappoint. Castor is a little more focused, maybe he finally realized that he has to pull himself together, maybe he finally did enough damage to himself as punishment. Whatever his reason, Castor has to bring in his friends (few) and foes (many) to take on Asmodeus.

A fun read and a great novel in general.

I know, I'm constantly giving this entire series a 5/5, but it's earned it. Even if you get information that's repeated for those who are picking up the series in the middle and can annoy those who have been reading from the beginning, the rest of the book(s) makes up for it.

In this installment, you see everything around Fix is pretty much falling to shit, and it's partially down to his own personal flaws. Instead of making a character totally oblivious to obvious clues because they're only supposedly intelligent, you have a character who missing obvious shit because of character flaws that make sense.