A Timeless Mystery with a Haunting Twist

The Immortal Detective is a unique and intriguing blend of historical fiction and detective noir. D.B. Woodling's skillful storytelling weaves a captivating tale set in 1920s New York City.

The protagonist, a centuries-old detective with a mysterious past, brings a fresh perspective to the genre. The author masterfully blends historical details with supernatural elements, creating a world that is both familiar and fantastical.

While the plot is engaging, the pacing can be a bit slow at times. However, the rich character development and atmospheric setting make up for it. The ending, though somewhat predictable, is satisfying and leaves room for future installments.

Overall, The Immortal Detective is a solid read for fans of historical mysteries and supernatural thrillers.

First, I'd like to thank NetGalley and CamCat Books for giving me an audio ARC of The Immortal Detective in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately, I couldn't finish the audiobook, stopping at about 20%. This was not due to any fault in the production or narration. In fact, Lisa Larsen did an exceptional job as the narrator. Her tone, pacing, and ability to bring the story to life were truly impressive, making the audiobook a pleasure to listen to from a technical standpoint.

However, my challenge with this audiobook stemmed from the fact that it is the second book in the series, and I had yet to read the first. I was missing an essential part of the backstory, making it difficult to engage with the narrative fully. This gap in context was a bit jarring and ultimately pulled me out of the story.

That said, I look forward to revisiting The Immortal Detective after reading the first book in the series to better appreciate the story as a whole. Based on Lisa Larsen's excellent narration and the intriguing premise, I am confident it will be worth a second attempt.

Thank you again to NetGalley and CamCat Books for the opportunity to review this audiobook. I'll return to try this book after catching up on the series.

I liked this audiobook, but I feel like I would have liked it a lot more if I read the book. There are so many characters, with so many diferent characteristics, the narrator did an amazing job in trying to impersonate them all; but I have to confess I got very confused. I sometimes got lost in who was speaking and what was going on, and if someone asked me to say what happened in the second half of it, I wouldn't be able to tell.
My experience was not the best, but the story has an amazing potential. I really hope it was because I couldn't follow along the audiobook.

I downloaded this book and then I had to get a new phone and was unable to get it back because it was already archived. I give them 3 stars to not mess up their ratings.

Always happy to discover new authors I requested the audiobook of The Immortal Detective on Netgalley as I was in the mood for some urban fantasy, investigation, and some immortality.

The beginning of this book is off planet and I readied myself to go into a science fiction story with immortals involved.
However, what I then get is a detective procedural with a female vampire who has got to bring child rearing and job together somehow, in a city in the United States.
I loved the parts most, where the relationship between the various people started to sparkle and shine and the dialogues. It felt to me that the author has a very strong sense of character and character arks.
However, on the other hand the book felt like a demonstration of, or trying to raise awareness of violence against women. The execution of this intention felt rather heavy handed.

When then the main character refers to the abducted, abused and confined women they have found as 'the dolls in the attic" the book died for me, as the main character just devalued herself and her efforts by using the incredibly abusive, demeaning language of the abuser. And such an act cannot be redeemed.

Loved the narrator's voice and how she made so much of the text.

I found this one a great mix of the supernatural and crime thriller. The MC was a very capable detective that found herself in a life she didn't ask for, now a vampire she must adapt to her new abilities, save humanity and still do the day job solving crimes. Crossing many lines in the pursuit of justice she finds herself left with some difficult choices. Loved this book gave me Bones crossed with Vampire Diary vibes.

I received the audiobook version of this book through Netgalley. This is my honest review.

I don't know what I was expecting from this story, but what I got ended up being just kind of meh for me. At the start of the story Celeste has just been turned into a vampire, and it felt like half the book was about adjusting to that life and learning skills and immersion into this organization that seems to be battling to rid the world of bad vampires. Then she returns to her normal life as a detective in Kansas City and I pretty much lost interest. I was invested in the long lives of people like Socrates and Queen Elizabeth and the way they've used their powers to influence major historical events, and then it became a fairly average detective story.

I think I would have been more invested if Celeste had become part of a supernatural police force, investigating supernatural disturbances, rather than just having abilities that allow her to psychically manipulate suspects and things like that. Basically, becoming a vampire made her job a cakewalk.

I also would have loved to see more of the exploits of Raina, the two-century old five-year-old, and Fane, the immortal gay babysitter. Their parts in this tale were quite entertaining.

The narration was acceptable. I didn't have any major complaints, but also don't have any major compliments for it either. It was fairly easy to discern which character was speaking by the voice being used at the time, which is a definite plus.

Overall I give The Immortal Detective 3.1764 out of 5 stars.

The immortal detective is a fantasy mystery where we follow Celestine and her journey as a new immortal.
I would like to make comment for future readers that this is a sequel to The immortal twin and I would recommend reading that before this book to avoid confusion. The audio of this book was ok I wished the narrator put more emotion into the audio as it did come off a little monotone but it wasn't enough to effect my enjoyment. There are some spicy bits but it is not the main focus of the story with is my preference.
All in all the book was enjoyable but it did take me a while to get into it (about 60%) but I wouldn't count that against the book itself. Im an emotional reader and I wasn't in the mood for this kind of book when I first started.
I would recommend this book to those who enjoy a good detective read with supernatural abilities.

This book had a good narrator, Lisa Larson, who fit the main character well. It begins with a lot of characters with different accents and dialects, but the narrator handled it well. Kudos to her.

The real story doesn't even start until Chapter 16. Everything after Chapter 16 is worth a listen. A Vampire detective solving crimes while trying not to out herself as Supernatural.

Unfortunately, Chapters 1 - 15 are unnecessary to the main story. I can only assume these chapters are a setup for future books.

Things seem to start in the middle of a conversation and from the jump I felt as though I was missing something essential to the story. It is possible that this is a sequel or novel within a series, but that wasnt indicated in the title or cover art. It wasn't hard to figure out or follow along, but if this is a sequel I would have liked a heads up.

The main issue with the start of the book is that Leonardo DaVinci, Socrates, Joan of Arc, and Queen Elizabeth are here. 😔 I'm not a fan of using such popular figures in writings. DaVinci and Hitler seem to be favorites for this type of writing. It is never really explained why they haven't interested with the world if they were still around. Example, could Da Vinco really sit back and watch his work be criticized, monetized, stolen, and crefit for his inventions given away? He sat around and didn't inventions a single new thing in all this time? And Queen Elizabeth wouldn't have helped her decendents? Unlikely.

There are also too many POV changes in these early chapters. The Main Character takes too long pondering her existence. I needed more story before having to dive into her thoughts so deeply.

The training sessions should have been summed up in a page. It go a bit tedious to listen through it when I had no real connection to the MC at that point.

Overall I'd give this a 3/5 or B+. The bones for a good urban fantasty are there, but buried deep in a lot of extra stuff. If possible, mix in her training with the main story. Force her to have to solve the crime with her trainers also trying to train her... she would have to find a balance while asserting herself as the detective to them

I didn’t realize this was a second in a series. For this reason, I get why I felt a little lost in the beginning. The characters always felt developed and I felt like I was missing something. Once I figure out what was going on, the audiobook flew by. I enjoyed listening. The narrator did a great job creating characters for me. It was easy to differentiate between them as I listened to the story told.

I definitely feel I want to go back and read more from this series.

Thanks so much NetGalley and CamCat Books | Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Audiobooks for the ALC.

The Immortal Detective by D.B.Woodling took me a little bit of time to get into. This may be due to having started with this book verses reading book 1 first. I enjoyed Celeste helping the Detective Squad solve cases with her unique abilities and work through her feelings about becoming a vampire.

I plan to pick up book 1 and reread book 2.

I really wasn’t a fan of this one and it’s not a book I would recommend. If it had not been from netgalley I probably wouldn’t have finished it. It didn’t realize this was a series when I requested it and it is not the first, unfortunately. It lacks character development (which may have been covered in the first book) but because of that it was hard to get into the characters. I had a hard time following what was going on as well. This may have been because it just wasn’t holding my interest. The scenes I enjoyed the most were whenever the main character was trying to hide what she was while still doing her job as a cop. Those were the only scenes that had action or anything of real interest going on. The rest of the book just seemed flat.

I’m going to be generous and give this 3 stars. I’m sure this is someone’s cup of tea, but it’s not for me. I love mysteries and the premise of a vampire detective sounded fun, but I just couldn’t get into this book. The narrator did a great job, it was the character. I was lost from the beginning, just to research and figure out it's the second in the series. Then the main character was so whiny about getting turned & it felt like they spent nearly half the book just training her. It bored me to sleep every time I picked it up to listen. I think it could be a great book if it were reworked to be more about the mystery vampire detective part. Thank you for the audio arc.

This book kept me guessing great character building, excellent story lines, only start this book if you have a while to read it. 👍👍👍👍👍

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for this audiobook. Good story, as a person who like stories about vampires this transition from human from vampire was not like any I read before. Great world building and character building. This is a story i will also be reading since listening to it.

Coming back from the dead as a vampire, Celeste Crenshaw has resigned herself to her immortal fate. After months of training with the vampire elders, Celeste returns to her job as a detective at Kansas City Police Department. Working the night shift, she uncovers a serial killer and a sex trafficking ring. Hiding her secrets from her partner, she tries to solve the case while raising her adopted daughter, Raina with her gay nanny, Fane. Can Celeste find a way to handle being a vampire, raising a vampire child, and being a police detective?

Narrator, Lisa Larson does a great job of distinguishing the characters and bringing them to life. Her narrative pacing fits well with the novel and complements the author’s writing style. The plot is humorous at times, engaging, and full of twists and turns. The characters are entertaining, engaging, and draw the listener into the story. Readers who like supernatural mysteries will want to pick this one up. Recommended for most library collections.

Please Note: A copy of this book was given in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own. No other compensation was received.

The premise of the story is very interesting, combining multiple elements I enjoy - an immortal heroine, romance and detectives. However, I kept feeling like I was missing something until I realised that this is not the first book in the series. It has me intrigued and I plan on reading the first book first and revisiting this one.

I was only given two chapters to listen to and what I heard was good. I wish I could of heard more so I could of been able to make a better judgment of this authors writing. I give it a three star only due to not having enough to make a better judgment call.

To me, this read was like a souped up vampire edition of if an Avenger joined the police force. This really feels like book 2 of the series. Once I got about 30% into this book, I could not shake this feeling. NetGalley and goodreads don't give any indication of this being apart of a series. I finally was able to confirm that this is indeed book 2, following The Immortal Twin. Not knowing this absolutely shaped my opinions on the book and didn't do the book a positive service. I was mildly confused for some time as I didn't know the backstory. I did find it pretty entertaining in spite of my confusion. There were a few spicy bits. I felt a back and forth pull throughout the book. Some chapters read like a normal human detective story. Others involved every superpower you could imagine a vampire to have along with historical figures.

Do I recommend reading this one? I'm not sure. I haven't read book 1 to know if I would have even picked up book 2.

Audiobook narration was fine. No major pros/cons to mention really.

Thank you NetGalley, D. B. Woodling, and CamCat Books for a copy of this audiobook ARC.

Thank you for your interest in THE IMMORTAL DETECTIVE. The story picks up where THE IMMORTAL TWIN, a YA novel, left off. I interspersed a great deal of calculated backstory, which should serve to bring those new to Celeste’s world up to speed:

• Orphaned at the age of four when their parents are killed, following a Kansas City Courthouse bombing, twins Celeste and Nick Crenshaw live a relatively pampered life on the east coast under the watchful eye of adoptive parents, Razvan and Bianca Torok. On the surface, the Toroks are founders of Torok Laboratories, a Fortune 500 company and the source for the blood they must have to survive. Secretly, the couple preside over a vampire coalition known as the Realm, protectors of mortals from the bloodsucking vampires dubbed the Harvesters.
• THE IMMORTAL TWIN opens days prior to Celeste and Nick’s high school graduation. During the post-graduation celebration, rebellious Nick is fatally struck by lightning and Celeste persuades Tristan, the Realm’s unconquerable warrior, to grant her twin immortality. Because this is strictly forbidden, it places both Nick and Tristan in jeopardy and ratchets up the suspense.
• Realizing Nick cannot be trusted, the Toroks fear for Celeste’s safety and instruct Tristan to return her to Kansas City and watch over her. But the Toroks are oblivious to Celeste’s carnal desire for Tristan. (Dalliances between mortals and immortals another pesky forbiddance.) But Yesenia, a first-century vampire—and Tristan’s longtime lover, is acutely aware of Celeste’s infatuation and bides her time with plans to destroy Celeste at first opportunity.
• Soon after arriving in Kansas City, Celeste follows in her biological father’s footsteps and becomes a police officer. Rapidly promoted to Detective, she is tasked with a rash of child abductions and soon realizes the Harvesters are responsible, their intent to use the children as perpetual blood donors. She enlists the Realm’s assistance and together they destroy the faction and save the children to include a five-year-old vampire—Raina—whom Celeste ultimately adopts.
• The novel closes with Bianca arriving too late to stave off Yesenia’s attack and Celeste grappling with the painful transition from mortal to vampire while Bianca, Tristan, and Raina hover helplessly by.

Publishers Weekly described the worldbuilding in THE IMMORTAL DETECTIVE as “impressive.” Although intimidating at times, I enjoyed creating Celeste’s adventures within the Hollow Earth. History buffs familiar with Admiral Richard E. Byrd’s insistence that he experienced the alternate dimension (“the mysterious land beyond the poles”) will recognize a few of his claims and undoubtedly appreciate the inclusion of historical figures Leonardo da Vinci, Nostradamus, Socrates, and Elizabeth I. Regarding the characters, one reviewer stated, “It can be difficult to make supporting characters as multifaceted as the main character, and I truly appreciate what Woodling was able to accomplish.” I can’t imagine a finer compliment.

The detective portion of the novel wasn’t without its own challenges. Making sure all the dots connected by the book’s end kept me up at night. I love a mystery with many slippery twists and turns, an ending I don’t see coming, so it’s no surprise those are the types of detective novels I most enjoy writing.

Admittedly, I prefer text versions, especially when reading more complex novels. Which is the primary reason I’ve only listened to a handful of audiobooks. As the author, this experience was surreal and, as you can imagine, I sometimes struggled with objectivity. Tasked with impersonating such a wide range of distinct and dynamic characters, while accentuating the supernatural vibe, Lisa certainly had her work cut out for her. Overall, I feel she did an incredible job, particularly with her imitation of Celeste, her mother Bianca, Queen Elizabeth, and the brash and insolent Mamie Martin. (I had a great time creating that one!)

On behalf of myself and Lisa Larsen, thank you for taking the time to listen to THE IMMORTAL DETECTIVE. And please be sure to connect with me on Twitter (X), BookBub, Facebook, and Instagram, or via my website www.dbwoodling.com for the latest work in progress, giveaways, contests, and more.