Review: Eyes Deep

Author: Tim Marquitz
Series: Clandestine Daze, #1
Released: October 28th 2014
Source: Author for review
Buy: Amazon

No one trusts a doppelganger, and for good reason. Behind every stolen identity lies murder. 

For Theodor Crane, his latest crime comes with a new family, a new job, a new set of troubles, yet there’s no escaping his past lives. 

On the precipice of war between humans and supernaturals, Theo is thrust in the middle, charged with maintaining the balance while keeping his true identity a secret. Conspiracies and old hatreds lurk just below the surface, creeping to a head as the veil between the two worlds slowly crumbles. Failure means reigniting an age old conflict. Success means living a lie for the rest of his days. Either way, Theo loses.

What is one of the best things that can happen to urban fantasy enthusiasts? Tim Marquitz starting a new series and creating a new anti-hero, that’s what! So now that that’s happened, please join me in this happy dance I’m doing all over my house.

Eyes Deep reads like a prequel novella to Tim’s new Clandestine Daze series. I usually hold off on reading prequels until a full-lenght book is released, but I strongly advise you to make an exception in this case. Eyes Deep is fairly long (although not a full lenght novel), and the story is strong enough all on its own. In addition, even though this series signifies a more conventional route for Marquitz, his trademark sense of humor still manages to shine through, which makes this a wildly entertaining read.

Theo isn’t one of those anti-heroes whose actions you can rationalize and justify to make them seem better. For one, Theo is not even his real name – Theodor Crane is actually someone he killed in order to assume his identity and spy on humans for his world, Aellisar. And he’s not the only one, there is a trail of bodies in our doppelganger’s wake, bodies that conveniently disappear thanks to his associates, while he only keeps the eyeballs he must consume in order to change shape. Gross, right? Sure, but also kind of awesome.

While the doppelganger doesn’t hesitate to kill when the need arises, he has some scruples when it comes to Theo’s original family, for which I was grateful. It is, as far as I can tell, his only redeeming quality so far. There is a heart under that treacherous body and I’m curious to see how things will develop from here.

The story isn’t just haphazardly thrown together, as is often the case with novellas. While the plot does take a back seat in favor of character development, it’s not underdeveloped in the least. I was fully invested in the events, and more than a bit curious to learn how things would end.

As usual, Marquitz knows exactly what he’s doing. Eyes Deep is yet another proof that this is an author with a sure hand and a strong voice. The advantage of this novella (and the upcoming novels, I’m sure) is that it will make him more accessible to a much wider audience due to a more traditional approach. Since he’s an author whose work I’ve been following for years, I can’t wait for the rest of you to jump on board. Hurry up, will you? There’s so much fun to be had.

A copy of this book was kindly provided by the author for review purposes. No considerations, monetary or otherwise, have influenced the opinions expressed in this review.

You can read Tim's thoughts on his new series HERE, and there's still some time to enter to win a copy of Eyes Deep.