The Scent of Shadows is the first book in The Signs of the Zodiac series by Vicki Pettersson. It takes place in Las Vegas and it’s part of the urban fantasy sub-genre. The author is a former Tropicana showgirl!
Joanna Archer has a troubling and violent history. At the age of 16, she was brutally assaulted and left to die in the middle of the Nevada desert. Since then, Joanna has toughened up and needs no help defending herself. When Joanna’s sweet, beautiful sister Olivia suffers a terrible accident, she takes drastic steps to get revenge.
The Scent of Shadows is the first urban fantasy novel I’ve actually ever liked. It’s easy to read and lacks any annoying “elvish” or made-up lingo you can’t pronounce. That’s one of my biggest gripes about fantasy novels in general.
I like how all the characters and their backgrounds are super mysterious. It makes me want to devour all the books in this series just for the sake of learning more about them.
The Scent of Shadows is fairly long at over 400 pages, but I hardly noticed. When you get sucked in, you’ll be finished with this book in no time.
The books that come next in The Signs of the Zodiac series are:
- #2 – The Taste of Night (2007)
- #3 – The Touch of Twilight (2008)
- #4 – City of Souls (2009)
I’ve also reviewed Swerve by Vicki Pettersson, which is a super fun unrelated standalone novel.
What did you think about The Scent of Shadows? Have you read anything else by this author?
Last Updated on February 27, 2026 by Sarah Ann
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