By: H. M. Garber

“Mill Avenue: Vexations” is the first volume in an online series by Kyt Dotson. With a new take on mysticism that combines music with magic, Kyt has created something refreshing and new. Her characters seem as familiar as old friends. Her descriptions are swift and clean, letting her character’s actions fill the reader’s imagination. Her dialogue is neither stiff nor fake, and the writing is intriguing and fresh.

But don’t she doesn’t writes about unicorns and sunshine. A mysterious darkness has destroyed an Arizona college town, and probably the world beyond. Vex Harrow is a tough taxi driver in this town, a woman with mysterious abilities yet to be fully explained. She receives a vision of four college students, and may be the one person in town who can banish the darkness and evil back wherever it came from.

The first volume consists of a prologue and three chapters, so it’s a little early to tell which of Vex’s associates and friends may develop into full-fledged companions. There is even mystery about Vex’s motives and the source of her powers. And while there are hints as to the source of the catastrophe, exactly what did happen is not yet revealed.

The most appealing thing is Kyt’s vision of how mysticism works. Violin music blends with incantation to create a powerful effect. Sigils and chants have summoned something into the world, for a dark purpose.

I will certainly be reading the next volume, to see what Kyt reveals in the second volume of “Vexations.” It can be found at http://www.millvexations.com/read/index.php