McGuire does it again. Happy sigh. Tobey is in the thick of things again with all her idiocy and smart-assiness (is that a word? I want it to be a word) intact. In just a few short pages, Tobey is exiled from San Francisco by the Queen of the Mists, her long-time nemesis. She has three days to leave or be killed on sight. Tobey is stunned but quickly comes up with a plan and it's a doozey. It's daring, brave, stupid, and could get everyone she loves killed. McGuire spins a tale full of cunning, action, love in all its forms, intrigue, and humor. I do love McGuire's humor; it's both snarky and witty. 
 We get a close-up look at Tobey and Tybalt's romance and I swear it's perfect, because they are prefect for each other. Tybalt is steadfast and unshakable, and in her own way so is Tobey. Neither will abandon the other and the little things they do for each other, not to mention the big things, shows clearly how much Tobey has changed. She muses at one point about what a loner she used to be and now she has all these people who care for her and about her and she for them. She's no longer pushing people away and the romance between her and Tybalt is sweet, if not traditional. 
 "How is it that you always know the exact right stupid romance novel thing to say?" I asked, leaning up to kiss him. 
 He smiled against my lips. When I pulled back, he said, "I was a student of Shakespeare before the romance novel was even dreamt. Be glad I do not leave you horrible poetry on your pillow, wrapped securely around the bodies of dead rats." 
 Yeah, I'm glad that's not a standard dating custom anymore. Ick. So, we get lots and lots of Tybalt, Danny the Bridge Troll (love him!), May and Jazz and Quentin (and we finally find out who his parents are! Wow); we get some time with Dean and Dianda (that is one cranky but bad-ass duchess) and the Luidaeg, and not nearly enough Sylvester time. Though, Sylvester manages to piss off both Tybalt and Tobey with one thoughtless move and things are tense now between them. He meant well, but he really should have known better. The new characters - Arden, Madden, Mags, and Lowri - are well thought out and move the story along. I know we'll be seeing more of Arden and I hope we'll see more of the others and maybe someday Nolan, who literally slept through the whole book (he was elf-shot). 
 "Chimes at Midnight" moves along at breakneck speed with a perfect balance of plot, action, and story. It's tight story-telling without a single misstep. The story moves along the overall series arc and I can't wait to see where McGuire goes from here. Happily, the next book is out in September and in the meantime, I have the short stories and novellas to catch up on. :)