
This Case Is Gonna Kill Me (Linnet Ellery #1) by Phillipa Bornikova
Linnet Ellery series by Phillipa Bornikova aka Melinda M. Snodgrass.
Genres and Sub-Genres[]
Urban Fantasy
Series Description or Overview[]
Author's Description
What happens when The Firm meets Anita Blake?
You get the Halls of Power – our modern world, but twisted. Law, finance, the military and politics are under the sway of long-lived vampires, werewolves and the elven Alfar. Humans make the best of rule by “the spooks,” and contend among themselves to affiliate with the powers that be in order to avoid becoming their prey. Very loyal humans are rewarded with power over other women and men. Very lucky humans are selected to join the vampires, werewolves and elves – or on occasion, to live at the Seelie Court.
Linnet Ellery is the offspring of an affluent Connecticut family dating back to Colonial times. Fresh out of law school, she’s beginning her career in a powerful New York “White-Fang” law firm. She has high hopes of eventually making partner.
But strange things keep happening to her. In a workplace where some humans will eventually achieve immense power and centuries of extra lifespan, office politics can be vicious beyond belief. After some initial missteps, she finds herself sidelined and assigned to unpromising cases. Then, for no reason she can see, she becomes the target of repeated, apparently random violent attacks, escaping injury each time through increasingly improbably circumstances However, there’s apparently more to Linnet Ellery than a little old-money human privilege. More than even she knows. And as she comes to understand this, she’s going to shake up the system like you wouldn’t believe . . . ❖ ~ Urban Fantasy | melindasnodgrass.com and Fantastic Fiction
Lead's Species[]
- Lawyer
Primary Supe[]
- Vampires, werewolces, elves (Afar), Faeries
What Sets it Apart[]
Narrative Type and Narrators[]
- First person narrative told by Linnet Ellery.
Books in Series[]
Linnet Ellery series:
- This Case Is Gonna Kill Me (2012)
- Box Office Poison (2013)
Themes[]
World Building[]
Setting[]
Ishmael, McGillary and Golf Law Firm —
Places:
- New York City: Central Park
- Brooklyn
- New Jersey
- Rhode Island
- Virginia
- Bainbridge
- Roanoke
- Washington
- Gillford
- Dubai
- Paris
- Bayonne
- Dakota
Supernatural Elements[]
✥ vampires, Werewolves, Álfar (faeries), elves , , ,
Glossary:[]
Groups & Organizations:[]
- Securitech:
- Seelie Court:
- SAG: Screen Actors Guild—the president of SAG forces the two sides of the guild into arbitration;
World[]
✥ Some of the leading celebrities on the big screen are Álfar (Fae), their agents are werewolves and vampires draw up the contracts. To a great extent, this is life in the mainstream, but it’s not without its complications. So this book has three different groups who live and work in human America. Obviously both vampires and werewolves used to be human. No-one is entirely sure who or what the Álfar are. But one thing is clear. These people are taking work from the “humans” and it’s time they were sent back where they came from. As a first step, a Humans First organisation is arguing for a racial law to prevent a marriage from being valid between a human and one of these “others”, cf the miscegenation laws in some US states, Nazi Germany, South Africa, etc. ~ Box Office Poison by Phillipa Bornikova | Thinking about books
✥ The basic story surrounds a twenty-something woman, fresh out of law school; vampires, Alfar (fae) and werewolves out of the closet; questions of identity, dating, rolling briefcases and shopping; Bornikova takes familiar chick-lit and urban-fantasy elements and writes them well, with a side helping of grrl-power that involves a combination of determination, intellect, justice, solidarity, blind luck and not one single roundhouse kick. ~ Book Reviews Forevermore | Carol
Protagonist[]
✥ A Radcliff/Yale human graduate now working as an associate for the firm. She was fostered by a high powered vampire family.
Sidekick[]
- Name: / What: / Sidekick-to: / About: / Book First Seen:
Characters Chart[]
Characters | What | About |
---|---|---|
Linnet Ellery | human lawyer | employed by a vampire law firm; |
Chip Westin | lawyer | Balding lawyer in his 50's a bit over weight; |
Daniel Deegan | Werewolf | head of Securitech |
Caroline Despopolis | lawyer | female lawyer in the firm; Blonde, Tall, slender and beautiful. |
David Sullivan | Vampire Lawyer | luminous white skin and Taffy colored hair he works on the human floor |
John O'Shea | A'lfar (Elf), PI | for the firm; Stunningly handsome, his hair is a miix of white/gold/and black streaks. |
Gadzooks | cat | A large bright orange cat. He belongs to John |
Ryan | Vampire | Male Vampire partner at the law firm |
Henry Abercombie | Securitech Founder | Dead; Founder of Securitech; |
Syd Finklestein | ||
Destiny and Chasity | ||
To expand the table, in Edit–Visual mode, right-press on a Row of the table (Control-press on a Mac)—choose add Row or Column. Or, in Source Mode: copy-paste rows.

Phillipa Bornikova
Author[]
Phillipa Bornikova aka Melinda M. Snodgrass
- Website: melindasnodgrass.com
- Genres: UF, Fantasy, Sci-fi
Bio: Melinda Snodgrass was a story editor and executive script consultant on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Her acclaimed episode, “The Measure of a Man,” was nominated for the Writer’s Guild Award for outstanding writing in a drama series. With George R.R. Martin, she co-created the popular WILD CARDS series of shared-world novels and anthologies. She lives in New Mexico. ~ SFF AUTHOR Melinda Snodgrass | Fantasy Literature: Fantasy and Science Fiction Book and Audiobook Reviews
- Full Bio: About | melindasnodgrass.com
Cover Artist[]
Artist: none listed
Publishing Information[]
- Publisher:
- Author Page: Phillipa Bornikova | Authors | Macmillan
- Pen names:
- This Case Is Gonna Kill Me:
- Box Office Poison:
Book Cover Blurbs[]
✤ BOOK ONE—This Case Is Gonna Kill Me (2012): What happens when The Firm meets Anita Blake? You get the Halls of Power—our modern world, but twisted. Law, finance, the military, and politics are under the sway of long-lived vampires, werewolves, and the elven Alfar. Humans make the best of rule by “the Spooks,” and contend among themselves to affiliate with the powers-that-be, in order to avoid becoming their prey. Very loyal humans are rewarded with power over other women and men. Very lucky humans are selected to join the vampires, werewolves, and elves—or, on occasion, to live at the Seelie Court. Linnet Ellery is the offspring of an affluent Connecticut family dating back to Colonial times.
Fresh out of law school, she’s beginning her career in a powerful New York “white fang” law firm. She has high hopes of eventually making partner. But strange things keep happening to her. In a workplace where some humans will eventually achieve immense power and centuries of extra lifespan, office politics can be vicious beyond belief. After some initial missteps, she finds herself sidelined and assigned to unpromising cases. Then, for no reason she can see, she becomes the target of repeated, apparently random violent attacks, escaping injury each time through increasingly improbable circumstances. However, there’s apparently more to Linnet Ellery than a little old-money human privilege. More than even she knows. And as she comes to understand this, she’s going to shake up the system like you wouldn’t believe…. ~ Goodreads | This Case Is Gonna Kill Me (Linnet Ellery #1) by Phillipa Bornikova — Reviews, Discussion, Bookclubs, Lists
✤ BOOK TWO—Box Office Poison (2013): What happens when exquisitely beautiful elves start getting all the roles in Hollywood? Human actors sue, that's what. In a desperate attempt to keep the squabbling inside the Screen Actors Guild from going public, the president of SAG forces the two sides into arbitration. Enter Linnet Ellery, a human lawyer working for a vampire law firm, to serve as arbitrator. Linnet discovers that there are sinister forces at work in Tinsel Town determined to shatter the fragile peace between elves, vampires, werewolves, and humans. Someone has been coercing famous elven actors into committing sudden and terrible acts of violence against humans in a series of tragedies that could turn the tide of public opinion against all the supernatural Powers. During the course of her investigations Linnet realizes that a puzzling secret surrounds her, and that a strange power has been affecting the very course of her life. . . . At the publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management software (DRM) applied. ~ Box Office Poison (Linnet Ellery, book 2) by Phillipa Bornikova ~ FF
First Sentences[]
- This Case Is Gonna Kill Me (2012) — "This case is gonna kill me."
- Box Office Poison (2013) — I looked out the plane's window at Los Angeles, and it looked like any other airport.
Quotes[]
- Phillipa Bornikova Quotes (Author of This Case Is Gonna Kill Me) ~ Goodreads
- Linnet Ellery Series ~ Shelfari
Trivia[]
- Lists That Contain This Case Is Gonna Kill Me (Linnet Ellery #1) by Phillipa Bornikova
- Lists That Contain Box Office Poison (Linnet Ellery, #2) by Phillipa Bornikova
Read Alikes (similar elements)[]
See Category links at bottom of page
Notes[]
External References[]
Books:
- Urban Fantasy books | melinda snodgrass.com ~ Author
- Linnet Ellery series by Phillipa Bornikova ~ Goodreads
- Phillipa Bornikova ~ FF
- Linnet Ellery - Series Bibliography ~ ISFdb
- Linnet Ellery Series ~ Shelfari
- Linnet Ellery | Series ~ LibraryThing
- Linnet Ellery series by Phillipa Bornikova ~ FictFact
- Melinda M. Snodgrass - Summary Bibliography ~ ISFdb (author)
- Edge series by Melinda M. Snodgrass ~ Goodreads
- Richard Oort (Edge) - Series Bibliography ISFdb
- Melinda M. Snodgrass - Summary Bibliography ~ ISFdb
- Melinda M Snodgrass ~ FF
Excerpts:
- This Case is Gonna Kill Me (Excerpt) by Phillipa Bornikova | Tor.com
- Box Office Poison (Excerpt) by Phillipa Bornikova | Tor.com
- Macmillan: Series: Linnet Ellery: Books
- School’s In: Phillipa Bornikova & Linnet | Literary Escapism
World, Characters, etc:
Reviews:
- Review: This Case is Gonna Kill Me by Phillipa Bornikova | All Things Urban Fantasy - Where Para is NormalAll Things Urban Fantasy
- Review: This Case is Gonna Kill Me by Phillipa Bornikova | My Bookish Ways
- Review: This Case is Gonna Kill Me by Phillipa Bornikova (5/5 Stars) | Confessions of a Book Addict
- Review: This Case is Gonna Kill Me by Phillipa Bornikova | Vampire Book Club
- Book Chick City – Urban Fantasy & Romance Reviews | Phillipa Bornikova
- Book Review: This Case is Gonna Kill Me by Phillipa Bornikova | Blogcritics
- This Case is Gonna Kill Me – Phillipa Bornikova » Bookworm Blues
- Fantasy & SciFi Lovin' Reviews: Book Review: "This Case is Gonna Kill Me" by Phillipa Bornikova
- Review: This Case is Gonna Kill Me by Phillipa Bornikova » Reading to Filth
- Review & Giveaway: This Case Is Gonna Kill Me by Phillipa Bornikova - LitStack
- Phillipa Bornikova | RT Book Reviews
- Box Office Poison by Phillipa Bornikova | Thinking about books
- BOX OFFICE POISON by Phillipa Bornikova | Kirkus
- Box Office Poison (Linnet Ellery #2) by Phillipa Bornikova | My Bookish Ways
Interviews, Guest Posts:
- Interview: Phillipa Bornikova, author of This Case Is Gonna Kill Me | My Bookish Ways
- Bookaddict24-7 Welcomes: Phillipa Bornikova! | Confessions of a Book Addict
- Guest Post: Phillipa Bornikova, author of Box Office Poison, on blending urban fantasy with legal thriller | My Bookish Ways
- Phillipa Bornikova Interview |
- An Exclusive Interview with SciFi Writer Melinda Snodgrass - Yahoo Voices
- SFFWRTCHT: A Chat With Author/Screenwriter Melinda M. Snodgrass - SF Signal
- Why SF?: An Interview with Melinda Snodgrass, SF Novelist & Screenwriter | Erin Underwood
Author:
- melindasnodgrass.com ~ Author
- Blog | melindasnodgrass.com ~ Author
- Melinda M. Snodgrass - Wikipedia
- Phillipa Bornikova (Author of This Case Is Gonna Kill Me) ~ GR
- Melinda M. Snodgrass (Author of The Tears of the Singers) ~ GR
- Melinda M. Snodgrass - Memory Alpha, the Star Trek Wiki
- Melinda M. Snodgrass - IMDb
- SFF AUTHOR Melinda Snodgrass | Fantasy Literature: Fantasy and Science Fiction Book and Audiobook Reviews
Community, Fan Sites: