Review: Magic Steals

Magic Steals by Ilona Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This short story was another installment of the Jim/Dali romance. I am absolutely in love with these two and their quirky relationship so I quickly gobbled this book up when the time came.

In the main set of books, we only get to see Jim, the paranoid, tough, unstoppable head of security. He’s good at what he does, and is oftentimes the voice of reason to the two rather crazy alphas (or alpha and consort… whatever). In these Jim/Dali shorts, we get to see how Jim lives the rest of his life (if he has one...) and we also get to see Dali be a super awesome magic wielder! To be honest, she kind of blew me away, probably as much as she did Jim. I’m getting ahead of myself, though.

This story is about Jim and Dali’s growing relationship (yay) but it is also about how Dali conducts her “job” as her culture dictates. With her massive magical powers, she can remove all badness from curses of her lineage. It’s super crazy that this little mostly blind vegetarian girl can go in there and knock around the baddies. I loved it! I also really enjoyed Jim being playful. He and Dali are such a wonderful combination. I wish we saw more of it bleed into the larger books.


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Review: An Ill-Advised Rescue

An Ill-Advised Rescue by Ilona Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I listened to this short story after completing the emotional rollercoaster that is Magic Rises. I’m usually one to read things in order and complete all the little short stories in a row. I couldn’t find this book without having it attached to Magic Rises, so I begrudgingly read it “out of order.” I’m glad. After all the drama jammed into the book, it was nice to see Kate just… be Kate. She gets a call from the guild about Saimon being kidnapped and swings into action. It was also very satisfying to spend some time with Kate’s dog after him being so very absent in the larger book. Definitely a welcome addition to the Kate-verse.

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Review: The Road to Helltown

The Road to Helltown by S.M. Reine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

OK, I’m not sure what I expected out of the last Cesar book, but it totally wasn’t this! This author knows how to make me feel so safe in the knowledge of oodles of previous books and then just pulls the rug out from under me! I expected a bloody, gory, fight to the end and instead I got the most satisfying book of the series!

Cesar is still... Cesar. If you were annoyed with him before, his participation in the events leading up to the apocalypse will not make you love him more. His actions afterwards are just… the best. I’m getting ahead of myself, but in a world where I know what happens years after, years before, and to other people at the same time, where to draw the spoiler line gets confusing. We are still rapidly approaching what people know will be a drastic change for the world as everyone knows it. Cesar is the saddest, reluctant participant in the apple, but he’s still going along with their plans. Can you feel me shaking my head at him? That’s what I’ve done through most of the series.

As things start looking worse and worse, he is actually forced to make some tough decisions. He can no longer stay on the sidelines or be pulled along by either his girlfriend or his boss’s wife. As far as his storyline goes, he certainly gets the best of all endings available. We know where he has to end up (or at least anyone who has read the surrounding books knows) but the path is totally uncertain. There will be a re-making of sorts, so all bets are totally off. What someone ended as before that can be undone, essentially meaning no one is safe anymore. As the last book of this series, I guess I expected it to be darker. The fact that it left me smiling and happy was a pleasant surprise. It gets dark, don’t worry, but it is 100% worth it to get to the end.

Do we get all the answers we want? I think we do. We get to find everyone’s path forward while watching the pieces get in place for Dana’s series to pick up. I even wanted to hug Fritz! Who wants that before this book? Nobody! Now I’ve got soft and fuzzy feelings for everyone (you know, except the big bads). This book was surprising in the best way possible and gave probably the most satisfying end I could have hoped for in the Cesar storyline.


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Review: Magic Rises

Magic Rises by Ilona Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’m reviewing this only a few hours after finishing this book in audiobook format so I’m probably a little closer to this one than my usual review. That being said – damn! You always know that these books make no guarantees that everyone ends the book in good shape (or even alive) but I’m pretty beat up here.

This book is another road trip-type. Kate and a select few from the pack end up making a trip across the ocean into what everyone agrees is a big trap. Everyone knows that there can be no good reason that Curran was selected to negotiate and protect a disputed pregnant woman. Everyone knows that they will walk right into this trap with the promise of a magical lupism cure at the end of it. How can they not? At the same time, soon after arriving, it’s like everyone forgot. People are playing their own secret games hidden within games, but (again) it’s like nobody remembers that this is a gigantic trap.

I’m not even really sure what of the plot I can talk about without getting into some serious spoilers, but overall, this trip to a castle ends up being (shockingly) a bad idea. Yes, they might come out slightly ahead (definitely stronger) but there are some big checks in the “loss” column that some might argue outweigh the wins. That being said, Kate is still… Kate. There is a lot of unbearable girlishness thrown in here, but she’s still the non-stop killing machine we’ve come to know and love. This book also gave us some good, in-depth time with some of the more supporting characters. At one point I even found myself appreciating how much more I know and love a certain character because of the actions of this book. This was a bad omen.

So what happens that I can talk about? Kate’s secret is a big player in this book. What starts as a book that seems about Curran ends up (of course) actually being about Kate really. All of her work has been leading up to a big confrontation in this book (no, not *the* big one, but still, a pretty epic battle). While I’m happy where we end up here, at least as far as Kate and Curran go, I spent most of the time in this book dreading coming back to it. The relationship drama was so unbearable, but eventually works itself out (thank god). I look forward to a book where everyone is back at home and the Kate/Curran team can be strong again.


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Review: Enthrall Me

Enthrall Me by Tamara Hogan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow, I joined this series wayyyyyyy after I should have. There is a very detailed and comprehensive world already built and set up for this story, but I managed to muddle through. The author certainly does a good job of catching up even the most uniformed reader (like me).

This book follows the blissfully beautiful romance between Tia and Wyland. Tia is a young vampire, an investigative journalist, and a friend to most of the higher up muckidy mucks of the Underworld Council. In this universe there are all sorts of paranormals and each of them have representation on the council by a first and second. For vampires, the second is Wyland. That means he’s responsible for representing and governing the vampire race and also being super-duper old and powerful. This, for Wyland, also comes with crippling guilt over perceived faults and overworking himself to Dresden-like levels of fatigue.

So how do these two manage to get into a relationship? Well it certainly wasn’t Wyland’s preference to bring such a young and seemingly fragile woman into his life. If he had his way, he’d be brooding, alone, and sleep deprived for the rest of his never-ending life. Tia, however, has a way of shaking things up. After ending up on the short list of people granted access to the archives, she starts to become a close friend to the vampire first, putting her square in Wyland’s line of sight. It seems impossible, the amount of work he takes on, but he somehow manages to add a simmering obsession with Tia to the mix rather quickly.

The blend of these two characters was one I really enjoy. Tia’s “live life to the fullest” attitude constantly forcing Wyland to push outside is comfort zone was really great to watch. Oh, and the sizzle between these two was great, too! Even if you’re not familiar with the world (like I was), I still recommend this book as a solid paranormal romance read with oodles of mystery and action thrown in, too!


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Review: Relentless

Relentless by D.B. Reynolds
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As a novella, this book certainly over delivers! There is enough drama, intrigue, and romance to be a full-length novel and then some.

We join the North American vampire gang as they continue to battle against the Europeans. While a full scale war is not yet in effect, there have been so many small battles they are essentially there. Raphael has finally reached his breaking point. We get to watch Cyn be her usual awesome self, Raphael go into super vampire mode, and everyone else die. If you’re looking for a truly great “novella” that should most certainly be read in order of the series, this is a stand out book. While this is definitely a Cyn/Raphael book, we get hints of Quinn’s story and how things will eventually take shape in Europe.


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Review: Wolf in her Soul

Wolf in her Soul by N.J. Walters
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Remember Reece when we first met him? Even if you don’t, this story is a really great addition to the world of werewolves. This book can probably be read as a standalone, but would be better appreciated as part of the larger world.

Reece is a detective, a werewolf, and he’s also a closet romantic. After dreaming of a mystery for most of his life, he has been hoping for her arrival for years. When he finally reaches his breaking point, ready to head home to be with his twin and pack again, she stumbles right into his world. Hannah, the mystery woman, doesn’t have the most wonderful introduction to Reece. She’s stalked, attacked, and is in the hospital when they finally meet one another.

While Reece is ready to dive right into a relationship, Hannah has a little bit harder time adjusting to this world where she’s not somehow “less” because of her partial werewolf heritage. Who knew an abandoned young girl could somehow end up inheriting such a wonderfully protective mate and family? The romance is somewhere between fated mates and regular paranormal romance levels, but don’t worry – these two light up the pages! As a standalone or companion to the series, this book is definitely a great read.


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