Ilona Andrews: Magic Slays

I'm sorry to say that I do not have the reviews of Andrews’ other books on this blog, but I was reading this series way before I started this blog, so if you are looking for reviews of the first four books I would recommend checking out the reviews on Good Reads. The books in order are Magic Bites, Magic Burns, Magic Strikes and Magic Bleeds. You will want to read those books before you get to this one because everything from the world to relationships is set up in the previous books, so if you just decide to pick up this book I believe you will find your self lost. But do not worry the first four books are great reads and I think they should be read by those who like the paranormal genre.

Ilona Andrews is back with another Kate Daniels book and this time it is the disappearance of Magic that is wreaking havoc on the city of Atlanta:

Kate has officially left the Order and while the Order gave her more power and a role within society, she would never go back to working within the confines of being part of it. She has decided to open her own P.I. but has yet to have a single customer, this might be due to the fact that potential customers know that she is attached to the beast lord Curran, but Kate is not willing to give up she knows something is going to happen (but hopefully soon). It starts with a Vampire on the loose, it was lost by it's controller and is heading straight for Kate. Magic is disappearing throughout Atlanta and this is putting Kate and all the magical creatures (Vampire, witches, weres ect) in danger as it is magic that holds them together, but even Kate cannot fight something that has the ability to take away magic away and without magic none of them would be able to exist. It has now become a life and death struggle to keep Magic in Atlanta.

This is one of my favorite series. I think that all the books have the right mix of action, mystery, darkness and romance. I think that this series should be on everyone's book shelf that is a fan of paranormal genre, there is really something and someone for everyone in this book. I also like that Andrews has taken the time to develop the world and have the characters grow both as themselves and their relationships within the book. Kate is one of my favorite heroines and it is nice to see her change but stay the same as well. I am always interested in finding out more about Kate's history (which we get in this book) as well as more about her father as I think that all faithful readers of this series are looking forward to the eventual show down between Kate and Roland, but Kate does need to get stronger in order to do that and she makes some strides in order to achieve that within this book.

We get to see further into Curran and Kate's relationship and I personally like the time that Andrews has put in to its creation and development. I know one of the reasons I really enjoyed this series is that Curran and Kate did not exactly hit it off right away I believe Kate said "here Kitty Kitty" to Curran the first time they met. I also like that Andrews has decided not to make her stories about sex and have endless sex scenes throughout her books. This is not to say that nothing happens in the romance department it is just toned down in the size of the scenes when compared to other books within this genre. I think that this is also why this series will appeal to a wide variety of readers. There are some interesting insights made within this book towards their relationship and how "true" it actually is and there are questions by both Curran and Kate if their relationship is actually a good thing and the struggle for more honesty within their relationship and less manipulation.

I found that this book did not have as much action in it as the previous books, and I personally was missing some of this action. I found the ending was too quick of a battle and it wrapped up way too soon. I wanted to see more of a struggle to achieve their objective. I think this was partly due to the fact that this book was slightly more about the relationship of Kate and Curran, which I think needed to happen, I was just sad to see some of the action lost out because of it especially because the opening few chapters were action intense

I am really looking forward to the next book that comes out July 30, 2013 (pre-order? Yes I will). This is one of the best paranormal series out there and if you have never heard of it, go pick the books up and if you have been thinking about reading the series go pick them up. You will not be disappointed.

Enjoy!!!!

If You Like This,

Check These Out Too:

   

Susan Ee: Angelfall

In her debut novel, Susan Ee introduces a new world where Angels are not the guardians of men but the killers of men.

Angels have descended on Earth and reaping their own type of an apocalypse on the humans. They are demolishing everything in their path and the government and religions around the world have fallen, therefore, street gangs now rule the cities and Penryn now has made the decision that she and her family need to flee to the countryside. On the night that Penryn decided to leave is the day that the Angels decide to make an appearance in her city, but it is not to destroy it but to destroy one of their own. Penryn does something she never thought she would do, making a deal with an Angel, but if it means saving her family then Penryn will do anything to achieve it. Penryn learns more about Angels she realizes that there is more to them than what has been on the news, and that there may actually be some good in them, but Penryn knows she can never trust them, even though she desperately needs an ally in her fight for survival.

I actually did not realize that this was a YA book when I picked it up, I really need to start reading the premise better to know what I am getting into. I should have looked at who published it first too, but I am actually glad for my mistake because all of that said all I can say is WOW, Truly WOW. This book was amazing; I was engaged with the story and yes even the main character. I had no idea that YA novels could be as dark as this novel was, and there were even times that I was questioning whether it should be classified as a YA novel. I did not want to put this book down and when I was finished I went searching for the next book (coming out October 2013).

Ee really knows how to engage the reader right from the first pages and create a compelling story that makes you want to read more and more. I was also surprised that this was her debut novel. It was overall interesting, dark, gritty, well written and the world building was superb. Additionally, Ee was able to introduce something new to the paranormal genre for me, having the Angels be the cause/reason that the apocalypse occurs was a new concept for me. Furthermore, I really liked that not all the Angels were beautiful, and I look forward to learning more about their culture and hierarchy in future books, as while this information is touched upon it is not fully explained, but this fact does not take away from the book, I just find those aspects interesting.

I found the Penryn was an interesting character and did seem to have that mix of adult and youth within her personality. There were times that I would forget that Penryn was in her teens as her actions were that of an adult, and I have no doubt that this stems from her childhood or lack there of. Penryn for the most part has a very grown up relationship with Raffe that at times I wondered if Ee would take there relationship that much further, making this book not very YA in my opinion. However, there were times where Penryn showed her age in some of her thoughts and the language that she would use when talking to Raffe.

As I stated above I was surprised at how dark the book is at times considering it is a YA book. I think that Ee flirts with the line between YA book and adult book with some of the content she covers within the book as well as some of the description that she gives in some of the situations. I have not read that many YA classified books, but I do not remember any of them being this dark. I am not complaining about this fact, I like books that are on the darker side, I was just completely surprised by it in this book. I think that Ee made some great choices in where the story went and was able to get into the mindset of the dark side which makes me hopeful for the next book.

This book Blew Me Away and it was even better because I was not suspecting it at all. I think this book would appeal to both young adults and adults (but I do not think that young teens should read this book). Ee was able to surprise time and again with how dark her writing could be and she kept the suspense at a high most of the time. I am really looking forward to reading her next book, well done Ee with your debut novel you have set a new standard for me as to what a YA book can be. Dont' be surprised if you read this in one sitting, it is that good.

Enjoy!!!!

If You Like This,

Check These Out Too:

   

Maegan Beaumont: Carved in Darkness

In her debit novel Maegan Beaumont introduces the reader to the darkness and how the darkness shapes who we are.

Melissa Walker was kidnapped 15 years ago when she was 17 years old. For 83 days she was tortured, raped and left in total darkness in order for her kidnapper to play his sick game. One day he goes too far and leave her dead in a deserted church yard, but unknown to her kidnapper against all odds she has survived. She has spent her life changing from Melissa who she perceives as weak to Sabrina Vaughn a strong hard as nail homicide inspector. With a new name and face Sabrina believes that she has put the past behind her but when she notices someone from the small town she grew up in, the one that she was taken from, she knows that the past is catching up to her, but this time she is more prepared, she knows that she can survive the darkness, but that is not the only game that the killer knows how to play.

First off, don't start reading this book at night; it starts out with the victim being total darkness and being hunted in a game by the killer as he rapes and tortures her (and yes she does go into detail) so you will be checking your doors and windows to make sure you are secure in your house (but are you really?) and two you'll be in for a long night as you are not going to want to put this book down, as the story unravels you will find yourself drawn more and more into the story.

This book is a Fantastic/Awesome Thriller that had me on the edge of me seat the entire time, that had me hard pressed to put the book down. It is a complete adrenaline ride from start to finish. There just never seems to be a great place to stop reading. Beaumont's writing is Dark, Scary, Gritty, Chilling and Gruesome which is everything I want in a serial killer thriller book. Beaumont does not hold back when she writes and is not afraid to take the story and her characters to their limit and she does it in a style where you feel like you are in the room with the characters and feeling their experiences which gets the heart going.

I like Melissa/Sabrina as a character, you can really see the contrast of before and after and how being in the darkness and under going the torment changed and shaped her into an entirely different person. However, you can tell that there is really part of Sabrina that wishes that she could go back and be Melissa again, especially the emotional part, to be able to feel vulnerable and love around the people that she cares about. I think that Beaumont did a good job of portraying Sabrina's PTSD and that even fifteen years later she still has the panic attacks especially around October first. I also enjoyed that Beaumont took the time to show some scenes from the killer's point of view and his obession with finding another Melissa and that is what keeps him going.

I was shocked to learn that this was Beaumont's debut novel and overall, there is nothing too original within the overall premise of the story, but Beaumont wrote this novel like she had been doing it for years. Not introducing anything new has worked to Beaumont’s advantage as she has written a better thriller novel than some of the big names out there. I cannot believe that this is her debut novel. I appreciated too that the ending may not be what people think it will be and it was nice to keep guessing till the end

This is one of the best debut thriller novels that I have ever read (I do not think I have been this excited about a debut thriller novel since Shadow Man by Cody McFadyen). Beaumont is not afraid to go into the dark parts of the human mind and put them on paper and I thank her for that. I cannot wait to read another book by Beaumont. If you are looking for a fantastic thriller make sure to pick up a copy of Beaumont’s book on May 8, 2013, you will not be disappointed and remember to keep the lights in when you read it.

Enjoy!!!!

Note: There are some violent and graphic scenes of torture that occur and are described within this book

If You Like This,

Check These Out Too:

   

Kat Richardson: Greywalker

In the first novel in her Greywalker series, Kat Richardson explores the world of the Grey, where everything that goes bump in the night and more reside.

Harper Blaine is a private investigator and that role may sound sexier than it is, Harper knows that the main part of her job is a lot o research and paper shuffling but she loves her job. Every once in awhile though her job will take her into the world to arrest or track down a bad guy. This is how Harper ended up in the hospital and some broken bones and bruised skin is not all that happened to her, she actually died for two minutes and that death has caused her to come back as a Greywalker. Able to cross over into the grey and with this new curse (as Harper sees it), she feels she is no longer in control of some of the aspects in her life as she is unwilling to give herself over to the Grey. As Harper struggles to come to terms with being a Greywalker, she finds that she is being drawn into the Grey world, whether she likes it or not and she is going to have to concur her fear soon if she has any hope of surviving. 

I have such mixed feelings about this book. I really loved the premise and idea around the Grey (I mean something new in the paranormal genre is awesome), I also really like Harper as a main character and her struggles to comprehend a world and new abilities (or curse) that she never would have dreamed of; however, I found this book painfully slow and forcing myself to read it (it basically became a chore).

I think that Richardson just took things too slowly with all aspects of the plot. The novel starts off with a bang with the assault on Harper, but then the book drastically slows down after that. Part of this was to be expected while Harper tries to figure out what is wrong with her, and how much the assault really affected and changed her, but it just seemed like it was a never-ending process. I am not saying that Harper should just accept things right away, actually opposite to that, but I think that Richardson needed to pair the slow process of Harper developing her "powers", with more action and fast moving pace within in her two ongoing investigations. Needless to say, everything was just overall slow and I felt more often than not that I just wanted to stop reading this book and move onto something better (but I did stick it out, just took awhile to read). If you need a book to grab your attention right away then I do not think this is a book for you. While the first few pages are action packed as Harper attempts to get away from her attacker, the next 150 pages are fairly slow and at times it was a struggle for me to pick the book up to read it. Within the last 50 pages the book does attempt to redeem itself but in 350 page book only the last 50 are fast moving, I do not think it will hold too many readers' attention.

I was super excited to read about the Grey, a different world that exist inside our own, where all the things of the paranormal reside and that some are able to cross over into our world and some are not. When Richardson would describe the grey I was actually able to picture it on more of a grey scale look to it and you were able to feel that it was a darker place for darker being. It was the Grey and the Greywalker aspect that originally attracted me to this book. I think as the series progresses more and Harper becomes more comfortable with what she is there will be more and more interaction with the Grey and what that world is like. I think Richardson did a good job of keeping the reader interested in this aspect but just showing a peek into that world.

I really liked Harper as a character, I think that the reader gets a real sense of her struggle, her fear of the Grey and everything that it stands for, but at the same time willing to risk her life to help others out; now that is the stuff of a true heroine.

I was excited that Richardson wanted to introduce something new into the paranormal genre but overall this book fell below my expectations. It has an interesting idea but I felt like I just kept waiting for something interesting to happen with the characters, the plot, the Grey anything really and with all this waiting reading this book became more of a chore. I really don't know if I will pick up the next book in the series, this book had such promise, right now i'm just disappointed that Richardson could not follow through.

Cheers!!!

Instead Of This,

Check Out These Books:

   

Jess Haines: Hunted by the Others

In her debut novel Jess Haines introduces readers to Private Investigator who lives in a world with vampires and werewolves but she is very afraid of, but sometimes you have to face your fears in order to pay the bills.

Shiarra Waynest works as a private detective for the her own company H&W Investigations and so far she has been able to stay away from the work that would have been provided by the paranormal community because although they have been accepted by society (well minus the White Hats) Shiarra is terrified of the paranormal especially their ability to look human most of the time. However, Shiarra was unaware that the business was failing and her best friend and business partner had been footing the bill for the extra expenses for awhile now. When Shiarra is approached by a high-level mage to recover an ancient artifact that is owned by one of the cities most well known vampires Alec Royce, she tries to put all her fears behind her in order to help out the business, which is easier said than done. Shiarra finds herself as the middle point for the war between different paranormal groups as well as the White Hats she does not know what to do. The White Hats and all the paranormal groups are all trying to get a hold of the same artifact in order to increase their power, and will stop at nothing to get it. Shiarra realizes that she was right to fear the paranormal and the unknown world around her.

Overall I found this book was just okay. I think that it would be a good book for someone to start out with if they wanted to try out the paranormal genre. There are some very similar ideas within this book and Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series and I would classify this book as Anita Blake light, as I found it lacked the dark and gritty aspects of the earlier Anita Blake series. Therefore, I would classify this book as Urban Fantasy Light.

I found the main character Shairra a little bit too whinny for my taste, this is not to say that I did not like that she was afraid of the Others, I think that was interesting and different, what I did not like was the constant whinnying ("Why do I have to do this?", "Why do I have to do that?"), just not how I wanted to the main character to be like. I would have been okay if she was just afraid but this went beyond that. Shairra was the one that took the job for the Others (by one of the top Mages in the Circle nonetheless) and when everything blows up and you are fighting for your own and your friend's lives, there is no doubt that a little complaining would have been okay, but it was a constant aspect with her. She should have been doing something about it, trying to figure a way out of the mess. I think that Shairra was the weakest aspect in this book for me. This is not to say I wanted her to be the Kickass, know it all heroine that are very popular these day, just a touch more confident and less whiny would have been nice, like when she had the belt on (I really like the hunter behind the belt). However, I will say that Shairra was able to eventually muster up the courage to do something but I wonder if it was her acting or the belt ( I loved the belt, I think I just really want one for myself)

Additionally, I could have done without the Werewolf - Vampire - Human love triangle that seems to be appearing, and left me wondering have I read this before, oh wait I have, in Hamilton’s series. There was just a lack of overall originality within this series and when a subject like the paranormal genre becomes over saturated your need to do something different in order to stand out, and I felt like Haines was not able to achieve this.  I think my favorite part of the book was the vampire hunter belt, which was really the only new aspect in the book. The belt was very cool, and interesting and I look forward knowing more about the hunter who owned it previously. However, when my favorite part of a book is a belt/weapon it says something about the rest of the novel, I don’t know if the belt is enough to bring me back.

I think that those who are looking to get into the paranormal genre may want to start here, however, for me who has been reading in this genre for years now there was nothing really new within this novel that makes me want to stand up and shout out about it. It is a pretty light easy read, that I may visit again when I need a break from something that is dark and gritty but even then I'm not sure if I will remember to pick up the next book in this series.

Cheers!!!!

Instead Of This,

Check Out These Books

    

Linwood Barclay: Fear the Worst

Linwood Barclay is an author known for his thrillers, and here Barclay delivers the mystery of a missing girl who no one seems to be able to explain why she is gone.

Tim is just an average guy, he sells Hondas during the day and takes care of his teenage daughter Sydney at night and he kind of gets along with his ex-wife’s boyfriend and his son Evan (even though he does not like the idea of Sydney and Evan living under the same roof). Things are peaceful and getting back to normal after the divorce. Then one day Sydney vanishes into thin air, there is nothing to say that she was abducted or just decided to run away, the trail is cold. Tim refuses to believe that Sydney would just disappear and spends most of his days and nights searching for his daughter, unaware that there is something more going on in his town, events and practices that people will kill to make sure they never comes to light.

I had really high expectations for this author, and maybe it is part of the hype that has surrounded him or even on the cover where it stated that Barclay was Canada’s best thriller author but I personally think that Barclay did not deliver as well as I wanted him to. The book is well written and has a good flow, despite the fact that I found there were points within the book that were slow. Approximately the first half of this book is very slow and it took about 250 pages for things to get interesting and have the plot begin to move along and the last 100 pages get really really interesting as everything comes to light. However, due to the fact that it took 250 pages to get me invested in this book I could see some readers putting the book down.

I will say that Barclay knows how to do mystery, I am not too sure about the thriller part (I never felt like I was on the edge of my seat while reading this book), but mystery is where Barclay excelled in this book. I was really intrigued about why Sydney was missing and whether it was on her own accord or if she was abducted. I think that Barclay does a good job of keeping the reader guessing as to what clue will be uncovered next in Tim's search for Sydney. However, a few of the clues or leads that were a bit predictable or went in the direction I thought they would and you have to wait for Tim to catch up. Nonetheless, Barclay did a good job of having Tim discover false or misleading information that kept Tim and reader guessing. Additionally, as you continue to read you realize that there is more than one mystery that is unfolding with the information that Tim is able to obtain and you have no idea how everything is going to intersect till the end.

Tim overall was an interesting character. You can feel his struggle to keep going on his search for Sydney even when there are no clues for him to follow. The constant midnight drives just searching for her, but knowing that he has to get up to work the next day to keep paying the bills so that Sydney will have a home to come back to. I think the best way to describe Tim is a dog with a bone; you just cannot take that type of drive away from a person who is willing to keep searching no matter what. Tim also develops new characteristics throughout the book and does things that he would question in any other circumstance, but this is about finding his daughter and he will do anything to achieve that. I think how Tim develops and changes throughout the book were realistic and part of his own personal survival instinct.

I thought this book was going to be a thriller, but I found for the most part it lacked the thrills I wanted. However, Barclay knows how to write a mystery novel, so I am not quite ready to write this book off yet. I think I will check out another Barclay book to see if it has more of the thriller feel to it. Let me know if there are any that you would recommend.

Enjoy!!!

If You Like This,

Check These Out Too: