Genre: Urban Fantasy/Fantasy
Subgenre: Others vs. humans, magic, blood
Age Appropriate: Teen
Recommended for my sister: Yep (She's already reading them!)
"I'll ask her for one cut." - Simon
In an Other Courtyard, "Human Laws Do Not Apply." After fighting, trading and tragedy, the humans and Others have come to an uneasy truce with Others in tentative power. What the humans don't understand is that there are other Others with more power than imaginable and the ones seen are the most benign. It is mostly a case of whatever happens in the Courtyard stays in the Courtyard, and that includes the mysterious deaths of humans trespassing where they're not allowed. The Lakeside Courtyard is unique in its toleration of humans in their Market areas, even allowing a select few humans to work in those areas.
As a cassandra sangue, Meg Corbyn is invaluable to the institution she's escaped from. She is a blood prophet, and every cut made on her skin pulls a prophecy out of her. In the compound where she, and other like her, were kept, they were strapped to chairs and used for prophecy and money. Each cut could range from 1,000-10,000 dollars depending on who was being cut. She stumbles into Lakeside Courtyard and walks her freezing feet into a story with a Help Wanted sign. The sign is for a Liaison, a person who runs a post office that interacts between the Others and the humans. Now that she's in Lakeside Courtyard, she has to come clean about who she is and where she's from in order to keep her place. The wide community of Others may decide that she's one of their own, and then there will be no going back for her. The Others protect their own.
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I've been a huge fan of Anne Bishop for a long time. It started with her Black Jewels trilogy in high school but each time I've started a new series, I've fallen into it completely. I appreciate that her series don't intersect, and always have a completely different world, without losing anything of her style and story. Written in Blood and Murder of Crows are no different. I had to reread Written in Blood to catch up, and it was still a great story. There are societal issues, supernatural elements and a teeny tiny bit of possible romance.
Obviously, I recommend it. I can't really recommend it to my sister, specifically, because she's waiting for Book 2 already. I'll recommend it to everyone else, though! I actually think that Bishop could probably stop with book 2, if she really wanted, but I hope she doesn't. There are still some great possibilities for the greater battle ahead, and how knows what will happen to Meg's potential love life? Will she actually have one? She's probably not ready, yet. I've heard nothing yet about another book, but I'm crossing my fingers!
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Moar Books: Sorcerer's Ring series
Showing posts with label urban fantasy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label urban fantasy. Show all posts
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Monday, April 14, 2014
Chicagoland Vampire Series - Chloe Neill
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Subgenre: vampires, weres, Chicago!, romance drama
Age Appropriate: Adult
Recommended for my sister: For the most part
"Ponytail Avenger??" - Merit
On late evening, Merit was walking home from doing research for her English Lit dissertation when the worst happens. She is brutally attacked by someone, or something, and wakes up as something else. After a few days of being unconscious, she wakes in her house, only to find out that she's been turned into a vampire! Ethan Sullivan, Master of Cadogan House, found her and saved her from her brutal attack in the only way he thought he could, turning her into a vampire and bringing her into his House. Merit is confused, and upset but nothing pisses her off more than hearing that they've taken her out of school! She can't finish her education, and she thinks it is all their fault - even acknowledging that the school likely would've kicked her out anyway. Between her disappointment, general pissed-off-ness and a normally snarky attitude, Merit and her best friend, Mallory, name Ethan "Darth Sullivan," and spend a goodly amount of time hating him.
When Merit is threatened with a rock and a note thrown through her window, clearly regarding her new vampire status, she takes off to the House to confront Ethan about the situation. There is trouble when she sees him for the first tie since her turning. She's no longer in a confused, drug-like state and he is gorgeous. She feels some sort of instant connection and the reaction is more irritation on her part. She challenges him, loses miserably, and starts her career as a Cadogan vampire with a bang. When she formally joins the house (after much deliberation), her obvious vampire strength is shown by unknowingly resisting the psychic pull she should receive from Ethan. His response? Name Merit "Sentinel" - an old, honored position committed to protecting the House. Thus begins her series of trials and tribulations that contain sorcerors, two-faced angels, other vampires and increasing animosity from humans. WIth her new friends and old, she's pulled into situations that either require her powers as a vampire or her newly developed skills as a private investigator type.
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The first few books are very entertaining. After that the story seems to get a little more convoluted with each adventure. The move from very entertaining to plain ol' entertaining. I admit that I mostly enjoy Merit's sword skills. I always like Urban Fantasy chicks wielding swords. I also like her Ethan, the gorgeous Master of the House - and he seems like a softer Jean-Claude, just as beautiful and conniving but a little less manipulative (just a little, though). I just finished book 9, and I'll be happy to have some more.
This book gets very sexy in some spots. Not as bad as some, but it's still there - primarily in the later books. It's just graphic enough for me to give this an Adult rating (but not enough for caps or colors). As much as I like Ethan, and it really couldn't go any other way with these books, I found myself a little bit on Team Jonah for awhile. There are also some things that I hope they get into more. It feels like they've given Merit a few new roles, but in name only. She uses her new status for new information, but I'll be interested to see if the author expands on it in the future. Honestly, though, I did read the new book in a day. Yay instant consumption! I suppose that means I recommend it!
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Not vampires: The Sianam Series
Subgenre: vampires, weres, Chicago!, romance drama
Age Appropriate: Adult
Recommended for my sister: For the most part
"Ponytail Avenger??" - Merit
On late evening, Merit was walking home from doing research for her English Lit dissertation when the worst happens. She is brutally attacked by someone, or something, and wakes up as something else. After a few days of being unconscious, she wakes in her house, only to find out that she's been turned into a vampire! Ethan Sullivan, Master of Cadogan House, found her and saved her from her brutal attack in the only way he thought he could, turning her into a vampire and bringing her into his House. Merit is confused, and upset but nothing pisses her off more than hearing that they've taken her out of school! She can't finish her education, and she thinks it is all their fault - even acknowledging that the school likely would've kicked her out anyway. Between her disappointment, general pissed-off-ness and a normally snarky attitude, Merit and her best friend, Mallory, name Ethan "Darth Sullivan," and spend a goodly amount of time hating him.
When Merit is threatened with a rock and a note thrown through her window, clearly regarding her new vampire status, she takes off to the House to confront Ethan about the situation. There is trouble when she sees him for the first tie since her turning. She's no longer in a confused, drug-like state and he is gorgeous. She feels some sort of instant connection and the reaction is more irritation on her part. She challenges him, loses miserably, and starts her career as a Cadogan vampire with a bang. When she formally joins the house (after much deliberation), her obvious vampire strength is shown by unknowingly resisting the psychic pull she should receive from Ethan. His response? Name Merit "Sentinel" - an old, honored position committed to protecting the House. Thus begins her series of trials and tribulations that contain sorcerors, two-faced angels, other vampires and increasing animosity from humans. WIth her new friends and old, she's pulled into situations that either require her powers as a vampire or her newly developed skills as a private investigator type.
-----
The first few books are very entertaining. After that the story seems to get a little more convoluted with each adventure. The move from very entertaining to plain ol' entertaining. I admit that I mostly enjoy Merit's sword skills. I always like Urban Fantasy chicks wielding swords. I also like her Ethan, the gorgeous Master of the House - and he seems like a softer Jean-Claude, just as beautiful and conniving but a little less manipulative (just a little, though). I just finished book 9, and I'll be happy to have some more.
This book gets very sexy in some spots. Not as bad as some, but it's still there - primarily in the later books. It's just graphic enough for me to give this an Adult rating (but not enough for caps or colors). As much as I like Ethan, and it really couldn't go any other way with these books, I found myself a little bit on Team Jonah for awhile. There are also some things that I hope they get into more. It feels like they've given Merit a few new roles, but in name only. She uses her new status for new information, but I'll be interested to see if the author expands on it in the future. Honestly, though, I did read the new book in a day. Yay instant consumption! I suppose that means I recommend it!
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Not vampires: The Sianam Series
Sunday, March 16, 2014
Kate Daniels series - Ilona Andrews
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Subgenre: vampires, weres, magic
Age Appropriate: Older teen+
Recommended for my sister: YES
"Here, kitty-kitty." - Kate
In a post-apocalyptic world, magic has returned half-force. Every minute of the day could be a time when there is magic, or there is none. When the "tech" is up, typical machines work - phones, cars, microwaves, and when the magic is up nothing mechanical works but the possibilities are endless for those with magical powers and know-how.
Kate Daniels is a mercenary who deals with complex magical situations. Similar to a bounty hunter, she picks assignments she wants and moves out to deal with the problem, sometimes even with another partner. Her stressful, but seemingly regular, existence ends when her guardian is found dead. Her need for investigation puts her in strange position with the other supernatural species in the area, as well as at the beck and call of the leading formal magical police force. Thus begins her story, and the deeper it goes, the scarier her secrets become.
Kate is hiding a deep secret from those who have become close to her. As her new friends slowly figure out what she's hiding, she finds herself in a position she never wanted to be in - namely having friends in the first place. She's been raised as a weapon, a solitary fighter who needs no one and is expected to dispatch anyone who might catch on to what she's hiding, until the time comes for her to use that training. Her newfound personal developments put everything she's been protecting at risk, but she consistently throws it to the wind of chance in order to protect the people around her. The only question is: When will it finally bite her in the ass?
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This is probably one of my newer favorite series. I've read them over and over, lately. I appreciate that there is little to no sex, which is actually a bit rare in the female urban fantasy genre. There actually isn't any sex until the fourth book, and even then it's not a focus at any point. I really enjoy the character development, and I'm really excited to see what will happen next in the drama.
I find the storyline to be a bit unique actually. Sure, there are some pretty standard themes, particularly independent, strong woman who kicks butt - with a sword no less. Even the romance portion is fairly typical, but her reasons and actions apart from those reasons is a little new. I mean, it's a book, so it's pretty standard that she's the heroine, but the author makes her a little more human given the other properties in Kate's life. I think it was fairly successfully done. If nothing else, I'm very upset at how much longer I have to wait for the next installment. It's very frustrating, only tempered by the fact that there is at least a release date now. Highly, highly recommended.
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Meow: Heralds of Valdemar - Mercedes Lackey
Subgenre: vampires, weres, magic
Age Appropriate: Older teen+
Recommended for my sister: YES
"Here, kitty-kitty." - Kate
In a post-apocalyptic world, magic has returned half-force. Every minute of the day could be a time when there is magic, or there is none. When the "tech" is up, typical machines work - phones, cars, microwaves, and when the magic is up nothing mechanical works but the possibilities are endless for those with magical powers and know-how.
Kate Daniels is a mercenary who deals with complex magical situations. Similar to a bounty hunter, she picks assignments she wants and moves out to deal with the problem, sometimes even with another partner. Her stressful, but seemingly regular, existence ends when her guardian is found dead. Her need for investigation puts her in strange position with the other supernatural species in the area, as well as at the beck and call of the leading formal magical police force. Thus begins her story, and the deeper it goes, the scarier her secrets become.
Kate is hiding a deep secret from those who have become close to her. As her new friends slowly figure out what she's hiding, she finds herself in a position she never wanted to be in - namely having friends in the first place. She's been raised as a weapon, a solitary fighter who needs no one and is expected to dispatch anyone who might catch on to what she's hiding, until the time comes for her to use that training. Her newfound personal developments put everything she's been protecting at risk, but she consistently throws it to the wind of chance in order to protect the people around her. The only question is: When will it finally bite her in the ass?
-----
This is probably one of my newer favorite series. I've read them over and over, lately. I appreciate that there is little to no sex, which is actually a bit rare in the female urban fantasy genre. There actually isn't any sex until the fourth book, and even then it's not a focus at any point. I really enjoy the character development, and I'm really excited to see what will happen next in the drama.
I find the storyline to be a bit unique actually. Sure, there are some pretty standard themes, particularly independent, strong woman who kicks butt - with a sword no less. Even the romance portion is fairly typical, but her reasons and actions apart from those reasons is a little new. I mean, it's a book, so it's pretty standard that she's the heroine, but the author makes her a little more human given the other properties in Kate's life. I think it was fairly successfully done. If nothing else, I'm very upset at how much longer I have to wait for the next installment. It's very frustrating, only tempered by the fact that there is at least a release date now. Highly, highly recommended.
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Meow: Heralds of Valdemar - Mercedes Lackey
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Riley Jenson series - Keri Arthur
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Subgenre: werewolves, shifters, vampires
Age Appropriate: Older Teen
Recommended for my sister: Sure, why not?
"I'm not that bad of a driver." - Riley
Riley Jenson is a werewolf in Australia working as a liaison for the Directorate of Other Races. Essentially, they are the pseudo-cops of those that aren't human in the country. Jack, Riley's boss, however wants her on the guardian team, a team of supernaturals who work more like enforcers and killers than anything else. Her twin brother, Rhoan, is already involved and wants her to have nothing to do with guardians. That catch is that Riley has similar traits to her dear brother. Both are dhampir, a mix of werewolf and vampire, that came about by a bizarre circumstance and timing between their mother in werwolf bloodlust and a newly risen vampire. Riley is much more inclined to the werewolf side of things, including her need to sate the moon fever that happens with all werewolves. During certain times of the month all werewolves find themselves stuck in a need for sexual contact that can alienate them from others. They all seem to have a pretty good time of it, though.
Riley really becomes involved when a certain set of circumstances put her in the control of evil villain-types interested in testing supernaturals for a variety of nefarious reasons. In the process, she ends up stuck with Quinn O'Connor, an illustrious vampire who has befriended her brother and seems involved with things going on. Each situation in each book involves Riley's strong will and usual need for rescue (and doing rescuing!) of her close friends. Her werewolf heritage seems to be the biggest obstacle, both in the scary situations and her love lives. Adding her mixed vampire heritage, and some interesting effects of those nefarious villains, Riley and her team are up to their eyeballs in strange plots.
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I liked it. It was, at minimum, interesting to read a set of novels that aren't set in a familiar US city. Most books that I read, at least in Urban Fantasy, are set in some central urban center. I wasn't particularly moved to start looking up a map of Australia, but it would be an interesting research subject to figure out where all of these things are happening. Other than that, this series has all of the typical elements of traditional Urban Fantasy. As per usual in the books I read, it has a female protagonist, some sort of supernatural element(s) and a bunch of friends and family there to pull each other out of dire situations. One of the things I do appreciate is that the series ends. It takes a lot for an author to pull off a good continuing series. Keri Arthur has a spin-off series or two, but they're far enough apart that their pretty great stand-alones.
The series adds a little bit of sci-fi to the urban fantasy with the addition of high tech gadgets - like nanowires to protect from psychic in invasion and voice-moluators that are inserted into the mouth (ow!). It certainly adds a little something extra, and pushes a little bit of "this could happen" vibe.
The books are also pretty down the middle on adult content. A good portion of it is what I refer to as "and then the next day!" sex. Basically, they kiss passionately or something to the effect and the chapter ends. Not all of it, but a good amount is in this category. I was also a little sad about the lack of swords, but that's my own personal thing. For some reason, I'm more interested in swords than guns. Whatever makes you happy, I suppose. So yeah, go ahead and read it. It's pretty good fluffiness without being boring.
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Wildly different: Kushiel series
Subgenre: werewolves, shifters, vampires
Age Appropriate: Older Teen
Recommended for my sister: Sure, why not?
"I'm not that bad of a driver." - Riley
Riley Jenson is a werewolf in Australia working as a liaison for the Directorate of Other Races. Essentially, they are the pseudo-cops of those that aren't human in the country. Jack, Riley's boss, however wants her on the guardian team, a team of supernaturals who work more like enforcers and killers than anything else. Her twin brother, Rhoan, is already involved and wants her to have nothing to do with guardians. That catch is that Riley has similar traits to her dear brother. Both are dhampir, a mix of werewolf and vampire, that came about by a bizarre circumstance and timing between their mother in werwolf bloodlust and a newly risen vampire. Riley is much more inclined to the werewolf side of things, including her need to sate the moon fever that happens with all werewolves. During certain times of the month all werewolves find themselves stuck in a need for sexual contact that can alienate them from others. They all seem to have a pretty good time of it, though.
Riley really becomes involved when a certain set of circumstances put her in the control of evil villain-types interested in testing supernaturals for a variety of nefarious reasons. In the process, she ends up stuck with Quinn O'Connor, an illustrious vampire who has befriended her brother and seems involved with things going on. Each situation in each book involves Riley's strong will and usual need for rescue (and doing rescuing!) of her close friends. Her werewolf heritage seems to be the biggest obstacle, both in the scary situations and her love lives. Adding her mixed vampire heritage, and some interesting effects of those nefarious villains, Riley and her team are up to their eyeballs in strange plots.
-----
I liked it. It was, at minimum, interesting to read a set of novels that aren't set in a familiar US city. Most books that I read, at least in Urban Fantasy, are set in some central urban center. I wasn't particularly moved to start looking up a map of Australia, but it would be an interesting research subject to figure out where all of these things are happening. Other than that, this series has all of the typical elements of traditional Urban Fantasy. As per usual in the books I read, it has a female protagonist, some sort of supernatural element(s) and a bunch of friends and family there to pull each other out of dire situations. One of the things I do appreciate is that the series ends. It takes a lot for an author to pull off a good continuing series. Keri Arthur has a spin-off series or two, but they're far enough apart that their pretty great stand-alones.
The series adds a little bit of sci-fi to the urban fantasy with the addition of high tech gadgets - like nanowires to protect from psychic in invasion and voice-moluators that are inserted into the mouth (ow!). It certainly adds a little something extra, and pushes a little bit of "this could happen" vibe.
The books are also pretty down the middle on adult content. A good portion of it is what I refer to as "and then the next day!" sex. Basically, they kiss passionately or something to the effect and the chapter ends. Not all of it, but a good amount is in this category. I was also a little sad about the lack of swords, but that's my own personal thing. For some reason, I'm more interested in swords than guns. Whatever makes you happy, I suppose. So yeah, go ahead and read it. It's pretty good fluffiness without being boring.
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Wildly different: Kushiel series
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Grave Witch - Kalayna Price
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Subgenre: mediums, ghosts, elves
Age Appropriate: Older Teen
Recommended for my sister: Absolutely
"My advice is to run." - Thorn Fae
Alex Craft is a PI and a witch with an affinity for the grave. Her specific use of her powers is to raise shades from bodies to have questions asked and answered. The start of her story really begins with the drama that comes with her powers making her an expert witness for an organized crime case. Her job will be to raise the shade of a controversial murder victim and simply ask her what happened. When Alexis is shot at, it's believed that this is the reason. There is more going on, though, when she realizes a favor for her sister may have a bigger effect on her situation. There are some serious things afoot when she gets a mysterious call from her estranged sister, and her situation becomes much more complicated than anyone thought.
The Alexis Craft series is a bit of a bumbling hero story. She's powerful and willful and has no sense of self-preservation. Helping her along the way are her powerful-women girlfriends, a mysterious homicide detective and her old time, close friend, Death. Unlike the Anita series, he literally IS Death. At least, a soul collector that Alexis first met as a young girl with budding powers. Her relationships with these people all help her in her times of need, and often goad her into doing stupid things out of stubbornness. As Alexis finds out more secrets about herself, she'll need all the support she can get!
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You know, for the second time round, I wan't sure I was going to be able to get into these books as much as I did the first time. It was true, to a certain extent, but probably not more so than many other series I've read multiple times. I wasn't sure if I was going to put an awesome review down for this. I know I enjoyed it, but I was surprised by the end result.
I don't always like Alex Craft. I'm a bit used to protagonists in this genre being determined to a fault. In a way, the attitude is similar to Harry Potter's inability to just leave things alone. At the same time, in the end Alex also ends up saving the day (on a much smaller scale, of course). That's as far as similarities go. There is no direct, or indirect, correlation to Harry and any Urban Fantasy I've read. Anyway, I digress. I frequently get annoyed with her, and her complete disregard for her friends. She has a line of loyalty that often gets her in and out of trouble, but sometimes it seems like some of that trouble wouldn't have started without her actions in the first place.
The kicker? I adore most of the people in her life. There are only three books, and I frequently feel sympathy for them in many situations (except potential boyfriend #2. Ugh). At the end of book three, I felt like crying. It's unfair! I didn't notice it happening, but despite my original misgivings, I ended up complete entrapped by the underlying love story and the injustice of it all. I don't know what's worse, unrequited love, or seriously people-could-die love. Breaks my heart. So, yeah, go ahead and read it. It's no great American novel, mind you, but it's pretty good nonetheless.
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How 'bout some wolves: Riley Jenson series
Subgenre: mediums, ghosts, elves
Age Appropriate: Older Teen
Recommended for my sister: Absolutely
"My advice is to run." - Thorn Fae
Alex Craft is a PI and a witch with an affinity for the grave. Her specific use of her powers is to raise shades from bodies to have questions asked and answered. The start of her story really begins with the drama that comes with her powers making her an expert witness for an organized crime case. Her job will be to raise the shade of a controversial murder victim and simply ask her what happened. When Alexis is shot at, it's believed that this is the reason. There is more going on, though, when she realizes a favor for her sister may have a bigger effect on her situation. There are some serious things afoot when she gets a mysterious call from her estranged sister, and her situation becomes much more complicated than anyone thought.
The Alexis Craft series is a bit of a bumbling hero story. She's powerful and willful and has no sense of self-preservation. Helping her along the way are her powerful-women girlfriends, a mysterious homicide detective and her old time, close friend, Death. Unlike the Anita series, he literally IS Death. At least, a soul collector that Alexis first met as a young girl with budding powers. Her relationships with these people all help her in her times of need, and often goad her into doing stupid things out of stubbornness. As Alexis finds out more secrets about herself, she'll need all the support she can get!
-----
You know, for the second time round, I wan't sure I was going to be able to get into these books as much as I did the first time. It was true, to a certain extent, but probably not more so than many other series I've read multiple times. I wasn't sure if I was going to put an awesome review down for this. I know I enjoyed it, but I was surprised by the end result.
I don't always like Alex Craft. I'm a bit used to protagonists in this genre being determined to a fault. In a way, the attitude is similar to Harry Potter's inability to just leave things alone. At the same time, in the end Alex also ends up saving the day (on a much smaller scale, of course). That's as far as similarities go. There is no direct, or indirect, correlation to Harry and any Urban Fantasy I've read. Anyway, I digress. I frequently get annoyed with her, and her complete disregard for her friends. She has a line of loyalty that often gets her in and out of trouble, but sometimes it seems like some of that trouble wouldn't have started without her actions in the first place.
The kicker? I adore most of the people in her life. There are only three books, and I frequently feel sympathy for them in many situations (except potential boyfriend #2. Ugh). At the end of book three, I felt like crying. It's unfair! I didn't notice it happening, but despite my original misgivings, I ended up complete entrapped by the underlying love story and the injustice of it all. I don't know what's worse, unrequited love, or seriously people-could-die love. Breaks my heart. So, yeah, go ahead and read it. It's no great American novel, mind you, but it's pretty good nonetheless.
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How 'bout some wolves: Riley Jenson series
Sunday, February 9, 2014
Elemental Assasin series - Jennifer Estep
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Subgenre: a little bit of magic and a little bit of murder
Age Appropriate: Adult, kinda. I mean, there's plenty of romance-y stuff.
Recommended for my sister: Started out pretty good...
"It never hurts to double check." - Fletcher
Gin Blanco grew up with an interesting family dynamic. After losing her family to a terrible, evil tragedy, Gin is found by Fletcher Lane - a.k.a. Tin Man. As Gin gets older, she (and her foster brother, Finn) start learning the "family business." Tin Man is an assassin for hire. The story focuses on Gin and her career as The Spider, the most notorious assassin in Ashland. No one really knows who she is, only that they don't want her coming after them.
Gin's whole journey begins with the murder of her family by Mab Monroe. The foremost mobster in Ashland's underground. While Gin goes through a variety of situations as The Spider, the underlying plot is her need for vengeance against Mab, and how she'll be able to survive the encounter. In the world of Gin Blanco, there is elemental magic everywhere. Many people have some level of ability. Gin's primary magic is Stone magic. She can harden her skin to stone, and hear vibrations through any stone she touches. Mab's magic is Fire magic. She's a very strong magic user who used her magic to kill Gin's family. Gin's obstacle comes in knowing that her Stone magic likely isn't as strong as Mab's Fire. Despite the people in her life, and the changes and growth Gin goes through, will she be able to seek the revenge she wants, and destroying the head of the Ashland underground?
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I actually genuinely enjoy this series, mostly. I don't know if I really care about the characters now that I'm further in the series, but it's not awful. I like some books better than others. I don't particularly mind when there is a big gap in new releases. I suppose that says something about them.
I definltey have some sympathy for the romantic situations Gin finds herself in. I think I would've like a little more development with her assassin skills.
The books are a good read, especially when looking to wind down from something more intense. I suppose I would say that they're a good beach read, assuming you're not really into sappy romance novels. I don't need to swallow them whole, though. I say that they started out good because there was a really immediate purpose for Gin, and the following parts were good but don't seem to give her the same motivations. After a few books, I don't think it's an easy feat for an author. I'm hoping that the next one is as entraining as the first few.
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Let's keep going: Grave Witch series
Subgenre: a little bit of magic and a little bit of murder
Age Appropriate: Adult, kinda. I mean, there's plenty of romance-y stuff.
Recommended for my sister: Started out pretty good...
"It never hurts to double check." - Fletcher
Gin Blanco grew up with an interesting family dynamic. After losing her family to a terrible, evil tragedy, Gin is found by Fletcher Lane - a.k.a. Tin Man. As Gin gets older, she (and her foster brother, Finn) start learning the "family business." Tin Man is an assassin for hire. The story focuses on Gin and her career as The Spider, the most notorious assassin in Ashland. No one really knows who she is, only that they don't want her coming after them.
Gin's whole journey begins with the murder of her family by Mab Monroe. The foremost mobster in Ashland's underground. While Gin goes through a variety of situations as The Spider, the underlying plot is her need for vengeance against Mab, and how she'll be able to survive the encounter. In the world of Gin Blanco, there is elemental magic everywhere. Many people have some level of ability. Gin's primary magic is Stone magic. She can harden her skin to stone, and hear vibrations through any stone she touches. Mab's magic is Fire magic. She's a very strong magic user who used her magic to kill Gin's family. Gin's obstacle comes in knowing that her Stone magic likely isn't as strong as Mab's Fire. Despite the people in her life, and the changes and growth Gin goes through, will she be able to seek the revenge she wants, and destroying the head of the Ashland underground?
-----
I actually genuinely enjoy this series, mostly. I don't know if I really care about the characters now that I'm further in the series, but it's not awful. I like some books better than others. I don't particularly mind when there is a big gap in new releases. I suppose that says something about them.
I definltey have some sympathy for the romantic situations Gin finds herself in. I think I would've like a little more development with her assassin skills.
The books are a good read, especially when looking to wind down from something more intense. I suppose I would say that they're a good beach read, assuming you're not really into sappy romance novels. I don't need to swallow them whole, though. I say that they started out good because there was a really immediate purpose for Gin, and the following parts were good but don't seem to give her the same motivations. After a few books, I don't think it's an easy feat for an author. I'm hoping that the next one is as entraining as the first few.
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Let's keep going: Grave Witch series
Monday, January 20, 2014
Black Wings - Christina Henry
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Subgenre: demons, elves, a gargoyle
Age Appropriate: Adult, or mature older teen
Recommended for my sister: Probably
"You're still Maddy. You're still Maddy Black." - Beezle
Madeline Black works for an agency that oversees the collection and guidance of souls. It was an inherited job through her mother, and includes the trials of dealing with stubborn newly dead and some awesome wings. Along with the job, Maddy has inherited a house guardian - a endless pit of hunger named Beezle. His job is protect the domicile, and includes being a sassy companion for Maddy. The plot of the story is founded in a new discovery in Maddy's life.
Somehow, after losing a dear friend, she's found herself in a strange, difficult relationship with her long-lost father and subsequently fighting against a demon who is terrorizing souls. As in most series in the urban dantasy genre, there is an aspect of romance between Maddy and a pseudo-demonic protector, Gabriel. It's a forbidden romance, on many levels, but that is also a traditional plot device. The meat of the series is in the relationships that develop as Maddy struggles with her internal battles between good and evil, and her external battles between good and evil. Everything goes to hell (harhar) when Maddy discovers her actual bloodline relationships, and slowly gains powers that seduce her to the dark side.
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This isn't the best series I've ever read, but it's consistently entertaining. I think it's probably a positive thing that there isn't a new book every few months, which has become fairly common with some authors. Sometimes, I just stumble on the fact that there is a new one out. The negative is really that I have pretty high expectations sometimes. I think book 4 was a little outside my fun-meter, but the most recent book was pretty up there. I'm not sure how I feel with the way her relationship is developing with Gabriel. I'm kinda over it, really. I'm really enjoying her new relationship with her uncle, though.
I'd recommend it to most who like the urban fantasy, with a little romance, genre. The romance part is not very explicit, which I appreciate in a series like this, but it's definitely necessary to the storyline. You have to be willing to stick with it, though. It's not really a chore, but if LKH or Jacqueline Carey came out with a new book I would probably read those first. I would probably recommend it to my sister, but mostly because sometimes you need something to read.
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Keep it movin'!: Morrigan's Cross series
Subgenre: demons, elves, a gargoyle
Age Appropriate: Adult, or mature older teen
Recommended for my sister: Probably
"You're still Maddy. You're still Maddy Black." - Beezle
Madeline Black works for an agency that oversees the collection and guidance of souls. It was an inherited job through her mother, and includes the trials of dealing with stubborn newly dead and some awesome wings. Along with the job, Maddy has inherited a house guardian - a endless pit of hunger named Beezle. His job is protect the domicile, and includes being a sassy companion for Maddy. The plot of the story is founded in a new discovery in Maddy's life.
Somehow, after losing a dear friend, she's found herself in a strange, difficult relationship with her long-lost father and subsequently fighting against a demon who is terrorizing souls. As in most series in the urban dantasy genre, there is an aspect of romance between Maddy and a pseudo-demonic protector, Gabriel. It's a forbidden romance, on many levels, but that is also a traditional plot device. The meat of the series is in the relationships that develop as Maddy struggles with her internal battles between good and evil, and her external battles between good and evil. Everything goes to hell (harhar) when Maddy discovers her actual bloodline relationships, and slowly gains powers that seduce her to the dark side.
-----
This isn't the best series I've ever read, but it's consistently entertaining. I think it's probably a positive thing that there isn't a new book every few months, which has become fairly common with some authors. Sometimes, I just stumble on the fact that there is a new one out. The negative is really that I have pretty high expectations sometimes. I think book 4 was a little outside my fun-meter, but the most recent book was pretty up there. I'm not sure how I feel with the way her relationship is developing with Gabriel. I'm kinda over it, really. I'm really enjoying her new relationship with her uncle, though.
I'd recommend it to most who like the urban fantasy, with a little romance, genre. The romance part is not very explicit, which I appreciate in a series like this, but it's definitely necessary to the storyline. You have to be willing to stick with it, though. It's not really a chore, but if LKH or Jacqueline Carey came out with a new book I would probably read those first. I would probably recommend it to my sister, but mostly because sometimes you need something to read.
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Keep it movin'!: Morrigan's Cross series
Sunday, January 5, 2014
Mercy Thompson - Patricia Briggs
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Subgenre: weres, vamps, walkers, an elf or two
Age Appropriate: Mature Older Teen
Recommended for my sister: Yep.
"'I killed a werewolf in my garage.' That will get a quicker response than spending 20 minutes explaining." - Mercy
Mercedes Thompson turns into a coyote. As opposed to werewolves, she's a walker. Her mother love a Native American cowboy and Mercy came of it. Her father died tragically in a car accident shortly and so Mercy ended up with her mother. Until something strange happened, of course. Mercy ended up moving to Montana to be with her werewolf uncle and the Marrok's pack. She grew up and moved out, ended school and became a VW mechanic. That's right, Mercedes the VW mechanic. An old joke made frequently throughout the series.
Mercy has a number of new and interesting friends that either a direct effect in all of the shenanigans, or somehow pulled her butt of out the fire in each. Only Mercy would end up working for a metalsmith gremlin, being courted but the local Alpha, fixing up cars and vampires and wrapped up in Fae affairs. Her mystical abilities make her to focus of interesting people, and often ends up in lot of trouble all the way around. That's the whole basis of her books - watching her get out of these bonkers situations with the help of her unlikely set of friends.
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I have a lot of fun with this series. Of course there is some romance, as with most Urban Fantasy novels (particularly with female authors but it still well away from the Paranormal Romance genre. It's almost like Anite Blake-light. Mercy gets into tons of accidental situations where she has to take on a hero role. The "light" part is that she's no serious vampire hunter with dangerous assassin friends, just werewolves and a strange vampire. It is comparatively lighthearted. Half of the time I'm just shaking my head at how she manages to get into some of these situations. There are some serious parts, though. It's not completely fluffy. In one of the books, there is actually a pretty difficult ending - fair warning. I'm going to recommend it, though. It's good light Urban Fantasy reading. Right now, there are 6 books in the series - which is why I've put in less review. (Anita has about 23 books, hence the longer review.)
I will mention that there is a spin-off series (Alpha & Omega)with some good friends/family of Mercy & Company. It's definitely more on the romance side of the spectrum, but they're pretty good. If you decide you're going to be adding those in, it might be good to see if Patricia Briggs has a chronological timeline somewhere, as the books are interspersed with the Mercy books.
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Next time!: The Lions of Al-Rassan
Subgenre: weres, vamps, walkers, an elf or two
Age Appropriate: Mature Older Teen
Recommended for my sister: Yep.
"'I killed a werewolf in my garage.' That will get a quicker response than spending 20 minutes explaining." - Mercy
Mercedes Thompson turns into a coyote. As opposed to werewolves, she's a walker. Her mother love a Native American cowboy and Mercy came of it. Her father died tragically in a car accident shortly and so Mercy ended up with her mother. Until something strange happened, of course. Mercy ended up moving to Montana to be with her werewolf uncle and the Marrok's pack. She grew up and moved out, ended school and became a VW mechanic. That's right, Mercedes the VW mechanic. An old joke made frequently throughout the series.
Mercy has a number of new and interesting friends that either a direct effect in all of the shenanigans, or somehow pulled her butt of out the fire in each. Only Mercy would end up working for a metalsmith gremlin, being courted but the local Alpha, fixing up cars and vampires and wrapped up in Fae affairs. Her mystical abilities make her to focus of interesting people, and often ends up in lot of trouble all the way around. That's the whole basis of her books - watching her get out of these bonkers situations with the help of her unlikely set of friends.
-----
I have a lot of fun with this series. Of course there is some romance, as with most Urban Fantasy novels (particularly with female authors but it still well away from the Paranormal Romance genre. It's almost like Anite Blake-light. Mercy gets into tons of accidental situations where she has to take on a hero role. The "light" part is that she's no serious vampire hunter with dangerous assassin friends, just werewolves and a strange vampire. It is comparatively lighthearted. Half of the time I'm just shaking my head at how she manages to get into some of these situations. There are some serious parts, though. It's not completely fluffy. In one of the books, there is actually a pretty difficult ending - fair warning. I'm going to recommend it, though. It's good light Urban Fantasy reading. Right now, there are 6 books in the series - which is why I've put in less review. (Anita has about 23 books, hence the longer review.)
I will mention that there is a spin-off series (Alpha & Omega)with some good friends/family of Mercy & Company. It's definitely more on the romance side of the spectrum, but they're pretty good. If you decide you're going to be adding those in, it might be good to see if Patricia Briggs has a chronological timeline somewhere, as the books are interspersed with the Mercy books.
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Next time!: The Lions of Al-Rassan
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Anita Blake - Laurell K. Hamilton
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Romance?
Subgenre: Vampire, werewolves, zombies
Age Appropriate: Adults, especially as the series progresses
Recommended for my sister: YES
"I proved what I needed to prove to myself a long time ago. I don't care what you think." - Anita
It all begins with a lonely, young hardheaded woman with a special affinity for the dead. Anita Blake is an animator, a person who can raise zombies from the grave. Part of her "day job" is literally to raise zombies from the grace, for a variety a reasons. She works for a firm - Animators, Inc. - with a business manager and other animators. It's her "day job" because she can only raise zombies at night, but it is still her main working position. At least, it is in the beginning.
Anita has a secondary job, one that is much more intense, and calls more for the hardheaded stubbornness she becomes known for. She's a vampire executioner. With lots of training and skill, she's become one of the most notorious vampire hunters in the United States, at least among the vampires. Her kill count eventually breaches the numbers of all of the others in her field, and earns her the disdainful nickname The Executioner.
The series, now at 23 books, follows the beginning of Anita's illustrious career, a mix of zombies, preternatural police assistance, and vampire hunting. In the first few books, she adds romance to her daily struggles, switching between a closeted werewolf and a disturbingly (but sexy) master vampire. Each book adds, or removes, some layer of new and old relationships while exploring Anita's reluctance to fit any type of defined love in her life - both because of her personal convictions about supernaturals and her own personal values.
------
I won't lie. I decided to review this book first because its my favorite series of all time. I also want to be upfront with the high level of smut that has found its way into a number of books. In the first few books of the series, there was a high level of focus on the actual storyline, and character development for everyone involved. It definitely sucked me in, and I became such a fan that I spent most of my life from that one day in the used bookstore, until last month, waiting patiently for each book to be released. However, somewhere in the middle the books turned into some softcore bowchicawowow that leads me to make sure this series was titled "Adult." It really wasn't that way for the first part of the series, which was good since I was a pre-teen. It wasn't until later that it was a little over the top. Luck for me (and you?) I don't mind over the top. Ha.
I love the Anita books. They are a great escape for me, and almost every character is some level of sexy, but no lacking major issues. It's not that I want everyone to have major issues, but those issues make her hot male leads seems a little more human (or whatever part of them is human). I enjoyed watching her rail against her love life, but I have to say that I most enjoyed the actual storylines. My favorite character is, by far, Edward - Anita's obvious best friend and vampire bounty hunter guru. Anita's character development includes the changes in her attitudes to more align with Edward's and her interal struggles into turning into a sociopath. If anyone is more dangerous than Anita, it's Edward - nicknamed Death. My favorite books are the ones where Edward shows up. As soon as he's on the scene, you know you're in for some good action scenes and funny banter.
Recommendation: Obviously, yes. I sucked my sister into these a long time ago. I think she may have stopped when LKH took her break from "real" writing and fell into the pit of softcore dispair, but I totally dug it. Read it again, sister!
-----
Next Up: Black Jewels Trilogy
Subgenre: Vampire, werewolves, zombies
Age Appropriate: Adults, especially as the series progresses
Recommended for my sister: YES
"I proved what I needed to prove to myself a long time ago. I don't care what you think." - Anita
It all begins with a lonely, young hardheaded woman with a special affinity for the dead. Anita Blake is an animator, a person who can raise zombies from the grave. Part of her "day job" is literally to raise zombies from the grace, for a variety a reasons. She works for a firm - Animators, Inc. - with a business manager and other animators. It's her "day job" because she can only raise zombies at night, but it is still her main working position. At least, it is in the beginning.
Anita has a secondary job, one that is much more intense, and calls more for the hardheaded stubbornness she becomes known for. She's a vampire executioner. With lots of training and skill, she's become one of the most notorious vampire hunters in the United States, at least among the vampires. Her kill count eventually breaches the numbers of all of the others in her field, and earns her the disdainful nickname The Executioner.
The series, now at 23 books, follows the beginning of Anita's illustrious career, a mix of zombies, preternatural police assistance, and vampire hunting. In the first few books, she adds romance to her daily struggles, switching between a closeted werewolf and a disturbingly (but sexy) master vampire. Each book adds, or removes, some layer of new and old relationships while exploring Anita's reluctance to fit any type of defined love in her life - both because of her personal convictions about supernaturals and her own personal values.
------
I won't lie. I decided to review this book first because its my favorite series of all time. I also want to be upfront with the high level of smut that has found its way into a number of books. In the first few books of the series, there was a high level of focus on the actual storyline, and character development for everyone involved. It definitely sucked me in, and I became such a fan that I spent most of my life from that one day in the used bookstore, until last month, waiting patiently for each book to be released. However, somewhere in the middle the books turned into some softcore bowchicawowow that leads me to make sure this series was titled "Adult." It really wasn't that way for the first part of the series, which was good since I was a pre-teen. It wasn't until later that it was a little over the top. Luck for me (and you?) I don't mind over the top. Ha.
I love the Anita books. They are a great escape for me, and almost every character is some level of sexy, but no lacking major issues. It's not that I want everyone to have major issues, but those issues make her hot male leads seems a little more human (or whatever part of them is human). I enjoyed watching her rail against her love life, but I have to say that I most enjoyed the actual storylines. My favorite character is, by far, Edward - Anita's obvious best friend and vampire bounty hunter guru. Anita's character development includes the changes in her attitudes to more align with Edward's and her interal struggles into turning into a sociopath. If anyone is more dangerous than Anita, it's Edward - nicknamed Death. My favorite books are the ones where Edward shows up. As soon as he's on the scene, you know you're in for some good action scenes and funny banter.
Recommendation: Obviously, yes. I sucked my sister into these a long time ago. I think she may have stopped when LKH took her break from "real" writing and fell into the pit of softcore dispair, but I totally dug it. Read it again, sister!
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Next Up: Black Jewels Trilogy
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