Reviews

Magic Shifts by Ilona Andrews

divapitbull's review against another edition

5.0

Visiting with Kate and company just doesn’t get old. In Magic Shifts Kate and Curran have separated from the pack and moved off into suburbia with Julie. They’re trying to enjoy their new-found domesticity while dealing with roving hordes of ghouls and contemplating poverty. Well not poverty exactly; Curran’s actually quite flush. Except that most of his loot is tied up in pack related businesses that apparently aren’t in any position to buy him out – and the new Beast Lord’s best offer is controlling interest in the near bankrupt Mercenary Guild. Then there’s the matter of George showing up on their doorstep asking for help in locating her missing were-buffalo fiancé Eduardo because her bigoted father Mahon won’t get off his fat ass and help because nobody but a Kodiak would do for his daughter. Of course it all turns out to be connected: the ghouls, the Guild and the missing Eduardo.

My favorite moments:
- Dali’s visit to the suburbs.
Kate: Consort, you honor us.
Dali: Fuck you. Fuck your shit. I quit.

- Roland calling Kate “Blossom” and inviting her to dinner at “this low key chain of restaurants I used to frequent before the Shift. I can’t quite recall the name but it had a fruit and an insect in it”.

- Ghastek attempting to tell Kate he means “Applebees” via Pictionary.

- The Curran/Mahon smack down - “What was your duty to my mate when I was comatose? I led the Pack for seventeen years and it failed me when I needed it most. You failed me. My obligation to the Pack is over. You failed to uphold your end of the bargain”.

- Mitchell’s transformation

nilu_reads's review against another edition

5.0

Ilona Andrews once again blows my mind with this latest KD installment. This writing duo just knows how to hit all the right buttons when it comes to story telling!

One thing I loved about this book was how we get to see another side of Curran without the Beast Lord mantle or the weight of the Keep dictating his every move. It was great to see Kate & Curran be domesticated and run a "normal" household. Well as normal as it can get in their world.

We get to see more interactions between Roland and Kate. I liked the "family" dinner at Applebees. I am not sure if I like or hate Roland.. I think I like him so far. His character is well written and Ilona doesn't try to make him redeemable at all.

The relationship between Kate and Curran has grown leaps and bounds and this is the first book where I have seen Curran be vulnerable and bare his heart to us. Those scenes just hits you with the emotion in them.

I gotta admit, I loved the interaction between Curran and Julie. It was adorable and touching.

And the villain of the book/adventure doesn't fail as well. She has lived up to it and I like how in the end we see the "lesson" Kate learns with this villain.

All in all, another stellar book in this series. I wld definitely be recommending this book to everyone.

mountainmija's review against another edition

medium-paced

4.0

 guilty pleasure 

indecisivesailorscout's review against another edition

5.0

6th read: Every new read of this book makes me love it more. It's a severely underrated book in the series BY ME and when I listen to it again I remember that this is where we genuinely shifted to Roland as the Big Bad Final Boss and it's the first act in an incredible, show-stopping ending arc to the main series.

2nd read, 11/2/19: I'm honestly not sure why I gave this 4.5 stars because it made me cry AGAIN, but I think it might be that it sped up at some parts it shouldn't have and felt too slow at others. Listening to it made me appreciate those little moments more, so I'm going to bump it up to 5 stars and forgive the slow moments and plot holes.

1st read, 2/21/17: Yet another magical installment from the Ilona Andrews team. I really feel like they're channeling kids 1 and 2 in Julie's snarky comments, but also some parental conversations with each interaction with Roland. It's that real world interactions many who read these books can relate to and what really makes this story come to life. There are some things that made this less than perfect, and quotes that made it the funniest thing ever, but most of all, I am SUPER PUMPED for the books that come next. (And for the filling in of some plot holes...)

tana04's review against another edition

adventurous funny fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

iskanderjonesiv's review against another edition

4.0

Magic is coming and going in waves in post-Shift Atlanta—and each crest leaves danger in its wake in this gripping novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling Kate Daniels series.



After breaking from life with the Pack, mercenary Kate Daniels and her mate—former Beast Lord Curran Lennart—are adjusting to a very different pace. While they’re thrilled to escape all the infighting, Kate and Curran know that separating from the Pack completely is a process that will take time.



But when they learn that their friend Eduardo has gone missing, Kate and Curran shift their focus to investigate his disappearance. As they dig further into the merc’s business, they discover that the Mercenary Guild has gone to hell and that Eduardo’s recent assignments are connected in the most sinister way…



An ancient enemy has arisen, and Kate and Curran are the only ones who can stop it—before it takes their city apart piece by piece.
**

Review

Praise for Ilona Andrews and the #1 New York Times Bestselling Kate Daniels Novels

“Ilona Andrews's books are guaranteed good reads.”—Patricia Briggs, #1 New York Times bestselling author 

“Kate is a great kick-ass heroine.”— Locus

“One of the brightest voices in urban fantasy...Ilona Andrews delivers only the best.”—Jeaniene Frost, New York Times bestselling author

“One of the best urban fantasy series ever written!”— RT Book Reviews

“Andrews's edgy series stands apart.”— Library Journal

“Urban fantasy absolutely does not get much better than this.”—SF Signal

“I can’t think of another series so consistent, so well written, so full of wit and action and drama that always manages to give me exactly what I’m needing.”—Fiction Vixen

About the Author

Ilona Andrews is the pseudonym for a husband-and-wife writing team. Together they are the coauthors of the #1 New York Times bestselling Kate Daniels urban fantasy series and the romantic urban fantasy novels of the Edge. They currently reside in Texas with their two children and numerous pets.

mamap's review against another edition

3.0

I've really enjoyed this series. Alas, this is probably the end for me.

I should have known better since Ilona Andrews, or the married couple who write the books, like to also write nasty romance books - that this book would also have such smut in it. Just one scene. Added, I guess, to make it smutty for the masses? Well, I'm out.

A little slow. A little boring. And leaving too many holes and nothing answered.

laura_devouring_books_crumpets's review against another edition

5.0

Kate Curran, Evil Djinn, breaking from Pack Rowland and Julie all wrapped up as Kate and Curran defeat the Odds again!

truequeenofchaos's review against another edition

5.0

"Answer me this, did you hesitate at all or did you see the giant, go 'Wheee!' and run toward it?"

I've never laughed as hard from a line in a book as I did with that one. I'm still laughing about this quote and I read it weeks ago. Basically this was a great installment to the series and I loved all the new supernatural stuff introduced.

papidoc's review against another edition

3.0

Interesting world-building...always something new. I do find myself skipping over more and more as the series progresses. At one time it was more about the fantasy and world differences, but the last couple of books have had one or two steamy scenes that I find objectionable and unnecessary. Very disappointing, but at least they are easy to anticipate and skip over.