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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Fun fantasy mystery. There were some plot points that were mentioned but never explained, but I imagine they would be answered in the future books in the series.
This is a great detective urban fantasy story set in England. I really like our main character and how she’s drawn back into the orbit of her magical family despite her best efforts to steer clear.
I like the ghost man living in her home and I like her cop on again off-again boyfriend. Heck, I’m ok with the Uncle (he’s a complex character who’s fun to get a beat on) and I like the Fox dude once we meet him.
The larger plot and family lore is enough to hook readers but not so much that it takes away from each book’s individual mystery.
The series balances a fun, pulp-y vibe with some darker elements.
This first book is a bit of a slow start-up, but there’s a lot to establish, so I don’t hold it against the series. Plus, everything picks up from here.
I like the ghost man living in her home and I like her cop on again off-again boyfriend. Heck, I’m ok with the Uncle (he’s a complex character who’s fun to get a beat on) and I like the Fox dude once we meet him.
The larger plot and family lore is enough to hook readers but not so much that it takes away from each book’s individual mystery.
The series balances a fun, pulp-y vibe with some darker elements.
This first book is a bit of a slow start-up, but there’s a lot to establish, so I don’t hold it against the series. Plus, everything picks up from here.
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Certainly not a candidate for the Booker prize, but very enjoyable nonetheless. I will certainly go for the second book of the series, as I am curious to find the answers to the open questions left (what's Jas n's backstory, who is really Fleet?). I think it would be interesting if someone turned this into a TV series.
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
This was a good introduction to the this urban fantasy world but I didn’t find it very engrossing. It was a quick read and interesting but it didn’t blow me away. I liked Lydia but I guess I’m tired of all main characters being P.I.’s. I really wish there were more unique professions. I’ll keep going with a couple more books in the series to see how I feel when it really gets going.
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was a pretty uneven series start. I read the whole thing but I still don't really understand much. It's like the whole book was painting a picture using invisible paint.
Pretty much every conversation feels loaded and veiled. I don't understand anything about the magic, or what's going on with the four families. Or what they can do.
The rest of this is going in spoiler tags.
I don't know what Madeline was doingat all - if she was getting out, why was she still in London at all? Why did she try to kill Ivan? Why on earth did Charlie want Lydia (FMC) to deal with it?
Why does it seem like everyone's powers are starting to strengthen? To be fair, that question is likely a series-long plot point, so I can live with not having that answer in this first book. But Madeline said the families are getting weaker and it's obvious that isn't the case. The Fox people we met shocked Lydia with their power. The Pearl store pretty much mesmerized Lydia with its power, so potent she was almost trapped.
What kinds of magics are real in this world? We're told the Silver family can talk anyone into anything - gift of gab, basically - and the Pearl family could sell ice to an Eskimo (how that differs from the gift of gab, I have no clue). But we're not told anything much about the Fox and Crow gifts. There is light implication in this book that the magic comes from deities, perhaps descendents of deities... and that the Crow family came from Norway. So... Odin? I don't know. We got almost nothing, seriously.
Lydia's personality and narrative are equally choppy. Sometimes she sounds and acts like a spoiled 18 year old, other times she's some world-weary adult. She's bitchy with the ghost for no reason, this despite the ghost saving her life when they first met.
She and Fleet are circling each other, but it came on so fast that it wasn't very believable.
I don't know. I'm lightly interested in continuing, but that may be just because I want answers to those questions. We'll see.
Pretty much every conversation feels loaded and veiled. I don't understand anything about the magic, or what's going on with the four families. Or what they can do.
The rest of this is going in spoiler tags.
I don't know what Madeline was doing
Why does it seem like everyone's powers are starting to strengthen? To be fair, that question is likely a series-long plot point, so I can live with not having that answer in this first book. But Madeline said the families are getting weaker and it's obvious that isn't the case. The Fox people we met shocked Lydia with their power. The Pearl store pretty much mesmerized Lydia with its power, so potent she was almost trapped.
What kinds of magics are real in this world? We're told the Silver family can talk anyone into anything - gift of gab, basically - and the Pearl family could sell ice to an Eskimo (how that differs from the gift of gab, I have no clue). But we're not told anything much about the Fox and Crow gifts. There is light implication in this book that the magic comes from deities, perhaps descendents of deities... and that the Crow family came from Norway. So... Odin? I don't know. We got almost nothing, seriously.
Lydia's personality and narrative are equally choppy. Sometimes she sounds and acts like a spoiled 18 year old, other times she's some world-weary adult. She's bitchy with the ghost for no reason, this despite the ghost saving her life when they first met.
She and Fleet are circling each other, but it came on so fast that it wasn't very believable.
I don't know. I'm lightly interested in continuing, but that may be just because I want answers to those questions. We'll see.
Good book. Would’ve been better if homegirl was the raven, very strange ending tbh?! Like why did the author do that? Completely unnecessary. Romance was not very fleshed out, seems like one moment they were getting to know each other, on a superficial level, and the next they’re in bed together? And then we’re back to superficial conversations again. Won’t be reading the next book sorry, not enough suspense to keep me reading.
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No