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thebooksuccubus's review against another edition
3.0
So I have mixed feelings about this book... I did love the action/fighting scenes. The world building and writing were good. The twist end had me wanting more so I will be reading the next book becuase I want to know what happens. I also like the FMC most of the time I appreciated that the Goddess of Death regardless of her job still cared for life but at times I felt her to almost be a push over with how old she was. I understand that she explained that she likes to be underestimated but to take some of the crap was just letting them walk all over her. I have hope for her in the next book that she will come back with more fire. Also the love interest just wasn't there for me. I felt like the first two time they kissed were out of no where and truly felt like the hardly like each other in those moments. Towards the end they had a moment and that I feel should have been there first kiss. This was a debut book so I intrigued to see how that story progresses.
the_bookish_coven's review against another edition
5.0
This book was such an exciting read! I really enjoyed the spin on this fantasy world of gods and goddesses.
The FMC, Primrose, is a strong and fierce character which as the Goddess of Death, you’d expect but she also has a compassionate side. She goes on the hunt for Lucifer, the Demon King, who recently escaped from Primrose’s prison in the Underworld. He is infatuated with Primrose and the feeling is not mutual.. I enjoyed their dynamic! In her hunt for Lucifer, she is joined by Atlas, the God of Ice and he is icy hot
The FMC, Primrose, is a strong and fierce character which as the Goddess of Death, you’d expect but she also has a compassionate side. She goes on the hunt for Lucifer, the Demon King, who recently escaped from Primrose’s prison in the Underworld. He is infatuated with Primrose and the feeling is not mutual.. I enjoyed their dynamic! In her hunt for Lucifer, she is joined by Atlas, the God of Ice and he is icy hot
erinkellyreads's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I won a copy of this book in a Goodreads giveaway -thank you Goodreads for the opportunity.
Things I enjoyed about this book -
1. A very interesting concept around a world combined with myth and folktales - the idea of many different levels of gods, goddesses, demons, and the Grimm Brothers somehow ruling it all.
2. The action scenes were fun to follow and jam packed.
3. I love strong female characters who have a vulnerability that actually becomes a strength.
4. I enjoyed Lucifer's character. The quippy, obsessive, and scorned nature of his character was interesting and had some great one-liners.
Things I did not enjoy about this book -
1. I echo what a few other reviewers have said - this book could have benefitted from a strong development editor to trim down on extraneous material and double check that all plot devices and characters connected with no holes. The author has some great potential for ideas and a gift for action scenes; pairing her with someone very right-brained could've cleaned some of this up for me.
2. I didn't really love the main character or the love interest. The main character went from wise powerful elder goddess to petulant teenager multiple times, and the swings broke me from the connection that I kept trying to build with her. The love interest needed more time on the page doing more than just reacting to the main character - what makes this guy tick? And, since I didn't really love them apart, I didn't feel invested in them getting together. Lucifer was a stalker, but at least he was fun lol.
3. Some of the details about clothing, books, Starbucks, etc, threw me from the world building and felt more like fanfiction. I think these were meant to make the world more relatable, but I think we got that from the locations and characters (like the nurse at the hospital, etc) without needing those fanfiction-esque touches.
Overall, as you can see from the reviews on the book, this book has and will find its readers. I think readers that love sassy and sarcastic powerful female leads with a push/pull relationship with both of the love interests (sassy Luci and broody Atlas) in light toned, modern-esque fantasy worlds might enjoy this. I could see this doing really well with the YA market in particular.
Things I enjoyed about this book -
1. A very interesting concept around a world combined with myth and folktales - the idea of many different levels of gods, goddesses, demons, and the Grimm Brothers somehow ruling it all.
2. The action scenes were fun to follow and jam packed.
3. I love strong female characters who have a vulnerability that actually becomes a strength.
4. I enjoyed Lucifer's character. The quippy, obsessive, and scorned nature of his character was interesting and had some great one-liners.
Things I did not enjoy about this book -
1. I echo what a few other reviewers have said - this book could have benefitted from a strong development editor to trim down on extraneous material and double check that all plot devices and characters connected with no holes. The author has some great potential for ideas and a gift for action scenes; pairing her with someone very right-brained could've cleaned some of this up for me.
2. I didn't really love the main character or the love interest. The main character went from wise powerful elder goddess to petulant teenager multiple times, and the swings broke me from the connection that I kept trying to build with her. The love interest needed more time on the page doing more than just reacting to the main character - what makes this guy tick? And, since I didn't really love them apart, I didn't feel invested in them getting together. Lucifer was a stalker, but at least he was fun lol.
3. Some of the details about clothing, books, Starbucks, etc, threw me from the world building and felt more like fanfiction. I think these were meant to make the world more relatable, but I think we got that from the locations and characters (like the nurse at the hospital, etc) without needing those fanfiction-esque touches.
Overall, as you can see from the reviews on the book, this book has and will find its readers. I think readers that love sassy and sarcastic powerful female leads with a push/pull relationship with both of the love interests (sassy Luci and broody Atlas) in light toned, modern-esque fantasy worlds might enjoy this. I could see this doing really well with the YA market in particular.
thatbookishwriter's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
phrasecollector13___'s review against another edition
3.0
THANKS TO RALUCA NARITA FOR PROVIDING ME A COPY OF [b:Dark Magic|122771912|Dark Magic (The Chronicles of the Underworld, #1)|Raluca Narita|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1677568259l/122771912._SX50_.jpg|123779143] THROUGH A GOODREADS GIVE AWAY!
I'm not a big fan of fantasy nor, specially, of introduction books. That been said, the first half (?) of the book, which settles in the human world, was not attractive to me. When I read who the characters were I was expecting another setting. So, yeah, the book settling on the human world was not my favorite part: it was hard for me to read through it, I was asking a lot of questions (what do you mean a dragon in Las Vegas? And the spell to make people forget what they saw? WHAT IS THE SPELL? [As a matter of fact it was another character responsible to make people forget about the beautiful dragon]). And the romance... oh, my enemy when it comes to books! I didn't understand what was going on, LOL. Except with Lucifer, I understood everything. Out of that romance... relationship... rivalry... hate... love... obsession (I really didn't know what was going on between them, but they loved each other). Lucifer and his brothers and sisters were my favorite part and characters. I think wanting to know what was going on with him made me move forward with my reading.
As for Primrose... I didn't get that attached to the main character, but I appreciate her. I really like the conflict that was starting in her person. I loved seeing her grow and started to ask herself "who she was, where does she come from" and that's something that I loved (because no one understands Death). I'm looking forward into seeing her character development in the second book.
Anyways, after all the adventures of the Goddess of Death in the human world, she travels to the Ancient Land, and IN THERE IT'S WHERE THE GOOD STUFF HAPPENS. I loved, LOVED, the Ancient Land. Plot holes were started to open and I got to peak a little through it and I was loving what I was seeing. And I need the answers about Primrose's past. I really loved the Ancient Land (it was indeed very ancient) and the new characters that appear there. Not only that, we get to understand better who the main character is, how she feels, and what she wants. Definitely, Ancient Land was the best setting for the book.
I personally liked the book and I want to read the second part of this book. I would have loved to read more about Primrose's and Lucifer's relationship and their dynamic, they hook me up in the reading.
I'm not a big fan of fantasy nor, specially, of introduction books. That been said, the first half (?) of the book, which settles in the human world, was not attractive to me. When I read who the characters were I was expecting another setting. So, yeah, the book settling on the human world was not my favorite part: it was hard for me to read through it, I was asking a lot of questions (what do you mean a dragon in Las Vegas? And the spell to make people forget what they saw? WHAT IS THE SPELL? [As a matter of fact it was another character responsible to make people forget about the beautiful dragon]). And the romance... oh, my enemy when it comes to books! I didn't understand what was going on, LOL. Except with Lucifer, I understood everything. Out of that romance... relationship... rivalry... hate... love... obsession (I really didn't know what was going on between them, but they loved each other). Lucifer and his brothers and sisters were my favorite part and characters. I think wanting to know what was going on with him made me move forward with my reading.
As for Primrose... I didn't get that attached to the main character, but I appreciate her. I really like the conflict that was starting in her person. I loved seeing her grow and started to ask herself "who she was, where does she come from" and that's something that I loved (because no one understands Death). I'm looking forward into seeing her character development in the second book.
Anyways, after all the adventures of the Goddess of Death in the human world, she travels to the Ancient Land, and IN THERE IT'S WHERE THE GOOD STUFF HAPPENS. I loved, LOVED, the Ancient Land. Plot holes were started to open and I got to peak a little through it and I was loving what I was seeing. And I need the answers about Primrose's past. I really loved the Ancient Land (it was indeed very ancient) and the new characters that appear there. Not only that, we get to understand better who the main character is, how she feels, and what she wants. Definitely, Ancient Land was the best setting for the book.
I personally liked the book and I want to read the second part of this book. I would have loved to read more about Primrose's and Lucifer's relationship and their dynamic, they hook me up in the reading.
beastreader's review
4.0
I really loved this world that the author built for this book. It was rich in details. It was like a movie playing in my head. Primrose is a great female protagonist to lead this story. Having another female of Death character is great. It gave me fond memories of Darynda Jones's Charley Davidson series, a favorite series of mine.
Strong female characters like Primrose will always be welcome. The battle between Primrose and Lucifer is nice. Although, I did feel like their moments interacting with each other were not long enough and far between. I would have liked to see more scenes with each other. Additionally, the "love interest" involving Primrose and Atlas Grimm was fine. When it came to the romance, it just felt like it was not necessary. Although, I am curious to see how the story all plays out in the next book.
Strong female characters like Primrose will always be welcome. The battle between Primrose and Lucifer is nice. Although, I did feel like their moments interacting with each other were not long enough and far between. I would have liked to see more scenes with each other. Additionally, the "love interest" involving Primrose and Atlas Grimm was fine. When it came to the romance, it just felt like it was not necessary. Although, I am curious to see how the story all plays out in the next book.
mattschiller's review against another edition
0.25
I apologize in advance, with no disrespect to the author whatsoever, but this is not a book. It has words and almost 400 pages but it is not a book. This is a loose connection of ideas with AI generated words and a thesaurus to fill the gaps. Again, no disrespect intended but this is not a book.
100pagesaday's review against another edition
5.0
Primrose Titan is the Goddess of Death ruling the Underworld alongside her brother, Ben. Long ago, Primrose imprisoned Lucifer in the Underworld for crimes that were unforgivable. Now, at the annual meeting of the High Court, Primrose has been informed that Lucifer has escaped. She has been tasked with recapturing Lucifer and since the High Court doesn’t believe that Primrose can finish the task herself, Atlas Grimm, the Ice God has been sent along with her. While trying to track down Lucifer and the one weapon that can kill him, Primrose and Atlas run into a series of challenges set by the Devil himself as well as a surprise in the Ancient Lands that changes everything for Primrose.
Dark Magic is an exciting and unique fantasy adventure. I was pulled in at the very beginning with Lucifer’s escape and the introduction of Primrose’s very different character as the Goddess of Death. Primrose cares about people, though it’s hard for her to admit and takes a caring, thoughtful approach in guiding people to the Underworld. The rest of the Deities in the High Court don’t seem to care for her approach. The writing is very exciting with a new twist, turn, adventure and dangerous creature in every chapter. I was intrigued by the Deity structure, a mix of several different belief systems and mythologies as well as Lucifer, Satan and the Goddess of Death as separate entities. With new information, many surprises and a cliffhanger ending, Dark Magic is an unforgettable fantasy and I can’t wait to dive into the next installment.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
Dark Magic is an exciting and unique fantasy adventure. I was pulled in at the very beginning with Lucifer’s escape and the introduction of Primrose’s very different character as the Goddess of Death. Primrose cares about people, though it’s hard for her to admit and takes a caring, thoughtful approach in guiding people to the Underworld. The rest of the Deities in the High Court don’t seem to care for her approach. The writing is very exciting with a new twist, turn, adventure and dangerous creature in every chapter. I was intrigued by the Deity structure, a mix of several different belief systems and mythologies as well as Lucifer, Satan and the Goddess of Death as separate entities. With new information, many surprises and a cliffhanger ending, Dark Magic is an unforgettable fantasy and I can’t wait to dive into the next installment.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
thebookishteacorner's review against another edition
4.0
4.5
I was not expecting this book to actually also involve the human realm, in the sense that the deities actually lived there or frequently visited. What an entrance Primrose makes : faded jeans, Disney t-shirt, pink sneakers and a baseball cap on top of her nonchalance. I immediately loved her. She's got an attitude and she's not afraid to show it ! I'm usually not someone that sees twists coming (I intentionally want to be surprised), so let me tell you that even though I understood something was cooking, I DID NOT SEE THAT ENDING COMING ! Someone get me book 2 now, please. Also, I'm a sucker for Greek Mythology, so the references in this book were a great touch !
I was not expecting this book to actually also involve the human realm, in the sense that the deities actually lived there or frequently visited. What an entrance Primrose makes : faded jeans, Disney t-shirt, pink sneakers and a baseball cap on top of her nonchalance. I immediately loved her. She's got an attitude and she's not afraid to show it ! I'm usually not someone that sees twists coming (I intentionally want to be surprised), so let me tell you that even though I understood something was cooking, I DID NOT SEE THAT ENDING COMING ! Someone get me book 2 now, please. Also, I'm a sucker for Greek Mythology, so the references in this book were a great touch !
nannersreads's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to Book of Matches Media and Raluca Narita for providing me with an ARC of this book. This is my honest review.
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I packed this book on my road trip from Texas to Vegas and I couldn’t stop reading!
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I packed this book on my road trip from Texas to Vegas and I couldn’t stop reading!