2.96k reviews for:

Magic Bites

Ilona Andrews

3.8 AVERAGE


Great book. Kate Daniels is another strong female lead. I seem to be drawn towards books like these. Few characters that I can't wait to read more of is Curran, and Saiman. only reason why this book received 3stars from me instead of 4 or 5 is because there were a few scenes that were very descriptive or had a lot of explaining. I love reading more about character interaction, witty banter, and dialogue.

I hear this series only gets better. Already halfway through book 2.

Eh...how to say my opinion of this. Okay at first, it's good- entertaining and not slow. Then you get about 1/2 and I felt like I missed a book or a short story, it seemed like there was some "no spoken" words between characters. But overall, it was a pretty good book. And It was not long either ;)

I liked the kickoff of this series. UrbanFantasy can be a bit formulaic, but I didn't lose interest and it was a quick read. So many people rave that this series only gets better so I'm willing to overlook the short/quick wrap up of this first one. My interest in learning what's really involved in Kate's history/parent etc. I'm curious enough to want to continue on the journey. Plus, Curran was interesting/annoying in that back and forth bantering way. Nice introduction to the characters, but now I'll just have to dig deeper with the rest of the books.
adventurous mysterious medium-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

The GraphicAudio experience was interesting. Could definitely do without the weird grunting whenever two characters kissed, though.

This was a reread and I still had a really good time with it.

This one doesn't work for me. I can't get into the idea of a tech-magic shift. How did Crest drive to the restaurant while the magic was on? What happens if you're on the ley and the tech hits?
Also there were too many holes in the narration filled with one sentence explanations. "I had to distract them, so I just escaped." Erm, what? How? I appreciate a story where the world building isn't done with a brute force approach but there's a difference between subtle and sloppy.
The story has potential and the secret blood line or whatever thing might turn out to be an interesting bonus further into the series, so if you don't mind wonky details this series might work for you. I'm too obsessed with logic to make it work for me, unfortunately.

DNF

I'd say really a 2 1/2 star book, the first half was confusing as so many characters are introduced and seemingly dropped as soon as they started to become interesting, in the end the only two character's that seem to get any development at all are the heroine Kate Daniels and one of her adversaries through much of the novel.
victinerary's profile picture

victinerary's review

4.0
adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
0🌶

* Note: I was feeling a tad loquacious while writing this so be ready for a ramble * 

First installment in what looks to be along series about Kate Daniels, a merc living in an Atlanta of the future where a tide of magic has come back with a vengeance against technology. Magical tides rise and fall, wiping out all technical function. Magic and monsters are the norm in this new world order and sometimes you just need to carry a sword. 

We meet Kate after her guardian is murdered and she takes on the case. She crosses paths with the Pack of (animal) shapeshifters, the People (a deadly mix of necromancers and their controlled vampires), and the Order (a peace keeping force of sorts, highly skilled in magic and sworn to a code of their own. Kate's late guardian was a member). This is definitely the world building book for the series, so we meet a lot of characters (there's a helpful who's who in the back of the book) while learning a lot of details about the chaos of the magic x tech system. 

As a start, the overall premise intrigues me and made me want to read the next book. We have a mystery to solve and a lot of twists on the road to solve it. Unfortunately that road includes a lot of bloodshed, so if you're not a fan of blood, gore, or fights, this one won't be for you. There is a rawness to this world that is both very intriguing and at times off-putting. Where a lot of modern fantasy romanticizes vampires and werewolves and the like, this is a darker take. There are necromancers and vampires who are mindless killing machines and beings willing to gut someone else without a second thought. 

This is a gritty urban fantasy that feels like a darker, bloodier, magical version of Veronica Mars if she had a penchant for swords instead of tasers. Kate is not a perfect character. She is flawed and deeply human, and has a lot of secrets that we are not privy to yet. She's the type to keep herself apart or sacrifice herself instead of getting close to people because it's more dangerous for them. She has layers that make a reader want to learn more about her: her origins, her motivations, her endless supply of sass. 

Add in an interesting (if deadly) set of friends and enemies and this looks to be an interesting series. 

I don't know quite how to describe it, but the world being built in this series is one I'm not sure yet if I want to visit for a whole series. It is a dark one with seemingly very few patches of light, and those patches are elusive for someone like Kate. She may be human, but she exists in a world of shadows and monsters. Magic is so often described as wonderful and well... magical. But in this world, even the magic is inherently destructive and dangerous. It tears apart entire buildings and re-creates landscapes. It's as dark world, but sometimes the most interesting things live in the shadows. It's a world that makes you want to peer deeper, even if it means leaving the light behind while you do. 

I'll give the authors this, while this wasn't a "5-star, I loved it for giving me the warm and fuzzies" read, it did something harder. It made me think and question the truths we are slowly learning about this world and it's characters. It's a challenge worth continuing, let's see what book 2 has in store.

3.5! I had a much better time with this than that time I tried to read that other extremely popular UF series that shall not be named. No rage face here this time.

jesica_sykes's review

4.0



Enjoyed the first book of the Kate Daniels series. I like the storyline as well as the mystery around each of the main characters. Will definitely keep reading the series!