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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
I heard a lot of hype for the Kate Daniels novels, but I just couldn't get into this one. There's a lot of paranormal out there, and this is one series I'm going to skip.
March 16, Finished.
Pros:
Interesting setting
Little to no info-dumping (as far as I can remember)
Kate's relationship with Mr. Plastic Surgeon --This is difficult to define, but I liked how the difference between their social status put a strain on the relationship. Also, why was he so interested in her? Does he dig women with knives?
Cons:
-Low diplomacy scores (why does pretty much every meeting begin with crude verbal sparring and maybe a brawl?)
-Sexual harassment (most males Kate runs into are like "hey babe, want summa this??" while crudely gesturing to their crotch. I could forgive this when Corwin (I listened to the audiobook so sp?) did it because he might literally have been raised in a barn, but everyone else? Do they mean it or is it just a form of verbal posturing? Is it lazy writing? I don't know and it bothers me!)
-Consistency fail (First, the pack leader's all like "Hey Kate, the pack owes you a debt! You're awesome!" and then when she suggests that, hey, maybe that sorceress wasn't the big bad, he's like "Attention whore! Get thee away!")
So. The gender politics were my biggest problem with the book (I can take misogyny, but please please please make it obvious that you've thought it through and are doing it because it adds something to the worldbuilding and you made a conscious decision to include it). My second biggest problem was pretty much all the other interpersonal interactions. I know that the only reason I finished it was because I had the audiobook and a sweater I'm trying to finish knitting.
March 15, disc 3 of 8:
I'm not even halfway through the book, but there's a few things that're bothering me so I want to get them down before I forget.
First.
Count the women (I'm listening to the audiobook so I can't easily go back and look up characters' names and I've forgotten most of them):
The main character
The secretary at the Order of the Knights place
The morgue technician
Anna
The four missing young women
Count the men:
Greg (who may be gone but his presence is felt)
The head honcho of the Atlanta Knights
The other knight
Jim (a merc)
The journeyman necromancer
The leader of the Pack
The rich shapeshifter
The charitable plastic surgeon
The men are powerful. They are leaders, fighters, and/or highly-educated. The women are underlings, missing (probably kidnapped), or only good for leaving cryptic messages on answering machines.
I don't think it's an exaggeration for me to say that even Jim Butcher's female characters (most of whom are ogled mercilessly by the male gauze of the author) have more agency than this. Seriously. I don't generally notice this sort of thing, but as Kate bounced like a ping-pong ball from one powerful male character to another, I couldn't help but notice the imbalance.
I hope it improves by the end of the novel, but I doubt it.
One thing that I know will not improve is the person narrating the audiobook. She's trying so hard to be pouty and noir that it's driving me crazy. Just talk normally! Plus, I think she should probably use a Southern accent for Kate and the narration because she gives all the other characters accents? Unless Kate is from somewhere else and we just haven't found out yet....
Pros:
Interesting setting
Little to no info-dumping (as far as I can remember)
Kate's relationship with Mr. Plastic Surgeon --
Cons:
-Low diplomacy scores (why does pretty much every meeting begin with crude verbal sparring and maybe a brawl?)
-Sexual harassment (most males Kate runs into are like "hey babe, want summa this??" while crudely gesturing to their crotch. I could forgive this when Corwin (I listened to the audiobook so sp?) did it because he might literally have been raised in a barn, but everyone else? Do they mean it or is it just a form of verbal posturing? Is it lazy writing? I don't know and it bothers me!)
-Consistency fail (First, the pack leader's all like "Hey Kate, the pack owes you a debt! You're awesome!" and then when she suggests that, hey, maybe that sorceress wasn't the big bad, he's like "Attention whore! Get thee away!")
So. The gender politics were my biggest problem with the book (I can take misogyny, but please please please make it obvious that you've thought it through and are doing it because it adds something to the worldbuilding and you made a conscious decision to include it). My second biggest problem was pretty much all the other interpersonal interactions. I know that the only reason I finished it was because I had the audiobook and a sweater I'm trying to finish knitting.
March 15, disc 3 of 8:
I'm not even halfway through the book, but there's a few things that're bothering me so I want to get them down before I forget.
First.
Count the women (I'm listening to the audiobook so I can't easily go back and look up characters' names and I've forgotten most of them):
The main character
The secretary at the Order of the Knights place
The morgue technician
Anna
The four missing young women
Count the men:
Greg (who may be gone but his presence is felt)
The head honcho of the Atlanta Knights
The other knight
Jim (a merc)
The journeyman necromancer
The leader of the Pack
The rich shapeshifter
The charitable plastic surgeon
The men are powerful. They are leaders, fighters, and/or highly-educated. The women are underlings, missing (probably kidnapped), or only good for leaving cryptic messages on answering machines.
I don't think it's an exaggeration for me to say that even Jim Butcher's female characters (most of whom are ogled mercilessly by the male gauze of the author) have more agency than this. Seriously. I don't generally notice this sort of thing, but as Kate bounced like a ping-pong ball from one powerful male character to another, I couldn't help but notice the imbalance.
I hope it improves by the end of the novel, but I doubt it.
One thing that I know will not improve is the person narrating the audiobook. She's trying so hard to be pouty and noir that it's driving me crazy. Just talk normally! Plus, I think she should probably use a Southern accent for Kate and the narration because she gives all the other characters accents? Unless Kate is from somewhere else and we just haven't found out yet....
3.5-4
I think this book got stronger as it went along. I was a little worried when I started this that this might be another one of those books where the main char is the lone fleshed out woman in the story and all the other players in the story are various men. And it kind of is that way, but at least there's another woman she sometimes talks to? It's very little, but it's more than some other books and I can believe that there's a relationship there. At this point, without having read any further in the series, like, I still hold out hope that it can get better on that front.
I'm glad to be adding this series to my urban fantasy repertoire (lol). I'm interested in seeing how it turns out. It didn't grab me right away and I didn't feel super immersed in it like I do with books I'm REALLY into, but I did enjoy it and I do think it's one of the better urban fantasy books I've read so far (only beat by the Mercy Thompson series).
OH. And I was into the fact that vampires are totally disgusting creatures that normal humans are expected to revile in this series. The vampire myth in this book is interesting (in fact, I think I'd like to know more about ALL the creatures that are in this world). Like, I'm all for enjoying the sexy vampire thing but sometimes we need to take it back to the creepy monster thing.
I think this book got stronger as it went along. I was a little worried when I started this that this might be another one of those books where the main char is the lone fleshed out woman in the story and all the other players in the story are various men. And it kind of is that way, but at least there's another woman she sometimes talks to? It's very little, but it's more than some other books and I can believe that there's a relationship there. At this point, without having read any further in the series, like, I still hold out hope that it can get better on that front.
I'm glad to be adding this series to my urban fantasy repertoire (lol). I'm interested in seeing how it turns out. It didn't grab me right away and I didn't feel super immersed in it like I do with books I'm REALLY into, but I did enjoy it and I do think it's one of the better urban fantasy books I've read so far (only beat by the Mercy Thompson series).
OH. And I was into the fact that vampires are totally disgusting creatures that normal humans are expected to revile in this series. The vampire myth in this book is interesting (in fact, I think I'd like to know more about ALL the creatures that are in this world). Like, I'm all for enjoying the sexy vampire thing but sometimes we need to take it back to the creepy monster thing.
Sort of a noir who-donne-it set in a post cataclysmic even in Atlanta. Kate is a sarcastic hard-case with a penchant for mouthing off to the wrong people, but since she's the first to want to slap herself in the head for it, she comes across as roughly endearing rather than obnoxious.
The world setting is very interesting and the characters have many dimensions. Very enjoyable.
I will add an EDIT on this review, over 6 years later and many a re-read. I came to these books and Ilona Andrews in general through Jeaniene Frost, who is a close friend of the author. Ilona Andrews is the biggest gift the Night-Huntress series has ever given me.
The world setting is very interesting and the characters have many dimensions. Very enjoyable.
I will add an EDIT on this review, over 6 years later and many a re-read. I came to these books and Ilona Andrews in general through Jeaniene Frost, who is a close friend of the author. Ilona Andrews is the biggest gift the Night-Huntress series has ever given me.
DNF-ed at about 50%. The narrator bugs the crap out of me and the endless exposition is just dull.
Super slow start for me I think since I was confused by the world building. But once I understood how things worked I was impressed! I’ll be looking into the next book for sure!
I have a list of things I didn't really like about this book, but in the end, I really enjoyed it and want to read the next one in the series, which is really all that matters - right?
Rereading Book 1 of the Kate Daniels series was a breath of fresh air after three years of mostly subpar UF series that recycled each other's contents.
Kate is the best kind of kickass heroine; smart, sassy, powerful, but most importantly, knows when to back down/doesn't let her pride get in the way of doing the smart thing. This last point is crucial to creating a kickass yet also likable heroine. Too often do I read about supposedly badass heroines who refuse to back down and end up getting themselves in stupid situations or heroines who come off as bitchy and confrontational instead of genuinely badass. Kate oozes badassness. It's ingrained in her bones from the way she thinks, speaks, carries herself, and her actions.
Not once did she cry for help. I know that for a fact because I always waited for it and felt a sense of pride (total Kate Stan, incase it wasn't already obvious) each time she gritted her teeth and dealt with her enemy without even sparing a thought about asking/wishing/needing help. Hell, she only cried out in pain once throughout the entire book and it was during the final showdown with the big bad at the end of the book.
She was brave. Yeah, she was scared when faced with an impressive foe, but she never let her fear prevent her from doing the right thing. She's honorable as hell and knowing her backstory, knowing how secluded she was growing up and the lessons drilled into her about keeping people out, it made me admire her selfless actions to put herself in the line of fire for people she didn't even know and sacrifice herself even more impressive.
Romance wise, I'm enjoying the slow burn. At times I did find myself frustrated due to lack of action on Curran's part, but remembering the Curran POV's that Gordon Andrews wrote made those scenes (dinner at Fernando's/Curran with one of his many "ladies") more bearable. Also, let's not forget that "for luck" kiss. It signified the beginning of the chase and oh how sweet it'll be reading about the mating game all over again.
Now off to book 2 :)
Kate is the best kind of kickass heroine; smart, sassy, powerful, but most importantly, knows when to back down/doesn't let her pride get in the way of doing the smart thing. This last point is crucial to creating a kickass yet also likable heroine. Too often do I read about supposedly badass heroines who refuse to back down and end up getting themselves in stupid situations or heroines who come off as bitchy and confrontational instead of genuinely badass. Kate oozes badassness. It's ingrained in her bones from the way she thinks, speaks, carries herself, and her actions.
Not once did she cry for help. I know that for a fact because I always waited for it and felt a sense of pride (total Kate Stan, incase it wasn't already obvious) each time she gritted her teeth and dealt with her enemy without even sparing a thought about asking/wishing/needing help. Hell, she only cried out in pain once throughout the entire book and it was during the final showdown with the big bad at the end of the book.
She was brave. Yeah, she was scared when faced with an impressive foe, but she never let her fear prevent her from doing the right thing. She's honorable as hell and knowing her backstory, knowing how secluded she was growing up and the lessons drilled into her about keeping people out, it made me admire her selfless actions to put herself in the line of fire for people she didn't even know and sacrifice herself even more impressive.
Romance wise, I'm enjoying the slow burn. At times I did find myself frustrated due to lack of action on Curran's part, but remembering the Curran POV's that Gordon Andrews wrote made those scenes (dinner at Fernando's/Curran with one of his many "ladies") more bearable. Also, let's not forget that "for luck" kiss. It signified the beginning of the chase and oh how sweet it'll be reading about the mating game all over again.
Now off to book 2 :)
Reading [b:Magic Bites|38619|Magic Bites (Kate Daniels, #1)|Ilona Andrews|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1331612872s/38619.jpg|38381] is like watching a movie you missed the first 20 minutes of. At first you don't really know whats going on and you're kind of confused but the further you go the more you understand what the hell is going on.
Kate is a total bad ass and knows it but still has flaws that make her extremely likeable and just engaging to read about. The story is fast-paced, quick and keeps you flipping the pages til the end. All the other characters were really fun to read about and I loved that the romance was really toned down if present at all.
The biggest problem and also the books greatest asset to me is the world building. The world is incredibly complex and you can feel that the authors put a lot of thought and effort into creating it. I loved how original it felt and how we got new twists on creatures like vampires and shapechangers that tend to get kind of stale after you read a couple of the typical PNR and UF novels. This just felt fresh. It's just that the way it was presented was so confusing that I felt like I never really fully understood what was going on. There are so many different creatures, groups and words that get thrown around without really getting explained that I was just lost halfway through my reading. I appreciate authors that show instead of tell but this one took it a little too far from me.
Another little thing that really bothered me was how gory and explicit the descriptions of body parts and corpses were. Not that I have a problem with gore but I really don't need to know which exact bones were crushed or what kind of intestines are strewn about. Was a little too much for my taste.
This definitely has a lot of potential and I'm definitely going to try and pick up the next one in the series and I just hope that those will be a little easier to get into.
Kate is a total bad ass and knows it but still has flaws that make her extremely likeable and just engaging to read about. The story is fast-paced, quick and keeps you flipping the pages til the end. All the other characters were really fun to read about and I loved that the romance was really toned down if present at all.
The biggest problem and also the books greatest asset to me is the world building. The world is incredibly complex and you can feel that the authors put a lot of thought and effort into creating it. I loved how original it felt and how we got new twists on creatures like vampires and shapechangers that tend to get kind of stale after you read a couple of the typical PNR and UF novels. This just felt fresh. It's just that the way it was presented was so confusing that I felt like I never really fully understood what was going on. There are so many different creatures, groups and words that get thrown around without really getting explained that I was just lost halfway through my reading. I appreciate authors that show instead of tell but this one took it a little too far from me.
Another little thing that really bothered me was how gory and explicit the descriptions of body parts and corpses were. Not that I have a problem with gore but I really don't need to know which exact bones were crushed or what kind of intestines are strewn about. Was a little too much for my taste.
This definitely has a lot of potential and I'm definitely going to try and pick up the next one in the series and I just hope that those will be a little easier to get into.