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laffingkat's review
3.0
This is an uneven collection of urban fantasy and paranormal romance short stories and novellas. Some were quite entertaining, and some were so poorly written they should not have been published without substantial revision. Most of these stories are part of a series, so if you’d like to discover new series that you might want to continue reading, you may appreciate this. If you don’t like advertising in the books you read, you may not appreciate this as much, because the authors do use the opportunity to promote their other books. Note that some stories contain violent imagery, sex, or coarse language. Many of the stories have enough typos and grammatical errors to be annoying.
Although it’s much darker than I generally prefer, one of my favorite stories in this collection is Anya J. Cosgrove’s “Lost Boy.” I was immediately drawn into the story. The language was vivid, the pacing was good, and I found the main character easy to sympathize with. The author has taken some common tropes (The Chosen One, Magic Academy) and used them to good effect here. This memorable short story is a prequel to the Bloody Hearts series, but it stands on its own. Read with caution if you dislike violence and cruelty.
I also enjoyed Vivian Lane’s “Danger Magnet.” This fun, steamy paranormal romance story is part of the Children of Ossiria series but can be enjoyed on its own. I found the characters likable and enjoyed the humor. My only frustration is that some of the early chapters seem to deal with a separate story arc that’s just dropped unexpectedly. That part of the story helps develop Antony’s character and introduce the world, but I wish it was better integrated with Jana’s story.
Although it’s much darker than I generally prefer, one of my favorite stories in this collection is Anya J. Cosgrove’s “Lost Boy.” I was immediately drawn into the story. The language was vivid, the pacing was good, and I found the main character easy to sympathize with. The author has taken some common tropes (The Chosen One, Magic Academy) and used them to good effect here. This memorable short story is a prequel to the Bloody Hearts series, but it stands on its own. Read with caution if you dislike violence and cruelty.
I also enjoyed Vivian Lane’s “Danger Magnet.” This fun, steamy paranormal romance story is part of the Children of Ossiria series but can be enjoyed on its own. I found the characters likable and enjoyed the humor. My only frustration is that some of the early chapters seem to deal with a separate story arc that’s just dropped unexpectedly. That part of the story helps develop Antony’s character and introduce the world, but I wish it was better integrated with Jana’s story.
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