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victinerary 's review for:
Magic Bites
by Ilona Andrews
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.
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.