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A review by kzimm2024
Gunmetal Magic by Ilona Andrews
5.0
Original read in May 2018, 5 stars but no review
Re-read Feb 2024, 5 stars holds but I do wish I had remembered that a 2nd novella is snuck in there and then I wouldn't have bought "Magic Gifts" again separately...
Andrea has had just the worst childhood. Unless people understand that and that the "Pack" could mean the same thing to her, there is no understanding. Thankfully there is this gem of a story that helps us see Andrea and all her emotional baggage she has to work thru to find a happy ending. She is a worthy friend to Kate, such a badass. I love how she comes in to her own.
We all know this is a story of her and Raphael and that this is their reconciliation after a 3rd act break-up, so no spoilers there right? 29 highlights for this story and so I will touch on the relationships rather than the murder mystery that Andrea is trying to solve. And we get more Ascanio, Aunt B and ROMAN! I didn't know how much I enjoyed his character until re-reading this combined with the weekly serials currently released, bravo!
Highlights-
Starting with a reunion with Raphael who brings a bimbo to the show:
“I got your message,” Raphael said.
And I’ve got yours, loud and clear. Inside me, the other me, the one that grew claws and fangs, howled in helpless fury. She didn’t understand nuances. She understood only that the person who loved her and cared for her had betrayed her and now she hurt.
He was mine. Mine! The other me screamed inside me, tearing at the walls to be let out. I struggled to keep her in check, imposing logic over emotion. Moving on was one thing. Moving on I could understand. It would break my heart, but I would understand it.
This was a giant “fuck you” spelled out in glowing letters.
--------------
“We’re engaged to be engaged,” Rebecca said. “We’re waiting until the end of the physical year to officially announce.”
“You mean fiscal year?” Dear God, she was a moron.
“Yes, that’s what I meant.”
Thankfully we get clarity later but man I would be SO hurt by that, not sure I could come back.
Andrea ends up working with Ascanio:
“Why two bows, mistress?” Ascanio asked, sinking a sudden English accent into his words.
“The crossbow has more power but takes longer to reload.” I strung the longbow. “Sometimes you have to shoot fast. And can you go ten minutes without being a smartass?” I grabbed the quiver.
“I don’t know, I’ve never tried, mistress.” He shook his head. “But arrows bounce from monsters.”
“These don’t.”
-----------
“But if you have doubts, why don’t you go stand over there. I’ll shoot you and we’ll find out if it hurts.”
-----------
Kate leaned back against her chair. “Where is the bane of my existence?”
“In the shower, freshening up.”
“Oh God, who did Ascanio screw now?”
“No, no, he’s covered in blood.”
“Oh good.” She sighed and stopped. “The kid is covered in blood and we’re relieved. There is something wrong with us.”
And this!!!:
“How did your day go?”
“I got some head. It was vamp, but still.”
I stared at her. Kate was the last person I would have expected to make that joke. Well, someone had loosened up since mating. “That good, huh.”
“Yup.”
Insight to her horrible childhood, to be hunted like this:
I kicked off my blanket in disgust. I’d dreamt of being beaten. The memory of the dream fluttered in front of me, still vivid.
It was my eleventh birthday, and the older boudas had chased me into an old farm equipment store. I’d hid in a metal drum trough, the kind used to feed the pigs. They’d found me, poured kerosene into the drum, and set me on fire.
And I could go on and on with highlights, mostly involving ROMAN- so good and funny:
Roman dismounted next to us, his staff in his hand. He wore a tank top and black pajama pants with an Eeyore pattern.
“I have had it with this shit,” he announced. “I got woken up in the middle of the night, didn’t get any sleep again, rode across the whole damned city, nu na cherta mne ato nuzhno."
---------------
“Your pajamas have Eeyore on them.”
“I like Eeyore. He’s sensible. A sober outlook on life never hurt anyone.”
---------------
Raphael stepped forward. Roman did, too. They stood dangerously close.
“I asked you a question,” Raphael said, his voice saturated with menace.
Roman’s voice turned icy. “And I told you to fuck yourself. Which part wasn’t clear?”
--------------
“You asshole,” I punched him in the shoulder.
“Gentle! I bruise easily.” He rubbed his carved biceps and I caught a glimpse of a tattoo on his arm: a skull wearing a beret. Army Ranger. Now I had seen everything.
There is a massive fight, an Egyptian god, possession of Andreas body for said god, 2 times near death for Andrea and then this sweet moment:
He opened the box. A white engagement ring with a band shaped like a beast’s paw lay on a small velvet pillow, with a beautiful sapphire clasped in its tiny white claws.
“I’m fucked up,” he said. “I have many faults. But I promise if you marry me, I will love you and take care of you for the rest of our lives.”
I stared at him.
“If you put up with me, I will put up with whatever you can throw my way,” he said. “Bad days, good days, ‘I’ll cut you if you look at me the wrong way’ days. I’ll take them all.”
I knew I had to say something.
“If you kill her with this after everything I’ve done,” Doolittle said behind me. “You will never leave this swamp.”
And we get our HEA :)
Re-read Feb 2024, 5 stars holds but I do wish I had remembered that a 2nd novella is snuck in there and then I wouldn't have bought "Magic Gifts" again separately...
Andrea has had just the worst childhood. Unless people understand that and that the "Pack" could mean the same thing to her, there is no understanding. Thankfully there is this gem of a story that helps us see Andrea and all her emotional baggage she has to work thru to find a happy ending. She is a worthy friend to Kate, such a badass. I love how she comes in to her own.
We all know this is a story of her and Raphael and that this is their reconciliation after a 3rd act break-up, so no spoilers there right? 29 highlights for this story and so I will touch on the relationships rather than the murder mystery that Andrea is trying to solve. And we get more Ascanio, Aunt B and ROMAN! I didn't know how much I enjoyed his character until re-reading this combined with the weekly serials currently released, bravo!
Highlights-
Starting with a reunion with Raphael who brings a bimbo to the show:
“I got your message,” Raphael said.
And I’ve got yours, loud and clear. Inside me, the other me, the one that grew claws and fangs, howled in helpless fury. She didn’t understand nuances. She understood only that the person who loved her and cared for her had betrayed her and now she hurt.
He was mine. Mine! The other me screamed inside me, tearing at the walls to be let out. I struggled to keep her in check, imposing logic over emotion. Moving on was one thing. Moving on I could understand. It would break my heart, but I would understand it.
This was a giant “fuck you” spelled out in glowing letters.
--------------
“We’re engaged to be engaged,” Rebecca said. “We’re waiting until the end of the physical year to officially announce.”
“You mean fiscal year?” Dear God, she was a moron.
“Yes, that’s what I meant.”
Thankfully we get clarity later but man I would be SO hurt by that, not sure I could come back.
Andrea ends up working with Ascanio:
“Why two bows, mistress?” Ascanio asked, sinking a sudden English accent into his words.
“The crossbow has more power but takes longer to reload.” I strung the longbow. “Sometimes you have to shoot fast. And can you go ten minutes without being a smartass?” I grabbed the quiver.
“I don’t know, I’ve never tried, mistress.” He shook his head. “But arrows bounce from monsters.”
“These don’t.”
-----------
“But if you have doubts, why don’t you go stand over there. I’ll shoot you and we’ll find out if it hurts.”
-----------
Kate leaned back against her chair. “Where is the bane of my existence?”
“In the shower, freshening up.”
“Oh God, who did Ascanio screw now?”
“No, no, he’s covered in blood.”
“Oh good.” She sighed and stopped. “The kid is covered in blood and we’re relieved. There is something wrong with us.”
And this!!!:
“How did your day go?”
“I got some head. It was vamp, but still.”
I stared at her. Kate was the last person I would have expected to make that joke. Well, someone had loosened up since mating. “That good, huh.”
“Yup.”
Insight to her horrible childhood, to be hunted like this:
I kicked off my blanket in disgust. I’d dreamt of being beaten. The memory of the dream fluttered in front of me, still vivid.
It was my eleventh birthday, and the older boudas had chased me into an old farm equipment store. I’d hid in a metal drum trough, the kind used to feed the pigs. They’d found me, poured kerosene into the drum, and set me on fire.
And I could go on and on with highlights, mostly involving ROMAN- so good and funny:
Roman dismounted next to us, his staff in his hand. He wore a tank top and black pajama pants with an Eeyore pattern.
“I have had it with this shit,” he announced. “I got woken up in the middle of the night, didn’t get any sleep again, rode across the whole damned city, nu na cherta mne ato nuzhno."
---------------
“Your pajamas have Eeyore on them.”
“I like Eeyore. He’s sensible. A sober outlook on life never hurt anyone.”
---------------
Raphael stepped forward. Roman did, too. They stood dangerously close.
“I asked you a question,” Raphael said, his voice saturated with menace.
Roman’s voice turned icy. “And I told you to fuck yourself. Which part wasn’t clear?”
--------------
“You asshole,” I punched him in the shoulder.
“Gentle! I bruise easily.” He rubbed his carved biceps and I caught a glimpse of a tattoo on his arm: a skull wearing a beret. Army Ranger. Now I had seen everything.
There is a massive fight, an Egyptian god, possession of Andreas body for said god, 2 times near death for Andrea and then this sweet moment:
He opened the box. A white engagement ring with a band shaped like a beast’s paw lay on a small velvet pillow, with a beautiful sapphire clasped in its tiny white claws.
“I’m fucked up,” he said. “I have many faults. But I promise if you marry me, I will love you and take care of you for the rest of our lives.”
I stared at him.
“If you put up with me, I will put up with whatever you can throw my way,” he said. “Bad days, good days, ‘I’ll cut you if you look at me the wrong way’ days. I’ll take them all.”
I knew I had to say something.
“If you kill her with this after everything I’ve done,” Doolittle said behind me. “You will never leave this swamp.”
And we get our HEA :)