Category: Urban Fantasy

E. J. Frost-Capricorn

Okay, so yeah, I said that I would update once a week at least, but I didn’t last week. That’s because I was doing special projects for work, and that took up all of my puny brain power. On the other hand, it meant I made more money, so you know, priorities. Then we had three storms in 6 days, which meant 20 plus inches of snow in those six days, and now we’re gearing up for some really cold weather for Friday and Saturday. Now, I live in the Great White North of the US, so I am used to cold weather, but my house is heated by a heat pump, which it doesn’t work as well when you get down to 10°, and we’re looking at -20 Fahrenheit which for you civilized people is -28. That’s not counting the wind chill, which is supposed to get down into the negative 50s, which again for civilized people, is- 45. So yeah, it’s going to be cold and I have chili that I’ll be making in the Crock-Pot and ham and beans that will be making in the other Crock-Pot, and stew at some point. But none of that is really pertinent to today’s book.

Today’s book is Capricorn, by E. J. Frost. Now this book has an interesting position. It is part of the Masters of the Zodiac series, which is a shared world series. It is also a spin-off/continuation/sequel/something, to the Teddy’s Boys books. I am not 100% sure on how to classify it. It does contain all the the main characters from the Teddy books, but they aren’t the main focus. The Mr Black, Evan Lord, from the book is, along with his baby girl Rachel. But, you know how Teddy and her boys are, they do push their way in quite well. There will be some possible spoilers for Teddy’s books in this, so be aware.

Capricorn starts 7 years after Quaternion. Evan is in wizarding jail, for something he may or may not have done. Evan was Rachel’s Daddy, but he released her when he was in prison. However, that hasn’t stopped her from writing him letters. On this particular day, Evan gets called into the warden’s office where a Fae prince is waiting for him. It turns out that Evan is now being released.

When Evan gets released, he ends up going to the Capricorns. It is a special club for those people who were born in the Capricorn star sign. The Capricorns are in charge of protecting the ley lines. Problem is, several members of the Capricorn have been murdered. When Evan gets there, it turns out he is now the leader of the Capricorns, and has to figure out who did the killing. So yeah he’s going to be busy. He ends up staying in fairy with Teddy, her three husbands, their children, and Rachel. And oh yeah, the king occasionally shows up, and for occasionally understand all the time. Evan tries to either forget that he was Rachel’s Daddy or try and become her Daddy again. While Rachel wants it, she is also now a fairy Knight, with a sword and all. She has also become a bit bratty.

So, Evan and Rachel go out to figure out what the problem is. They, of course, run into a lot of issues. And Evan gets to watch Rachel fight and enjoy how good she is at that. They also manage to work through their issues and get their relationship back on track.

This is as far as I’m going to go and describing the book, because if I go much further I will be getting into the meat of everything. There are so many things I like about this book though.

I like the place where Rachel is. She has undergone a lot of stuff since we met her at Bevington, and most of that she did, not quite on her own, but without the rock that Evan had become for her. She always had Teddy, they have become really sisters. But that is different from having her Daddy with her. But she has really grown, and become stronger, physically, emotionally, and mentally. She knows exactly what she wants and she will go out and get it.

I think that Evan starts out on the back foot. As far as I can tell the book takes place in current year. So he’s gone from let’s say 2015 to all of a sudden 2022. Imagine how much difference we’ve seen in 7 years, and all of a sudden he gets all of that. There are a few lines in the book about people wearing masks all the time, so you know, plague. But even without the plague, there have been a lot of changes going on, including Rachel transitioning from a young woman to a fully fledged and realized adult. It takes him a minute to figure out everything. And he’s got this new leadership of the Capricorns and all these murders that he has to figure out all at once. So, it’s no wonder why he’s a little confused sometimes.

But, even with saying all of that, he catches up to everything fairly quickly, and figures out what he needs to do. Of course, it does take some help from everyone, but he is more than willing to take that help.

The climax of the book really got to me. I was impressed with what happened, and saddened by it. And I think that I will carry parts of that along with me for a while.

Okay, that is all for this one. I recommend that you go check it out. You can probably enjoy it without having read Teddy’s Boys, but you will enjoy it better if you have. Happy reading!

Hailey Turner-A Veiled & Hallowed Eve

This is the 7th book in Hailey’s Soulbound series, and it is absolutely, positively NOT a standalone. You 110% have to have read the other 6 books in the series before you read A Veiled & Hallowed Eve. I highly recommend this series, I mean, very highly. It’s an MM series that has shifters, dragons, mages, and gods who walk among us. The world that Hailey created is beautiful, deadly, and feels oh so very real.

OK, so we have Patrick. He’s a combat mage who survived a previous god war. Because of damage taken in that war, he is no longer in the military, but works for a branch of the government now. It’s like the FBI, but for supernatural things. He’s based in NYC, with his boyfriend, wolf shifter Jono.

The past 6 books have been one battle after another. Each book has had its own unique battle, but they are all tied together in one overall storyline. And now, we have come to the end. I am going to be very careful with spoilers here, because pretty much everything I say could be a spoiler, so the synopsis is going to be really broad. Go read the books, trust me, all the ins and outs are worth it.

It’s nearly Samhain, the day that the veil between this world and all others is thinnest. It’s also the time that the Dominion Sect is going to make their big move. It has to be Samhain when it happens, because the bad guy wants to turn himself into a god and bring all the hells to Earth, and the hell dimensions will be closer that day.

Jono and Patrick are both exhausted. They’ve been fighting for such a long time, and right now they are fighting a war of attrition against hunters and demons. And it’s still weeks until the big day.

I really like Patrick and Jono, together and apart. Patrick is a very good man who has had a bunch of shit handed to him in his relatively short life. He’s been taught and trained as a weapon, and been used as that for the majority of his life. He’s self-sacrificing and the majority of the higher powers and authorities in his life have taken advantage of that fact. People have lied to and for him for most of his life. There are reasons why many of those lies have been told, but that doesn’t mean that the truth isn’t going to hurt him when if/when he finds out about it. I understand the reasoning behind why they have done what they have done, but it doesn’t mean that they ever had Patrick’s best interests at heart. Frankly, I think that there is only one adult in Patrick’s younger life who had his interests at heart, and I think that person kept him centered as much as they were able to.

Then there’s Jono. Jono will always make sure that he has Patrick’s best interests first. He will make sure that Patrick will take care of himself even if he doesn’t want to. Jono makes Patrick a better person, in all the best ways. Jono’s life hasn’t been perfect, but he had a better start than Patrick, and he’s determined to make sure that Patrick knows how valued and valuable he is and how much he is loved. Jono is a loving, caring person, who is very loyal to his friends. He will make decisions based on that loyalty so that he can protect those who are important to him. I think that he and Patrick really complement each other quite well.

I have loved every book in this series. They have all kept me right on the edge of my seat, and I gobbled them up. I was really sad to see this series end, because of just how good it was. Because we follow one main couple and their friends and family through the whole series, we really get to know Patrick, Jono, and all their associates.

This one has a lot going on. But it’s not an overwhelming, even though there is a lot of action. It does nicely tie everything up in a very satisfying way. When I was done reading it, I just sighed a very happy sigh, because I was really happy with what happened.

Top 10 MM Books of 2020 pt. 1

I am persnickety on some things when I’m reading, but whether it’s MM or MF isn’t one of them. I will read MM, MF, FF, and everything in between, in whatever combinations and numbers possible. For me, it isn’t just about what parts go into which places, although that is nice, it’s also about the connection between the characters, and that connection doesn’t matter if you are male, female, trans, non-binary, or gender fluid. And technically, this should be classified as LGBT instead of MM, because one of the books has an NB character. But, the books on this particular list focus on the more male side, so I’m going to go with MM. So, in no particular order, let’s get to the first part of my list.

Susan Hawke-How to Forgive

How to Forgive (my post) is the 6th book in Susan Hawke’s Lovestrong series. This is Susi Hawke’s contemporary pen name, under Susi, she writes omegaverse. I would really put this book as a campanion book to How to Heal, which is book 5, more than just the next book in the series. It involves Grayson, who is non-binary, who has come home after college and is trying to build their life back up in their hometown. Gray finds their ideal job, but their bossis Clark, their old bully. I loved this because we really get to see Gray’s journey and what they have gone through. We’ve seen Clark’s and how he tried to change, so I loved seeing the other side, and how Gray works to build their relationship with the big bad biker. I love Susi’s books, no matter what name she’s writing under.

Piper Scott-Single Dad Sundays

Piper writes omegaverse, and one of her series is called the Single Dad Support Group. It’s a bunch of guys who were single dads who got together in an online forum and gave each other a lot of help. There are chats throughout each of the books, and on her page every Sunday, Piper would have a question that a reader asked, and the dads would all reply to it. Well, Piper pulled all those Sunday chats and turned them into this book. It’s funny as hell, and I will never see the word placenta in the same way again.

Kai Butler-The Earl and the Executive

This is a Regency romance. But it takes place in the future. In space. Yeah. You wouldn’t think that those 3 things fit together, but Kai made it work, and made it work well. You get an impoverished Earl who is looking for a wealthy spouse to marry. It’s a lot of fun, and you get to see spaceships set against the ton.

AJ Sherwood-How to Shield an Assassin

AJ writes some funny books while still keeping up some intense action, and that’s what she did here. This is the first book in a series, all focusing on different guys in this friend group. You see them all show up in each book, so you really have to read the books. This one is about Ari, who is an assassin, who is out doing his job when a little girl asks him to help her out with her step-dad. He takes care of the dude and then adopts Remi, as one does, you know.

Make sure to read the content warnings on this, because they are funny af.

Alice Winters-How to Vex a Vampire

Alice is another writer like AJ. (my post) Her stuff is funny as hell, she writes outrageous characters, and you still get these intense stories that drag you in. This book is the first one in a series, and you have to read them in order. Each book is about a new couple, but you see everyone in every book. This series is an urban fantasy, and has vampires, both born and created, and focuses on a vampire police squad. I honestly want to just take Finn home and keep him.

This is another one where you should read the content warnings.

OK, that’s the first part of my Top Ten MM books from last year. Check back tomorrow for more. 🙂

Alice Winters-How to Vex a Vampire

Alice Winters is one of my favorite MM authors. She writes a damn good story, with fantastic worlds, but that’s not all. She also writes the most ridiculous, funny, charming characters. And How to Vex a Vampire fits right in with the rest of her books. I laughed my ass off while I was reading it, because it’s really impossible not to.

As you can tell from the title, this is a PNR/UF kinda thing. So, here’s our story. Finn is a human homicide detective. He walks into a crime scene, and Marcus points out that he shouldn’t be there. That’s because the vic is a vampire, and the Vampire Related Crimes department of the police is supposed to handle it. But Finn has a plan. He knows that they need to have a new person in their department, and he wants to be that person. There is a very young vampire there, and he nearly attacks the human analyst doing work, which means there’s suddenly an opening. Finn basically begs the head of the department, Brooks, to let him have the job, and he gets it. It helps that Brooks has known Finn for a long time, having been a friend of his adoptive father. So, he knows Finn’s history and abilities.

Poor Marcus, who is a very old vampire, gets stuck with Finn as a partner. It really annoys Marcus, and he does what he can to try to scare Finn off, which doesn’t work the way that he really wants it to.

Finn is just totally ridiculous and incredibly charming. He’s one of those people who never meets a stranger and knows that everyone loves him. He just can’t imagine it being any other way. And then the fact that he’s positive that you love him kind of makes it so that you do love him. He wears you down and grows on you. Or you just get too damn tired to fight him off any more. Either way, it works. But the thing is that Finn is just as smart, talented, and competent as he thinks he is. Which is almost too bad for him, because, well, that just gives him more fuel for his ego. Which really doesn’t need any more fuel. And you could almost think that he would be insufferable, but he really isn’t. He’s just this guy that you really just kinda want to take care of and be friends with. But you also want to snark at and with him.

The snarkasm is heavy in any of Alice’s books, but it’s never really mean. It’s just the way that the characters communicate.

I can’t wait for the next book in the series, and I hope it comes soon. Of course, I can’t wait for the next book in any of her series, and I definitely recommend them to everyone.

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I’m dying to find out more about Finn’s history and why certain things happened.

OK, that’s all I have to say about this one. Go check it out! Happy reading!

2019 Round Up-Top 10 MM Pt. 2

As a totally off-topic notification, I’m now an Amazon Affiliate, and any qualifying purchases can give me a commission. 

If you missed the first part of this list, go check it out here. And now, on to the second part of the list.

AJ Sherwood-Jon’s Downright Ridiculous Shooting Case

Jon’s Downright Ridiculous Shooting Case is a totally fun title, and it’s a great book. Before you read the book, you need to make sure that you read the trigger warnings, because they are hilarious. This is the TW and tags from this one.

“Trigger Warnings:
Your average cop show violence and criminals

Tags:
Companionable snark, Flirting, Kissing, Jon needs a hug, Donovan gives the best hugs, Getting together, Self-esteem issues, Explicit content, Anal Sex, Romantic Sex, Random shooting, Which Donovan isn’t happy about, Donovan is a gentleman, Sort of, Jon just makes it REALLY REALLY HARD Okay?, Bisexual character, Public displays of affection, Muscles, Communication, Healthy relationships, The fluff might kill you, Supernatural elements, Modern with Magic, Feels, All the Feels, Mostly accurate medical stuff, Multiple electronics died in the creation of this story, blame Jon”

Anyway, I would probably put this in the urban fantasy because it has a heavy paranormal side. Jon is a psychic who has some serious strong powers. He helps to solve crimes for the police and for anyone who hires the agency he works for. He is in need of an anchor, someone who can help him shield. He also needs a bodyguard, which is where Donovan comes in. This is a slow burn, but a good one. There are also 2 direct sequels, and a spinoff novella. So worth reading.

Adara Wolf-Blue Storm

Adara tends to write on the heavier end of kink and dub/noncon. Blue Storm does dabble into that side of the pool, but not as much as some of her other books. In this one, people have some basic magic, which lets them know their true names, which protects their souls. Then, there are the Nameless, who don’t have magic, and have to be bound as slaves, and named as their owners or they basically splinter into painful pieces. Blue Storm was named by his owners, and the book is about his struggle with his name and with what his owners want.

Barrie Farris-Ingenious

Ingenious is a dystopian story. The way that it works is that women have taken over the world and currently run it. Men rise and fall by the women that they marry and if they can breed children. Enter Quiggs who is a bloody genius, Einstein and DaVinci mushed up together. There is great world building in here, and the relationships between Quiggs, Max, and Beau are really interesting. I am eagerly waiting for the next book, but it is taking its own sweet time.

Susan Hawke-How Not to Tuck

How Not to Tuck is a novella in the Lovestrong series. This is the story of Larry, AKA Honey Combover, a drag queen we meet in the first book. Mama Honey is hilarious, especially when it comes to the descriptions of her tuck failing and her python. Yeah, it’s just that big and that funny. For an even better description, and one that goes on for several pages, check out How Not to Blend, the first book in the series. It’s a quick read, and one that’s just a lot of fun to read.

K Webster-The Glue

Yup, The Glue is K’s second appearance on this list. And this one isn’t technically an MM book, it’s an MMF, but I’ve decided that it counts. This is one of K’s taboo treats, starring Aidan and married couple Vale and Vaughn, one his boss, the other his professor. Like all of the other taboo treats, it’s a standalone, but it is all interconnected with other books. I loved watching Aidan figuring out who he was and what he wanted. It’s a very sexy story, and I am always looking forward to K’s new books.

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Charlie Godwyne-Equinox

I get ARCs from all over the place, PR companies, authors, Booksprout, and various teams I’m on. I get almost all my MM ARCs from LesCourt Author Services. I love working with LesCourt because I get a chance at a huuuuuge selection of ARCs. Also, the team is just awesome. So, why the big shout out to LesCourt in this post? Well, because without the ARC opportunities I get from them, I would likely not have found Equinox by Charlie Godwyne. And that would’ve been a total loss, because this book blew me the fuck away.

So, here’s our story. It takes place in Augarten, which is a huge park in the second district of Vienna. It’s a real place, with an amazing history, including morning concerts by Mozart and Strauss, and you should definitely go read more about it. I did. And Charlie is from Vienna and wanders around Augarten on the regular, and it’s incredibly obvious that Augarten is a place they love so much.

There is a man who wakes up in the garten, right at the base of a tree. He thinks that trees are talking to him. He can see the magic of the garten, the trees, the sky, and everything, and starts to see all kinds of things. He passes out again and wakes up to a priest praying over him. He was praying to High Archangel Gabriel to protect our first man.

When the first guy starts to talk to the priest, he realizes that he has no clue who he is. He has no memory, doesn’t know his name, nothing. So, the priest decides to call him Gabriel. Turns out that the priest’s name is Solomon, and the head of his order had a dream and sent him out to find Gabriel. Apparently, Gabriel lit up all kinds of magical and spiritual warning systems when he showed up in the garten.

Solomon takes him to the woman who runs part of Augarten, who ends up letting Gabriel stay there, as long as he’s willing to work. Solomon tells him that he’s going to help Gabriel do everything he can to help him get his memory back. Meanwhile, Gabriel does everything he can do to help out at Augarten and starts to make friends. Solomon teaches him to meditate, sings Latin prayers over him, takes him to appointments, and shows up regularly. Then there’s Florian.

Gabriel runs into Florian one night at the garten, when Florian is praying. He worships Welsh gods, and prays in Augarten. Gabriel hears him, and the language sounds familiar to him. This ends up with them being friends.

We also have Ian, who is really important to Gabriel and Solomon. We learn a lot of things from Ian. Of course, he knows so much he doesn’t share. The asshole.

Charlie is a debut author. This is their first book. And it’s not often that a debut author writes something that is so incredibly mindblowing. The book is very cohesive, and the world is incredibly detailed. There is a very tricky mix of time periods, to the point where you aren’t exactly sure what the time period is, which is fabulous. There is also a big mix of spirituality, religiousity, magicalness, and realism. Charlie managed to put it together seamlessly. It all fits in together easily, like that’s the way that the world really works and the way that the world really should. All of our main characters have that mix inside of them, in their own particular mix, and they each have their own way to express that and express that mix. That spirituality is a huge part of the book, but it’s not shoved in your face or anything. It’s just part of the ebb and flow of the book and the book would be lesser to take that part out of it.

This is a slow burn, a pretty slow burn. I love how the romance builds up the way that it does. If the romance had been just jumped into, I don’t think it would’ve worked as well, because Gabriel needed a better understanding of himself. The slow burn was necessary, and it works perfectly for this one.

I really, truly, deeply hope that Charlie Godwyne has an Augarten #2 in the works, because I’m dying to find out more.

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Ian’s angelic ass is sitting on so many secrets. I really want to know what all he knows. I have suspicions about him that I’m not telling.

OK, that’s all for this one. I can’t recommend it enough, I really can’t. Go check it out. Happy reading!

Ilona Andrews-Sapphire Flames

Sapphire Flames is the latest book in Ilona Andrews’ Hidden Legacy series. While it is a continuation of the overall series, it is not a continuation of Nevada and Rogan’s story. This one is the first book that focuses on Catalina, the oldest of Nevada’s younger sisters. She is a Prime talent, but not one that most people are aware of. She is classified as a siren. In other words, she is going to draw you to love her. And you want to love her to death. Her family are all immune to her because they love her just for who she is. Turns out that there is another person who is immune to her. But don’t worry, we’ll get to him shortly.

SF takes place 3 years after Wildfire, the last Nevada/Rogan book, and there have been a lot of changes in Dallas and House Baylor. Nevada is no longer the Head of the House, but Catalina is instead. And Catalina has taken some epic lessons from Rogan’s mother, which is really good, since their 3 safe years are over now. Catalina knows that people are going to be coming for them, since they are a brand new house, and they are going to be looking for weaknesses. She doesn’t really talk about her power much because of the way it works, and her records are all sealed. To top all that off, she is trying to keep the detective agency going without ending up as a vassal house to anyone and still adhering to the rules that her parents set out back when they started out. That’s what gets them into the case that they are in right now.

And then, there is Alessandro. He is Italian and gorgeous. He was part of the trials that Catalina had to go through in order to be declared a Prime. He came to the warehouse to try and get her to go with him on a ride, which she turned down. But that doesn’t stop her younger sister and cousins teasing her about him. Of course, that’s only payback, if you ask me. They did the same thing to Nevada, so what goes around comes around, you know? Alessandro has his own motivation here, and no one knows what’s going on, including Catalina. They do like each other though, so it’s really interesting to watch.

I like Catalina. We get to see all kinds of sides to her in this. She changes a lot, depending on what needs to happen and who she needs to be at the time. She’s a chameleon, but she’s what House Baylor needs at the moment. Nevada would never be able to do the things that Catalina has to do for the House. It’s not that I think that Nevada is weak or anything, I just don’t think that she has the same core that Catalina does, which is what is going to make it possible for her to make painful decisions, and ones that might come right up to the line that her family has drawn over the years.

I am up in the air about Alessandro. There’s a lot of saying about revenge, and I think that several of them will fit in here. I’m looking forward to seeing how the thing between the two of them is going to work.

Nothing under the pic today either. Go check this one out, and in fact, read everything written by Ilona Andrews. I can’t recommend the books enough. Happy reading!

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Macy Blake-The Chosen One

We all know that I love to read just about anything, and I take great joy in sharing the wonderful reads I find, right? Well, today I’m going to share Macy Blake and her Chosen One series. There are currently 5 books and 2 novellas, I think, I might be wrong on the novella numbers, set in the universe. There are 3 in the main series, All or Nothing, Nothing Ventured, and Next to Nothing. Then there is a prequel, Sweet Nothings. And a spinoff with the Hellhounds, Hell on Earth. The books are all MM, but not mpreg, mostly. I think that the Hellhounds books are more Omegaverse with some mpreg going on, but I’m not going to say for certain until I read it in the book. I do know for sure that there alphas and omegas, so there’s that.

Now, Macy calls this a reverse harem story, because even the first one starts out with 5 guys, and they add in more guys as each book goes on. But, I wouldn’t call it reverse harem at all. In an RH, generally it’s Person A and they have a lot of lovers who are only lovers to Person A. Other reviewers have said, and I agree, that this is an excellent example of a polyamorous relationship. That’s because all the guys have a relationship with each other and are all mates. There is the larger relationship and then each of them have their own relationships within that large group. And there are sexcapades galore. Pretty much, if you can think of any combination that 5 guys can get into, then they get into it. It’s pretty damn hot, and I don’t even have all the right pieces.

So, here are our base 5 guys. We have Sawyer, who has lived next to Draco for years, and who has crushed on him for most of that time. Then we have Henry, Eduard, and Andvari, who showed up in Sawyer and Drake’s neighborhood, in a McMansion they had built.

The way that the stories work is that long ago, an oracle foretold that there would be a chosen one who would bring back the magic, which has been going missing or being messed up for centuries now. Since that time, there have been 8 guardians called from the various clans to guard the Chosen One when they show up. No one knows anything about the Chosen One or who they are going to be. All they know is that each time a guardian dies, another is chosen.

At the beginning of the series, we have Draco, a dragon, Eduard, a gryphon, Andvari, a vampire, and Henry, a seer, who are all guardians. Then there is Sawyer. Sawyer who has loved Drake forever, but not known his secret until now. Drake has wanted Sawyer forever, but knew that he might be called away to be a guardian elsewhere, so has never given way to that desire. He knows that he wouldn’t survive being away from Sawyer that way. Sawyer, who is also a magical null, who can help Henry through the terrible pain he gets from his vision and who everyone is drawn to.

I really love this series and this world. I really like all of the characters that Macy has given us so far. I have favorites, of course, who doesn’t. Sawyer, Henry, and Meshaq are my favorites out of the entire world, so far.

The world building is great. Macy has really created a universe where things all make sense within the ‘verse, and the world is very rich and detailed. You can tell that she has put a lot of work into it. The story has a lot of love and a lot of sex, but there is also a lot of politicking, danger, conspiracy, and adventure. It’s really pretty much a perfect combination.

OK, that’s all I have to say on this series. The entire series is on KU, so it’s easy to check it out. Happy reading!

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Seanan McGuire-Night and Silence

I love Urban Fantasy, and there are a few authors that are auto reads for me. Seanan McGuire is one of those, especially when it comes to her Toby Daye series. She has a couple of other series under her name, as well as one under Mira Grant. That one is a zombie series, and the first book freaking devastated me. But, today we’re here to talk about the latest Toby Daye book, Night and Silence. I haven’t reviewed the entire series here, but I did review the previous book, Brightest Fell here, so there is some history on the blog.

Toby and Tybalt and May and Jazz are trying to put their lives back together after her mother Amandine captured Tybalt and Jazz in order to make Toby look for August, her older sister. As a reminder, Toby is a changeling, her mother, Amandine is one of the First, the progenitor of a species of Fae, a very exclusive species, consisting of Amandine, August, and Toby. Toby’s father was human, but she and her mother left when Toby was 7. These days, Toby has very little human blood, because as part of her innate magic, she can change the balance of her blood and pull out her human-ness.  Tybalt is her Cait Sidhe lover, and the local King of Cats. He has two forms, he can be a cat or he can be a man. They are engaged to be married. May is Toby’s Fetch. A fetch is an omen of death, and yeah, Toby has died, but she got better. May is nearly Toby’s clone, sharing the same memories up until the moment that she was created to be Toby’s Fetch. Now, they are sisters, sharing their lives together. Jazz is a Raven Maid, which means she has two forms, a woman and a raven. Amandine kept Jazz and Tybalt in their animal forms while she kept them captive, and now both of them are having a hard time dealing with it, and haven’t been able to shift back to their animal forms since. They have some serious PTSD going on.

All of a sudden, Toby’s ex and his new wife burst into Toby’s house and accuse her of stealing her daughter, who is now college age and going to Berkley. She’s disappeared, and they want to blame Toby. However, Toby has had nothing to do with it, but being who she is, a private investigator and a knight and hero of the Kingdom of The Mists of Faerie, as well as a mother, even if Gillian hasn’t wanted to see her in years, she will go out and do what she can to find her daughter. And she’ll do what she can to try and help Tybalt get better and hopefully bring him back to her.

Tybalt has been one of my favorite characters from the very first time he burst onto the scene in the first book. Even before he and Toby became lovers, he was always there for her, even when she thought that he hated her. He has always just been a steadfast being, and flamboyant in all the best ways. There’s a novella about him in one book or another, and it’s the history of Tybalt in London in 1666. It was fascinating. This book made me happy and sad for several reasons, but only in the best way. It has brought about a lot of changes and revelations, which ought to be really interesting in the books to come. But now I have to wait for a year to find out what is going to happen. That is so sad. Oh well, Seanan McGuire is totally worth the wait.

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I’m going to be very interested to see how Gillian’s new circumstances are going to work out. I mean, everyone has worked hard to keep her out of Faerie, and now she’s right smack dab in it. And the fact that her step-mother is her immortal great-grandmother and the mother of one of the First? Yeah, that’s going to be so fascinating.

I can’t wait for Tybalt and Toby’s wedding. I hope it is so fantastic! And I hope it’s in the next book.

OK, that’s all I have to say about this one. Go check it out! Happy reading!

Ilona Andrews-Iron and Magic

Ilona Andrews is a husband and wife team, Ilona and Gordon Andrews. They write one of my all-time favorite urban fantasy series, the Kate Daniels series. The last book in that world comes out later this year. I’ve had it on pre-order for nearly a year. That’s how much I love this series. So, when they announced that they were writing a story around Hugh D’Ambray, I was excited, because it meant that we would get more of that world, but also I was interested to see how they would take one of the baddies from Kate’s world and make him likable in any way. I have an interesting relationship with Hugh. I both hate him and love him. Hate him because he wants to hurt my Kate and love him because he’s a great bad guy. Horrible things have been happening to Hugh lately, and I wanted to see how well he could manage them. Well, let me tell you, I was not disappointed at all. Iron and Magic was all that I could’ve wanted and even more.

So, here’s where we start. Hugh is drinking himself to death. He’s been abandoned and all he can do is drink to try to feel better, to try to forget, to try to feel anything. The remaining leaders of his Iron Dogs track him down and tell him that he needs to man up, stop drinking, and help them. The Iron Dogs are being hunted, are hiding, running, and starving. When Hugh is sober enough to listen to them, they decide that they need a base, and one of his advisors has found one for him.

Deep in Kentucky, Elara is queen of her castle. She watches over her people to make sure that they are OK and does everything she can to keep them that way. But when Roland’s Legatus keeps trying to buy her castle, she knows that she needs an army to fight him. She doesn’t have an army, but Hugh does. Hugh doesn’t have a base, but she does. It’s a perfectly incovenient marriage made in purgatory.

When I say marriage, I speak literally. In order to bring everything together, they marry to seal the deal, just like alliances have been made over thousands of years. It doesn’t mean that they love each other or that they even like each other. As long as they are married, it’s all good.

The female characters written by Ilona Andrews are generally strong, fearsome, devious, and delicious. See Kate, Nevada, Andrea, Aunt B, etc. Let’s add Elara to that list. She is very strong, both as a character and as a magic user. She knows who she is, what she is capable of, and what she will do in order to keep her people safe. That makes her even stronger, in my opinion. She’s very smart and tends to have plans within plans. She doesn’t let her right hand know what her left hand is doing, or let Hugh know everything she knows. Elara is definitely going in my favorite female characters list.

Hugh is different from the Hugh D’Ambray we know and loathed/loved in the previous books. He’s rebuilding himself, and figuring out who he really is and what he really wants to do. Elara makes him think certain things through and figure certain things out, which I didn’t even see until Elara shoved them in Hugh’s face, and then I was like damn, how’d I miss that.

Their marriage is like a crazy monkey knife fight sometimes. It’s awesome to watch. I can’t wait to see where it is going.

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Oh so many things that I could say down in my lovely spoiler section. Hmmm… What shall I say?

I need to know more about Elara. She’s hiding so much. Who and what is she?

OMG, Erawan. That was fucking awesome. Just so fucking awesome.

Hugh and Roland. Wow!

I want to see Hugh and Kate and Curran get together and talk somehow. I think that would be epic. Especially after the epiphanies that he’s had.

OK. That’s all for this one. If you love Kate Daniels, urban fantasy, sword and sorcery books, this is a must have. Go check it out. It’s available at all the booksellers. Happy reading!

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