ARC Two-Doll Review: Magic Slays by Ilona Andrews
Author: Ilona Andrews
Book: Magic Slays
Release: May 31, 2011
Series: Kate Daniels 5
Source: Author
Purchase: – Book DepositoryKate Daniels has quit the Order of Merciful Aid, but starting her own business isn’t easy when the Order starts disparaging her good name. And being the mate of the Beast Lord doesn’t bring in the customers, either. So when Atlanta’s premier Master of the Dead asks for help with a vampire, Kate jumps at the chance. Unfortunately, this is one case where Kate should have looked before she leapt…
The year since Magic Bleeds came out is finally over, as is the wait for Magic Slays and can we just say, it couldn’t have come fast enough! This has got to be one of the Paperback Dolls top series recommendations and as you will see – it appears it is set to remain so. Without further ado – here is our Two Doll Review of Magic Slays:
Noa:
Kate Daniels is now also known as Kate Daniels the Mate, Kate Daniels the Alpha, the Lady or, simply Consort all titles due to her new status as Curran, the Beast Lord’s main…squeeze. She’s trying to establish herself as an independent investigator with Cutting Edge Investigations after leaving the Order but finding clients when your business is in some way affiliated with the Pack, and the Order isn’t on your friends list can be tough.
When a case literally comes barreling down the street it ends up being a lot more complex than Kate could ever have imagined. With the People, Pack, and the Red Guard all involved, and a new threat in the form of an underground organization called the Lighthouse Keepers coming out of the shadows – Kate has her hands full.
But if that’s not enough she needs to deal with her new status within the pack, the aftermath of events in Magic Bleeds and being in a serious relationship with a man not used to hearing the word ‘No’. She also needs to learn to live with this new life she has created for herself – where people care about her and she cares about them. She has a family now and friends and dealing with what they ‘bring to the table’ is not always easy.
I don’t want to get into the plot itself too deeply, I’ll let each reader unwrap that present for themselves, but I will say that for me, Magic Slays was like entering ‘Kate Daniels Act II’. In Magic Bleeds we got that wonderful ‘Happily Ever After’ we were all waiting for and now we get the actual living. The building of a relationship with its ups and downs and really, the things that make it all worth it.
Magic Slays also opens a new set of adventures for the characters we love reading about. Old plots come together as new ones (and new characters!) are introduced and I was just biting my nails for the whole crazy wonderful ride. Ilona Andrews excels at keeping you on the edge of your seat, making it humorous and touching and well, emotional roller-coaster!
A spectacular new addition to this phenomenal Urban Fantasy series, Magic Slays encompassed everything I love about these books – the action and adventure in the superbly written plots, the awesome fight scenes, the characters that just come off the page and the whole spectacular universe that made Magic Slays not only my most anticipated book of the year, but right now – my definite favorite.
Day:
*Nods head at everything Noa wrote*
I really can’t add much to the above. All I want to say is that I LOVED this book. I’ve read what I thought were pretty good urban fantasy books lately, and then I read this and the world building and attention to details are so incredible that everything else pales in comparison to Magic Slays.
Example- When Ilona Andrews writes about spells everything is so meticulous and explained so well, that there is a part of me that believes that those spells could really work. It is as if these authors go above and beyond where research is concerned but then they take the knowledge gained from all that research and then apply it to their imagination resulting in a truly original story. I have said it before and I’ll say it again, I am always awed by the Kate Daniels world.
I love that we continue to discover more about Kate’s heritage and that it is given to fans in small doses that we can savor and ponder. This go around it involves more about her mother and the man that raised her, this new information has the potential to shake Kate’s world if she allows. The revelation could be used to only create conflict, but instead it showcases the character and her growth throughout the series. Kate still has issues, but she also has more responsibility than ever before and this impacts her at the very core.
I am always excited to read another installment in the Kate Daniels series, they never disappoint and have the magic ability to transport me to another world for 300 or so pages. Ilona Andrews is one of the most consistently great authors. Everything this writing duo writes is incredible!
Also Reviewed By: Book Addict – Dear Author –
This is one of the few series that everyone likes MORE as each book comes out.
Good to hear!
I'm so excited for this book release. Great review thanks ladies.
I really enjoyed it!!! You will LOVE it Bama!!!
I think I forgot to mention I loved this book… ;)
I've not read a book yet from Ilona Andrews
I simply cannot wait! I have it pre-ordered.
[...] 2. Magic Slays by Ilona Andrews – I admit that when I first began reading this series a couple years ago, it was kicking and screaming. My friends kept talking about the characters and making references to various scenes from the books that I finally caved and began reading the Kate Daniels series. The first book didn’t instantly impress me, but out of determination not to be left out of the conversations I kept reading and boy am I glad I did! This series has what I feel is probably one of the best urban fantasy worlds. The authors attention to details and their world building skills continue to improve with every book and Magic Slays is no exception. As the fifth installment in the series, Magic Slays could have fallen into a slump, but instead it soared showing growth, maturity and added depth to memorable characters that I have grown to love. (Read our review of Magic Slays) [...]
[...] Magic Slays, the 5th installment of the Kate Daniels series was one of the books that made my 2011and proved that when the author cares enough to share the very best – awesomeness is the result. Some series get a bit tattered at the edges by the fourth or fifth book but Kate is going strong – with a heroine that will rocks your socks off and a hero that will make you purr (or purr himself, depends on the situation). Read our review of Magic Slays here [...]
Definitely one of the best of the year and another sitution in which I am anxiously awaiting the next book. Loved the growth of Kate as a person with emotions (FINALLY, but so amazing she CAN feel given Voron’s training) and the way that her ability to care distinguishes her from her infamous family. Also loved the realistic growth in her relationship with Curran. ALWAYS love authors who don’t just end with the HOA (Cat and Bones, even Eve and Roarke, though you gotta admit with a character as smokin as Roarke, reality is … well not quite reality). What The Andrews team has wrought: an incredible world revolving around a complex matrix of world mythology that always challenges me and makes me do things like read the Epic of Gilgamesh. Its like a tightly woven tapestry that as a whole is breathtaking in its beauty, but if you take the time, every thread has meaning (sorry mixing metaphors) and disentangling the threads literally gives my brain a high.