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Review: The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter (Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club #1) by Theodora Goss
This book made quite a splash when it first came out, so it’s been on my radar for a while. I bought it about a year ago, and finally decided to start reading it recently. Overall, it is a fun, exciting, and most of all unique tale that I enjoyed immensely. My largest critique was…
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Review: Choices (Tales of Valdemar #12) edited by Mercedes Lackey
What should have been a comforting visit to my favorite land was tempered by the fact that the majority of the stories in this collection were continuations of stories in previous anthologies. I have a decent memory for things I’ve read ages ago, but even with that, some of these tales were hard to dive…
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Author Interview with Nancy O’Toole Meservier
I’m pleased to help celebrate the latest book in fellow author Nancy O’Toole Meservier’s superhero saga! Information about the book is below, along with some insights into her worldbuilding and writing processes and a short excerpt from the book. ABOUT THE BOOK The masks are off. Dawn Takahashi has achieved her dreams by becoming Bailey…
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Review: The Mathematical Gambit (The Galipp Files #2) by Jamaila Brinkley
This story continues the adventures of a pair of professional spies — if only their income from the profession could support them. Instead, Simon works on his magical studies and Anastasia relies on the patronage of members of the peerage who know about her clandestine role. The partners reunite to solve another case involving rich…
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2019 Resolution Project: Magic Slays (Kate Daniels #5) by Ilona Andrews
My 2019 Resolution Project over at my other blog, Speculative Chic, is to read the entire Kate Daniels urban fantasy series by Ilona Andrews, finishing up with a first read of the final book in the series. I’ve read the fifth book, Magic Slays, before, but never officially reviewed it. You can find my full review here. An excerpt: “So…
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2019 Resolution Project: Magic Bleeds (Kate Daniels #4) by Ilona Andrews
My 2019 Resolution Project over at my other blog, Speculative Chic, is to read the entire Kate Daniels urban fantasy series by Ilona Andrews, finishing up with a first read of the final book in the series. I’ve read the fourth book, Magic Bleeds, before, but never officially reviewed it. You can find my full review here. An excerpt: “This…
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Review: “Magic Tests” (Kate Daniels #5.3) by Ilona Andrews
I first read this short story as part of the collection Small Magics. It also appears in the anthology An Apple for the Creature, edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P. Kelner. My review is below: Because I’m always thrilled to learn more about Kate’s protege, I was delighted to read “Magic Tests” in this collection. Julie…
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Review: Fallow (Whyborne & Griffin #8) by Jordan L. Hawk
Whyborne’s angst starts out deep in this story, but after the revelations of the previous book, he’s certainly got a lot on his mind. Luckily, this book continues the trend of splitting the narration between Whyborne and Griffin. Griffin’s life isn’t exactly cheery at the moment, as he struggles to connect with his dour husband,…
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Cover Reveal! Steel Empires Book 5: Steel Shadows
Today is the official cover reveal for the fifth book in my urban fantasy/alternate history series, Steel Shadows! Isn’t it gorgeous? The official release date is August 8, 2019. About the Book The shadows are talking and they won’t take no for an answer. Victory has returned safely to present-day Limani, sure that nothing so…
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Review: The Star of Anatolia (The Galipp Files #1) by Jamaila Brinkley
When one reads a fantasy series, one expects the main character to be rather fantastical. But there’s something to be said for viewing the world through the eyes of a more “boring” person, with no magical ability of her own. However, Anastasia Galipp is far from normal. She is a smart, independent young woman making…
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Review: The Dragon Mistress: Book 2 (Eburosi Chronicles #9) by R.A. Steffan
I finished the first installment of The Dragon Mistress on a Friday night, right before I was supposed to play video games with my spouse and a friend. Instead, I devoured the next installment in a single evening while they played without me. I regret nothing. The dragons play a larger role in this story, as…
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Review: The Dragon Mistress: Book 1 (Eburosi Chronicles #8) by R.A. Steffan
This amazing series picks up approximately a decade in the future with the story of Frella, the younger sister of one of the heroes of the previous collection. Possibly my favorite thing about Steffan’s writing is their ability to create fully fleshed female narrative characters who each have their own strengths, weaknesses, and personalities. Frella…
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Review: Magic Mourns (Kate Daniels #3.5) by Ilona Andrews
This novella takes place between Magic Strikes and Magic Bleeds in the Kate Daniels universe, but the point-of-view character is Kate’s friend Andrea Nash instead. We’ve already been introduced to Andrea and know secrets about her character from previous books in the series, but this time, she’s the hero of her own adventure. Once again,…
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Review: The Lion Mistress (Eburosi Chronicles #5-#7) by R.A. Steffan
Because of how much I enjoyed each installment of The Horse Mistress, my first experience with the world of the Eburosi Chronicles, I went ahead and bought the full collection of the next adventure as one book. I have no regrets about that decision. This world gave me one of the most intense book hangovers of…
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2019 Resolution Project: Magic Strikes (Kate Daniels #3) by Ilona Andrews
My 2019 Resolution Project over at my other blog, Speculative Chic, is to read the entire Kate Daniels urban fantasy series by Ilona Andrews, finishing up with a first read of the final book in the series. I’ve read the third book, Magic Strikes, before, but never officially reviewed it. You can find my full review here. An excerpt: “Kate…
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Review: The Horse Mistress: Book 4 (Eburosi Chronicles #4) by R.A. Steffan
Now that our three heroes are in a solid relationship, it was time to shake things up a bit. It would have been easy for the author to focus on a more character-driven story, but I love how they don’t let the readers forget that war is coming. Times are changing, and our heroes have…
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2019 Resolution Project: Magic Burns (Kate Daniels #2) by Ilona Andrews
My 2019 Resolution Project over at my other blog, Speculative Chic, is to read the entire Kate Daniels urban fantasy series by Ilona Andrews, finishing up with a first read of the final book in the series. I’ve read the second book, Magic Burns, before, but never officially reviewed it. You can find my full review…
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Review: The Horse Mistress: Book 3 (Eburosi Chronicles #3) by R.A. Steffan
When their rock shatters, Carivel and Senovo have to work together to put Andoc back together again. Their relationship arc goes through another set of trials, just enough to make a reader worried while also keeping faith that everything will work out for the best. The world of Eburosi grows again when the characters travel…
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Review: The Horse Mistress: Book 2 (Eburosi Chronicles #2) by R.A. Steffan
The epic fantasy world of Eburosi deepens, along with the relationship between Carivel, Senovo, and Andoc, in this second installment of The Horse Mistress. Many of the quibbles I had about the first book are addressed here, such as external conflicts that stand in the way of their relationship and more extensive world-building.
