Thursday, 24 December 2009

Mini Review #12: Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews


2008, Ace Books
260 pages, Paperback
Personal Copy

Fantasy, (urban)

Cushions: 5
Daggers: 3
Paperclips: 4
Smiles: 5
Tissues: 3
Yunaleska's recommended rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

Summary from Ilona Andrews' website.

Down in Atlanta, tempers – and temperatures – are about to flare…

As a mercenary who cleans up after magic gone wrong, Kate Daniels has seen her share of occupational hazards. Normally, waves of paranormal energy ebb and flow across Atlanta like a tide. But once every seven years, a flare comes, a time when magic runs rampant. Now Kate’s going to have to deal with problems on a much bigger scale: a divine one.

When Kate sets out to retrieve a set of stolen maps for the Pack, Atlanta’s paramilitary clan of shapeshifters, she quickly realizes much more at stake. During a flare, gods and goddesses can manifest – and battle for power. The stolen maps are only the opening gambit in an epic tug-of-war between two gods hoping for rebirth. And if Kate can’t stop the cataclysmic showdown, the city may not survive…

When I read the blurb on the back of the book, I thought the book would centre mostly around the gods and goddesses (and Kate's involvement in fighting them). To a certain extent it did - but not quite as I expected. I love this installment because Kate has a huge responsibility - she becomes a guardian of a volatile person heavily connected (Kate doesn't know all the details for quite a bit of the novel) with the gods and goddesses. It was clear that Ilona Andrews (well, Ilona and her husband Gordon) are parents - the way Kate deals with Julie, how Julie reacts to Kate are realistic.

Because of Julie, I think Kate fights even harder to put the world right. It's a bit difficult to track a thief who literally goes poof into thin air. It's even more annoying when the goods he steals are recovered - then stolen by him again. I really enjoyed how as a reader I got to learn more about how both the Order and the Pack work - all the little details which were touched upon in book one.

This is a series filled with action, magic and many fabulous concepts.

Check out Ilona Andrews on her (their?) website and blog.

Like this? Make sure you've read the first book in the series, Magic Bites.

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