Not Your Ex's Hexes

Not Your Ex's Hexes

by April Asher

TL;DL - Enemies to lovers trope romance with some good moments but inconsistent writing and characterization.

Rating: 3/5

A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon

A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon

by Sarah Hawley

Not the Witch You Wed

Not the Witch You Wed

by April Asher

 

Violet Maxwell is the "Maxwell Dud". She's the first born of triplets in a magical family but she seems to have no magic. She's grown up to be pretty ok with this but it has affected her prospects within the supernatural community. Though she's supposedly magicless, she is still being told she must marry a supe by a certain point due to an archaic tradition.

Lincoln Thorne is the Alpha of the North American Pack and he has his own bonding deadline coming up. If he doesn't bond by his thirty-third birthday, he will have to withdraw as Alpha and also as being a member of the Council.

Violet and Lincoln have a rocky history, but they have a common goal. They need to get their respective supes off their backs and a fake dating arrangement would be just the thing. 

Unfortunately, Lincoln betrayed Violet years before so faking it may not lead to making it. 

Final thoughts: Completely formulaic and full of all the romance tropes that are out there, but still a fun ride. This is cotton candy from start to finish. The author seems to be having some fun with this and does a pretty good job working with the formula and tropes. Read it with the cotton candy mindset and you should have some fun.

Rating: 4/5

Go Hex Yourself

Go Hex Yourself

by Jessica Clare

When Reggie Johnson responds to an ad to be the assistant to a Spellcaster, she assumes that the person in question is someone who works for the company that creates and publishes her favorite card game. What shes doesn't know is that spellcasters are real and she has managed to find an enchanted ad that lead her to this dotty old woman and her grumpy nephew.

Now Reggie must start believing in witchcraft and curses while learning to be the familiar of one of the most renowned witches to have lived. The grumpy nephew isn't happy with her being there but Reggie will convince him, ignore him, or both.

However, when a mysterious curse hits the family, all thoughts of not working together go out the window because only together can they solve the mystery and get that dotty old woman back on her feet.

Final thoughts: Cute book with a nice progression in the relationship between Reggie and Ben. Some of the other parts of the book have issues that were not resolved well, but I always like a book that shows instead of tells when it comes to romance.

Rating: 3/5

Warning: this is NOT a kids' book

How to Snag a Shifter

How to Snag a Shifter

by Karin De Havin 

Rating: 1/5 (AVOID THIS BOOK)

Wolf Girl Series

 

Wolf Girl

 

Lost Girl

 

Alpha Girl

Mated Girl

all by Leia Stone

Wild Sign

Wild Sign

by Patricia Briggs

When the entire population of a tiny town in California goes missing, it doesn't seem like something Charles and Anna would need to investigate. After all, it's not even in their state.

However, it turns out that the land that those missing people had settled on belongs to the mate of their pack Alpha and that means it is their business to find out what happened those those forty people. 

Taking an SUV and accompanied by the berserker werefolf, Tag, the three head down to forest in the middle of nowhere to solve a mystery.

What they didn't anticipate was coming across more than one type of mythical creature, nor did they think that one of those creatures would find Anna to be just what it needed to reach its goals.

Final thoughts: This is one of the better Anna/Charles books, but I really do prefer the Mercy Thompson series. I found it interesting that this story had a few answers to questions fans have posed for a while. The ending was a little odd, which I will go into in my spoiler-filled podcast.

Rating: 3/5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Podcast review/discussion MAJOR SPOILERS!!!!

Smoke Bitten

Smoke Bitten

by Patricia Briggs

Mercy has survived miniature zombie goats, vampire attacks, the fae, angry werewolves, a rapist, and her own bad luck. Now she needs to survive an unknown fae who has escaped Underhill, a rogue group of werewolves, the tension in her own marriage, and killer bunnies. (Monty Python would be so proud.)

For some reason, Adam, her husband and werewolf mate, has shut down their mating bond, while also spending late nights at work and sleeping in the guest room, effectively cutting Mercy out of his life. Mercy is trying to be patient and wait him out, but some people need a little offense instead of waiting in defense.

Tilly, the physical manifestation of Underhill, has dropped a door to her land in the Hauptman backyard in order to be closer to their semi-adopted son and former Underhill resident. Upon entering this world, she lets out an unknown fae who can take over the minds of its victims and make them do evil things to the people around them. 

There is a group of werewolves who have decided that now is the perfect time to try and take over their pack.

There's Wulfe, who has become radically changed after the events of the last book and who is now even more scary and unstable than ever before.

And there are killer bunnies...

With all the juggling that Mercy must do now, she should probably join a circus. 

Final thoughts: I love new Mercy books and this is no exception. She is such a strong character who knows her own mind and heart. She also seems to be the focus of a lot of bad juju, compliments of her father, Coyote. I hope that she gets a few days off of the crazy someday, although that will probably mean that I won't have anything to read and that would be sad. As with all of her books, Briggs has a complicated and convoluted story that makes sense at the end and makes better sense after a reread or two. I LOVE the return of some characters that we haven't seen for a while. I can't wait for the next book.

Rating: 4.5/5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Join or Die

Join or Die

by J. Adrian Ruth

Alex Ayers is a regular kid with a bit of a temper, a best friend, a single mom, and a pretty good life in Las Vegas. That all changes when his absent father's best friend shows up and tells him he has to leave to attend an exclusive magic school before he Changes into some sort of mythological/magical creature.

At 14, he doesn't have any choice, so he's sent off to Fios Academy to learn about his past, his present, and his possible future as the next Scion who, with his ciorcal of friends, keeps the Creature community in line.

He's got competition for the Scion job, though, and also a few Creatures who aren't happy with any Scion being in charge. 

Alex has to learn about his own half-Creature self and history before things get out of control.

Final thoughts: I enjoyed the book while reading it, but I can't help comparing it to Harry Potter. He's about the same age. He si half-human (Muggle) and half-Creature (Wizard). He's a Chosen One. There are forces against him from the start from competition in the school to dangers from without. There's a barrier to protect the school from outside harm. There's a mysterious headmaster. He's forming a circle of friends who all specialize in different things that he'll need as time passes. The list goes on and on. But, again, I enjoyed the read. If I see the sequel pop up, I'll probably read it, too. And it does look to be at least a few books if it goes year-by-year at the school.

Rating: 4/5

Thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the ARC.

Storm Cursed

Storm Cursed

by Patricia Briggs

One by one, 

Two by two,

The Hardesty witches

Are traveling through.

With a storm of curses,

They call from their tomes;

They will drink your blood

And dine on your bones.

Set three months after Silence Fallen, Mercy and Adam have settled into a pretty good routine and she's even gotten her garage back. They lead the Tri-Cities and help to keep the peace. As Adam and Mercy work to help the government and the Fae to come to an accord, other more sinister forces come to the area to try and destroy everything. 

It all starts with a goblin and some miniature zombie goats. Or maybe they are zombie miniature goats? And then just goes downhill from there. 

This may be the most difficult problem Mercy has had to face, and that's saying a lot. Even worse, Mercy will have to ally herself with the one creature she's sworn to avoid at all costs. 

This could be rough.

Final thoughts: Nice addition to the series with solid writing and some great moments. I loved learning more about one of the newer characters but I also missed seeing a number of others. The only problem that I have with this universe continuing is that the cast keeps growing and we start to miss out on seeing our faves. However, each new character helps to grow Mercy's story and adds to her, as well as the world itself. Can't wait to read the next.

Rating: 5/5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Salem's Vengeance

Salem's Vengeance

by Aaron Galvin

It's been 20 years since the Salem Witch Trials and people are still haunted by what happened. Most people still keep a close lookout for witches in their area and try not to do anything that might lead to suspicion coming down on their heads.

Sarah Kelly is the eldest child in her home and is diligent about following the word of God and obeying her strict father. 

Except when the call to dance in the moonlight comes.

On those nights, she and her friends meet up in the forest and dance until near dawn, enjoying the freedom that comes with those nights.

But one night, things go too far. Sarah's friends are caught up in something new and different by a woman who is new, strange, and powerful. Before Sarah leaves, the woman hands her a journal, which will begin Sarah's education into what really happened in Salem. 

What Sarah doesn't understand immediately is how key her role is in the vengeance that is about to come down on one of the key players from 20 years before.

Final thoughts: Very slow paced at the start and then racing at the end, like a snowball starting at the top of the mountain, only to become an avalanche at the bottom. Sarah's story is interesting on its own, but it becomes horrific and grisly towards the end. While some of the information within is historically accurate, this cannot be said to be a historical fiction novel. There's just too much horror here for that. Ok, but not great. Don't need to read the rest of the series.

Rating: 3/5 (more like 2.5)

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC

Sugar Spells

Sugar Spells

by Lola Dodge

Anise Wise barely survived her last dangerous encounter. She very nearly died and had to be brought back by a little dark magic. Now that dark magic is infecting everything that she does. Her recipes are deadly... literally. The death magic in her is so strong that she can't even walk near plants without killing them.

Anise must either wait for magic to fade, learn how to harness it so she can at least live her life, or both. 

Anise chooses both.

Now Anise must try to burn off the death magic and find a way to get her Shield, Wynn, out of the worst magical contract ever constructed.

Maybe she can do both at the same time.

Or maybe she'll end up worse than before.

Final thoughts: I still love Anise. It took me a bit to get back into the swing of things because it's been a while since I read the first book. But once in, I was hooked. The ending felt a bit rushed but that may be because I was enjoying myself so much that I didn't want it to end. Now that it's done, I'm curious to see what happens next and eagerly await the next story.

Rating: 4/5

ARC courtesy of NetGalley

How to Hang a Witch

How to Hang a Witch

by Adriana Mather

Samantha Mather is forced to move to Salem, Mass. after her father is suddenly in a coma and the bills start stacking up. She and her stepmother move into the home of Samantha's grandmother who also died recently. It's par for the course for Samantha, though. Everyone she knows seems to get hurt somehow. It's like she's cursed.

Upon moving into her dad's childhood home, Samantha immediately begins to discover strange things like a hidden stash of letters in her armoire's secret hiding spot and an entire stairway and room located behind a fireplace. That room is filled with her grandmother's journals, tons of books, and a few other secrets that still can't explain why people have started dying all over Salem. 

Samantha must also contend with the house ghost and his secrets as well as the mean girls of her new high school who, like her, are descendants of people involved in the Salem Witch Trials. But they won't accept her into their group because they are the descendants of accused witches and Samantha is the descendant of one of the men who started the whole thing.

It's up to Samantha to end the curse that has plagued her family since 1692, save her dad, free the ghost, and stop the cycle of vengeance. No pressure.

Final thoughts: Cotton candy read. I love reading about the Salem Witch Trials and I think the history of it is fascinating. The fact that the author really is a descendant of Cotton Mather is pretty cool. The story itself is a little messy at times and the antagonist was pretty obvious very early on, but I still enjoyed the read. What I think is more powerful is the overall message that bad things only happen when good people stand by and let them happen. That's a true today as it was in 1692 and might even be more true now than when the book was published in 2016.

Rating: 4/5

Deadly Sweet

Deadly Sweet

by Lola Dodge

Anise was born a witch. Her mother is a witch, too. Together, Anise and her mother have tried to keep their financial heads above water while keeping their figurative heads down. There are few places a witch can safely practice and New York isn't one of them so they need to keep their secrets close.

When Anise accidentally defends herself with fire, it's time for her to leave. Unfortunately, her mother can't follow and Anise must face life as a bakery witch on her own. Or, sort of on her own. She moves to Taos, New Mexico, where she meets her great aunt and one of the most powerful witches alive. She also meets Wynn, her bodyguard whether she wants him around or not.

And it turns out she needs him more than she would like. The last apprentice disappeared mysteriously and Anise seems to be the target of a warlock who'd like nothing more than to steal her life and her powers. 

Can Anise survive someone so powerful and evil who thwarts even the might of the thirteen strongest witches around?

Final thoughts: It's kind of like a female Harry Potter. She's a little older and already has some basic magic knowledge but the characters around her are familiar. There are a few too many similarities with the first HP book and it doesn't help that some of it is just obvious. However, all that being said, I still enjoyed it and look forward to the next book.

Rating: 4/5

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Ink Monster LLC

Burn Bright

Burn Bright

by Patricia Briggs

Bran has left Charles in charge of the pack just when the pack may need Bran the most. Now Charles and his mate, Anna, must use all the skills that they have to try and track the people who are going after the wildlings of Bran's pack. These are the wildest of the wolves who live more like hermits just so that they, and the people around them, can stay safe.

When a wildling couple dies as the result of a ruined kidnapping attempt, Charles and Anna must stop the same thing from happening to the rest of the wildlings. With Bran MIA, they must rely on his anti-social mate and some trusted pack members to get the word out to the wildlings and protect them from this new danger.

But danger may be closer than they ever believed possible.

Final thoughts: Let's just start out with the fact that I much prefer the Mercy books to these. I like her character more than I ever have liked Charles and Anna. And with that being said, this may be one of my least liked of all. The POVs are all over the place. We get Charles and Anna, but we get at least four other POVs and only for a quick scene or two, as if the author wanted to make sure the reader understood some things, but couldn't figure out any other way to do it. Mercy and Adam are the only POVs in that series and Adam showed up late in the game, but it's all consistent. This series is not and it was a mess. Additionally, we got a Mercy story mixed in early on (probably because Mercy's character would never tell it), and that made me mad, both because of the placement and because it made me really not like Bran for the first time. In fact, for a few moments, I was really angry at him and even hated him a bit. This was not a good side for him, and while it made him more three-dimensional, it was not pleasant or nice. I hate that his character has been tainted a bit now. This may be the book that turns be off Charles and Anna. Sad, because the basic story and ideas were good.

Rating: 2.5/5

ARC provided by NetGalley

The Black Witch

The Black Witch

by Laurie Forest

Elloren Gardner has been raised in seclusion with her brothers by her uncle after her parents died in the last major war. She believes that she has no magic and that her only future lies in apothecary medicines. When she is old enough, her uncle sends her off to university to study in the hopes that she will one day be able to run her own apothecary.

But best laid plans and all... Elloren's aunt steps in and tries to get Elloren to wandfast to an eligible soldier, who is also the man most sought after by Elloren's worst nightmare and most dangerous enemy. Things are worsened further when Elloren's aunt also refuses to pay Elloren's fees, forcing Elloren to work in the kitchens, and also live in the worst of the rooms with the most dangerous of students. 

The prophecy is coming. Elloren may be the one named. And time is running out.

Final thoughts: Ugh. Let's just RAM ideas into the reader over and over and over again. Racism! BAM! Prejudice! BAM! Religious intolerance! BAM!!! It's relentless and unending. No one understands anyone else. No one listens to anyone else. When one person does listen, suddenly everyone becomes friends. It's basically the Christian Right (the Mages/Gardnerians) vs. the world with Fae, Kents, Urisks, Lupines, Icarals being every other race and religions on this earth. We vilify and lie about what we don't know or understand just like the Mages make up stories and deliberately misinterpret things to put the worst spin possible on the other people.

The world was pretty decently created and I liked most of the characters, but that message was just too strongly shoved up my nose again and again. 

Rating: 2/5

ARC courtesy of NetGalley

Blade Bound

Blade Bound

by Chloe Neill

The wedding of the century is coming and Merit is the bride-to-be.

Also coming is some sort of evil that people are struggling to identify and it's threatening everything that Merit and her groom, Ethan, have fought so hard to protect.

And when werewolf Gabriel stops by to remind them of the impending prophecy, Merit just knows that the honeymoon will have to be cancelled.

Time is running out to save Chicago from the supernatural powers that threaten it and the humans who think that they can handle it.

Final thoughts: After all of the many books that seemed to drag this story out, it now feels rushed. It's almost like Neill was so eager to start a new series (probably with a certain prophesied child) that she pushed this one to an awkward end. I still love Merit and Ethan, and I definitely love how Ethan has finally accepted Merit as his equal, deserving of the chance to make a difference, but the luster has gone. I'll miss some of Chicagoland, but I'm really not too sad to see it end.

Rating: 3/5

ARC courtesy of NetGalley

Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things

by Martina McAtee

 

After years of watching her father be a barely functioning drunk, Ember must now attend his funeral and try to put the broken pieces of her life together. She's pretty much felt like she was on her own for most of her life, so this really isn't much of a change.

 

What is a change is the strange boy who seems to be everywhere watching her. Also strange is the appearance of twins who show up and take her to a tiny town in Florida, telling her that she is their cousin who was thought to be dead for the last 12 years. Now she's living with them, a pack of werewolves, and a fae.

 

Another change is the fact that she can now raise the dead, speak with the souls of the departed, and her cousins are a reaper and a banshee.

 

People want her power. People definitely don't want her to have her power. Ember and her cousins are at the center of a dangerous plan hatched generations before and now coming to fruition.

 

If she can survive it, she may become the most powerful person ever to have walked the earth.

 

Final thoughts: This thing just kept going and going and going and dragging and dragging and dragging. It was so frustrating because I kept having to put it down and pick it back up again. Only near the end did I finally look up the number of pages (having been reading the Kindle edition with only percentages listed), and I found that this thing is 508 pages. While the author is pretty good at showing and not just telling, this showed way too much and kept meandering around. Additionally, and this is a personal thing of mine, ::SPOILER ALERT:: the three death cousins are reincarnations of The Morrigan, a trio of goddesses. But one of the cousins is male. How does the author work that? She makes him gay. As if being gay makes him automatically more feminine/effeminate. That's really rude and definitely not accurate. More accurately, it's stereotyping and judgmental. 

 

Not reading the next one. Not caring one bit.

 

Rating: 2/5