Publication Date: April 2007
Pages: 260
Genre: Fantasy (Urban Fantasy)
Goodreads Blurb:
"Atlanta would be a nice place to live, if it weren’t for the magic…
When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start. But then technology returns, and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose, leaving all kinds of paranormal problems in its wake.
Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercenary who makes her living cleaning up these magical problems. But when Kate’s guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta’s magic circles.
The Masters of the Dead, necromancers who can control vampires, and the Pack, a paramilitary clan of shapechangers, blame each other for a series of bizarre killings—and the death of Kate’s guardian may be part of the same mystery. Pressured by both sides to find the killer, Kate realizes she’s way out of her league—but she wouldn’t have it any other way…"
I love this book. I have become a major Ilona Andrews fan girl in two books. So in the span of a week, I've become her newest fangirl. The writing makes it a fun read, that isn't overall complex. Even so, the world building is very well done, there is character development and an interesting storyline.
Basically this book is about Kate Daniels, who's a mercenary and spends her time cleaning up messes that are caused by magical problems. Her guardian (and closest thing she had to a family) was murdered. No one knows anything and she wants to find answers. Through this she gets involved with two groups (Masters of the Dead, necromancers) and the Pack (clan of shapeshifter) both think the other group did it, and Kate needs to find out who is in charge of the killings.
Ilona Andrews should write courses on how to write a badass female protagonist. This is one of the few books where the female protagonist doesn't need a man. Sure she wants a man and there is hints of romance, but it doesn't help her career or make her dependent. Anyone writing a female protagonist take notes! Kate had some development and is a really interesting protagonist. She also has a sword named Slayer, which is really cool. Curran is a shape shifting alpha werewolf and I'm sure that he will be a love interest eventually. He seems really hot, so I'm here for this. Curran is also a strong character and seems like someone
I like how this book felt more mature, less drama and certainly more gruesome than any YA that I've read and Patricia Briggs. With saying that it still doesn't cross into the level that my weird fiction or horror novels tend to provide. It walked a fine line and it works. There is defiantly a lot more to be learned about this world, but it's the first novel and if they gave all the answers people wouldn't feel the need to continue.
Supposedly this is the worst book in the series and isn't a good intro. Thus with how much I enjoyed this book, I can only imagine how amazing the rest of the books are and I'm here for it.
4 wine glasses out of 5.
I recommend them to anyone who's into fantasy (or even just urban fantasy) and anyone who loves bad ass female protagonists. I was honestly raving to my mom about these books and she hates fantasies and was telling all my friends about Ilona Andrews books. Thus, definitely read it. It's one you don't want to miss.
Cheers,
Jen