This is the second book from the perspective of Kit Morris, the reformed criminal, police officer in training, and nonstop snark factory. This time Kit finds himself going up against actual demons, who are immune to his psychic magic; he’s also getting nowhere trying to get closer to his partner, the incredibly kickass and unimpressed Agent Lienna Shen. Both Kit and Lienna suffer from a bad case of “won’t ask for help when they really should,” which is annoying to me as a reader; Kit is a loner but Lienna should know better. Toma’s narration remains light and sardonic throughout, which works really well, and his falsetto rendition of Lienna is much less annoying than before.
Tag: genre-urban fantasy
Demon Magic and a Martini, by Annette Marie, read by Cris Dukehart
Eemotional drama finally hits this lighthearted series as a demon attack drags secrets into the open, and Tori is forced to reckon with how far she is willing to go to protect her friends. (Answer: extremely far.) Her usual snarky attitude remains firmly in place, which helps to move the story along without things getting too heavy. I also like how firmly this series is set in Vancouver; when demon attacks threatened the cobblestone streets of Gastown, I was able to picture the scene very well.
The World We Make, by N.K. Jemisin
Sequel to The City We Became, this book shines with the same love of New York and its in-your-face attitude. The overall plot is a little less focused, mostly because Jemisin, having introduced a Big Bad, needs to find a way to a) explain its presence, and b) defeat it, which necessitates a certain amount of infodumping and handwaving. Although it’s all perfectly well executed, the events of the plot honestly feel like a distraction from the best parts of the book, which are the various incarnations of New York being extremely and wonderfully New York to one another and to the world at large. The antagonists are a bit cartoonish and flatly menacing (“Make New York Great Again,” Proud Men, etc), but honestly, I can’t deny that their real-world counterparts feel a bit like that in the real world as well.
Two Witches and a Whiskey, by Annette Marie, read by Cris Dukehart
Another of Marie’s Guild Codex books; in this one, human bartender Tori tries to stay out of trouble with the magical police, who are investigating fallout from her earlier adventures. Being Tori, of course she fails utterly at lying low, and finds herself not only getting entangled with powerful fae and dark magic guilds, but pulling her friends into the mess as well. Entertaining and amusing as usual. Dukehart’s Tori, sassy and pouty by turns, helps the character’s choices seem more believable in the moment.
Dark Arts and a Daiquiri, by Annette Marie, read by Cris Dukehart
Second in the Guild Codex “Spellbound” series, human bartender Tori quickly gets over her head when she goes off-script and gets herself kidnapped by a notorious magical criminal; snark and action ensue. I like how her actions grew out of her past trauma, and how her friends are understanding but still call her out when she’s behaving badly. Fun and satisfying, and Dukehart does a great Tori: perky, indignant, and brave.
Warping Minds and Other Misdemeanors, by Annette Marie, read by Iggy Toma
The main character is one of my favorite tropes, the snarky criminal with a good heart, who is forced to work with the police to stop an even worse crime. Great one-liners and snappy comebacks, good handling of tension throughout. Toma’s voice was perfect for the character, though I’m not a huge fan of using falsetto to voice the very strong female characters.
A Damsel and a Demigod, by Annette Marie, read by Nelson Hobbs
Side novella for the Guild Codex series. Frankly not very good; the supposed master strategist character makes a chain of questionable decisions, and although for this genre I don’t mind love stories that come out of nowhere, I really did hate how poorly the guy used his magical electricity powers. I could have done so much better! Even so, Hobbs did a great job with the audio reading, and Marie’s snarky, snappy dialogue was still a fun time.
Three Mages and a Margarita, by Annette Marie, read by Cris Dukehart
This is total fluff urban fantasy, and utterly enjoyable. Hot-tempered Tori stumbles upon an ad for a bartending job in a mysterious club; the club a place where magic-users (called “mythics”) meet to hang out and plan adventures. Even though Tori is human, some of the mythics (who are improbably hot*) decide to adopt her, and she deems the paycheck and company worthy of returning to the job. Danger and derring-do ensue; I particularly appreciated that Tori managed to hold her own despite her lack of magic, and that the characters did not spend a lot of energy on love triangle drama. It’s the first of a series so there’s some serious info dump, but the conversation flows easily. Fun, light read.
* the conceit of “one’s magic is only as strong as one’s physical body, and therefore if you want to be a strong mage, you are motivated to work out” is as good a reason as any for the main characters to be extremely fit.
Triad Blood, by ‘Nathan Burgoine
Queer urban fantasy, m/m paranormal action set in Ottawa; totally picked this up because it had the Chateau Laurier on the cover. A nerdy wizard, a prim vampire, and a scruffy incubus (all of whom are smoking hot, obv), have joined together to create a nontraditional “triad” of power, and in doing so became a problem for the shadowy supernatural establishment ruling Ottawa. Smooth writing, snarky dialogue, good handling of suspense, lovely concept of found family; the fun details from various Ottawa neighborhoods was a bonus. Will remember to check out the sequel next time I’m looking for a fun beach read.
One Last Stop, by Casey McQuiston
A cute story of found family, making one’s peace with one’s past, and falling in love with that incredibly hot girl on the subway train who turns out to be a punk lesbian ghost from the 70s. College student August, trying to get some distance from her past, finds herself in a community of adorable weirdos who help her get a job flipping pancakes at the local diner. On her commute, she finds herself constantly running into the fearless Jane, who never seems to change out of her outfit, and who has trouble remembering her past. The book juggles their star-crossed romance with side character relationships, family drama, long-buried mystery, and the pressure of paying rent in NYC, while also giving a nod to the fight for queer recognition through glimpses of Jane’s experiences. Plenty of plot holes so don’t think too closely about the details, but for a cozy comfort read, it’s a perfectly good time.