No day is ordinary in a world where Technology and Magic compete for supremacy…But no matter which force is winning, in the apocalypse, a sword will always work. 

 

Hugh d’Ambray, Preceptor of the Iron Dogs, Warlord of the Builder of Towers, served only one man. Now his immortal, nearly omnipotent master has cast him aside. Hugh is a shadow of the warrior he was, but when he learns that the Iron Dogs, soldiers who would follow him anywhere, are being hunted down and murdered, he must make a choice: to fade away or to be the leader he was born to be. Hugh knows he must carve a new place for himself and his people, but they have no money, no shelter, and no food, and the necromancers are coming. Fast. 

 

Elara Harper is a creature who should not exist. Her enemies call her Abomination; her people call her White Lady. Tasked with their protection, she's trapped between the magical heavyweights about to collide and plunge the state of Kentucky into a war that humans have no power to stop. Desperate to shield her people and their simple way of life, she would accept help from the devil himself—and Hugh d’Ambray might qualify. 

Hugh needs a base, Elara needs soldiers. Both are infamous for betraying their allies, so how can they create a believable alliance to meet the challenge of their enemies? 

As the prophet says: “It is better to marry than to burn.”

 

Hugh and Elara may do both. 

 

I just went on an adventure to another world where technology and magic compete for supremacy and I it was one thrilling ride where I met mesmerizing characters and fought spectacular battles.

 

Hugh and Elara were the main characters that I met on this journey and they are strong, captivating and easily seized my attention and refused to let go once they had it. This couple were both intriguing and daring with lots of appeal and unique characteristics that made them stand out. As for the relationship between them, well it definitely had some electrifying chemistry and an attraction that had sparks flying everywhere but it was also feisty and full of turmoil as they fought each other tooth and nail throughout the story with snappy dialogue that has me convinced that a happily ever after for these two may be a long time in coming, at least they finally have a sort of acceptance of each other, so I can’t wait to find out how their relationship progresses.

 

Lots of excitement and thrills keep the adrenaline pumping throughout this fast paced and smooth flowing story with lots of twists and turns that kept me wondering just what would happen next. The bad guys and creatures are as fascinating as they are scary and cause Hugh and Elara a seemingly endless amount trouble so there was definitely no dull moment to be found.

 

I am a huge fan of the Kate Daniels universe and I can never get enough, so I was quite excited to find out that Hugh was going to have his own story. Iron and Magic is well developed and full of all the fascinating elements and all the wonderful characters and creatures that make up the universe, so is it really any wonder that I was completely enthralled by the first book in The Iron Covenant series and I am eagerly awaiting the next.

 

Iron and Magic

 

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35126152-iron-and-magic

 

Author - http://www.ilona-andrews.com/book/iron-and-magic/

 

BookLikes - http://booklikes.com/iron-and-magic-ilona-andrews/book,13910079

 

is the 1st book in the The Iron Covenant series

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/series/230437-the-iron-covenant

 

Author - http://www.ilona-andrews.com/series/iron-covenant/

 

& #9.5 in the Kate Daniels series

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/series/40691-kate-daniels

 

Author - http://www.ilona-andrews.com/kate-daniels/

 

which includes:

 

A Questionable Client #.5
Magic Bites #1
Magic Burns #2
Magic Strikes #3
Magic Mourns #3.5
Magic Bleeds #4
Magic Dreams #4.5
Magic Slays #5
Magic Gifts #5.4
Gunmetal Magic #5.5
Curran Twitter, The Wilson Building #5.6
Magic Rises #6
Dabwaha, Curran Twitter #6.1
Magic Steals #6.5
Magic Breaks #7
Magic Shifts #8
Magic Stars #8.5 (Grey Wolf #.5)
Magic Binds #9
Iron and Magic #9.5 (The Iron Covenant #1)
Magic Triumphs #10

 

& The Iron Covenant Trilogy # 2 is coming in 2019!

 

 

Iron and Magic is available in ebook at:

 

Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/Iron-Magic-Covenant-Book-ebook/dp/B07CZ39YYV/ref=la_B001RXSCKY_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1527531955&sr=1-1

 

B&N – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/iron-and-magic-ilona-andrews/1128639308?ean=2940162068716

 

iBooks – https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/iron-and-magic/id1382939951?_bbid=9849694&mt=11

 

Kobo – https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/iron-and-magic

 

eBooks - https://www.ebooks.com/96183048/iron-and-magic/andrews-ilona/

 

 

Ilona Andrews is the pseudonym for a husband-and-wife writing team. Ilona is a native-born Russian and Gordon is a former communications sergeant in the U.S. Army. Contrary to popular belief, Gordon was never an intelligence officer with a license to kill, and Ilona was never the mysterious Russian spy who seduced him. They met in college, in English Composition 101, where Ilona got a better grade. (Gordon is still sore about that.)

 

Gordon and Ilona currently reside in Oregon with their two children, three dogs and a cat. They have co-authored two series, the bestselling urban fantasy of Kate Daniels and romantic urban fantasy of The Edge

 

Be sure & visit Ilona Andrews at any of the following locations:

 

Website - http://ilona-andrews.com/

 

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21748.Ilona_Andrews

 

BookBub - https://www.bookbub.com/authors/4942520/record_interest

 

Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/Ilona-Andrews/e/B001RXSCKY/ref=la_B001RXSCKY_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1527532383&sr=1-1

 

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ilona.andrews/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/ilona_andrews

 

BookLikes - http://booklikes.com/ilona-andrews/author,4249290

 

 

 

 

(I got a copy through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

Banshee at the Gate:
2 to 2.5*
+ Interesting in terms of mythological content, especially as banshees aren't so often featured.
+ Nice and heart-warming relationship between Seven and Haran, and fun dynamics between them and their allies.
+ No stupid love interest out of nowhere, for a change. This is meant to be adventure, and adventure we get.
- Confusing in how Atlantis was tackled in the beginning, presented as something obvious all the characters know about; I felt like there was a previous story I had missed. Perhaps I did.
- Villains too easy to get rid of in my opinion. Coming into banshee powers too easy as well.
- Plot sometimes a bit silly.

>> So far this reads definitely more like children/middle grade than truly young adult—I wouldn't recommend it to readers above 12-13 (Seven, the protagonist, is 13, too).

Guardians of the Gate:
2*
+ Merfolk with a strong backstory of friendship and loyalty. Again, no useless romance.
+ Wily Leprechaun and good lessons about "careful what you wish for (and how you wish for it)".
+ More info about the other ancient races (Giants, Dragons).
+ Ties into the first book.
- Plot dragged in parts and I found myself skimming at times.
- Adults shown as idiots who can't/won't do anything to help, which is too often the case in books, and isn't believable.
- Lack of consequences (shouldn't the villains try to act against the young heroes by now?).
- Some more ties with the first book would've been appreciated, especially at the end of this one.

>> Confirming this is definitely for kids, and not YA.

Secrets of the Mine:
2.5 to 3*
+ The kelpie. I liked reading about him.
+ Archaeology and finding forgotten civilisations.
+ Antagonistic characters that learn to cooperate.
- Slightly annoying characters (childish instant dislike).
- The writing wasn't too exciting.

Magicians of the Deep:
1*
+ Learning more about Indiatlantis.
+ The way magical creatures are actually affected by the portals closing one after the other.
- Seems to be for an even younger target audience.
- Too much telling.
- More pronounced than in Book 2: how much Atlantis is like our (Anglo-Saxon) world: school, malls... Why couldn't it be more different, as mysterious as it's supposed to be?
- Repetitive crossovers with book 2.
- Callous characters (the Laytons seem like a nice enough family, at least the parents, but Colin just doesn't seem to care? Also what he learns about his family later was dropped like a brick.
- This particular book jumped from one thing to the other (for instance, discussing an important matter, then suddenly, "anyway, let's go to the mall"). It reminded me of how I'd sometimes play when I was younger, but in terms of plot and writing, it didn't sit well at all with me. To be honest, I'm really not sure I would've liked reading this as a kid.

Madness behind the throne:
3.5*, possibly 4*

+ More mature characters, possibly because Callidora is an adult, but also because Phoibos even as a child kinds of grows up fast.
+ Political intrigue that is easy to understand for younger readers.
+ The stakes do seem more dangerous here than in the previous books
+ Though the "bad guy" has no excuses, we're also shown what contributed to shape his vision/madness.
+ Atlantis shown as technologically advanced (computers in the age of Plato), while still being different—more magic, less malls and 20th-century-like American names.
+ Hints about who Phoibos really is
- ...Though they make it fairly obvious to guess what his secret is (or not? We'll see...)
- A few of the adult characters (the king, Lisandra) are somewhat childish.
- The relationship between Callidora and Titanos progressed so fast (although Calli does acknowledge that she doesn't know herself why that was, and that it didn't make sense).
- Atlantian years being 100 human years, reconciling both was a bit hard (considering what happened in the previous books, it feels like Phoibos took his sweet time to get to closing the doors, when it was described first as it happening within a mere few days).

>> So far, definitely the one I preferred in the series, because it deals with more political themes and shows more of the other side of the conflict, all this in a way that is easy to grasp by middle-grade readers without being dumbed down.

Battle for Acropolis:
3*

+ Everything comes together and without a repeat this time, since it's the direct follow-up to previous books' events.
+ Hattie was adorable.
+ Surprises that were predictable, but in a good way (you know they're coming, yet you're happy to see them coming, and happy when they're finally here). The "finding the grandma" part definitely made me smile: expected, but cute.
- Some characters got discarded pretty quickly, and didn't feel as regretted as they should've been.
- Villain decay at the end—not as epic an ending as I had expected.

>> Enjoyable throughout, although the finale felt somewhat flat.

Conclusion:

2.5/3 stars overall. It was OK for me as a light reading (2/2.5 stars), but I think a middle-grade audience would enjoy it more, hence my higher rating in the end—after all, I'm not really the targetted readership.

On the plus side, the relationships between the characters in general rang true. The creatures that appear in the novels are a good introduction to mythology in general, even if other series dive into this more deeply (Percy Jackson, for instance): Irish (banshees), mermaids, dragons, nymphs...

On the downside, Atlantis itself often felt too much like your average contemporary setting (high school, mall, etc.). Not saying I wanted to see only guys in togas living like in Grecian antiquity—and this setting makes it easy for kids to find their marks—but I expected something more different, not a copy of our modern world (I'm positive young readers wouldn't mind, and wouldn't have a hard time to embrace it either).

Four preview chapters by four different authors put together in one ebook for the sole purpose of marketing and enticing readers to buy their full length books.So more or less samples, which is also why it is free.A good marketing ploy. All four chapters are excellent examples of the level of creativity these particular authors are capable of and the tasters have enticed me to buy. So job well done I would say.Featured within are the following books:My Soul to Take by Rachel VincentI came upon this one a while back and wasn't impressed by the initial way the character was drawn. Upon re-reading it I might just give it another go.Dark Kiss by Michelle RouillardThis one has left me intrigued and I shall have to find out what exactly did that kiss do to her.The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady CrossVery interesting sample. Full of feisty characters with dark secrets.The Immortal Rules by Julie KagawaI have read some of Kagawa's Iron series, which was egtting better book by book, but I found lacking. This however, well it looks as if she has finally found her niche.If there was one negative about this ebook sampler it is the fact that I now have to go and buy multiple books after reading a sample instead of one.