I'm not sure why this book comes up with the wrong author -- it's T.A. Pratt, the altered name to Tim Pratt (he was told that readers wouldn't like his female protagonist if they knew the author was male).

 

At any rate, maybe I was just having a bad reading week or two since basically everything I read felt close to three stars...  I hate to rate a Pratt book at 3.5 stars because I'd much rather his publisher picked him up again -- though he's kept the series going via e-book.  I have the next one on my Kindle to read soon.

 

I really enjoyed books two and three of the Marla Mason series, but this fourth book felt a lot more like the first book to me...  And that one just rubbed me the wrong way for some reason.  There's this level of grime and dirt that he layers on this world (well, our world with magic) that sometimes works for me and sometimes doesn't.  I can't exactly tell you where the line is, but it exists in this series.  Sadly, for this one it's on the wrong side for me.

 

I enjoyed his magical techniques, as per usual, and it's always interesting to get to know the powers in Felport.  This time, not all the opponents are magical, however, though that plot line seemed rather more predictable.  You definitely get a lot more back story on Marla, and that's great.  I definitely was sucked in by the very end -- be aware this ends on a cliffhanger!

 

Like I said, maybe the low stars are all me...  It could have just been a bad time to read these.

 

 

Marla Mason is the guardian of the city of Felport and is under attack from an unknown enemy and the clues are leading to dead people. She has to find out who it is before she becomes another body, and also there's a spell trying to kill her and she's not sure if both are related. Marla is a strong character and it's an interesting read.

I didn't like the characters and I hated the main character. I had absolutely no interest in or empathy for her. I started to like her sidekick but then more was revealed and he was a borderline sociopath. The story was somewhat unclear and surprisingly slow moving considering the reader is thrust into the story mid-action. Not happening for me.

I didn't care for this one I'm afraid. I was in the mood for some magic- I'm a big fan of the Hollows series by Kim Harrison and the blurb makes this sound similar- but I got halfway through this book and had experienced precisely no magic, and hadn't been gripped by the characters or plot, so I stopped.I'm not going to criticize the story other than that because I didn't finish it, so I have no right to review the book as a whole. It could have had the ending of all endings for all I know.This makes only the second book this year I haven't been willing to finish. I normally persevere (like the stubborn mule I am), but it just wasn't for me. Sorry.

Marla, I love you.

It is an interesting coincidence that several of my favorite series (Kate Daniels, Rachel Morgan, to name two) got a relatively neutral reaction from me at first. When I started the first book about Marla and Felport, I was not swept away. There was no romance, no sex to take a cheap shot and get me hooked. Luckily, the romance came later, if not the sex. Marla is in love with Felport, she's loyal and passionate about her lieutenants and her apprentice and her city. Beneath the rapid fire dialogue and non-stop action, there is rock solid character development and plotting. Never is the romance and the writing more phenomenal than this latest book.

BROKEN MIRRORS splinters one story into many, with action taking place across the two alternate realities. Despite how driven and hard Marla may appear, her passion and humanity shine compared to the alien Mason. BROKEN MIRRORS proves that there are no happy endings, but it also asserts that the sad endings aren't so bad either, as all of these endings make you who you are today.