(this post is about the audiobook edition that I'm too lazy to add to booklikes)

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In 2001, a dimensional rift opens up in New York City, and all sorts of strange things come from out of it—demons, a virus that turns people into vampires, a zombie virus, and other assorted supernatural strangeness.

Thirty years later, Ella Gray is a Demon Patrol officer with modest magical ability. Her role is to keep her patrol area clean of minor demons that are little more than annoyances—there are more powerful officers in charge of taking down bigger threats. One day she and her partner try to take out some small demons only to find out there's a much bigger and more powerful demon in the building, too. In the following fracas, Ella and her partner are mortally wounded. Her partner dies, and Ella does, too. But her death doesn't stick and she wakes up in the morgue.

A few weeks later, she's back to work—she's having strange visions, has a new partner (with a mysterious past and more magical power than she's ever seen), a supervisor that seems pretty antagonistic to her and, well...life has become stranger than she thought possible. She finds herself investigating what seems to be a gargoyle possessed by a demon and somehow the gargoyle has imprisoned a human inside it, too. (don't worry if you can understand it, no one in the book can at first, either).

Ella enlists help from a very human PI with all sorts of nifty gadgets that can help on the supernatural front; a political activist always in search of a new cause to take up; her best friend, a pretty powerful mage; and a supernaturally-inclined mutt. No, really. The dog is a lot like Walt Longmire's Dog, just with freaky eyes and an apparent talent for protecting Ella from magical attacks. (some anyway). Such things ought to be encouraged whenever they're encountered, and I hope this will work in the dog's favor.

The novel's focus is setting up the world and looking at the tensions between various aspects of Ella's life and the characters around her. Although Faith tells a pretty good story along the way, I just can't help but think that it comes in second to setting up the overarching series stories.

I really enjoyed Faith's take on vampirism and zombies. It's a nice blend of vaguely-science-y with the supernatural. I have many questions (that I assume will be answered in the ensuing books) about the demons and magic—and just about everything that goes bump in the night, I guess—in this particular world, but initially I'm buying in.

I'm not saying that Faith borrowed (intentionally, anyway) from other UF series, but I had an impulse throughout to say "Oh, she got X from Kim Harrison," "And that bit is from Sarah Kuhn," "Is that Butcher or Strout there?" and so on. If she did, more power to her—she picked some good influences—and she took those elements, shuffled them up and put her spin on them. If she didn't, all the better—fans of the things I think were influences will find plenty to like here. My gut instinct is to say that Faith is a student of Urban Fantasy and has read widely within it so she can produce something that draws from the best. Ignore the voice of the cynic and enjoy this book.

To be honest, I wasn't looking for a new UF series (I'm always open to one, however), but a friend at work emailed me, wondering if I was familiar with this Urban Fantasy series that appears to be set in Boise of all places. This piqued my interest, and as I'd just finished an audiobook, I figured I'd take this one out for a spin. Now, this may come as a surprise to you, but Boise (and the general area) isn't exactly a popular setting for fiction. I can think of a tiny handful of books that have a character stepping foot in the town, but only two (this and Kolokowski's Boise Longpig Hunting Club) that actually portray the city in a recognizable fashion. Faith clearly knows Boise—her use of local names and locations testifies to that, and for those familiar with the city, we can easily see the action and movement of characters in it. Which is an added bit of fun, if only for the novelty. This isn't to say that people who don't know Boise will be lost or won't be able to enjoy it—it's like any other novel set in a city that's not commonly used. Who doesn't like getting to see a novel set somewhere that's not NYC, Washington DC, Chicago, LA, SF, etc? Briggs' use of the Tri-Cities in Washington, Vaughn's Denver, Carey's Pemkowet, Michigan; Hearne's (all-too-brief) use of Tempe, AZ, and, now, Faith's use of Boise.

(If—and this is a big if—Jayne Faith happens to be reading this, I'd love the opportunity to ask you a few questions about your choice of—and use of—Boise. Feel free to drop me a line!)

Landon does a fine job with the narration. I can't really think of much more to say—I didn't hear anything remarkably good (nor, remarkably bad) Simply a strong, capable narration to help listeners to get invested into the characters and story.

I really enjoyed this introduction to the Ella and the rest, the magic and the world Faith has put them in. I have a pretty good idea where some of the stories she's set up are going, and am looking forward to watching them develop. At the same time, I also look forward to Faith showing me that she has a better idea for them than I assume. It's a solid Urban Fantasy story with an unconventional setting. You should give it a shot.

Book source ~ ARC. My review is voluntary and honest.

Maeve O’Neill has been having terrible nightmares lately. They seem so real and they’re beginning to interfere in her daily life, so she decides to find the place in her dreams and put them to rest once and for all. But what she does instead is turn her life upside down.  Nothing is what she thought, not even herself. Now she has to trust a stranger to help her before she ends up dead. She’s never been good at trusting, but dead seems so much worse, so trust it is.

The beginning of this story will draw you in and not let go. It’s a bit confusing at first as to who are the white hats and who are the black hats, but it plays out in a surprising way. Maeve is a bit too wimpy at times for me, but overall she doesn’t take much shit from anyone. I love the twist and turns her path takes, but the final conflict falls flat for me. I also have a hard time with the insta-love. I just don’t feel any build up for it. It’s just suddenly there. I love the world and the characters though. All-in-all this is a great tale about magic, discovering yourself, and standing against corruption.

I really like Samantha’s character. She’s fae, but not quite fae enough. On top of that, she’s a rare and usually shunned type of fae, a Void. Her special power allows her to steal energy from others (though she tries hard not to). With few friends and a parent who belittles her every day, Sam treasures her friendship with Amber. Sam also has a boyfriend, Chad, who she doesn’t really click with but so few people hang out with her, that she feels obligated to give Chad a chance.

Then in steps Roman, who makes her tingle in places she didn’t know could tingle. Roman works for some corporation that makes plastic housing (since iron is such a hazard to the fae). He’s got a secret and Sam immediately keys into it. Roman shows definite interest in Sam but she’s not used to such attentions. So there’s potential there for a meaningful romantic involvement in the next book.

Now all this is taking place on the Mystical Reservation in Illinois. Basically, all magical creatures in the US have been rounded up and forced onto reservations. I think this idea has the potential to be a significant part of the plot. However, I worry that there is some cultural insensitivity too. We’ll just have to see how that develops with the series.

There’s a variety of other characters, like Heywood the vampire and Carl who has a gift with technology (even though almost all tech is forbidden on the reservation). There’s mages and empaths (like Amber) too. The murder mystery was solved a little too quick and the initial build up was a little silly. Why wouldn’t Amber and Sam check their friend’s apartment first, before going to the unconcerned authorities? So that could have been a little more tightly written. On the whole, it’s an intriguing start to something that could be really good, or could be mediocre. 3.5/5 stars

I received a free copy of this book. My opinions on it are wholly my own.

The Narration: Janelle Tedesco gave an excellent performance. She had the perfect voice for Sam and distinct voices for each of the characters. Her male voices sounded masculine. I thought her voices for the bullying authorities were especially good. There  were no technical issues with the recording of this audiobook. 5/5 stars.

I have a fascination on the many worlds concepts both in theoretical physics and in fictional worlds. With the goal of reading recently released paperback books (I just usually buy used books released years ago), I picked up A Darker Shade of Magic. I wanted to know how the concept of parallel worlds used in a fantasy setting. Previously, I just read fantasy stories that only have two worlds, the mundane and the magical. Now I get to read four worlds in one.

A Darker Shade of Magic is the first of a trilogy written by V.E. Schwab. This is my first book from her. This book was first released in 2015.

This is the story of Kell, one of the few remaining Antari. They are magicians that can traverse in between worlds. There are four worlds with one thing in common, all have a city that is named London. These Londons are designated by color, Gray, Red, White, and Black. Kell is from Red London. Here he grew up with the royal family but not a part of it. He consider Prince Rhy his brother. Officially, Kell is the ambassador to the White and Gray London. (Traveling to the Black London is forbidden.) Unofficially, he is a smuggler for items only found in other Londons. One day he came across with a dangerous artifact that in the wrong hand can be used to destroy the walls separating the London. He cross paths with Lila the pickpocket from Gray London and together they set things the right way.

Kell is the best written character. Other characters, including the antagonists, not as much. I liked how the differences of the Londons were written. I, as the reader, can easy tell which London is which. The plot lines are tied in the end. I can end reading now or pick up the next books.

I recommend this book for those who like to mix and match their genres. I haven’t read the blurbs of the next books but I will pick them up but not anytime soon.

Next in Shades of Magic series:

• A Gathering of Shadows - Victoria Schwab 
• A Conjuring of Light - V E Schwab 

I've got a pretty mixed response to this book. I tried it because it was free to borrow from Amazon Prime and I liked the cover. Not sure I actually read the blurb before I downloaded it. I guess I was thinking it would be something along the lines of the Twenty Sided Sorceress books. Not even close. I will admit that having vampires and werewolves and witches and mages and fae all be diluted magic holders is intriguing, since they are so frequently portrayed as immensely powerful. What I had trouble with was the repetition. I got that a Legacy was someone who everyone hated and feared because they weren't diluted and had attempted to destroy all other supernaturals so they could reign supreme. I got that by the second reference, so having it beaten into the story every chapter and a half was annoying. The main characters predominate states were anger that she was hunted, fear that she'd be outed, and lust for the shifter. I'm hoping the range increases as the story goes along. It's a good basic book but doesn't live up to its full potential, which is too bad. It could have been amazing.