Magic Bites
(Kate Daniels, #1)
By: Ilona Andrews
Publisher: Ace
Published: April 1, 2007
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating:
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’d been hearing a lot of bloggers talking about how awesome Curran is and how sexy of an Alpha he is. So I quickly added the book on my list and waited for my library to get it in. Which they finally did, a year later. I went into this book picturing something like Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost but that is not how this story goes. We don’t really get to interact much with Curran in this book. It’s a lot of story building that takes place and not a lot of the sexy Curran that I’d heard so much about.
Even though I went in expecting one thing, I still found the story to be entertaining. The world of magic that Ilona creates is definitely unlike one I’ve read before. I’m still confused on a few things that take place, like what exactly Kate is, and the workings of the Order and the People but I’m sure that will all iron itself out as the story goes.
Kate is definitely an interesting character. She plays up this persona of a ruthless merc, but that’s not really who she is deep down. I even believe one of the characters in the book call her on this. I think that Kate’s likability definitely helped me grab onto the story. Actually, all the characters were a huge part of the story, even when you thought they were just passing through.
Hopefully in the next book there is more Curran and I will be able to see what everyone is talking about.
While at a restaurant on a date, Kate spots Curran at another table staring at her.
“I motioned to the waiter and he glided over. ‘Yes, ma’am?”
I nodded toward Curran. ‘See that man over there with very short hair? Next to a beautiful woman?’
‘Yes ma’am.’
‘Would you please deliver a saucer of milk to him with my compliments?’
The waiter didn’t even blink, a testament to Fernando’s excellent service. ‘Yes, ma’am.’
Crest looked at me, obviously itching to ask for an explanation.
The waiter delivered the milk, murmuring to Curran. Curran’s smile turned predatory. He took the saucer and raised it in a kind of salute. His eyes flashed gold. The gleam flared and vanished so quickly that if I hadn’t been looking straight at him, I would’ve missed it. He brought the saucer to his mouth and drank from the edge.”
Yeah, I’ve heard a lot of hype about this series and Curran, and while I like this series, it has not completely blown my mind yet. I’m on book 5.5.
There will be more and more Curran with each book. Some people who love this series aren’t a fan of the first book, so I hope you read the second book.