What a crazy week. I haven’t had much spare time so I still need to finish up that review of The Thief and write one for both Magic Bites and The Gaslight Dogs.
This week I used up the rest of my bookstore gift card on three books and also received three review copies.
Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews
I had told myself I couldn’t get this one until I reviewed the first book in the Kate Daniels series, but I had to kill some time waiting around one day this week so I decided to go ahead and use up my gift card to the bookstore. The first book was good enough to make me want to read the rest, but I probably wouldn’t be in such a hurry to do so if I didn’t keep hearing that each book in this series is better than the last. Hopefully I’ll read both this and the third book before Magic Bleeds comes out in May but with so many different books to read, who knows.
As a mercenary who cleans up after magic gone wrong, Kate Daniels knows how waves of paranormal energy ebb and flow across Atlanta like a tide. But once every seven years, a flare comes, a time when magic runs rampant. When Kate sets out to retrieve a set of stolen maps for the Pack, Atlanta’s paramilitary clan of shape shifters, she quickly realizes much more is at stake. The stolen maps are only the opening gambit in an epic tug of war between two gods hoping for rebirth, and if Kate can’t stop the cataclysmic showdown, the city may not survive.
Magic Strikes by Ilona Andrews
From what I’ve heard about this series, I figured I’d better have the third book nearby for after I finish the second one. These are what I’ve been saving my gift card for anyway and I’ve read the first one now so it seemed like a good time to get them. Plus I did really like Curran, and I’m really curious about what Kate is hiding from us as readers about herself so I can see this series becoming very addictive if it does indeed get better and better…
Drafted into working for the Order of Merciful Aid, mercenary Kate Daniels has more paranormal problems than she knows what to do with. And in Atlanta, where magic comes and goes like the tide, that’s saying a lot.
But when Kate’s werewolf friend Derek is discovered nearly dead, she must confront her greatest challenge yet.
Wings of Wrath by C. S. Friedman
I really enjoyed the first book in the Magister trilogy so I have been waiting for this one to come to paperback for a little while. Of course while I was at the bookstore I had to look for it and then pick it up once I found it… In this world, a sacrifice is required in order to use magic and it was a very compelling concept.
A masterwork of fantasy from the author of Feast of Souls…
Kamala, a peasant woman, has claimed the powerful sorcery of the Magisters as her own-the ability to draw on the power of the human soul without dying for it. But in her rise to power she finds herself hunted by the brotherhood, and flees to a land where spells are warped by a fatal curse. A land that even Magisters fear…
The Poison Throne by Celine Kiernan
This is the first book in the Moorehawke trilogy. It is coming out on April 7 and the second book (The Crowded Shadows) is coming out in July 2010. According to the author’s website, the third book (The Rebel Prince) is coming out in Fall 2010. The tagline one the front cover really intrigued me – “Friend. Father. Kingdom. Which one would you sacrifice?” There’s just something about difficult choices that grabs me so I’m looking forward to reading this one. An excerpt is available on the author’s website.
Young Wynter Moorehawke returns to court with her dying father – but she finds her old home shadowed with fear. The king has become a violent despot, terrorizing those he once loved. His son and heir Alberon has fled into exile and now there are whispers everywhere of rebellion. Meanwhile, Alberon’s half-brother Razi has been elevated to his throne. He struggles to meet his King’s demands while remaining loyal to his beloved brother and to his friend-Wynter.
And at the heart of matters is a secret that no one dares speak of. A secret so large it could tear the kingdom in two and Wynter is at the heart of it all. Her father lies dying. Her king is mad. Her friends are divided.
She must choose- her father or her dreams, her friend or her king, her duty… or her love.
Tsunami Blue by Gayle Ann Williams
Tsunami Blue is coming out on March 30. I can’t find much other information on this book other than the blurb so I’m not sure if it’s the start of a series or not. All I know is it’s paranormal romance about a woman who can predict tsunamis and every time I flip it open, I see something about coffee. Maybe that’s a sign I should read it…
With her badass rain boots, her faithful dog, and the ability to predict the monster tsunamis that have reduced the US to a series of islands, Kathryn O’Malley isn’t afraid of much. Cut off from all society, she takes to the airwaves as Tsunami Blue, hoping to save something of humanity as the world around her crumbles. But Blue should be afraid—because her message reaches the wrong ears.
Now she’s the target of ruthless pirates known as Runners who want to use her special talents for their own profiteering—as soon as they can find her. Blue’s only shot at survival lies with the naked stranger who washes up on her rocky beach. A man who might just be working for Runners himself. Torn between suspicion and attraction, the two will have to navigate a surging tide of danger and deceit if they hope to stay alive.
Secret of the Dragon by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
This is the second book in the Dragonships of Vindras series, which is supposed to be six books long. I must admit, I’ve never read any of the Dragonlance books. It was just released in hardcover on March 16.
New gods are challenging the old high god, Torval, for rulership of the world. The only way to stop these brash interlopers lies with the five Bones of the Vektia Dragons—the five primal dragons hidden away by the dragon goddess, Vindrash, during the creation of the world. Without these dragons, one of the new gods, Aelon, cannot seize power. The only hope of the Vindrasi lies in finding the dragon bones before the followers of Aelon can use them to destroy the old gods. But the Vindrasi gods have a traitor in their midst…
In the land of mortals, Raegar, a Vindraisi turned Aelon warrior-priest, searches for the spirit bones. The gods have a champion of their own—Skylan Ivorson, sea-raider and high chief of the Vindrasi clans, and sworn enemy to Raegar. But Skylan is a prisoner on his own ship. The ship’s dragon, Kahg, has vanished and some believe he is dead. Skylan and his people are taken as captives to Sinaria, where they must fight in a game known as the Para Dix. The fates of men and gods and are dragons are rushing headlong to destruction. Skylan can stop the calamity, but only if he discovers the secret of the dragon.
