Innocent mistakenly ends up in Hell, falls for a Demon, has his HEA.
If that sounds familiar, it’s because it’s has become a popular theme lately, a new trope forming.
Shannon Mae (a new to me author) is the latest to tackle this idea and she does so very amusingly. Her book, A Beginner’s Guide to Death, Demons, and Other Afterlife Disasters, a suitably detailed title, has charming characters and a well crafted universe. It’s the first in her new series, Demonic Disasters and Afterlife Adventures, which features gods, goddesses, Heaven, levels of Hell, and Limbo which is the place to partay! We have bureaucrats on every level, hellish and heavenly. Turns out, as suspected, there’s not much difference.
Mae has crafted some very entertaining elements and a romance that’s a winner. There’s Adam, sent to Hell by mistake . And a very bored Minos, Judge of the Damned, whose unlife needs a shaking up and is about to get it.
This story is a fast, enjoyable read and I had so much fun with these characters.
I’m looking forward to a return when the next story is released.
Cute cover.
Demonic Disasters and Afterlife Adventures:
✓ A Beginner’s Guide to Death, Demons, and Other Afterlife Disasters #1
◦ A Beginner’s Guide to Mistakenly Summoned Demons and Other Misadventures #2 – TBR July 15,2023
Adam: Adam is not having a good day. First, he finds out his very long time boyfriend has been having an affair. Then, his dramatic exit becomes a little too dramatic when he ends up dead. To top it off, he finds out that the afterlife isn’t at all what he expected (he has no desire to learn to play the harp, thank you very much). Fortunately for him, some afterlife bureaucratic screw up ends him up with the most smoking hot demon he’s ever seen, and he decides he’s keeping him. Maybe the afterlife won’t be so bad after all.
Minos: As Judge of the Damned, Minos has seen all sorts of human depravity over his endless existence. When a beautiful, shining soul pops into his chamber for judgment, he knows it’s a mistake. The human, however, seems quite content to hang around, and it isn’t long before Minos decides he just might decide to keep this one. Minos isn’t the optimistic or happy sort, but he can’t help but be caught up in the whirlwind that is Adam. When forces beyond his control want to return Adam to his designated afterlife, Minos decides that will not be happening, heaven and hell be damned.
Tags: A very grumpy demon meets his match in a snarky, sunshine-filled human; not all angels are nice; Limbo is the party place to be; the afterlife is run like a corporate office, complete with red tape, pointless memos, and high levels of frustration; Minos has a tail and knows how to use it.
Finally, finally, Dixon and Yuri catch up to the missing Uncle Fonzo! In a story that will finish Uncle Fonzo’s arc and start the couple off on a new adventure, Dead Man’s Quill picks up where the last book ended, with a surprise phone call from Uncle Fonzo!
Dixon and Yuri have been in pursuit of Uncle Fonzo since they uncovered the events that led to Dixon’s failed exam, and their family’s poor financial situation. That it all started with Uncle Fonzo and his disappearance.
Since then they’ve been chasing him from town to town but never catching him. Now mysteriously, Uncle Fonzo wants to meet up.
Price gives Fonzo , Dixon, and Yuri a whopping great yarn of a tale here and it needs to be for all the themes involved. Fonzo has betrayed the Handed, he caused Dixon to fail his exam with all the damage that followed, no matter that he was tricked, he knew better. So there’s much to make amends for. And Dixon has never been able to admit exactly how angry he is at the one man who he has thought of as his father, and who betrayed him. He’s ignored those emotions and the thoughts behind them. And for Yuri, there’s a barrel of issues that Fonzo represents, a reason not to trust, a family member not to accept, and more.
All that wrapped up in a magical, somewhat darkish story of redemption, remuneration, and family. It’s a fabulous story, even better when you know how short it is.
Love those twins too. One slight thing, vulture feathers don’t a plume make. I should know. Straight and stiff as can be. Nothing plummy about them.
Other than that, perfect.
I’m highly recommending this and the series as far as I’ve read. It’s fantastic! Binge read for your pleasure!
It’s all fun and games until someone loses a hand.
Dixon has been dying to introduce Yuri to Uncle Fonzo, the Hand of his family, and now he’ll finally get that chance. All they need to do is meet him at a traveling carnival with an unused piece of Spellcraft.
Easy peasy, right?
Not even a little. And even worse, they might encounter a clown.
Uncle Fonzo has left a trail of magical destruction in his wake, but he claims he’s been helping people. Spellcrafters are a slippery bunch, and it’s hard to say if he’s stretching the truth or telling an outright lie. One thing’s for sure, he’s between a rock and a hard place now, and if he doesn’t deliver an outrageous ransom to Strange Manor by midnight, all deals are off.
From a lackluster carnival with a booby-trapped tour bus to the decrepit mausoleum behind an old mental asylum, the Spellcraft leads Dixon and Yuri on a goose chase that’s not only wild…but deadly.
The ABCs of Spellcraft is a series filled with bad jokes and good magic, where MM Romance meets Paranormal Cozy. A perky hero, a brooding love interest, and delightfully twisty-turny stories that never end up quite where you’d expect. The books are best read in order, so be sure to start at the beginning with Quill Me Now.
Paranormal Princes: The Complete Series by Charlie Cochet is a fantastic way to binge read the series. Three stories, two bridged by a kingly developing tale of romance of its own which will resolve itself with the third series tale, a culmination of all three storylines.
I happily breezed through them, admittedly the first couple still being my favorite. Cochet really outdid herself with Prince Owin, Prince of the Ocelots. If you’ve ever been owned by a cat, known a cat, or just plain observed any, then this character and felid portrayal of an ocelot shifter will ring so true you be laughing. I do every time he makes an appearance here, and in other stories. I heart him so much. Grimmwolf, wolf shifter and bodyguard , as ordered by their king and his advisor, is perfect for him as well.
This is, of course, my favorite story of the three. First and best, imo.
It goes that King Alarick , King (and father) of all Shifters, and the blind immortal Lord Jean Eldritch, king’s adviser , have devised individual quests for the King’s children, the Princesses and Princes to prove they can rule their kingdoms and their people. Theirs is also a developing romance of over a thousand years, with a mystery included.
First quest and book is:
1. The Prince and His Bedeviled Bodyguard
The tale of a very adorable, spoiled persnickety ocelot prince and his quietly smitten wolfy bodyguard on a quest to prove the ocelot prince deserves his crown. Feline purfection! Feline high handed glam versus a canine werewolf sensibility, with maybe a long-standing crush. How they tackle the quest involves a magical bag, a purple orb, and some great crossover characters from a Macy Blake series!
2. The Prince and his Captivating Carpenter
The Prince this time is a deeply grieving bear shifter. Prince Bernd lost his father up on a mountain when they were hiking and he’s never recovered from the tragedy. He’s withdrawn from his people and never leaves his castle. Until time for his quest.
His king and advisor have assigned him a coyote shifter, Saer, who looks very familiar. It’s up to the two of them to survive together and complete a daunting and dangerous task.
Unlike the first story, the second is much less lighthearted, the grim reality of the painful nature of Bernd’s behavior and withdrawal never far from the surface. Saer also has deep insecurities and fears to overcome. This is a darker journey that’s a trend for the series.
The characters are excellent, and I enjoyed their journey immensely.
3. The King and The Vigilant Valet
This story was both the one that had the most goals, the most themes and plot stories to wrap up. I really enjoyed all the twists and plots turns. Considering it’s really the biggest quest of them all , with life and death stakes for all involved, it stands to reason that Cochet has a cast of multitudes here, heroes and villains.
The ending wasn’t entirely satisfying for me as I didn’t feel that the outcome for Jean’s true form did anything but defang him. I kept thinking surely there must have been a more imaginative way to keep him true to his mythical nature while leaving him able to be more himself than before.
Ah well. ‘‘Twas not to be. But it left me with feeling that there could have been more. Especially after the epilogue.
So while I loved the first, really enjoyed the second, the final chapter had issues for me. Still the whole thing was great and a wonderful journey for lovers of Shifter romance and especially those of the feline characters.
Let the good times roar! Enjoy the complete Paranormal Princes series.
THE PRINCE AND HIS BEDEVILED BODYGUARD
Prince Owin
Being a fierce predator—not at all adorable, despite my graceful stature—the last thing I needed was a bodyguard. Especially a wolf shifter, whose presence alone was an insult to my princely principles. As Prince of the Ocelot Shifters, I prided myself on my infallible feline instincts, uncompromisable dignity, and flawless fashion sense. If having a canine follow me around at all times wasn’t bad enough, I now faced the most important moment of my entire life. The time had come to prove I was worthy of my crown. If only I could find a way to get rid of the pesky bodyguard.
Grimmwolf
When the King of All Shifters asked me to guard Prince Owin, I admit I had no idea what to expect. Cat shifters tend to be a little intense, not to mention kinda cranky. Owin was no exception, though he seemed crankier than most. Being his bodyguard was proving to be one of the greatest challenges of my life—but not nearly as great as convincing him there was something special between us. When Owin is faced with a perilous quest to prove his worth, I was determined to keep him safe, even if the same couldn’t be said of my heart.
THE PRINCE AND HIS CAPTIVATING CARPENTER
Prince Bernd
As Prince of the Bear Shifters, I knew the time would come for me to prove myself worthy of my crown. I expected my quest to be perilous. What I didn’t expect was for it to take me up into Espen Mountain, a place that’s brought me nothing but grief and terrible nightmares. Not only must I find the five magical ingredients, but I have to do so alongside Saer, a mysterious and charming shifter coyote summoned by the king to be my guide. But who is Saer, and why do I feel as if we’ve met before?
Saer Crushing on Prince Bernd from afar was one thing. Being given the responsibility of saving the prince and his kingdom was a whole other story. Banished from my kingdom by my own prince years ago, I never imagined I would be summoned to help Bernd. What could I possibly offer a prince? How was I supposed to save him? I was no one. A shifter with no place to call home. What I did know was that I would do everything in my power to help Bernd succeed on his quest. All I had to do was stop crushing on the guy, find the magical ingredients hidden up a dangerous mountain, and save his heart. What could go wrong?
THE KING AND HIS VIGILANT VALET
Jean
The past has a way of catching up with you, even if you are immortal. I’ve spent thousands of years as the valet and companion to the powerful King of All Shifters. It has been my honor and duty to protect, serve, and advise him. I never intended to fall in love with him. My past is filled with death and bloodshed, but I never once regretted keeping Alarick safe. Now an evil I thought long gone has resurfaced, determined to kill Alarick and plunge the world into chaos. Saving Alarick means revealing the truth about myself. I don’t know what’s worse, failing to protect the king I love, or watching him turn away from me when he discovers what I really am.
King Alarick
As King of All Shifters, my powers are connected to the cosmos, and I have been around since the dawn of time. There are few things that can kill me. Unfortunately, one of those things has escaped its prison and is set to destroy me. The only weapon that can defeat this creature is the Scythe of Kronos, which has been missing for nearly as long as I have lived. When Jean and I set out on a quest to find the scythe, questions I had long ignored must now be answered. What is Jean’s connection to this evil? Why will he trust me with his life but not his secrets? As my most trusted valet, and my greatest friend, surely nothing that happens along this perilous journey can change what I feel in my heart for him. Or can it?
Ghostly Envy see big changes in the interpersonal relationships of some of the main characters of the Ghostly series.
Detective Angus Young reveals to Franks that he’s been getting his information from the ghosts of the victims of the crimes he and his partner have been investigating. It’s a huge deal because it could upset their friendship as well as their professional partnership.
It has the effect of bringing Franks more throughly into the inner circle, a mixed bag of real and ghostly found family members that’s been accumulating over each story. Angus’s ghost seeing mother, her ghost friends, his father, ME Lance, his ghostly friends like the hundred plus years Ray, Cele the celebrated cook, and more. This book will certainly bring new additions to the group.
It all starts innocently enough with Angus and Lance having talked Franks into looking at buying a house. It’s while house shopping that Franks becomes a part of his friend’s paranormal life and we meet a lovely poignant ghost.
Ghostly Envy might be my favorite to date. Not because it’s lacks the horrific crime scenes of the prior stories but because we get to know this ghost and her story so intimately. She makes a real impact on us, just as she does on Franks and the rest.
The crime, its resolution, even the criminal, it all makes sense, in a very sad human way.
On the paranormal side, we see that even ghosts, at least according to E.M. Leya, have a shot at love, albeit in a different aspect. That’s a delightful thought.
I absolutely enjoyed this story and the growth it demonstrates in terms of characters, relationships, and world building.
There’s another story coming, just no date as yet. I’m waiting with great anticipation!
Definitely recommending the Ghostly series for all lovers of the paranormal romance trope with the elements of mystery and murder thrown in.
The last thing Lance expected to find while helping Franks look for a new house was a ghost. Shelia just wanted to graduate and get on to college, but that never happened. The last thing she remembers is being at home on the couch, then waking up in a deep hole in the middle of nowhere. She wants answers. How did she get there and why?
Who wanted her dead?
Lance and Angus can’t ignore the plea for help and get to work, piecing together the evidence and talking to those who knew the victim. Nothing makes any sense. There is no reason this girl had to die. As they work the case, they also welcome a new member to the team, one who is fighting Angus for his side of Lance’s bed.
Ghostly Findings finds ME Lance and his boyfriend, Detective Angus Young, soon involved in a horrific case of murder and a hunt for a serial killer who might have victims waiting to be found.
I thought this was a great case, one which added quite a few new ghosts to the paranormal family existing at Lance’s house, and maybe even more interesting tidbits about the life after each passes. Author Laya is building out to their already established ghostly foundation as well as the earthly one with each new book.
The crimes are heinous but have happened off page. The ghosts are no longer traumatized by the crimes and events they’ve endured.
Lance and Angus are trying to find time to work on their own relationship and romance but their jobs and workload realistically interferes. Plus we get a better look at Angus and Lance’s work situations and coworkers. This includes Angus’ partner Franks, a character we get to know well and become invested in too.
The determination, the investigation, the manner in which the ghostly details must be shared or threaded into their reports feels about right. Even the ending. Did I wish for more high drama? Yes. But was the way it unfolded probably more in keeping with the story? Yes.
I’m absolutely enjoying these stories and characters. The mysteries and the relationships are amazing.
So it’s onto Ghostly Envy and new murders, and obviously new ghosts. Can’t wait.
Definitely recommending the Ghostly series for all lovers of the paranormal romance trope with the elements of mystery and murder thrown in.
As a medical examiner, seeing ghosts has its advantages. After being informed by a ghost that there is a mass grave in the area, Lance and Detective Angus Young feel the fallout. As one investigates the murders, the other investigates the bodies, both trying to piece together what happened. Luckily, the dead aren’t all silent. As ghosts of the victims appear, clues to what happened start to come together. The only problem now is figuring out who the killer is and catching him before he strikes again.
In Book 3 of The ABC’s of Spellcraft series by Jordan Castillo Price, Something Stinks at the Spa, our main couple, Dixon and Yuri , are continuing their search for Dixon’s magical wayward Uncle Fonzo.
A seemingly focus of chaos wherever he lands, Uncle Fonzo is yet to be revealed as either a villain or a hero. Or something interestingly in between.
Here he’s been traced to Spring Falls Hot Spring Spa, so Dixon and Yuri speed over from their last town to see if they can catch him.
Magical hijinks, more couple bonding, and lots of humor follow! Both men continue to grow further into their roles as Scriveners and Seers. Apart and as partners. Each story finds them exploring new possibilities for their magical abilities and the mysteries manage to challenge the pair , strengthening their skills as they finish each event.
Next up, maybe Uncle Fonzo!
I’m recommending this and the highly entertaining series.
Mineral spas are so calm and relaxing…unless they smell like a derrière at a bean-lover’s convention, that is!
Dixon and Yuri have a hot tip that Uncle Fonzo is taking the waters at Spring Falls Hot Spring Spa. Not only is the spring stinky enough to make your eyes water—but the foul odor reaches peak level just as the resort is gearing up for a visit from an important critic that will make or break its reputation.
Normally, this wouldn’t be Dixon’s problem…except that it appears that a piece of his uncle’s Spellcraft might be responsible. He can’t be entirely sure, though, since that particular slip of paper managed to go through the shredder.
Dixon and Yuri pitch in to help the spa’s owner appease a jilted bride, an obnoxious businessman, and the world’s most boring critic while they scramble to reconstruct the shredded Spellcraft. Can they fix the wonky spell before it does any permanent damage? Or will all their efforts at saving the spa end up swirling down the drain?
The ABCs of Spellcraft is a series filled with bad jokes and good magic, where MM Romance meets Paranormal Cozy. A perky hero, a brooding love interest, and delightfully twisty-turny stories that never end up quite where you’d expect. The books are best read in order, so be sure to start at the beginning with Quill Me Now.
There’s so many books written about paranormal characters that talk to ghosts along with a law enforcement element or partner that helps with solving mysteries/murders that’s it should be its own trope. It’s a marvelously creative framework. Over and over, by various authors, it’s been threaded, twisted and tweaked to fit their particular personal narrative takes on this theme to wonderful effect.
Such variety makes it a great thrill to explore new stories in the same lane by new authors when I run across them. Like this one.
Ghostly Awakening (Ghostly Book 1) by E.M. Leya is the first in her new series. It’s a slow burn, paranormal romance that involves murder mysteries and of course, a detective and a man, in this case, a assistant medical examiner, who talks to ghosts.
I enjoyed reading this story. The characters are interesting and layered, with good dialogue and the right balance of quirky family dynamics and vagueness of solid foundation that will allow them to grow in future stories. Unlike other books, these aren’t tragic, haunted men. Instead, both Angus, the detective, and Lance, the assistant ME, are people who have the normal reactions and emotions you’d expect from people in their professions and with their experiences.
Except Lance starts to see ghosts. It’s a new thing for him and I’ll leave that part of the story to the book.
The ghosts are great. Leya has created a foundation for them , religious based, and spiritually oriented. FYI I’m not a religious person so this isn’t a sticking issue for me. Heaven or another plain . You decide. I liked her ghosts a lot. Big personalities and small.
The murders, while gruesome, all have already occurred and happen off page. The mystery is solved through ghostly events and hard work.
The romance is molasses slow and the book ends and the relationship is getting started. Everything about this makes me want more. And I’m heading to the next book quickly.
I’m recommending this for all lovers of this genre and fans of the author.
As assistant medical examiner, Lance is used to seeing strange things, but when he suddenly starts seeing ghosts, he worries he’s losing his mind.
Angus grew up around the strange. With his mother able to see and speak to ghosts, he’s grown up knowing there are things most people can’t see or understand. When he accidentally catches Lance arguing with a ghost, he knows he has to step in before the man thinks he’s going crazy.
As Lance adjusts to his new ability, he also realizes seeing ghosts has its advantages. When several women are murdered in the area, it’s up to Lance and Angus to work with the ghosts of the victims to catch the killer.
Lost and Bound has to be one of my favorites of this series so far. It’s got a horrifying beginning. We get dropped into a nightmare where a character previously thought dead is imprisoned, tortured, and experimented on.
Jared Armitage, a problematic character who’s caused no end of heartbreak and issues for his own family and pack is now close to dying. He’s cognizant that he’s made many wrong choices to get where he’s is but doesn’t want to die.
I like that Grayson’s creation of Jared reflects the fact that Jared’s made enormous mistakes and that he realizes exactly why he made them, the flaws in himself that made his betrayals possible. Jared is such a tortured , damaged soul but his acceptance of his guilt lays the way towards his forgiveness and acceptance.
Calder is a striking figure. From the first dark, fearsome impression of a starving monster to the being that we continue to see grow beyond our understanding, he’s such a formidable force. And my favorite.
Watching these two together, as they work through traumatic events, family disputes, and further emotional devastation, well, it’s gripping, sexy, and deeply satisfying.
More about these two please because I feel their story is far from over.
Arik and Matt, Ian and Nate make strong appearances here. But the book belongs to Jared and Calder.
I’m highly recommending it. The series too. Read them mostly in order . Skip First Blood. For many reasons.
Kidnapped, imprisoned, and experimented on for two years, Jared Armitage has lost the will to live. When his captors give him to another prisoner, one who can and probably will take Jared’s life, he comes face to face with the most terrifying thing of all: hope.
Calder’s warlock captors meant to turn him into a monster, and they nearly succeeded. Starved, desperate, and filled with rage, Calder hasn’t cared about anyone in years. Until Jared. Together they have a chance at escape and Calder has someone to fight and kill for. To cherish. Someone he doesn’t want to hurt.
Life after captivity isn’t easy. Jared never wanted a mate like Calder, but he craves Calder’s intense attention, his ability to take Jared apart…and then put him back together again. Even if their mate bond is only temporary.
But Calder’s made a promise—one he’ll die before he breaks—never to hurt Jared or let him be hurt. Unexpected enemies are lurking, targeting Jared, Calder’s one weakness. Their intense bond—and maybe even love—are worth everything, and they’re both willing to fight for it…or die trying.
Lost and Bound contains dubcon and graphic violence. It also includes a monster who torments his mate by being too gentle, the werewolf who can’t stop craving him, and knotting—and a guaranteed HEA. The book has new main characters, but it is best read in series. This series does not contain mpreg.
Beyond The Veil series continues it’s excellent journey into the macabre and magical with The Bones in The Yard. KM Avery’s series is slightly divided into sections of three, each focusing on a specific main character and couple.
The Bones in The Yard is the second of the group of stories about the elf detective, Valentine “Val” Hart. Val, now private investigator with Beyond the Veil , a firm owned by Mason and Ward , a orc witch and human warlock who deal in all things magical, arcane and the dead.
Avery’s book picks up after the events in The Dog In The Alley, the story that introduces Val to Taavi Camal, Xoloitzcuintli shifter who is a rare born Arcanid. Taavi, in a fascinating twist, spent much of that story and their time together in his dog form (through trauma) , which prompts a lot of mixed emotions and deep questioning from Val over how to deal with Taavi on different levels. It’s a great element and one whose impact continues through to this story.
Avery has ,through five books, demonstrated an exemplary ability to craft believable traumatized characters, ones so complex and compelling that we can understand all the layers of denial they are putting between them and the reality of their existence. These are brutal books, dealing with death through evil, horrific acts. Some from past history that Avery brings tragically, furiously to life through the ghosts Ward talks to. Others through the vicious, ruthless events of modern life, from the magical world or against it.
The Bones In The Yard attacks the seemingly unflappable elf on every level. Avery uses this book to narratively open up Val emotionally, flay him for his own introspection about his life, and the shifter he’s not sure how to love. The same shifter who’s trying to get Val to see that Val is showing all the signs of some who has PTSD. Which Val does. Most of the beings here are under constant threat of violence or have been physically / mentally/ magically assaulted. Or been somehow effected by it. It’s a very harsh reality.
The shifter, Taavi Camal, a Xoloitzcuintli dog (among those commonly known as Mexican hairless) , has been recently injured and Arcanids are being ritually murdered, another scary fact for him and Val.
Avery layers on fascinating Maya and Incan mythology to go with terrifying discoveries and murders. All the marvelous found family of the Beyond the Veil is highly visible and involved as well as Val’s best friend from Wisconsin.
Elliot is important because a huge
part of Val’s identity is his Wisconsin family and heritage. He’s still that nondescript , 5’7” brown haired boy that no one wanted to date. The one that likes his baked goods and family before the Arcanavirus changed him into a 6’2”, gorgeous elf with long silver hair that continues to grow. There’s a constant struggle between the being he’s become , how he’s now perceived as this luminous beauty and the real person he’s inside. Again, a great element of this story and series. The new beings created , the ones that survived, by the Arcanavirus and society’s response to them.
Avery is constantly expanding this universe, coming back to the original threads which made it so imaginative. Here Taavi is a rare born Arcanid, instead of someone changed. He’s never been anything else, with implications for that. He doesn’t understand what it’s like to be human.
I’ve been distressed, constantly amazed, frustrated, appreciative, totally invested and always looking forward to the next chapter in the lives of the beings here.
I’m highly recommending this book but this is a series that must be read in order for the reader to understand the characters, the events that happened to them.
Beyond The Veil :
The Ghost In The Hall #1
The Boy In The Locked Room #2*
The Skeleton Under The Stairs #3
The Dog In The Alley #4
The Bones In The Yard #5
• Pls read reviews and trigger warnings about book 2 and Chapter 19, a chapter which deals in a sexual assault.
I know. Who’d have thought that a jaded ex-cop elf would have problems with emotional commitment and self-esteem?
Yeah, me, too.
I’m trying to work on that. I’ve also got a new job, new boss, and a pile of bones I’m trying to identify while not stepping on too many official police-business toes. To top things off, it looks like the Antiquus Ordo Arcanum aren’t the only murdering cult making my life a living hell.
I’m in the middle of a battleground between not one, but two cults and a group of people who think that witches, warlocks, and people like Ward and me shouldn’t exist. And as if that weren’t enough, I’m struggling to find time to work on self-improvement and maybe manage to go on a date or two in the mean time with a certain shifter who is just way too adorable for words.
I’m pretty sure he’s going to dump my ass. But I really, really, really hope he doesn’t. At least not before I can solve these murders and get my life a little more together than it currently isn’t.
Even worse, maybe the world was better off for it.”
So begins our journey into The Elemental Keyes , the first of Sam Burns the absolutely outstanding, and emotionally gripping new two book series, Circle the Square.
A two person POV, which starts from one world, then begins a journey that the author will take her characters and readers on that just shy of brilliant.
There’s no way to go about describing the storylines except what relayed in the description. The world is about to end. We know because one of our narrator’s a seer, Blaze Keyes and he’s seen the world will end on his birthday.
Well, that of his and his twin brother, River’s. They are elemental mages as well as seers. River a fire mage and Blaze ironically a water mage. And it’s because of mages the world once succeeded, and it’s because of mages it’s now going to die.
The other wildly different perspective comes from a elf, Elethen Voransa, aka The Crow. A well known thief among his people, his entrance into the lives of the Keyes brothers is spectacular and shattering for all.
Burns does amazing things in bringing all the characters to life, along with the dire circumstances under which they are living and maneuvering through the obstacles that keep rising up around them.
There’s no way to prepare someone for the neat twists and surprises Burns has laid down for the readers here. Like silken traps threaded through the narrative, they snap shut with a well plotted zest, making this reader anticipate with great excitement and glee what the next and final book holds.
I’m highly impressed with The Elemental Keyes, it’s so imaginative, with great twists, wonderful characters, and a fantastic storyline.
April 13th, the date The Elemental Ruin is released, can’t get here soon enough.
Fine, tomorrow is the day the world ends, but is that actually better? My name is Blaze Keyes, and I’m a seer. Since I was a kid, I’ve known that the world was going to end on my twenty-fifth birthday.
But the day before the apocalypse, the most unexpected guy falls into my lap—or maybe I’d like to fall into his. Elethen is tall, handsome, a type of mage that disappeared from earth a century ago . . . and an elf. Also, he says he fell through a portal from another world, and I sort of believe him.
If I can’t save earth, maybe I can at least get Elethen home safe. Or if we can get my infuriating brother to work with us, maybe we can save everyone on both of our worlds. Maybe the world dies tomorrow, but damn it, I’m not going out without a fight.
The Elemental Keyes is the first of two books featuring a deadly portal between two very different worlds, a confused elven Robin Hood, an unemployed mage trying to deal with the end of everything he knows, his snarky criminal brother, and a few surprises along the way. It will conclude on April 13th with book two, The Elemental Ruins
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 