Magic For Nothing (InCryptid #6) ~ By Seanan McGuire – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Cryptozoology, Family Relationships, Urban Fantasy

Thanks to NetGalley and DAW for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

368 Pages

Synopsis: As the youngest of the three Price children, Antimony is used to people not expecting much from her. She’s been happy playing roller derby and hanging out with her cousins, leaving the globe-trotting to her older siblings while she stays at home and tries to decide what she wants to do with her life. She always knew that one day, things would have to change. She didn’t think they’d change so fast.

Annie’s expectations keep getting shattered. She didn’t expect Verity to declare war on the Covenant of St. George on live television. She didn’t expect the Covenant to take her sister’s threat seriously. And she definitely didn’t expect to be packed off to London to infiltrate the Covenant from the inside…but as the only Price in her generation without a strong resemblance to the rest of the family, she’s the perfect choice to play spy. They need to know what’s coming. Their lives may depend on it. 

But Annie has some secrets of her own, like the fact that she’s started setting things on fire when she touches them, and has no idea how to control it. Now she’s headed halfway around the world, into the den of the enemy, where blowing her cover could get her killed. She’s pretty sure things can’t get much worse.

Antimony Price is about to learn how wrong it’s possible for one cryptozoologist to be. 

And once again I impulsively requested a book without realizing it was part of a series! Argh! Seanan McGuire is someone I’ve had on my “authors I most want to read” list for a long time, so when I saw Magic For Nothing I got so excited I immediately hit request.

I can definitely say after reading it, this is NOT the kind of series that you can just jump into the middle of. Although I felt like I was missing things because I hadn’t read the previous five books, I can still see why Seanan McGuire is so popular. As the story begins, Antimony is kind of obnoxious and has a huge chip on her shoulder presumably because she’s the youngest in this magically talented family of cryptozoologists. She’s resentful and mouthy, and to be honest I wanted to smack her a couple of times. But then Antimony starts to get some insight into the choices her older siblings have made and as she does so, she becomes much more relatable. Even though I felt as though I was futilely trying to catch up with the story arc of this series, it’s obvious that the InCryptid series is completely different from the many other urban fantasy series out there. The story itself is very fast-paced with plenty of spying, and setting things on fire and even some trapeze swinging and knife throwing. Oh yeah. And there’s a roller derby as well! In the end, I thoroughly enjoyed Magic For Nothing and it’s left me determined to go back and read the previous books before the next one comes out.

 

Northwoods ~ By Bill Schweigart – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Adventure, Cryptozoology, Horror, Mythology, Native Americans, Science Fiction, Suspense

Thank you NetGalley and Hydra for providing an e-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: March 1st, 2016

Synopsis: Ex-Delta Force Davis Holland, now an agent for the Customs and Border Protection, has seen it all. But nothing in his experience has prepared him for what he and the local sheriff find one freezing night in the Minnesota woods.

Investigating reports of an illegal border crossing, the two men stumble across a blood-drenched scene of mass murder, barely escaping with their lives…and a single clue to the mayhem: a small wooden chest placed at the heart of the massacre. Something deadly has entered Holland’s territory, crossing the border from nightmare into reality. 

When news of the atrocity reaches wealthy cryptozoologist Richard Severance, he sends a three-person team north to investigate. Not long ago, the members of that team–Ben McKelvie, Lindsay Clark, and Alex Standingcloud–were nearly killed by a vengeful shapeshifter. Now they are the walking wounded, haunted by gruesome memories that make normal life impossible. But there is nothing normal about the horror that awaits in the Northwoods.

Northwoods is a solid sequel to The Beast of Barcroft, that adds new characters while still managing to further developing returning favorites. While this can work as a standalone, you’ll get much more out of it if you read the first book.

Lindsay and Ben are both back, although they’re still dealing with the trauma and fallout of the previous events of last year. As in the previous book, things go better for them when they’re working together. Unfortunately for much of the book they’re separated, with Lindsay teaming up with Alex Standingcloud–also returning from the previous book–And Ben partnering with former Delta Force commando and now Customs and Border Patrol Agent Davis Holland.  Also making an appearance is charming but still untrustworthy billionaire and cryptozoologist Richard Severance. My one disappointment with this book is with the exception of a flashback to how Alex and Richard first met during a Wendigo investigation there’s not really much done with his character. I’m hoping more is revealed about the enigmatic scientist in the next book. The plot is incredibly fast paced, and although there’s many things going on such as: Native American myths, Jinn, and Ghouls, everything comes together in the final chapters. The ending perfectly sets events up for the next book which I can’t wait for.

Northwoods is an exciting tale that I finished in one sitting. Bill Schweigart is fast becoming a favorite author for me in the genres of horror and science fiction. If you’re a fan of authors like Stephen King and Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child, and you’re looking for something new, try this author. I guarantee you’ll be hooked!