subscribeMagic Strikes by Ilona Andrews
Friday April 24, 2009
Last week, over a 24 hour period, I devoured Magic Strikes by Ilona Andrews. It’s the third in the Kate Daniels urban fantasy series about merc/mage/kickass female hero Kate Daniels (the previous two being Magic Bites and Magic Burns), written in first person, set in a futuristic and magical Atlanta. I’ll try to keep the reaction as spoiler-free as possible.
Firstly, the book was excellent. I love this entire series. It’s different from a lot of the other series in the genre for a few reasons, but the main one is the world. It’s set in a slightly futuristic time in a world where magic and technology intermingle and often cancel each other out (well, when it comes to magic canceling out tech, really) and the world is built up so well, you’re utterly and unquestioningly drawn in. That rich world layers the present action with a lot of depth, as well as allowing a huge backstory to unfold in a skillful way that doesn’t feel too clunky — in part because of how slowly and deliberately it’s revealed. (Any story can have a backstory this richly developed but the trick is in the way it’s revealed and therefore absorbed by the reader. If it’s all thrown out immediately, or infodumped in the middle/end, it’s hard to process.) That and the entire series so far is very well-paced. There’s a very comfortable unfurling of overarching series plot going on across all of the books that I am really enjoying as well as each book’s individual plot. And each book does have a distinct individual arc, which both complicates and helps to enhance the series plot. As much as I really want to know what will happen… it’ll keep. I’m enjoying everything as it’s been written. Yes, I want to know some things, but enough has been said, implied, and foreshadowed that I am quite happy to keep reading. (Twitch. I keep telling myself that I can wait patiently, anyway.)
I also love this series compared to many others for two other major reasons: the first is Kate herself (a true female hero if there ever was one) and the fact that there is no distracting, drama-ridden love triangle or ridiculous battle over the “many men” who love Kate. Nope. It’s straightforward and singular and I love that. The love plot for each book is simple, pointed, and clear, with as little drama as possible — which fits Kate. She’s not one for drama, and her love life (whatever there is of it) shouldn’t be made into the tug-of-war some authors make for their female main characters. (I am thinking of two series in particular; if you read the genre you probably know which I mean.) She just doesn’t have the time nor the energy to care too much about it and if it were any other way than the way it is, I wouldn’t enjoy the series half as much.
More specifically in Magic Strikes I enjoyed the interaction between Kate and Curran (as always, their witty interplay and chemistry is wonderfully amusing) and the structure of the tournament idea. The whole underground fighting idea has been done but it was used here in an entirely new and interesting way in keeping with this world and its style, and I enjoyed that. I really enjoyed getting to see a different/deeper side of Saiman, and getting to see the developing relationship between Raphael and Andrea (lovelovelove her!), especially as it compares to (and is totally different from) Kate and Curran’s. Getting to know more about Kate was exhilarating, as was seeing the promise of battles to come through well-placed hints and some obvious comments.
I’m thrilled at the way this series is shaping into something subtly grander and more epic than I’d initially anticipated. It’s growing into an epic urban fantasy series and I love that. And it’s not losing its voice or sense of characters, either, as it grows into a larger and more epic framework, which is so vital.
I can’t wait for the next installment in the Kate Daniels series, as well as the new book set in a new world that’s coming out, On the Edge. Keep them coming!
Penn Station & oddities
Monday November 19, 2007
“Oddities” is one of my all-time favorite crazy words.
To begin on a less crazy note, I trekked over to Penn Station today to pick up our Amtrak tickets for this week’s holiday jaunt to Bryan’s family’s house. (The word “jaunt” is highly underused.) On my way there, I was walking through the Times Square station when I noticed, for the not-so-umpteenth time that there were signs indicating the ACE trains down a corridor. That sign — signs, really — indicate also that to go down that corridor will lead to 7th Ave. I’ve always thought that meant it was an exit to 7th Ave, from which you could find your way to 8th and the ACE lines. But apparently that is not the case! There is an entirely underground, within-the-system passage from Times Square to the ACE lines, and therefore, Penn Station! Woooo! (Granted, the 1-2-3 also go to Penn Station, but that dumps you off on the NJ Transit side and that’s not conducive to getting to your Amtrak train, which you pick up on the 8th Ave (therefore ACE) side of the station.
Long story short, I discovered something I’d thought non-existent to exist. Yay! Not that it really saved me much time or effort, but still.
Also, I could have simply taken the E from 51st/53rd & Lex to Penn Station (take the 6 downtown, then change at 51st) but… I forgot about that route.
I feel accomplished! About something lame, I know, but give me my moment of zen.
On to other things! I’ve read so many books since November 1st, which I mentioned in the last entry; I’ll list their titles/authors for your edification:
- The Riddle, Alison Croggon
- Wolf at the Door, She’s No Faerie Princess, The Demon You Know, Howl at the Moon, by Christine Warren
- Twilight, Stephenie Meyer
- The Seer and the Sword, by Victoria Hanley (my second time reading it; I’d forgotten the whole plot)
- Magic Bites, by Ilona Andrews
That’s 8 books! Wooo! The quick and dirty: The Riddle was a Tolkien take off and far less interesting than what it might have been had a more talented writer taken the same story (oh, gosh, can we stop with the creating of languages?); Christine Warren’s books were romance/urban fantasy and all were fun, quick reads (talk about thwwwp). A lot of laughs, witty dialogue, and my first experience with actual romance genre stuff. Fun, as I said. Howl at the Moon was the best… I don’t tend to like army guys, but hey, Noah convinced me he was lovable. Twilight was good, a quick read, and interesting — certainly unusual for the genre and unique, but I wasn’t floored by any part of it. The characters and characterization were okay, the plot kept me interested steadily (kudos to Meyer; not many authors keep me so riveted) but perhaps it’s because I’m 22 and not 16, but I was not really in love with this book. That’s okay; I wasn’t looking to be in love with it anyway. Hm. The Seer and the Sword is so, so a first novel in the most stereotypical sense (in a way Meyer’s was not — despite Twilight too being a first novel) and its plot was quick and fun but its characters were not nearly as fascinating as I’d wanted them to be… save the male characters. They were good. And Magic Bites was surprisingly fun and good. I’m excited for the next book in the series. Not as badly as I’m jonesing for the Mercy Thompson sequel, but that’s because of Sam and Adam… but admittedly, Curran fascinates me. I’m intrigued. Yay for urban fantasy!
Anyway. It’s Thanksgiving week! Hopefully I’ll dash through the sequels (erm, “companions”?) to Hanley’s The Seer and the Sword this week (and get them back to the library before they’re due) and have a fun time with Bryan’s family. More on that later.
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