Magic Bleeds / Ilona Andrews

4 out of 5 stars

Atlanta would be a nice place to live, if it weren't for the magic. 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.

Kate Daniels works for the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid, officially as a liaison with the mercenary guild. Unofficially, she cleans up the paranormal problems no one else wants to handle - especially if they involve Atlanta's shapeshifting community. When she's called in to investigate a fight at the Steel Horse, a bar on the border between the territories of the shapeshifters and the necromancers, Kate quickly discovers that there's a new player in town. One who's been around for thousands of years - and who rode to war at the side of Kate's father. This foe may be too much even for Kate and Curran, the Beast Lord, to handle. Because this time Kate will be taking on family.


 I just can’t leave the urban fantasy genre alone, especially Kate Daniels—as my friend Carol says, it’s like eating some addictive junk food, but without feeling guilty and gross afterward. I would also liken it to watching your favourite evening TV drama that has a soap-opera feel to it (without the extremes of the real daytime TV dramas). It reminds me of my old favourite, Dark Shadows.

It seems that the fourth book of a series is *the* time to bring a couple together. It has occurred now in this series and in Patricia Briggs’ Mercy Thompson series. The challenge from here on will be to maintain the dramatic tension without the “will they or won’t they” relationship questions. For Kate & Curran, butting heads over who will do what and when will probably still drive things forward for a couple of books.

Obviously, I’m addicted—I’ve actually started to acquire these volumes as I find them at my favourite used book store. *happy sigh*