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Kategori: Cultural delights
“It took a qualified wizard to detect a summoning in progress. It required only a half-literate idiot with a twitch of power and a dim idea of how to use it to attempt one. Before you knew it, a three-headed Slavonic god was wreaking havoc in downtown Atlanta, the skies were raining winged snakes, and SWAT was screaming for more ammo.”
This isn't the first time I've read this book, far from it. Kate Daniels comes in at second place on my list of favorite urban fantasy series, only beaten by the Fever series. I finished reading Magic Bites for the third time within a 24 hour span, so this time I decided it was deserving of a gushing review.
So, what is this series about? Well, welcome to a new and terrifying world were magic and technology are at constant war. When magic has the upper hand, cars refuse to start, wards flare to life, and a little human boy with just a slight touch of magic, and the right incantation, can accidentally summon a greek god to wreak havoc in the city square. And when technology hits and the magic dissipates the humans have to deal with the chaos left in it's wake.
Kate Daniels, our protagonist, works for the Mercenary Guild, one of many organisations that have plopped up to help people deal with supernatural problems. Basically a sword for hire, the Guild send her on missions within her district, and the money paid depends on the problem solved.
Kate is one of few heroines that I genuinely love. She is strong, witty, loyal, smart, brave and at the same time vulnerable. She knows when help might come in handy, but she doesn't expect or need anyone to rescue her. I never get annoyed at her, she isn't whiny or self-pitiying or constantly mooning over some guy like so many other women of todays fantasy. Actually, when thinking about it now, I believe she might be my all time favorite heroine.
The first book sets a quick pace and the series never slows down. You have to hit the first page running, and don't expect to catch a break if you start to lag behind. In Magic Bites, Kates guardian is killed. He was a Knight Diviner, working for the Order of Merciful Aid, and a damn tough man to kill, especially when whomever attacked him had to deal with one of the undead as well. Kate wants vengeance, and the Order let's her investigate, hoping that she will work as a smokescreen for their real investigator. Even knowing this Kate sets out to find her guardians killer, he was the only family she had left, and the loneliness she now feels echoes throughout the rest of the story. Of course this case turns out to be everything but simple, and it soon becomes clear that whoever orchestrated this has made sure to put blame on both the People and the Pack in hopes of starting a disastrous and very bloody war. So now Kate finds herself in the middle of the political arena with the biggest heavyweights in the country, a very bad place to be for a woman who can't afford to attract attention to herself.
Ahhh, the People and the Pack. Let's start with the People. Navigators and Masters of the undead, the People are more of a buisness organisation than anything else. I love Ilona Andrews new take on vampires. In this world they are mindless, bloodthirsty creatures, hairless with an insectlike intellect, their vacant minds are easy to take over and control, which is exactly what the People are doing. You can even sell your own dead body to them for a good price if you wish to leave your family some money , and they will put the dead body to good use, making the person into one of the undead, controllable and deadly. Kate find the undead repulsive for more than one reason, and I have to admit, they are quite ...disturbing to say the least. Nevertheless, I find Nataraja, Rowena and Ghastek to be three very different and interesting representations of the People, none of them like the other.
And the Pack. God, I love coming back to the first book after coming so far into the series, just to see how everything started. We have hyenas, bears, serpents, wolves, rats, jaguars, badgers and tigers and every other animal you can think of represented within the Shapechanger community, and unless they are rouge or a loner, they belong to the Pack. Whitin the pack are groups, divided by animal, each with their own Alpha, but ruling above them all are the Council and the Beast Lord. I have always loved weres and shifters, waaaaay more than any other magical creature, so the fact that they are such an integral part of the series and continues to be so pleases me greatly. And of course there is Curran, their Lord. He and Kate needs their own section.
You didn't think I would love a series this much if there wasn't some romance in it, did you? I wouldn't call the romance in this series sweet or lovey dovey, it's a lot more gritty and bloody in fact, and is never a part of the main plot or even the focus of any book. But it is an important part of the series and helps to evolve the main characters, Curran and Kate. I've already gushed over Kate, so let me do the same with Curran. Once I'd gotten over his name (because seriously Andrews, you could have picked something...better) I fell in love with him, I fell just as hard as I did for Kate. And this book sets the foundation for their partnership, and then later their friendship, and finally their relationship (though it was frustating to have to wait so many books for the last part to happen, it was well worth it) Curran is selfless, courageous, snarky, cocky and a fair but harsh leader of his people. He and Kate can match each other in stubborness and brave actions, and both of them have an empathic heart that bleeds for every person lost throughout this books pages. They are perfect for each other in every sense that matters. Kate isn't one to follow orders or bow to anyone, something that might cause Curran all kinds of grief, but that also earns his respect. After all, he's grown rather weary of every female covering over in fear of the power he exudes. As Kate says, he isn't the Lord over 1500 + shifters because he's the smartest or the most popular, he rules by the right of might. No one has been able to kick his ass. But Kate doesn't lack in power, she isn't as human as she looks, far from it actually, and they seem to have met their match in each other. I love them, in this book and in every other that comes after.
Besides the two of them, we also have Jim, Derek, Saiman, Doolittle, Ghastek ofc, Mahon, Nik and so many many more fascinating characters throughout the series, not to mention gods and oracles and dragons and trolls and giant turtles and any other magical creature you could possibly imagine and some you probably haven't even heard of. If you crave urban fantasy, deep characters, action from the first page and wish to drown yourself in magic and creatures from the most ancient of stories, then I can safely recommend Ilona Andrews Kate Daniels series. Give it a chance, I doubt many will regret it!
“What happened to the alpha-wolf?"
"LEGOs."
"Legos?" It sounded Greek but I couldn't recall anything mythological with that name. Wasn't it an island?
"He was carrying a load of laundry into the basement and tripped on the old set of LEGOs his kids left on the stairs. Broke two ribs and an ankle.”
This isn't the first time I've read this book, far from it. Kate Daniels comes in at second place on my list of favorite urban fantasy series, only beaten by the Fever series. I finished reading Magic Bites for the third time within a 24 hour span, so this time I decided it was deserving of a gushing review.
So, what is this series about? Well, welcome to a new and terrifying world were magic and technology are at constant war. When magic has the upper hand, cars refuse to start, wards flare to life, and a little human boy with just a slight touch of magic, and the right incantation, can accidentally summon a greek god to wreak havoc in the city square. And when technology hits and the magic dissipates the humans have to deal with the chaos left in it's wake.
Kate Daniels, our protagonist, works for the Mercenary Guild, one of many organisations that have plopped up to help people deal with supernatural problems. Basically a sword for hire, the Guild send her on missions within her district, and the money paid depends on the problem solved.
Kate is one of few heroines that I genuinely love. She is strong, witty, loyal, smart, brave and at the same time vulnerable. She knows when help might come in handy, but she doesn't expect or need anyone to rescue her. I never get annoyed at her, she isn't whiny or self-pitiying or constantly mooning over some guy like so many other women of todays fantasy. Actually, when thinking about it now, I believe she might be my all time favorite heroine.
The first book sets a quick pace and the series never slows down. You have to hit the first page running, and don't expect to catch a break if you start to lag behind. In Magic Bites, Kates guardian is killed. He was a Knight Diviner, working for the Order of Merciful Aid, and a damn tough man to kill, especially when whomever attacked him had to deal with one of the undead as well. Kate wants vengeance, and the Order let's her investigate, hoping that she will work as a smokescreen for their real investigator. Even knowing this Kate sets out to find her guardians killer, he was the only family she had left, and the loneliness she now feels echoes throughout the rest of the story. Of course this case turns out to be everything but simple, and it soon becomes clear that whoever orchestrated this has made sure to put blame on both the People and the Pack in hopes of starting a disastrous and very bloody war. So now Kate finds herself in the middle of the political arena with the biggest heavyweights in the country, a very bad place to be for a woman who can't afford to attract attention to herself.
Ahhh, the People and the Pack. Let's start with the People. Navigators and Masters of the undead, the People are more of a buisness organisation than anything else. I love Ilona Andrews new take on vampires. In this world they are mindless, bloodthirsty creatures, hairless with an insectlike intellect, their vacant minds are easy to take over and control, which is exactly what the People are doing. You can even sell your own dead body to them for a good price if you wish to leave your family some money , and they will put the dead body to good use, making the person into one of the undead, controllable and deadly. Kate find the undead repulsive for more than one reason, and I have to admit, they are quite ...disturbing to say the least. Nevertheless, I find Nataraja, Rowena and Ghastek to be three very different and interesting representations of the People, none of them like the other.
And the Pack. God, I love coming back to the first book after coming so far into the series, just to see how everything started. We have hyenas, bears, serpents, wolves, rats, jaguars, badgers and tigers and every other animal you can think of represented within the Shapechanger community, and unless they are rouge or a loner, they belong to the Pack. Whitin the pack are groups, divided by animal, each with their own Alpha, but ruling above them all are the Council and the Beast Lord. I have always loved weres and shifters, waaaaay more than any other magical creature, so the fact that they are such an integral part of the series and continues to be so pleases me greatly. And of course there is Curran, their Lord. He and Kate needs their own section.
You didn't think I would love a series this much if there wasn't some romance in it, did you? I wouldn't call the romance in this series sweet or lovey dovey, it's a lot more gritty and bloody in fact, and is never a part of the main plot or even the focus of any book. But it is an important part of the series and helps to evolve the main characters, Curran and Kate. I've already gushed over Kate, so let me do the same with Curran. Once I'd gotten over his name (because seriously Andrews, you could have picked something...better) I fell in love with him, I fell just as hard as I did for Kate. And this book sets the foundation for their partnership, and then later their friendship, and finally their relationship (though it was frustating to have to wait so many books for the last part to happen, it was well worth it) Curran is selfless, courageous, snarky, cocky and a fair but harsh leader of his people. He and Kate can match each other in stubborness and brave actions, and both of them have an empathic heart that bleeds for every person lost throughout this books pages. They are perfect for each other in every sense that matters. Kate isn't one to follow orders or bow to anyone, something that might cause Curran all kinds of grief, but that also earns his respect. After all, he's grown rather weary of every female covering over in fear of the power he exudes. As Kate says, he isn't the Lord over 1500 + shifters because he's the smartest or the most popular, he rules by the right of might. No one has been able to kick his ass. But Kate doesn't lack in power, she isn't as human as she looks, far from it actually, and they seem to have met their match in each other. I love them, in this book and in every other that comes after.
Besides the two of them, we also have Jim, Derek, Saiman, Doolittle, Ghastek ofc, Mahon, Nik and so many many more fascinating characters throughout the series, not to mention gods and oracles and dragons and trolls and giant turtles and any other magical creature you could possibly imagine and some you probably haven't even heard of. If you crave urban fantasy, deep characters, action from the first page and wish to drown yourself in magic and creatures from the most ancient of stories, then I can safely recommend Ilona Andrews Kate Daniels series. Give it a chance, I doubt many will regret it!
“What happened to the alpha-wolf?"
"LEGOs."
"Legos?" It sounded Greek but I couldn't recall anything mythological with that name. Wasn't it an island?
"He was carrying a load of laundry into the basement and tripped on the old set of LEGOs his kids left on the stairs. Broke two ribs and an ankle.”
/Lover
