Book 18, 2019

Basic Witch: Witches of Salem by Harmony Hart

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Last night, I finished reading Basic Witch by Harmony Hart. It's the first book in the "Gemma Bradbury" magical mysteries series.

Gemma's life takes a turn for the weird when she accidentally stumbles from Salem, Oregon, into a magical Salem, which is populated by paranormals. As if that wasn't unsettling enough, Gemma also stumbles (literally) over a dead body. She learns she's a witch, and that she is now stuck in Salem forever. Things aren't all bad, however. Her cat can now talk to her, the men in town are all drop-dead gorgeous, and she makes friends with a real fairy princess.

The magical Coven assigns Gemma a tutor to teach her to wield her magic. Professor Beauregard Bacchus seems to be the dreamiest of the available men. The bad news is, the Coven also insists she run the magical shop of the dead man, as well as live in his apartment above the shop. That puts Gemma squarely on top of the list of suspects who may have murdered the man. Now she has to pass a wand exam, learn how to assimilate in a magical town, and find out who really killed her predecessor before she ends up in jail.

I enjoyed the story; it was light and fun, if not altogether original. Characters weren't as three-dimensional as I'd like, but Gemma was plucky and engaging. My largest complaint is that some "pages" (this was an ebook) seemed to be missing. I would tap my screen to turn the page, only to get a blank screen! I know I missed some important information, and that made me terribly unhappy.

Favorite lines:
♦ He probably dropped dead from the sheer frustration of living.
♦ "Can werewolves smell fear? Asking for a friend."
♦ "...you'll be granted a license to purchase a full-power wand, which, as I said before, the Coven will reimburse you for. There is the background check and three-day waiting period, unless of course we happen to have a wand show in town. In that case, you can bypass the background check entirely."
I loved the tongue-in-cheek sarcasm of this line!
♦ I didn't even want to think about a world without Hogwarts.
♦ "Every single woman in Salem wants to ride that man's broomstick."

Very amusing story, and I liked it a lot, However, what would have gotten a solid four stars is only getting three, due to the egregious formatting errors. Hmpf.

Book 19, 2019

The Awakening by L.A. Banks

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



At lunch today, I finished the book I'd taken to work last Monday. One good thing about our recent, horrible weather--more time to read at work! The book was The Awakening by LA Banks, and it's the second installment in her "Vampire Huntress" urban fantasy series, featuring spoken word artist and vampire slayer, Damali Richards.

Damali is not just any vampire slayer; she is the millenium Neteru--a huntress whose power is so legendary that vampires will go to war to possess and control her. A rogue vampire named Nuit has brokered an alliance with demons in order to claim Damali for himself. However, one of his recent made vampires is Carlos Rivera, whom Damali has loved since childhood. Carlos is torn between his new nature as a vampire and his love for Damali. He also wishes to claim her, but he feels a need to protect her, as well. As a newly-turned vampire, Carlos' soul still hangs in the balance, and it's up to him to make a choice. He finds himself playing Nuit against the Vampire Council, while at the same time being cajoled by the forces for the light. In the end, Carlos isn't certain he can trust himself to make the right decision.

Nuit is gathering his forces and making plans...plans that include abducting Damali from her first big concert to make her his bride. His plans hinge on Carlos, and Nuit has no idea that Carlos means to destroy him.

I found this book more enjoyable than the first in the series, which is why it took me so long to get back into the series. There is nothing fluffy, cute, romantic, or sparkly about these vampires. They are monsters, plain and simple. The story was dark and edgy and erotic, filled with violence and angst and action. I don't know if the author intended this or not, but I found Carlos far more compelling as the anti-hero than Damali was as the heroine. In fact, I'd say the majority of the book followed Carlos, rather than Damali. That was actually a bit off-putting. If you have a "vampire huntress" series, would you not concentrate on said vampire huntress as the focus of your narrative? Another thing that put me off (and this is purely my personal opinion) is the street slang. Yes, it made the story more authentic, but I don't speak "street", and it wasn't always easy for me to follow.

Favorite line: "...from the great queens of the Nubian Empire--from Eve herself...she was made as the second prototype, after man, when the Heavens perfected the model. The human female was smarter, had more of the gifts from On High of mercy, compassion, understanding, love, trust, healing...wasn't warlike, and could produce life....That's why she graced temples and was called a goddess--and then when evil had compromised enough men and gained a foothold, they erased her from the scriptures, from temple walls, and made her a second-class citizen--a breeder. That was not the divine design. But unprotected, no longer cherished, stripped of resources, the earth gift called woman becomes vulnerable--as do her children.

Yep, deep.

After reading this one, I'm more eager to get into the rest of the series.