The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan, Maureen Johnson

Genres: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Paranormal, Romance
Publication Date: November 11th 2014
POV: Male - Third-person, Past tense
My Rating: 4 out of 5

_______________

The perfect gift for Shadowhunters. This gorgeous illustrated hardback brings 10 stories about immortal warlock Magnus Bane together for the first time, along with a bonus never-before-seen tale. A fan-favourite character from Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunter Chronicles, Magnus features in The Mortal Instruments, The Infernal Devices, Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy and the movie of City of Bones. Magnus will never be able to tell all of his tales. No one would believe him. But these stories shed a little light on his often inscrutable character. They are stories he probably wishes had never got out.

_______________

So, some background on my relationship with Cassie. I read City of Bones first. Wasn't a huge fan of it, didn't particularly like Clary or Jace, I hated their relationship, and I hated Simon. The only redeeming quality was the excellent world-building and Magnus Bane. As I read City of Ashes and City of Glass I felt the same way and decided that was a good place to stop. I have never read City of Fallen Angels.

Then, as I heard all the ravings from fans about how much better TID was, and all the raving about Will and Jem, I became curious and wanted to know which side of the love-triangle I would fall on. So I read Clockwork Angel and yes, it is much better. It introduced me to Jem, who is the best thing Cassie has ever created, the story was very interesting, and Tessa is somewhat better than Clary. At least I don't actively dislike her. But there is one major drawback. Will Herondale is one of the worst things I have ever seen created on paper. I can't even tell you have much I hate him because words do not suffice.

I am always somewhat scared to start a new Cassie Clare book because her world is amazing and it has a lot of potential to impress me but I just seem to hate what she seems to think is a good romance and a good romantic lead. I do intend to keep trying though, by reading each of her new series. But as I said, Magnus Bane is one of the redeeming characters she has created, and I was excited to read about him in his own world.

“If one could look this fabulous, one had an obligation to. One should wear everything, or one should wear nothing at all.”

Each story in this book was interesting in its own right. I won't say which was my favourite because they were all interesting, entertaining, funny, and they all taught me something new about Magnus Bane. That is the best thing about this book. The overall experience of getting to know Magnus Bane. He never received this kind of undivided attention before and I feel like I know him intimately now. I don't know how much he appeared in the latter books of TMI, but this gave me a whole new view of him and I love him even more. He is an amazing warlock and an amazing person.

I loved seeing the friends he made over the years, the lovers, how he treated people, including Shadowhunters; how he tried to save Raphael, and Camille, innocent werewolves. He is a hero. But he never stops being Magnus Bane either. He shows up to battle in hot pink. I love his sense of humour too, his sarcasm. That is something I already knew about him, but I really enjoyed seeing more of. Two side of him worth loving.

“Even if the Shadowhunters had been expecting an interruption, and the werewolves had been hoping for a savior, apparently nobody had been expecting all the hot pink.”

I also loved seeing him with Alec. I enjoyed Alec in the books as well, but its different when you see him as Magnus sees him. I never knew Alec was so insecure and shy and good. I loved the way Magnus described him and the way he made him feel. It makes me reconsider finishing TMI, just to get a few more glimpses of Magnus and Alec together. I now have an incredible love and respect for Magnus Bane. I love him more than this series can contain. He is too big for his world. I will keep trying with Cassie Clare, but I have no reason to expect to find anything as great as this by her in the future.

"...he had wanted Alec there, so badly, and here he was. It felt more like magic than anything he could do."

The Sharpest Blade by Sandy Williams (Shadow Reader #3)

Genres: Adult, Urban Fantasy, Romance
Publication Date: December 31st 2013
POV: Female - First-person, Present tense
Smut-O-Meter: 5 out of 10
My Rating: 4 out of 5

_______________

Torn between two worlds.
Torn between two lives.

McKenzie Lewis’s ability to read the shadows has put her—and …those she loves—in harm’s way again and again. The violence must end, but will the cost of peace be more devastating than anyone ever imagined?

After ten years of turmoil, the life McKenzie has always longed for may finally be within her grasp. No one is swinging a sword at her head or asking her to track the fae, and she finally has a regular—albeit boring—job. But when a ruthless enemy strikes against her friends, McKenzie abandons her attempt at normalcy and rushes back to the Realm.

With the fae she loves and the fae she’s tied to pulling her in different directions, McKenzie must uncover the truth behind the war and accept the painful sacrifices that must be made to end it. Armed with dangerous secrets and with powerful allies at her side, her actions will either rip the Realm apart—or save it.

_______________

This was the final installment of this amazing series, and it was a great way to go. This series has always been non-stop action and thrills, with dozens of characters and constant changing of settings. So much is going, like an Urban Fantasy. But with the amount of romance in it, it also feels like a PNR.

I love McKenzie as a heroine. She held her own against the fae. She couldn't beat them in a fight, but she could keep her wits about her, and she was never afraid to do what she had to for the fae she sided with. But her number one trait, is the fact that she made a decision in regards to the love-triangle at the end of book 1, and she never went back. She never regretted it. She never even bent a little bit. Even though she may have loved them both once, she will never betray the one that she chose to love now. More YA heroines need to be like her.

I informed readers in my first two reviews that although this is an adult series, there is no objectionable material for younger readers besides a few F-bombs. But this book is the first in the series to have a sex scene, although it remains fairly clean, being described in the vaguest of terms. But it does not fade to black.

I love this fae world and the idea of shadow readers and the fae powers. It was a combination of the familiar fae world and the new. Basically, I feel the exact same about this book as I did the first two in the series. Either of my other reviews could be applied to this one. I highly recommend this book to fans of fae, strong heroines, and action-packed romance.

“...between two rapid beats of my heart, someone else's breaks.”

Charming by Elliott James (Pax Arcana #1)

Genres: Adult, Urban Fantasy, Romance

Publication Date: September 24th 2013
POV: Male - First-person, Past tense
Smut-O-Meter: 2 out of 10
My Rating: 4 out of 5

_______________

John Charming isn't your average Prince...

He comes from a line of Charmings — an illustrious family of dragon slayers, witch-finders and killers dating back to before the fall of Rome. Trained by a modern day version of the Knights Templar, monster hunters who have updated their methods from chainmail and crossbows to kevlar and shotguns, he was one of the best. That is — until he became the abomination the Knights were sworn to hunt.

That was a lifetime ago. Now, he tends bar under an assumed name in rural Virginia and leads a peaceful, quiet life. One that shouldn't change just because a vampire and a blonde walked into his bar... Right?

_______________

I haven't read a lot of Urban Fantasy in the past, but I saw this on NetGalley and I decided to try it because the premise sounded unique, and I read a lot of PNRs, and how different can that be from UF? UF is a bit more mature, darker, more violent, and less romantic. But I still loved this book, it was a lot of fun, action-packed, and still a little romantic. I love John. He was so funny and just a fascinating person, after everything he has been through that he turned out the way that he has. Sad and cynical but still full of jokes and willing to fight for a future for himself.

his book was really cleverly written. I loved all the characters, and the dialogue, and the way that John's narration knew it was a narration, and would sometimes address the readers directly. There were so many wonderful, quotable moments. A large amount of this book is highlighted on my Kindle.

But I should be more specific. I loved all the characters beside Dvornik. He was a complete "ass-hat", as John would call him. It really bugs me that I don't understand how he ever had a relationship with Sig. Its not just that I don't like him, but I don't think it was explained well enough. I really don't get it and it took away from my enjoyment of the book a bit. I wish their relationship had somehow been made more believable.

The romance in this really surprised me, since there usually isn't a lot of romance in UFs. There wasn't as much as in the average PNR, but it was still romantic and totally cute. I loved the way that John and Sig acted like teenagers around each other. Probably because of the fact that Sig already had a boyfriend, it made them shy and hesitant, like teenagers who are afraid of admitting their feelings. I am really looking forward to what will happen between them now. I will definitely be reading the next book in this series.

“I was sad but it felt like the sadness was pouring out of me instead of poisoning me. I felt like I had been sleeping in the dark, not knowing I was in a coffin until someone pried the lid off. It hurt, but it was good, the way love is supposed to be.”