lindaunconventionalbookworms's review against another edition
4.0
*I received a free ARC of The Veil from PENGUIN GROUP Berkley, NAL / Signet Romance, DAW via Netgalley in exchange of an honest and unbiased review*
ARC received on 25 May 2015.
This book counts towards COYER scavenger hunt item #59: Read a book by an author you have previously read and given less than 3 stars. (4 points)
The Veil is filled with magic, friendship, treason, and quite a bit of hurt. In this new world of hers, Neill managed to keep me pretty much at the edge of my seat for the duration.
ARC received on 25 May 2015.
This book counts towards COYER scavenger hunt item #59: Read a book by an author you have previously read and given less than 3 stars. (4 points)
The Veil is filled with magic, friendship, treason, and quite a bit of hurt. In this new world of hers, Neill managed to keep me pretty much at the edge of my seat for the duration.
diaryofthebookdragon's review against another edition
3.0
Typical and easily forgettable. It was not bad but there was nothing that intrigued me to continue with this series...
thegeekyblogger's review against another edition
3.0
Listened for Fun (Audible)
Overall Rating: 3.50
Story Rating: 3.50
Character Rating: 3.50
Audio Rating: 4.00 (not part of the overall rating)
First Thought when Finished: Strong ending to The Veil by Chloe Neill makes me excited for Book 2.
Overall Thoughts: This will be another list review as I can't think of a better way to get my thoughts across.
What I liked:
1) The world was freaking awesome and not just because it was set in New Orleans. I liked the, for lack of a better description, carnival feel to it. By that I mean it was a band of people thrown together that were in ways different (class, rank, personality, power) but having to deal with their circumstance (some good, some bad, some downright despicable) in a bit of a fishbowl type of way.
2) The characters were wide and varied! In UF I tend to like when there are characters with various shades of Good to Bad. Particularly if it is because of environment. There are many in this series that I am not sure where they stand but I could see myself rooting for them. I could also see myself wanting to throw a shoe at them.
3) I really liked Claire! I felt she had spunk but she also was level-headed. She had a strong sense of loyalty towards her friends but balanced that out with just the right amount of self-preservation. Her arc was my favorite.
What I was on the fence about:
1) The story was a bit uneven to me but that happens a lot in Urban Fantasy during the first few books. Usually if there is good character development, the story kind of comes in clumps. It was just choppy at times and other times I felt it was little too convenient. I did really like the end though!
2) The tone was a little uneven in the beginning but by the halfway point I think it worked itself out. It might have been planned that way but it kind of distracted me a bit.
Overall this was a good read with a strong ending that makes me excited to read more.
Audio Thoughts
I really like Amy Landon so I wasn't surprised that she did a good job with this. I think she played Claire right because she is a good mix of still young but full of life experience. I even liked her voice for Liam. I will be continuing this in audio.
Overall Rating: 3.50
Story Rating: 3.50
Character Rating: 3.50
Audio Rating: 4.00 (not part of the overall rating)
First Thought when Finished: Strong ending to The Veil by Chloe Neill makes me excited for Book 2.
Overall Thoughts: This will be another list review as I can't think of a better way to get my thoughts across.
What I liked:
1) The world was freaking awesome and not just because it was set in New Orleans. I liked the, for lack of a better description, carnival feel to it. By that I mean it was a band of people thrown together that were in ways different (class, rank, personality, power) but having to deal with their circumstance (some good, some bad, some downright despicable) in a bit of a fishbowl type of way.
2) The characters were wide and varied! In UF I tend to like when there are characters with various shades of Good to Bad. Particularly if it is because of environment. There are many in this series that I am not sure where they stand but I could see myself rooting for them. I could also see myself wanting to throw a shoe at them.
3) I really liked Claire! I felt she had spunk but she also was level-headed. She had a strong sense of loyalty towards her friends but balanced that out with just the right amount of self-preservation. Her arc was my favorite.
What I was on the fence about:
1) The story was a bit uneven to me but that happens a lot in Urban Fantasy during the first few books. Usually if there is good character development, the story kind of comes in clumps. It was just choppy at times and other times I felt it was little too convenient. I did really like the end though!
2) The tone was a little uneven in the beginning but by the halfway point I think it worked itself out. It might have been planned that way but it kind of distracted me a bit.
Overall this was a good read with a strong ending that makes me excited to read more.
Audio Thoughts
Narrated By Amy Landon / Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
I really like Amy Landon so I wasn't surprised that she did a good job with this. I think she played Claire right because she is a good mix of still young but full of life experience. I even liked her voice for Liam. I will be continuing this in audio.
sjj169's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars
On an equally sweltering day in October seven years ago, the Veil-the barrier that separated humans from a world of magic we hadn't known existed-was shattered by the Paranormals who'd lived in what we now call the Beyond.
New Orleans was ground zero for this war.
When the war was done, Containment-the military unit that managed the war and the Paranormals-had tried to scrub New Orleans not only of magic but of voodoo, Marie Laveau, ghost tours, and even literary vampires.
*cough* I don't see a problem with getting rid of those vampires.
Claire Connolly loves New Orleans, she fought in the war with her shop owner dad and now that he has passed away she runs the antique/merchandise store. Then one day she realizes that she has a touch of magic.
Humans with a touch of magic are called sensitives, they are sent to Devil's Isle with all the other paranormals to live. They can not leave there so Claire hides her talents to avoid a trip there.
Until she has to save a girl being attacked by two "wraiths"
(Wraiths are some baddies that sensitives can turn into if they don't expel their magic correctly)
Enter our supposedly hot guy...Liam Quinn is a bounty hunter, he catches wraiths and paranormals and escorts them to the Isle to be contained. But he wants to help Claire. (Of course he does)
Liam Quinn clearly enjoyed a good fight-and battle looked pretty good on him. I made a really bad face when I read that line.
They find out that someone or something is trying to break the Veil that protects our world from the magic critters taking over.
There is a bunch of world building going on in this book and I did expect it since it's going to be the first book of a series. Will I continue the series? Probably not. I didn't care for any of the characters. In my view they were just cardboardish and boring.
Maybe the series will redeem itself later on. I'll peek at my friends reviews as it goes on and decide then. Let them be the guinea pigs.
Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review.
On an equally sweltering day in October seven years ago, the Veil-the barrier that separated humans from a world of magic we hadn't known existed-was shattered by the Paranormals who'd lived in what we now call the Beyond.
New Orleans was ground zero for this war.
When the war was done, Containment-the military unit that managed the war and the Paranormals-had tried to scrub New Orleans not only of magic but of voodoo, Marie Laveau, ghost tours, and even literary vampires.
*cough* I don't see a problem with getting rid of those vampires.
Claire Connolly loves New Orleans, she fought in the war with her shop owner dad and now that he has passed away she runs the antique/merchandise store. Then one day she realizes that she has a touch of magic.
Humans with a touch of magic are called sensitives, they are sent to Devil's Isle with all the other paranormals to live. They can not leave there so Claire hides her talents to avoid a trip there.
Until she has to save a girl being attacked by two "wraiths"
(Wraiths are some baddies that sensitives can turn into if they don't expel their magic correctly)
Enter our supposedly hot guy...Liam Quinn is a bounty hunter, he catches wraiths and paranormals and escorts them to the Isle to be contained. But he wants to help Claire. (Of course he does)
Liam Quinn clearly enjoyed a good fight-and battle looked pretty good on him. I made a really bad face when I read that line.
They find out that someone or something is trying to break the Veil that protects our world from the magic critters taking over.
There is a bunch of world building going on in this book and I did expect it since it's going to be the first book of a series. Will I continue the series? Probably not. I didn't care for any of the characters. In my view they were just cardboardish and boring.
Maybe the series will redeem itself later on. I'll peek at my friends reviews as it goes on and decide then. Let them be the guinea pigs.
Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review.
starknits13's review against another edition
4.0
So this was a good story and a totally different look at magic
srfrq's review against another edition
4.0
honestly, it was a pretty solid urban fantasy and i haven't read the genre in a while
katleap's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars
I received an e-ARC copy of The Veil from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Claire Connelly lives in post paranormal war New Orleans. She runs an old antiques shop that now sells lots of stuff including food and MREs. Magic in any way, shape or form is banned being found in possession of magic (aka being magic)can land you in Devil's Isle, the containment zone that the government stuffed all the paranormals in after the war. Claire has a problem, she by accident discovered that she is sensitive to magic and is telekinetic. When she is attacked by two wraiths and her use of magic draws the attention of bounty hunter Liam Quinn. The two of them soon discover that they are in over their heads and that the veil may not be as stable as they thought.
So I was super excited to something new from Chloe Neill. I follow her Merit Series (Chicagoland Vampires) and I enjoy it. However my one quibble with series is how little actually gets done in each book and the swinging back and forth door of Merit and Ethan's relationship. So I was hoping for an absents of both those things in this book. And it seems to deliver.
I love the set up and I am super curious about the politics behind the paranormal invasion. I was also super happy to see all kinds of paranormal and that they are not all misunderstood good guys. So world building is very good and there are enough holes to spend exploring in the next book, like why exactly wraith's kill people and what the paranormals want with our world.
Claire's friends were good. The 3 of them seem to sandwich well and I like the dynamic. I will continue to like it as long as Tadji deals with the magic disliking and nobody goes off the deep end *coughmallorycough*. Gunnar is an awesome friend. He gets stuff done. I look forward to seeing more of him.
I find Liam interesting. Which as a reader I appreciated as much as hotness, and sometimes more. I love that their relationship is a maybe. And Gavin's advice at the end, awesome.
So I want to read the next book.
I received an e-ARC copy of The Veil from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Claire Connelly lives in post paranormal war New Orleans. She runs an old antiques shop that now sells lots of stuff including food and MREs. Magic in any way, shape or form is banned being found in possession of magic (aka being magic)can land you in Devil's Isle, the containment zone that the government stuffed all the paranormals in after the war. Claire has a problem, she by accident discovered that she is sensitive to magic and is telekinetic. When she is attacked by two wraiths and her use of magic draws the attention of bounty hunter Liam Quinn. The two of them soon discover that they are in over their heads and that the veil may not be as stable as they thought.
So I was super excited to something new from Chloe Neill. I follow her Merit Series (Chicagoland Vampires) and I enjoy it. However my one quibble with series is how little actually gets done in each book and the swinging back and forth door of Merit and Ethan's relationship. So I was hoping for an absents of both those things in this book. And it seems to deliver.
I love the set up and I am super curious about the politics behind the paranormal invasion. I was also super happy to see all kinds of paranormal and that they are not all misunderstood good guys. So world building is very good and there are enough holes to spend exploring in the next book, like why exactly wraith's kill people and what the paranormals want with our world.
Claire's friends were good. The 3 of them seem to sandwich well and I like the dynamic. I will continue to like it as long as Tadji deals with the magic disliking and nobody goes off the deep end *coughmallorycough*. Gunnar is an awesome friend. He gets stuff done. I look forward to seeing more of him.
I find Liam interesting. Which as a reader I appreciated as much as hotness, and sometimes more. I love that their relationship is a maybe. And Gavin's advice at the end, awesome.
So I want to read the next book.
chllybrd's review against another edition
4.0
I gave it 3.5 stars
Chloe Neill's Chicagoland Vampires novels have a prominent place on my bookshelf so when I saw that she had a new series coming out, I knew I would be reading it as soon as I could get my hands on it.
The setting was a big plus for me. I have never been to New Orleans, but have read a lot about it and I found Chloe's version of New Orleans to be very interesting and easy to follow. I enjoyed the post-apocalyptic/Dystopian feel as well as the whole Devil's Isle aspect of the city. The Fae storyline was interesting and I found myself looking forward to more details as I was reading.
For some reason I wasn't overly invested in the main characters and actually connected to a few of the secondary characters quicker, which is a bit weird to me. That's not to say I didn't LIKE the main characters, I did, I just would have liked to feel more invested in them by the end of the book. There was some romance between Claire and Liam, which I actually enjoyed quite a bit. Liam held himself back a lot and it takes a bit for us to find out why, but I was rooting for their relationship (and still am moving forward).
Neill's Chicagoland Vampires series is still my favorite of hers, but I really enjoyed the introduction the Devil's Isle series and I am very interested in seeing what will happen next for Claire and Liam.
* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Chloe Neill's Chicagoland Vampires novels have a prominent place on my bookshelf so when I saw that she had a new series coming out, I knew I would be reading it as soon as I could get my hands on it.
The setting was a big plus for me. I have never been to New Orleans, but have read a lot about it and I found Chloe's version of New Orleans to be very interesting and easy to follow. I enjoyed the post-apocalyptic/Dystopian feel as well as the whole Devil's Isle aspect of the city. The Fae storyline was interesting and I found myself looking forward to more details as I was reading.
For some reason I wasn't overly invested in the main characters and actually connected to a few of the secondary characters quicker, which is a bit weird to me. That's not to say I didn't LIKE the main characters, I did, I just would have liked to feel more invested in them by the end of the book. There was some romance between Claire and Liam, which I actually enjoyed quite a bit. Liam held himself back a lot and it takes a bit for us to find out why, but I was rooting for their relationship (and still am moving forward).
Neill's Chicagoland Vampires series is still my favorite of hers, but I really enjoyed the introduction the Devil's Isle series and I am very interested in seeing what will happen next for Claire and Liam.
* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
joie881's review against another edition
2.0
Interesting dystopian world. Based in New Orleans, the Veil between the human world and the Other world was ripped apart. Creatures of myths/legends/fairytales entered our world and chaos ensued. The Veil was eventually sealed but the creatures trapped here are now prisoners regardless of their being friend or foe.
Claire Connolly is a human Sensitive who can absorb magic energy and channel it to achieve telekinesis. She accidentally discovered this power while trying to avoid mortal danger. Needing to hide this power for fear of being imprisoned for her magic, she is forced to use it to help a girl being attacked by two wraiths. A bounty hunter, Liam, happens upon the scene and helps her cover her tracks. The two of them join forces to investigate unheard of wraiths collaborating together. They soon uncover a plot to reopen the Veil.
There is too much "tell" and not nearly enough "show." The monotonous narrative makes me feel like I am watching through a window from the outside, making it very easy to just walk away when things are slow, which is about the first third of the book. Things get interesting as more creatures are revealed but there is not enough character development to really keep my interest.
ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.
Claire Connolly is a human Sensitive who can absorb magic energy and channel it to achieve telekinesis. She accidentally discovered this power while trying to avoid mortal danger. Needing to hide this power for fear of being imprisoned for her magic, she is forced to use it to help a girl being attacked by two wraiths. A bounty hunter, Liam, happens upon the scene and helps her cover her tracks. The two of them join forces to investigate unheard of wraiths collaborating together. They soon uncover a plot to reopen the Veil.
There is too much "tell" and not nearly enough "show." The monotonous narrative makes me feel like I am watching through a window from the outside, making it very easy to just walk away when things are slow, which is about the first third of the book. Things get interesting as more creatures are revealed but there is not enough character development to really keep my interest.
ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.
mdlaclair's review against another edition
3.0
interesting new series. A little slow to get started but there is a lot of history and world building. there was a lot of nice supporting character and very interesting main characters