mylastromancenovel's review against another edition
3.0
I always find Linsey Hall's books to be intriguing and enjoyable. Every now and then, one is particularly good, but I always know I'm going to enjoy the book. Some stand out more than others, but in general, they are fun quick reads. I prefer her Shadow Guild and later works to these series, but they are still enjoyable.
jennifergoodall's review against another edition
4.0
A wonderful light read full of adventure and love.
errantdreams's review against another edition
4.0
Gods of Magic (Dragon’s Gift: The Amazon Book 1) is book 26 of the Dragon’s Gift series as a whole–a series which is divided up into five-book increments, each of which centers upon a particular young woman as main character. When I bemoan how formulaic the series is, I mean that each five-book series is constructed almost identically, and each book within each series is also constructed similarly. For instance, all six young women have had matching love interests show up at the beginning of book one of their sub-series: a bulked man who is physically and magically super-powerful, similar in temperament, devastatingly handsome, and wealthy beyond imagining. In the last three sub-series, each sister (Bree, Ana, Rowan) has their own three-critter band of sidekicks (the Pugs of Destruction, the Cats of Chaos, and the Menacing Menagerie). Each main character has a Favorite Food and a Favorite Drink, as though the author filled out character questionnaires for each main character and then felt the need to include the same details from each.
Each one taken separately is wonderful–Linsey Hall executes these things quite well. The various critter sidekicks have a ton of personality and they’re wonderful to have on hand. But it’s still frustrating to be able to predict nearly everything that’s going to happen in these books. And it does harm the willing suspension of disbelief, even in a series so fantastical that there’s already a lot of disbelief being suspended. However, it is that wonderful execution that makes these books worth reading. Especially since in many ways it’s a sort of comfort-read series, and when you want a comfort read you often want to know what you’re getting into. It’s up to you to decide how this dichotomy affects your likelihood of enjoying these books.
I enjoyed this installment. Rowan is an interesting character, as is Maximus. The book continues its predecessors’ tradition of depicting strong female characters with respectful love interests, and I do appreciate that. The Menacing Menagerie–Romeo the raccoon, Poppy the possum, and Eloise the badger–are delightfully adorable as Rowan’s new sidekicks, even though I prefer the Cats of Chaos. Rowan and Maximus end up having to infiltrate a magical research corporation in order to get an ingredient for the potion they need, which makes for some excellent stealth and escape sequences. Also, since Rowan doesn’t have access to her own magic she’s becoming quite the potions expert, which is a nice detail and allows for some extra variety in their approaches to their trials and tribulations. I was a bit disappointed by the quick explanation for the mysterious notes Rowan’s been getting; it hand-waves the question of how the sender knew various crimes were going to happen.
This book is an odd mix of the super predictable if you’ve read the rest of the series (overall structure), and the somewhat new and unusual (how Rowan’s magic is working, and the magical research company). Definitely worth it if you’ve been enjoying the series so far.
Original review posted on my blog: http://www.errantdreams.com/2018/12/review-gods-of-magic-linsey-hall/
Each one taken separately is wonderful–Linsey Hall executes these things quite well. The various critter sidekicks have a ton of personality and they’re wonderful to have on hand. But it’s still frustrating to be able to predict nearly everything that’s going to happen in these books. And it does harm the willing suspension of disbelief, even in a series so fantastical that there’s already a lot of disbelief being suspended. However, it is that wonderful execution that makes these books worth reading. Especially since in many ways it’s a sort of comfort-read series, and when you want a comfort read you often want to know what you’re getting into. It’s up to you to decide how this dichotomy affects your likelihood of enjoying these books.
I enjoyed this installment. Rowan is an interesting character, as is Maximus. The book continues its predecessors’ tradition of depicting strong female characters with respectful love interests, and I do appreciate that. The Menacing Menagerie–Romeo the raccoon, Poppy the possum, and Eloise the badger–are delightfully adorable as Rowan’s new sidekicks, even though I prefer the Cats of Chaos. Rowan and Maximus end up having to infiltrate a magical research corporation in order to get an ingredient for the potion they need, which makes for some excellent stealth and escape sequences. Also, since Rowan doesn’t have access to her own magic she’s becoming quite the potions expert, which is a nice detail and allows for some extra variety in their approaches to their trials and tribulations. I was a bit disappointed by the quick explanation for the mysterious notes Rowan’s been getting; it hand-waves the question of how the sender knew various crimes were going to happen.
This book is an odd mix of the super predictable if you’ve read the rest of the series (overall structure), and the somewhat new and unusual (how Rowan’s magic is working, and the magical research company). Definitely worth it if you’ve been enjoying the series so far.
Original review posted on my blog: http://www.errantdreams.com/2018/12/review-gods-of-magic-linsey-hall/
hisham's review
3.0
Urban Fantasy with pretty much every kind of supernatural being and deity featuring or seemingly mentioned.
At 220ish pages, it feels a little rushed. Some of the twists and turns seemed a bit like obvious breadcrumbs of plot.
But overall it was fairly enjoyable. I'll give the second book a go.
I would like to learn more about the main character's connection to the Rebel and Dragon Gods - and indeed actually learn about these gods themselves at some point.
3.5 out of 5.
At 220ish pages, it feels a little rushed. Some of the twists and turns seemed a bit like obvious breadcrumbs of plot.
But overall it was fairly enjoyable. I'll give the second book a go.
I would like to learn more about the main character's connection to the Rebel and Dragon Gods - and indeed actually learn about these gods themselves at some point.
3.5 out of 5.
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