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littlemissglamourghoul's review against another edition
4.0
I am head over heels for this series after this book. I was hooked from the first page, and could not be more pleased to be introduced to Nate & his crew. Fast paced, funny, and quite the spectacle, it's a little bit John Constantine, a little bit Playboy, a little bit Buffy, and all fantastic. The only reason this took me more than 24 hours to finish was because life tends to get in the way, but I totally ate this book up.
You won't regret falling into Nate Temple's world of magic and mischief. Well done, Shayne Silvers.
You won't regret falling into Nate Temple's world of magic and mischief. Well done, Shayne Silvers.
millie_belle's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
aquaphase's review against another edition
2.0
I just can't. It's not just the horrible misogyny that makes this book a real bust, it's also the forced naivete of the characters. I couldn't even suspend disbelief when a so-called "master wizard" couldn't, very obviously, put two and two together in some very basic situational events. My guess is that he spent far too much time focusing on his nethers and whatever "dessert" he was going to ride home.
Don't even get me started on the audiobook narration...
Don't even get me started on the audiobook narration...
mallaidhsomo's review
3.0
Eh.
Pros: Great world building. Well written fight scenes. Some hilarious use of fantasy characters. Great secondary characters. So great, in fact, that the main character doesn't deserve them.
Cons: Nate Temple is insufferable. He's rich, handsome, and powerful, and 50% of the books is spent reminding you of that. No thanks. He's a narcissist and the fact that the book is his first person POV means you're stuck listening to him talk about himself and how wonderful he is.
I'm torn on if I'll continue the series. If Gunner and Tory get their own series, I'm on board. But Nate Temple's favorite song is "Greatest Love of All" and I don't know if I can deal with another book about how perfect he is.
Pros: Great world building. Well written fight scenes. Some hilarious use of fantasy characters. Great secondary characters. So great, in fact, that the main character doesn't deserve them.
Cons: Nate Temple is insufferable. He's rich, handsome, and powerful, and 50% of the books is spent reminding you of that. No thanks. He's a narcissist and the fact that the book is his first person POV means you're stuck listening to him talk about himself and how wonderful he is.
I'm torn on if I'll continue the series. If Gunner and Tory get their own series, I'm on board. But Nate Temple's favorite song is "Greatest Love of All" and I don't know if I can deal with another book about how perfect he is.
pjonsson's review against another edition
4.0
Well, this series is not actually new any more but for me when I started to read this book, the first one in the series, it was new. After having finished the last page I could not help but think, finally a good new urban fantasy series.
The shameless book blurb compares the author to authors like Jim Butcher and I have to say that may enjoyment of this book was on par with Butchers work. It also compared him to Kevin Hearne of which I’ve read three books and then gave up on though.
Anyway, I really liked this one. The main protagonist, a billionaire and a wizard, is cool for a lack of better word. He is making the most of life, he is quick tongued, he is educated and he kicks ass. His friends are cut from the same block. Well except for that one guy but you have to read about him in the book. There are no whiny arse weak heroes constantly doubting themselves or going on about how unfair life is in this book. The good guys are clobbering bad guys and enjoying life with equal enthusiasm.
The book is adequately filled with mythological creatures and monsters. I quite liked the Minotaur and I even liked the bad guys, as much as one can like the bad guys. They did definitely have a certain bad guy charisma.
To me the book was very close to 5 out of 5. There was times when it felt a bit weaker but nothing that really stuck out. Well, there was one thing…who the fuck answers their phone while being chased by a bloody dragon???
It is urban fantasy so of course there has to be a bit of romance as well but it was not at all as over the top, annoying and silly as in many urban fantasy books. The main protagonist is a bit of a womanizer and, surprise surprise, a lot of the bad guys just happens to be gorgeous women with spectacular female attributes. That sounds silly of course but it worked better than it sounds actually.
This was the first book in the series so there are a fair amount of setting things up and introductions going on (another reason I stuck to 4 out of 5) but on the whole I really liked this book. I am definitely picking up the next one in the series.
The shameless book blurb compares the author to authors like Jim Butcher and I have to say that may enjoyment of this book was on par with Butchers work. It also compared him to Kevin Hearne of which I’ve read three books and then gave up on though.
Anyway, I really liked this one. The main protagonist, a billionaire and a wizard, is cool for a lack of better word. He is making the most of life, he is quick tongued, he is educated and he kicks ass. His friends are cut from the same block. Well except for that one guy but you have to read about him in the book. There are no whiny arse weak heroes constantly doubting themselves or going on about how unfair life is in this book. The good guys are clobbering bad guys and enjoying life with equal enthusiasm.
The book is adequately filled with mythological creatures and monsters. I quite liked the Minotaur and I even liked the bad guys, as much as one can like the bad guys. They did definitely have a certain bad guy charisma.
To me the book was very close to 5 out of 5. There was times when it felt a bit weaker but nothing that really stuck out. Well, there was one thing…who the fuck answers their phone while being chased by a bloody dragon???
It is urban fantasy so of course there has to be a bit of romance as well but it was not at all as over the top, annoying and silly as in many urban fantasy books. The main protagonist is a bit of a womanizer and, surprise surprise, a lot of the bad guys just happens to be gorgeous women with spectacular female attributes. That sounds silly of course but it worked better than it sounds actually.
This was the first book in the series so there are a fair amount of setting things up and introductions going on (another reason I stuck to 4 out of 5) but on the whole I really liked this book. I am definitely picking up the next one in the series.
willowmariemanning's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
matosapa's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Spring Break meets Magic
I'm writing the review I wish had existed before starting this book.
Overall, the book had nothing notable. Just the usual urban fantasy tropes any UF reader has encountered a dozen times before. One interesting note - the protagonist was not near-destitute.
The rating killer for me was the incessant obsession with the female anatomy. Every female character was introduced based on their "rack" (actually used a few times in the book. I guess the author needed a break from the word breasts?). The author obviously has an oral fixation and thinks women are only good for hauling around their chests. This kept making me visualize the main characters as twenty-something frat boys which caused quite a bit of mental static as I progressed through the underwhelming story. There wasn't a single independent female in the book (except for the stand-in CEO, a minor character at best but someone still fetishized by the author).
If you're looking for something a bit more mature, the Dresden series is a much better stab at this type of UF. If your tastes run to a darker vein (as mine do) I recommend the Daniel Faust series. His females are main characters and bloody strong to boot - a rarity these days. </sigh>
I'm writing the review I wish had existed before starting this book.
Overall, the book had nothing notable. Just the usual urban fantasy tropes any UF reader has encountered a dozen times before. One interesting note - the protagonist was not near-destitute.
The rating killer for me was the incessant obsession with the female anatomy. Every female character was introduced based on their "rack" (actually used a few times in the book. I guess the author needed a break from the word breasts?). The author obviously has an oral fixation and thinks women are only good for hauling around their chests. This kept making me visualize the main characters as twenty-something frat boys which caused quite a bit of mental static as I progressed through the underwhelming story. There wasn't a single independent female in the book (except for the stand-in CEO, a minor character at best but someone still fetishized by the author).
If you're looking for something a bit more mature, the Dresden series is a much better stab at this type of UF. If your tastes run to a darker vein (as mine do) I recommend the Daniel Faust series. His females are main characters and bloody strong to boot - a rarity these days. </sigh>
aleryan's review against another edition
4.0
I love urban supernatural books, especially if they can tie in a good amount of humor. This book checked all the tick boxes for me and I can't wait to read where Mr. Silvers takes me next on this ride.