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A review by mastersal
Deal with the Devil by Kit Rocha
4.0
A fun urban-fantasy adventure set in an intriguing post-apocalyptic world which worked for me. Was it earth shattering - no - but it was the right time to read this as I needed an adventure which is removed from all the external stuff happening IRL.
The world setting was quite interesting. Setting this in the US was smart for NA readers as the context of the world is familiar and what has been lost is known. This allows us to get through the set up quickly. Even though I don't know Atlanta intimately I wasn’t lost. The degradation of the infrastructure especially was more visceral than I expected (side note: this is a huge problem in the US and Canada - look at it. There is more than a trillion dollar infrastructure investment gap which doesn’t even account the net zero investments which need to be made). I could see the broken roads, fallen interstate etc. The lack of food security and the rise of corporations are all familiar elements which make this an easy entry point into the genre.
However, the familiarity also means that there is nothing particularly unusual about the book or plot. Sci-fi fans will have read or seen this before - as I had. I gave that as pass but I do note it because without something significantly different I doubt that this series will becomes a must-read for me.
The book follows an adventure quest with two teams which start on opposing side - our heroine and her librarians (?!!) and Knox, our hero, and his mercenary crew. The teams slowly mesh (because of course they do) and that was pretty fun. The banter between the teams and the leads made me smile.
There was a strong romantic throughline with Knox and Nina which honestly was probably the weakest part of the book for me. It started off strongly with banter and attraction that I was into. Nina especially was comfortable in her skin and her attraction. And then… the romance just dragged. I wanted to sit both the leads down and make them talk - and it wasn’t as if there was no time to do so on page. Because the sci-fi plot functions more like a quest adventure than a ticking close which ends the world - the pacing didn’t feel urgent. The travel didn’t proceed quickly enough to feel urgent which left me annoyed with Nina and Knox in the romance communication department.
Here the balance was off - either the external threat is so urgent that you put the romance to the side or it isn’t and your leads then need to behave like adults. The angst in their relationship felt forced and a bit annoying. It wasn't convincing and it made my eyes roll.
I also kind of loved how easy the resolution to the macro plot was. It felt a little deus-ex machina. I should have been annoyed by it but perhaps it was my mood but this ease of resolution makes this book quite cheerful and easy for me. The characters are cool and the super level of competence on display was OTT ridiculous. The highly convenient bow that the ending was wrapped in felt like a personal present to me (see IRL crap).
As a result, I am going to be generous and give this book 4 stars. I don't think this is objectively the best urban fantasy out there but this book landed at the right time. The romance is probably the weakest part so romance-allergic readers be beware.
On the format: I flipped flopped between audio and physical reading this and I will say that the latter is the way to go if you don't listen to 2x speed. The book benefits from the focused read as it's an adventure romp. A slower read makes some of the cracks more obvious. Since I read faster physically I had to switch.
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Mara recommended this - and compared this to Magic Bites - and that is a great complement from her. Combine that with kick ass librarians - sold. Sign me up!
The world setting was quite interesting. Setting this in the US was smart for NA readers as the context of the world is familiar and what has been lost is known. This allows us to get through the set up quickly. Even though I don't know Atlanta intimately I wasn’t lost. The degradation of the infrastructure especially was more visceral than I expected (side note: this is a huge problem in the US and Canada - look at it. There is more than a trillion dollar infrastructure investment gap which doesn’t even account the net zero investments which need to be made). I could see the broken roads, fallen interstate etc. The lack of food security and the rise of corporations are all familiar elements which make this an easy entry point into the genre.
However, the familiarity also means that there is nothing particularly unusual about the book or plot. Sci-fi fans will have read or seen this before - as I had. I gave that as pass but I do note it because without something significantly different I doubt that this series will becomes a must-read for me.
The book follows an adventure quest with two teams which start on opposing side - our heroine and her librarians (?!!) and Knox, our hero, and his mercenary crew. The teams slowly mesh (because of course they do) and that was pretty fun. The banter between the teams and the leads made me smile.
There was a strong romantic throughline with Knox and Nina which honestly was probably the weakest part of the book for me. It started off strongly with banter and attraction that I was into. Nina especially was comfortable in her skin and her attraction. And then… the romance just dragged. I wanted to sit both the leads down and make them talk - and it wasn’t as if there was no time to do so on page. Because the sci-fi plot functions more like a quest adventure than a ticking close which ends the world - the pacing didn’t feel urgent. The travel didn’t proceed quickly enough to feel urgent which left me annoyed with Nina and Knox in the romance communication department.
Here the balance was off - either the external threat is so urgent that you put the romance to the side or it isn’t and your leads then need to behave like adults. The angst in their relationship felt forced and a bit annoying. It wasn't convincing and it made my eyes roll.
I also kind of loved how easy the resolution to the macro plot was. It felt a little deus-ex machina. I should have been annoyed by it but perhaps it was my mood but this ease of resolution makes this book quite cheerful and easy for me. The characters are cool and the super level of competence on display was OTT ridiculous. The highly convenient bow that the ending was wrapped in felt like a personal present to me (see IRL crap).
As a result, I am going to be generous and give this book 4 stars. I don't think this is objectively the best urban fantasy out there but this book landed at the right time. The romance is probably the weakest part so romance-allergic readers be beware.
On the format: I flipped flopped between audio and physical reading this and I will say that the latter is the way to go if you don't listen to 2x speed. The book benefits from the focused read as it's an adventure romp. A slower read makes some of the cracks more obvious. Since I read faster physically I had to switch.
-----
Mara recommended this - and compared this to Magic Bites - and that is a great complement from her. Combine that with kick ass librarians - sold. Sign me up!