Ilona Andrews

Magic Burns (Kate Daniels, Book 2)

im glad i trusted the process and read book 2 although book 1 was so-so. this was much better. im enjoying the world that’s being built very much. and the side characters! i will say im not 100% positive about what the fuck is going on, but im getting the gist and it all comes out the same in the wash. 

big ab

Magic Burns

He put the book down. “As you wish.” He rose and walked past me. I lowered my sword, expecting him to pass, but suddenly he stepped in dangerously close. “Welcome home. I’m glad you made it. There is coffee in the kitchen for you.”  
 ***  
This series is the best.
Awesome mythology: check.
Awesome, kickass main charcter: you bet your nails.
Tension and romance: perfectly balanced. And, well, gripping.
Gimme Magic Strikes N O W

Annabella

Kirsten Simkiss

This is my second time reading this (the first time I didn't have a Goodreads account) but gosh do I ever love this series. The first book is a little rough as it is their first ever published book, but this book takes that world foundation you get in the first book and puts characters in it that feel like flesh and blood. I just love how human these characters feel to me, as though I could pass them on the street and hope none of them tried to fight me - because I would absolutely lose. I am tiny and thin and mostly without muscle mass. I'm pretty sure Julie could take me.

This book has a surprising amount of relationship foundation work in it, actually, looking back now that the series is finished. Kate's relationship to Julie and Andrea, of course, but also Derek being her friend and Curran starting his antics in regards to a proper courtship. I love how their relationship is formed entirely of mockery and only later does that translate into more. It was really funny to me, having finished the series at this time, going back and seeing Curran insult her or threaten her. Oh how hollow those threats were.

I love all the characters, save for Red and Bran. The plot concept was really cool, the supernatural detective vibe definitely keeps my interest piqued, and you get so much of this fascinating post-apocalyptic magical world. I really don't know what I might have changed about this book. I definitely recommend this book to others, though I do suggest reading the first book first.

Anna

This one was much more interesting that the first one!

Sarah Escorsa

First reread November 2014

Kate Daniels, the hummingbird on crack. I rest my case.


  Original review






• Book 1: Magic Bites ★★★★★
• Book 3: Magic Strikes ★★★★★
• Book 4: Magic Bleeds ★★★★★
• Book 5: Magic Slays ★★★★★
• Book 6: Magic Rises ★★★★★
• Book 7: Magic Breaks ★★★★★
• Book 8: Magic Shifts ★★★★★
• Book 9: Magic Binds ★★★★★
• Book 10: Magic Triumphs ★★★★

🐈 The Adventures Of A Brave Little Kitty Buddy Rerererereread (TAOABLKBR™) with the IA Addicts 🐈

➽ 
  And the moral of this particular rererererereread is:
 “Welcome home. I’m glad you made it. There is coffee in the kitchen for you.” =



➽ 
  And the other moral of this particular rererererereread is:
 sniffing people to determine their competence, it’s a Teenage Werewolf Sidekick Thing (TWST™). Ha.

👋 Until next time and stuff.



[November 2017]

⚔ 
  The Grand IAA™ KD Buddy Rerererereread Extravaganza
 (GIAAKDBRE™), aka the yellow brick road to Magic Triumphs ⚔

Presenting Episode 2, or How Kate Daniels Learned Being a Toy Mouse with Raging Hormones isn't as Easy as Chopping People into Tiny Little Pieces.

» 
  And the moral of this particular rererereread is:
 Psych. 

» 
  And the other moral of this particular rererereread is:
 someone call Desandra ASAP! Bran wants to show her his pork sword!

» 
  And the other, other moral of this particular rererereread is:
 ain't nuthin' like the moral compass of a teenage werewolf.

» 
  And the other, other, other moral of this particular rererereread is:
 evil tentacles + undead mermaids + sea demons with ugly as fish fish eyes = my shrimpy children and my little self feel right at home and stuff. It's positively enchanting.

Now let's get groovin'.





[May 2016]

❣ KD is the Cure to All of Life's Problems Buddy Read (KDitCtAoLPBR™) with my dear wife Ange, and the poor IAA souls who have fallen into our deathly KD Surprise Reread Trap (KSRT™). 

✎ Original rating: 5 stars
✎ Rating after xxxxxx rereads: there aren't enough stars in the sky. That's the Combined Magical and Miraculous Ilona Andrews-Kate Daniels Effect (CMaMIAKDE™).

» And the moral of this particular rererereread is: I want soup. Bye now.

(view spoiler)[
  
 (hide spoiler)]



[Original review]

☆☆☆ Post-Shift Productions proudly present ☆☆☆
Just Another Day in the Life of Kate Daniels



►2.00 a.m.: enjoying a good night's sleep. Phone rings. Jim here! Rise and shine Kate! Time to go kill things! Here we go again.
► 3.00 a.m.: how to carry a dead, homicidal pyromaniac and a salamander in an enchanted sphere at the same time? Easy. Decapitation will do the trick every time. 
► 4.00 a.m.: Spend hours at the Guild filling in paperwork. State the suspect’s intent as perceived by you: intended to burn down the city due to being a complete crackpot. There, that should do it.
► 8.00 a.m.: visit from Curran's significant other. She needs a personal favour. This is going to be one of those days is it?
► 8.30 a.m.: visit from your teenage werewolf sidekick aka Boy Wonder. Get lectured about your would have been boyfriend. Learn about a supernaturally fast sniper who goes poof. The Pack needs your help. His Furry Highness requires your presence. It's definitely one of those days.



► 9.00 a.m.: oh look! A sexy man in a kilt! He teleports! He regenarates! He talks zippers! Your hormones are overloading! You need to get laid.
► 9.30 a.m.: meet Julie. Her mom disappeared. Go look for her. Find an oversized metal hedgehog instead. Oh was that your dog, you scumbag? So sorry about that. Lesson #1: pissing Kate Daniels off may result in permanent damage to your freaky puppy. 
► 10.00 a.m.: take Julie home. Oh look, a friendly visitor: female creature, long hair, claws, toxic goo. Choke on your hair, you piece of crap. Oh look, another one! Get out of my house, you crazy bitch. Oh look, these lovely ladies brought a hooded friend along: eyes of a squid, green tentacles, hovers. Cool. Amehe. Obey you sonofabitch. Oops. Blackout time.
► 10.30 a.m.: rescued by His Furriness. Oh, the irony. You’re a fucking mess and you look like shit. Thanks Your Majesty, I try. 



► 11.00 a.m.: at the Pack's Southeast office. Trying to recover. The Beast Lord himself pays you a visit. Hands you a bowl of soup. Discusses your underwear choices (no, you do not have barbed wire and a steal chain on your panties). Mayday mayday.
► 11.30 a.m.: feeling much better. Go outside to get some fresh air. Curran flexing. Your hormones overloading. Again. You really need to get laid.
► 12.00 p.m.: hey, Bran The Hero is back! Bust his nose again. Love that bow on your panties dove. Hit him with a chair. Get kissed. The Beast Lord is not pleased. 
► 12.30 p.m.: go on a field trip with Boy Wonder and Ghastek The Whole Puncher. End up dancing with a very naked, Roman statue-like Saiman in the snow. Feel something getting hard down there. What did you ever do to anybody? 



► 1.00 p.m.: head off to meet the Oracle. Meet a Medusa impersonator. Sigh. Couldn't you run into a colony of fluffy bunnies for a change?
► 1.30 p.m.: enter a living, giant tortoise through its mouth. This is getting too weird, even for you. 
► 2.00 p.m.: finally time to sit down and grab a bite to eat. Chicken wings. Mmmm, pure bliss. Wait. What's that? Only a gang of poisonous, maniacal reeves and their freakish shepherd. Oh, good. They brought a friend along, too. Kate, meet Bubba Ugad, the Great Crow's Hammer. You're kidding right? Please tell me you're kidding. 
► 2.30 p.m.: hey Bubba, nice tattoos you have there! Whoa, word of power alert! Osanda. Kneel. Cut, cut, cut. Slice, slice, slice. Buh bye Bubba. 
► 3.00 p.m.: escape the city to pay the hyena pack a visit. Lovely brood of social deviants with a penchant for hysterical laughter and kinky sex. Yay.



► 3.30 p.m.: have an enlightening conversation with Aunt B about big furry cats and soup. You need a drink.
► 4.00 p.m.: head to the Keep. Curran + magic flare = Fabio hair and powder keg with a short fuse. Play cat and mouse. Osanda, your Furry Highness. Not working? Wedding, your Furry Highness. Ha! Got you there! 
► 4.30 p.m.: well isn't that Mr Hey Dove again?! Oops, it looks like he just stole the survey maps again. Err, is that thunder you hear? No, just His Furriness roaring.



► 5.00 p.m.: shifters party time. Claws out. Rip some flesh. Kick some ass. Fun times. Meet a new friend: horse skull, double row of oversized teeth, Neanderthall eyebrows, cartilage breaking through skin. Lovely look you have there. 
► 5.30 p.m.: His Fussiness plans to hog-tie you, gag you and have 3 shifters sit on you. Kinky.
► 6.00 p.m.: emulate daddy dearest and lead the furry army into battle. No-Code day for the Pack. Yay! Blood and gore await! Kneel, you undead mermaid bitches. Slice, slice, slice. Cut, cut, cut. Kill, kill, kill. Best party ever.
► 6.30 p.m.: Ouch, that really hurt. Die a little. Oh look, a big cat! Gotta get to Julie. Oh Bran.
► 7.00 p.m.: home at last. The door is open. Strange. The light is on. Weird. Smells like coffee. What the hell? Curran. The Princess Bride. As you wish. Psych.




· Book 1: Magic Bites ★★★★★
· Book 3: Magic Strikes ★★★★★
· Book 4: Magic Bleeds ★★★★★
· Book 5: Magic Slays ★★★★★
· Book 6: Magic Rises ★★★★★
· Book 7: Magic Breaks ★★★★★
· Book 8: Magic Shifts ★★★★★
· Book 9: Magic Binds ★★★★★
· Book 10: Magic Triumphs ★★★★

Becky

I am in love with this series. I know I'm only two books in but I feel pretty confident that I will love the rest.

The thing with Ilona Andrews books is you know you're getting solid UF writing and that it will be a good story and you get that in spades with this one.

I am completely enamoured with Kate Daniels. She is a fantastic MC. She is perfectly balanced with badass bitch with secrets, skilled fighter, and a fantastic sense of humour. She knows she isn't the strongest or most powerful woman around but she works hard at honing the skills she does have so she can hold her own.

Do I have issues with these books so far? Yes. Do I care enough to vocalise my complaints? Oh hell no. The good far outweighs the bad and the bad is hardly worth mentioning. I am confident as the series progresses my complaints will go right out the window anyway. I'll be too busy hugging each new book to my chest asking it for the series to never end.

***


3rd October 2017

Do my above thoughts on this book still apply? Hells to the yes. It was brilliant and addictive and the Ilona Andrews team once more confirm their position in my favourite author. It really is insanely brilliant what they write. They are geniuses.

I did think there were flaws to this book and it was not perfect but I still increased my rating to 5 as the series as a whole has won me over. It surprised me how much I actually remembered. I thought I'd remember the later books better but the first two stuck clearly in my mind and even though I knew the storyline it didn't take away any of my enjoyment.

Nickie Mohler

It's amazing how much I had forgotten about this book. Still 5 stars though!

Michelle Boyea

I love this series. Kate Daniels is a kick ass woman who stands her ground and always does what she believes is right. From standing up to the Beast Lord, to protecting a young girl, to gaining power words, Kate never backs down and is the epitome of a strong woman.

Sans

Despite several moments of WTFery that made me wonder exactly what is in my cough syrup and if I was in fact reading what I was reading, this was a very good read. Imaginative just doesn't quite describe the world Andrews created in this series. I believe this sums it up well: O_o

I'm starting to like Curran more, but I'm still not sure why everyone's jaws drop and rivers of drool form at his feet. Kate is becoming more likable as her character is fleshed out as well. I'm getting a bit annoyed with the big mystery around who exactly her daddy was (though I've got a good guess). And yay! More Saiman!

I'll definitely read the next book, and soon, though I can handle only so many trips into this crazy-assed world before I need a break.

Jessica Nottingham

I wasn't sure that Kate Daniels could be more amazing, but once again I've been proven wrong! This book is even better than the first. Our heroine is back! Her sarcastic, strong and utterly likable personality is intact, and even more honed this time. I'm always a sucker for kick-ass female leads, but Kate takes the cake. Not only is she able to handle herself, but she does it for the love and protection of others. I profess to follow Kate until the ends of the Earth! Or, until the end of the series.

The reader is reintroduced to modern day Atlanta. A world filled with magic, rife with both wondrous and deadly creatures. This time around there's a Celtic twist, and I thought that Ilona Andrews did a wonderful job of tying it in with the plot. It makes for an intriguing read. If you are an action rubbernecker, one that loves to see things heading for complete disaster, Magic Burns will be sure to please! The climax of this book almost killed me. It was perfection. Insane, amazing, perfection.

This installment also brings the sexual tension between Kate and Curran even more into the forefront. I think what I love most about Kate is that she doesn't pine over the men around her. She might be able to see herself in bed with them (I mean, who wouldn't?) but she's not a "love at first sight" kind of gal. I can tell that the relationship between these two is going somewhere, but I'm loving the slow, steady and wit-filled build up that it's taking. There are some definite milestone moments in Magic Burns, but I'll leave those for you to uncover.

Best of all, Andrews adds to her roster of characters, and they are all vividly written. Each one brings a new facet into Kate's life. Most notably added are Julie and Bran. Again, no spoilers here! Let's just say that they both bring their own unique problems to the table. It allows Kate to once again show how much she cares about the people in her life. She knows that when people get close to her they are in peril, and she'll do whatever it takes to protect them.

To be honest, I had no idea how much I was going to love this series when I first started it! After two books I'm already completely invested in Kate, her world, and all the other characters in it. Ilona Andrews is an expert at writing a story that will keep you reading ravenously. You need to pick this Urban Fantasy series up as soon as possible! In the meantime, I'll be moving on to the third book.

Jo H

Love Julie, love Derek, Bran was a bit of a scream...

Lacey

The second book of the Kate Daniels series is much better than the first. And Curran is one sexy beast.

Magic Burns (Kate Daniels, Book 2)

Reviews