Iron and Magic

I have to admit that when I heard about this book I was so baffled. In the KD books we learned to hate Hugh and I did not think there be anything in this book that could change my mind. I was obviously underestimating, Ilona Andrews' writing powers. Their characters are so well developed, that it never feels like he just decided to switch to the guy goods side, they actually explain all of the reasoning behind his past actions and I loved that. If you like bad guys who suddenly turned good, you might enjoy this. Great read.

Usual Andrews win, huh?

I really think this book deserves 4.5 stars, but in leiu of not having a half star option I went for 4 stars. It was a fantastic read, but there were parts of the story that gave me pause and took me out of the story for a moment. The story follows Hugh D'Ambray. If you've read the Kate Daniels series, you'll know that he's been a supporting villain for several books now. Through events in that series, Hugh now finds himself disconnected from Roland and his warriors, the Iron Dogs, are still looking to him for leadership as Roland's forces pick them off one by one. With limited options, Hugh makes a deal with a woman named Elara. He defends her community with his troops and she houses and feeds them. Their means of signifying that contract and confusing their enemies? A marriage, of course. While they spend most of the book bickering and insulting each other, it should come as no shock that they wind up in an interesting love-hate relationship. It was really interesting for me to watch Hugh go from a lawful evil warlord to a chaotic leader riding a half-unicorn and nursing a soft spot for children and animals. I had previously really liked him as a villain, so I was intrigued when it was announced that he would be the protagonist of a spin off series. I have to say, I definitely had to adjust. It's been a while since I did a Kate Daniels reread, but he seemed as in character as ever in this book. Cold, methodical, snarky, sure - but he lost that almost religious zeal that backed him. It was very interesting to see him deal with having been exiled from Roland's forces. (Side note: I definitely didn't actually picture him looking like the guy on the cover.) I have to say, I took particular glee in watching him put on different acting roles throughout the story to impress or distress people who didn't know him. I particularly liked the scene with the senator. If you've read it, you'll know what I mean. Elara Harper, who's new to the universe, is definitely a fun character. I enjoy her zeal and appreciation for life. Her having white hair was... a weird move. That definitely took me a while to accept. It's kind of an emo kid move and you don't really get any true explanation for what's causing her hair to be naturally Crayola crayon white. They hint, of course. I assume we'll learn more in later books. (I'm assuming it's some deity.) However, aside from that, I enjoyed her as a character quite a bit. I appreciate her devotion to her people and her friends. I wish we got more back story on her, but again, I'm guessing we'll get more further on in the Iron Covenant series. Speaking of friends, you get to meet a lot of new side characters in this one as well as running into a few from the Kate Daniels series. Ascanio, Andrea, and Raphael show up briefly, causing a scuffle over Hugh and eventually working things out in a way - a sort of ceasefire. I'm not sure I buy that they wouldn't make sure they guy was dead and buried before they moved on. It felt a little out of character for me, but it makes for a much less interesting series if your main male protagonist is dead. The new people to meet are on both sides. Leaders of the Iron Dogs feature regularly, one of which is seen in the Kate Daniels series, having been pulled down from a cross as a part of a punishment by Roland. I quite enjoyed Stoyan, Lamar, and Bale. Bale was particularly fun to read about as a frighteningly large Beserker who makes it a personal mission to read Hugh Harry Potter books when Hugh's bedridden and unconscious. You also meet Elara's people, of which there are several. Dugas, a druid, and Johanna were my favorites. Johanna is either mute or deaf and speaks in ASL throughout the book. (I'm not sure if it specifies which anywhere. If it did I may have missed it.) It was great to have that representation in there. Speaking of representation, Ilona Andrews continues the trend of having a multicultural cast of characters in their world. They pointedly make sure to identify a number of characters as persons of color in such a way that it can't be misinterpreted. It's something I really appreciate about their stories. I do have to say I thought that two opposing forces in the story were a little weird to handle as a reader. While I liked Landon Nez as a villain, the "Mrog" forces annoyed me. It's never really explained what the mrogs are or where they actually come from, though it's implied that someone may have figured that out toward the end of the book. I wish we could have had that answer to fill in the gaps in our understanding, but perhaps they'll be a recurring villain for the series. While they seemed to imply that wouldn't be the case, I'm hoping we'll get those answers at some point. I would definitely recommend this to fans of the Kate Daniels series. However, I definitely think you should read it in the story order. I feel like you'll lose a lot if you haven't already read the Kate Daniels series books 1-9. Would it be enjoyable without it? Probably, but there will be a lot that won't make a lot of sense. I also definitely would not recommend this for kids. There's a hot and steamy sex scene in it that is quite descriptive, not to mention the massive amounts of warfare and violence. Hugh's a warlord, so it's pretty understandable that that would be a large part of the story. Again, if you've liked the Kate Daniels series so far, this is definitely a worthy addition and it is definitely something that I think will impact the 10th book in the series. 100% worth the read.

4.5* Redemption arc + marriage of convenience = vastly different feeling for a novel set in post-Shift world of Kate Daniels.

⚔️ Slayer & Sarrat's Corpse Tour Buddy Read (S&SCTBR™) with the IA Addicts and stuff ⚔️ Not raising my rating this time around because I'm afraid GR will implode if I do. You are quite welcome. ➽ And the moral of this rerereread is : Hugh and Elara Bucky, a match made in heaven. More or less, yes. 👋 Until next time and stuff. [September 2019] 🐈 The Adventures Of A Brave Little Kitty Buddy Rerererereread (TAOABLKBR™) with the IA Addicts 🐈 Previous rating: 10.256548995 stars. And a half. New rating: 11.5788698 stars. And a quarter. ➽ And the moral of this rereread is : dear Santa Claus Claws Shrimp, I want a gigantically colossal, three-headed elephant with tusks that shoot lightning for Christmas. Thank thee kindly and stuff. Errr…That’s not exactly what I had in mind but it’s the thought that counts, right? Right. Santa Shrimp, you’re fired. 👋 Until next time and stuff. [April 2019] Previous rating: 8 stars. New rating: 10.256548995 stars. And a half. ➽ And the moral of this reread is : BRING. THE. COWS. 👋 Until next time and stuff. P.S. I want to be Elara when I grow up. And NOT because she knows how big Hugh's other head is. Ha. [May 2018] Actual rating: 8 stars. And that's coming from a non-hysterical Hugh non-fangirl. Which should tell you something and stuff. To think that this book started as a bloody shrimping April Fools’ joke three years ago. To think that some slightly obsessed maniacs people still insist on calling it The Hugh Book. Well I’ll have you know that: ① This book is no longer a joke ← pointing this out in case you hadn’t noticed. You are quite welcome and stuff. ② There is much much much much MUCH more to this book than His Smug Assholeness (HSA™). Glad we cleared that up. Soooo, let’s get the Smug Assholeness stuff out of the way real quick first. As a proud non-member of the Hugh Devouring Horde (HDH™), I must admit I didn’t quite know what to expect from this story. Except for pure awesomeness, that is. Because, as the first law of the universe states, any IA book = pure awesomeness = DUH. But I digress. So, if I’m to be disgustingly honest here, I have to say I always thought Hugh’s character was a bit one-dimensional in the main series (view spoiler)[ first person who asks which series I’m talking about shall be slightly hacked at via pincers, just so you know (hide spoiler)]: he’s Dear Daddy’s Roland’s ruthless, vicious, self-satisfied asshole of a warlord. And that’s it. Roland barks *tries to impersonate Roland’s BIG voice* “GO SKEWER THINGS, WARLORD MINE!” and off on a rampaging field trip Hugh goes. Which he, to his credit, does with much gusto and delight. Okay, that’s not exactly my idea of a rampaging field trip but whatever floats your little boats, my Clueless Barnacles. Yes, it is revoltingly true, the whole My Name is Hugh the Bastard and I Slaughter/Squish/Chop Things on Demand thing never did much for me. Until this book, that is. Until the Incredible Authorlords (IA™! Ha!) put Hugh through their much-coveted Super Marvelously Marvelous Complex Character Making Machine (MMCCMM™), that is. Thus effectively turning him into one of the most interesting IA™ characters ever. Yes indeed. Okay, so the process was a little painful for HSA™. I mean the IA™ did put him through a whole fishing lot to get him all complexed out and stuff. But that’s the price to pay for having your own novella, young Padawan. Still, I almost feel bad for poor little Hugh here, all fished up in his little head because spoiler spoiler spoiler went all spoiler spoiler spoiler on him and ended up spoilering spoilering spoilering him, too! Yeah, it sucks shrimp time to be HSA™ right now. BUT. 1/What he has been, and is going through adds tons of depth to his character, so yay for us and too bad for him and stuff, and 2/He’s been such an unredeemable bastard until now that he had it coming and stuff. Besides, although Hugh finds his little self in quite the predicament right now (because spoiler spoiler spoiler, remember?), he is and shall forever remain Hugh, His Smug Assholeness. I mean, you know the famous saying: “you can take the smugness out of the asshole, but you can’t take the asshole out of the smugness. And vice-versa.” Which isn’t even remotely true, as far as I’m concerned. And doesn’t make that much sense, when you think about it. But who gives a fish anyway? So. Hugh = newly acquired, yummilicious complex personality + “Hey, I’m a complete dick and I know it!” + God’s gift syndrome = More or less. No wonder Elara couldn’t resist the guy and fell in lurve with him at first sight. I personally think it’s his humble, sunny persona that won her over. Plus, he’s really good with words (especially romantic ones), and sure knows how to sweet-talk a lady. I mean, who could ever resist being called a screeching, rabid harpy or a bitch? No one, if you ask me. I mean, I’m pretty sure it’s physiologically impossible. Ergo, Elara most logically succumbed to Hugh’s undying charm. See? Her face really lights up when he’s around! Then she promptly proceeded to create the Burn Baby Burn Elara School of Take That You Bastard (BBBESoTTYSB™). That’s the power of lurve for you! “Say cheese, love.” Elara gave him a brilliant happy smile. “Cheese, dickhead.” These two make such an adorable couple, they almost killed me with cuteness while I was reading the book. “Wait.” She held up her hand. “Let me check if I care.” Hugh glared at her. “No,” she said. “Apparently, I don’t. It’s good that we got that straightened out.” As his Furriness would tell you, honesty is key in a relationship. It’s the secret to a long, blissfully happy marriage and it’s obvious Elara knows it. “You just have to tell me which head you want chopped off, the top one or the one you usually think with.” Told you it was 💕lurve💕 at first sight for Elara! Which, now that I’ve kidnapped adopted her, will probably make it a little difficult for her to adjust to life in my High Security Harem. But it’s all for the best, and she’ll come to realize it soon enough (whether she wants to or not). She’s a fiercely intelligent gal, after all. Besides, I’m pretty sure she won’t be able to resist my crustacean wiles very long. Also, she’s a Badass Magic Powerhouse (BMP™)and I just know she is going to love being my nefarious consort and taking over the world at my side. Anyway, I was going to tell you lots of other stuff about my new, supremely yummy girlfriend, but I realize now that spoiler spoiler spoiler and stuff, so I’ll just say this: Elara kicks much ass, and Elara is super MINE. QED and stuff. Oh, do you remember when I told you that there was much much much MUCH more to this book than His Smug Assholeness? Want me to tell you about it? You don’t? Oops, too bad. Sorry for the interruption. Felt the irrepressible urge to dance all of a sudden. No idea why. Sorry, what? You love my outfit, you say? Why thank you! So nice of you to say! What makes this story super extra special crunchy with serrated pincers on top (don’t ask), is that even though it is set in a universe most of us are, um, you know, vaguely familiar with because we’ve read each installment in the series 200,000+ times, it kinda sorta feels like discovering a brand new world and stuff. And how did the IA™ manage such a feat, you ask? By making us see this um, you know, world, through the eyes of characters who do not belong to the Pack. And that, my Flimsy Decapods, is quite the eye-opener. The insight it gives on the series as a whole is a teensy little bit amazing. Not only that, but it helps assert The Iron Covenant has a series in its own right (view spoiler)[ Oh, you didn’t know this was going to be a series instead of a trilogy? Well I am happy to report that it is. I threatened the IA™ to unleash the crustaceans upon them if they didn’t write more than three installments in this series and, tada! (hide spoiler)] Because new awesome players and new, different circumstances and new, shifting power balance and new super cool magic/non-magic/whatever/everything stuff and new vile creatures cuddly pets, and millions of new bloody-stinking-fish-I-need-to-know-now questions. And if that ⤴ wasn’t nearly stupendous enough, the IA™ decided to throw in a wondrous cast of wunderliciously edible secondary characters (view spoiler)[ Johanna dear, your ride to the Harem will be here shortly (hide spoiler)], kickass fights and battles as usual duh what where you expecting eyeroll, 🌺flower power🌺, scrumpalicious cameo appearances by Spoiler Spoiler Spoiler, Spoiler Spoiler Spoiler, Spoiler Spoiler Spoiler and, get this, Spoiler Spoiler Spoiler (got me jumping up and down like a rabid barnacle on crack that one, yes it did)! They also added a most generous helping of deliciously graphic gore and blood and violence oh my yay. And no sexual tension and/orsex whatsoever. Oh, no. There is none of that yucky stuff to be had here. Nope nope nope. Absolutely not. Get it? Good. ➽And the moral of this I Might Be Somewhat a Little Bit Biased in the Anything Even Remotely IA Related Department but a Hugh Shrimpette I am Not So Trust Me on this One You Perhaps Possibly Can Maybe Crappy Non Review (IMBSaLBBitAERIARDbaHSIaNSTMoTOYPPCMCNR™) is: P.S. Next time someone says “bring the cows,” I’m going into hiding. And so should you, puny humans. So should you. P.P.S. Worry your little selves not, you members of the Hugh Devouring Horde, for I don’t see His Smug Assholeness as High Security Harem material. Yet. ARC most generously and super awesomely provided by the IA™ in exchange for reassurance that the murderous crustaceans shall never be unleashed upon their humble abode. • Book 2: Untitled - to be released 2019 sometime in the next century. Maybe. [Pre-review nonsense] A crappy non-review through my two little grey cells slowly creeping its way is. Posted most expeditiously it shall be. Perhaps. Maybe. I'll try to post it before we all die of old age, anyway. Or before the book is released. Or before spoiler spoiler spoiler. Whichever comes first. P.S. I have a gift for all you poor souls who haven't had the chance the read this slightly stupendous book yet! Here is some exclusive, behind-the-scenes footage from this book! Featuring Hugh and Elara! It's super secret, previously unreleased stuff, so I'll put it in a spoiler because, um, you know, it's super secret, previously unreleased stuff. (view spoiler)[ I bet you never pictured them like this. Ha! Goes to show how little you know about these two. (hide spoiler)]

If you’ve known me for any length of time, you know that I’m an Ilona Andrews fangirl. I eagerly gobble up anything from this husband-and-wife writing duo and frequently try to shove their books on unsuspecting new reader friends. While they’re now known for several series, their biggest books are an urban fantasy series about Kate Daniels, set in a post-apocalyptic Atlantic devastated by alternating waves of magic and technology. While this book is the first in a new series, it’s a spinoff of Kate, and as such would be seriously confusing to anyone new to the world. And on that note – massive spoilers in this review for anything pre-Magic Triumphs. First off, I was extremely skeptical of this book. In case you’re not aware of the background, this started off as an April Fool’s joke some years ago, since, honestly, who’d want a romance featuring one of the most hated villains from the Kate Daniels series? Besides killing off a beloved character, Hugh was also the dreaded Other Man in a love triangle with Kate and Curran. Not to mention, as Roland’s lackey, he was a bit one-note evil. I had a lot of doubts about how he could be believably redeemed while still acknowledging that he KILLED ONE OF MY FAVORITE CHARACTERs. Ahem. Folks, I was so, so wrong – I was rooting for Hugh after about three chapters. “Roland discovered an unpleasant fact,” Lamar said. “We do not follow him. We follow you.” After being cut off from Roland, Hugh is on the run with what’s left of his Iron Dogs, hunted by the Golden Legion. Starving and exhausted, they need a base to regroup. Elara, head of, well, a cult, needs someone to protect her people from her suspicious and unfriendly neighbors. And what better way to seal the deal than a marriage? Of course, while the main participants need to keep up appearances to outsiders, it’s quickly apparent that “My way or the highway” Hugh and “I’m called the White Warlock for a reason” Elara are immediately at odds. Even in the midst of it all, though, these are two smart people used to command, who will bicker and fight but in service of doing what’s they think is best for their people. I think what sold me on Hugh most of all was his commitment to both his people and Elara’s. The Hugh in this book is not the Hugh we’ve met before, for good reason, as getting cut off from Roland broke him completely. Watching him reform himself, while deciding which parts of himself he wants to keep and which to discard, was heart wrenching. Loyalty, though, it what makes both Hugh and Elara tick. “If you betray us, I’ll make you suffer.” “We haven’t even married yet, and I’m suffering already.” “We have that in common,” she snapped.” And, oh, Elara. She’s the perfect foil for Hugh, unfailingly loyal and committed to her people and what’s best for them, even a sham marriage to a man everyone calls a monster. She’s smart and fierce, and she’s shrewd enough to put Hugh and his starving commanders in a conference room next to the kitchens when they first meet. The authors have a great knack for being able to write from someone’s POV while only hinting at that character’s secrets, and it was fun figuring out along with Hugh’s people exactly why Elara seems to view herself as a monster. It goes along well with the romance, which is, of course, hate-to-love and deliciously slow burn, with plenty of the authors’ trademark witty banter. “What do you want more than anything? Tell me what it is, and I’ll rip the world apart to bring it to you.” While we’ve had novellas and other books not from Kate’s point of view, they’ve all been Atlanta-based Pack, so having POVs from both Hugh and Elara was a fascinating new view of the world. There are several plot lines that are left unresolved at the end of the book, including one major one that I was disappointed about, but it is the first in a series. Overall, though, I simply cannot fangirl over this book enough, and highly recommend it to anyone who loves kickass characters, smart and hilarious dialogue, and a tightly-paced engrossing plot! I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

4.5/5 Super solid beginning for this spin-off trilogy. I'm not going to lie, I was already a Hugh apologist so it wasn't hard to buy his redemption arc. I think the hate to whatever Elara and Hugh end up having (two begrudging allies with deep-seated personal issues I guess?) was very well executed. I'm not absolutely sold on the "villain of the day" since we still don't know who was behind it but at least it hints at a bigger picture, and therefore a bigger threat. I love that Elara and Hugh aren't your typical heroes, one of them a mysterious warlock with legitimately terrifying powers (and not in a "pretty" way) and the other one a bloodthirsty warlord with enough regrets for 10 lifetimes. Their character arcs made the progression of the story more compelling and it was really hard to put down the book. Now I just need the sequel ASAP!

I didn't want to like Hugh d'Ambray. I really didn't. I spent the first 20-30% of this book annoyed that Ilona Andrews was working so hard to redeem him when he had seemed so irredeemable in the Kate Daniels series to that point. But goddammit, they made me like him. He was charming and he truly cared for the Iron Dogs who followed him. And as the book went on you saw there were lines he didn't like to cross. Any man who cares for animals and children cannot be a truly hopeless case. I still fought every second of the way not to be won over, though. This book was heavy in battle strategy, and that was a little boring to read at times. I got why, both Hugh and Elara are strategists constantly plotting ahead to see how to protect their people and accumulate the least casualties. They are willing to manipulate and doublecross if that is what is necessary, but at the heart of it, they both do it because they care. That's why they were a good fit for one another, they have a hard exterior that masks their soft squishy centre. Elara was slow to win me over just as much as Hugh was, but Hugh had multiple terrible life choices that had coloured my perception of him, so Elara should have easily had a step up in winning my affections. Instead, she came across as cold and manipulative and I was always waiting for her to do something to doublecross Hugh or undermine his authority, or generally betray him. That kind of behaviour doesn't usually gain you much love but I slowly got to know her and she did persuade me she was secretly awesome. I still have so many questions about her and her powers, but I know that will come in the next book (if it ever gets published since it apparently is dark and not really something anyone wants during a pandemic, but I will wait!). Basically, this book had an uphill struggle to fight and it definitely won me over in the end. I was there cheering Hugh and Elara on. Even at points when I expected myself to be against Hugh and actually wishing for his enemies to beat him instead I sympathised with him. It was some excellent writing, I think they really thought it through when to have certain scenes and the perspective to write it from to truly get the impact across and garner the response from the reader they needed. There is a reason I say Ilona Andrews is one of my favourite writing duos, they write smart and they write characters well. It helps their action-packed plots are always fun to read too.

I'm a huge fan of the Kate Daniels series and the Innkeeper books, so I was really happy to see this. Hugh d'Ambray has been shunned by his master. Obeying Roland is all he's ever known. As the Preceptor of the Iron Dogs, Hugh has fought and killed at Roland's command. Since he was cast out, Hugh has nothing. Nothing but the desire to drink himself to death. He knows he needs to pull himself together. His Dogs need him. Now that he is no longer in Roland's good graces, he knows that Landon Nez will come for them. Elara Harper (aka The White Lady) needs protection. She must protect her people from any threats. Someone wants her land and will stop at nothing to get it. Hugh and his Dogs are starving badasses. Elara has plenty of food and needs protection. Sounds like a match made in heaven. Or hell. I really liked this book. I love the characters and the magic is great. My only complaint is that I wish I would've finished all of the Kate books first. I will still read them, but now I know more than I should going into the rest of the series. I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Kate Daniels 9.5. 4.5 stars. Damnmit! I didn't want to be taken in by Hugh and his reaching for redemption. I simply don't believe it for Negan (you Walking Dead TV fans KNOW what I'm talking about!... and just a few more days to go!), and until now didn't believe it for Hugh... but can my heart forgive even though it can't forget? Maybe, it's already almost there after reading this book and seeing the loyalty of his troops and how they inspired him to rise up again. And of course Elara, what a woman and more than a great match for Hugh. Can't wait for the next one...

Soooo good, and I can already tell that the rest of the series is going to blow my mind. I've been dying for Hugh to get his own story ever since he showed up in the Kate Daniels series, and I can say that I'm not disappointed. I love Hugh and Elara, and I love that their story falls under the marriage of convenience trope. Individually, both are fascinating characters that I can't wait to learn more about, but together, they take their mutual hatred for each other on another level. I'm so ready for more!