CBR 18 Book 8: "Beast Business" by Ilona Andrews

Page count: 205 pages

Rating: 4 stars

Augustine Montgomery is the head of a very successful investigative agency and a deeply private man. He is an illusion Prime, who can alter his appearance at will, and there are very few people alive who know what he actually looks like. Augustine presents himself to the world as calculated, efficient, ruthless and detached. He is never swayed by emotion and has very few friends as a result. 

Diana Harrison is the Head of House Harrison and a very powerful animal mage. Like Augustine, she is seen as cold, detached and seems to care more for animals than people. Her brothers and niece are the only exceptions. She comes to Augustine because she needs help with an urgent personal matter, and she can't hire anyone from the Baylor Agency, since then her niece Matilda might discover what House Harrison has lost. 

Diana and Augustine are both deeply private and secretive, but when working together, it will be impossible for them to keep their abilities hidden. Nevertheless, a helpless baby animal has been stolen and needs to be reunited with its mother soon, or the unique tiger cub might die, and its loss would hurt both its supernatural mother and Diana, who is bonded to the mother tiger. 

Even when busy writing the second book in their new traditionally published fantasy series, Ilona Andrews (the husband and wife writing team) are generous to their devoted fans and wrote this bonus novella, set in their Hidden Legacy paranormal fantasy universe. Augustine and Diana have both appeared as supporting characters in the previous books, with some speculating that there was a romantic connection between the two. This novella confirms that the speculation was right, but it also ends on a cliffhanger of sorts, which I know left some readers frustrated and feeling cheated that they didn't get more of Augustine and Diana as an actual couple. (Yes, Des, I'm talking about you, among others). 

This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me comes out at the end of March, and for those of us not lucky enough to have been granted an ARC, it's very good to have something to distract us from the long wait. As I have said many times before, I would pay for anything Ilona Andrews publishes (frequently in more than one format) and more from the Hidden Legacy universe, especially since this also contains a bonus short story about Arabella Baylor making a new friend, which was very entertaining. 

Judging a book by its cover: Once again, proof that Ilona Andrews only gets good covers when they commission the art themselves. While I think Diana is looking a bit too much like a helpless damsel here, rather than a deadly force to be reckoned with, I really like the cover, and who doesn't love a blue baby tiger?

Crossposted on Cannonball Read 

CBR14 Book 24: "Ruby Fever" by Ilona Andrews

Page count: 380 pages

Rating: 5 stars

CBR14 Bingo: New (could also have been used for Series - last in a series, and Mind - a lot of minds are manipulated by various powers throughout)

Spoiler warning! This book finishes off a bunch of storylines that started six books and a novella earlier in Burn for Me. It's technically the third book in a trilogy, but to fully get the emotional heft of the story, you should have read the whole series up until now. Besides, don't you like fun? Ilona Andrews writes the best paranormal fantasy on the market. If for some reason you just want to read Catalina's trilogy, the first book is Sapphire Flames. 

The book opens with the House Baylor taking a tour of the large estate that will be their new home. Thanks to the eccentricities of the former owner, there's a variety of places to stay, from impressive towers that appeal to Arabella and Leon, to small guest cottages where Bern and his girlfriend Runa, as well as Runa's younger siblings, can stay. There's ample room for their security forces, a space where grandma Frida can continue to work on her vehicles, and some lovely grounds, including a pool, not to mention a house where the head of House Baylor, Catalina, and her assassin fiancé can live away from the prying eyes of the rest of her family.

Six months later, Catalina and Alessandro find themselves with a very complicated situation on their hands. There's a very expensive spider on the loose in the Baylor compound, which needs to be found and returned to her owners. That's relatively simple compared to the fact that someone has very publically murdered the Speaker of the Texas assembly, which is likely to cause panic in the city. When trying to notify Catalina's boss, the Warden of Texas about this, Catalina and Alessandro discover that he has been gravely poisoned and may not recover. This elevates Catalina to acting Warden, a position the young woman had been hoping she wouldn't have to assume for years yet. As if that wasn't enough to deal with, a handsome, yet arrogant prince from the Russian Emperium shows up and complicates things by using his shapeshifting abilities to make the assassin warlord Arkan (the man Alessandro has sworn to kill to avenge his murdered father) think Catalina and the Baylors have access to one of his's closest allies, basically making it inevitable that the ruthless man will stop at nothing to kill Catalina, Alessandro, and the whole Baylor clan.

As I already mentioned, not only is this book the final volume in Catalina's trilogy, but it wraps up storylines that started as far back as Burn for Me, the first book about Nevada Baylor and Connor "Mad" Rogan. Since they are Catalina's sister and brother-in-law, Nevada and Connor obviously show up, but the writers have created a plausible reason for why the powerful couple can't really step in and help fight Arkan or solve the murder mystery, or which someone poisoned Linus Duncan and why. They nevertheless do get a pretty satisfying extended cameo, without taking up too much space in Catalina and Alessandro's final adventure. Several long-running mysteries that have occupied the imaginations of the Book-Devouring Horde (the self-styled name of Ilona Andrews' fans) for years and years now are finally given satisfying answers, and I didn't mind in the slightest that thanks to spending a lot of time on various fan sites on Goodreads and Facebook, none of the big reveals really came as a surprise.  

Because Catalina and Alessandro are a much more established couple in this book, some of the romance takes a backseat to the action and mystery plots. I didn't really mind this, as we got more than enough romance in Emerald Blaze and this book also seems to focus more on Catalina's growing powers and her learning to adapt to and control them. She's always had the ability to entice people to love her and do what she wants with her green wings, but she needs to learn to use her black wings and their accompanying sinister powers or risk losing control entirely during a very critical time. 

 

This book probably won't be a 5-star read for a lot of people. I've seen others complain about pacing problems and elements of the plot they didn't think worked so well, but to me, this book is a wonderful conclusion to a series I've been reading since 2014. As readers of my reviews will know, I'm an unashamed Ilona Andrews fangirl and would happily pay if they decided to publish and sell their shopping lists. So it's probably wise to take my rating with a grain of salt, but anyone who's read the earlier books and wondering if they stick the landing - yes, I would very much say they do. 

Judging a book by its cover: While I breathe a sigh of relief that the second trilogy in the Hidden Legacy series has had vastly better covers than the first one, I'm not exactly a big fan of this one. This is also the only book of the three where Catalina isn't at any point described as wearing the evening dress they've put the cover model in. I'm happy that they have the same two people on the cover for each of the three books. I like red, it's a great colour. Not super happy about the jazz hands or weird lightning suddenly streaming from the female model who's supposed to portray Catalina. 

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR12 Book 69: "Emerald Blaze" by Ilona Andrews

Page count: 400 pages

Rating: 5 stars

#CBR12 Bingo: Green

Spoiler warning! This is the fifth book total in the Hidden Legacy series, and the second book about Catalina Baylor. This review may spoil details from previous books in the series. If you want to start at the very beginning, the book you want is Burn for Me. If you want to start with Catalina's books, the first book is Sapphire Flames. 

It's been about six months since the end of the last book, where Catalina Baylor made a very unfortunate, iron-clad deal with her evil grandmother to save Alessandro Sagredo's life, only to discover that he was so caught up in his quest for revenge that he packed up and left town pretty much immediately after, breaking her heart in the process. Not that Catalina has been wallowing in self-pity and comfort eating while contemplating her emotions, she's been busy strengthening the power of her house and barely surviving dangerous missions as the deputy warden of Texas. 

Now the heir to House Morton has been horribly murdered and members of four other prominent Texas houses are suspects. There are also strange mutated monsters running around Houston, controlled by an unknown force. Catalina is given the mission to find the guilty party, is deeply unhappy when she discovers that Lander Morton, the grieving patriarch of House Morton, has hired Alessandro to dispatch his son's killer, once the murderer is found. Alessandro is no longer the carefree, easy-going flirt he was six months ago, he seems hard and focused now, and is much more willing to share things, both information and his feelings with Catalina. He insists that someone is trying to kill her, and he is in Houston again to protect her. Since Linus Duncan, Catalina's boss agrees to let Alessandro act as her bodyguard, she doesn't really have a choice but to cooperate with him. 

The man that Alessandro has been hunting since he was a teenager is now openly planning to kill Catalina, and possibly Linus Duncan too. Alessandro is willing to do whatever it takes, even risk his own life, to keep Catalina safe. He is unaware of the bargain Catalina made with her grandmother to save his life, effectively giving up any chance they might have had for a future together. Can the two stop the danger that could destroy Houston, survive, and actually have an honest conversation about their feelings?

Once again, the husband and wife writing team that makes up Ilona Andrews have produced an action-packed, funny, and emotional novel. I never stop being amazed by their creativity when it comes to conjuring up new and truly bizarre supernatural threats for their protagonists to face off against. They always have the best monstrous beasties, but of course, the most monstrous threats facing any hero or heroine of theirs is thoroughly human. In this novel, we discover what Alessandro's quest for revenge actually consists of, and why he's been training to become one of the world's top assassins since he was a teenager. We discover the truth behind why Nevada suddenly resigned as head of House Baylor and more or less publicly severed ties with her siblings. Nevada, very heavily pregnant, is much more present in this book. Leon also gets a lot more to do, while Cornelius and Bern sadly take more of a backseat in this story. 

It's hard for me to review books I really love, and I feel that every time I review an Ilona Andrews book, I pretty much end up repeating the same superlatives again and again. If I haven't convinced the people who read these reviews to start reading Andrews' books by now, it will likely never happen. But you're missing out on some of the best (if not THE best) paranormal fantasy being written today.

Judging a book by its cover: I stand by what I said when commenting on the cover for Sapphire Flames, this is the first non-self-published series where Ilona Andrews actually have decent looking covers. I like the various shades of green and the female cover model's dress. I think they've kept the same woman portraying Catalina from the previous cover shoot, but it looks like the male model, portraying Alessandro, has been replaced. Also, it could just be unfortunate shading, but the male model appears to have a soul patch, which is NOT attractive. 

Crossposted on Cannonball Read. 

#CBR11 Book 98-101: "Hidden Legacy" by Ilona Andrews (re-read)

Total page count: 1382 pages
Burn for Me - 4.5 stars
White Hot - 5 stars
Wildfire - 5 stars
Diamond Fire - 4.5 stars

Sapphire Flames, book 4 in the series (novellas only count as half instalments) and the continuation of the series came out in August (on my birthday - thank you, House Andrews, for your benevolence!). In the months leading up to that release, I wanted to re-read the previous books, so everything was fresh in my mind. The plan was that my husband would read them too (how am I married to a man who just simply refuses to read the same things I like and adore?) and then we would review all four under the "Two voices are better than one" square on this year's Cannonball Bingo. Unfortunately, due to his brain worms and a number of other factors, he never ended up even finishing his re-read of Burn for Me, let alone get round to reading any of the others. So instead, we had to go with plan B, a co-written review of Pumpkinheads (which was considerably faster for the husband to read than the nearly 1300 pages of these combined books).

This brings us to December, and me desperately scrambling to actually complete my double Cannonball. My work load this year is frankly depressing (if I'm not correcting and grading something, I'm probably planning the next task that needs to be corrected and graded). It also turns out that while maternity leave and taking care of a small baby leaves you with a fair amount of time to read (if your hormonal brain lets you concentrate on anything), being the mother of a very active and demanding toddler demands enough of what is left of my energy and intellectual capabilities once the work stress has done its damage, that I barely have the capacity for much of anything anymore. In the last month, I've barely even watched TV, we end up watching movie trailers and YouTube videos, because even a half hour episode of a show either takes up too much time, or demands too much of my mental faculties.

I pretty much have no choice but to write a rather rambling review of my re-read of these books, if I'm to have any chance to complete my double Cannonball (never give up, never surrender!) I can't have four books there on my "Read in 2019" shelf just standing there being un-reviewed, even if they are all re-reads. I've already linked to my original reviews at the top of this one, so anyone wanting plot summaries and such like, can just go check out what I wrote last time.

Why you should read the Hidden Legacy books by Ilona Andrews:

• Excellent plot. There's an over-arcing story going through all three of the first books, with a series of shadowy figures trying to destabilise the powers that be in Houston and our resourceful protagonists having to join forces to unmask and stop them, but there's also a self-contained story in each of the three books. While you will get more attached to the characters and invested in the bigger plot lines, Ilona Andrews also recaps the most important points in each book (without it seeming like too annoying regurgitation), so you could start with any book in the series and manage to follow along (but where's the fun in that?)
• Amazing world building. I have no idea where Ilona Andrews get their ideas from. The husband and wife writing team consistently, in each of the many books and series they have produced, manage to build and populate fascinating worlds, with interesting magical systems, supernatural abilities and creepy crawlies. The Hidden Legacy series is set in a world not all that different from our own - it's just that when magical powers were discovered, the magical elite developed and took power, with society having to change to adapt to that. The various types and variations of magic that they use in this book - so clever and inventive
• The supporting cast. One of my favourite things in all the different series that Ilona Andrews have created over the years is their ability to create wonderful and interesting supporting characters. If the protagonist is a loner, they make sure said person gets enough friends and eventually found family to support and back them. If the protagonist is part of a family, said family will probably be full of interesting, vibrant, demanding and usually supportive. If the protagonist in question comes from a dysfunctional family background, the authors will make sure that by the end of the story, that character has found a new set of people to lean on and belong to. In so many stories, children and adolescents are just annoying plot moppets. This is never the case in an Ilona Andrews story. In Hidden Legacy, Nevada is the breadwinner for her family, but she has her mother, grandmother, her two cousins and her younger sisters firmly on her side at all times. While her sisters and cousins bait and tease her and deeply exasperate her sometimes, they will also drop everything on a second's notice to come to her aid. 
• The protagonists. While Connor Rogan took a while to make me really like him, and make me believe he was worthy of Nevada, our heroine, Nevada Baylor had me won over by the end of the first chapter of the first book. She's had to work hard for a long time and has absolutely no time or patience for arrogant men who think they can order her around or swoop in and one up her. Once Connor realises just how isolated he's made himself, and what a remarkable woman he's found in Nevada, he more than does the legwork to prove himself an acceptable partner to her. 
• The action. There are always a lot of amazing action scenes in all of Ilona Andrews' books. This series is no exception. There are car chases, shoot outs, intense magical battles and more quiet power struggles - all fun.
• The humour. Ilona Andrews writes amazing banter between their romantic leads, but also has laugh out loud funny dialogue and situations involving supporting characters in each of their books. I frequently find myself laughing out loud more than once, in between biting my nails because of the tension and suspense.
• The original trilogy is already completed. While Diamond Fire is a novella introducing Nevada's younger sister Catalina as the protagonist and this story bridges the gap between the original trilogy and the new one (which begins with Sapphire Flames), the three books about Nevada and Connor and their attempts to stop the whole of Houston society being destabilised (all while falling in love and figuring out how they can have a future together) are finished and all out - so three great books to read, no waiting. 

I've re-read each of these books at least twice now, and can very much vouch for the quality and entertainment value of the stories. I really think Ilona Andrews just keep getting more talented with each new book they publish and feel lucky that I've been reading their books for so long. I have extremely few auto-buy authors anymore, but Ilona Andrews qualify not just for auto-buy, but pre-order. Then, once the books are out in paperback, I will pay again for physical copies. That's a very rare privilege.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read. 

#CBR11 Book 69: "Sapphire Flames" by Ilona Andrews

Page count: 400 pages
Rating: 4.5 stars

This is the first book in a new trilogy, so it will work fine to anyone new to the authors or this fantasy world, but readers may want to have read at least Diamond Fire, a novella which introduces the heroine and bridges the completed trilogy and this new one.

In a world where magical abilities bring wealth, power and possibly even fame, Catalina Baylor has reluctantly become the head of House Baylor and the main investigator of her family's detective agency, after her sister stepped down, because she's married to the Prime of another powerful House. While Catalina's sister Nevada has the very rare ability not just to tell when someone is lying, and can also able to coerce the truth out of someone (convenient if you're trying to solve cases), Catalina's powers are almost unheard of and have been kept under wraps by everyone around her for a good reason. .

If she doesn't shield herself, she has the ability to make people love her unquestioningly, an emotion which quickly turns to obsession and madness. A nurse tried to steal her from the hospital when she was a baby. She was home schooled after her little class mates tried to steal parts of her clothing or even tear bits of her hair out. Catalina has spent most of her life tamping down her powers, and only after her family declared themselves a house, with all of the three Baylor daughters as Primes, has Catalina needed to learn how to properly use her abilities. It also means that while she has a supportive and affectionate family, she doesn't really have any close friends and she's even considered any romantic possibilities (because how can she trust that they're not just ensnared by her?)

A few years ago, Catalina worked closely with another Prime, Runa Etterson, in investigating who was trying to sabotage Nevada's upcoming wedding. At the start of this book, Catalina is asked to help when Runa's younger brother is threatening to jump off a building, mad with grief because their mother and sister just died in a fire. Catalina uses her powers to persuade the boy not to jump, and even though she's warned that taking the case of investigating the deaths is a terrible idea, which will probably endanger the Baylors, she can't turn away someone who could actually become a friend in their time of grief and desperation.

It quickly becomes clear that it was no accidental fire that killed half of House Etterson, and the reason is probably connected to the mysterious ways in which Runa's mother had been earning money for the past decade. Catalina is also shocked to discover that Alessandro Sagredo, handsome Italian nobleman and playboy (and her erstwhile teenage crush) is somehow connected to the case. He's one of the many who tells her to keep safe and stay away from the case, but with every new warning, Catalina just becomes more determined to uncover the truth. She just wishes she could keep a clear head around the handsome Alessandro.

The first Hidden Legacy trilogy introduced the readers to the Baylor family and focused on eldest sister Nevada and her developing relationship with super-Prime Connor Rogan. In Catalina's first book, the authors have wisely decided to keep Nevada and Connor off page, in Europe, allowing the readers to properly get to know Catalina and her point of view. It helps that while this book introduces a few new characters, the majority of the supporting cast are the same. While Catalina is the new head of the family, her mother, grandmother, younger sister and cousins all help out with the agency. I am always impressed with how well Ilona Andrews manages to write well-rounded, supportive and loving families. It's one of my favourite things about their books.

The most important new character introduced is obviously Catalina's love interest, Alessandro Sagredo, Italian count and international playboy. He and Catalina met briefly during the Baylor sisters' trial to prove that they had Prime status. Alessandro's Prime power is that he can nullify the magic of others, but even he was briefly overwhelmed by Catalina's Siren lure. If his social media accounts are to be believed, Alessandro's life involves racing fast cars, dating beautiful women and posing handsomely in any number of glamorous international locations. Catalina comes to realise that this is a carefully calculated smoke screen, and that Count Sagredo is in fact very dangerous, utterly lethal, and despite them barely having spoken, strangely protective of her. It took the writers about a book and a half to make me really like Rogan, I think they won me over with Alessandro by the second scene he showed up. I can't wait to see what secrets he's hiding, and how he and Catalina will eventually find their HEA over the course of the series.

Sadly, the next book is unlikely to be out until August next year, at the earliest. I suppose I'll have to content myself with re-reading this one and the earlier Hidden Legacy books while I wait.

Judging a book by its cover: Do I like the pose of the cover model Avon's design department has chosen to portray Catalina? Not really. She looks super awkward, yet also as if she's thrusting her chest out in an exaggerated manner. It brings to mind bad comic book art. Do I like her dress, and that it looks about the way a dress Catalina actually wears at an important scene in the book? Yes, I do. The cover model who's supposed to be Alessandro looks like a budget secret agent. The blue glowing stuff and the runes swirling all around the couple. Kinda cheesy. But in the grand scheme of Ilona Andrews covers, which are far too often just really bad, this is fine. This does the job.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR10 Book 105: "Diamond Fire" by Ilona Andrews

Page count: 160 pages
Rating: 4.5 stars

Spoiler warning! This novella takes place after the events of Wildfire and this review may spoil things for any reader who has not finished the original Hidden Legacy trilogy. Proceed at your own risk.

Nevada Baylor is marrying Connor Rogan, and that means a huge society wedding with countless guests, including many of Rogan's family members from all over the world. After the bride runs off numerous wedding planners, her sisters Catalina and Arabella decide to take over the wedding planning duties. It turns out that dealing with her older sister's increasingly erratic demands is child's play compared to some of the other challenges Catalina suddenly faces. Rogan's mother lets her know that a priceless family tiara, which Nevada is supposed to wear to the ceremony, has been stolen, most likely by one of the relatives from out of town. In addition, it seems someone is trying to poison the wedding cake.

Catalina has always been reluctant to use her magic, because it's never brought her anything but trouble and grief. To track down the culprit behind the tiara robbery, not to mention revealing the identity of the person willing to kill one or several of the wedding party, she will have to bury her misgivings and start using her gifts.

This novella starts with Nevada's POV and shows the readers how Nevada, the main character and heroine of the first three Hidden Legacy books finally meets the mother of her fiancee, who turns out to be just as formidable as you might imagine Connor "The Scourge of Mexico" Rogan's mother to be. It then cuts to two months later, where we see the rest of the story through the eyes of Catalina, her younger sister, Nevada's maid of honour and wedding planner. As there will be a new trilogy, starring Catalina, and set some years in the future of this story, the readers get a taste of what's to come and what Catalina can actually do with her rather mysterious powers. This is a bridging story and it works very well indeed.

The Rogans have a ton of relatives come over from Europe and while some are lovely, there are others who are utterly horrible. Catalina faces the difficult task having to figure of which of the groom's relatives are duplicitous and may have committed theft to sabotage the ceremony, as well as having to identify who is crazy and angry enough to try to poison the wedding cake. She's only eighteen and due to her powers, has kept herself a lot more isolated than her two sisters. Nevertheless, she loves her sister more than anything and with the help of her family members in Baylor Investigations, not to mention Rogan's many security operatives, she is determined to make sure Nevada has the wedding of her dreams.

Nevada is a much better investigator than her sister, as well as older and more experienced, but the main point of this story is clearly to show Catalina having to push herself out of her comfort zone and coming to terms with what she's capable of, so she can become a worthy heroine in the next trilogy. It doesn't mean that it's not very entertaining following her (as well as all of the colourful family members of the Baylor clan who we've already come to know) in this story and pretty much the only reason I'm not rating the novella five stars is that it felt too short, and I wanted more.

Sapphire Flames, the first book in Catalina's full trilogy, is out on August 27th (my 40th birthday!) and I can't wait to see what my favourite paranormal fantasy writers have in store for her.

Judging a book by its cover: I have talked about the myriad awful book covers that Ilona Andrews has had in the past, compared to many, this isn't actually too bad. Not a huge fan of the pink and purple pastel, and the torso on the cover model seems weirdly elongated and out of proportion somehow, but considering this is a novella in the same series which includes White Hot (also known as possibly the worst cover art of any book I own), this cover is just fine.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR9 Book 76:" Wildfire" by Ilona Andrews

Page count: 400 pages
Rating: 5 stars

Spoiler warning! This is the third book in a series, and the review will contain spoilers for the previous two books. If you haven't read any of the books yet, start with Burn for Me. If you aren't caught up with the series, maybe come back for this review later.

Instead of being able to spend Christmas with her new boyfriend, Connor Rogan, one of the most powerful and magically gifted men in the United States, Nevada Baylor has to rush back to her family once they discover that her paternal grandmother, Victoria Tremaine, is coming for the family. Once back home, Nevada discovers added complications to her fledgling romance, when she finds Rynda Sherwood, nee Charles, Rogan's ex-fiancee, in her kitchen. Rynda's husband is missing and she's pretty much being shunned by all the powerful people in Houston after Nevada, Rogan and their allies killed Rynda's mother at the end of the previous book.

While several of the Baylor clan think it's a dreadful idea for Nevada to help Rynda, as she may lose Rogan in the process, Nevada feels obligated to help the distressed and desperate woman. She wisely points out that if Rogan is going to go back to Rynda, they're never going to have much of a future together, are they? She also needs to convince her mother, sisters and cousins that the best way to defend themselves against Victoria Tremaine is by forming a House of their own. This means coming out in the open with their powers, and being tested and proving their strength. If they register as a House, they will be protected for the next three years and evil grandma won't be able to kidnap them and use their powers for her own gain.

The stakes and danger have escalated with each book in this trilogy and with every book, the sinister conspiracy to create chaos and destabilise the city is revealed to be more far-reaching and powerful. While Nevada hopes that Brian Sherwood's disappearance has nothing to do with the plots she and Rogan have been uncovering in the previous two books, it quickly becomes clear that he's been abducted by someone who wants something left behind by Rynda's now dead mother. Probably evidence that could hurt the conspiracy, making it all the more important for them to find it before the kidnappers hurt Brian.

While Nevada believes their only chance to stay safe from the ruthless and wealthy Victoria Tremaine is by becoming a magical House of their own, her mother Penelope is dead against the idea and pretty much wants Nevada, her sisters and their cousins to pack up and flee. It's made clear that there's really nowhere they could hide for long, and that Victoria wouldn't hesitate to use one of the family to coerce and control the others if she could. When registering for a House, all the various members of the Baylor family would have to be tested, however, and in the case of the youngest sister, Arabella, it could cause widespread panic and end with the girl being locked up by the government for life if the range and nature of her powers are revealed.

Rogan is willing to support Nevada every step of the way, even as he is worried he might lose her forever. Her magical abilities and his are not even vaguely compatible, and Primes of influential Houses tend to marry and have children based on how well powerful their offspring will be. As Nevada discovers, Rynda's husband was deeply disappointed because their youngest son seemed to be entirely without magical ability. Will Rogan care about such things, even if he claims he doesn't?

I wasn't entirely happy with Rynda Charles Sherwood becoming a major character and occasional relationship obstacle for Nevada and Rogan in this book. While it's quite clear that Rogan broke up with her for a reason, and really isn't interested in her apart from feeling protective towards her since he's known her when since they were children, the woman is manipulative and annoying, and does her best to try to throw herself at Rogan and play on his sympathies for much of the book. Nevada admirably doesn't really give into jealousy, and once it becomes clear that she's a Truthseeker Prime to be reckoned with, she has suitors of her own to fend off. She's much more interested in following her heart, rather than making a strategically advantageous alliance with another compatible House. It takes her a little while to convince Rogan of this, but things work out in the end.

One of the things that becomes clear in this book is what a disadvantage Nevada and her family are in because of Penelope's insistence on hiding the true extent of their powers, in order to keep them hidden from Victoria Tremaine for as long as possible. It's only been a few months since Nevada really got involved in the larger world of the magic users of Houston, and she's had to try to teach herself through books given to her by Rogan, while other Primes are trained pretty much from birth. She's strong and powerful, but almost entirely untrained, and now that the Baylors are facing direct attack from several fronts, she needs finesse and to be able to access the full range of her powers. Her mother made that extremely difficult, which is why Nevada chooses to be honest with her cousin Leon about his powers when they start discovering the extent of them, even though they might not like what he chooses to do with them once he knows.

While this is the third book in the originally planned trilogy, not all the threads are neatly tied off at the end of the book, and there are absolutely things that are left unresolved. The authors have said that if the book sells well enough that Avon commissions more books, they'll be happy to write them, and either way, they may self-publish at least one more book in the Hidden Legacy universe. While Rogan and Nevada absolutely have a "happy for now" ending, I would love to read more about them, about Catalina, Arabella, Bern and Leon, as well as Cornelius and his daughter and their strange menagerie of animals. Three books simply doesn't feel like enough, and I am always happy to get more Ilona Andrews books.

Judging a book by its cover: I love the fact that due to the huge amount of protests about the truly diabolically bad cover for White Hot, the publisher actually gave the cover model portraying Rogan (not sure if it's the same guy as one the last cover) a t-shirt, rather than showing off his abs. The cover model portraying Nevada is definitely not the same as on either of the two other covers in the series, but what can you do, eh? Because the last cover was so awful, this doesn't really seem bad in comparison. There are some tornadoes in the background, that's sort of significant. I don't care for the blue fire effect around the title in the slightest. Ilona Andrews deserves better than this cover.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR9 Book 58: "White Hot" by Ilona Andrews

Page count: 416 pages
Rating: 5 stars

This is book 2 in a trilogy and if you've not read Burn for Me yet, that's where you really should begin. While you could begin the story with this one, you'll get a better introduction to the story, characters and world-building if you start with book 1.

It's been a few months since the events of the first book, and Nevada has been practising her abilities, learning more about what she can do and how she can control them. She insists makes Augustine Montgomery agree to let her question a suspected serial killer of little girls, in order to verify the location of his latest victim, and he agrees, against his better judgement. In return, Nevada agrees to see a friend of his, Cornelius Harrison, whose wife was recently murdered under mysterious and clearly magical circumstances. She knows that she and her family may not have the power or resources to help Mr. Harrison, but his grief is so palpable and she feels enough for him and his daughter to agree to take the case anyway.

They have not been investigating long when they discover that Mrs. Harrison's death was part of a bigger conspiracy, possibly connected to the events Nevada were involved in a few months ago. While she's tried her best to put Connor "Mad" Rogan out of her mind (not helped by the constant teasing and hinting from her family), they are soon reunited, as Connor is also investigating the event, having lost several of his people in the same incident. He persuades Mr. Harrison that it would be in their best interests to work together, and Nevada doesn't really have a choice but to respect her client's wishes.

The chemistry between Nevada and Connor is as strong as ever, and while to Nevada, it may have seemed as if he completely forgot about her after she rejected his over the top suggestion that she come away with him at the end of the last book, he's clearly just been biding his time, doing whatever he can to keep her and her family safe from any and all threats they might be facing. It becomes clear very quickly that a group of very powerful people are working together to create chaos and possibly destroy Houston and Nevada and Connor have once again made themselves their biggest enemies. Will they survive long enough to actually have a proper conversation about their attraction and the possible future of their relationship?

In Burn for Me we were introduced to Nevada Baylor and Connor Rogan and the alternate reality where there are any number of magic users all over globe and the more powerful, the higher the political power the families hold. Connor "Mad" Rogan was a bit too much of a careless and ruthless alpha male, so incredibly powerful that he was used to take what he wanted and act without long-term consequences. He has a lot of potential as a hero, but was clearly far too emotionally closed off and unstable to be a proper partner to the awesome Nevada, whose powers were clearly only hinted at in the first book. Here we get a lot more back-story into what made him the man he is (it's not exactly pretty) and Nevada gets a greater understanding of what she's going to have to face, if she decides that he is the right man for her.

It was obvious that Connor realised very quickly that Nevada was a Prime, even though she herself was unaware of the scope and extent of her abilities. Now she has started learning to use and control them, but she doesn't seem to realise how just how dangerous exposing her abilities to the world might be, and what long-term consequences it can have for her family or her potential relationship with Connor.

In this book, more of Nevada's awesome family get their time to shine. Her cousins, the computer genius Bern and his brother Leon, still so frustrated that he doesn't seem to have any special abilities in a family with so many gifted people (it turns out he isn't as much of a dud as he thinks, I suspect this will be a plot point in the third book); her wonderful and strong grandmother and mother, who both work so hard to help protect the family; and her younger sisters, Arabella and Catalina, who can both be infuriating teenage brats, but who won't hesitate for a second to help the family and do their fair share of protective detail if it's required. It becomes clear over the course of the book that the Baylors are a very gifted family, with Catalina and Arabella having Prime-level powers of their own. We see some of what Catalina is capable of towards the end of the story, but Arabella's powers are still mostly a mystery, but all the hints we have been given suggest shape-shifting of some kind, possibly into something large and formidable.

Cornelius Harrison, an animal mage, who made a minor appearance in the first book also becomes important here. Ilona Andrews excel at characterisation, even when it comes to teenage and child characters, and Harrison's four-year-old Mathilda is never just a plot moppet, although she is used very well to bring out the unexpectedly softer side to several other characters over the course of the story. Harrison's ability to control animals is used excellently several times, including one of my absolute favourite scene, involving cat-burgling ferrets wearing infra-red cameras and little harnesses full of useful tools.

Impatient readers also have to wait quite a long time before the central couple finally have a chance to consummate their relationship. There are a number of fairly scorching scenes in the build-up, but they always get interrupted by something inconvenient, like prying family members or near-death experiences.

While the stakes sometimes seem higher in this book than in the last, the resolution to their big problem seemed to almost go too smoothly. Having read the book twice over the course of a week, I find that even the somewhat weaker ending didn't ruin my enjoyment of the book overall, and at the moment, it's one of my very favourites of the many great paranormal fantasy books the Andrews have written so far. There seem to be two main threats facing the Baylors and Rogan in the next book, and I'm so intensely glad that I won't have to wait more than about a month to get my greedy hands on it.

Judging a book by its cover: I seriously don't even know where to begin with this cover. The really sad and awful truth is that THIS is what it looks like AFTER the marketing department actually edited it, managing to against all odds, make it worse than it was before. The original cover still had the implausibly muscular male model (who I'm going to assume is supposed to be Connor - note that it's a different dude from the cover of Burn for Me) and the Shakira-lookalike who I can only guess is supposed to be Nevada (again, completely different model than they used on the previous cover) in a very cheesy embrace, but there were not exaggerated and cartoonish-looking icicles all over the title font, nor was there the pastel nightmare that I think is supposed to show the ice cave our protagonists are trapped in at one point. The original cover was bad, this is so much worse.

To be fair, the actual scene in the ice cave would require a cover that is decidedly NSFW, hence both participant wearing at least some clothes here. It's still, without a doubt, the most eye-gougingly awful cover I think I've ever had the misfortune to see on a paranormal fantasy cover, and makes me very happy that I own the book in e-format, so I don't need to wrap my book in a bag when reading it on public transport.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR9 Book 49: "Burn for Me" by Ilona Andrews (re-read)

Page count: 400 pages
Rating: 4.5 stars

This book originally came out back in 2014, but was re-released earlier this year, after the two planned sequels took longer to produce than planned. The second book in the trilogy will now be out at the end of May, while the third and final book comes out in July. I'm giddy with anticipation and have already pre-ordered the sequels. My first review of the book can be found here.

Spoiler warning! This review will mainly deal with my thoughts of re-reading it, and where I hope the authors will take the series in upcoming books. So if you haven't read the book yet, get to your online book store of choice and get it NOW, as the book is currently on sale prior to the release of the sequel. My musings will absolutely feature some minor plot spoilers.

I really liked this book, but I know that for several other readers, Connor "Mad" Rogan and his domineering, alpha-hole behaviour in this book was a deal-breaker. My friend Erica was absolutely appalled by his complete disregard for Nevada's wishes in a scene about mid-way through where Rogan clearly pushes the boundaries of Nevada's consent and doesn't seem all that bothered by it, because she's clearly attracted to him, where's the harm? She found him dislikable enough that it just broke the book for her, and as far as I'm aware, it's one of her lowest-rated Andrews' books. She has no intention of reading the rest of the series, because she doesn't care to see Rogan redeemed as a hero.

While I absolutely see her point and agree that Rogan in this book is no where near the hero he needs to be, I've also probably read too many romances with alpha-hole heroes and frankly, when Ilona Andrews writes them, I find even the evil guys attractive. I'm giddy as a school girl about the fact that they're writing a book about Hugh de Ambray, the absolute psychopath who tried to kill Curran and steal Kate away from him in the Kate Daniels series. If they're writing a romantic trilogy with Rogan as the hero, I also have complete faith that while he starts out somewhat problematic, there will be a redemptive arc, and he will prove himself worthy of Nevada, who is already a wonderful and extremely likable heroine from the beginning. She spends most of this book fighting her attraction to Rogan because she knows it would be a terrible idea on so many levels to get involved with him, and she's right. The man he is in this book is absolutely not the right one for her.

The kindly authors recently posted two scenes from the book from Rogan's POV (almost the entire book is seen through Nevada's eyes) and it confirmed my initial theory that Rogan really isn't as bad as he wants the world to believe him to be. The first scene (when Rogan abducts Nevada from the park) can be found here, and the second (when he questions her at his house with magic) is here. No one with an internal monologue like that is a complete psychopath.

But the man I suspect the extremely talented Andrews couple will mould him into - now that's a different story. Just as it is really quite obvious that Nevada is a Prime in whatever strange and rare truth-telling magic she possesses (Rogan hints at having figured it out when Nevada rants about the arrogance of Primes in this book), so at least magically, she's perfectly suited to being a mate for someone as powerful and influential as him, it's also natural that Rogan has a lot of changing and evolving to do. From this book, it's obvious that the magically powerful families breed extremely selectively and care more for power and influence than about inter-personal relationships. So it's no surprise that Rogan has never really cared for anyone and since all his magical powers seem destructive on a terrifying scale, that's going to warp him a bit.

Since he's decided he wants Nevada, and she's strong and determined enough not to give into him, he will have to change to become worthy of her. I have absolutely no doubts that he will become a better person, although I suppose it's unlikely to think that he will beg forgiveness for the rather callous way he treated Nevada for much of this book. A girl can hope, though.

As soon as I finished re-reading the book, I read what little is available in previews for the sequel, White Hot, out on the 30th of May. I'm not saying I'm going to count the days, but the book has been pre-ordered for months, and I don't care how much work I may have left to do, I am completely clearing my schedule to make sure I can focus only on the book when it comes out. The only good thing with having to wait so long for the sequels is that now I get two new Ilona Andrews books before the summer is over, rather than just the one.

Judging a book by its cover: I hadn't started commenting on book covers when I first read this book, but oh man, is there a lot to take apart here. Ilona Andrews, amazing and talented fantasy writers whose work I adore and will buy and try to foist on anyone I meet who shows the slightest bit of interest, really have not been blessed by the cover design gods. With the exception of their self-published Innkeeper Chronicles books, where they get to commission their own artwork, all their books have varying degrees of bad covers. But none are as bad as the ones the Avon publicity team have managed to scrounge up for the Hidden Legacy trilogy. All three covers, in all their lurid glory, can be found on the authors' website. Three different female models, with varying degrees of blonde hair. Two different male models. Sooo much tackiness.

Seriously, there is so much wrong with the cover for Burn for Me. The way the blond lady, who's probably supposed to be Nevada is wearing what appears to be a shoulderless, sparkly evening gown. The way she is clinging like a limpet to the man she spends most of the book trying to keep away from her. The pouting pretty-boy model doing his best "Blue Steel" they've got to portray Rogan. You can tell that he's ex-military because of the dog tags. And while Adam Pierce, the man they are chasing for much of the book seems to have some sort of allergy to shirts, Rogan seems to spend most of the book clothed. The rubble and buildings coming apart in the background have plot relevance, I'll give them that. Also, while this is a bad cover, the one for the sequel is SO much worse. I'm going to have to save up all month to do it justice.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR6 Book 124: "Burn for Me" by Ilona Andrews

Rating: 4.5 stars
Page count: 384 pages

In a world where magic exists and is passed down through generations, the most influential families in society are called Houses, and tend to breed selectively to create the most powerful magic users, known as Primes. Nevada Baylor is a struggling P.I in Houston, trying to make ends meet. Nevada's powers (which she keeps secret to avoid being exploited by one of the ruthless Houses) allow her to sense any time someone is lying. It comes in handy in her line of business, but isn't exactly going to make her a magical superstar, like Adam Pierce, the man she has been forced to locate.

A Prime pyrokinetic, Adam Pierce grew up in a life of luxury, before he decided to turn his back on his family, start a motorcycle club and becoming a radical. His fire can melt solid steel and he's the main suspect in a series of arsons, the last at a bank where a police officer got killed. The House that owns the Baylor family's mortgage needs someone to go on what is likely to be a suicide mission. Nevada could refuse, but it would mean not only losing the family business, but the warehouse, where they all live. Desperate, but resourceful, Nevada is able to do what a lot of others haven't. She tracks down Pierce and manages to peak his curiosity. She hopes this will keep her alive long enough for her to figure out a way to get him arrested.

Then she is drugged and abducted by Connor "Mad" Rogan, the head of House Rogan and a Prime Telekinetic, one of the most powerful magic users in the world.  Formerly employed by the US Army and involved in decisive victories against the war of Mexico, he now has nicknames like the Hurricane and the Butcher of Mexico. Having agreed to help his cousin track down her son, who is implicated in the latest arson with Pierce, he has ascertained that Nevada is the easiest way to get to the man. She doesn't take well to being kidnapped, threatened and questioned, and doesn't hesitate to tell Rogan (who terrifies her as he tends to do most people) exactly how unhappy she is about his heavy-handed ways. He proposes that they join forces to catch the pyrokinetic, and Nevada reluctantly agrees, even though she suspects Rogan may turn to be more dangerous to her than Pierce, in the end.

This is the first book in Ilona Andrews' new paranormal series, Hidden Legacy. While there is a clear attraction between Nevada and Rogan and lots of the amazing banter that Andrews does so excellently, nothing is resolved in this book, the first in a trilogy. Because Avon usually focuses on romance, a lot of readers seem to be disappointed by the lack of romantic resolution in this book. A regular reader of their blog, I was expecting a setup book and that is what this is. Andrews writes the slow burn very well, as evidenced by their Kate Daniels series, where it also takes multiple books for the central romance to really develop.

Being a huge fan of ALL of their books (I don't care if they start publishing their shopping lists, I will pay money for them, frequently more than once), I was very excited about this release, and it didn't disappoint. I suspect I may even rate it a full five stars on a repeat read (which I plan to do in December). So much of what the Andrews team does so well can be found here. Fascinating world building, with the idea that much of the population possess magical powers to some extent, in lots of interesting variations. Great characters, both the protagonists and the antagonist - Andrews is fond of a charming anti-hero to pit against the main characters. Action, humour, romance, banter, suspense and entertainment.

Nevada is the main breadwinner for her family, living with her widowed mother (a former army sniper), her grandmother (who seems to have magic that allows her to be a super mechanic), her two teenage sisters and two male cousins (one of whom is a computer genius who helps her in the P.I. business). One of the things I love about Andrews' books is how well they write families. Kate starts out a hard-edged loner in Magic Bites, but finds an extended family in the Pack and her ward. Family is hugely important in all of the four Edge books and locating her lost family is one of the things driving Dina in Clean Sweep. Families who bicker and fight and may be at each others' throats, but who will unite against a common enemy and protect each other to the death. Nevada is clever, inventive and brave, but she's not exceptional at her job. She's not a total hardass like Kate or Cerise in Bayou Moon; if Nevada is in a life threatening situation, her first instinct is to run to save herself, not face the danger head on. She works hard, and without her, her family won't be able to pay the bills. Forced into an impossible situation, of taking on a suicide mission or have her entire family tossed out into the streets, Nevada does the only thing she can. But she's not happy about it, and dreams of the day when she can tell Montgomery House, the ones pulling her strings, to get lost. Over the course of the story, it's quite obvious that there is more to Nevada's powers than she's been told, and her mother and grandmother, while clearly having kept things from her, seem unaware of the true extent of Nevada's abilities.

As well as great and complex heroines, there tend to be good heroes in the Andrews' books. Mad Rogan is no exception, although it's clear that there's going to have to be a hell of a character arc over the next two books for Rogan to be a worthy match for Nevada. He's genuinely scary and can do terrifying things with his powers. He's insanely wealthy and not used to people saying no to him. He is quick to anger and kills without remorse. He finds Nevada very attractive and can't understand why she refuses to submit to his attempts at seduction. While his public persona is that of an uncaring, ruthless man, it's quite clear that there is a lot more depth to Rogan. With the exception of the epilogue, the entire story is told from Nevada's point of view and she doesn't see all that we, the readers see. While he is wealthy and Nevada finds him extremely sexy, she's fully aware that he is extremely dangerous and that a no-name nobody like her has no future with the head of House Rogan, the most powerful and influential of all the magical families.

Sadly, there is no release date for the next book in the series and now I have to wait impatiently for both more Kate books and more Hidden Legacy. I can't wait to see how the story will develop and suspect that while this is great, the sequels will be spectacular.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.