I can't get enough of Kate, Curran and company. This is (again) one of those books you read fast--all the while praying that its about 5000 pages instead of a few hundred... ( )

Magic Rises by Ilona Andrews
Kate Daniels series #6. Paranormal urban fantasy. Romantic relation building. Best read as part of the series.
Kate Daniels and her mate, Curran, the Beast Lord, want the best for their pack. Children dying is not acceptable but not everyone can survive their first transition to their animal form. There is medicine but it’s controlled by the European Shapeshifters. In order to get the medicine they need, Kate and Curran agree to arbitrate a dispute. It won’t be easy and they are likely to be betrayed but if they can help their own pack to survive, it’s worth the danger.

Terrifying watching the young die, but more terrifying as Kate and Curran fight for their very lives as they try to protect a pregnant female against an unknown enemy. Of course Kate gets into a lot of scraps and makes new powerful alliances while also working on her relationship and fitting into the shapeshifter world as a human. It’s a bloody ride as they fight to save the children. ( )

Oh the twists and turns in this instalment, I'm still reeling!

Loved that we went somewhere totally new for this one, Europe! My country (Belgium) is even mentioned quite a bit lol :D

Shit really hit the fan for those of the Pack that made the journey. A new werebeast was targeting them and they were kinda having a rough time. Not to mention that Curran was being a pigheaded idiot and while I eventually understood his reasoning I felt the hurt Kate went through and it was bad, really bad :(

That being said, we met some interesting (and terrifying) characters and I'm very much looking forward to how this will continue in the series. Oh and I hope we will see Astamur and Atsany again!! :)

Pacing and flow of the book was great, a perfect balance between action and conversation.

The book itself was well written and I only noticed a few minor errors, nothing that took me out of the moment. There is no sex described in this book (if that is important to you).

All in all this book was, again, a great instalment. I hope Kate will eventually find someone who can help her learn and control her magic. Cant wait to read the next part! :D ( )

I'm not going to say anything for at least a month. Or maybe never.

Great narrator.

Edit: I changed my mind. I really picked the wrong person/shapeshifter to get upset over and I regret that reaction now. I never really thought that reading a book would make me re-think my own behavior. But damn. ( )

The first time I read Magic Bites I didn't get why there were so many rave reviews. I mean it seemed pretty average. The world building was cool and Kate seemed alright but a bit standoffish. The romance between Kate and Crest was mediocre - it seemed like she didn't like him at all and it felt forced and awkward. The romance between her and Curran wasn't any better. It didn't make sense why he followed her home while he was on his date. I liked Derek and Ghastek was creepy. There was lots of snappy, witty dialogue and I had a few laughs - but I was just confused. It was good but it wasn't great.

Yeah - read the rest of the series. It gets SO MUCH BETTER. Kate stops being standoffish and starts letting people in. Derek becomes a total badass. Ghastek - well he's still pretty creepy. But also funny and kind and sweet when he wants to be. And Curran - I love him now. He is an absolute ass in this first book. But I forgot. He becomes everything you want in a love interest. There's a ton of new loveable characters; Julie, Andrea, Aunt Bea, Raphael, Barbaras. Some new evil ones; Hugh, Roland. So much action and adventure and intensity and laughs.

So do yourself a favour. Keep reading.

This one made me uneasy and anxious to read. Curran and Kate's lack of communication just irritated me and the whole thing with Lorelai made me angry. They were playing into Hugh's hands and it just vexed me. I was glad when this one was over. ( )