Burning down the house…Things are not going well at the offices of Private Eye. Jinx is having demon problems, the city is overrun with pyromaniacal imps, and Ivy’s wisp powers are burning out of control, attracting the attention of both the Seelie and Unseelie courts.Along came a faerie queen… It’s the worst possible time for the Green Lady to call in a favor, but Ivy’s bound by her deal … Ivy’s bound by her deal with the glaistig. Too bad there’s no wiggle room in faerie bargains.
Ivy must rid the city of imps, keep Jinx from murdering her one solid link to Hell, and fulfill her bargain with the Green Lady–with sidhe assassins hot on her tail.
Just another day’s work for Ivy Granger, psychic detective.
Burning Bright is the third full-length novel in the award-winning Ivy Granger urban fantasy series by E.J. Stevens. The world of Ivy Granger, including the Ivy Granger Psychic Detective series and the Hunters’ Guild series, is filled with action, paranormal mystery, magic, dark humor, quirky characters, bloodsucking vampires, flirtatious demons, sarcastic gargoyles, sexy shifters, temperamental witches, psychotic faeries, and snarky, kick-butt heroines.
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I love language. The way it is used by different writers probably explains my reading addiction. Some are given to language so beautiful the flow carries me along in worlds far from my stark reality. Others, use language sharp and modern. One is not better than the other, but they are certainly different. I thought about this while reading BURNING BRIGHT because I also realized that point of view has a lot to do with the way language is used. I’m old-school, never end a sentence with a preposition, with my own caveat that it’s OK to break the rules when writing dialog.
E. J. Stevens writes from Ivy Granger’s point of view, in other words, in the first person. In essence, the entire book is the dialog of all that is inside the head of the protagonist. Ivy is snarky and hip, and she lives in a modern-day world where the paranormal is everyday business as usual.
Since I started reviewing everything I read, I tend to have at least a partially critical eye open at all times. I am totally aware, at least subconsciously, of the nuances of language. It is the way English is used in a book that drives my personal rating system. If I get lost in a story, if I am entertained by a story, if I can’t put the Kindle away until my eyes are so blurred that I can make neither heads nor tails of what I am reading, that book is a 5-star read.
My language thing is closely related to my ‘I don’t do spoilers’ thing. Even though I’m into my fifth Ivy Granger read, you might not be. I hate to give anything away, especially when I’m really into the subject matter. Why do people climb mountains? Because they’re there. Why do I read books? For pretty much the same reason. It’s all about discovery which is something I believe you must do for yourself.
E. J. Stevens’ writing is cinematic which is another big plus. She is really good at painting pictures in your mind’s eye, images that would transfer well to the small screen as a series. I can see it all now… “Ivy Granger, Psychic Detective” tonight at 8:00 PM. Hey, Joss Whedon here’s a book series for you to option! I would set my DVR to watch in a heartbeat.
If you are already reading the series, you will be happy to know that Ivy’s circle, along with her world view, continues to expand as she deals with the life and death issues of Harborsmouth. If you’re not reading the series, I highly recommend that you start with book one – SHADOW SIGHT. You won’t be sorry.
Burning Bright (Ivy Granger, #3), my tenth read from author E.J. Stevens and my eighth Ivy Granger read. Well-written with intriguing characters. 7-hours 32-minute/282-pages of psychic detective enjoyment. E.J. Stevens has rapidly become a go-to author for me! I was given an Audible copy of this book & am voluntarily reading & reviewing it. Melanie A. Mason & David Wilson Brown’s narration adds to the book’s enjoyment. (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 – July 24, 2018).
New characters light up the town as fire imps set Harborsmouth ablaze. This is far from the only battle Ivy and Ceff face as they race to save Jinx, meet face to face with vampires, old friends and enemies, and battle poisonous spider demons.
This series gets better with each new story. Ivy continues to grow into her wisp powers while unable to control her inhuman glow. New dangers threaten from shadows and fog, and old threats are brought into play as urban fantasy and fairy tale monsters clash. Ivy meets, rescues, and adopts Sparky, a demon child who loves sparkly pencils, has floppy dog-like ears, and can open portals to hell. The fast pace, intricate sub plots and complex characterization leaves me breathless.
This is another enjoyable story in the Ivy Granger series. Ivy has her hands full when Fire Imps start sprouting up all over the place and leave fires in their wake, Fae assassins are on her tail, the Green Lady calls in her marker, Jinx becomes sick and a supernatural war seems to be brewing on the horizon. Ivy needs the help of Ceff, Torn, Forneus and Kaye to help her find solutions to the growing list of problems. The audiobook has dual narrators, Melanie A. Mason and David Wilson Brown, which out worked well. The narration flowed easily between the two, conveying action, emotion and tension well. The male recording sounded a little tinny at times but his delivery of the characters was great. I love the relationships in this story; from the growing relationship between Ceff and Ivy, the cute little imp, Sparky, and the completion over Jinks between Torn and Forneus. This is a fun engaging story that has action, battles, humour and characters that appeal. I will look forward to seeing where the author takes the us next.