Mercenary Kate Daniels tries to save her city from divine intervention in this novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling urban fantasy series.As a mercenary who cleans up after magic gone wrong, Kate Daniels has seen her share of occupational hazards. Normally, waves of paranormal energy ebb and flow across Atlanta like a tide. But once every seven years, a flare comes, a time when magic runs … a time when magic runs rampant. Now Kate’s going to have to deal with problems on a much bigger scale: a divine one.
When Kate sets out to retrieve a set of stolen maps for the Pack—Atlanta’s paramilitary clan of shape shifters—she quickly realizes much more is at stake. During a flare, gods and goddesses can manifest and battle for power. The stolen maps are only the opening gambit in an epic tug of war between two gods hoping for rebirth, and if Kate can’t stop the cataclysmic showdown, Atlanta may not survive…
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In this second book in the series, Ilona Andrews continues the adventurous and unpredictable daily life of Kate Daniels. This time, a magic flare adds another threat to post-shift Atlanta and all its unique and magical residents. I especially liked the introduction of Celtic myth into the series as Kate and company do their best to outwit and outmagic their enemies.
Filled with action, humor, romance, and just the right amount of snark and sarcasm, Magic Burns is another example of excellent worldbuilding and superb character development. A must-read for fans of urban fantasy, strong, independent heroines, and mythical creatures across the board.
3.5 Stars
Audio-book: Narrator – Renne Raudman
The narration this time around was so much better than the first book. It didn’t feel so over the top dramatic, especially when giving voice to any of the male characters. It wasn’t perfect, but I wasn’t cringing each time this go around. There is a particular part at the end when Ms. Raudman lets the emotions fly and holy heck…it was “lump in my throat” inducing. Hoping the next installment will only get better.
I loved the addition of Julie, a young girl Kate picks up along her journey. Her character added so much more life and “humanity” to the story, which I found a bit lacking in the previous book. There were some other new characters as well that grabbed my attention. Some of them caused suspicion while others showed they could not be trusted. I never knew how it was going to go for any of them until the end.
This again has a ton of action, horrifying creatures, and extreme gore. Kate meets it all head on but her internal monologues show she is not unaffected by the things around her. Curran, while still being an alpha-hole and a character I do not particularly like, showed he has a bit more to him than what I first saw. I’m hoping that continues to change with each additional book.
This ending surprised me in what it somewhat reveals about Kate. Although there are still lots of questions, I’m glad it wasn’t all laid out there for me. I’m definitely more invested to find out what happens from this point onward.
Heroine POV
I’m growing a bit tired of the overdone descriptions. To be completely honest I started skimming over them.
I love the characters, their interactions, the mystery… But the descriptions? Those I find too long.
I’ll still continue reading this series cause I want to know more about Kate’s past and I want to keep seeing her relationship with Curran develop
Like with many series, this second book was better than the first. I loved seeing different mythologies woven into the world, and Bran certainly kept everyone on their toes.
Read my full review:
https://rebeccasreadingcorner.blog/review-ilona-andrews-magic-burns/
I’ve read every book they’ve written and i hope they write many more.
As a mercenary, Kate Daniels has seen her fair share of occupational hazards. Once every seven years there is a magic flare, a time when magic runs rampant, and it is happening now. While trying to retrieve some stolen maps for the Pack, Kate runs across a larger problem involving a God and a battle for power. Now it’s a race to stop a cataclysmic event that could end with the destruction of Atlanta.
This book was nonstop action! There were witches, gods, shifters, vampires, and a giant tortoise. I really enjoyed the mix of mystery, action, and danger with this series. Each book is a race to find out what is going to happen next. It makes it hard for me to put the books down.
As with the first book, there are a lot of amazing side characters in this one, including a few new people. Curran, the Beast King, is starting to appear more in the series and has made his first move to notify Kate that he is interested in a relationship with her. Their constant back and forth has started to turn into foreplay instead of just annoyance. I can’t wait for them to really start dating.
“You don’t cause problems. An unpiloted vampire causes problems. You cause catastrophes.”
As always, Kate is a snarky and deadly woman. I love that we get to see more of her sword skill in this book. She really decimated the enemies and shows her crazier/ bloodier side. I loved how Kate adopted Julie in a way and became her crazy aunt during all of this. Kate definitely is starting to let her barriers down and expand her circle of friends.
Overall, I really enjoyed this story. I love this world that has waves of tech and magic. It’s just a very unique world, with unique characters and paranormal elements. I highly recommend this series if you are a UF fan, a paranormal fan, or are into kickass heroines.
This book has one of the best battle action scenes I’ve ever read. Highly, highly recommend this wonderful series.
If you like urban fantasy or post apocalyptic stories with adults that set the standard which the cookie cutters try to dupe, read everything this author pair has written. That is all. Seriously, this book is a series start and the world is rich, the humor is low-key but definitely there – as is the sarcasm – and every book is a mystery with realistic fight scenes, real emotions, trauma, injuries, healing, and all. It ends in a satisfying way without a cliffhanger but with lots of possibilities to keep you coming back for the next book or twelve. Oh, and the vampires are gross, so you’ll cheer for the humans and shifters.
Kate, with her penchant for finding trouble, has managed to get in the middle of a Celtic mess. A coven manages to unleash a demigod and his army of sea demons. Morrigan and her henchman Bran need to put a lid back on a cauldron to prevent the corporeal demigod and his little army from destroying Atlanta. As per her usual, Kate collects Julie (13 year old whose mom was in the coven that started the mess), Derek (her shape shifter sidekick), a vampire escort, the lid to the cauldron that changes hands several time, an embarrassing dance partner (Saiman-might be the weirdest character in any urban paranormal I’ve read to date), a side quest from the Witch’s Oracle, and a new word of power to play with during the magical surges. And if she didn’t have enough on her plate there is a chance that Curran’s flirting is ramping up because she managed to talk him into releasing his ex to marry another man. And in true Hamlet fashion, the fire salamander that almost burns down a section of the city is a side bar (Hamlet gets kidnapped by pirates and its not even a major plot point. Go read some Shakespeare! lol). Love this series!
I love every single book in this series so much, I have reread them every time a new one comes out and then some! Can’t recommend it enough
There isn’t a Kate Daniels book I don’t salivate over. I think that pretty much sums it up.
i l o v e, like kate daniels a whole lot. i fins the entire magic/npn-magic shifting interesting and breath stealing. i enjoy the shifters. i even like the various protectors of the people, but most of all i like kate and curran
Love this series!!
Loved all of her books.
Great book, I love this series, it’s a great urban fantasy with a bit of romance. I love the world the author has built and the characters feel real and I’m invested in what happens to them. I like the lead character, shes kick ass but not showy with it. I highly recommend this book and the rest in the series, theres action and magic….its great
I read all TheIr books . ThEY grab you at the beginning and carry you along.
I really enjoyed this series, though I had avoided it because I didn’t think I liked urban fantasy/paranormal romance. When Ilona Andrews writes it, I love it.
always a good read
A fantastic urban fantasy!
Kate Daniels RULES!!!!! I was hooked on this series from the first few words of the first book, Magic Bites, and I fall more and more in love with this series with each succeeding book. I’ve read this book so many times, I’ve lost count. The husband and wife team that are “Ilona Andrews” are fantastic world builders. Their writing is so vivid and real it comes alive in my head, like I’m watching a movie as I’m reading the book. Like another reviewer said, I stop everything when I read these books and just devour them, one after the other. This book is significant to the series because Kate makes a conscious decision to stop “hiding” her magic and who she is and be her true self, all to save the lives of people she’s come to care for deeply, despite her efforts not to. Kate was trained from an early age to have no attachments to anyone or anything, to rely only on herself, to keep herself hidden until she was powerful enough to… Well, you’ll just have to read the books to find out the answer to that question! 🙂 Kate once again butts heads with Curran, the Beast Lord, and their interactions are by turns hotter than Hades or colder than a Frost Giant’s touch. The chemistry between these two just gets more and more explosive! We also get to meet and/or get to know several people in this book who help to flesh out Kate’s world and character. If you haven’t read the Kate Daniels series, you’re doing yourself a serious disservice. I cannot recommend these books highly enough!