From USA Today bestselling author Ilana Waters:Vampire. Witch. Hero. Monster.Titus Aurelius is all of these things. Ever since he rose from the ashes of ancient Pompeii, this former Roman general has fought for survivalA few millennia later, bloodseeker Titus isn’t looking for trouble–just a quick meal. But when his path crosses the witch Abigail’s, that plan gets shot to Hades. They find out … Abigail’s, that plan gets shot to Hades. They find out the Paranormal Investigation Agency (PIA) is plotting something monstrous–something that involves exploding gas mains, lethal bird-shifters, and sadistic vampire minions.
Will they uncover the PIA’s murderous secret before every supernatural in its path is destroyed?
And what is Titus and Abigail’s connection to the mage who, almost twenty years later, is exiled to a paranormal boarding school? Can this mage solve a mystery concerning a stolen potion and ghostly figure before students–including him–wind up dead?
Together for the first time, the Mage Tales Prequels: Books 0-II are action-packed, edge-of-your-seat suspense stories shot through with a megadose of snark. If you love authors like Kevin Hearne, Lev Grossman, and Ilona Andrews, give these a try! This box set contains one novella and two full-length novels:
When Darkness Falls
Blood and Magic
Mage Lessons
See what reviewers are saying:
★★★★ “The literary equivalent of a blockbuster movie. Fast-paced with lots of action, humor, and a bit of romance that should appeal to urban fantasy fans. Grab your bowl of popcorn and prepare to be entertained!” ~LaffingKat
★★★★★ “I’m completely blown away and speechless!” ~Kristen Lewendon
★★★★★ “A page-turner you’ll remember!” R. Alexander
★★★★★ ”Intrigue, battles, love, and all sorts of excitement and adventure.” ~Tonja Drecker
★★★★★ “If you like witches and vampires, evil plots, plenty of action, and a bit of romance, this is for you.” ~Brad Friedlander
★★★★★ “I sat down to read it, got sucked in, and wasn’t putting it down until I was done.” ~Amazon reviewer
★★★★★ “If you want magic, mayhem, and mystery, then what are you waiting for? Click the buy button!”~Amazon reviewermore
“An ancient, ruthless vampire. A gutsy witch hippie. Both walk into a bar.
And all hell breaks loose.”
If that bit from the publisher’s blurb for book 1 of Ilana Waters’ The Mage Tales Prequels, Books 0-II is even remotely appealing to you then you are pretty much guaranteed to love this urban fantasy thriller collection.
Abigail (the witch) and Titus (the vamp) are wonderful lead characters and they are put through their paces in a plot full of action, thrills and twists and turns. Lethal bird-shifters, sadistic vampire minions, magic, mayhem, action and thrills, these books have it all. Added to a strong supporting cast and excellent writing and the result is a fun filled ride that I happily recommend. But for the fact that I’m literally dictating this review to my husband from my hospital bed I could go on and on with praises. This collection definitely deserves it. Since I can’t do that I will simply note that the collection is most definitely one to read, it is highly addictive, and it is easy to highly recommend.
When Darkness Falls
I don’t really know what to say. I’m completely blown away and speechless, that was just so good. I love that I’ve seen the movie Pompeii and could superimpose those images into the story happening in my head. I really like the dignified ‘elder stateman’ voice of the story. The grammar and the syntax makes me think of an aged British aristocrat, which seems quite appropriate for Titus. I love how much character development is going on here. Even though it seems awfully short for the 20-ish years the main part of the story takes place in, it’s very easy to see him evolving from slave to soldier to statesman to witch to vampire. And seeing what’s happening as these evolutions take place explains a lot about who he has become. The whole “oh yeah, I almost forgot about my wife…” is completely frustrating but also completely brilliant because I’m hooked now and guaranteed to read the next book.
Blood and Magic
I am both blessed and cursed to have not read the original trilogy of Mage Tales, so I’m not coming into this book with any preconceived ideas about who Titus and Abigail are. However, it also means that I haven’t yet experienced most of the amazing books that make up this series. The action passes in a blur at a frenetic pace. And the snappy, sarcastic banter between Titus and Abigail left me laughing out loud on more than one occasion. After witnessing how this pair came to find one another, I think it’s safe to say I’m going to dig the rest of the series off my “TBR” shelves to finally move them to “read”.
Mage Lessons
I adored all of the witty, sarcastic comments – I had a whole bunch of laugh-out-loud moments with them. The characters are believable; the good guys have human failings and the bad guys, while despicable, aren’t complete monsters. On the whole, they’re teenagers behaving like teenagers. They just happen to have some more stuff to deal with than the ordinary hormonal things. I sat down to read it , got sucked in, and wasn’t putting it down until I was done.
These prequels focus on each of the main characters. I really loved reading each of these books. They are well-written, well-developed, and extremely interesting to read. I will be following this whole series very closely. I love it!