Magic Bites and Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews (thoughts)

Summary from Goodreads:

"When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start. But then technology returns, and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose, leaving all kinds of paranormal problems in its wake.

Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercenary who makes her living cleaning up these magical problems. But when Kate's guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta's magic circles."

Likes?

This part is easy: I liked absolutely everything about this book.  I first read this book a few years back and for whatever reason never continued on with the series.  But of course I kept hearing such great things about these books so I decided to reread this one, and then make it a personal goal to catch up with the rest of the series.  I'm so glad that I did because I had forgotten how good this book really was!  Kate is such an awesome main character and I love reading about her adventures.  I also find it very interesting that there is obviously more to her than what meets the eye.  I think that it will be intriguing to see how this all plays out in future books especially the things that she keeps secret like her words of power.  I'm glad that I took the time to reread this one before moving on in the series because there was definitely a lot that I had forgotten about!

Dislikes?

None.  I seriously can't think of a single thing that I didn't like about this book and especially reading it the second time around.  For the life of me I cannot figure out how I didn't continue on with this series before now.  Just goes to show you how true the phrase "So many books, too little time" is!

Final Thoughts:

An awesome beginning to this urban fantasy series!  Andrews has created a fantasy world that is like no other series out there, and I couldn't get enough of it.  I'm super excited to see what other kinds of trouble that Kate will find herself in.  And I also want to know more about her so hopefully some of her secrets will start to come to light.  I would highly, highly recommend this book!

Summary from Goodreads:

"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 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 shapeshifters, she quickly realizes much more 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, the city may not survive…"

Likes?

Curran and Kate.  Curran and Kate.  Oh my goodness, how I love the almost reluctant friendship that is developing between these two!  I'm hoping that future books in this series give us more of them working together because it is such fun to see them butt heads with one another.  And there is definitely some good chemistry there!  This book was just as intense as the first book and just as strong of a read!  I couldn't put it down!  I'm definitely hooked on this series now and cannot wait to get my hands on the third book.  I also really liked that we got to see so many of the characters from the first book again.  Andrews does an amazing job of writing these books in a way that makes you not want to stop reading.  I just had to know what was going to happen next!  I ended up flying through this book and wanted more when it ended.  Andrews is definitely going on my authors that I will read anything by list.

Dislikes? 

That the book wasn't longer?  Seriously, I wanted more!  I could read about Kate's adventures any day, and I am just so excited now about this series!  Other than that, I had absolutely no complaints.  This book was everything that I hoped it would be and more!

Final Thoughts:

This is a must read urban fantasy series for me!  I'm kicking myself for taking so long to really get to it because I'm just loving it!  I could keep on gushing, but really you should try reading these books for yourself and see if you aren't as hooked as I am.  I am certainly pleased that I have decided to focus on this series because I have some good reading ahead of me!  Highly, highly recommended!

Bottom Line for both of these books:  READ THEM!  Urban fantasy at its' best!

Disclosure:  I checked out both of these books from my local library.  I will definitely be buying my own copies for my keeper shelf at some point.