Monday, September 19, 2016

ARC Review: Magic Binds by Ilona Andrews

Series:     Kate Daniels #9
Pub. Date:Sept. 20, 2016
Publisher:Berkley/Ace
Length:336 pages
Source:NetGalley

Man, this is one of my abso-favorite series and I am always so excited when a new book comes out. I am even more excited with this latest release because I get to meet Ilona and Gordon Andrews at Nola Storycon at the end of this month! I can't wait!!!

WARNING!!!! This review may contain spoilers for previous books of the series. So if you have read through Book 8 (Magic Shifts), continue at your own risk.

Big things happened in Magic Shifts, and Kate Daniels is learning how to cope with the magic of a newly-claimed city, a father who is dangerously doting, and being the semi-ruler of Atlanta. While I had grand hopes for Roland after the last book, hoping that he would somehow change his ways and work on his relationship with his daughter... those hopes are getting beat around quite a bit. Roland just can't leave Kate well enough alone. He is building a fortress on the outskirts of her city; he is trying to subvert Julie, and now he has kidnapped one of her people. As it is someone who belongs to Atlanta, and has a dubious friendship with Kate, she is not ready to let her father have him. Not to mention she has oracles relating visions of doom and gloom no matter what she does... so Kate needs a well-crafted and slightly harebrained plan to deal with daddy dearest.

This book had a little bit of everything... doom and gloom, action and adventure, fantastical creatures, family drama, friendship, questionable alliances, and surprises galore. We see the re-emergence of a past villain, Kate visiting her grandmother (on a flying horse!), and the city coming together behind Kate to battle Roland. I was drawn into Kate's struggle with the new power she attained from claiming the city... she so does not want to be like her father, but sometimes power has a mind of its own. And Roland holds an entirely different interest... it seems like he does care for Kate, but he just can't help but destroy everything that he perceives to be in his path.

You're like a crazy cat lady, but you collect killers instead of fluffy cats. 

Kate has always stood up for the underdog, the little guy, and those being used and abused by the powerful. She continues that trend in this book... but one of my favorite things came from one of Kate's past rescues... Christopher! Yes! We finally learn the story behind Christopher Steed - who he was, why he was broken and caged by Hugh d'Ambray, and what he is capable of. Let me tell you - it's a doozy and I cannot wait to see what the future holds for Christopher.

I think Kate and Curran fans will be happy with this latest installment - I know I read the book in one sitting and I didn't want it to end. I was a little afraid that this was going to be the last book in the series... so I am glad to see that we have more to come in the future. 

I received an advanced copy of this book from Berkley/Ace via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 5 stars / 2 flames.

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