Review of the Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews with a focus on book 4 Magic Bleeds. The Kate Daniels books are set in a post-apocalyptic magical future filled with were-shifters.
Kate Daniels series
My review of Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews
Very well written near future urban fantasy. And who don’t like a kick ass heroine? She kept me company while doing some very boring work.
Magic Bites was first published in 2007
My review of Magic Bleeds by Ilona Andrews
Magic bleeds has a lovely romance subplot, good action and some really tender scenes both between friends and lovers. And I loved the shifter pack politics as well.
Funny, steamy and fun. Fast, violent, kick ass action with a good dash of mystery.
My review from 2014 of Magic Bleeds
Title: Magic Bleeds
Author: Ilona Andrews
Series: Kate Daniels book 4
Genre: Urban fantasy, post-apocalyptic, future, magic apocalypse
Have you ever brought a book that wasn’t the book, you thought it was? Well that is what happened with Magic Bleeds. I thought I was picking up the next book in the Raine Benares series – that is a fantasy adventure series. I have read the Kate Daniels series before and enjoyed it. But boy was it not what I expected it to be (my mind all bend on a silly fantasy adventure story), which of course shaped my perception on the first part of the book. It took me a lot longer than normal to get into the book and it wasn’t at all the poor book’s fault – just me messing up my amazon orders. Like drinking a sip of water thinking you sipped from the wine glass… A bit disorienting. Ok, so I got over my initial annoyance with reading the wrong book and when I really got into it.
Magic Bleeds had is a lovely romance between Kate and a shapeshifter which brought some really funny, steamy and silly scenes to the table. There was a classic misunderstanding plot in the romance plot but for once it made sense. Kate never had a serious relationship, she has been taught to keep out of relationships (they make you weak). So when they hit a bump in the road and she gets heartbroken and has zero coping mechanisms.
Along with the romance plot, there is an investigation plot and a lot of action. The action scenes are great. Fast, violent, kick ass without being so graphic that they make me want to turn my face away or so long I get bored. Even the battle scene did not have me bored.
Kate has some cool family history that is the meta plot in the series and it really comes into play in this book.
I was very entertained and I kind of want to read the next one. I also want to read a million other books so I will leave it on the shelf for a while.
The stats
Published: 2010 by Ace
Read: April 21 to May 02, 2014
Length: 260 pages
The author: female & male team, white, USA
The protagonist: Kate Daniels, female, straight, adult, warrior, investigator, able-bodied.
Setting: Atlanta, USA
Review of The Kate Daniels series
One of the fascinating things about the Kate Daniels series is the wild world building that mixes science fiction elements with strong urban fantasy vibes. The story takes part in a future Atlanta where magic has returned. Tech and magic are in flux so each works at different times and both are unreliable. Shifters are pretty normal and pack politics are a big part of the series.
The protagonist Kate Daniels is badass, she is a mercenary and an magical fixer. She is snarky and that makes for some really fun dialog as well as flirty banter. She has strengths and weaknesses and emotional depth and feels like a pretty well rounded character.
It is definitely a series that I want to come back to, especially if Audiable have the series again.
This review was originally posted: May 2, 2014. Updated and edited June 27, 2023
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