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songwind's review against another edition
3.0
This was a really good book in a variety of ways.
Some points that I was particularly fond of:
1. Characters with alternate sexuality whose tendencies were not made into a huge deal.
2. Self-interested character remains motivated by self interest instead of becoming a "jerk with a heart of gold."
3. Characters refer to early events and adventures without a huge narrative digression to tell about the details.
I will definitely be checking out more Marla Mason books in the future.
Some points that I was particularly fond of:
1. Characters with alternate sexuality whose tendencies were not made into a huge deal.
2. Self-interested character remains motivated by self interest instead of becoming a "jerk with a heart of gold."
3. Characters refer to early events and adventures without a huge narrative digression to tell about the details.
I will definitely be checking out more Marla Mason books in the future.
being_b's review against another edition
Deeply infodumpy beginning. Also, it is difficult to convincingly draw a selfish, self-interested character into a mystery that isn't obviously about them because... well, why would they care? Marla gets interested in the frog mystery basically because "the plot says I have to." Tissue-thin.
anniezilla's review against another edition
4.0
Marla Mason definitely kicks ass and asks questions later and uses brute force in part with her jack of all trades style magic. There isn’t much romance in the series if that’s the type of urban fantasy you are looking for but the stories area lot of fun. For some undefinable reason and even though the magic both characters wield are completely unrelated (as are the story lines), Marla reminds me a bit of Anita Blake before all the obsessive sex related story lines and OP magic (so basically the first 15 pages of guilty pleasures). Anyways, it’s fun stuff.
vikingwolf's review against another edition
Marla is a powerful witch with an enemy that wants her dead. To survive she needs a magical object that will boost her powers. Most of the magical community who could help her to locate it are dead or missing at the hands of something powerful. Time is running out for Marla.
So Susan wants to kill Marla huh? Well based on my brief dealings with Marla, I was hoping that Susan would be successful. Marla is everything I don't want in my so called heroine. She is obnoxious and rude to everyone, treats her 'servant' like something she has stepped in and when others have information to help her she just ignores them and hits them with that I-know-everything-and-you-are-beneath-me attitude that grates on my nerves. I despised her from page one. Her servant sidekick could have been mildly interesting but next to Marla, so is dry rot and fungal infections. If I hate a main character, I have great difficulty in connecting with the story and this book is an excellent example. When you start thinking about what you are having for dinner as you read, it's time to change book for something better.
So Susan wants to kill Marla huh? Well based on my brief dealings with Marla, I was hoping that Susan would be successful. Marla is everything I don't want in my so called heroine. She is obnoxious and rude to everyone, treats her 'servant' like something she has stepped in and when others have information to help her she just ignores them and hits them with that I-know-everything-and-you-are-beneath-me attitude that grates on my nerves. I despised her from page one. Her servant sidekick could have been mildly interesting but next to Marla, so is dry rot and fungal infections. If I hate a main character, I have great difficulty in connecting with the story and this book is an excellent example. When you start thinking about what you are having for dinner as you read, it's time to change book for something better.
lynseyisreading's review against another edition
2.0
I didn't care for this one I'm afraid. I was in the mood for some magic- I'm a big fan of the Hollows series by Kim Harrison and the blurb makes this sound similar- but I got halfway through this book and had experienced precisely no magic, and hadn't been gripped by the characters or plot, so I stopped.
I'm not going to criticize the story other than that because I didn't finish it, so I have no right to review the book as a whole. It could have had the ending of all endings for all I know.
This makes only the second book this year I haven't been willing to finish. I normally persevere (like the stubborn mule I am), but it just wasn't for me. Sorry.
I'm not going to criticize the story other than that because I didn't finish it, so I have no right to review the book as a whole. It could have had the ending of all endings for all I know.
This makes only the second book this year I haven't been willing to finish. I normally persevere (like the stubborn mule I am), but it just wasn't for me. Sorry.
jculverhouse's review against another edition
4.0
This is (or was) a free Kindle book and what a great way to make me buy future books - this was really enjoyable with some unique characters, great plot, some basic philosophy thrown in and some laugh out loud humor. Great read!
caedocyon's review against another edition
2.0
1.5-ish stars. I read it because it was free (woo Kindle!). It reads like the fifth in a series, as though the characters have been established elsewhere and the author is trying not to retread---plus lots of vague references to past events. But apparently it's the first?
All the characters are assholes, but I can tell that was an artistic decision. Doesn't make it that enjoyable, though.
All the characters are assholes, but I can tell that was an artistic decision. Doesn't make it that enjoyable, though.
jwels's review against another edition
2.0
This book was OK, a fast read and I wanted to find out what happened but I wasn't necessarily grabbed by the storyline. It's different from my usual reads and seems to have a lot of books in the series but I didn't care for any of the characters. It has urban magic in it and based in current times, but the buildup to the climactic ending was just so so. I don't think I'll read anymore Marla Mason books.
wagmore's review against another edition
3.0
Ms. Pratt has quite an imagination. And a sense of humor peeks through enough to leaven the dark plot. This was a Kindle freebie; I don't know that I would have bought the book--or others in the series because it's not really my genre--but I'm glad I read this one.