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rchll's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
kathydavie's review against another edition
4.0
Fifth in the Downside urban fantasy series revolving around Chess Putnam, a Debunker for the Church of Real Truth based in Triumph City.
My Take
It's a clash of Chess' world with an unscrupulous and vicious "entrepreneur" interspersed with her own personal problems.
Why didn't Chess simply wait for the Squad?? Why hasn't she done more research into how to help Terrible?? I can understand Chess wanting Lex to end it, to call off the assassin. But I don't see why she succumbs to him. She claims to love Terrible. A very tense meeting with Lex that had my heart in my throat---you can tell from my writing! It's odd how Chess is both so very strong and also so very weak. She just keeps screwing up in this story.
I do enjoy the particular language Kane has created for the Downsiders. I am so impressed by how consistent she is in the writing of it.
I couldn't help laughing at the image Kane conjured up for me of the "uniform" the Elders wear. Kinda hard to take a man seriously wearing that.
The Story
The case of the Darnells reminds us of Chess’ professional purpose in life. A Debunker. An exorcist of ghosts or frauds. The attack also provides Chess with a strong desire for life. For Terrible. He is her strength, what enables her to push back against the dark magic trying to hold her.
There are weaknesses everywhere: Chess is worrying Terrible; Lex is forcing Terrible toward a decision; Elder Griffin adds to Chess' worries; and, street men are dying all over the Downside. Men you would never suspect. And they’re almost impossible to stop, impossible to kill. Someone is creating an unkillable army.
A simple "yes" or "no” will affect Chess' life forever.
The Characters
Chess Putnam is a Debunker with the Church of Real Truth. It's her job to assess haunting claims by the public and either exorcise the ghosts or provide evidence of fraud. She's strong in her magic and weak in her own esteem. The abuse she suffered in the foster care system has caused her to become dependent upon drugs. To chase away the nightmares, to ignore the horror of life, to float.
Terrible is Bump's enforcer in the neighborhood where Chess lives, the Downside. And they're in love. A love tainted by the rune Chess carved into him. That makes him weak. Bump is Lex's enemy, runs his own territory, dealing drugs, pimping.
Lex is now in charge of his father's territory. He's also a former lover of Chess' and a weak spot for Terrible who fears Chess turning back to him. Blue is Lex's sister and she and Chess have become friends. A rare thing for Chess, having a female friend. Devil is Lex's assassin and he will take advantage of Terrible's weaknesses.
Elder Griffin, a.k.a., Thaddeus Aurelius Griffin, is Chess' immediate supervisor and he was being promoted. Chess is so grateful for his pride in her. He's also getting married to Keith Richard Freeling in a few days and is feeling quite nervous.
Edsel is a dealer in the Market and a friend of Chess' with some critical information for her. Galena is his wife and she makes the charms and other magical basics her husband sells.
Marietta Blake is a girl from the Northside and loaded down with bags of speed she got from Razor. She seems to have had relationships with most of the men who've died: Yellow Pete, Ben, Samms. Kyle and Lindsay Blake are Marietta Blake's parents. Kyle is KVB Shipping. A huge corporation making him worth billions. Carmichael appears to be Blake's assistant.
Tagger is one of the new dealers imported from Baltimore. This Razor is claiming there are openings for enterprising men in Downside.
The Cover
The cover is dark with a sparkling title. The blue-green-yellow lit-up city provides a busy backdrop to the close-up of the lower half of Chess's face and the Church tattoo on her left shoulder
Yes, Chess is Chasing Magic throughout this story, trying to track it down.
My Take
It's a clash of Chess' world with an unscrupulous and vicious "entrepreneur" interspersed with her own personal problems.
Why didn't Chess simply wait for the Squad?? Why hasn't she done more research into how to help Terrible?? I can understand Chess wanting Lex to end it, to call off the assassin. But I don't see why she succumbs to him. She claims to love Terrible. A very tense meeting with Lex that had my heart in my throat---you can tell from my writing! It's odd how Chess is both so very strong and also so very weak. She just keeps screwing up in this story.
I do enjoy the particular language Kane has created for the Downsiders. I am so impressed by how consistent she is in the writing of it.
I couldn't help laughing at the image Kane conjured up for me of the "uniform" the Elders wear. Kinda hard to take a man seriously wearing that.
The Story
The case of the Darnells reminds us of Chess’ professional purpose in life. A Debunker. An exorcist of ghosts or frauds. The attack also provides Chess with a strong desire for life. For Terrible. He is her strength, what enables her to push back against the dark magic trying to hold her.
There are weaknesses everywhere: Chess is worrying Terrible; Lex is forcing Terrible toward a decision; Elder Griffin adds to Chess' worries; and, street men are dying all over the Downside. Men you would never suspect. And they’re almost impossible to stop, impossible to kill. Someone is creating an unkillable army.
A simple "yes" or "no” will affect Chess' life forever.
The Characters
Chess Putnam is a Debunker with the Church of Real Truth. It's her job to assess haunting claims by the public and either exorcise the ghosts or provide evidence of fraud. She's strong in her magic and weak in her own esteem. The abuse she suffered in the foster care system has caused her to become dependent upon drugs. To chase away the nightmares, to ignore the horror of life, to float.
Terrible is Bump's enforcer in the neighborhood where Chess lives, the Downside. And they're in love. A love tainted by the rune Chess carved into him. That makes him weak. Bump is Lex's enemy, runs his own territory, dealing drugs, pimping.
Lex is now in charge of his father's territory. He's also a former lover of Chess' and a weak spot for Terrible who fears Chess turning back to him. Blue is Lex's sister and she and Chess have become friends. A rare thing for Chess, having a female friend. Devil is Lex's assassin and he will take advantage of Terrible's weaknesses.
Elder Griffin, a.k.a., Thaddeus Aurelius Griffin, is Chess' immediate supervisor and he was being promoted. Chess is so grateful for his pride in her. He's also getting married to Keith Richard Freeling in a few days and is feeling quite nervous.
Edsel is a dealer in the Market and a friend of Chess' with some critical information for her. Galena is his wife and she makes the charms and other magical basics her husband sells.
Marietta Blake is a girl from the Northside and loaded down with bags of speed she got from Razor. She seems to have had relationships with most of the men who've died: Yellow Pete, Ben, Samms. Kyle and Lindsay Blake are Marietta Blake's parents. Kyle is KVB Shipping. A huge corporation making him worth billions. Carmichael appears to be Blake's assistant.
Tagger is one of the new dealers imported from Baltimore. This Razor is claiming there are openings for enterprising men in Downside.
The Cover
The cover is dark with a sparkling title. The blue-green-yellow lit-up city provides a busy backdrop to the close-up of the lower half of Chess's face and the Church tattoo on her left shoulder
Yes, Chess is Chasing Magic throughout this story, trying to track it down.
laureenreads's review against another edition
2.0
I know, it doesn't make sense to keep reading the series when the drugs annoy me so much. The problem is that I did enjoy the action, the Church, the relationship with Terrible and Lex... The drugs will probably always annoy me, though. It's very hard to like and respect the main character when she's an addict, especially to the extreme that she gets. Even if Chess was to quit the drugs she would still do work for Bump--her relationship with Terrible would easily ensure that, heck, even a former addiction would ensure it because Bump would always have that to hold over her head.
yodamom's review against another edition
5.0
Chessiebomb is ready to blow. Her insecurities, her past, her job, her secrets and her addictions all endanger her future. This girl has so much baggage it's a wonder she gets up and goes through life's functions each day.Oh but she does, she has her little reality killers she takes in increasingly larger amounts. She now has a new fear one greater than she has ever known, the threat of her heart being lost. This above all the other dark shadows following her drives her deeper into darkness. She dives deep, she dwells in the what if's and almost loses gives it all up. But there is an anchor in the dark waters she lurks in, Terrible. That is if Lex does not cut that line.
Terrible, the giant enforcer for drug kingpin Bump. The man all of Downside fears is all hearts and warmth over Chess, he loves her, completely. Poor Terrible, he has worked, bleed and fought endlessly to gain the power he has and it's all endanger because of a choice Chess made. He has a weakness and he will be killed if Downside learns of it. Beyond that fear, he has much more going on to be afraid of. Chess is holding something back, and she's getting more self destructive. Something darker than ever seem before has settled into their territory and Lex seems to always be around. Phew, Terrible goes through nasty, nasty stuff and he shines through it all.
I loved this book. I went through a whole tissue box and probably gained a few pounds from the ice cream I ate in the middle of the night. I couldn't put it down. It was horrible and beautiful and tore every emotion out of me, roughly.
Favorite line " Not Sharin no more....." You'll know when you read it.
Terrible, the giant enforcer for drug kingpin Bump. The man all of Downside fears is all hearts and warmth over Chess, he loves her, completely. Poor Terrible, he has worked, bleed and fought endlessly to gain the power he has and it's all endanger because of a choice Chess made. He has a weakness and he will be killed if Downside learns of it. Beyond that fear, he has much more going on to be afraid of. Chess is holding something back, and she's getting more self destructive. Something darker than ever seem before has settled into their territory and Lex seems to always be around. Phew, Terrible goes through nasty, nasty stuff and he shines through it all.
I loved this book. I went through a whole tissue box and probably gained a few pounds from the ice cream I ate in the middle of the night. I couldn't put it down. It was horrible and beautiful and tore every emotion out of me, roughly.
Favorite line " Not Sharin no more....." You'll know when you read it.
bhookjunkhie's review against another edition
5.0
Gaahhh...That was sooo good!!!..Loved it!..It was so epic...Everything I needed from this series happened...I loved how Chess and Terribles relationship expanded...Everything seemed to go deeper and come full circle...It was a really tight, fast paced, and came to an exploding conclusion:)..My fave in the series for sure...as always, it made my heart ache and had my stomach in knots...but thats exactly why I read this series...It hurts so good!!!! Awesome! 5 stars
amym84's review against another edition
5.0
Definitely one of my favorite series, and it keeps getting better with each book. There's a lot that happens in Chasing Magic, but it never feels overwhelming, it flows along very naturally.
After the events of [b:Sacrificial Magic|8786358|Sacrificial Magic (Downside Ghosts, #4)|Stacia Kane|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1316601704s/8786358.jpg|13630390] there were a lot of things changing in Downside. With the death of Slobag, Lex is has now taken over for his father. And he still seems to show up when Chess least expects it (or wants it). With Lex's rise to power there's tension between him and Bump of course. As part of his plans, Lex hires someone to kill Terrible in an effort to show that he can take him down. He uses Chess as a game piece in that Lex's man (Devil) has only attacked Terrible when he's bee with Chess, thereby throwing his concentration while trying to make sure Chess is alright. It's a looming fight the escalates until the end of the book. I was always a little indifferent to Lex. I didn't really care for him but I didn't dislike him either, and now it's even more conflicted which is I think what Chess feels as well. She's angry that he would try to send someone to take Terrible away from her, but on a personal level he's always been there for her. He's helped her out of many a bad situtation before. It's definitely something that is addressed in the book and I'm glad that it is, because even though Lex has treated her fine, I don't like that he almost preys on her knowing she's with Terrible, but just tries to stir up trouble between them. Like he tries to prove that she's not good enough to make their relationship work so he finds her weaknesses.
Chess still has plenty of weaknesses. She still looks at herself and feels worthless. Like she doesn't deserve the things that she has. This all stems from her childhood and how she was raised and it's very sad at times. But I love the moments she has when she realized that maybe she does deserve Terrible and the Church, and maybe she can be good at relationships. Those moments are like little rays of sunshine and she seems to have quite a lot of them in this book. Unfortunately, circumstances occur that cause her to have plenty of the negative too. I don't want to give too much away, but the heartbreaking moments balance out the happy moments for sure. There are things that happen in this book that aren't finished. They will have to be addressed in the next book. I can only hope that there's a positive ending. I kept waiting for it to happen here but I guess we'll have to keep waiting.
Don't worry I'm not talking about Chess and Terrible's relationship. They may always have to work hard to make it work, but they want to. That's the most important thing. They want to work at it and keep working at it. They had some really great moments in the book and I really like the way they care for each other and take care of each other.
So now I'm faced with being finished with the series up to this point. With no word on when the next book will be released, I just have to wait. Maybe do some re-reads. Until Then!
After the events of [b:Sacrificial Magic|8786358|Sacrificial Magic (Downside Ghosts, #4)|Stacia Kane|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1316601704s/8786358.jpg|13630390] there were a lot of things changing in Downside. With the death of Slobag, Lex is has now taken over for his father. And he still seems to show up when Chess least expects it (or wants it). With Lex's rise to power there's tension between him and Bump of course. As part of his plans, Lex hires someone to kill Terrible in an effort to show that he can take him down. He uses Chess as a game piece in that Lex's man (Devil) has only attacked Terrible when he's bee with Chess, thereby throwing his concentration while trying to make sure Chess is alright. It's a looming fight the escalates until the end of the book. I was always a little indifferent to Lex. I didn't really care for him but I didn't dislike him either, and now it's even more conflicted which is I think what Chess feels as well. She's angry that he would try to send someone to take Terrible away from her, but on a personal level he's always been there for her. He's helped her out of many a bad situtation before. It's definitely something that is addressed in the book and I'm glad that it is, because even though Lex has treated her fine, I don't like that he almost preys on her knowing she's with Terrible, but just tries to stir up trouble between them. Like he tries to prove that she's not good enough to make their relationship work so he finds her weaknesses.
Chess still has plenty of weaknesses. She still looks at herself and feels worthless. Like she doesn't deserve the things that she has. This all stems from her childhood and how she was raised and it's very sad at times. But I love the moments she has when she realized that maybe she does deserve Terrible and the Church, and maybe she can be good at relationships. Those moments are like little rays of sunshine and she seems to have quite a lot of them in this book. Unfortunately, circumstances occur that cause her to have plenty of the negative too. I don't want to give too much away, but the heartbreaking moments balance out the happy moments for sure. There are things that happen in this book that aren't finished. They will have to be addressed in the next book. I can only hope that there's a positive ending. I kept waiting for it to happen here but I guess we'll have to keep waiting.
Don't worry I'm not talking about Chess and Terrible's relationship. They may always have to work hard to make it work, but they want to. That's the most important thing. They want to work at it and keep working at it. They had some really great moments in the book and I really like the way they care for each other and take care of each other.
So now I'm faced with being finished with the series up to this point. With no word on when the next book will be released, I just have to wait. Maybe do some re-reads. Until Then!
amotisse's review against another edition
5.0
Nothing like a book series fix.
More adventures in Downside and the characters have evolved. Will be interesting to see where it goes next.
More adventures in Downside and the characters have evolved. Will be interesting to see where it goes next.
lynseyisreading's review against another edition
4.0
She's done it again! How does she keep doing this to me? Just when I think Stacia Kane has sent me on every possible emotional roller coaster imaginable, there she is again with ride tickets clutched in her hand and a wicked gleam in her eye.
I am somewhat conflicted about certain elements of this book. As flawed as Chess is, and Lord knows she's one of the most, if not the most, flawed Urban Fantasy characters out there, I've still always respected her. Even as hard as that is to do sometimes with the way she's constantly telling you what a shitty person she is. I was always able to see through that and admire her strength anyway.
In this book she did something I didn't like. I'm not going to say what it was, not even a hint, save to say I actually had to put the book down and didn't pick it up again for 4 days. I still haven't decided if I'm mad, sad, disappointed or what, but I had to take a break to put my thoughts in order.
Aside from that, though, it was business as usual. Except these days Chess' business comes with lots more Terrible! I loved the amount of time they were able to spend together in this book. They're relationship is very intense and they have a lot of issues, but they're also a pretty freaking great team and they worked together on the crime/case like they've been doing it for years. Chess is the investigator, Terrible is the muscle, and it just works perfectly.
They also made some more progress as a couple. Although with Chess it's likely always going to be one step forward for every two steps back, I ended the book feeling more confident in Chess for the future. There are no major changes happening yet, but maybe in the next one....
“I ain't...Don't know how to say it up right. Never--Fuck, Chess. Thought you was dead once before, you recall? Never felt so bad in my life, not ever. Then on the other day, thought you was gone and just....I can't do it, bein without you.”
All in all, another fantastic book, despite my hiccup. And, hey, it's only a testament to how involved with these characters I am that it was able to affect me so much.
Outstanding job, Ms Kane. Next one please!
4 Stars! ★★★★ ♥
Review Copy: Received from the publisher for an honest review
I am somewhat conflicted about certain elements of this book. As flawed as Chess is, and Lord knows she's one of the most, if not the most, flawed Urban Fantasy characters out there, I've still always respected her. Even as hard as that is to do sometimes with the way she's constantly telling you what a shitty person she is. I was always able to see through that and admire her strength anyway.
In this book she did something I didn't like. I'm not going to say what it was, not even a hint, save to say I actually had to put the book down and didn't pick it up again for 4 days. I still haven't decided if I'm mad, sad, disappointed or what, but I had to take a break to put my thoughts in order.
Aside from that, though, it was business as usual. Except these days Chess' business comes with lots more Terrible! I loved the amount of time they were able to spend together in this book. They're relationship is very intense and they have a lot of issues, but they're also a pretty freaking great team and they worked together on the crime/case like they've been doing it for years. Chess is the investigator, Terrible is the muscle, and it just works perfectly.
They also made some more progress as a couple. Although with Chess it's likely always going to be one step forward for every two steps back, I ended the book feeling more confident in Chess for the future. There are no major changes happening yet, but maybe in the next one....
“I ain't...Don't know how to say it up right. Never--Fuck, Chess. Thought you was dead once before, you recall? Never felt so bad in my life, not ever. Then on the other day, thought you was gone and just....I can't do it, bein without you.”
All in all, another fantastic book, despite my hiccup. And, hey, it's only a testament to how involved with these characters I am that it was able to affect me so much.
Outstanding job, Ms Kane. Next one please!
4 Stars! ★★★★ ♥
Review Copy: Received from the publisher for an honest review