Magic in the Blood by Devon Monk

Here's the blurb:

Working as a Hound—tracing illegal spells back to their casters—has taken its toll on Allison Beckstrom. But even though magic has given her migraines and stolen her recent memory, Allie isn’t about to quit. Then the police’s magic enforcement division asks her to consult on a missing person’s case. But what seems to be a straightforward job turns out to be anything but, as Allie finds herself drawn into the underworld of criminals, ghosts, and blood magic.

I LOVE this new series and I think “Magic in the Blood” is even better than “Magic in the Bone”, book 1. Allie Beckstrom is a great heroine, just trying to make a living in a world where, if you use magic, magic uses you back and it’s not very nice about it. For every spell used, Allie has to place a disbursement on herself, be it a head cold, a sore throat or a migraine. The more magic she uses, the stronger the backlash and sometimes it even takes memories. The concept, that magic is not free and unlimited, available to all with a drop of talent, creates a world where you have to be careful what you wish for.

“Magic in the Bone” ended with Allie losing most of her memories as she did everything in her power to save the man she loves. The same man she can no longer remember. Book two has a great opening scene where Allie meets her dead father while standing in the shower. Not something you usually expect and things get even more complicated from there. An ex-con, whom Allie thought was safely behind bars, got out and is now stalking her, not to mention a number of other parties, who are watching to see what she will do with her magical skills. Along comes a police detective, who has a reputation for killing Hounds, and asks Allie for help in finding a number of missing girls.

The story is told from Allie’s point of view and her voice (brilliant) pulls you in from the start, keeping you breathless with its twists and turns. What I really love about these books, is the fact that one moment Allie is getting drenched by rain and running for the bus (I mean, how normal is that?) and the next she has to fight of a bunch of pastel coloured people who want to suck out her magic.

And let’s not forget the one man who can make even Allie’s knees go weak, Zayvion Jones. He’s a complete mystery and neither Allie nor the reader really knows where’s he’s from, what his abilities are and what he’s looking for. But he’s sexy as hell and his magical abilities seem to be exactly what Allie needs. Now she just has to decide if she can trust him!

I love this series, the characters and the world Devon Monk has created and cannot wait for book 3 “Magic in the Shadows” which will be out in November.

"Magic in the Blood" is out now and here is Devon's website.

The Man With The Golden Torc, Simon R Green

I wasn’t sure what to expect from a book with a title like this – my worst fear was that it was going to end up being the literary equivalent of the ‘Scary Movie’ franchise, a spineless rehashing somebody else’s ideas.

As it turned out, I had nothing to worry about. While giving a nod to the over the top antics of 007, Golden Torc is a clever, action packed adventure with a very interesting take on things.

The main character, Eddie Drood, is a field operative for the secretive and powerful Drood family, which he firmly believes is sworn to protect mankind from the evil and /or otherworldly, a task made easier by their supernatural ‘living metal’ armour and array of fantastic weapons.

Then, for no reason, his world is turned upside down- declared rogue by the Droods, he’s a wanted, hunted man, pursued by enemies powerful enough to level city blocks without breaking a sweat. He needs answers – fast- and to do that, he’s going to have to cross lines he thought were inviolate, to find shades of grey in what used to be a black and white world.

His road to the startling revelations that await is littered with enough bullet casings, bodies and burning wreckage to make John Woo’s films look like a Blue Peter presentation. Accept Golden Torc for the rampaging beast it is and you’ll enjoy the ride- I did and I can’t wait to lay my mitts on the follow up (it's part 1 of The Secret Histories), Demons Are Forever!