by Terrance V. Mc Arthur

Details on how to enter for a chance to win a copy of Gunmetal Magic at the end of this review. You can also click on the Mysterious Galaxy link to purchase the book and at the same time help support KRL.

Four murdered shapeshifters are found in a salvaged building, and Andrea Nash has to find out the how, the who, and the why. To complicate matters, the boss of the salvage operation is Raphael Medrano, the hunky bouda (man/hyena) that she still loves. He wanted her to join his pack, but she wanted to stay with the paramilitary Order of the Knights of Merciful Aid, which kicked her out when her paranormal status was revealed.

Ilona Andrews’ Kate Daniels series has won many fans, but how will she do with the Andrea Nash spinoff, Gunmetal Magic? Pretty well, I’d say.

It’s a strange world, where waves of magic wash through Atlanta with no regularity, eating away at the foundations of skyscrapers and making techno-cars into useless metal. Webmaking creatures the size of BIG rottweilers might erupt from the basement. Mindless, thirst-driven, necromancer-controlled vampires are led about on chains. It’s a tough place, and Andrea is one of the toughest creatures in it, working with Kate Daniels in the Cutting Edge investigative firm, an agency of last resort for when things get rough and magical.

Of course, Andrea and Raphael bother each other (bringing along a trophy bimbo to a meeting, vandalizing each other’s homes by redecorating) until they work things out with happy sex. The murders wind through Egyptian mythology, a virile Russian mage, snake people, and an undead Viking warrior. Lots of clues, lots of mayhem, and lots of unusual monsters. Now that Andrea is no longer part of the Order, she has to affiliate with a shifter group or be hunted as a rogue. The decision process adds to her character depth, even when she has a period of going native.

Ilona Andrews is a husband-and-wife writing team creating the Edge and Kate Daniels lines of paranormals. They serve up lots of action with a side-order of sizzle.

There’s a bonus: a Kate Daniels novella, Magic Gifts, that starts with a necklace-strangled necromancer-trainee and two unleashed vampires, and goes into the flip side of parts of the Gunmetal story, including some lively carnage, a mercenary power struggle, a sad tale of love gone astray, and a distinctly dysfunctional family.

To enter to win a copy of Gunmetal Magic, simply email KRL at life@kingsriverlife[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “Gunmetal”, or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen November 17, 2012. U.S. residents only.

Click here to order Gunmetal Magic from Mysterious Galaxy.

Gunmetal Magic: A Novel in the World of Kate Daniels

Want to know how to see your ad like this at the end of an article? Email KRL at life@kingsriverlife[dot]com by replacing the [dot] for more info. 10% of all ad sales goes to animal rescue.

Terrance V. Mc Arthur is a California-born, Valley-raised librarian/entertainer/writer. He is currently writing a stage adaptation of Jack London’s The Call of the Wild for the Fresno County Public Library’s next The Big Read. He lives in Sanger, four blocks from the library, with his wife, his daughter, and a spinster cat.