Early Review | Magic Triumphs by Ilona Andrews

By Birdie

Magic TriumphsMagic Triumphs by Ilona Andrews
Kate Daniels #10
Urban Fantasy
Ace | August 28, 2018

About the Book:Mercenary Kate Daniels must risk all to protect everything she holds dear in this epic, can’t-miss entry in the thrilling #1 New York Times bestselling urban fantasy series.

Kate has come a long way from her origins as a loner taking care of paranormal problems in post-Shift Atlanta. She’s made friends and enemies. She’s found love and started a family with Curran Lennart, the former Beast Lord. But her magic is too strong for the power players of the world to let her be.

Kate and her father, Roland, currently have an uneasy truce, but when he starts testing her defenses again, she knows that sooner or later, a confrontation is inevitable. The Witch Oracle has begun seeing visions of blood, fire, and human bones. And when a mysterious box is delivered to Kate’s doorstep, a threat of war from the ancient enemy who nearly destroyed her family, she knows their time is up.

Kate Daniels sees no other choice but to combine forces with the unlikeliest of allies. She knows betrayal is inevitable. She knows she may not survive the coming battle. But she has to try.

For her child.

For Atlanta.

For the world.

amazon2 bn2

I’m so very sad that I’m actually writing this review.  While I do not believe this is the end of the Kate Daniels world, it is the end of the Kate and Curran part of it and it physically hurts.  I’ve been reading this series for 6 years, and I always had Kate and Curran to look forward to.  The events in Magic Triumphs have been unfolding for so long, and now it’s done, and it’s over, and I’m so very sad.

There was so much to like about Magic Triumphs, but the one thing I wanted to mention was how the battle with Roland wasn’t the focus of the entire book.  I always felt like there was something more in the relationship between Kate and her father than just animosity.  He was a man twisted by power and immortality but I always sensed an actual love underneath, and I wasn’t sure I actually wanted him to die.  (Except for the times I really did, because he did some terrible things to characters I love.)  Anyway, it bode well for me that he wasn’t the only bad guy.  It gave me hope, going in.  Whether my hopes were fruitful or not, you’d have to read and find out.  I’m trying really hard to keep away from spoilers.

So… um… maybe kind of a spoiler, but you absolutely can’t read Magic Triumphs without reading Iron and Magic first.  There’s a reason Ilona Andrews wrote them in this specific order.  There are things happening with Hugh you should know first.  You COULD read them out of order, or skip the spin off book, but I feel like you would recognize you were missing something, how something major happened behind the scenes you weren’t privy to.  Don’t do that to yourself.  Make sure you read about Hugh first.

The ending was good, full of twists and turns I didn’t expect but which also made so much sense.  I love when I’m surprised by a story, only to look back over the previous books and recognize all the foreshadowing.  I get so excited.  Magic Triumphs was just like that.  It was obvious Ilona Andrews knew how they were ending the series a while ago.

There were a few smaller things that happened at the end I thought felt anticlimactic.  I don’t want to get into specifics, because they’re evil spoilers, but basically I had big hopes for some characters and their resolution felt very blah.  I also wasn’t sure how I felt about the epilogue.  I get where the authors may be going, but I’m not sure I like how they’re getting there.

I don’t even know if it matters whether I like it or not, because whatever happens next (for any of the characters) I know I’m going to read it.  And so far, no matter how I originally thought I’d feel, I always end up in love with this duo’s books.  I’m a rabid Ilona Andrews fan.

Rating: 4_5 feather

About Birdie

Don’t look for her in any bar, club, crazy raging party, or anywhere there may be a large gathering of strangers. She’s more likely to be found tucked into the corner of the couch watching one of her favorite shows, or preferably under a comforter with her current novel.

8 Responses

  2. ~ Angie Elle ~

    I forgot to mention the epilogue in my review, but I didn’t care for it, either. I assume, from a series this epic, I’m going to get a snippet of Kate and Curran’s future, and I was a bit bitter to see the author’s dropped the ball on that opportunity.

    Yes – it’s so hard saying goodbye to these beloved characters! I could read about them forever.

    Great review, Birdie!

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