Plot: As a former con-artist, I love a convoluted, mind-bending scheme as much as the next guy. But as a recently promoted MagiPol agent, I love it significantly less than that guy.
Especially when the life of a kidnapped teen hangs in the balance.
Between confusing orders and conflicting evidence, this whole investigation has me and my partner, Lienna, spinning in circles. Why is our boss keeping this case off the books? Why is our top suspect, the most notorious rogue in Vancouver, mired in contradictions? And why am I the only one who cares more about the victim than their own ulterior motives?
Everyone wants me to shut up and follow orders, but that’s not my style. I’ll do whatever it takes to save this kid—even if that means returning to my roguish roots.
Review: This is book three in a spin off of a spin off series. Soooo there’s a decent amount of backstory here. Annette Marie writes the Guild Codex- which is currently four separate series set in the same world. It’s basically alt-Vancouver where magic users live hidden from everyone else and have their own society and lives. The Guild Codex started with a series focusing on Tory- a regular human bartender who gets swept up in this world and one of its guilds- the Crow and Hammer. The second spin off series focused on Robin Page, a demon summoner who encounters the Crow and Hammer, as well as Tory, with the two series crossing paths as they went. This is the spin off after Robin, involving Kit, a former con artist turned magical law man and his partner Lienna. The series is a fun twist as Tory and Robin’s series spent a decent amount of time dodging the magical law, and in Kit’s series, we see them coming across the big events from the other books and trying to figure out what the hell happened.
These books are all fast reads, mostly released solely on Kindle. The characters are fun, the plots are fluffy, but the world and magic systems are surprisingly well thought out. I can pick these up knowing there will be some romance, good humor, a bit of excitement, and that I’ll have a good time for a few hours. They’re lovely cotton candy books that don’t have a ton of substance but are always a good time.
If you like urban fantasy that doesn’t take itself too seriously and decent writing, give these a try. Start with Tory’s books- first one is Three Mages and a Margarita. I have never regretted taking a dip into Annette Marie’s Guild Codex world.