Hard Magic by Laura Anne Gilman
(Book #1 of the Paranormal Scene Investigations series)
Rating: 🍁🍁🍁
The Good Stuff:
1) I like the world Ms. Gilman has created. The magic system is interesting, and unlike any other I'm familiar with.
2) The main character, Bonnie, is awesome. Come to think of it, so is everyone else we meet. Ms. Gilman does a great job of creating colourful, realistic characters.
3) The interaction of the PUPI team. Also, the fact that PUPI is pronounced 'puppy'. :)
4) The tension between Venec and Bonnie. There's some serious sizzle there, complicated by the fact that he's her boss and neither is willing to acknowledge that the tension exists.
The Not-so-Good Stuff:
1) The pacing. I almost gave up about 1/3 of the way through, because nothing was happening. I'm glad I stuck with it, as things picked up once Bonnie starts with PUPI, but it was a long haul up until that point.
2) The 'mystery' was kind of a non-starter. There was all kinds of build-up and investigation, only to have everything suddenly revealed at the end and then nothing done about it.
3) The predictability of the tension between Venec and Bonnie. We all know what's going to happen. And we all know that he's connected to her past in some way. My bet is that Venec was involved in the investigation of Bonnie's dad's murder, and has some kind of secret related to it. When Bonnie finds out (a couple of books from now), all the progress that they had made towards developing a relationship will be shattered by her lack of trust. Until someone else reveals that Venec actually was the good guy, or was in trouble due to someone else's activities, and couldn't prevent/do/tell whatever the issue was.
That being said, once you get past the first part this is a good book. I'll be signing out the next one in the series.
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