Title: Magic Strikes
Author: Ilona Andrews
Series: Kate Daniels #3
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Dystopia, Paranormal fantasy, Shapeshifters
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Ace fantasy
Year: 2009
5th sentence, 74th page: Have you ever seen him sunburned?
When magic strikes and Atlanta goes to pieces, it’s a job for Kate Daniels…
Drafted to work for the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid, mercenary Kate Daniels has more paranormal problems these days than she knows what to do with. And in Atlanta, where magic comes and goes like the tide, that’s saying a lot.
But when Kate’s werewolf friend Derek is discovered nearly dead, she must confront her greatest challenge yet. As her investigation leads her to the Midnight Games—an invitation-only, no-holds-barred, ultimate preternatural fighting tournament—she and Curran, the Lord of the Beasts, uncover a dark plot that may forever alter the face of Atlanta’s shapeshifting community…
Magic Strikes finally lets us discover more about Kate’s unique and dangerous heritage. Something that has been niggling at me since I first started reading this series. Andrews is brilliant in slowly teasing out this information – each book reveals a new insight into her life before the series and provides an insight into her character and creation. Aside from the main plot line, this makes me want to continue reading the series.
Kate is finally letting people into her life and world, cracks are starting to appear in the veneer of her personal armour. Although I love the way in which she is able to stand on her own two feet and doesn’t require any romantic or social entanglement to feel whole, it is nice to see her finally reaching out for the companionship of another. Not only is her willingness to form relationships (and her struggle to go against Voron’s upbringing) endearing to the character, it also expands the cast of this story. This expansion is wonderful, and brings in so many more literary individuals that I have completely fallen in love with.
The extension of Kate letting people into her life is that Curran starts to truly pursue her. The rules of this are incredibly unique and weird, and left me giggling throughout the story. Although Kate is sorely tempted to pursue this relationship, she still continues to hold off. Not only due to her own issues, but also in an attempt to maintain her own identity and autonomy within the world. I loved that although she was tempted, she didn’t just fall out the man’s (lion’s) feet – as with everything that Daniels seems to do, there was a fight and warring attitudes within her own subconscious and she didn’t just fall for a pretty face. Such a refreshing courtship story, and one that I look forward to investigating further in the next book!
Earth and Skye 
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