Name: Magic Strikes
ISBN: 9780441017027

Ilona Andrews

When her werewolf friend Derek is attacked and left for dead, mercenary Kate Daniels investigates and stumbles upon a dark plot that could forever alter the face of Atlanta's shapeshifting community.

Magic Strikes

this is my favorite one so far. i’m ngl book 1 and book 2, i was a little lost in the sauce about the main conflicts going on. but i was completely hooked in this one. this to me is what crescent city thinks it is… an urban fantasy with factions of different magical beings, so many fun side characters, a bit of politics, even religious mythology stuff, and a big mystery that spans multiple books. it’s fun, it’s quick, it’s exciting, and i’m totally locked in. 

big ab

Katie Guo

Annabella

Curran. You...You just didn't. Feels are still guiding me, so it's gonna be a while before a write a decent review. Just know that this book killed me.

sophia n

oh my god how do these books somehow keep getting BETTER i am losing my whole ass mind

Kirsten Simkiss

One of, if not my very favorite, of the whole series, I'm rating this 5 stars on Goodreads even if it's closer to 4.5 - but screw it, it makes me laugh. This book is funny in a witty sort of way, and I feel like this is really the first book where you get to see the characters really forming their lasting relationships with each other. And I adore all of them and I'm so pleased to be reading this for the second time, especially now that they've wrapped the series. However, this book in particular has a really interesting mystery behind it that's always stuck in my head and it's made it a personal favorite book of mine.

If I had to criticize something about this book, I would say that Kate, despite all of her lifelong training, makes some really dumb moves when she's showing off. I don't want to give specifics, seeing as that might spoil some plot points, but, "Sloppy, Hugh." That's definitely one of them. She paints a major sign above her head in this one, advertising exactly who she is to exactly who she shouldn't be. It isn't smart, but I think it's a decision made mostly to move the overarching plot along.

Would I recommend this book to others? Yes. One warning: there is some sexually graphic content in this and later books.

JoLee

I was in need of my Curran fix and I got just that. If read this book then I think you all know what certain scene I am talking about. I found how the packs mate interesting and fun. The Midnight games were crazy good. Really liking Andrea and Kates friendship. Learning more about Kate and even Jim was good. The ending was my 2nd favorite part of the book. Can not tell you the first do not want to spoil anything.
 
I could not remember if I read book 2 as it has been awhile. The Midnight Games sounded interesting so went with Magic Strikes #3. I was not lost at all and did not feel like I missed anything huge. As I enjoyed Kate and a few of the secondary characters and Andrea and Raphael I feel like they were in the previous book. Easy for me to get a feel what is going on but I am sure it would of been nice to see how they got to where they are now.

Sarah Escorsa

🐈 The Adventures Of A Brave Little Kitty Buddy Rerererereread (TAOABLKBR™) with the IA Addicts 🐈

➽ 
  And the moral of this particular rererererereread is:
 tinmen on steroids and overgrown logs are no match for Kate Daniels, sausage expert extraordinaire. Ha. And now let's dance and stuff. 



P.S. Nonchalance is the best camouflage for drooling. Just so you know.

👋 Until next time and stuff.



[December 2017]

⚔ 
  The Grand IAA™ KD Buddy Rerererereread Extravaganza
 (GIAAKDBRE™), aka the yellow brick road to Magic Triumphs ⚔

Presenting Episode 3, or How Kate Daniels Learned not all Cats Hate Water Hot Tubs.

» 
  And the moral of this particular rererereread is:
 TWT-IHFB is the best bloody shrimping acronym in the history of bloody shrimping acronyms. Trust me on that one, I practically invented the concept. Of bloody shrimping acronyms, I mean. Not of TWT-IHFBs. I wish I had, though. Because it's, you know, the best acronym in the history of bloody shrimping acronyms and stuff.

» 
  And the other moral of this particular rererereread is:




And who doesn't love aggravating cats sneaky kitties the universe exploding Curran trouble?



[June 2016]

❣ KD is the Cure to All of Life's Problems Buddy Read (KDitCtAoLPBR™) with my dear wife Ange, and the poor IAA souls who have fallen into our deathly KD Surprise Reread Trap (KSRT™).

✎ Original rating: 5 stars
✎ Rating after xxxxxx rereads: boom. The universe exploded. This book is so BLOODY AWESOME, it's bloody unratable.


See? Even my dog decided to do a crazy dance to celebrate the total, utter and complete awesomeness that is this book.

» And the moral of this particular rererereread is: Midnight Games + hot tubs + the Scarlet Star + a flying palace = it doesn't get much better than this. Bye now.



[Original review]

☆☆☆ Post-Shift Productions proudly present ☆☆☆
Just Another Day in the Life of Kate Daniels



►8.00 a.m.: roll out of bed after getting 2 hours of sleep. Realize you're hungry. Open the fridge to get some of that leftover apple pie. The plate is empty. Strange.
► 8.30 a.m.: rescue your teenage werewolf sidekick from Saiman. Watch Saiman change form and throw up in your mouth a little.
► 9.00 a.m.: find out His Furriness became Beast Lord at the tender age of 15 after chopping Andorf's head off. This is going to be a long day.
► 9.30 a.m.: your best friend tells you she doesn't want to be Raphael's TWT-IHFB. Oh boy.
► 10.00 a.m.: have a conversation with His Fussiness about kissing his ass.



► 10.30 a.m.: hand Saiman a needle so he can pop his head with it. It's obscuring your view of the room.
► 11.00 a.m.: listen to Jim telling you about a weredingo. Consider yourself lucky he didn't steal your baby.
► 11.30 a.m.: try to smile. Aim for sweet. End up looking like a psycho-killer.
► 12.00 a.m.: listen to a lecture about the different shapeshifter courtship customs. Aunt B. A cat on the ceiling. A fan. Mist. That's boudas for you.
► 12.30 a.m.: go sightseeing with Jim. Visit a jungle and a flying palace. Play with the locals. Chop a few arms off. Things are looking up.
► 1.00 p.m.: tell His Furriness he's a deadly psychopath with a god complex. Then tell him you're having rough sex with Jim. Bad idea.
► 1.30 p.m.: temporary insanity. Oh. My. God. The Universe just exploded.



► 2.00 p.m.: explain to your furry friends why you want Cesare's head. Then proceed to explain how you plan to resurrect it and make it relive its death over and over again. Did you just say all that out loud? Yep. You did.
► 2.30 p.m.: the Beast Lord asks you why you always attract creeps. Ha! He walked right into that one, yes, he did.
► 3.00 p.m.: Andrea says M-A-T-E. You curse. Then consider strangling her a little.
► 3.30 p.m.: fight in the arena. Jim tells you to be sloppy. You try.
► 4.00 p.m.: have a conversation about sausages with your furry friends. 
  Die, die, die, die.




► 4.30 p.m.: Raphael hands you a fan in case you get hot. Curran doesn't think you need it. This cat's such a bore.
► 5.00 p.m.: remember the good old days with daddy Voron back when you were thirteen. Sightseeing in South America. Visiting arenas. Slaughtering things a bit.
► 5.30 p.m.: another fight in the arena. Blade-sprouting silver golem ✓ Troll (aka the overgrown log) ✓ Ancient vampire ✓ Enjoy seeing them die ✓ This is so much fun.
► 6.00 p.m.: take a relaxing bath in a hot tub. Try to pretend the Beast Lord isn't in there with you. Oh. My. God. The Universe just exploded again.



► 6.30 p.m.: yet another fight in the arena. Oh, look, it's the Scarlet Star. "Hessaad." Mine. "Ud." Die. Sorry daddy, I think I just broke your sword.
► 7.00 p.m.: Oh look, it's the flying palace again. Feeling suddenly very tired. It's been a long day.
► 7.30 p.m.: Lose a little blood. Cut a head off. Feel much better.
► 8.00 p.m.: find out cats are suicidal morons. Who would have thought?
► 8.30 p.m.: try telling the people in your head to shut up. It doesn't work. Oh look, a cat.
► 9.00 p.m.: go home. Find someone in your kitchen. Wait. What?
► 9.30 p.m.: read a note reminding you of an upcoming dinner. You're allowed to wear a bra and panties. Oh boy.



· Book 1: Magic Bites ★★★★★
· Book 2: Magic Burns ★★★★★
· Book 4: Magic Bleeds ★★★★★
· Book 5: Magic Slays ★★★★★
· Book 6: Magic Rises ★★★★★
· Book 7: Magic Breaks ★★★★★
· Book 8: Magic Shifts ★★★★★
· Book 9: Magic Binds ★★★★★
· Book 10: Magic Triumphs ★★★★

Imane

Becky

Ugh, these books are killing me with the sexual tension between Kate and Curran. Add in all the other drama going on and Kate's family secret I am continually thinking about these books. I simply cannot get enough they are taking over my life.

I think this may be my favourite one so far. I spent half the book grinning like an idiot because it was hilarious and half of it gripping it in anger as I wanted vengeance just as much as Kate. I mean, my emotions! How does such a short book make you feel so many things?

***

Edit 5th October 2017

Still being killed by the sexual tension and still loving the series. I do think this one was great because finally it feels like there is truly an overarching storyline being developed. I know it was hinted at previously but now you can see the bits being shown in each book developing and it's not just each book has a standalone mystery being solved, you know?

I did love that you were seeing characters appear again and secondary characters were developed some more because it feels like a full world not just the world of Kate Daniels.

Nickie Mohler

After figuring out that her friend Derek has gotten himself into some kind of trouble, Kate decides to find him and make him spill. But when she finds him, he is nearly dead. And he's not the only shapeshifter that's been attacked. Kate must work with the Pack to find out who wants them all dead.
This book was great! Never a dull moment.

Tyler Franklin

Loved this one! They just keep getting better and better! I couldn't stop laughing at some parts. On to the next book ☺

Jessica Nottingham

Okay I admit it. I'm completely and utterly in love with Kate Daniels and her series. The more I read, the better she gets! Kate is the whole package. She's strong, caring, snarky and can kick your ass in the blink of an eye. I cannot believe that I waited so long to start this series, but I'm more than making up for it with how quickly I'm powering through these books. Ilona Andrews knows how to write a character my friends. Oh, she knows.

My favorite part about Magic Strikes was finally getting to see the back stories of my favorite characters. I learned a lot about Kate, Jim and even Curran. The opportunity to see them at their most vulnerable, to be able to see into the raw parts of themselves, was a treat. Curran especially shines in this installment. At first I was dubious about his relationship with Kate. He was just so overbearing and, well, alpha status all the time. In this book though the sweet side of him starts to shine through. I think I'm falling for him, I'm not going to lie. It's apparent how much he adores Kate, and the smolder is starting to turn into a full blown fire!

Then there is the setting. Atlanta is back, and as magical as ever. However this time around there's the added carnage and excitement of the Midnight Games. When Kate discovers that Derek near death, she ties him to these very secretive games. Being Kate, she of course has to investigate! What ensues is a magic-filled, epic set of battles. If I thought Kate and her friends were cool before, they are off the charts now. Getting to see them use the full extent of their powers was delicious. More please!

I'm a fan of this series so I'll rave about it until the end of time. However the point remains that it truly does have it all! Andrews gives the reader well fleshed out and kick-ass characters, humor, action, and even some heart. This is the stuff of obsession. By the time I reached the end of Magic Strikes, all I wanted was more book. If you haven't started this series yet, get to it! It's well worth your time.

Jo H

My heart wept for Derek! And at this point, Kate is in far deeper with The Pack than she realizes, I really felt her pain. And we really beginning to get more of Jim now which I love. And Dali... she's a scream!

Lacey

Holy crap! The third book of the series completely blows away the first two! Magic Strikes was FANTASTIC. The action in this is on-the-edge-of-your-seat amazing, and I could not get enough of it! The snark between Kate and Curran had me laughing in tears. And ahem, the sexy hot tub scene. This book is where I started to fall in love with Curran. And because of this book, the Kate Daniels series has become one of my favorite books ever.
In short, Magic Bites is good, Magic Burns is better, and Magic Strikes is plain full of AWESOME.