Audio Book Review: Magic Undying

Dragon's Gift: Magic Undying

By:  Linsey Hall

Publish Date:  April 1, 2017, Audiobook Release January 18, 2017

Format:  Audiobook - 7 hrs 30 mins
Narrated By:  Laurel Schroeder

Genre:  Urban Fantasy

Series:  1st in Dragon's Gift: The Seeker series
Affiliated with Dragon's Gift: The Huntress series

Impression:  Del is on her own mission.

Synopsis:
Waking up in hell was not Del Bellator’s idea of a good time. She’d rather be back on earth, killing demons and hunting down magical treasure for her shop, Ancient Magic.

Turns out that escaping hell is easy—it’s staying out that’s hard. Del’s death magic defies the laws of the supernatural world. Worse—she doesn’t know how to control it. If others learn what she is, it’s guaranteed persecution by the Order of the Magica. And Del already has a deadly and forbidden secret—she shares a soul with a dragon.

Things get sticky when Roarke Fallon, Warden of the Underworld, shows up on her doorstep wanting to drag her back to hell. He’s a one of a kind shifter—the most powerful she’s ever met—and he’s set his sights on her. Helping him catch an escaped demon gives her an opportunity to win her freedom, but only if she teams up with Roarke. She’ll have to use her forbidden magic to get the job done. And that is a recipe for discovery… and disaster.

Magic Undying features a kick butt heroine, a powerful hero, and otherworldly adventure.

First Sentence:
Consciousness came slowly as heat seared my skin.

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Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*I was voluntarily provided this review copy audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator.

Del wakes in Hell, flames flickering around her. She gave up her powers in the battle, and now wakes here without them. But, it was prophesied that she has a power related to death. Though she doesn't understand it, can it help her? Del escapes her captures to return to the one place she wants to be, home, just to be told He will come for her. In her escape, she's cut by a demon's claws that leave poison that will slowly turn her into one of the Ubilaz Demon's after her. Then, the hot looking Warden shows up at Del's door. Trying to clear her name with The Warden and save herself, she's on the search for the Ubilaz demon that escaped when she did, with the attractive Warden.


Laurel is the narrator for Cass's books and is also voicing Del. I do enjoy Laurel's work as she voices each character differently. She gives each their own voice, and hearing Roarke is lovely. And hearing him in the same room as Aidan, veeeeery nice. lol. The girls each have their own voice though they are very similar but they do have their own personality, as do all the characters. Laurel has created a flawless narration here, from my ears.

Del has her own journey to take to learn about her prophesied power relating to death. And could meet her significant other in the process.

Starting this book, the first in Del's series, is like starting all over. If you didn't read/listen to Cass's series you would be safe to start with Del's. You get an explanation of each character and their world at the beginning to place everything.

We meet Roarke here. And he's a special find for Del! Seems to be a perfect fit for Del and her death powers along with who she is attracted to. He does seem very hot! Roarke is special in his own way as well. Being different makes you a target, but he's turned that around to make himself needed. I really like what he is, and so does Del. lol.

This relationship feels very similar to Cass's story with Aidan. Del and Roarke's attraction is so close to the same. And Del has her own journey to go through, like Cass, to learn her abilities and past before she woke with her sisters. Along with worrying about people learning what she is. The cycle feels very identical to Cass's story, if you've read her series.

In the end I very much liked Del's new powers and where she comes to. It's an easy urban fantasy story with a sweet romance blooming, just like with Cass.


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Audio Book Review: Infinite Magic

Infinite Magic

By:  Linsey Hall

Publish Date:  September 9, 2016, Audiobook Release October 24, 2016

Format:  Audiobook - 5 hrs 36 mins
Narrated By:  Laurel Schroeder

Genre:  Urban Fantasy

Series:  5th in Dragon's Gift: The Huntress series; Book 1 ~ Ancient Magic, Book 2 ~ Mirror Magic, Book 3 ~ Stolen Magic, Book 4 ~ Eternal Magic

Impression:  One arc concludes as another opens.

Synopsis:
Things aren’t looking great for Cass Clereaux. For one, her greatest fear has come true. She’s stuck in the Prison for Magical Miscreants while her nemesis, Victor Orriodor, is out in the world, putting the last pieces of his plan into place. He’s wreaking havoc, all while she’s stuck in a stone box, awaiting likely execution.

Fortunately, Cass has just discovered that she’s the most powerful Magica in the world. She may have no control over her massive new power, but that won’t stop her from using it to break out of the world’s strongest supernatural prison. As for how she’s going to stop Victor when she gets out? She has no idea.

To have any hope at success, Cass will have to learn to control her magic and figure out exactly what he’s trying to accomplish. She’s going to need all the help she can get if she wants to survive, much less save the world. Luckily for her, she’s got Aidan Merrick and her sisters at her back, along with her allies in the League of FireSouls.

First Sentence:
Prison sucked.

Purchase At:
Amazon  /  Barnes & Nobles  /  Book Depository

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review at my request.

In breaking out and helping a new friend, Cass realizes there could be other firesouls captured by Victor, and she'll make sure they are freed when she stops the evil monster known as Victor Orriodor.


Laurel is the voice of Cass and the story for me by now. I don't even spend time mentally grading her narration as we dive in. Laurel has proven she's worthy of the mic and the story. This is a great thing to have when you're a narrator. Laurel only enhances the story as we listen as she gives voice and emotion to the words of the characters.

We pick up exactly where the previous book ended. Cass is in prison at the Prison for Magical Miscreants. It's great that things pick up and run in the first chapter. We are well adverse in who the characters are by now and Linsey moves forward with the story, not wasting time reminding us of who everyone is. Awesome! I want to get to the story and go, and that's what she does. The author also is great about not adding extra scenes to prolong the story. She's to the point that moves the plot and characters along, which means the characters grow in their actions of each scene and event. Great use of time and words.

We meet Emile briefly in the end of the previous book, we get to see him more here. He's the new friend we meet, him and Ralph and Rufus, his little friends. We also get to see our close friends; Nix, Del, Aidan, Connor, and Claire as well. And we get to see those we've worked with or against as well. This story ties together everyone and many things for Cass.

We get lots of action here. Fighting physically and magically. Sweet! I so love the artifacts seen in the story. They are all we've seen in the previous books and why they are so important. We also see some new ones. We also get a bit of additional help from mythology related to the land. Very neat as it brings a bit more magic to the world and story.

I enjoy the way Linsey wrote this series. I could easily feel and relate the connections of what Cass does here with what she's learned through the previous books. Well planned out and connected. That makes it clear how much Cass has grown as a character from the beginning of the first book. So well done!

This book concludes the major story arc with Cass and the monster. We also see an opening to Del's story and her adventures next. And I look forward to see Del in her own adventures as she'll have a different view and adventure after how this book ends.



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Audio Book Review: Eternal Magic

Eternal Magic

By:  Linsey Hall

Publish Date:  July 31, 2016, Audiobook Release September 29, 2016

Format:  Audiobook - 6 hrs 22 mins
Narrated By:  Laurel Schroeder

Genre:  Urban Fantasy

Series:  4th Dragon's Gift: The Huntress series: Book 1 ~ Ancient Magic, Book 2 ~ Mirror Mage, Book 3 ~ Stolen Magic

Impression:  Powerful story to bring Cass and her deifiur (sisters) into their places in the world.

Synopsis:
Cass Clereaux has a few problems. Sure, she just saved her whole town and is now immortal, but immortality sucks. The same spell that made her immortal also takes away her magic. It’s kaput. Finito. Gone. Being a FireSoul and finding magical treasure is who she is. Now, she couldn’t find her left leg with a map. Not even if a dragon pointed the way.

To make matters worse, her concealment charm is malfunctioning. Demons are showing up left and right, trying to bring her head back to the Monster who stalks her. While Cass is on the hunt to recover her magic and learn about her past, the specter of the Monster is getting ever closer to his mysterious end goal. She’s prophesied to meet him on the field of battle—but if she doesn’t have her magic back by then, she’s dead.

First Sentence:
"Oh no." I almost groaned when I caught sight of the golden sphinx crouched in front of the pyramid a hundred yards away.

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Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review at my request.

Cass is searching for a dampening charm that will weaken the nullifying power she now has, and let her other powers return to her use. Cass learns that Victor Orriordor, the monster from her, Nix, and Del's past, is looking for dampening charms too. He's taken the most powerful one of all, the one that can knock out dozens of people's powers, from the museum. Also, transporting charms are becoming scarce as well. Victor is up to something, but what? Cass needs to get her root power back before she has to face Victor, which is only a matter of time coming. Her searching leads her back to where her parents lived, and learning a great deal about herself and her deirfiur.


Laurel returns to voice Cass. I have really grown to enjoy her in these stories. She voices Cass and all with voices and tones that have become them. Even the new characters we meet have a voice of their own, even just slightly different than those we've grown use to. There are accents used as we do visit Ireland and Scotland as well. Laurel's pacing is wonderful, helping to keep the story moving along. She feels to be in the persona of the characters as she narrates. There is no hint to stopping and starting over, all is smooth in flow. Lovely job.

It's neat seeing the pyramids, statues, and different places along with traps in them when Cass and sisters and friends are on the hunt. Also the way stories were written with the details of Egyptians and setup of the pyramid. It feels as there is a lot of care and research put into writing these moments. I love how the sisters attempt to take care with the sites they visit. They believe in preserving what once was so others can treasure it as well. It's those pesky demons sent after Cass and sisters that make a mess!

I don't want to say much on the story and give away the great finds we have here. Linsey keeps the story moving fast, giving us many answers and information we have been wanting. There is something that happens or surprises me in each chapter, moving the story along by leaps.

We start to get answers to Cass's past, though have more questions too. I look forward to learning more and more with Cass as she learns her power and what tasks she needs to work through with her sisters. And more about Del and Nix. Interesting how they are all connected.

We get to spend time with the sisters together, Del, Nix, and Cass. I really enjoy seeing them together. And we see Connor and Claire help them again. And of course we get Aidan. Cass and Aidan are just lovely. Cass seems to start to come to accept her friends putting themselves in harms way to help her, as she does and would do for them.

Cass is growing stronger! It's great to see her stand on her own and fight though see her start to let her friends help her too. The ending brings me to a stronger, determined feeling for Cass though we are left in a bit of a spot. It's not a terrible cliffhanger per say, but I want to know what's next. I'll be getting to the next book soon to see what happens next.



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Audio Book Review: Stolen Magic

Stolen Magic

By:  Linsey Hall

Publish Date:  June 20, 2016, Audiobook Release September 8, 2016

Format:  Audiobook - 6 hrs 55 mins
Narrated By:  Laurel Schroeder

Genre:  Urban Fantasy

Series:  3rd in Dragon's Gift: The Huntress series; Book 1 ~ Ancient Magic, Book 2 ~ Mirror Mage

First Impression:  Cass faces fears, external and internal.

Synopsis:
Being a FireSoul has its perks. Cass Clereaux can find any type of magical treasure—or steal any type of magical power. She’ll pick hunting treasure any day because she doesn’t have to kill for it, but that doesn’t mean she hasn’t stolen powers. She needs them to stay alive. Because a fight to the death is the least of what she can expect if other supernaturals find out what she is, she’s become an expert at laying low.

When her friend is sucked into a magical portal, she’s the only one with the power to help him. But what she uncovers is a danger greater than she’d ever imagined—and linked to her past in a way she’d never expect. Worse, the portal puts her whole town at risk. As the threat grows, she must confront her fear of losing control of her new powers, or lose any hope of saving hundreds of lives.

First Sentence:
"Trouble at two o'clock." I tipped my chin toward the big glass window.

Purchase At:
Amazon  /  Barnes & Nobles  /  Book Depository

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review, at my request.

Demons have entered Magic's Bend, tracking Firesouls that were prophesied by a seer to be present. When Cass tries to question a dying demon she feels the compulsion to take his strength, his power. She hasn't told her sisters, but her Firesoul is attracted and she enjoys taking the power.

Cass's friend, Dr. Garriso, is pulled through a portal in the museum during an attempted robbery before he can tell her what the Chalice of Youth really grants to who drinks from it. The Chalice that the Monster from Cass's past wants.


Laurel is back for the next book! Her voice has become Cass for me. And she does different tones and scratchiness for different characters, making it easy to hear who's who. The audio is clear and nothing distracting me from the voice and story. Thank you for returning to continue on with these characters!

Cass faces many terrible fears she has at the same time. First is The Monster, the terrible man that her and her sisters ran from at the age of fifteen. It ends up he has his own plans, and crosses paths with Cass. That meeting is a closer one than anything previously. She worries about being found out, that the firesoul in her will be discovered and her and her sisters will be taken to prison. Then, one of her biggest fears, the desire in her from her firesoul to take powers. In her own way and when needed she finds the strength to carry on, growing as a character as she goes.

Cass is worried because she feels the draw, pull, need to take another's magic when they die. It's like her firesoul takes over and compels her to do it. She doesn't like that feeling and doesn't want to steal another's magic, even if they are dying. It's not right. And worst, she likes the feel of the power. It scares her. She needs to gain control of it.

Cass also has to help her friend, Dr. Garriso. When she gets Dr. Garriso back, Cass and all learn what the Chalice of Youth really can do. And they don't want the Monster from her past to get it. Really don't want him to get it. But, now the chalice is at the museum, that the Monster is trying to steal and by doing so has put Magic's Bend in danger of destruction.

Cass spends time with Aidan. *sigh* He's a wonderful man. He wants to help Cass and date her too. I can't believe they've only known each other for a few weeks, maybe a month. They've spent so much time together with all the events surrounding Cass that they have learned a lot about each other. Aidan is determined to get his date in any way he can get with the limited time the find between moments of rush and worry. He's such a sweet man. *sigh* (yes, I'm repeating!)

This book feels to up the anty with danger and what Cass has to face, personally, mentally, and danger wise of the whole town with the Monster.

I've really found I've enjoyed this series thus far. I like seeing Cass as she learns and grows as a character with her friends. And I'm more and more curious about The Monster. What is the story with Cass and how will she carry on from here? I look forward to all the stories to come in this magical world!



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Audio Book Review: Mirror Mage

Mirror Mage

By:  Linsey Hall

Publish Date:  May 4, 2016, Audiobook Release August 18, 2016

Format:  Audiobook - 6 hrs 35 mins
Narrated By:  Laurel Schroeder

Genre:  Urban Fantasy

Series:  2nd in Dragon's Gift: The Huntress series; Book 1 ~ Ancient Magic

First Impression:  Friendships help when pasts surface.

Synopsis:
Cass Clereaux likes her job. It’s simple—steal the magic, don’t get killed. FireSouls like her are perfect for magic treasure hunting. Their dragon soul helps them find treasure, their wicked powers help them steal it. But there’s a big freaking downside—FireSouls are hunted. If either of the magical governments figures out what she is, she can kiss her life goodbye.

When the Alpha Council comes to her with a special job, it’s a no-brainer to turn it down, no matter how much money they’re offering. Shifters who can sniff out her weird magic are the last supernaturals she needs to be around. Worse? They have a history of hunting FireSouls. But when Cass learns that a little girl’s life is at stake and Cass is her last hope, she doesn’t have a choice.

With her sisters and Aidan Merrick at her back, she’s got a chance at saving the girl and keeping her deadly secret—until she learns there’s far more to this kidnapping than meets the eye. It’s far too similar to what happened to her as a child, and everything new that she learns scares her even more.

First Sentence:
"Everyone knows you're not supposed to pick up the golden idol!"

Purchase At:
Amazon  /  Barnes & Nobles  /  Book Depository

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*I requested a copy of this audiobook from the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review.

Cass is working to learn to use her magic with control, with Aidan's help. She returns home with an artifact for a client, and to rebuild their magic inventory at the shop, when she's approached by Mathias. One of the organizations Cass and her deirfiur fear, Alpha Council, is looking for her. They've lost something of great value and have heard from Aidan of her Seeker skills. With the shops lack of inventory since the break-in, meaning rent will be a terrible struggle to meet, the million dollars to simply meet with the Alpha Council and hear them out is tempting, then, if she takes the job the additional million dollars... The tipper of scales is that lives are at risk, and the thought that helping the Alpha Council could help her if she ever gets caught.

Laurel returns to voice Cass and crew in this second book. Oh, when she voices Aidan in the first chapter, I just smiled. I love her accent for him. Laurel voices new characters we come across with a different accent, vocal tone, personality, and emotion for the moment. I enjoy this as it brings the story to life and shows a bit of difference among the characters we see. The audio seems seamless and no distractions in the background. It's all about the story when I'm listening to Laurel.

Something I really like about Cass, and it stuck out to me in the first book along with here too, she's not our normal find the ancient artifacts and sell them kind of gal. Cass and her sisters find the artifacts that are old, where magic is starting to decay and could become dangerous. They remove the magic from these artifacts and place it in a replica of the item, then return the original to the sacred place it has been kept for years. She tries her hardest to not ruin the secret places, though that's not always possible.

In this book Cass is learning to trust a bit further than her close circle of her two sisters. The events in this book show that others think dearly of Cass, Nix, and Del, along with doing anything to help them. The reason, the three sisters have been great friends that will do what they can for friends, and their friends know it. We even get to see Cass realizing Aidan is trustworthy, that he's not going to hurt her by turning her in. Cass's actions show she's not the dark, killing and greedy sponge that people thing FireSouls are. Though, she does realize something about her FireSoul in this book.

I do enjoy Aidan. He seems like a perfect gentleman, though that is what throws up the red flag for Cass and she tries to keep moving slow with him. Sure, they've kissed and she'd love more, but she wants to get to know him. He does help Cass to learn her magic, pushing her to the edge of her limits to learn and get control of them. He also tries to protect her, even when the ceiling is falling in, he'll throw himself between Cass and the falling rocks.

We start to learn more of Aidan and the Origins in his family past with Cass, even about shifters too. We also start to learn with Cass about her own past. Through dreams Cass learns how they escaped the cell and that monster of a man, even how she became a mirror mage.

I really like that we get more time with Nix and Del in this book too. We got some time with them in the previous book, but this one they are more involved earlier on. Of course we get our Aidan time too. ;) The time feels well balanced between friends, sisters, and growing love.

I'm enjoying this series thus far. It's fun, relaxing, and I really like the personality of Cass and Aidan. Then there are the small hints of what we learn about Cass that has me curious. Not to mention that Monster Man from her past in that terrible cell.



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Audio Book Review: Ancient Magic

Ancient Magic

By:  Linsey Hall

Publish Date:  April 6, 2016, Audiobook Release July 19, 2016

Format:  Audiobook - 7 hrs 0 mins
Narrated By:  Laurel Schroeder

Genre:  Urban Fantasy

Series:  1st in Dragon's Gift: The Huntress series

First Impression:  Three girls with no past and adventure in their future.

Synopsis:
I’m good at two things: finding treasure and killing demons. Lying low is a close third—but not because I want to be good at hiding. I have to be. I’m a FireSoul, one of the unlucky few to inherit a piece of the dragon’s soul. Being born with the dragon’s covetousness should be a sweet gig - I have the power to find and steal any type of treasure, including the powers of other supernaturals.

But it doesn’t come without a price - stealing powers requires that I kill, and others would destroy me if they discover what I am. In a world full of magic, hiding my species is the only way to survive. Finding magical artifacts is the only way to pay the bills. It’s a dangerous job when you can barely use your magic, but that’s one of the things I like about it.

When Aidan Merrick, the most powerful shifter in the city, hired me to find an ancient scroll, I didn’t want to take the job. His immense amount of power reminds me of too much of murky memories from a past I can’t remember. But I don’t have a choice. The scroll reveals what I am. And if anyone finds out, I’m dead.

First Sentence:
Blood. I rubbed my tongue against the top of my mouth.

Purchase At:
Amazon  /  Barnes & Nobles  /  Book Depository

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBoom dot com, at my request.

Cass and her sisters, Nix and Del, woke in a field not remembering anything, for when they try the feel pain, other than they are FireSouls and have Magica powers. They are running from an evil someone.

Ten years later, the three sisters have settled in Magic's Bend. They have their shop, Ancient Magic, where they sell duplicates of artifacts with the magic transferred to it. Cass is known as one of the best hunters of treasures, which is how they get their stock for their shop, and Aidan Merrick comes to ask her to do a job for him, and a date now that he's met her. The item to find, the Scroll of Truth, which sounds familiar to Cass but sparks pain when she tries to remember about it. Learning about this scroll, she finds that it possesses her and her sisters dark secret and must destroy it before anyone reads it.

I've listened to Laurel once before. She has a young feel to her that fits the characters. Aidan has an Irish accent, and Laurel does that with a slightly lower tone to be male. Even when coming across other beings and characters, Laurel adds to her voice to make them sound slightly different. But most of all, I like the way Laurel sounds relaxed as she speaks and also brings a calm feel to Cass. Though when Cass is nervous we get that feel in Laurel's voice as well.

I liked diving into this new world. There is magic of all kinds here, and there's a system to it. FireSouls are those that kill to steal magic from magica, and also have a part of a dragon's soul in them. Which shows in the way they hoard items, what they feel are treasures. The girls don't feel as though they are FireSouls yet they have the signs of it. They don't remember how they got their powers but life as good people getting by each day.

The job for Aidan takes Cass to Ireland, the place the person she and her sisters are running from, could be living still. We don't run into the man they are running from directly, but we do see there is something more with their past, though we (and they) don't know what that past is, yet. I love the introduction of the world and characters here. We meet them and adventure with them, and I've become curious of all their secrets.

Cass was a believable character for me. She knows she and her sisters have to be careful and not let their secret out, but she's human too. She has feelings and they cloud the best of intentions, even on the inside, which makes some decisions for Cass harder than usual. I love that Cass loves food. And Aidan knows the way to her heart, food. Aidan is the perfect gentleman. He says the right things and he lets Cass know he's interested in dating her, throughout the story. At times Aidan even made butterflies in my stomach.

Aidan is a special person in the supernatural world. Oh wait until you see him do his magic! Neat what we see. (I don't want to tell you as it's cool to see.) From first meeting, Aidan has asked Cass out on a date. But she's resisted, though she does find him attractive. And that attraction grows as the story goes, even for me.

I really enjoyed this story, it was fun and relaxing for me. I look forward to more books with these characters and their secrets.



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