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An Apple for the Creature (Kate Daniels #5.3)

by Charlaine Harris (Editor), Toni L.P. Kelner (Editor), Jonathan Maberry (Goodreads Author), Donald Harstad, Marjorie M. Liu (Goodreads Author), Rhys Bowen (Goodreads Author), Amber Benson (Goodreads Author), Mike Carey (Goodreads Author) , more…

3.64 of 5 stars 3.64 · rating details · 1,591 ratings · 324 reviews

Includes a never-before-published Sookie Stackhouse story!

What could be scarier than the first day of school? How about a crash course in the paranormal from Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner, editors of Home Improvement: Undead Edition? Your worst school nightmares—taking that math test you never studied for, finding yourself naked in school assembly, not knowing whi...more

Hardcover, 336 pages

Published September 4th 2012 by Ace Hardcover (first published August 30th 2012)

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Community Reviews

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Sep 18, 2012 JennyJen added it

Shelves: kickass, series, fun-times, can-t-get-enough, fave-authors, what-a-ya-heroine-should-be, author-can-do-no-wrong, read-in-one-sitting, read-2012, uf, magic, moar, she-is-not-just-a-pretty-face, skimmed-for-authors-i-like, short-story

★★★★ for Magic Tests by Ilona Andrews only.

I've been supremely annoyed by Julie in the past. For example, in Gunmetal Magic, I wanted to punch her in the face. Well, color me surprised, because she was pretty awesome in this one. She has a likable voice and she's smart, which are things that we're unable to see when she's a side character as opposed to the MC.

She's like a little mini-Kate, surely due to being trained and shaped by her. I could totally get down with a Julie novel or series. I'm...more

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Dec 03, 2012 ♥ Ashleigh ♥ contrary to popular belief im not actually mad! rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, short-stories

i just read the first chapter from Magic Tests and now i really wanna get my hands on it.

here's the link
http://www.ilona-andrews.com/books/an...

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Playing Possum by Charlaine Harris. (1-24pgs) ★★
a Sookie Stackhouse novella

Sookie is visiting her nephew, Hunter to celebrate Labour Day with his kindergarten class mates.

the start of this book was beyond boring i actually skipped a few pages until it got to the "good" bit and even that...more

6 likes · like · see review

Sep 11, 2012 ♠ Sharon is an emotional book junkie ♠ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2012

**Only read the two stories listed below**

Charlaine Harris ~ Playing Possum

3.5 stars...

A story about Sookie bringing goodies to Hunter's kindergarten party when a secretary's angry ex-boyfriend shows up with a gun.

The story was okay...I wasn't really excited about the gun violence but what I did like was the interaction between Sookie and Hunter. Just wish we would've gotten more between the two of them.

Ilona Andrews ~ Magic Tests

4 stars...

Kate made Julie pick a new school and when they get th...more

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Nov 01, 2012 Angie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Anyways... I adore anthologies. I like to be able to just sit down sometimes and finish a story in one hour. (One of the reasons I love King, he writes short story books all the time). I also love to be introduced to new authors. This book had some amazing stories. One complaint I have this time around is a few of them 5 or 6 were stories that ended up in the air. So it was up to our imagination. While I don't mind these types of stories I prefer the short stories I read to end in a pretty bow.

I...more

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Dec 27, 2012 Mary rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal, urban-fantasy, novellas-and-shorts

This is a review of Magic Tests by Ilona Andrews, a novella that takes place following Magic Slays (Kate Daniels #5). While it isn't as exciting as Magic Gifts or Magic Dreams (other recent novellas), it was nice to have a story from Julie's perspective. She's grown on me since her first appearance in the series and it was fun to see her in the spotlight for once. The ending was certainly interesting... (view spoiler)

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Oct 04, 2012 Arushi rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya, anthologies

I only read the Ilona Andrews short, Magic Tests. Eventually I plan to read the rest, but not anytime soon.

Its a cute story, and I liked Julie's POV. I loved how she thought like Kate, and her reactions were based on what she thought Kate would do, but she was smart enough to know what would work for her and what would not.

I also loved her snarky comments about Curran, Kate and Derek, though Kate was there only for a little while and none of the others showed up.

04/10/2012 - I also read Iphig...more

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Sep 05, 2012 jo mo rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: short-stories, partly-read, 2012, reviews, school-life, young-adult

only interested in magic tests (by ilona andrews) and only read this single short story too. didn't disappoint. so, even though i only read one story from the whole compilation .. i'm giving it 4 whopping stars. rightly so. you'll see why when you read it for yourself.

storyline? kate wants julie to go to a school and whets her appetite through a mission julie has accepted where she is to find a missing school girl and thus ultimately making her spend some time in the potential school:

i looked a

...more

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Sep 08, 2012 Laura Davis rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I got this book mainly for Magic Tests by Ilona Andrews which enjoyed - even the secondary characters from her Kate Daniels world make excellent reading. It is nice to read what other people think of Kate.

Also pleasantly surprised to find story by Faith Hunter based on character of Rick from her Jane Yellowrock series - liked finding out more about Rick & what is happening to him since he was turned into werewolf & hoping to hear more about him in next book

However, I did find several ot...more

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Oct 29, 2012 Christal rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: anthology, urban-fantasy, short-stories, creepy-school-setting

See this review and others like it at BadassBookReviews.com!

The anthologies edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P. Kelner combine top authors from many different genres with a specific paranormal theme. This time the theme was school and it produced some unique and interesting stories. I think these anthologies are some of the best in paranormal fiction, but this one didn’t quite hit the mark for me. There were some truly exceptional stories in this volume, but they were outnumbered by the les...more

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Jun 23, 2012 Fastidious rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: series, series-katedaniels, series-sookiestackh, anthology, short-stories, pricey, good, fantasy, magic, werewolves-shapeshifters, zombies, demons, horror, mystery, thriller, uf, ghosts, companion

All stories feature a student-teacher dynamic or some other education aspect. First anthology I've read that included author bios as a lead-in to each story. Something I'd like to see become a standard practice in the future because it's nice to know whether the story is from a series, & what other works to check out if you find that author interesting. Let review commence...

Playing Possum CHARLAINE HARRIS | ✩✩✩✩✩
Featuring Sookie & her nephew hunter from the Sookie Stackhouse series. Soo...more

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Feb 11, 2013 Jensownzoo rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013-reads, anthologies-short-story, speculative-fiction

Donald Harstad's Academy Field Trip
>>>Very nice story, especially for the author's first foray into urban fantasy.

Marjorie M. Liu's Sympathy for the Bones
>>>Wonderfully constructed story, great mood-setting and world-building. This is the story that stood out the most for me in this anthology. Great job!

Mike Carey's Iphigenia in Aulis
>>>The legalities contained in the story were kinda iffy, particularly in the kind of situation that people found themselves in, but w...more

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Jan 19, 2013 Chance rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: short-stories

I read all the stories in this book that aren't part of a larger series I'm unfamiliar with. Usually I just read 2 or 3 tops in these Harris/Kelner anthos, so this is a change of pace. Maybe I've been in a short-story mood since I'm very busy right now and my Master's class is lacking. Speaking of, most of these stories could have been submissions in that class/workshop. Make of that what you will.

The genre fiction short story is an interesting animal. There is a lot of derivative genre fiction,...more

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Dec 10, 2012 Jane Debano rated it 4 of 5 stars

Rejoice, fans of the supernatural! Charlaine Harris and Toni Kelner have edited a new anthology of stories about vamps, werewolves, ghosts and the like – this time with an educational slant. A new Sookie Stackhouse story has her getting into trouble just because she took cupcakes for her nephew to his school in Playing Possum. Ilona Andrews has a story called Magic Tests in which teenage Julie is asked by her guardian to infiltrate a boarding school and use her magic to find a young girl who’s d...more

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Nov 02, 2012 Carey Sabala rated it 3 of 5 stars

The book starts with Sookie's story - Playing Possum. This story basically just involves Sookie and her cousin Hunter. Hunter has asked Sookie to bring goodies to his kindergarden labor day party and chaos ensues. I have to warn you, this story involves a school shooting. I found it very disturbing that this would be the story to kick off the anthology but it's not my book, so I digress. I still found it in bad taste to start off a book with school based themes with a school shooting. I felt the...more The book starts with Sookie's story - Playing Possum. This story basically just involves Sookie and her cousin Hunter. Hunter has asked Sookie to bring goodies to his kindergarden labor day party and chaos ensues. I have to warn you, this story involves a school shooting. I found it very disturbing that this would be the story to kick off the anthology but it's not my book, so I digress. I still found it in bad taste to start off a book with school based themes with a school shooting. I felt the build up to the event was a bit boring, I found the subject matter predictable and I found I really didn't care about any of the school characters. I almost wanted the "crazy man" to shoot the sniveling woman who gets hidden in the closet while Sookie plays possum. The whole story felt like it was just thrown together with a quick idea. I realize that in an extreme situation, sometimes the best thing to do, is hide or play dead but from a reader stand point, it was boring.
Anywho, on to the next story.
Ilona Andrews - Magic Tests. I actually really enjoyed this story. It follows Julie and her ongoing battle with trying to find a school. If you're a fan of Ilona Andrews, you'll know that this is a recurring theme when dealing with Julie. She is the ward of the two main characters in the Kate Daniels stories. Julie is forever not fitting in at school and tends to not stay in one for very long although this time, it seems she may have found one she'll stick with. So the story starts off with Julie visiting a school. The beginning isn't quiet clear to me as to why she gets roped into searching for a missing girl/being shown around but I probably just need to reread it. Anywho, she ends up helping find a missing girl and making friends along the way. I can totally see this sprouting into a YA offshoot or just being a good thread for the other books. I actually really enjoyed the build up, the characters and the resolution. It was nice to see Julie growing up and putting her powers to good use. We have only really heard about her powers but there wasn't much use for them in the Kate Daniels books. In this short story, she uses them to help her play detective and ferret out the bad guys. There is also some great new characters introduced along with a possible future love interest for Julie although it could be just a nice future friendship.
Between this story and the other story it was like night and day. They both are great authors but you can really tell who had fun with the story and spent time within the theme and who just slapped it together. I'm actually fairly happy that Mrs. Harris has decided to end the Sookie books with the last book coming out next year. I love the books and of course the TV show but I do have to say that the last couple books have really gone off course and it looks like even the short stories have too. I hate seeing good characters basically put to pasture. On a positive note, if you like anthologies and you want some Back To School fun, give "An Apple for the Creature" a try.(less)

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Oct 27, 2012 Susana rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, ilona-andrews, short-story, anthologies

So far, i've only read Magic Tests by the team Ilona Andrews.

What can i say about this story?

I loved it! Just wished that this short story, wasn't so short... :D
Julie...what can i say about this girl?
Well, why don't you read this small excerpt:

The first guard stepped forward, blocking my path. I gave him my cute smile,
looked past him, and pointed to myself, as if I was being summoned over and couldn’t
believe it. He glanced over his shoulder to check Yu Fong’s face. I drove my fist hard
into his...more

1 like · like · see review

Oct 18, 2012 Lucy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, urban-fantasy, library-book

I liked several of these stories, but my favorite was Golden Delicious by Faith Hunter, which tells about Rick Lafleur and his further education as a were-tainted former cop. I liked Rick from the beginning in the Jane Yellowrock series and wondered how he was doing with this new feature in his life. It also contains the phrase that is the title of the series.
I also liked Spellcaster 2.0 by Jonathan Maberry, who is new to me. It features graduate students studying magic as a purely folklore stud...more

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Sep 30, 2012 Cindy Crawford rated it 3 of 5 stars

This collection of short stories is definitely worth reading, although only one or two stories really stood out. These are all stories about some kind of supernatural creatures or magic, and all have something to do with a school setting.

Most people will probably read the book for the Sookie Stackhouse story, and it is a good one. Sookie takes cupcakes to her nephew's class at the same time the deranged ex-boyfriend of the school secretary shows up. The story is tense, and allows Sookie to use h...more This collection of short stories is definitely worth reading, although only one or two stories really stood out. These are all stories about some kind of supernatural creatures or magic, and all have something to do with a school setting.

Most people will probably read the book for the Sookie Stackhouse story, and it is a good one. Sookie takes cupcakes to her nephew's class at the same time the deranged ex-boyfriend of the school secretary shows up. The story is tense, and allows Sookie to use her telepathic abilities to help capture the bad guy. A brave human principal, a witch who teaches kindergarten, and her nephew all help Sookie save the school.

Another story I enjoyed is Magic Tests by Ilona Andrews. This is a standalone story set in the world of her Kate Daniels series, featuring Julie, Kate's adopted ward/daughter. Julie is sent to a school for special children, those who are not human, and asked to find a missing girl. She does, and along the way realizes that Kate has in fact tricked her into wanting to attend school. While this reads as a YA story, it make me want to read the Kate Daniels series.

Golden Delicious by Faith Hunter is another favorite, but I admit to being prejudiced here because this is a story set in the Jane Yellowrock series, which I love. Jane doesn't appear in this story, however; this is the story of Rick LaFleur's training to be a PsyLED agent and takes place shortly after Rick was kidnapped, tortured, and turned by the were-pack. The actual mystery they solve takes place while we also get to see the training involved.

Iphigenai in Aulis is perhaps my favorite story of all. The story is set in a school in a prison, and the truth about the school and the students who attend unfolds slowly through the story. This is a heartbreaker about love and compassion and fear and heroism.

All of the other stories are worth reading, and this book meets the criteria for any short story collection: I read stories I liked and found new authors to read.(less)

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Sep 08, 2012 Melodiacat rated it 4 of 5 stars

Playing Possum

Short Story by: Charlaine Harris - Part of An Apple for Creature Anthology

Published on: September 4, 2012

Published by: Ace Hardcover

Reviewed by: Maria G.

Publisher's Blurb: What could be scarier than the first day of school? How about a crash course in the paranormal from Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner, editors of Home Improvement: Undead Edition? Your worst school nightmares—taking that math test you never studied for, finding yourself naked in school assembly, not knowing...more

1 like · like · see review

Sep 05, 2012 Ferdy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Rating only for Magic Tests - 3/5 stars, spoilers

I didn't read any of the contributions by the other authors, I just read Ilona Andrews short story. Magic Tests is from the perspective of Kate's ward Julie.
Julie is annoyed when Kate takes her to a new school to enroll, on their arrival the principle asks Julie to investigate a missing student.
I had mixed feelings about Julie. I didn't really like her at the beginning of the story when she was around Kate but once she was with people her own age...more Rating only for Magic Tests - 3/5 stars, spoilers

I didn't read any of the contributions by the other authors, I just read Ilona Andrews short story. Magic Tests is from the perspective of Kate's ward Julie.
Julie is annoyed when Kate takes her to a new school to enroll, on their arrival the principle asks Julie to investigate a missing student.
I had mixed feelings about Julie. I didn't really like her at the beginning of the story when she was around Kate but once she was with people her own age she was actually pretty decent. Around Kate, Julie came across as ungrateful and bratty - Kate doesn't owe her anything yet she stomps and pouts at her when things don't go her way. Thankfully, her attitude does improve when she meets the other students — her interactions with Brook, Yu and Barka were pretty entertaining. I liked Julie's little investigation — she was clever and knew how to handle herself in a fight. She did remind me of Kate a little when she was trying to solve things but I suppose Kate would have rubbed off on her. I did think Julie blabbed a little too much in regard to what she was really doing at the school - I would have preferred it if Julie had tried to discreetly investigate things but I suppose since it was a short story there was no room to do things subtly.
Moving on, I hope Julie doesn't 'save herself' for Derek or worse Ascancio and she actually dates and has relationships like a normal teenager instead of mooning over some unattainable crush for years before he deigns to notice her. I'd like her to get some action with Yu in the future — he wasn't half bad.
On a different note, I wasn't happy that Julie first and foremost referred to Kate as the Beast Lord's mate, when she's so much more, she should have identified Kate as her guardian or as a badass mercenary before referring to her as a member of Curran's Pack.
I wouldn't mind reading more of Julie's adventures at her new school, as long as she's not around too many adults I think she could be a great little heroine.(less)

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Sep 03, 2012 ALPHAreader rated it 5 of 5 stars

 ‘Magic Tests’ by Ilona Andrews

 ‘Magic Tests’ by Ilona Andrews

Julie Lennart-Olsen is princess of the Pack and ward to pack-master Curran and his mate, Kate Daniels. She knows her important place in the pack hierarchy, and what is expected of her as ward to two of the most powerful people in Atlanta. But what Julie cannot abide, what is far too awful for words, pomp and circumstance is . . . school. Julie once went so far as to mail herself back to Kate rather than remain at her hated boarding school. That’s why Julie can’t quite believe that Kate is insisting Julie start attending a new school, and the horrible cycle is going to begin all over again. Or is it?

Kate has ulterior motives for sending Julie to a particular Atlanta school, where a young girl called Ashlyn has gone missing – and nobody seems to be lifting a finger to find her. Luckily Julie is up for the task, but she may not be prepared for what she uncovers in her search for a missing schoolgirl . . .

‘Magic Tests’ is the new short story set in the ‘Kate Daniels’ universe, by Ilona Andrews and appearing in the paranormal anthology ‘An Apple for the Creature’.

I said it after reading ‘Gunmetal Magic’, and now I really, truly believe it. Kate Daniels’s young ward, Julie, is utterly deserving of her very own spin-off. If not a stand-alone book, then Julie could most assuredly carry her own young adult spin-off series. And to anyone who doesn’t think she’s up to the task, I would direct you to ‘Magic Tests’, which highlights Julie’s mettle and sprouts a cast of interesting secondary characters around her.

On her first day of school (and on the hunt for missing Ashlyn) Julie is paired with Brook, a straight-A student with blinkers on but who nevertheless agrees to help Julie in her investigations. Tagging along, if only to nag at Brook, is class clown Barka and keeping a weathered eye on Julie’s progress is class telekinetic, Lisa, who is adamant that Ashlyn is dead and Julie is wasting her time.

But the story takes a particularly interesting turn when Julie’s investigations lead her to the “odd Chinese guy” who everyone seems convinced is an ex-convict, and mafia-affiliated. Yu Fong certainly encourages the rumours swirling around him, even going so far as to appoint two student bodyguards to watch over him in the cafeteria. When Julie lays eyes on him, she’s amazed at his physical perfection and clear magic force – and speaking to him clears nothing up. He recognizes Julie’s ‘Lennart’ surname, and seems disturbingly knowledgeable about all things pack. But in the midst of her investigations, Yu Fong also becomes rather interested in Julie;

Thin tendrils of smoke escaped from his book. The table near him must have been much hotter than on my end. That had to be something because the metal was now hurting my fingers.
“If I find out that you hurt Ashlyn, I’ll hurt you back,” I said.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Do. Your book is smoking.”
He picked it up. I slowly raised my hand, blew on my skin, and got up to leave.
“Why do you care?” he asked.
“Because none of you do. Look around you – a girl is missing. A girl you saw in class every day got so scared by something, she had to hide from it. Nobody is looking for her. All of you are just going on with your business as usual. You have all this power and you didn’t lie a finger to help her. You just sit there, reading your book, comfy behind your bodyguards, and demonstrate how awesome your magic is by heating up your table. Somebody has to find her. I decided to be that somebody.”

There was nothing better than reading Julie turn gumshoe and finally get a chance to see how much of an influence Kate has had over her moral character. Julie absolutely shines in ‘Magic Tests’, and it was wonderful to read her own world (at once connected, and outside the Pack) take shape and expand.

The real highlight of this book is the mysterious Yu Fong. Not necessarily a romantic connection for Julie (she has more than enough on her hands, between Derek and Ascanio) but once we discover what Yu Fong is, and the potential power he wields, there’s no mistaking he could be a formidable force in Julie’s life . . . and this is Julie’s life now, we are left to assume. She makes connections and friends at this school, and finds that she can stand on her own two feet away from Kate and the Pack (much as she may love them both, respectively.) Of course what this short is missing is the aforementioned Derek and Ascanio – but like I said in the beginning, ‘Magic Tests’ reads like a delicious teaser of endless possibility. I dare think that if (or is that, when?) Derek and Ascanio move into Julie’s new orbit, Ilona Andrews will have yet another hit on their hands. . .
(less)

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Feb 26, 2013 Sabina Bundgaard rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I bought this anthology only because of Ilona Andrews story; Magic Tests. As usual, I found a few more authors to put on my list. My TBR Pile is NOT happy! ;-)

I will talk about a little about each story and in the end I will give my opinion on the entire book.
Enjoy! As always, no spoilers. Or at least I will try.
Playing Possum by Charlaine Harris:

This is a short story about Sookie and the day she had promised to come to Hunter’s school with cupcakes. The day turns out be a little more exciting...more

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Feb 18, 2013 Jen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: anthologies, 2013-pan-uf, pcpl-read, genre-urban-fantasy, to-buy, reviewed, 2013-ufa-creature-comforts

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Several stories inspired me to add some authors to my to-read list; one (the Charlaine Harris story) made me want to revisit that series (the Sookie Stackhouse series) and get caught up on published works; and several were sadly not the greatest according to my tastes, but still entertaining enough to read and enjoy at least once.

The authors whose stories I enjoyed enough to want to read more by them were Faith Hunter, Toni L.P. Kelner, Ilona Andrews, Thomas E. Sn ...more

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Jan 15, 2013 Lbaker rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, short-stories, fantasy

Giving this 4 stars as that's the nearest number when I add up the individual stories stars and divide by number of stories.

Playing Possum by Charlaine Harris - 4 stars, was interesting, focused on Sookie and her "nephew". Enjoyed reading a Sookie story that didn't have the annoying fairy side characters.

Spellcaster 2.0 by Jonathan Maberry - 3 stars, found a little predictable.

Academy Field Trip by Donald Harstad - 3 stars, interesting twists, but not much character development.

Sympathy for Bon...more

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Feb 12, 2013 Amanda rated it 3 of 5 stars

I picked this up only for the Charlaine Harris story, in spite of the quality of the past few Sookie books and shorts. It wasn't fantastic, but there was no Eric (yay!), and also no weird strip club scenes with Pam (bigger yay!). So overall, a pleasant surprise since I was expecting to be quite disappointed.

Of the other stories, as usual, some were great and some were just ok. Nothing too horrible though which was nice. My only regret was that Patricia Briggs didn't contribute as well. I'm only...more

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Sep 09, 2012 Kim rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ebooks, favourites, paranormal, fairy-tales-and-myths

*REVIEW FOR MAGIC TESTS - ILONA ANDREWS ONLY*

'Magic Tests' was a pretty cool story set in the Kate Daniels world.

Julie Olsen, Kate's ward, has always struggled to follow rules, especially when it comes to learning. Despite Kate's extensive knowledge and fighting skills, she believes it's best for Julie to attend a school that will focus on developing her powers to their best ability. So when Julie's dragged to another school, she starts thinking of her latest escape plan. But it's not all it s...more

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Nov 05, 2012 Craig Buno rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Sep 22, 2012 Yui rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: series-based-anthology

To buy or to borrow? I only want Julie's story by Ilona Andrews so this is a tough one. Hmnnn....

Only read Magic Test by Ilona Andrews so all credits to them. ^-^
Can't wait to read more of Julie's next adventure. It seems like Derek will have a competition if he stays a dimwit. LoL. Love that 'dimwit' part. Implies frustrations and fun, fun scenes on how he got the title.

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Sep 14, 2012 Ann aka Iftcan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: a-book-a-day-challenge, anthology, dogs, fantasy, magic, paranormal-mystery, post-apcolyptic, psychic-powers, romance, shifters-all-but-wolves, vampire, were-wolf, witches

As with any other anthology, some stories were good, some ok and some ho-hum.

There is a new Sookie story in this collection for those who are fans of hers. She's taking cupcakes to her "nephew's" kindergarden class for a holiday treat. Unfortunately, as is true for ANY anthology about "the horrors of attending school" the party has an uninvited "guest."

Ilona Andrews has a short story set in her Kate Daniels world. Kate makes a VERY brief appearance in it, but most of the action is from the pov o...more

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Dec 03, 2012 Lynda Tatad rated it 3 of 5 stars

I loved the theme of this anthology! Some stories deserved 5 stars, some only 2, some in the 4 range, which is why there is an overall 3 star rating. Since there are 13 stories in this anthology, I'm just going to mention the stories that stood out for me that would have gotten the 4-5 star ratings.

"Playing Possum" is the Sookie Stackhouse story by Ms. Harris, and it features Sookie being asked by her 'nephew' Hunter to bring cupcakes to his class to help celebrate his birthday. A psycho ex-boy...more
I loved the theme of this anthology! Some stories deserved 5 stars, some only 2, some in the 4 range, which is why there is an overall 3 star rating. Since there are 13 stories in this anthology, I'm just going to mention the stories that stood out for me that would have gotten the 4-5 star ratings.

"Playing Possum" is the Sookie Stackhouse story by Ms. Harris, and it features Sookie being asked by her 'nephew' Hunter to bring cupcakes to his class to help celebrate his birthday. A psycho ex-boyfriend of one of the office staff shows up to wreak havoc. only Sookie and Hunter's teacher can help keep events from turning into a school massacre!

"Sympathy for the Bones" by Marjorie M Liu is an interesting story about an apprentice who is learning things from her (vodoun like) teacher that she doesn't like learning. She hides her skills from her instructor until she can find a way out of her arrangement, and find a way to change her life.

"Low School" by Rhys Bowen is more of an afterlife school in Hell where a young woman finds herself reliving her worst days in high school before she had unknowingly sold her soul to change her life. She slowly starts remembering her life as an adult and plans on trying to make a difference.

"Golden Delicious" by Faith Hunter is about a special task force created of 2 werewolves, one in human form, and one forced to stay in wolf form, learning to work together with another partner, whose job is to keep the werewolves in check. It takes place on a police academy type school.

"Magic Tests" from Ilona Andrews is a story told from the POV of Kate Daniel's adopted daughter Julie. She is given the task to help look for a missing student at Seven Stars Academy, and she meets some interesting characters in the school. Her life on the street before meeting Kate helps her in this case, as she knows how to read people. Kate has her own reasons for letting Julie do this on her own, too. I loved seeing a story unfold under a different viewpoint, and I hope more stories come out featuring Julie!

"Callie Meet Happy" from Amber Benson (actress turned author) has Callie Reaper Jones having to take a remedial magic class while overseeing Death, Inc. she's a little busy dealing with work to focus on her home work on learning how to open a wormhole (for traveling purposes or other). Once she accomplishes this, she meets two women who have some troubles of their own that she is able to help out with. Very like able characters!

"The Bad Hour" from Thomas E Sniegoski has Remi (angelic PI) and his dog Marlowe investigating some weird happenings centered around a dog trainer and her school. I haven't read the stories of Remy and Marlowe before, but I have read his book The Fallen, as well as seen the movie version. Good story with an interesting twist!

The next story I enjoyed was "VSI" by Nancy Holder, about a team of FBI agents being sent to. CSI type of academy, only learning about vampires and the evidence from their kills. The interesting twist is what one of the students Claire discovers who the vampire really is that they are tracking!

The final story was another fun one from Toni P Kelner featuring the vampire Pirate Dave and his werewolf lady love Joyce. In "Pirate Dave and the Captain's Ghost", Joyce is at a werewolf seminar retreat where she encounters Captain Bob, who decides to haunt Joyce when he discovers that she is dating a vampire. A human 'paranormal expert' also has an interest in Joyce, and wants to learn more about vampires... A fun fitting finale to the anthology!

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Nov 29, 2012 Ryan Zimmerman Carstairs rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audio

Overall it gets a 3 1/2 star rating, but because it had so many really, really good stories I am rounding it up to a 4. I have to buy a copy and add it to my collection.

"Playing Possum" by Charlaine Harris - Best story I have read by her. (****)

"Spellcaster 2.0" by Jonathan Maberry - Very good, I LOVE the idea; but the ending was a little... disappointing. (***)

"Academy Field Trip" by Donald Harstad - Excellent. (*****)

"Sympathy for the Bones" by Marjorie M/ Liu - Faboo! (*****)

"Low School" by R...more

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About Charlaine Harris

Charlaine Harris has been a published novelist for over twenty-five years. A native of the Mississippi Delta, she grew up in the middle of a cotton field. Now she lives in southern Arkansas with her husband, her three children, three dogs, and a duck. The duck stays outside.

Though her early output consisted largely of ghost stories, by the time she hit college (Rhodes, in Memphis) Charlaine was wr...more Charlaine Harris has been a published novelist for over twenty-five years. A native of the Mississippi Delta, she grew up in the middle of a cotton field. Now she lives in southern Arkansas with her husband, her three children, three dogs, and a duck. The duck stays outside.

Though her early output consisted largely of ghost stories, by the time she hit college (Rhodes, in Memphis) Charlaine was writing poetry and plays. After holding down some low-level jobs, she had the opportunity to stay home and write, and the resulting two stand-alones were published by Houghton Mifflin. After a child-producing sabbatical, Charlaine latched on to the trend of writing mystery series, and soon had her own traditional books about a Georgia librarian, Aurora Teagarden. Her first Teagarden, Real Murders, garnered an Agatha nomination.

Soon Charlaine was looking for another challenge, and the result was the much darker Lily Bard series. The books, set in Shakespeare, Arkansas, feature a heroine who has survived a terrible attack and is learning to live with its consequences.

When Charlaine began to realize that neither of those series was ever going to set the literary world on fire, she regrouped and decided to write the book she’d always wanted to write. Not a traditional mystery, nor yet pure science fiction or romance, Dead Until Dark broke genre boundaries to appeal to a wide audience of people who just enjoy a good adventure. Each subsequent book about Sookie Stackhouse, telepathic Louisiana barmaid and friend to vampires, werewolves, and various other odd creatures, has drawn more readers. The Southern Vampire books are published in Japan, Great Britain, Greece, Germany, Thailand, Spain, France, and Russia.

In addition to Sookie, Charlaine has another heroine with a strange ability. Harper Connelly, lightning-struck and strange, can find corpses… and that’s how she makes her living.

In addition to her work as a writer, Charlaine is the past senior warden of St. James Episcopal Church, a board member of Mystery Writers of America, a past board member of Sisters in Crime, a member of the American Crime Writers League, and past president of the Arkansas Mystery Writers Alliance. She spends her "spare" time reading, watching her daughter play sports, traveling, and going to the movies. (less)

More about Charlaine Harris...

Books by Charlaine Harris

Living Dead in Dallas (Sookie Stackhouse, #2)

Dead to the World (Sookie Stackhouse, #4)

Dead as a Doornail (Sookie Stackhouse, #5)

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Quotes from An Apple for the Creature

“When I got a bad grade in my old boarding school, Kate would make a trip to the school to chew me out. When I got homesick, I'd flunk a grade on purpose. Sometimes she came by herself. Sometimes with other people. Boy kind of people. Of whom I promised myself I wouldn't be thinking about, because they were idiots.” — 4 people liked it

“True strength isn’t in killing—or ignoring—your opponent, it’s in having the will to shield those who need your protection.” — 4 people liked it

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An Apple for the Creature (Kate Daniels #5.3)

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