Kathy's Reviews > Strange Brew
Strange Brew
by P.N. Elrod , Patricia Briggs , Jim Butcher (Goodreads Author) , Rachel Caine , Karen Chance (Goodreads Author) , Charlaine Harris , Faith Hunter (Goodreads Author) , Caitlin Kittredge , more…
by P.N. Elrod , Patricia Briggs , Jim Butcher (Goodreads Author) , Rachel Caine , Karen Chance (Goodreads Author) , Charlaine Harris , Faith Hunter (Goodreads Author) , Caitlin Kittredge , more…
Kathy's review
bookshelves: fantasy, fantasy-other-world, short-stories, wizard-witch
Aug 28, 10
bookshelves: fantasy, fantasy-other-world, short-stories, wizard-witch
Read in August, 2010
These are all written in the first person... it makes it hard to get the names of the main character...
Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs... Wendy Moira Keller a white witch, forsees her own death in a confrontation with her father, a black witch, who took one of her eyes to power his magic, and made her sacrifice the other, hence she is blind. Tom Franklin, 2nd of the Emerald City Pack, a werewolf/policeman, comes to her because he believes Kuros, leader of the black coven, has kidnaped his brother John, human but with 'sight' & also a policeman (for use in gaining power through his death)... She agrees to help, and as they are trying to locate the coven, using her magic, her power is boosted by her touch of Tom, like a familiar... They locate the coven, and tom turns into a werewolf, and they defeat them... and Tom knows Moira is his family... and they leave with John...
Last Call - Jim Butcher
Henry Dresden & Karrin Murphy versus an ancient goddess of drink... Henry goes to his favorite supernatural power free zone bar for a beer, and finds destruction - everyone in the bar apparently had been fighting, but could not remember why... Mac's personally brewed beer is contaminated by something that led to violence... and beer kegs are missing... They track it down to the pro football game... the contaminant creates a lustful rage... and Karrin has succumbed... She teasingly calls out to Henry and wants to see his 'big rod'... but then at the impetus of the goddess, she turns violent, and they both attack Henry - he has to work to defend himself without hurting Karrin... in the end, the goddess is defeated, Karrin doesn't remember anything, and Henry is arrested for drunk and disorderly conduct (and he never even got a taste of his beer)... Karrin gets him out the next morning...
Death Warmed Over by Rachel Caine
Holly Ann is a witch that can resurrect the dead, and make a disposable - a long term resurrection... Andrew Tolin - also a witch that can resurrect the dead, he died 100 years ago fighting zombies... Holly raised him a year earlier, and fell in love... and she is asked to raise him again...someone is killing the witches that can resurrect, and the police are loosing men in trying to protect them, so they want Andrew to protect Holly... Lotty, also a witch, abuses her power & resurrects the dead to 'dog fight' one another for money... one resurrected and his brother are taking out the witches... Andrew defends Holly, dies again... Holly puts Lotty into a coma... and goes to say goodby to Andrew... and when she gently kisses him, he awakens - because he is a powerful witch, and has magic of his own...
Vegas Odds by Karen Chance
Lia de Croissets - half human witch (father's side), half wolf (mother's side)... and not accepted easily in the War Mage Corps... she is trainer of new Mages'... boyfriend is Cyrus, werewolf - hmmm I like him... there is a leak at the corps... and it ends up to be a lab tech good in illusion, and he has spelled her students to believe they are taking thier final test (similar to Star Trek's Kublakoran) where their character is tested and they face death... they believe they must kill their mentor and will probably die themselves... The fight is quite real, and Cyrus shows up to help her... when she realizes they are her students, she works to disable them not kill them...She uncovers the leak, with a stab womb, gunshot wound, etc... Her relationship with Cyrus is the most poignant... he treats her gently when they are having sex, and it makes her feel as if he doesn't fully accept her (put down of her human side)... and when they finally talk about it (after she knocked him out to prevent him from helping her, & she is recovering from her injuries) he tells her that it is because he thought she had enough intensity, and that gentle would be how she would best like sex... ahhhhh
Hecate's Golden Eye by P.N.Elrod
Escott is approached to steal back Hecate's Golden Eye, a cursed family heirloom, a gem with a flaw that is shaped like an eye... Jack Fleming joins Escott as they try to right a wrong... in the end, the woman's sister (who stole the brooch) is married to a 'confidence' man, who with his partner Taylor, pay her with conterfeit money for the stolen brooch... but Fleming trades the fake one for the real, and returns it to the correct owner... and her sister is duped, all the way around.
Bacon by Charlaine Harris
Dalia Lindley Chivers, vampire, widow of a werewolf... a werewolf challenged by a rival packmember after being spelled, so he was unable to fight effectively, or to call uncle, so he was killed without sanction... Dalia meets with Kathy Anitas, a Circe witch (greek mythology, Circe changed Odyssey's men to pigs for a year) under the guise of hiring her to gain revenge on the rival pack, but to gain knowledge of her, as she knew she was the one to spell her husband... she steals one of Dalia's grimoires, and spells the rival pack on the full moon to loose most of their hair, and then spells Kathy to become a pig, and presents the pig to the pack (they of course do not know it is Kathy)
Signatures of the Dead by Faith Hunter
Molly Everheart Trueblood - an earth witch, with a sorcerer husband (which they keep secret to protect themselves & the kids), and 2 children who will be witches... living in the Appalachian mountains... friends with retired new york cop Braxton who settled here and works partime with the sheriff...Braxton calls on her help to define the perpetrators of a family murder - she can 'read' the dead - picks up images of what happened... she goes with her friend, Cherokee witch Jane Yellowrock who can shapeshift... and 'sees' 7 new vampires (wild, blood hungry, uncontrolled - without a sire to chain and care for them in their 'vampiric infancy')... who drained blood, chomped on bodies, raped the mother & girl...Yellowrock, in a mountain lion form, tracks them to a series of abandoned miner's caves... before they can move on them, Molly's sister is taken... Molly, her husband, Yellowrock & Braxton go into the mines to kill the vampires & to rescue her sister if possible... Yellowrock kills the majority of them... but all except Molly are seriously injured... Molly's healing spell save 2 of them, but not Braxton... they rescue her sister, behead 7 vampires, and are set to collect half million dollars in reward...
Ginger a Notcturne Story by
Sunny (Sunflower) is a timid, but powerful witch... with a good heart and desire to do good... her sister Luna is a policeofficer... when in court with her sister, she senses a magic attack starting ... and using her magic she stops anyone from getting hurt... and she becomes part of a conspiracy of bad witches that are using 'glamour' to take over the lives of key persons to get the criminal out... Sunny ends up being captured and held in a cage with a group of magic children... and they glamour someone to take her place so her sister does not know that she is missing... and Sunny gets free, figures out the whole scheme and joins her sister in defeating the bad guys.
Dark Sins by Jenna Maclaine
1880's, Venice... Sin & Michael, Devlin & Justine (excourtsan) are a team of vampires that fight rogue vampires... Sin is the youngest vampire (only 3 years old, and turned by Michael) and Sin is the only witch who kept her powers when she became a vampire... They are kidnapped by an evil Mage who wants Sin to join him... her lover & friends are unconscious & laid out as sacrifices on concrete slabs, and Sin is being held in a warded force field and she cannot escape... She refuses to take the Mage's blood (taking on his evil) even though he is about to kill Michael... but the goddess Morrigan intercedes, freezes the actions and explains to Sin that she was specially chosen by her to be powerful witch/vampire to protect humans - that she gave her Michael and true love to sustain her for centuries, and helps her to realize her power... she stops the mage, and Michael tells her not to kill him, but when she hesitates, the mage stabs her with a knife that had his blood... she feels the tainted, evil blood - and kills the mage and his followers, finally hearing Devlin demanding she stop... she is ashamed, and Morrigan comes to them again, removes the taint... and tells her life is a learning experience...
Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs... Wendy Moira Keller a white witch, forsees her own death in a confrontation with her father, a black witch, who took one of her eyes to power his magic, and made her sacrifice the other, hence she is blind. Tom Franklin, 2nd of the Emerald City Pack, a werewolf/policeman, comes to her because he believes Kuros, leader of the black coven, has kidnaped his brother John, human but with 'sight' & also a policeman (for use in gaining power through his death)... She agrees to help, and as they are trying to locate the coven, using her magic, her power is boosted by her touch of Tom, like a familiar... They locate the coven, and tom turns into a werewolf, and they defeat them... and Tom knows Moira is his family... and they leave with John...
Last Call - Jim Butcher
Henry Dresden & Karrin Murphy versus an ancient goddess of drink... Henry goes to his favorite supernatural power free zone bar for a beer, and finds destruction - everyone in the bar apparently had been fighting, but could not remember why... Mac's personally brewed beer is contaminated by something that led to violence... and beer kegs are missing... They track it down to the pro football game... the contaminant creates a lustful rage... and Karrin has succumbed... She teasingly calls out to Henry and wants to see his 'big rod'... but then at the impetus of the goddess, she turns violent, and they both attack Henry - he has to work to defend himself without hurting Karrin... in the end, the goddess is defeated, Karrin doesn't remember anything, and Henry is arrested for drunk and disorderly conduct (and he never even got a taste of his beer)... Karrin gets him out the next morning...
Death Warmed Over by Rachel Caine
Holly Ann is a witch that can resurrect the dead, and make a disposable - a long term resurrection... Andrew Tolin - also a witch that can resurrect the dead, he died 100 years ago fighting zombies... Holly raised him a year earlier, and fell in love... and she is asked to raise him again...someone is killing the witches that can resurrect, and the police are loosing men in trying to protect them, so they want Andrew to protect Holly... Lotty, also a witch, abuses her power & resurrects the dead to 'dog fight' one another for money... one resurrected and his brother are taking out the witches... Andrew defends Holly, dies again... Holly puts Lotty into a coma... and goes to say goodby to Andrew... and when she gently kisses him, he awakens - because he is a powerful witch, and has magic of his own...
Vegas Odds by Karen Chance
Lia de Croissets - half human witch (father's side), half wolf (mother's side)... and not accepted easily in the War Mage Corps... she is trainer of new Mages'... boyfriend is Cyrus, werewolf - hmmm I like him... there is a leak at the corps... and it ends up to be a lab tech good in illusion, and he has spelled her students to believe they are taking thier final test (similar to Star Trek's Kublakoran) where their character is tested and they face death... they believe they must kill their mentor and will probably die themselves... The fight is quite real, and Cyrus shows up to help her... when she realizes they are her students, she works to disable them not kill them...She uncovers the leak, with a stab womb, gunshot wound, etc... Her relationship with Cyrus is the most poignant... he treats her gently when they are having sex, and it makes her feel as if he doesn't fully accept her (put down of her human side)... and when they finally talk about it (after she knocked him out to prevent him from helping her, & she is recovering from her injuries) he tells her that it is because he thought she had enough intensity, and that gentle would be how she would best like sex... ahhhhh
Hecate's Golden Eye by P.N.Elrod
Escott is approached to steal back Hecate's Golden Eye, a cursed family heirloom, a gem with a flaw that is shaped like an eye... Jack Fleming joins Escott as they try to right a wrong... in the end, the woman's sister (who stole the brooch) is married to a 'confidence' man, who with his partner Taylor, pay her with conterfeit money for the stolen brooch... but Fleming trades the fake one for the real, and returns it to the correct owner... and her sister is duped, all the way around.
Bacon by Charlaine Harris
Dalia Lindley Chivers, vampire, widow of a werewolf... a werewolf challenged by a rival packmember after being spelled, so he was unable to fight effectively, or to call uncle, so he was killed without sanction... Dalia meets with Kathy Anitas, a Circe witch (greek mythology, Circe changed Odyssey's men to pigs for a year) under the guise of hiring her to gain revenge on the rival pack, but to gain knowledge of her, as she knew she was the one to spell her husband... she steals one of Dalia's grimoires, and spells the rival pack on the full moon to loose most of their hair, and then spells Kathy to become a pig, and presents the pig to the pack (they of course do not know it is Kathy)
Signatures of the Dead by Faith Hunter
Molly Everheart Trueblood - an earth witch, with a sorcerer husband (which they keep secret to protect themselves & the kids), and 2 children who will be witches... living in the Appalachian mountains... friends with retired new york cop Braxton who settled here and works partime with the sheriff...Braxton calls on her help to define the perpetrators of a family murder - she can 'read' the dead - picks up images of what happened... she goes with her friend, Cherokee witch Jane Yellowrock who can shapeshift... and 'sees' 7 new vampires (wild, blood hungry, uncontrolled - without a sire to chain and care for them in their 'vampiric infancy')... who drained blood, chomped on bodies, raped the mother & girl...Yellowrock, in a mountain lion form, tracks them to a series of abandoned miner's caves... before they can move on them, Molly's sister is taken... Molly, her husband, Yellowrock & Braxton go into the mines to kill the vampires & to rescue her sister if possible... Yellowrock kills the majority of them... but all except Molly are seriously injured... Molly's healing spell save 2 of them, but not Braxton... they rescue her sister, behead 7 vampires, and are set to collect half million dollars in reward...
Ginger a Notcturne Story by
Sunny (Sunflower) is a timid, but powerful witch... with a good heart and desire to do good... her sister Luna is a policeofficer... when in court with her sister, she senses a magic attack starting ... and using her magic she stops anyone from getting hurt... and she becomes part of a conspiracy of bad witches that are using 'glamour' to take over the lives of key persons to get the criminal out... Sunny ends up being captured and held in a cage with a group of magic children... and they glamour someone to take her place so her sister does not know that she is missing... and Sunny gets free, figures out the whole scheme and joins her sister in defeating the bad guys.
Dark Sins by Jenna Maclaine
1880's, Venice... Sin & Michael, Devlin & Justine (excourtsan) are a team of vampires that fight rogue vampires... Sin is the youngest vampire (only 3 years old, and turned by Michael) and Sin is the only witch who kept her powers when she became a vampire... They are kidnapped by an evil Mage who wants Sin to join him... her lover & friends are unconscious & laid out as sacrifices on concrete slabs, and Sin is being held in a warded force field and she cannot escape... She refuses to take the Mage's blood (taking on his evil) even though he is about to kill Michael... but the goddess Morrigan intercedes, freezes the actions and explains to Sin that she was specially chosen by her to be powerful witch/vampire to protect humans - that she gave her Michael and true love to sustain her for centuries, and helps her to realize her power... she stops the mage, and Michael tells her not to kill him, but when she hesitates, the mage stabs her with a knife that had his blood... she feels the tainted, evil blood - and kills the mage and his followers, finally hearing Devlin demanding she stop... she is ashamed, and Morrigan comes to them again, removes the taint... and tells her life is a learning experience...
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