Magic and Curses and Monks, Oh My!

[Justine]

Each chapter unveils a whole new level of the fantastical that hides in all the nooks and crannies of this world.

We finally get a taste of what Holgren is capable of. First with Bosch, then with the terrors that awaited inside the villa. Kluge can hold his own, as well! Are any of you like me in the sense that I love having magic systems described a bit? Where does it come from? What would cause one be more powerful than another? And so on and so forth. That being said, all I know is "my turn" was the most badass response ever.

Now we have curses being thrown into the mix. Seems Red Hand the immortal is tired of the hand he's been dealt. This is his punishment for killing a god – any thoughts here? Do you think his need to retrieve the blade is for more than just ending his misery?

Arhat, who are you and what are you capable of?

Any other things catch your attention?

[Jason]

I love magic systems that are at least partially explained. A little mystery is good with them too. I'm enjoying things in this one so far. I really want to know what else Kluge can do and why he's a cop. Holgren is badass sure, but what else is Kluge hiding?

Red Hands curse is a pretty rough one. It's like those vampire stories where the vamp talks about how much it sucks that everyone else he/she has ever known is dead. What's the point of making new friends? And with Red Hand if every conversation it tiring and feels like an eternity why bother with anything. And there's no end for him. It's that whole downside to immortality thing.

[William]

Immortality and super-speed are a particularly ugly combination. It takes forever, but feels like it takes several forevers.

[Peyton]

Oh yes! I was so happy we finally got to see Holgren in action. The fight happened a lot quicker than I expected! It was kind of awesome how Holgren was just like "Ah, no" and turned Bosch into spaghetti O's. I also kind of wish the book had gone more into detail here. There is so much build-up around Holgren's potential power, I really want to see what he is capable of and more details on this magic system.

The Red Hand was a very interesting addition. I want to know more about his story! But it really came out of left field for me. There were so many twists in these chapters that it was bound to happen, but I was a bit disappointed by this twist just because there was no build-up to it.