Review : Cold Burn of Magic by Jennifer Estep

Summary (from Goodreads) 

Title : Cold Burn of Magic (Black Blade #1)
Author : Jennifer Estep
Publication Date : April 28th 2015
Publisher : K-Teen
Goodreads - Amazon - Barnes & Noble

There Be Monsters Here. . .

It's not as great as you'd think, living in a tourist town that's known as "the most magical place in America." Same boring high school, just twice as many monsters under the bridges and rival Families killing each other for power.

I try to keep out of it. I've got my mom's bloodiron sword and my slightly illegal home in the basement of the municipal library. And a couple of Talents I try to keep quiet, including very light fingers and a way with a lock pick.

But then some nasty characters bring their Family feud into my friend's pawn shop, and I have to make a call--get involved, or watch a cute guy die because I didn't. I guess I made the wrong choice, because now I'm stuck putting everything on the line for Devon Sinclair. My mom was murdered because of the Families, and it looks like I'm going to end up just like her. . .

Personal Thoughts

Jennifer Estep writes some seriously fun YA paranormal books and despite the genre being over-saturated, she still manages to craft unique stories. Having loved her previous YA series, I was excited to see that she was releasing a new series about magical mobs! Cold Burn of Magic was everything that I expected and so much more.

Cold Burn of Magic's main character, Lila, was in a word, badass! This girl had some moves and she was easy to love. I loved her feisty and snarky nature and she had me cracking up several times during the book. Not only that, but she also knew how to weave magic and how to kick-butt. I find it hard to connect with characters like Lila very often because I'm the opposite of badass, but Lila's more vulnerable side made her a relateable character. I admired her so much. She had lost her mother to a brutal mother, but still managed to take care of herself and go through life with her head held high. She was a great protagonist is many ways. I also enjoyed most of the secondary characters in Cold Burn of Magic. I, particularly loved Devon and Felix' characters. Devon, especially, was a character who surprised me multiple times during the book. I loved how sweet and genuine he was. I was sort of expecting him to be a bratty rich kid, but he was the opposite. Devon was going through his own issues in the book, and I truly felt for the guy. Felix, too, was a delight. I loved how talkative he was and he completely won me over. Plus, there was a cute little pixie called Oscar, who loved to dress up like a redneck cowboy, and tended to be volatile but had a heart of gold, who made me fall in love with him!

One of my favorite aspects of Cold Burn of Magic was the world building and the plot. I loved the creative idea of magical mob families and their rivalries. I thought Jennifer Estep did a great job executing it. Learning about the world full of magic, was intriguing and quite the fascinating experience. The plot, too, was action-packed from start to finish. I was left feeling breathless throughout most of the book and the fast-paced nature of the story, kept me glued to my e-reader. It's definitely the kind of book that sweeps you away into an epic adventure. Cold Burn of Magic was also a book that surprised me quite a bit. There were some revelations that I did not predict and that just magnified my enjoyment of the novel. The main villain, especially, came as a surprise. There are also other villains in the book and I'm excited to get to know them and their twisted personalities in the next book. Cold Burn of Magic also had a very slow budding romance. I like that Jennifer Estep is not rushing their relationship and I can't wait for it to fully develop because Devon and Lila already make a great team.

If you're looking for a fun, original and action-packed YA paranormal book, with a great cast and a strong story, I highly recommend Cold Burn of Magic. Trust me, you'll fall in love with this book as much as I did!

Rating 

Cover : 4/5
Plot : 4/5
Characters : 4/5
Writing : 4/5





Thank you to NetGalley and K-Teen for the e-ARC of Cold Burn of Magic.

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