urban fantasy book review

Shaman Rises – Walker Papers #9 – By C.E. Walker

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Shaman Rises by C.E. Murphy

Title: Shaman Rises

Author: C.E. Murphy

Series: The Walker Papers

Sexual Content: suggested

Objectional Content: Violence, Language

Synopsis (from Goodreads):Joanne Walker has two choices:

Defeat the enemy…or lose her soul trying

For over a year, Joanne has been fighting the Master—the world’s most abiding evil entity. She’s sacrificed family, friendships, even watched potential futures fade away…and now the Master is bringing the final battle to Joanne’s beloved Seattle.

Lives will be lost as the repercussions of all Joanne’s final transformation into her full Shamanic abilities come to her doorstep. Before the end, she’ll mourn, rejoice—and surrender everything for the hope of the world’s survival. She’ll be a warrior and a healer. Because she is finally a Shaman Rising.

My Review

Going into Shaman Rises, I really didn’t know what to expect. There were a lot of elements that I felt needed to be tidied up. I wasn’t sure how it was all going to come together and I was apprehensive about how it would end.

Once I started Shaman Rises, I did not want to put this book down. There are so many twists and turns, I just had to keep reading. This book was so emotional. I admit I cried quite a bit. There were several times where I knew if I were Joanne, I would have just sat down and given up.

I’m a bit sad to see this series end as I’m sure there is more the author could do with it if she wanted. At the same time, I’m very satisfied with the ending and wouldn’t want to see it drag on and lose out on quality.

I honestly can’t recommend this series enough! If you are a fan of Urban Fantasy, I strongly suggest giving this series a read. My rating for Shaman Rises is 5 out of 5 stars, and my rating for the Walker Papers overall is 5 out of 5 stars. I think fans of Mercy Thompson would really like this series as there are similarities between the main characters.

Have you read the Walker Papers? Please let me know what you think!

And as always, thanks for reading!

Mountain Echoes – Walker Papers #8 – by C.E. Murhpy

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Mountain Echoes, Book 8 of the Walker Papers by C.E. Murphy

Title: Mountain Echoes

Author: C.E. Murphy

Series: The Walker Papers

Sexual Content: suggested

Objectional Content: Violence

Synopsis (from Goodreads): You can never go home again.

Joanne Walker has survived an encounter with the Master at great personal cost, but now her father is missing – stolen from the timeline. She must finally return to North Carolina to find him – and to meet Aidan, the son she left behind long ago. 

That would be enough for any shaman to face, but Joanne’s beloved Appalachians are being torn apart by an evil reaching forward from the distant past. Anything that gets in its way becomes tainted – or worse. 

And Aidan has gotten in the way. 

Only by calling on every aspect of her shamanic powers can Joanne pull the past apart and weave a better future. It will take everything she has – and more. 

Unless she can turn back time… 

My Review

After her adventures in Ireland, all Joanne Walker really wants is to sleep for about a week and maybe eat everything in sight. A phone call from an old friend sends her back to North Carolina. Her father is missing and whatever is going on is Joanne’s kind of problem.

Mountain Echoes, like Raven Calls before it, is basically non stop action. Joanne barely has any time to recover from her previous ordeal in Ireland when she’s thrust into another harrowing situation. And then another.

In previous books, we learn some of Joanne’s past, of how she grew up with her father, how she has twins when she was 15 and how the little girl didn’t survive and the boy was put up for adoption. Being back in Qualla Boundary, other things about Joanne’s past come to light. I really enjoyed learning all these things about her and seeing her look at her past from a new, more mature, perspective.

There was honestly nothing about this book I didn’t like. From beginning to end, I was riveted. I felt like I was on the edge of my seat and didn’t want to put the book down for a moment. C.E. Murphy has a knack for ending books on a cliffhanger. I can’t wait to start the final book in the series, Shaman Rises.

My rating for Mountain Echoes is 5 out of 5 stars. I would highly recommend reading the previous books if you haven’t already. I think anyone who enjoy Urban Fantasy would love this series.

Thanks for reading!

Spirit Dances – Walker Papers #6 – By C.E. Murphy

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Title: Spirit Dances

Author: C.E. Murphy

Series: The Walker Papers

Sexual Content: suggested

Objectional Content: Violence

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

For Seattle detective Joanne Walker, spring is about new beginnings. She’s mastered her shamanic abilities (mostly), survived a cannibalistic serial killer (barely) and now she’s facing the biggest challenge of her career–attending a dance concert with her sexy boss, Captain Michael Morrison. But when the performance–billed as transformative–actually changes her into a coyote, she and Morrison have bigger things to deal with.

And there’s more. Homeless people are disappearing, a mystical murder puts Joanne way out of her jurisdiction and with the full moon coming on, it’s looking like the killer is a creature that can’t possibly exist.

But Jo could probably handle all of that, if one ordinary homicide hadn’t pushed her to the very edge….

My Review

I literally just finished this book and I am basically chomping at the bit to start the next one because OMG! this series just keeps getting better and better.

Joanne Walker may have accepted her life and powers as a Shaman, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t above epically screwing up still. Her intentions are always good but sometimes, unexpected things just happen.

I would really love to see a real performance of the Ghost Dance that happens in this book. I’m sure that the written description couldn’t begin to do justice to an actual dance like that.

I was not expecting the ending of this book at all! It absolutely floored me. The moment I am done writing this, I’ll be picking up the next book.

I can’t recommend this series enough! 5 out of 5 stars! If you haven’t read it yet, go pick up Urban Shaman and get started!

Demon Hunts – Walker Papers #5 by C.E. Murphy

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Title: Demon Hunts

Author: C.E. Murphy

Series: The Walker Papers

Sexual Content: suggested

Objectional Content: Violence

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Seattle police detective Joanne Walker started the year mostly dead, and she’s ending it trying not to be consumed by evil. Literally.

She’s proven she can handle the gods and the walking dead. But a cannibalistic serial killer? That’s more than even she bargained for. What’s worse, the brutal demon can only be tracked one way. If Joanne is to stop its campaign of terror, she’ll have to hunt it where it the Lower World, a shamanistic plane of magic and spirits.

Trouble is, Joanne’s skills are no match for the dangers she’s about to face—and her on-the-job training could prove fatal to the people she’s sworn to protect….

My Review

I don’t really have a lot to say about Demon Hunts. Honestly, I loved the hell out of this book! There was nothing I didn’t like about it. The Walker Papers just keeps getting better and better. I really enjoy reading it and I’m always looking forward to the next book. I think I will be sad when I finish the last one. Thankfully, I still have a few to go!

My rating for Demon Hunts is 5 out of 5 stars! If you’ve read the previous books, definitely read this one and if you haven’t read the previous books, what are you waiting for?

Walking Dead – Walker Papers #4 By C.E. Murphy

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Title: Walking Dead

Author: C.E. Murphy

Series: The Walker Papers

Sexual Content: none

Objectional Content: Violence, descriptions of rotting corpses

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

For once, Joanne Walker’s not out to save the world. She’s come to terms with the host of shamanic powers she’s been given, her job as a police detective has been relatively calm, and she’s got a love life for the first time in memory. Not bad for a woman who started out the year mostly dead.

But it’s Halloween, and the undead have just crashed Joanne’s party.

Now, with her mentor Coyote still missing, she has to figure out how to break the spell that has let the ghosts, zombies and even the Wild Hunt come back. Unfortunately, there’s no shamanic handbook explaining how to deal with the walking dead. And if they have anything to say about it — which they do — no one’s getting out of there alive.

My Review

I have to say, I loved this book! Joanne has finally accepted her Shamanic powers and what they mean for her every day life. She can now talk about her powers and the things she does without cringing at herself. She is a great character and it has been a joy watching her grow.

I don’t normally like to gush about books, even when I think they are amazing, because I don’t want to hype them up and then have other people be disappointed based on my opinion. Honestly though, I couldn’t find a single flaw with Walking Dead, there was nothing I disliked about it.

I am enjoying the hell out of this series and can’t wait to get started on the next book!

My rating for Walking Dead is 5 out of 5 stars and I highly recommend reading it if you’ve read the previous books. And if you haven’t read the previous books, I highly recommend you do so!

Have you read any of the Walker Papers? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

Thanks for reading!

Coyote Dreams – Walker Papers #3 by C.E. Murphy

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Coyote Dreams book #3 of the Walker Papers by C.E. Murphy

Title: Banshee Cries

Author: C.E. Murphy

Series: The Walker Paper

Sexual Content: Suggested

Objectional Content: Violence

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Much of the city can’t wake up. And more are dozing off each day.

Instead of powerful forces storming Seattle,
a more insidious invasion is happening.
Most of Joanne Walker’s fellow cops are down
with the blue flu–or rather the blue sleep. Yet
there’s no physical cause anyone can point to–and it keeps spreading.

It has to be magical, Joanne figures. But what’s up with the crazy dreams that hit her
every time she closes her eyes? Are they being sent
by Coyote, her still-missing spirit guide? The messages just aren’t clear.

Somehow Joanne has to wake up her sleeping
friends while protecting those still awake,
figure out her inner-spirit dream life and, yeah,
come to terms with these other dreams she’s
having about her boss….

Coyote Dreams starts with Joanne Walker waking up with one hell of a hangover and one very good looking man in her bed. Naturally, this is the start of a chaotic morning for Joanne. Her friend, Billy Holliday, is in a coma, and not long after, his wife. Soon, half the police force is asleep and nothing Joanne does seems to help them.

I’m a little ashamed to say that Coyote Dreams is only the second book I’ve finished this year (and February is over tomorrow!). These last two months have not been great for me for reading. I’d gotten about half way through this book when I suddenly just stopped. Then, two nights ago, I picked it back up and wondered why I stopped reading to begin with!

Joanne has been reluctant from the start to accept her Shamanic powers and her role those powers give her in the world. She’s very good at denying her gifts and deflecting from talking about it by hiding behind sarcasm.

It’s here, in Coyote Dreams, that I think she really starts to accept what she is and what she should be doing. Until now she’s been running mostly on instinct, epically screwing things up while trying to fix something else.

Faced with the consequences of past actions and lacking her spirit guide, Joanne truly has to own up to her power, to accept it and take proper control of it. With no one to rely on but herself, Joanne doesn’t have much of a choice in the matter.

I think that Coyote Dreams is a really big turning point in Joanne’s character. She is really coming into her own and facing those parts of her that she refused to see for so long. The ending made me a bit sad, but it definitely will drive forward the rest of the series.

Coyote Dreams is a solid 4 out of 5 stars and I’d recommend to anyone who likes Urban Fantasy and magic systems based in Native American beliefs.

Thanks for reading!

Banshee Cries – Walker Papers 1.5 by C.E. Murphy

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Banshee Cries. The Walker Papers 1.5 by C.E. Murphy

Title: Banshee Cries

Author: C.E. Murphy

Series: The Walker Paper

Sexual Content: None

Objectional Content: Violence

Synopsis: (from Goodreads):

The last thing reluctant shaman Joanne Walker wants is to be assigned to a case of ritual murders. It’d be creepy enough all on its own, but her boss, already trusting her magic more than Jo does herself, suspects there’s more to it than just a serial killer. As Joanne is pulled more deeply into the bloody mire, she begins to realize this is a murderer with a deadline—the changing winter moon seems to be key to the power they’re building.

But Joanne’s not the only one entangled in the increasingly dangerous magic raised by the killer: she has a protector, someone who has already given up their life to keep Joanne safe…and who may be the only person able to stand between Joanne and a dark power far greater than she’s ready to handle….

My Review

Banshee Cries by C.E. Murphy is a short story that takes place between Urban Shaman and Thunderbird Falls in the Walker Papers series.

Since the events in Urban Shaman that lead to Joanne becoming a Shaman and stopping a crazed killer, she has become resistant to using her powers or even learning more about them. As a person who was always rational and logical for her entire life, it makes sense for her to revert back to that when there is no immediate danger.

There isn’t a lot for me to say about this story, as it is rather short (around 100 pages or so). However, Banshee Cries is an important addition to this series as it gives the reader more insight into Joanne’s mother and the reasons she abandoned Joanne as a baby. If not else, this is an important part in Joanne’s character development. Her life has had a fair amount of trauma and this serves a step in the healing process.

My rating for Banshee Cries is 5 out of 5 stars. I highly recommend anyone who is reading the Walker Papers to read this story as it definitely fills in some holes in Joanne’s life.

Thanks for reading!

Urban Shaman – Walker Papers #1 by C.E. Murphy

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Title: Urban Shaman

Author: C.E. Murphy

Series: The Walker Papers

Sexual Content: None

Objectional Content: Violence

Synopsis (from Goodreads): Joanne Walker has three days to learn to use her shamanic powers and save the world from the unleashed Wild Hunt.

No worries. No pressure. Never mind the lack of sleep, the perplexing new talent for healing from fatal wounds, or the cryptic, talking coyote who appears in her dreams.

And if all that’s not bad enough, in the three years Joanne’s been a cop, she’s never seen a dead body — but she’s just come across her second in three days.

It’s been a bitch of a week. And it isn’t over yet.

My Review

Urban Shaman by C.E. Murphy is a reread for me from several years ago. When I first picked up this book, the series wasn’t complete. Recently, I got the last books in the series that I was missing so now it’s time to binge it!

Joanne Walker isn’t having the best day. On her way home to Seattle from Ireland, she sees a woman being chased and a man waiting for her with a knife. Having seen this from an airplane, no one believes her. Making a new friend in the cab driver her helps her find the woman, Joanne suddenly finds herself thrust into a world she never believed existed.

Joanne is of Irish and Cherokee descent, and both cultures make an appearance here in Urban Shaman. She’s being chased by the Wild Hunt, led by an ancient Celtic god. But, she’s also a Shaman with healing powers and a spirit guide in the form of a coyote.

I love that Urban Shaman mixes Celtic and Native American lore. I’ve noticed that Celtic lore is often used in fantasy, but not a lot of Native American lore. I think that is a shame as it’s very interesting! This book doesn’t dive too deeply into it but I’m looking forward to what is to come in the following books.

Joanne is a great character. All her life she has always been rational, thinking that any kind of supernatural stuff was all made up and ridiculous. But after nearly dying by being stabbed by a Celtic god, her beliefs change completely. I actually love that her practicality makes her accept things quickly instead of trying to resist it.

This book starts out hot and doesn’t cool down! There’s little to no down time as Joanne and her friends try to figure out what is going on, why the Wild Hunt is here and why Shamans are being murdered. I think this is an excellent start to a series.

My rating for Urban Shaman is 5 out of 5 stars and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys urban fantasy books with Celtic and Native American folklore.

Thanks for reading!

The Tomb – The Watchers #1 – Review

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Synopsis (from Goodreads):

John Gideon, a former homicide detective turned P.I., has dug too deep and discovered the truth about the world while searching for the only family he has left.

John and his new partner, Beth May – a spell-wielding demon who has turned her back on Hell – are humanity’s last hope to stop a collective of Fallen Angels known as The Watchers and a hierarchy of demons from breaking the first of the Seven Seals of Revelation.

If the Seals are broken, they will set free sickness, war, and death on the world until there is nothing left but an apocalyptic wasteland for The Watchers to control. John and Beth have the tools needed and the strength to stop them. The only question is – are they already too late?

I know I must of read the synopsis for this book before deciding to read it so I’m not sure why I was surprised that it turned out to be about angels and demons. Nevermind, sorry, that has nothing to do with this review.

I loved the way this novel started, with this creepy, mysterious message in the beginning, warning the reader that nothing is what it seems and reading this will change your life forever.

We are first introduced to John and his partner Walter, two detectives with the Chicago Police Department, as they are on a stake out, waiting for suspect to show himself. Little do either of them know that this seemingly normal part of their jobs is about to change their lives forever.

Two years after Walter goes missing, John has left the force, started his own private investigator business and is obsessed with finding his old partner and friend. It’s not long before he gets swept up in a world he never believed existed. A world of angels and demons trying to release the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and the Anti-Christ into the world.

This novel is fairly short, but it packs in a lot of stuff. Honestly, I think it needed to be padded out more, for the story and relationships to develop more. Don’t get me wrong, I liked this book, I just wanted more of it, to feel a deeper connection to the characters and really feel immersed in the world, to care about the impending danger. As it all happened so quickly, I didn’t get the feeling of being completely engrossed.

As this is only the first book in a series, I have hope for the development of the characters and the world building.

I must say, I think I like Beth the most. She was a witch as a human and became a demon after death and has now been alive for several centuries. For a demon, she extremely caring and compassionate towards the human race and the world. She cares about John, she cares about the fate of humanity. She obviously has a lot of history, having been alive for so long, and the author has only barely scratched the surface of who she is and what lies in her past. I’m really looking forward to her secrets being revealed in the coming sequels.

The point of view could be a bit confusing. It would switch from being in first person from John’s perspective to Beth’s perspective and then to a third person unknown “watcher.” I generally don’t like POV’s that jump around, but in this case I felt it worked.

The story has a great deal of potential to grow as the series continues. I look forward to reading the next novel.

My rating for The Tomb is 3 out of 5 stars. I’d recommend it to fans of urban fantasy, especially if it involves angels and demons, and to anyone looking for a fun, quick, but also very intriguing read.

My thanks to the author, Carl Novakovich, and the agent for providing me with a free copy of The Tomb in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Thank for reading!

Magic Slays – Kate Daniels #5 – Book Review

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Synopsis:

Plagued by a war between magic and technology, Atlanta has never been so deadly. Good thing Kate Daniels is on the job.

Kate Daniels may have quit the Order of Merciful Aid, but she’s still knee-deep in paranormal problems. Or she would be if she could get someone to hire her. Starting her own business has been more challenging than she thought it would be—now that the Order is disparaging her good name, and many potential clients are afraid of getting on the bad side of the Beast Lord, who just happens to be Kate’s mate.

So when Atlanta’s premier Master of the Dead calls to ask for help with a vampire on the loose, Kate leaps at the chance of some paying work. Turns out this is not an isolated incident, and Kate needs to get to the bottom of it—fast, or the city and everyone dear to her might pay the ultimate price.

This review will contain spoilers if you have not read the previous books.

Kate has left the Order of Merciful Aid and has opened up her own business, which so far hasn’t gone well for her. When she finally gets a real paying job, she of course jumps at the chance and is ready to get the job done and get paid. Of course, this job isn’t as simple as it seems at first and quickly goes sideways, as many things in Kate’s life do.

At the same time, Kate’s adopted niece, Julie, decided to run away from school again. Deciding to “put her to the test”, Kate doesn’t just go pick up Julie and haul her back to school. Kate isn’t really “mother” material but she is definitely guardian material. She’s teaching that kid to be resilient and how to survive in a world that will very likely want to destroy her.

Kate is now living in the Keep as Curran’s mate. At the end of the previous book she more than earned her place as the alpha female of the Pack, even if that isn’t really what she wants to be.

This book has a lot of twists and turns. In the course of her investigation, Kate comes to learn a great deal of about her past that she never knew before. Including things that a shed a whole new light on her mother and how Voron raised her. Learning these thing also casts Curran under suspicion.

I haven’t been Curran’s biggest supporter from the beginning, so I found this whole “does he love me? Does he love me not?” thing a little annoying. Personally, I would still love it if Kate just took off somewhere and found a way to deal with her biological father on her own, but I know that isn’t going to happen.

Curran needs a good punch to the nose sometimes. Though Kate has hit him on multiple occasions so I don’t think that will actually do any good.

Overall, this book is a great read. It’s fast paced and action packed and hard to put down.

Overall, I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Thanks for reading!

I apologize if this isn’t the greatest review. I recently had minor surgery and am still on painkillers. I just wanted to get this written before i start the next book.