A Shift in Shadows

Lost Legacies #1

by Maddox Grey

Secrets can only stay hidden in the shadows for so long.

Nemain is a feline shapeshifter with dangerous skills and even more dangerous magic. Her entire life she has hidden her magic from the fae, daemons, and every other being that inhabits the human realm and beyond. But now her former lover turned enemy, Sebastian, is hot on her trail after she escaped from him with the help of an old friend. The warlock is relentless in his pursuit…and he knows Nemain’s secret.

Seeking refuge in the daemon-run town of Emerald Bay on the Washington coast, Nemain works with her friends to ensure she is finally ready to face Sebastian when he finds her. It’s only a matter of time until he does. But soon she learns it’s not just Sebastian after her, the leaders of the warlocks know about her magic and they now seek her as well. To make matters worse, they’ve enlisted the vampires to help them.

With her enemies closing in around her, Nemain must fight to keep herself free and her loved ones safe. All while keeping her magic a secret. Because if the fae and daemons find out about her magic and what she truly is, they won’t want to capture her. Nemain poses too great of a threat to be allowed to live, if her secrets become known….Nemain’s life will be forfeit.

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, Romantasy, Magic, Fae, Audiobook

326 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 26, 2021

About the author

Maddox Grey is a queer nonbinary elder millennial who still remembers vividly what it was like to be emotionally damaged by the season two finale of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

They write morally grey characters who fall for equally unhinged morally grey love interests. And the banter flows as fast as the action in the stories they craft.

When they’re not putting their characters through hell, Maddox is playing video games, reading smut, burying their nose in comic books, or hiding behind a pillow while they watch horror movies.

NOTE FROM AUTHOR:
Hey there! I'm rarely on this site, only popping over occasionally to make sure my books updated correctly. If you have any questions for me, please use the contact form on my website or message me on Instagram : )

If you’re curious about what I’m reading, you can follow my “reviews” here. Personally I’m not comfortable publicly reviewing other authors books. So if I enjoyed it, it gets five stars from me, lol. My taste in books is… chaotic… but mostly some flavor of fantasy.

Reviews

[a · Rating 1 out of 5]

A Shift in Shadows tells the story of Nemain—a feline shapeshifter, as she navigates through the daemon-run Emerald Bay, deals with her trauma and tries to escape those who want to exploit her abilities.
I have to say I was quite disappointed by this book and ended up giving it a 1.5 stars rating rounded down to 1. There were so many elements that seemed appealing to me: an urban fantasy that features creatures and magic users of all sorts—I always enjoy a rich fantasy world, so I was excited to read this; however, for the majority of the book I felt like it was missing something. A lot of things, actually. Of course, it had some entertaining moments, and I enjoyed some of the characters' interactions, especially between Sebastian and Nemain, but this book didn’t satisfy me at all.
The characters are definitely the strongest part of the narrative—they were somewhat fleshed out and had very distinct voices and personalities. Though most felt relatively one-note, I was still able to be entertained. The relationship that I enjoyed the most was that between Nemain and Sebastian—I liked the tension and how their past together entwined them.
However, in terms of its other components—plot, prose, pacing—this book falls quite short. I couldn't really get attached to the characters, beyond the typical intrigue I was largely bored and simply wanted to move on. Something that bothered me a lot was how certain characters would go on long info-dumpy tangents that were obviously meant for the reader to understand what was going on in Emerald Bay. And even then, a lot of the politics of the daemon-run town didn’t make much sense. It boiled down to simple “I want to be powerful”, which is tiring at this point.
Though I appreciate the fast pace of the book, it often felt like the most important parts of the story were simply glossed over and substituted with relationship drama that didn’t feel as grand or worth getting invested in. Because of that, there were a lot of times when the book was way too ‘tell-y’; the reader gets a lot of explanations as to how or why something happens, but we’re never exactly shown anything that would help us to get invested and care about this world.
The prose bothered me as it was really explaining things, rather than letting the reader live through them. The introduction to the book feels really all over the place and gets a bit confusing, though that aspect definitely improves throughout the book, though the quality of the prose and dialogue specifically doesn’t really improve. Because of this, all the emotional scenes fell flat. I’m not one to be too bothered by typos and grammatical errors, but I know that bothers some readers, and in this book I noticed several.
Overall, this book, due to its undeveloped world, unimaginative writing and uncompelling characters, simply was not for me.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader's copy of A Shift in Shadows.

[Sam | Haus of Fables · Rating 4 out of 5]

A diverse urban fantasy with a 300+ yr old FMC hell bent on revenge… say less

I really enjoyed this world. It is set on earth but explores how other realms exist with Fae & demons ect. It has allll the magical creatures, mermaids & vampires & warewolves! With a lot of them residing amongst the humans

I started this series last year but was waiting for audio as this is the type of book I prefer to listen to & I really enjoyed it.

I did find the 60% mark felt a bit slow. But the characters pulled me through & by the end with a few plot twists it has me interested in continuing the series.

I love the queer norm world
I love the morally grey FMC
I love the mystery that I can tell has only just begun.

Overall a 3.5 ⭐️
Slow burn 2 🌶️

[costitanza (onetoomanybooks) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book! The world building was spot on, I loved the hierarchy and the dynamics. I also really liked all the male characters Magos, Andrei and Mikhail 🙌🙌 (even Sebastian was the perfect bad guy) Nemain was a weird FMC, sometimes I loved her, sometimes she confused me and sometimes I hate her 😂 overall the story it’s super engaging and I definitely recommend it to all my urban fantasy friends ♥️ ((Last note, I absolutely loved how the LGBTQ+ community is totally integrated in this world building 😍))

[Lois Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nemain is a feline shapeshifter who is struggling with PTSD, trauma and betrayal after being saved from captivity from her ex-boyfriend Sebastian, a warlock, and a slew of vampires. After gaining some sense of normalcy back, Nemain realizes that Sebastian's search for her has intensified. Believing the reason to be about her strange magical abilities, Nemain and her allies, including Magos, the vampire who rescued her from captivity (and torture), venture to stop him and his plans.

The first in a new series, this urban fantasy romance has the protagonist, a feline shapeshifter, struggling with PTSD, trauma and betrayal as she continues her hunt for vengeance and safety (for herself and for those she cares about). While the plot and the character development won't be anything new to fans of this genre, the world-building is what stands out the most in this book. And, while the conflict wraps up at the end of this book, the cliffhanger at the end lets readers know more is to come. Fans of Amelia Hutchins, Heather Killough-Walden, Laurell K. Hamilton, Ilona Andrews, and Seanan McGuire will enjoy this book.

[Lois Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nemain is a feline shapeshifter who is struggling with PTSD, trauma and betrayal after being saved from captivity from her ex-boyfriend Sebastian, a warlock, and a slew of vampires. After gaining some sense of normalcy back, Nemain realizes that Sebastian's search for her has intensified. Believing the reason to be about her strange magical abilities, Nemain and her allies, including Magos, the vampire who rescued her from captivity (and torture), venture to stop him and his plans.

The first in a new series, this urban fantasy romance has the protagonist, a feline shapeshifter, struggling with PTSD, trauma and betrayal as she continues her hunt for vengeance and safety (for herself and for those she cares about). While the plot and the character development won't be anything new to fans of this genre, the world-building is what stands out the most in this book. And, while the conflict wraps up at the end of this book, the cliffhanger at the end lets readers know more is to come. Fans of Amelia Hutchins, Heather Killough-Walden, Laurell K. Hamilton, Ilona Andrews, and Seanan McGuire will enjoy this book.

[Amber's Book Cave · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Shift in Shadows" by Maddox Grey is an urban fantasy that introduces Nemain, a 300+ year-old feline shapeshifter grappling with PTSD and seeking revenge. This story does a great job building a world filled with Fae, demons, mermaids, vampires, and werewolves within the human world. Nemain, having escaped captivity from her ex-boyfriend Sebastian, a warlock, now faces his obsessive search for her. The world-building stands out, immersing readers in a super diverse and queer-friendly setting. All of the characters are very diverse fantasy creatures, making them super interesting.

The plot is fast-paced and intriguing, with all threads resolved by the end, except for, of course, a cliffhanger that makes you want to continue the series. Nemain's complexity and the close bonds she shares with her friends make her a refreshing protagonist. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes more diverse romantasy stories and I plan to continue this series!

Thank you MTMC Tours and Maddox Grey for providing me with a review copy. All opinions are unbiased and my own. 🖤

[Mary Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has a lot of similarities to Most PNR. However there was some interesting and exciting differences that I really enjoyed. Our FMC is a complex character that continues to grow throughout the book in more ways than one. Her friends are close I would do anything for her and she would do anything to keep them alive. She's lost too many throughout the centuries. She Finally gets vengeance for one of the deaths and learns more than she bargained for about others. I look forward to the next book.

[Inês · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn’t make myself finish this book. I read 10% and it was definitely not for me.

[Raven · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was great from start to finish.

Nemain is a breath of fresh air when it comes to main characters. Finally a FMC who's not 19 years old. She's sassy, but not brooding. She's not helpless, and not "the best assassin that ever lived," either. She's flawed, but not so dumb it makes me want to throw my kindle across the room. S-tier

The plot is tightly woven, consistent, well-paced, and all threads are resolved by the end (except what is clearly purposely left there for the next book).

The writing and dialogue are hilarious. The amount I cackled with glee reading this book...

The only things keeping this book away from 5 stars are:

- There was nothing really profound here. Nothing that made me cry or made me really think. But the setup is there for it, and I'm hoping the later books in the series will get there.

- Spelling and grammar errors. I spotted a half dozen as I read.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an underrated urban fantasy series, but I have a feeling it’s going to be one of my new favorites.

What I loved
🐈‍⬛ Nemain
One of my favorite FMCs ever? She’s unapologetically intense and cool and morally gray but still feels things deeply and values her connections with others
🐈‍⬛ the writing and the humor
🐈‍⬛ found family/band of misfits (vampire, werewolf, shifter, daemon, mermaid, cat-type things, and more!)
🐈‍⬛ interesting world and magic system and creatures
🐈‍⬛ queernormative world
🐈‍⬛ spice 🌶️
🐈‍⬛ some closure at the end with enough mystery and set up to make me want to jump right in to book 2

PS I’m thinking the author did some rewrites because some of the lower reviews from a year+ ago make no sense to me? 😂 But everyone is entitled to their opinion 🤷‍♀️

[Olivia Meyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars!
Definitely recommend this for a Stuff Your Kindle Day read!! The author combined typical fantasy creatures like vampires, fae, and werewolves with Greek mythology! Super interesting!

[Erin Callaghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Shift in Shadows by Maddox Grey

WOW THIS WAS GOOD!

“𝗜𝗳 𝗡𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗿, 𝗜 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲…”

“𝗘𝗱𝗱𝗶𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗱. 𝗗𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗵𝗲𝗿, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗡𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱”.

I fell completely in love with these characters in this book, especially;

Nemain - Our badass, female protagonist
Magos - Our favourite, mysterious vampire
Andrei - Werewolf with a heart of gold
Mikhail - Magos’ nephew and hopefully a future love interest to Nemain??? (I HOPE)

Our story begins with our protagonist Nemain - a feline shapeshifter who is being held prisoner and tortured by Sebastian - a vampire who has been making her life hell ever since she left him. Sebastian is a cruel and evil vampire who has taken not only Nemain’s freedom but the life of her lover - Myrna and she wants nothing more than to get revenge.

Nemain’s torture ends when Magos finds her and kills the vampires who are imprisoning her to get her to safety where Sebastian will be unable to find her… but it’s not only Sebastian hunting Nemain, she has bigger problems to fear when the leaders of the Warlocks become interested in her ability to open realms …

In this gripping fantasy, Nemain must keep her family and friends safe but what will she do when faced with powerful Warlocks who will do everything in their power to capture her?

This storyline was SO good, I was hooked from the get go, we have everything we could want in a fantasy book; vampires, warlocks, witches, daemons, fae and so many more! I loved the LGBTQ representation too. Nemain is such a badass female character and I loved finding out more about her powers, I’m intrigued to find out what she really is in the next book.

I really hope we see a possible romance blossoming between Mikhail and Nemain in future books as I loved his character so much - it would be great to learn more about him in the next lost legacies instalment as I think there’s a lot more to his character that meets the eye.

My only negative feedback about this book is there were quite a few grammar/spelling errors but those didn’t ruin the reading experience as I was so hooked on the fast paced storyline. I’ll be sure to keep an eye out for this authors next release as I’m desperate to find out what happened next.

𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘨𝘪𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸

[2TNWalkers · Rating 2 out of 5]

Second attempt to finish this story…first part of story had confusing timeline and events..,author refers to Nemain was hunting Sebastian for decades…it had been decades since Myrna’s death, decades this decades that but no really definitive number of decades…almost every romantic relationship in the story is Gay, Lesbian or Bi, hetro relationship between Sebastian and Nemain is basically portrayed as evil…Nemain is Bi, but checks out her friends in a lusty romance way, which is no no for me, unless I am reading a Friends to Lovers, guess Im not sexually attracted to my friends makes me the weirdo. Plus it would have been nice for this disclosure as sometimes I am not interested in reading about LGBQT, same as with RH, depends on mood and don’t like well since your invested surprise everyone’s gay or surprise one female and 10 males…As someone who is suppose to be a badass, why did she use her powerhouse of magic go and kill Sebastian and the vamp friends then, oh oh I know so we could have some sort of plot…characters seem flat

[Sarah | Retro Girl Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

“A Shift in Shadows” is the first book in the Lost Legacies series by Maddox Grey, and I thought it was an intriguing introduction to a new fantasy world.

Nemain, the main character, is an extremely bloodthirsty, centuries old feline shapeshifter who is bent on revenge and has unusual magical powers.

She’s an interesting character because she’s not a damsel in distress - far from it. This is because she tends to think violence is always the answer, and doesn’t always stop to think before she acts.

There were many other characters in this book that I wanted to know more about - Magos the vampire, Andrei the werewolf, Jinx the grimalkin, Pele the daemon, Kaysea the mermaid, etc.

The magic in this world was very unique, and I want to know more about it. I also want to know more about the different realms, and the portals you can take to visit them.

To sum it up, I’m intrigued by this world and its characters, so I will definitely be continuing with the series!

[Enya.reads.books · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 29%

It’s not that it’s a bad book. It’s just that I didn’t like it 🫠

I really couldn’t connect to the FMC… I don’t know if it’s because of the narrator, who felt a bit « off » to me, or just because I found her kind of stupid (which centuries old creature talks for 25% of a book about the fact that she’s in danger of being kidnapped or attacked on her birthday and then proceeds to go take a NAP ALONE IN A FOREST the day BEFORE said birthday???), but it made me not care at all about what happened and I kept loosing focus.

I have way too many books to read or listen to to lose time listening to one I don’t care about 🫠

**Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the audio ARC! All opinions are my own.

[Rachel Walker · Rating 2 out of 5]

There are a lot of characters packed in and a ton of backstories and so much world-building. And so much of the world-building was achieved by simply inserting a character who was seemingly blind to everything beyond his mere existence, and then having the main character explain the whole world to him verbally.

Also, the writing style and character personalities all felt a bit immature, almost teenager-y. I thought maybe I had picked up a YA book but then there was a spicy scene, so it got weird and uncomfortable.

There were a few characters I liked, but unfortunately each character got so little time in the story that it was difficult to really get attached to them.

[Nick Morrison · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was ok. The writing wasn't that bad, and the 'world' that was created expanded quite well. I got a good sense. It's part of a series, so the larger story is not finished. The main character narrating the story is quite violent or even very violent. I don't think that's a spoiler. I found it too bloodthirsty. The character kept giving excuses for her actions, saying it is just the world she lived in, and I didn't like that. But the story did move along smoothly enough.

[theromantasybookcorner._ · Rating 5 out of 5]

➳༻❀🌿🩶🌿❀༺➳
➳༻❀☕️🅱︎🅾︎🅾︎🅺•🆁🅴🆅🅸🅴🆆☕️❀༺➳

✧°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

📚📝✨🌿𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞•𝗗𝗘𝗧𝗔𝗜𝗟𝗦🌿✨📝📚
🩶𝙰 𝚂𝙷𝙸𝙵𝚃 𝙸𝙽 𝚂𝙷𝙰𝙳𝙾𝚆𝚂 𝙱𝚈 𝙼𝙰𝙳𝙳𝙾𝚇 𝙶𝚁𝙴𝚈
🌿𝙱𝙾𝙾𝙺 𝟷𝙸𝙽 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙻𝙾𝚂𝚃 𝙻𝙴𝙶𝙰𝙲𝙸𝙴𝚂 𝚂𝙴𝚁𝙸𝙴𝚂
🩶𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗥𝗘: 𝙵𝙰𝙽𝚃𝙰𝚂𝚈 𝚁𝙾𝙼𝙰𝙽𝙲𝙴
🌿𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: 𝙾𝙲𝚃𝙾𝙱𝙴𝚁 𝟸𝟼𝚃𝙷 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟷
🩶𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗢𝗢𝗗 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗘𝗥: 𝙰𝙳𝚅𝙴𝙽𝚃𝚄𝚁𝙾𝚄𝚂; 𝙼𝚈𝚂𝚃𝙴𝚁𝙸𝙾𝚄𝚂; 𝚃𝙴𝙽𝚂𝙴; 𝙳𝙰𝚁𝙺; 𝙴𝙼𝙾𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽𝙰𝙻
🌿𝗣𝗔𝗚𝗘 𝗡𝗨𝗠𝗕𝗘𝗥: 𝟹𝟹𝟸 𝙿𝙰𝙶𝙴𝚂
🩶𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗙𝗘𝗖𝗧 𝗜𝗙 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗟𝗢𝗩𝗘: 𝙼𝙾𝚁𝙰𝙻𝙻𝚈 𝙶𝚁𝙴𝚈 𝙵𝙼𝙲; 𝚁𝙴𝚅𝙴𝙽𝙶𝙴 𝚀𝚄𝙴𝚂𝚃; 𝙷𝙸𝙳𝙳𝙴𝙽/𝙵𝙾𝚁𝙱𝙸𝙳𝙳𝙴𝙽 𝙿𝙾𝚆𝙴𝚁𝚂; 𝙵𝙾𝚄𝙽𝙳 𝙵𝙰𝙼𝙸𝙻𝚈; 𝚃𝙾𝚄𝙲𝙷 𝙷𝙸𝙼 & 𝙳𝙸𝙴
🌿➡️𝗦𝗪𝗜𝗣𝗘 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗕𝗟𝗨𝗥𝗕
🩶⚠️𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗖𝗞 𝗧𝗥𝗜𝗚𝗚𝗘𝗥 𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦

✧°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

✨✨𝑀𝑦 𝑇ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑠✨✨
Thank you so much to Maddox Grey & R&R Book Tours for my Advanced Reader Copy of 𝐀 𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐅𝐓 𝐈𝐍 𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐒! This review is comprised entirely of my own thoughts & opinions, & is based on the copy I received.

A Shift in Shadows was a phenomenal read! I really enjoyed it! One of the biggest things that I loved about it was the variety of magical creatures and different types of magics we get to encounter in this story. We get vampires, fae, shifters, warlocks, and everything in between! The world building is so rich and beautifully described, it was so easy to envision everything in my mind as I read and I always love that, especially in a new fantasy! While the world building was detailed, it wasn’t confusing or info-dumpy, which is always tough to do with a fantasy world!

We follow our FMC, Nemain, the morally grey feline shifter. She has been through so much, you cannot help but feel for her and root for her from the very first time you are introduced to her as a character. She is very up front about who she is and she’s definitely someone you want on your side - she’s loyal to those she cares about and will do anything to ensure they are protected. She’s unapologetically herself and I always love to see a FMC who is like this. Shes super cunning and bloodthirsty, and I just love a FMC full of feminine rage.

And this book honestly has one of the best examples of found family I have seen - I love a group of misfits who all help each other! This group helps Nemain in so many ways and she cares for them all so much.

I really enjoyed this read and am so excited to have a new fantasy world to dive into! I’m so excited to learn more about all the characters and see where the story goes from here, especially after that ending! I definitely recommend this one for any Romantasy lovers out there!

✧°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

[Nickole · Rating 5 out of 5]

rcvd an advanced reader copy from BookSirens for giving my two cents.... holy moly what a read. i couldnt put it down. we meet Nemain, a feline shifter who has abilites that are legendary and her magic super dangerous...hence why she keeps it wrapped up and no one knows about it except for a few of her closest friends. her abilities would have her killed on the spot. her ex decides to kidnap her with a bunch of vampires who break every bone in her body and feed from her in a year and she waits for death to take her if it wasnt for her ancient friend Mogos and her grimalkin Jinx to the rescue. fast forward to living in an daemon area where her bff is a big shot there and helps keep her safe plus a hunky werewolf who has a body to die for, things are good...except her bday is right aruond the corner and Sebastian, the ex, always finds her and leaves her a bloody heart...one of the last ones was the love of her life Myrna, a underwater fae princess. Nemain is trying to keep her friends safe from what is after her. She knows her brother is safe with his companion Dante so she doesnt have to worry about him. But word on the street is the Warlock council has teamed up with the Vampire council and they want her....only Sebastian would sell her out...sheesh. Can Nemain keep everyone safe or will she end up being everyones downfall? loved this book. now reading the 2nd one!!

[FloofyMooseReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the the first book in the Lost Legacies series, an urban fantasy romance. Tropes include a stabby FMC, found family, banter, hidden identifies and numerous types of non-human beings. Please see content warnings for adult content, in particular, a couple spicy scenes.

The Lovely: I loved the FMC - especially her snark and how clever she is. She’s experienced grief and trauma, and is still being impacted by the after effects. This is not a story of healing from the trauma - she doesn’t seem ready for that quite yet. I also loved her friends, especially her telepathic XL kitty (a grimalkin) - who also happens to have some protective and violent tendencies.

The Mundane: I felt like it took me a while to get into the story. A good chunk of the first one-third to one-half of the book was meeting characters and world-building, without much advancement of the plot. The world-building was complex so time did need to be spent on this, but so much so quickly made it hard to retain what I was reading.

Rating: 4/5 Stars 2/5 spicy flames

Recommendation: This was a solid start to the series, which is currently five books long. The sixth book is due to release in August 2024. I will definitely be continuing with the series. While book one didn’t end on a major cliffhanger, there are a lot of unanswered questions. In addition, there was an interesting bit of information dropped in the epilogue that I definitely want to know more about.

[Pam Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

3⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 🎧

This world was fun and diverse all the characters are interesting, and I want to get to know them more after reading about them. Just to name a few we have mermaids, vampires, werewolves, Fae, demons, witches, warlocks, and probably more that I can't think of right now.

The book is set on Earth, but our FMC can open portals to other realms and that is always interesting when you don't expect the main characters to have such an ability. But she has more surprises up her sleeve that is for sure.

I love that our main character is a feline shifter you don't see many of those, and the fact that she is in a relationship with a werewolf was a bit surprising, but I enjoyed it.

I want more and I need more from this world. The narrator does a great job with each character but doesn't overdo it. It was very entertaining and if you enjoy a slow burn with a great plot this one is for you.

[Eliza · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t mind this book too much, I will admit it took a bit of time to actually get into the book as there was a lot of background information and lore to get through. I don’t particularly like how everyone resorts to anger and violence and death - like it makes you really not value life and is quite hypocritical when you are so passionate about the life of your loved ones. I can see the rest of the series being good but I think it’s just your run of the mill average fantasy

Also I feel like they tried so hard to incorporate all of the different species, there could have been more in depth backgrounds of a couple species rather than going into all of the lore and history but not super deeply.

[Jacq.and.the.readstalk · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is an intense, fast paced, paranormal fantasy read set in a contemporary setting.

The set up in the beginning was really confusing and all in all it was too gruesome for my liking. It has interesting concepts but they overrall fall flat. While it is faced-paced that was it's downfall as well, it was too fast.

Paranormal readers should try this read especially if you like dark fantasy. The cover is gorgeous and is what initially pulled me in. The story however, was too much for me.

Thank you to Netgally and Independent Book Publishers Association for this eARC in exchange for an honest review

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fast paced urban fantasy book filled with interesting characters of various species and a pretty good plotline. That being said, I wasn’t fully invested in the characters as they all had little personality, and the FMC is not very likable.

I read the prequel to this book and enjoyed it, liking Nemain in it, but for some reason in this book, she just felt flat to me. Because of the prequel, I’m going to proceed to book two and hope that it captures my attention more.

If you’re looking for an entertaining, quick, urban fantasy read, this book does fill that spot.

[Pandora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Colour me intrigued.
This book has fantastic world building and managed to introduce numerous species and realms without leaving me confused. I'm talking about Fae, vampires, warlocks, daemons and more. The FMC, Nemain, is feisty, stabby, morally grey and I love her. Her abilities are intriguing and her history a mystery. I will absolutely be reading the rest of the series to explore her past and to see what happens next. I'd also love to see what will inevitably happen between her and Mikhail.

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ Urban fantasy with shifters, werewolves, vampires, fae, witches, warlocks, gods, and a ton of other creatures.

The FMC is a morally grey feline shifter with weird magic that she has no idea where it comes from. There’s a lot of grief as she is avenging an old lovers death.

There’s a lot of mystery elements in the plot where our characters are trying to figure things out.

Overall I’d still continue the series to see what this crew of misfits gets into next.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intriguing fantasy/shifter/paranormal read. There are a lot of characters introduced, which caused a little confusion for me. I enjoyed the storyline and all the different twists and suspense. There are so many possibilities as to where things can go from here, and I am looking forwards to reading more.

[Shayna Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I definitely can’t wait to read the rest of the series to get all my questions answered. I feel like this book did so good at setting it up and can’t wait to keep reading

[Louisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a fantastic read, I loved spending this time with these characters, and I can't wait to see where the series!

[eli☆ · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 23%
I'll give it a go another time, this time it just was just boring