#Review - Weird Magic by Karen Chance #Fantasy

Series: Lia de Croissets # 2
Format: Kindle, 531 pages
Release Date: January 14, 2026
Publisher: Karen Chance
Source: Amazon
Genre: Urban Fantasy

Someone is trying to kidnap the leader of the Were world, Sebastian Arnou, and it’s not hard to figure out who. The powerful Clan Rand just lost their chieftain, who challenged for the top spot and lost—both the fight and his life. Now his clan is out for revenge and has split the Were community in two.

To make matters worse, Rand has allied with the dangerous mages of the Black Circle, who have already plunged the magical world into war. One of the organization’s leaders has taken an interest in Lia de Croissets, a newly turned werewolf. As a member of the War Mage Corps, the police branch of the world’s leading magical organization, the Silver Circle, she stands against the dark, but the mage’s interest appears to be more personal.

In fact, the kidnapping attempt on Sebastian and later moves against Lia’s new little clan all appear to be geared toward getting something from her. But she has no idea what the mage wants, or why she and her clan of former outlaw wolves should be of such interest to the dark. And once she finds out, the answer could change not only Lia’s own life, but the course of the entire war.

Weird Magic is the second installment in author Karen Chance's Lia de Croissets series. This story takes place in the same universe as the author's Cassie Palmer series. This novel picks up after Junk Magic and dives deeper into a world of warring magical factions, werewolf politics, and high-stakes action. The story centers on Lia de Croissets, a newly turned werewolf and member of the War Mage Corps (the enforcement arm of the powerful Silver Circle). 

Lia is still adjusting to her dual nature as both a mage and a wolf, leading a ragtag clan of former outlaws known as Clan Fireborn. The plot kicks off with a clear threat: someone is targeting Sebastian Arnou, the leader of the Were world, with the vengeful Clan Rand (allied with the villainous Black Circle mages) as the obvious culprits. This kidnapping scheme quickly escalates into broader attacks on Lia's clan, and it becomes apparent that a high-ranking dark mage has a very personal—and mysterious—interest in Lia herself. 

What does he want from her? The answer ties into ancient magic, family secrets, and the ongoing war that's tearing the supernatural world apart. The magic here is vivid, unpredictable, and delightfully weird (as the title promises), blending traditional spellcraft with werewolf instincts, lost abilities that Lia is rediscovering, and chaotic battle sequences involving everything from live zombies to explosive magical duels. The interconnected universe shines through with well-timed cameos from familiar faces in the Cassandra Palmer and Dorina Basarab series. 

Lia is a compelling protagonist: fierce, funny, gritty, and deeply human despite her supernatural upgrades. Her growth in mastering new (or ancient) skills adds heart to the spectacle, while her clan dynamics with Cyrus provide strong found-family vibes, complete with believable kids, trauma, love, and hope amid the grimness. The chemistry between characters grounds the chaos, and there's plenty of laughter, sorrow, violence, and emotional weight to balance the spectacle. However, there is a constant flaw: Lia's habit of ending up unconscious at key moments might frustrate those who want her to stay in control longer, though it fits her underdog arc.

Unfortunately, this book came out 4 years after the first book in the series, which in my opinion, is way too long. I would recommend to readers that you try to read Junk Magic and Weird Magic back to back so that you don't get confused by who the characters are, from kids tossed away by the Mage schools, to Were's tossed away by their former clans. I would love to see another crossover, this time with Lia and Dory. I think fans would love that mash-up! 

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#Review - Time's Fool by Karen Chance #Fantasy

Series: Dorina Basarab # 6
Format: Kindle, 503 pages
Release Date: March 30, 2023
Publisher: Karen Chance
Source: Amazon Kindle
Genre: Fantasy

Long before Dorina Basarab was a respected member of the Vampire Senate, she was an outcast known as a dhampir. Half human, half vampire, all pariah, she scraped out a living catching monsters even more terrifying than herself. But perhaps the greatest foe she ever faced was also the most unusual—and the most dangerous.

Kit Marlowe wasn’t always a senator, either. Once, he was a master vampire with none of the wealth, family or experience that the rank should have afforded him. He had been Pushed, or forced into the position through a ritual that had risked his life, because his master desperately needed an operative who knew Elizabethan England. Leaving Kit two years into his undead life and facing a country about to go up like a powder keg.

Gillian Urswick was a witch torn between two men: the one she loved and the one she’d lost. But sorting out her heart required solving a mystery that involved the past and the present, as well as any hope she might have for a future.

Together, Dorina, Kit, Gillian and the mysterious vampire Mircea, end up on a mission that will either save the world, or help destroy it.

Karen Chance's Time's Fool is the Sixth installment in the authors Dorina Basarab series. Rather than continuing where the last novel left off, with Dorina in Faerie alongside Ray, and Dory and Louis-Cesare preparing to help her, we get a trip down memory lane and end up with an adventure in Elizabethan England. Time's Fool is divided into parts denoting where we are in time and with which characters as the main focus. The perspective shifts between Dory (sans Dorina), Kit Marlowe (our favorite Elizabethan spy), and Gillian Urswick (a coven witch from two side stories), along with Mircea Basarab. Rhea and Hilde show up from the future, and Louis Cesare is also from the future. 

Long before Dorina Basarab was a respected member of the Vampire Senate, she was an outcast known as a dhampir. Half human, half vampire, all pariah, hunted by vampires, she scraped out a living catching monsters even more terrifying than herself. But perhaps the greatest foe she ever faced was also the most unusual—and the most dangerous. If you've read this series from the beginning, Dory has some interesting facets that recently came to light including the fact that a certain Master Vampire took away her memories to protect her.

Kit Marlowe once was a master vampire with none of the wealth, family or experience that the rank should have afforded him. He had been Pushed by the Lady Vampire, or forced into the position through a ritual that had risked his life, because his master desperately needed an operative who knew Elizabethan England. Leaving Kit two years into his undead life and facing a country about to go up like a powder keg. Kit's relationship with Gillian drives part of this story.

Gillian Urswick was a witch torn between two the one she loved and the one she’d lost. But sorting out her heart required solving a mystery that involved the past and the present, as well as any hope she might have for a future. Together, Dorina, Kit, Gillian and Mircea, end up on a mission that will either save the world, or help destroy it. Leaps across time, magic, and worlds, this story takes you on a wild ride. 

It also gives further insight into the start of the Coven Wars with the Silver Circle, Dori's discovery of where she came from, and how Marlow came to be the greatest spy master for the Senate. In all fairness, let's not call this Dorina's book, but a combination of Dory, and Kit, and Gillian, as well as the villain of the story, Morgan, a vengeful witch ghost, who is trying to rewrite history and destroy the Silver circle rather than the Spanish armada. And, before you ask, no, Cassie Palmer does not show up in this story, but her apparent heir mentions that she's too busy to help with the events that happen in the book. 

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#Review - Junk Magic by Karen Chance #Fantasy

Series: Lia de Croissets # 1
Format: Kindle, 439 pages
Release Date: October 19, 2022
Publisher: Karen Chance
Source: Amazon
Genre: Urban Fantasy

Half werewolf Lia de Croissets is a member of the War Mage Corps, the police branch of the world’s leading magical organization, the Silver Circle. She’s an instructor assigned to train new recruits, a job considered to be significantly tougher than combat—especially right now. There is a war going on in the supernatural world, and the other side has discovered a deadly new tactic.

Popular street drugs have been laced with a potent narcotic known as “fey wine”. An import from Faerie, the wine has been known to bring out latent magical abilities in humans, but this version does much more than that. It is so strong that it is drawing forth dangerous talents that were long ago deliberately weeded out of the magical gene pool.

Someone is making monsters out of regular people and turning them loose on an unsuspecting and very unprepared world. The Corps cannot afford to fight on two fronts at once, so Lia gets a new class: one made up of the only people who might be able to counter these latest threats. It remains to be seen if a group of sullen, disaffected magical outlaws can come together to contain an ancient plague before the whole world gets sick.

Karen Chance's Junk Magic is the first installment in the authors newest series featuring Lia de Croissets. The story takes place in the same world as the authors Cassie Palmer series which I presume that you folks have some sort of knowledge of, especially the war with the Gods. Acalia "Lia" de Croissets, last seen in 2019's Skin Deep, is a daughter of a war mage and a werewolf. She carries a disease called Neuri Syndrome that prevents her from shifting. 

Because of it, she’s at odds with the were world. She has a bounty on her head from her mother Laurentia of Lubizon's werewolf clan who see her as an abomination. Thanks to her father, Lia is a member of the War Mage Corps, the police branch of the world’s leading magical organization, the Silver Circle. She’s an instructor assigned to train new recruits, a job considered to be significantly tougher than combat—especially right now. There is a war going on in the supernatural world, and the other side has discovered a deadly new tactic. 

A popular street drug have been laced with a potent narcotic known as “fey wine”which is an import from Faerie, the wine has been known to bring out latent magical abilities in humans, but this version does much more than that. Her boyfriend, Cyrus Arnou, has begun to rescue other outcasts, mostly teenage boys. When one of them suddenly transform to a monster of nightmares, Lia sets out to investigate. It leads her to a doctored drug that triggers old supernatural genes. And then she is dosed with it herself. 

It is so strong that it is drawing forth dangerous talents that were long ago deliberately weeded out of the magical gene pool. Someone is making monsters out of regular people and turning them loose on an unsuspecting and very unprepared world. The Corps cannot afford to fight on two fronts at once, so Lia gets a new class: one made up of the only people who might be able to counter these latest threats. It remains to be seen if a group of sullen, disaffected magical outlaws can come together to contain an ancient plague before the whole world gets sick.

The plot of this particular novel takes a story element we have seen before, and expands upon it. Readers of the Dorina's series about how "fey wine" enhances dormant magical powers in humans. This dovetails into the ongoing war plot that has been going on in Cassie's series for years. Lia is tasked with supervising a group of problem teenage mages. The kind with powers that aren't considered acceptable in this universe's supernatural society. I haven't yet finished catching up on Cassie's series, but will one day. 

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#Review - Shatter the Earth by Karen Chance #Paranormal #Fantasy #Urban

Series: Cassandra Palmer # 10
Format: Kindle, 431 pages
Release Date: February 4, 2020
Publisher: Karen Chance
Source: Library
Genre: Paranormal / Urban Fantasy

Ironically for the time traveling, chief seer of the supernatural world, time has never been on Cassie Palmer’s side. There has always seemed to be too much to learn, too much to master, and never enough hours in a day. But the tables have now turned, and the fluctuating timelines of Earth and Faerie are diverging, slowing time in Faerie relative to Earth, and giving humans an advantage for the first time in their war with the fey. It is one they desperately need, for a literal war of the worlds is about to take place. To win, or even to survive, Cassie and her allies, the powerful vampire senator Mircea Basarab and the formidable war mage John Pritkin, will have to pull off their greatest feat yet. And find a way to become more than the sum of their parts.

 

Shatter the Earth is the Tenth installment in author Karen Chance's Cassandra Palmer series. **Slight Series Spoilers** 24-year-old Cassie Palmer is the time traveling, ghost whispering, chief seer of the supernatural world, a job description that sounds way more fun than it actually is. It's hard to forget that Cassie’s only been the Pythia for 5 months. It seems like 14 years. Oh, wait! Especially when she has to deal with so many issues that take up all of her time. There’s Rhea, Chief acolyte, and heir apparent, who can’t shift through time which is what an acolyte of a Pythia is supposed to be able to do.

Rhea needs a swift kick in the pants, and the only person who might challenge her is her deceased mother. Mircea’s obsession with finding his wife Elena, mother of Dorina, ends up dragging Cassie along with him to Romania of the past which isn’t as fun as it might sound like. Especially when you are being chased by Svaresti Fae who kidnap human women. An entire line of Pythia’s told Mircea that he can’t get her back no matter what he does because it violates time travel and messes with the past. Let’s not forget that by vampire law, Mircea and Cassie are married. Doesn’t help that they are magically bound by the over’s Knot.

It also doesn’t help that he tends to steal her powers when it’s most inconvenient for Cassie. It doesn’t help that if he dies, she dies as well. As a member of the Vampire Senate, and the leader of the Vampire army, if Mircea dies, all is lost. To make matters more interesting, there’s ½ incubus demon war mage Pritkin, allegedly Cassie’s boyfriend who she spent an abundance of time going back in time over and over and over again to try to save him only to be chased all over the place by Gertie, has been wholly unavailable to her as a bodyguard/boyfriend while he prepares to lead the Silver Circle Mages invasion into Faerie.

Cassie and her allies the vampires, the mages of the Silver Circle, and Caedmon, King of the light Fae, have been preparing to battle the Dark Fae and the Dark mages for months. While the time for the invasion is approaching fast, Cassie has to deal with all issues that I’ve previously mentioned, including, someone trying to assassinate her and her apparent ability to save herself by borrowing powers from Mircea. Then there's the fun fact that she's never been trained until a Pythia from the past offers to help her. While she’s gotten much, much better, she’s also been doing stupid things like stealing time.

I have to say, I’ve been reading this series from the beginning. Haven’t skipped one book, not even when the author chose to self-publish. In fact, my library decided to purchase this copy for me which I am once again grateful for all they do. It’s always the last part of the book that is the most interesting to me. The action takes place throughout the book as Cassie deals with issue after issue, and with a sick, twisted, bastard named Jonathan who ups Cassie’s game when the war finally makes the pages of the book.  Overall, this story was fast-paced, which was to be expected of this author’s style when it involved Cassie.

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#Review - Brave the Tempest by Karen Chance #Fantasy #Romance

Series: Cassandra Palmer #9
Format: E-Galley, 576 pages
Release Date: July 30, 2019
Publisher: Berkley
Source: Publisher
Genre: Urban Fantasy

Cassie Palmer, chief seer of the supernatural world, faces her biggest challenge yet—her own allies! Everything’s on the line in the latest thrilling entry in the New York Times bestselling urban fantasy series.

Cassie Palmer has been chief seer of the supernatural world for a little over four months. In that time, she’s battled two gods, fallen in love with two men, and confronted the two sides of her own nature, both god and human. So it’s not surprising that she currently finds herself facing two adversaries, although they have a single purpose: to wipe out the supernatural community’s newest fighting force, leaving it vulnerable to enemies in this world and beyond.

To prevent catastrophe, the vamps, mages, and demons will have to do the one thing they’ve never managed before and come together as allies. Cassie has the difficult task of keeping the uneasy coalition intact, and of persuading her own two opposing forces, a powerful mage with a secret and a master vampire with a growing obsession, to fight at her side. She just hopes they can do it without tearing each other apart.

Story Locale: alternative Las Vegas and fantasy world

 

Brave the Tempest, by author Karen Chance, is the 9th installment in the authors Cassie Palmer series. As a brief summary, Cassie is the Chief Seer of the supernatural world. Even though this series has been going on since 2006, only a short 4 months have gone by in this world since she was chosen by the Pythia powers. However, she still doesn't have a job description. Nobody has told her what her job is really supposed to entail. Everybody, vampires, demons, and mages have pretty much just accepted the quirkiness that is Cassie and learned that she can not be controlled or handled.

After all, Cassie did the impossible. She chased down Pritkin's soul in the past and reunited him. But, with the supernatural war on the brink of a full invasion of Faerie, Cassie has some moral dilemma's. How is she supposed to protect the acolyte's she rescued from England? How can she ensure her acolyte's, especially Rhea, are trained to one day step up when they are called upon? How can she get the witches to trust her enough to allow them to send their daughters to become part of the Pythian Court? 

How can she help keep the fragile alliance that she helped create between vampires, mages, and demons. What's worse, how can she manage her heart when it comes to choosing between Mircea and Pritkin? I liked that Cassie found her backbone in this book. She isn't afraid of anyone except failing her kids. She is the Pythia. She has the ability to travel back in time. She has done things that people have scoffed at because she has shown a bit of weakness in understanding her role. 

But, she doesn't need the vampires or the mages, or the demons to tell her what to do. She doesn't need Mircea to steal away her vampire bodyguards who have kept her and her acolyte's safe from numerous attacks. The author does a whole lot of information dumping in the first 1/2 of this book. That's fine, but reading the books in order, and understanding how Cassie has come to this point in her life is rather important. I have to say that I am happy that it appears that Cassie and Mircea's daughter Dorina have put their hate aside. 

Dorina is a changed character since Shadow's Bane as well as her relationship with Louis-Cesare, a master vampire and member of the Vampire Senate, like Dory, who has dealt with Dory's craziness for sometime now. It is fair to say that events of Dory's book are skimmed over and that's for the best. We, as readers, can easily pick up Shadow's Bane and find out what happened for ourselves. It's also fair to say that these series are interconnected which means that each of the main characters appear in each of these series. 

If you are one of those who were demanding more of Cassie & Pritkin, you will not be disappointed. In fact, I dare say you will smile......A lot. One thing that the author does really good, is the action sequences. You will get plenty of those as well. But, the rumination of past exploits, and the fact that Cassie really needs to go back in time and allow one of the Pythia's to train her properly, kind of weighs down the story. We are now at 9 books in this series. Cassie has shown some moments that she is just as badass as the rest of her so call allies. Now, she has to decide what her future looks like. 

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#Review - Shadow's Bane by Karen Chance #Urban Fantasy

Series: Dorina Basarab (#4)
Format: Paperback, 624 pages
Release Date:  July 31, 2018
Publisher: Berkeley
Source: Publisher
Genre: Urban Fantasy / Vampires / Paranormal

Half-human, half-vampire Dorina Basarab is back—and facing her biggest challenge yet in the next urban fantasy in the New York Times bestselling series.

Dorina Basarab is a dhampir—half-human, half-vampire. As one of the Vampire Senate’s newest members, Dory already has a lot on her plate. But then a relative of one of Dory’s fey friends goes missing. They fear he’s been sold to a slaver who arranges fights—sometimes to the death—between different types of fey.

As Dory investigates, she and her friends learn the slavers are into something much bigger than a fight club. With the Vampire Senate gearing up for war with Faerie, it’ll take everything she has to defeat the slavers—and deal with the entirely too attractive master vampire Louis-Cesare….

Story Locale: Alternate New York City

Series Overview: The New York Times bestselling urban fantasy series featuring half-vampire, half-human Dorina Basarab in a world of vampires, mages, werewolves, and fae.

Shadow's Bane is the fourth installment in author Karen Chance's Dorina Basarab series. This is a story that kicks into high gear almost immediately with a flashback to 1458 Venice with Mircea and a much younger Dorina. Readers who have gotten this far in the series know that Mircea is not the best father in the world. In fact, he's kind of an ass, truth be told. I think he actually loves Dorina, but he kinda played God, and now the two parts of Dorina are at war with each other. Also, please do not just skip over these parts of the story as they are definitely part of the larger picture.

As we get to alternative New York City, where the story mainly takes place, Dory is part of a group that deals with slave traders, and ends up deep into one conflict after another. Dory, who's vampire side has found a seat on the Vampire Senate, has found a home with her best friend Claire, who also has a unique blend of some interesting bloodlines. I especially love how strong she's gotten, and one not to be taken lightly by any means. Dory is also experiencing painful memories via Dorina, her alter-ego, and the strongest of the two of them. 

Dorina is close to the surface and able to do some interesting things. Dory believes that it's only a matter of time before she loses her self to Dorina's will power and is gone forever. Dory's allies include Olga, a troll who wants to find the traders who caused her so much pain and suffering. Then there is the romance between Dory and Louis-Cesare, a master vampire and member of the Vampire Senate who has dealt with Dory's craziness for sometime now. There is a lot of ups and downs emotionally between the couple, but hopefully they will be able to move forward after everything that happens.

I am going off script a bit due to the fact that 1) it has been 6 years since the previous Dorina book (Fury's Kiss) was published, and 2) it seems that somehow I bought the third book, but never got around to actually reading it, and 3) there is a novella that was also released between books 3 & 4 that I also haven't read #EpicFail, and 4) you should really read Shadow's Bane and Cassie Palmer's Ride the Storm back to back since they are tied together.

*Per the publisher & author, the Cassie Palmer series and Dorina Basarab novels are interconnected, with characters from both making appearances in each series, and this story picks up after Ride the Storm left off, making it a must read for fans of Karen’s Cassie Palmer series. The author has a chart that readers can follow to know what books to read and when. More times than not, the books pick up where Cassie's left off, or vice versa.

This story is filled with humor, romance, alternating timelines, plenty of action, suspense, and mysteries. I do hope it doesn't take the author another 4-6 years to come out with the next Dorina book. Hey, I'm getting up there in age, I don't know if I can keep going at this pace of reading 200-300 books a year. I do have one or two minor negatives, mostly dealing with how much time Dory spends hurt, or passed out. I don't mind the fight scenes. They are the best part of the story. I never learned who the Blonde and Purple villains were that were supposed to assassinate Dory. Did anyone else? At 600+ pages, this book is a monster. I think the author could have edited out a few hundred pages and still had an enjoyable story. 

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