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Vesik #1
Days Gone Bad
My name is Damian Valdis Vesik. I am a necromancer, an ability feared and hated as much as the powers my master and I set ourselves against. We've vanquished many evils, but now something is releasing a new evil, forcing us to hunt an enemy beyond anything I’ve faced before. I was already busy enough with vampires, fairies, witches, Watchers, weddings, and … damn, I need a vacation.
259 pages, ebook
First published February 8, 2013
416 people are currently reading
2863 people want to read
About the author
Eric R. Asher
58 books666 followersEric R. Asher is the author of over 30 titles, including the Vesik urban fantasy series and the YA steampunk series, Steamborn. Look for his upcoming cozy fantasy, The Theme Park at the End of the World, in 2024. He is currently living in St. Louis, Missouri, where the local folklore often finds its way into his Mason Dixon: Monster Hunter rural fantasy series.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 293 reviews
August 12, 2014
This is one of those everything but the kitchen sink urban fantasies. Too many supernatural elements and artifacts made it hard to follow. My real pet peeve was the unpolished authorship. Most annoying was the author's compulsion to have someone laughing almost on every page. They laugh saying hello, laugh saying goodbye, laugh at their food, laugh at the gore, laugh in the middle of a fight, laugh at everything - and nothing was really that funny, mildly amusing at best. It was like trying to watch a sitcom with a totally overdone laugh track. The second annoyance was a sad effort to write one character with a Southern accent that consisted simply of substituting the word "Ah" for "I." Irritating. A better editor would have caught this stuff and it would have easily earned another star or maybe even two. This is the risk in self publishing - you have to find ruthless readers before you publish as we all have blind spots. Hope this author gets the professional support he needs to up his game.
April 4, 2013
You can also read mine, and MLE's reviews on our blog.
Disclaimer: This book is not for the weak hearted, it is very bloody, gory, and has a few scenes that made even me cringe. The main character is a necromancer, though not evil, his sense of humor is quite macabre.
With that being said, I really enjoyed this book. It wasn’t perfect, and some parts were over the top, but it made me laugh quite a bit.
Damian Valdis Vesik is a thirty year old shop keeper, necromancer, and all around smart ass. I have to say, that I really liked the fact that he was a bit older than the norm in Urban Fantasy. The older you get the less you want to read about teenagers, and young twenty somethings.
So Vesik spends his days in his shop with the three fairies that live in his Grandfather clock, and two cu sith puppies that love to use him as a squeaky toy.
So it starts out with him getting a invitation to his sisters ex-best friend, and sisters ex-boyfriends wedding. Needless to say this doesn’t go over too well with the sister, who now being a vampire feels a bit blood thirsty.
This was the part that had me a little squicked out, Damien offers to take care of it for her, and make the wedding memorable. There is a spoiler in my comments; I will let you decide if you want to check it out before reading this book.
Now, Damien’s master shows up after he hasn’t heard from her in years with the bestest news of a group of extremely crazy vampires trying to raise a demon. After a few run ins with some possessed vampires, and a few vampire zombies, yes that’s right vampire zombies, Damien gets his ass handed to him, a lot.
This was another refreshing part of the book, even though Damien has been a necromancer for years; he still has a ton learning to do. He is not the Billy Badass that snaps his fingers, and everything dies. Oh no, he gets his ass saved a lot by his fairy friends, his master, and once by a ghost panda. It was fun reading a long and trying to see how he was going to live to the end of this book.
So even though there were a few gross things in this book, I still really enjoyed it. Damian is very sarcastic, and made me laugh a lot. So if you can deal with a lot of blood, and slightly skewed morals, you might just enjoy this book.
Disclaimer: This book is not for the weak hearted, it is very bloody, gory, and has a few scenes that made even me cringe. The main character is a necromancer, though not evil, his sense of humor is quite macabre.
With that being said, I really enjoyed this book. It wasn’t perfect, and some parts were over the top, but it made me laugh quite a bit.
Damian Valdis Vesik is a thirty year old shop keeper, necromancer, and all around smart ass. I have to say, that I really liked the fact that he was a bit older than the norm in Urban Fantasy. The older you get the less you want to read about teenagers, and young twenty somethings.
So Vesik spends his days in his shop with the three fairies that live in his Grandfather clock, and two cu sith puppies that love to use him as a squeaky toy.
So it starts out with him getting a invitation to his sisters ex-best friend, and sisters ex-boyfriends wedding. Needless to say this doesn’t go over too well with the sister, who now being a vampire feels a bit blood thirsty.
This was the part that had me a little squicked out, Damien offers to take care of it for her, and make the wedding memorable. There is a spoiler in my comments; I will let you decide if you want to check it out before reading this book.
Now, Damien’s master shows up after he hasn’t heard from her in years with the bestest news of a group of extremely crazy vampires trying to raise a demon. After a few run ins with some possessed vampires, and a few vampire zombies, yes that’s right vampire zombies, Damien gets his ass handed to him, a lot.
This was another refreshing part of the book, even though Damien has been a necromancer for years; he still has a ton learning to do. He is not the Billy Badass that snaps his fingers, and everything dies. Oh no, he gets his ass saved a lot by his fairy friends, his master, and once by a ghost panda. It was fun reading a long and trying to see how he was going to live to the end of this book.
So even though there were a few gross things in this book, I still really enjoyed it. Damian is very sarcastic, and made me laugh a lot. So if you can deal with a lot of blood, and slightly skewed morals, you might just enjoy this book.
April 21, 2014
1.5 Stars
I'm just going to jump right in.
The plot was weaker than a a newborn baby's neck. The story had no forward moving plot points to get the story going. At 30% we finally get moving.
The main character, Damian, likes to joke a lot. A lot of said jokes came across forced and fell flat.
This read had a definite newbie vibe to it. There were time jumps, scenes where not enough info was given, no-depth characters, and repeated words/phrases.
To top it off, Damian, the fledgling necromancer, could barely cast a spell. Consequently, I found this novel lacking on multiple levels and I'll not be continuing the series.
It's been days since I read it and all I remember are the fairies.
Just because it wasn't my favorite flavor, doesn't mean it won't be yours.
Sidenote: Nice blue cover :)
You can find me and other reviews at www.HorrorAfterDark.com
I'm just going to jump right in.
The plot was weaker than a a newborn baby's neck. The story had no forward moving plot points to get the story going. At 30% we finally get moving.
The main character, Damian, likes to joke a lot. A lot of said jokes came across forced and fell flat.
This read had a definite newbie vibe to it. There were time jumps, scenes where not enough info was given, no-depth characters, and repeated words/phrases.
To top it off, Damian, the fledgling necromancer, could barely cast a spell. Consequently, I found this novel lacking on multiple levels and I'll not be continuing the series.
It's been days since I read it and all I remember are the fairies.
Just because it wasn't my favorite flavor, doesn't mean it won't be yours.
Sidenote: Nice blue cover :)
You can find me and other reviews at www.HorrorAfterDark.com
April 1, 2013
I'd review it, but I edited it, so I might be just a bit biased ;-)
September 4, 2014
This book needs a good editor. Not for grammatical mistakes, but for content and storyline development. I tried really hard to like this book. Really I did. The storyline seemed promising and I made it all the way through book two and into part of book three before I finally threw in the towel. I couldn't stand the constant "bursting out in laughter" any more. Why were all the characters laughing so much all the time? I could understand if something funny happened... but nothing funny ever did happen. Or, it may have but I was so off-put by the laughing hyenas that made up the main's posse.
This seemed like an amateur author's book. He fell into the pit-fall of noob authors by telling his audience his character was funny without ever truly showing it. I love books with a sense of humor. Part of the draw of the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, for me, is his dark, snarky sense of humor. I love it. I often laugh out loud at books I read...sometimes in public even. I get strange looks because of it. This book series did not make me laugh once despite all the supposed humor in it. Instead, it felt like I was the new kid at school trying to keep up with all the inside jokes of the group I happened to have been sitting with at lunch. Aaaakwaaard!
This seemed like an amateur author's book. He fell into the pit-fall of noob authors by telling his audience his character was funny without ever truly showing it. I love books with a sense of humor. Part of the draw of the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, for me, is his dark, snarky sense of humor. I love it. I often laugh out loud at books I read...sometimes in public even. I get strange looks because of it. This book series did not make me laugh once despite all the supposed humor in it. Instead, it felt like I was the new kid at school trying to keep up with all the inside jokes of the group I happened to have been sitting with at lunch. Aaaakwaaard!
October 15, 2019
The main protagonist is, Damian Valdis Vesik. He is a necromancer who runs a pawnshop and takes odd jobs vanquishing evil. He’s aided by fae, his neighbor and his vampiric sister and her crew. Oh yeah, this was cool. Snark, interesting folklore, a strange backwater master, evil rising and more.
It looks like each book will contain a case/mystery as Asher fleshes out the world, the overall story arc and introduces us to this world of witches, watchers, demons, necromancers, vamps, zombies, fairies and more all living under the noses of humans. It was a blending of familiar and new. Vesik is gruff, but likeable and secondary characters are already vying for my favorites.
The story isn’t perfect, and I felt the plot meandered a bit or the humor sometimes missed its mark. But boy did I have fun listening! I scooped up the rest of the audiobook boxed sets in this series.
William Dufris was an excellent choice for the narration and nailed Vesik’s persona. His accents and different voices bringing a rich flavor to an already fun, fast-paced urban fantasy you’ll want to sink your teeth into. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer
It looks like each book will contain a case/mystery as Asher fleshes out the world, the overall story arc and introduces us to this world of witches, watchers, demons, necromancers, vamps, zombies, fairies and more all living under the noses of humans. It was a blending of familiar and new. Vesik is gruff, but likeable and secondary characters are already vying for my favorites.
The story isn’t perfect, and I felt the plot meandered a bit or the humor sometimes missed its mark. But boy did I have fun listening! I scooped up the rest of the audiobook boxed sets in this series.
William Dufris was an excellent choice for the narration and nailed Vesik’s persona. His accents and different voices bringing a rich flavor to an already fun, fast-paced urban fantasy you’ll want to sink your teeth into. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer
August 29, 2018
Days Gone Bad by Eric Asher
Lots of magic fighting, blood, guts and gore. Lots of violence and killing too in this first book in the paranormal series. The story is mostly straightforward but occasionally distracting with seeming unconnected tidbits.
I admit to skipping a few pages here and there because of the violence but I did appreciate that Damian’s character learned more magic and about himself through the story. I will read the next book as I’m fascinated with the fairies that can grow to human size, kick butt, and then shrink back to small size and go back to living in the old clock on the wall. The short conversation about their not having plumbing facilities in the clock is still in my head a day later.
Lots of magic fighting, blood, guts and gore. Lots of violence and killing too in this first book in the paranormal series. The story is mostly straightforward but occasionally distracting with seeming unconnected tidbits.
I admit to skipping a few pages here and there because of the violence but I did appreciate that Damian’s character learned more magic and about himself through the story. I will read the next book as I’m fascinated with the fairies that can grow to human size, kick butt, and then shrink back to small size and go back to living in the old clock on the wall. The short conversation about their not having plumbing facilities in the clock is still in my head a day later.
Read
September 18, 2017All together I fear this book tries too hard. I ended up skimming the last half of it because by half way through I was tired of the supernatural salad and the consistent grating laughter. On first glimpse this should have been the kind of book I like.
Damien is a snarky, slightly older (yay 30) male protagonist and a necromancer, which is something we don't often see as a hero. He runs a shop of oddities and magical stuff in St Charles, which I guess is either a suburb or close to St. Louis, I never really could tell exactly how that worked. His sister is a fairly new vampire (vampires who have no trouble with things like sunlight, grr) and one day his old mentor calls to say that there are demons being loosed and they're coming after Damien because...reasons. When the demons do come it all gets tossed into supernatural salad with fae, demons, vampires, zombies, zombie vampires and psychotic faery dogs. The book is fairly brutal as Damien gets his butt handed to him rather consistently, and enemies get bifurcated and exploded among other things.
While there are some interesting world building aspects, and a few characters I found myself drawn to, the choppiness of the writing, jumping from place to place and vast inconsistency of pacing and world building was a turn off. A shame because it had a lot of potential for more.
Damien is a snarky, slightly older (yay 30) male protagonist and a necromancer, which is something we don't often see as a hero. He runs a shop of oddities and magical stuff in St Charles, which I guess is either a suburb or close to St. Louis, I never really could tell exactly how that worked. His sister is a fairly new vampire (vampires who have no trouble with things like sunlight, grr) and one day his old mentor calls to say that there are demons being loosed and they're coming after Damien because...reasons. When the demons do come it all gets tossed into supernatural salad with fae, demons, vampires, zombies, zombie vampires and psychotic faery dogs. The book is fairly brutal as Damien gets his butt handed to him rather consistently, and enemies get bifurcated and exploded among other things.
While there are some interesting world building aspects, and a few characters I found myself drawn to, the choppiness of the writing, jumping from place to place and vast inconsistency of pacing and world building was a turn off. A shame because it had a lot of potential for more.
November 3, 2013
Favorite Line “He saved you and you … you just … insulted everything he stands for Damian. Everything he works for. Everything his family has done for generations to earn the respect of the Seelie court.”
“Kill a child in front of its mother.”
Zola’s head snapped back toward me and anger creased her forehead.
“Give the child's mother a gun and turn your back. I don't care what religion she is, what color her skin is, what shape her eyes are. You will die before you reach the door and you’ll deserve it. And you know what? She will bloody well be justified!”
“A hell I knew I’d never really escape. It was my fault. All my fault.”
“Some crazy bastard was laughing. Oh, right, that was me.”
“He went to get Vik a ferret.”
I've made a decision thanks to this book! I will soooooo start looking for more books where men are the main characters and they are as kick ass as Damian! He's a necromancer. There's so much going on in this book I almost went into overload! It was well worth it though. There a fairies and vampires so e of my favorite paranormal creatures. His sister is vampire. Him and his master Zola are going after demons. This is one of the most action packed books I have ever read. I mean its got a pepper box as a weapon! Whoa loved it! It's not for the anyone who doesn't like bloody fighting! I love it so I loved every page. Bravo to this author!
I was given this book in exchange for an honest review (GHB)
FOUR NECROMANCER FAIRIES
“Kill a child in front of its mother.”
Zola’s head snapped back toward me and anger creased her forehead.
“Give the child's mother a gun and turn your back. I don't care what religion she is, what color her skin is, what shape her eyes are. You will die before you reach the door and you’ll deserve it. And you know what? She will bloody well be justified!”
“A hell I knew I’d never really escape. It was my fault. All my fault.”
“Some crazy bastard was laughing. Oh, right, that was me.”
“He went to get Vik a ferret.”
I've made a decision thanks to this book! I will soooooo start looking for more books where men are the main characters and they are as kick ass as Damian! He's a necromancer. There's so much going on in this book I almost went into overload! It was well worth it though. There a fairies and vampires so e of my favorite paranormal creatures. His sister is vampire. Him and his master Zola are going after demons. This is one of the most action packed books I have ever read. I mean its got a pepper box as a weapon! Whoa loved it! It's not for the anyone who doesn't like bloody fighting! I love it so I loved every page. Bravo to this author!
I was given this book in exchange for an honest review (GHB)
FOUR NECROMANCER FAIRIES
March 8, 2015
Simply put, the character of Damion Vesik is a Harry Dresden wanna be that falls short, very short.
It's also very obvious that this author is not an animal lover... His humor often refers to the killing of innocent animals. Is it a funny practical joke to make 25 pigeons explode, into tiny gory bits and pieces at a wedding? What's so funny about a vampire eating ferrets? The book ends with someone going to get a ferret for a vampire (to eat, which is implied), and everybody laughs?! The other "jokes" are not funny either, yet everyone's constantly laughing/giggling/chuckling etc. on every other page. One can only take so many repetitions of mirth (that as a reader one doesn't share) before it gets tedious and annoying.
The prose is often a bit confusing and abrupt throughout the book. It would greatly benefit from less periods, more commas and more in-depth description of situations.
The story line is a confusing jumble without any order or proper introduction of characters.
Eric R. Asher, is Not Jim Butcher. He would like to be, but he's got a long long way to go.
I would advise anyone that's an animal lover to not read this book... The author might hate Pigeons and Ferrets, but many of us like them a lot, and killing them even fictionally as a joke, is NOT funny.
It's also very obvious that this author is not an animal lover... His humor often refers to the killing of innocent animals. Is it a funny practical joke to make 25 pigeons explode, into tiny gory bits and pieces at a wedding? What's so funny about a vampire eating ferrets? The book ends with someone going to get a ferret for a vampire (to eat, which is implied), and everybody laughs?! The other "jokes" are not funny either, yet everyone's constantly laughing/giggling/chuckling etc. on every other page. One can only take so many repetitions of mirth (that as a reader one doesn't share) before it gets tedious and annoying.
The prose is often a bit confusing and abrupt throughout the book. It would greatly benefit from less periods, more commas and more in-depth description of situations.
The story line is a confusing jumble without any order or proper introduction of characters.
Eric R. Asher, is Not Jim Butcher. He would like to be, but he's got a long long way to go.
I would advise anyone that's an animal lover to not read this book... The author might hate Pigeons and Ferrets, but many of us like them a lot, and killing them even fictionally as a joke, is NOT funny.
June 20, 2020
I had the Vesik series come highly recommended from some reader friends. I was surprised when I saw the rating for this book, the first in the series, but after skimming a few reviews I decided to trust those reader friends and boy am I glad that I did.
I listened to the book in audible and the narrator was fantastic. I was drawn in within the first few minutes and I hated putting it down. The narrator nailed the main character and made me feel like I was watching a tv show rather than listening to a book.
I would say this book is very character driven. You’ll keep reading because you love the characters and the overarching story is secondary. The plot is good, but the characters keep you wanting to pick it back up.
Some reviews mentioned there being a lot of blood and gore. I can’t say that isn’t true, but I can say that I am a person easily put off by blood and gore and at no point was I bothered by it in this book.
This book reminded me of a Dresden Files book but with a main character who is way more upbeat and goofy at times. With all the drama/action/chaos, the book managed to stay light and fun somehow.
I loved the book and will continue the series!!!
I listened to the book in audible and the narrator was fantastic. I was drawn in within the first few minutes and I hated putting it down. The narrator nailed the main character and made me feel like I was watching a tv show rather than listening to a book.
I would say this book is very character driven. You’ll keep reading because you love the characters and the overarching story is secondary. The plot is good, but the characters keep you wanting to pick it back up.
Some reviews mentioned there being a lot of blood and gore. I can’t say that isn’t true, but I can say that I am a person easily put off by blood and gore and at no point was I bothered by it in this book.
This book reminded me of a Dresden Files book but with a main character who is way more upbeat and goofy at times. With all the drama/action/chaos, the book managed to stay light and fun somehow.
I loved the book and will continue the series!!!
July 11, 2020
Days Gone Bad had a little bit of all things magic and a necromancer that delivers a big dose of sarcastic wit. I'll admit to being confused at first because the book does start right up as if I'm supposed to know who these characters are. But the story moves quick and the action stays steady. Damian's character feels fully rounded out and and I did love his personality,!
March 8, 2013
I picked up this book, not sure of what to expect.. First: It was written in the first person, which doesn't always work in my mind... After reading a few pages, it wasn't a problem... Second: It wasn't a paranormal romance, which is the genre I usually aim toward reading... Again, just a few pages in, it was no longer a problem! Come to think of it, there wasn't one bad thing about this book! Well, other than the fact that it ended & I didn't want to leave Damian's world yet!
Eric Asher is one helluva an upcoming new author & I have a feeling this man will be soon in the ranks of Dean Koontz, Stephen King & James Patterson. The book has it all! Drama, intrigue, horror, fantasy, and some of the best dark humor I've read in years! I can't tell you how many times I laughed aloud while reading this book, even in the middle of intense dramatic scenes, just because Damian is such an incredibly relatable, witty, believable & sarcastic character whom I absolutely loved! Eric Asher knows how to draw a person in with creative writing, and the worlds he invents to share with us are nothing short of astounding! I'll be in line first, for any other books this fantastic author decides to release!
We are introduced to Damian, who is a human necromancer that owns an inherited quirky little spell/magic shop and is surrounded by all species of creatures including vampires, demi-gods, fairies, demons, other necromancers and more.. As a matter of fact, his own sister is a vampire.. Damian handles it well, between cu-sith dogs (green blobs of fur, lol!) attacking him & fairies popping in & out, (they live in his grandfather clock:) demanding his attention. His necromancer mentor suddenly reappears back into his life & he realizes that this time, it's not just for fun & games.. If he fails the mission Zola is attempting to complete, it could mean the end of his existence or the end of the entire world, in general!
Damian embarks on this mission with his mentor, Zola, his fairy-bff, Foster, (I loveeee Foster!) and gets help from his vamp sis, Sam, along with Foster's mom & wife and a few other unique friends. This book is not for the faint of heart, so there's your warning. It contains gory scenes and a lot of dark humor, but to me, it was about as close to perfect as a book could get!
If you are up for a wild, thrilling, crazy ride through the world of necromancers, magic, demons, vamps, fairies & more, don't hesitate and run out to buy this book immediately! It is one of my top pics of the year and I'm proud that I was given the chance to do a review on this fantastic book by this great author!
Platinum Reviews Gives Eric & "Days Gone Bad":
FIVE PLATINUM RINGS!!
~Vicki Rose
www.platinumbookreviews.blogspot.com
Eric Asher is one helluva an upcoming new author & I have a feeling this man will be soon in the ranks of Dean Koontz, Stephen King & James Patterson. The book has it all! Drama, intrigue, horror, fantasy, and some of the best dark humor I've read in years! I can't tell you how many times I laughed aloud while reading this book, even in the middle of intense dramatic scenes, just because Damian is such an incredibly relatable, witty, believable & sarcastic character whom I absolutely loved! Eric Asher knows how to draw a person in with creative writing, and the worlds he invents to share with us are nothing short of astounding! I'll be in line first, for any other books this fantastic author decides to release!
We are introduced to Damian, who is a human necromancer that owns an inherited quirky little spell/magic shop and is surrounded by all species of creatures including vampires, demi-gods, fairies, demons, other necromancers and more.. As a matter of fact, his own sister is a vampire.. Damian handles it well, between cu-sith dogs (green blobs of fur, lol!) attacking him & fairies popping in & out, (they live in his grandfather clock:) demanding his attention. His necromancer mentor suddenly reappears back into his life & he realizes that this time, it's not just for fun & games.. If he fails the mission Zola is attempting to complete, it could mean the end of his existence or the end of the entire world, in general!
Damian embarks on this mission with his mentor, Zola, his fairy-bff, Foster, (I loveeee Foster!) and gets help from his vamp sis, Sam, along with Foster's mom & wife and a few other unique friends. This book is not for the faint of heart, so there's your warning. It contains gory scenes and a lot of dark humor, but to me, it was about as close to perfect as a book could get!
If you are up for a wild, thrilling, crazy ride through the world of necromancers, magic, demons, vamps, fairies & more, don't hesitate and run out to buy this book immediately! It is one of my top pics of the year and I'm proud that I was given the chance to do a review on this fantastic book by this great author!
Platinum Reviews Gives Eric & "Days Gone Bad":
FIVE PLATINUM RINGS!!
~Vicki Rose
www.platinumbookreviews.blogspot.com
August 8, 2020
This paranormal demons, necromancers, vampires, fairies and other assorted cast of characters is not my normal read. That said, my readers friends recommended this book and that I listen on audible. I'm glad I took a chance and audible is they way to go! Damian is quite the character! I alternated between giggling and rolling my eyes up to the very end. The self banter, snark was hilariously and even his friends did not give him a pass. Enjoyed how he was a great son and brother, an awesome friend and didn't take himself seriously. A couple of times a story line didn't seem quite finished or was added for no reason, not sure, but it didn't detract from the overall story. I'm definitely looking forward to more listening.
November 14, 2013
This is a good foundation for a new series. I like the characters, a lot, and the general tone of it, but... there is a lot of work to be done. My two biggest gripes were the sketchy magic and the flow of the plot. The magic wasn't really fleshed out, this is a series about a necromancer, but really he comes across as a normal wizard. o.O The plot just made jumps and didn't connect so well at times.
I'll forgive all this though as it is a first in a series and a first book for the author. Hopefully we'll be able to see him grow like Butcher did because Asher does have talent waiting to be tapped.
I'll forgive all this though as it is a first in a series and a first book for the author. Hopefully we'll be able to see him grow like Butcher did because Asher does have talent waiting to be tapped.
October 10, 2015
I was bored reading this book, I had to stop and read another book, sorry :(.
June 18, 2020
This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart
3.5 hearts
The purpose of Thrifty Thursday is to read a book which was free (at some point).
Kindle freebie on January 5, 2019 (currently $3.99 and in Kindle Unlimited as of writing this post)
Overall rating 3.74 with 1,693 ratings and 254 reviews
I got this free from the author, probably for joining his newletter or some other author freebie. Then the box set of the first 3 books was free. I learned the author put the first three books in this Vesik series into one audiobook set which I purchased. I am utilizing both versions for my review. Days Gone Bad is currently in Kindle Unlimited, but that would not count for Thrifty Thursday.
I began reading last December on ebook and got distracted at 25%, then I started over with the audiobook when I purchased it. It still took me awhile to really get going. There was a kind of humor mixed into the camaraderie of the characters which at first felt like I just wasn't part of the group and didn't get the jokes. As I read further, the world-building made more sense and I got caught up in the action.
The action involves battling a demon who is taking over vampires. There is history would into the creation and his master, Zola joins in the fight. She brings historical knowledge and experience.
There are still a lot of characters to be further developed so I am glad I have the next two stories ready to go, both in ebook and audio. I feel there is plenty to learn about Damian. He has a shop but he also works as a necromancer and we don't know all about that yet. His sister, Sam, is a vampire. There are fae involved with him. So this is only the beginning. Now I am ready to read and learn more.
3.5 hearts
The purpose of Thrifty Thursday is to read a book which was free (at some point).
Kindle freebie on January 5, 2019 (currently $3.99 and in Kindle Unlimited as of writing this post)
Overall rating 3.74 with 1,693 ratings and 254 reviews
I got this free from the author, probably for joining his newletter or some other author freebie. Then the box set of the first 3 books was free. I learned the author put the first three books in this Vesik series into one audiobook set which I purchased. I am utilizing both versions for my review. Days Gone Bad is currently in Kindle Unlimited, but that would not count for Thrifty Thursday.
I began reading last December on ebook and got distracted at 25%, then I started over with the audiobook when I purchased it. It still took me awhile to really get going. There was a kind of humor mixed into the camaraderie of the characters which at first felt like I just wasn't part of the group and didn't get the jokes. As I read further, the world-building made more sense and I got caught up in the action.
The action involves battling a demon who is taking over vampires. There is history would into the creation and his master, Zola joins in the fight. She brings historical knowledge and experience.
There are still a lot of characters to be further developed so I am glad I have the next two stories ready to go, both in ebook and audio. I feel there is plenty to learn about Damian. He has a shop but he also works as a necromancer and we don't know all about that yet. His sister, Sam, is a vampire. There are fae involved with him. So this is only the beginning. Now I am ready to read and learn more.
May 4, 2020
The writing style was a bit more tell than show at times. I could get the dynamic between characters from conversations and reactions and then things would feel stiff and out of place. There was a lot happening. Lots of magical/paranormal characters and items and it was too much sometimes . Vivid and gory at times and sometimes I couldn’t follow why everyone was so chill or able to laugh so easily. Tons of potential, i may give the next one a go and see if some of the things that bothered me in this smooth out in the next.
January 14, 2018
3-3,5*
This has some great things in it, but it also has flaws that really annoyed me...
I like the main character, but he is just a bit to flippant about EVERYTHING. While I do like sarcasm and the humor in bad situations, this was just a bit too much happy go lucky to feel real and it seriously ipacted the scenes were you should be worried or excited.
I like the necromancy and the fairies, but then it all felt a bit overpowered. While I can forgive Harry Dresden for riding a T-Rex, that is way late in the series when it's already established - and here it felt just so over the top from the very start. Everyone is just much much overpowered.
I bought the first three as a bundle, and a really annoying love plot in the second book (and staring at tits and behinds) really didn't help me any to like it more.
This has some great things in it, but it also has flaws that really annoyed me...
I like the main character, but he is just a bit to flippant about EVERYTHING. While I do like sarcasm and the humor in bad situations, this was just a bit too much happy go lucky to feel real and it seriously ipacted the scenes were you should be worried or excited.
I like the necromancy and the fairies, but then it all felt a bit overpowered. While I can forgive Harry Dresden for riding a T-Rex, that is way late in the series when it's already established - and here it felt just so over the top from the very start. Everyone is just much much overpowered.
I bought the first three as a bundle, and a really annoying love plot in the second book (and staring at tits and behinds) really didn't help me any to like it more.
December 31, 2015
Damian Valdis Vesik is a necromancer. He is also a shop owner, but it's not your everyday shop. He runs Death's Door, a shop selling magical goods. He has friends of various species, from fairies to vampires.
Damian's master, Zola, returns after a few years away and brings with her some bad news. Something which she has not encountered before is coming, something evil, something Damian is not yet prepared for. Zola tutors him in further magical ways of trying to deal with what is approaching, but can she prepare him enough?
Damian and Zola attempt to recover talismans which were used to trap evil spirits many years ago, before anyone, or anything, else finds them.
They uncover secrets along the way, both good and bad.
Together they have to face the evil, try to stop it in its tracks, before it accomplishes its goal and destroys both them and the world as they know it.
Damian has a wicked sense of humour, and I can almost feel the authors humour coming out in a few places. On the first page he writes -
" I pressed a few buttons on my personal chef, a.k.a. microwave"!
This is just a typical male thing and it works so well.
He also causes an incident at the wedding of his ex which is beyond anything I could ever imagine anyone doing as a prank! All I will say is exploding pigeons! Very very funny!
I liked this book a lot. The author uses a lot of description, which felt slightly too much at times. I wanted the action to start straight away. But the build up is worth it as you get through the story.
I felt like I wanted to read the prequel though, as there's so much we don't find out. I'd love to read the story of Damian and Zola when they first met, and how she helped him discover and mold his powers.
There is a lot of promise in this book and I look forward to finding out more about Damien, Zola, and the rest of the characters the author introduces us to.
September 13, 2019
Damian Valdis Vesik is a necromancer in St. Louis. His shop, Death's Door, provides spell-craft supplies, crystals, and other artifacts that sorcerers and Wiccans might be interested in. His sister, Sam, is a vampire - as far as I could figure out, Damian met his teacher, Zola, in the aftermath of his sister being attacked. Since then, he's also acquired several fairy lodgers and their annoyingly bitey cu sith puppies.
The book starts with a wedding invitation. Sam's ex-boyfriend is getting married, and she's pissed. Damian isn't 100% sure about her self-control, so, in order to appease her, he offers to attend the wedding and somehow make it horrible. Meanwhile, Zola is back, with news that there's something worrisome going on involving demons.
That's the story as I understood it. One of this book's problems (it had several) was that it didn't feel particularly focused. I generally understood that the primary storyline was supposed to be about the demons (demon?), but I couldn't get a handle on whether the author was setting it up to the the overarching storyline of the series, with something else as the true focus of this particular book, or whether it was actually this book's story. Or both.
Everything kicked off with the wedding invitation. Even though this was one of my Book Bonanza purchases and the author himself told me that this was the first book in the series, I still found myself wondering whether I'd actually started with the first book. Damian kept mentioning a bunch of characters like I should know them already - his vampire sister probably threw me the most. After a flurry of character introductions, the story fell into a frustrating pattern: the characters would eat junk food and/or spend some time joking around, something serious would happen, and then the characters would go back to eating junk food and/or joking around. This pattern held even as the characters were attempting to escape a zombie horde - during a brief quiet moment, Damian managed to find some expired Moon Pies and chowed down.
At some point during all the joking, chimichanga/pizza/beef jerky eating, and violent but largely forgettable vampire/demon/zombie scenes, Damian remembered that there was a wedding he was supposed to go to. He went, and then a scene occurred that utterly ruined the book and main character for me, and left me regretting that I'd purchased both Book 1 and Book 2 together because, hey, why not? (This is why not.) Warning: it involves animal abuse.
Damian also didn't like ferrets, so it was hilarious that one of Sam's vampire friends bought a pet ferret each week and ate it.
The ferret thing didn't even make sense. If vampires could feed off of animals and did so in order to avoid harming humans and drawing attention to themselves, why spend so much money on ferrets and run the risk of the pet store owner (the ferrets were always purchased from the same store) finally becoming suspicious? Why not keep, say, a few large dogs around, and bleed them on a rotating basis?
This book had an editor, but I suspect she only did copyediting. This needed more than that. I liked Asher's "voice," for the most part, and I think there was a decent story in here somewhere. Unfortunately, it was buried under a bunch of crap: a large cast of characters I had difficulty remembering and keeping straight, an "everything but the kitchen sink" list of fantasy/paranormal beings, and lots of eating and jokes that tended to fall flat. Nothing seemed to matter. One of the character died, but I could barely remember why I should care. Damian was frequently injured in ways that should have either resulted in his death or extended hospitalization, but someone would always show up to heal him in a matter of hours or days.
There were a couple characters I sort of liked: Zola, Damian's teacher, and Happy the ghost panda. I'm still disappointed that not even Zola told Damian off for what he did to those birds, though, and Happy felt emotionally manipulative, the author's way of making sure that there would be at least one appealing thing in the book. Even Damian admitted that Happy didn't behave like an actual panda. He was more like a cross between a teddy bear and a giant breed puppy.
I will probably read the second book at some point, since I foolishly already purchased it, but I'm not really looking forward to it. It's disappointing, because Asher was one of the handful of Book Bonanza authors I was convinced would be a good fit for me.
(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)
The book starts with a wedding invitation. Sam's ex-boyfriend is getting married, and she's pissed. Damian isn't 100% sure about her self-control, so, in order to appease her, he offers to attend the wedding and somehow make it horrible. Meanwhile, Zola is back, with news that there's something worrisome going on involving demons.
That's the story as I understood it. One of this book's problems (it had several) was that it didn't feel particularly focused. I generally understood that the primary storyline was supposed to be about the demons (demon?), but I couldn't get a handle on whether the author was setting it up to the the overarching storyline of the series, with something else as the true focus of this particular book, or whether it was actually this book's story. Or both.
Everything kicked off with the wedding invitation. Even though this was one of my Book Bonanza purchases and the author himself told me that this was the first book in the series, I still found myself wondering whether I'd actually started with the first book. Damian kept mentioning a bunch of characters like I should know them already - his vampire sister probably threw me the most. After a flurry of character introductions, the story fell into a frustrating pattern: the characters would eat junk food and/or spend some time joking around, something serious would happen, and then the characters would go back to eating junk food and/or joking around. This pattern held even as the characters were attempting to escape a zombie horde - during a brief quiet moment, Damian managed to find some expired Moon Pies and chowed down.
At some point during all the joking, chimichanga/pizza/beef jerky eating, and violent but largely forgettable vampire/demon/zombie scenes, Damian remembered that there was a wedding he was supposed to go to. He went, and then a scene occurred that utterly ruined the book and main character for me, and left me regretting that I'd purchased both Book 1 and Book 2 together because, hey, why not? (This is why not.) Warning: it involves animal abuse.
Damian also didn't like ferrets, so it was hilarious that one of Sam's vampire friends bought a pet ferret each week and ate it.
The ferret thing didn't even make sense. If vampires could feed off of animals and did so in order to avoid harming humans and drawing attention to themselves, why spend so much money on ferrets and run the risk of the pet store owner (the ferrets were always purchased from the same store) finally becoming suspicious? Why not keep, say, a few large dogs around, and bleed them on a rotating basis?
This book had an editor, but I suspect she only did copyediting. This needed more than that. I liked Asher's "voice," for the most part, and I think there was a decent story in here somewhere. Unfortunately, it was buried under a bunch of crap: a large cast of characters I had difficulty remembering and keeping straight, an "everything but the kitchen sink" list of fantasy/paranormal beings, and lots of eating and jokes that tended to fall flat. Nothing seemed to matter. One of the character died, but I could barely remember why I should care. Damian was frequently injured in ways that should have either resulted in his death or extended hospitalization, but someone would always show up to heal him in a matter of hours or days.
There were a couple characters I sort of liked: Zola, Damian's teacher, and Happy the ghost panda. I'm still disappointed that not even Zola told Damian off for what he did to those birds, though, and Happy felt emotionally manipulative, the author's way of making sure that there would be at least one appealing thing in the book. Even Damian admitted that Happy didn't behave like an actual panda. He was more like a cross between a teddy bear and a giant breed puppy.
I will probably read the second book at some point, since I foolishly already purchased it, but I'm not really looking forward to it. It's disappointing, because Asher was one of the handful of Book Bonanza authors I was convinced would be a good fit for me.
(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)
July 16, 2014
Days Gone Bad had elements that reminded me of some of my favorite UF series. However, the story read as if it were further in the series rather than the first, which normally sets up the world and characters for the reader. At times, I felt as if there was information I'd missed but hadn't.
Vesik is an interesting male lead, but I would've expected him to be a bit more skilled and knowledgeable about his abilities. Much of his necromancy tutoring is unknown with only some of the history with his master (mentor/necromancy trainer) Zola explained. Vesik has a diet similar to mine several years ago - junk food, sodas, and a passion for chimichangas. He always seemed to be heating the tasty treats or snacking.
I did like the darker feel to the book. The fairies living in Vesik's grandfather clock reminded me a lot of Rachel Morgan's pixies. They accompanied him into battles and were kick-ass. I liked them a bit more than any other character, including Vesik. With that in mind, I'm not entirely sure if I'll continue the series or not.
Vesik is an interesting male lead, but I would've expected him to be a bit more skilled and knowledgeable about his abilities. Much of his necromancy tutoring is unknown with only some of the history with his master (mentor/necromancy trainer) Zola explained. Vesik has a diet similar to mine several years ago - junk food, sodas, and a passion for chimichangas. He always seemed to be heating the tasty treats or snacking.
I did like the darker feel to the book. The fairies living in Vesik's grandfather clock reminded me a lot of Rachel Morgan's pixies. They accompanied him into battles and were kick-ass. I liked them a bit more than any other character, including Vesik. With that in mind, I'm not entirely sure if I'll continue the series or not.
September 8, 2015
Damian Vesic is a necromancer. His sister is a vampire. He owns a shop called Death's Door, and has some fairies that live there in his clock. One of his best customer's is a witch priestess. What more could you ask for? Someone has unleashed something very evil into the world. Damian, his master Zola, and the rest of the gang must find out who did it and what it is. Zombie hordes, demon vampires, and one hilarious wedding prank made this a fun and exciting story. I really liked this book and can't wait to start the next one.
October 16, 2020
Days gone Bad is the first book I have read by Eric Asher. This story has a many magic creatures that keep the story interesting. I enjoyed Damian quick wit and his sarcasm throughout the book. The story is very fast pace and action pack from the very beginning there is never a dull moment in this story. At first it was hard to follow along but as the story progressed I understood the book alot more. I can't wait to read the next story and find out what adventures awaits Damian and the gang.
December 29, 2015
Days Gone Bad is a darker book than I'd typically read. There is guts and gore, swears, and a whole lot of dark things that happen in this tale. But the author really has some gem moments which kept me interested in the story.
The full review can be found at http://katetilton.com/november-2014-k...
The full review can be found at http://katetilton.com/november-2014-k...
March 14, 2015
I felt like I was missing an essential piece of the story. I kept waiting for that feeling to go away but it never did. I can't exactly name what I felt was missing, but it just felt incomplete.
May 18, 2018
I actually picked up this book not knowing anything about the author or the story, (Hey, Mr. Asher, your Facebook ad paid off!) in need of an audiobook for my long commute.
What's up with stories about necromancers lately? I keep running across them, but I have to admit, this one was different. Between the storytelling and narration, I'm glad I stumbled upon this offering.
Now, on to the story. I would've loved more background about the secondary characters, but as this seems to be a long-running series, the author is giving us tidbits little by little. And I've never been one to rate a book on what's not there that I'd like added, but what's there on the page.
As for what's on the page:
The plot was slow getting started, and meandered a bit, then... Yeah, I got lulled into a false sense of security, and wasn't expecting the action to hit so hard. There is gore, there is off-color humor, and a protagonist that took me a minute to warm up to. But warm up, I did.
There is one scene that I found disturbing, but it didn't come across as gratuitous. Sadly, it was in keeping with the villain's M.O., and was a plot point. It's brief, but was still heartrending.
Besides the main characters, there are some intriguing and unique secondary characters as well, my favorite being Happy. Who couldn't love a ghostly panda bear? One thing that struck me is that the author seems to be improving his craft, as the book got better the further in I delved, and the storytelling growth is highly apparent by the second book. Not that the first one was bad, mind you, but it's a good sign when the series keeps getting better. There is some brilliant phrasing here, and excellent timing.
The creativity is amazing. Like I said, I've been reading a lot of necromancer stories lately, but the subplots are what sets this series apart--and keeps me reading.
I recommend this story to fans of urban fantasy.
What's up with stories about necromancers lately? I keep running across them, but I have to admit, this one was different. Between the storytelling and narration, I'm glad I stumbled upon this offering.
Now, on to the story. I would've loved more background about the secondary characters, but as this seems to be a long-running series, the author is giving us tidbits little by little. And I've never been one to rate a book on what's not there that I'd like added, but what's there on the page.
As for what's on the page:
The plot was slow getting started, and meandered a bit, then... Yeah, I got lulled into a false sense of security, and wasn't expecting the action to hit so hard. There is gore, there is off-color humor, and a protagonist that took me a minute to warm up to. But warm up, I did.
There is one scene that I found disturbing, but it didn't come across as gratuitous. Sadly, it was in keeping with the villain's M.O., and was a plot point. It's brief, but was still heartrending.
Besides the main characters, there are some intriguing and unique secondary characters as well, my favorite being Happy. Who couldn't love a ghostly panda bear? One thing that struck me is that the author seems to be improving his craft, as the book got better the further in I delved, and the storytelling growth is highly apparent by the second book. Not that the first one was bad, mind you, but it's a good sign when the series keeps getting better. There is some brilliant phrasing here, and excellent timing.
The creativity is amazing. Like I said, I've been reading a lot of necromancer stories lately, but the subplots are what sets this series apart--and keeps me reading.
I recommend this story to fans of urban fantasy.
April 23, 2017
A pleasant surprise. I got the first three books of the Vesik series on Audible and figured it would be a fun story to listen to while I do other things. I definitely had fun listening to the story and excited to see what else will come up in the series. Damian is a necromancer but he isn't portrayed in the usual style. A few not-so-subtle hints for what may be coming up in the series were dropped and I want to see where that promise of "more" will become. Quirky characters, snarky exchanges and a family/friend oriented approach makes for an enjoyable story.
I'll be adding William DuFris to my list of favorite narrators. He really made the story great! I look forward to seeing what else will happen to Damian and crew.
I'll be adding William DuFris to my list of favorite narrators. He really made the story great! I look forward to seeing what else will happen to Damian and crew.
June 30, 2025
Listened to this book in audible. The narrator was fantastic.
I liked the characters, with them you get plenty of action and adventure with sarcastic wit and humor.
There was blood and gore but not enough to take me away from the story.
I liked the characters, with them you get plenty of action and adventure with sarcastic wit and humor.
There was blood and gore but not enough to take me away from the story.
February 16, 2018
I really enjoyed this book because of the mix of supernatural creatures as well as adventure and humor. Damian was a great main character and seeing the world through his eyes was a fun and exciting journey.
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