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Sorcery & Science (Rebooted) #1
Sorcery & Science
Urban fantasy. Galactic consequences.
Terra Cross is just your typical paranormal princess. She plays poker with goblins and leprechauns. She savors her morning muffin from the Pacific Sunrise Bakery in suburban California. She solves galactic crime cases. And on a particularly wild day, she can even see into the future.
Everything is going so well—up until her father, the mages’ high king, betroths her to one of his allies. But playing nice with otherworldly ambassadors isn’t the only thing on Terra’s plate. A renegade mage scientist has taken up shop on Earth, whose inhabitants have no knowledge of magic or the worlds beyond.
With his forbidden experiments threatening to pierce the Veil of Secrecy on Earth, Terra cannot tackle this challenge alone. Divided by magic and technology—torn between a mage enforcer with devastating telekinetic powers, and a lethal black ops vampire soldier—time is running out. For if this mad scientist succeeds, the galaxy’s hard hand of justice will come down on them all.
Sorcery & Science is the first book in the Sorcery & Science urban fantasy series.
Terra Cross is just your typical paranormal princess. She plays poker with goblins and leprechauns. She savors her morning muffin from the Pacific Sunrise Bakery in suburban California. She solves galactic crime cases. And on a particularly wild day, she can even see into the future.
Everything is going so well—up until her father, the mages’ high king, betroths her to one of his allies. But playing nice with otherworldly ambassadors isn’t the only thing on Terra’s plate. A renegade mage scientist has taken up shop on Earth, whose inhabitants have no knowledge of magic or the worlds beyond.
With his forbidden experiments threatening to pierce the Veil of Secrecy on Earth, Terra cannot tackle this challenge alone. Divided by magic and technology—torn between a mage enforcer with devastating telekinetic powers, and a lethal black ops vampire soldier—time is running out. For if this mad scientist succeeds, the galaxy’s hard hand of justice will come down on them all.
Sorcery & Science is the first book in the Sorcery & Science urban fantasy series.
213 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 8, 2017
143 people are currently reading
96 people want to read
About the author
Ella Summers
66 books1,423 followersElla Summers has been writing stories for as long as she could read; she's been coming up with tall tales even longer than that. One of her early year masterpieces was a story about a pigtailed princess and her dragon sidekick. Nowadays, she still writes fantasy. She likes books with layered plots, lots of action and adventure, and a touch of romance. When she is not busy writing or spending time with her two young children, she makes the world safe by fighting robots.
Originally from the U.S., Ella currently resides in Switzerland. She is the author of Sorcery and Science, a fantasy adventure series set in a world splintered by magic and technology.
Originally from the U.S., Ella currently resides in Switzerland. She is the author of Sorcery and Science, a fantasy adventure series set in a world splintered by magic and technology.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 5, 2019
Full review: https://girlswithguns.org/sorcery-and...
I generally enjoyed this, once I got past Summers’s fondness for prose which tends toward the over-descriptive, it seems especially when it comes to colours, for some reason. The world she crafts is quite an interesting one, and the techno-pagan blend of SF and fantasy is intriguing. While Jason is the more action-minded of the duo, Terra becomes more active later on, especially after taking one of Vib’s experimental concoctions, out of desperation. It allows her to use some of Jason’s talents, which are significant;y more combat-oriented than her precognitive ones.
The sudden right turn at the end, to tie it into the main body of the series, leaves me uncertain whether I would want to continue, since it appears potentially rather different in tone. Not least, I get the horrible feeling there’s going to be one of “those” love triangles, putting the heroine between Jason and the dark, brooding vampire commander she encounters. Fortunately, that was only hinted at in the prequel, and what’s here was, overall, pleasant enough.
I generally enjoyed this, once I got past Summers’s fondness for prose which tends toward the over-descriptive, it seems especially when it comes to colours, for some reason. The world she crafts is quite an interesting one, and the techno-pagan blend of SF and fantasy is intriguing. While Jason is the more action-minded of the duo, Terra becomes more active later on, especially after taking one of Vib’s experimental concoctions, out of desperation. It allows her to use some of Jason’s talents, which are significant;y more combat-oriented than her precognitive ones.
The sudden right turn at the end, to tie it into the main body of the series, leaves me uncertain whether I would want to continue, since it appears potentially rather different in tone. Not least, I get the horrible feeling there’s going to be one of “those” love triangles, putting the heroine between Jason and the dark, brooding vampire commander she encounters. Fortunately, that was only hinted at in the prequel, and what’s here was, overall, pleasant enough.
July 28, 2018
This prequel sets up the reboot of the Sorcery and Science series. Apparently, the first time the author wrote this series, it went a different way. I like the way this version is going so much that I can't wait for more. It's a sci-fi meets magic universe where there are lots of planets with advanced tech and magic and Earth is oblivious. Most of the action is on other planets, and travel between planets is via portal.
We get a lot of backstory in this. Eventually, the princess heroine is set up to take a fall by a military vampire she and her magical fiance were forced to work with, and it ends up costing some people their lives or their freedom.
We get a lot of backstory in this. Eventually, the princess heroine is set up to take a fall by a military vampire she and her magical fiance were forced to work with, and it ends up costing some people their lives or their freedom.
February 23, 2018
I read this as part of the "Dominion Rising" box set.
This tale is a 3.5-star adventure, but I'm rounding up because it was an enjoyable read.
This is an adventure told from the first person, a la Hunger Games, which always takes me a bit to get accustomed to (I prefer 3rd person omniscient). Our storyteller Terra, a Prophet, and her best friend Jason, a Phantom, gallivant across the galaxy by way of magic portals to conduct private investigations. Or, at least that's the cover story. Instead, they are a princess and prince, respectively, trying to track down a mad mage (named Vib) who experiments on living people...trying to create more powerful magic users. This is a big no-no to the Galactic Assembly (the experimenting on people part...well, maybe the rogue crime-fighting, too).
The story begins on Earth, where the pair are trying to blend in as much as possible to track down Vib, whom they are sure is hiding here. But they must be careful not to tip off magic-free Earth of their true nature, lest they break a very sacred treaty that forbids the use of magic in front of Earthlings.
They meet with limited success, discovering the mage and a portion of his plans (and seeing a healthy dose of his work) before he escapes their grasp, and so the adventure begins. There's a lot of world-building (galaxy-building, actually), and it's all very silly and definitely young adult fiction along the lines of "Twilight" (I guess...I never read those books). Still, it passes the time quickly as it's told quickly without hanging on too many details. Ms. Summers weaves a splash of politics and corrupt justice, takes us to a variety of climates, and does all she can to make sure no real harm comes to the main protagonists.
There are a couple of not-very-well-hidden Deus Ex Machinae that appear in key places and there are a couple of storylines which come out of nowhere, as though Ms. Summers decided, "Oh! You know what would go well here? Plotting for the sequel!" I'm not even referring to Terra's visions (refer to her status of "Prophet" earlier), which mostly work without a hitch...even if we know that they, also, are reaching toward a sequel.
The description of the book leads one to believe that most of the action will take place on Earth as the heroes struggle against magical forces while simultaneously trying not to blow their own cover, or even have a villain reveal that magic is real, but Earth is just a brief setting. We spend more time on alien worlds (which is fine...I just expected a slightly different ride). The ride was still fun, and unlike the last book I read in Dominion Rising (Mind Raider), did not suffer from a lack of proofreading. The only thing that took me out a little bit was where it nearly became a bodice-ripper. I actually said out loud, "Is this turning into a Harlequin novel?"
Short review: Overall, definitely more sorcery than science (full-on fantasy novel, frankly, with practically no science fiction). But if you want brain candy, you should go ahead and indulge!
This tale is a 3.5-star adventure, but I'm rounding up because it was an enjoyable read.
This is an adventure told from the first person, a la Hunger Games, which always takes me a bit to get accustomed to (I prefer 3rd person omniscient). Our storyteller Terra, a Prophet, and her best friend Jason, a Phantom, gallivant across the galaxy by way of magic portals to conduct private investigations. Or, at least that's the cover story. Instead, they are a princess and prince, respectively, trying to track down a mad mage (named Vib) who experiments on living people...trying to create more powerful magic users. This is a big no-no to the Galactic Assembly (the experimenting on people part...well, maybe the rogue crime-fighting, too).
The story begins on Earth, where the pair are trying to blend in as much as possible to track down Vib, whom they are sure is hiding here. But they must be careful not to tip off magic-free Earth of their true nature, lest they break a very sacred treaty that forbids the use of magic in front of Earthlings.
They meet with limited success, discovering the mage and a portion of his plans (and seeing a healthy dose of his work) before he escapes their grasp, and so the adventure begins. There's a lot of world-building (galaxy-building, actually), and it's all very silly and definitely young adult fiction along the lines of "Twilight" (I guess...I never read those books). Still, it passes the time quickly as it's told quickly without hanging on too many details. Ms. Summers weaves a splash of politics and corrupt justice, takes us to a variety of climates, and does all she can to make sure no real harm comes to the main protagonists.
There are a couple of not-very-well-hidden Deus Ex Machinae that appear in key places and there are a couple of storylines which come out of nowhere, as though Ms. Summers decided, "Oh! You know what would go well here? Plotting for the sequel!" I'm not even referring to Terra's visions (refer to her status of "Prophet" earlier), which mostly work without a hitch...even if we know that they, also, are reaching toward a sequel.
The description of the book leads one to believe that most of the action will take place on Earth as the heroes struggle against magical forces while simultaneously trying not to blow their own cover, or even have a villain reveal that magic is real, but Earth is just a brief setting. We spend more time on alien worlds (which is fine...I just expected a slightly different ride). The ride was still fun, and unlike the last book I read in Dominion Rising (Mind Raider), did not suffer from a lack of proofreading. The only thing that took me out a little bit was where it nearly became a bodice-ripper. I actually said out loud, "Is this turning into a Harlequin novel?"
Short review: Overall, definitely more sorcery than science (full-on fantasy novel, frankly, with practically no science fiction). But if you want brain candy, you should go ahead and indulge!
September 6, 2017
I read this book as part of the Dominion Rising box set. I appreciated the effectiveness of the author's world-building, and liked her characters, though I felt they could have used some more fleshing out. The story itself (as the title suggests) is very much a mix of scifi and fantasy. There were parts that were a little confusing. It almost seemed that the reader was supposed to have some kind of prior knowledge of this world that I didn't, strange since it's a first or prequel book. I enjoyed Sorcery & Science right up until the very end, when it became obvious that the series is going in a very different direction than I had hoped. I don't plan to read further in this series, but do have an appreciation of this writer's ability.
December 2, 2024
Not as good.
This was the first book of the series that showed the fall of the MMC and the h. Did not care for this. The heroine was weak and the villain won where the h was pushed out as the ending. This book should have been a pre-sequel to the boring series. This was just another Boring PI series with no build up or plotline. Romance was weak or zero. The heroine having power of being a seer was weak. Not as good as the Angel series. Could not stand the ending of this book. Disappointed. Won't waste my time on this boring series.
This was the first book of the series that showed the fall of the MMC and the h. Did not care for this. The heroine was weak and the villain won where the h was pushed out as the ending. This book should have been a pre-sequel to the boring series. This was just another Boring PI series with no build up or plotline. Romance was weak or zero. The heroine having power of being a seer was weak. Not as good as the Angel series. Could not stand the ending of this book. Disappointed. Won't waste my time on this boring series.
December 8, 2024
Good book - worth a read
Well written and edited like all of Summers’ books. The main conflict in this story is resolved but there are more minor conflicts left to resolve throughout the series. There is a minor cliffhanger to get you into the next book but it’s not really annoying.
The main character is interesting but naive. You could tell she was a bit young because she expected a more fairy tale life but it’s not too much. Her growth through the book is spotty but I think she’ll evolve if it’s like Summers’ other books.
Well written and edited like all of Summers’ books. The main conflict in this story is resolved but there are more minor conflicts left to resolve throughout the series. There is a minor cliffhanger to get you into the next book but it’s not really annoying.
The main character is interesting but naive. You could tell she was a bit young because she expected a more fairy tale life but it’s not too much. Her growth through the book is spotty but I think she’ll evolve if it’s like Summers’ other books.
December 8, 2018
The overall premise of the book is interesting enough but the execution is lacking. The book isn't really written all that well but it still isn't the worst either. I'm not sure why the author rebooted the series and completely changed things but I certainly wouldn't want to read it after reading this one. I only have this book because it was part of a compilation set and I don't intend to continue the series.
August 23, 2017
I read this for the story of Ella Summers, she is one of my go to authors.
The prequel Sorcery & Science, is short but full of action and intigue.
The story grabs you and left you wanting more.
Ella creates amazing worls and funny caracters, hers storys are full of action, kickass heroins and heroes.
The story is fast paced and really entertaining.
The first book of this series is out now and I'm going to read it next !!!!
The prequel Sorcery & Science, is short but full of action and intigue.
The story grabs you and left you wanting more.
Ella creates amazing worls and funny caracters, hers storys are full of action, kickass heroins and heroes.
The story is fast paced and really entertaining.
The first book of this series is out now and I'm going to read it next !!!!
May 16, 2024
Great
I really love all of Ella Summers’ books! She always does such a great job with world building and character development! I can’t wait to see what happens next!
I really love all of Ella Summers’ books! She always does such a great job with world building and character development! I can’t wait to see what happens next!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews