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The Paranormals of Ahl #2
Bug Magic
I’m being stalked. I’ve spent a year as a detective, savoring my freedom while a powerful dragon follows me. As they say, ignorance is bliss, so I’m ignoring him. I don’t want to face the consequences if I acknowledge the situation.
When I’m contacted by an old acquaintance, I’m thrown into a mystery that threatens to turn the entire paranormal community into rage-filled maniacs. Shifters are being targeted, and our enemies are closing in. As the crown princess of the supernatural world, I can no longer ignore my title or the problems my selfish hope for freedom has caused. I can no longer wait to fix my magic.
So, I make a list and conspire with my powerful dragon stalker. With him on board and the help of my friends, I hope to fix my magic and wake the Firsts before all the pockets fall victim to this strange new magic.
Welcome to the second novel of ML Conklin’s The Paranormals of Ahl urban fantasy series.
When I’m contacted by an old acquaintance, I’m thrown into a mystery that threatens to turn the entire paranormal community into rage-filled maniacs. Shifters are being targeted, and our enemies are closing in. As the crown princess of the supernatural world, I can no longer ignore my title or the problems my selfish hope for freedom has caused. I can no longer wait to fix my magic.
So, I make a list and conspire with my powerful dragon stalker. With him on board and the help of my friends, I hope to fix my magic and wake the Firsts before all the pockets fall victim to this strange new magic.
Welcome to the second novel of ML Conklin’s The Paranormals of Ahl urban fantasy series.
425 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 3, 2024
69 people are currently reading
26 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
September 11, 2024
This is book two of The Paranormals of Ahl series and main character Jen (Jenella) Hendrix, as she is known by the mundanes, should be the Queen of Ahl and is a powerful mage, but is currently working as a detective, handling small cases, while leaving her much older brother Mat (Matthias) to rule as Regent, as she definitely never wants to ever become Queen. The horrific childhood her mother, Anitta, and her eldest son Jacques put her through, before Mat rescued her, has left her with nightmares and a lack of confidence in taking over the throne. She wants her freedom, and she is also following the requirement for her to have a job for two years before she can take the throne, something no one else has ever had to do. She at least gets to travel to lots of different pocket realms and meet loads of different paranormals, some who don’t have a seat on the Coalition Council. Ever since she awoke one of the Firsts, her mother put to sleep against their will before she was killed herself, she has wanted to find the resting places of the other Firsts, the paranormals who actually created all the magical races. The First she awoke was Drake, and she formed a bond with him or her magic did at least, when she did but hasn’t wanted to accept it. He cannot stay far from her because of this, and so follows her around, with her calling him her stalker! He is actually a multidrakelandarnarian and not accepted by the dragons or the shifters. He is looking for the Second Queen and wants to eliminate her, if he ever finds her.
She has three kinds of magic, healing, inherent magic she was born with, and then her largest pool of magic was Ruling magic, which only a third child of a ruling family would inherit. Her own mother had tried to take this from her and somehow Jen’s magics do not work together as they should and her ruling magic is very unpredictable, having a mind of its own. One of her latest cases is in the human world, where shifters have been getting infected by a strange magic, and she and Tracey, a witch who is very good at potions and her personal guard but also her only friend, go to investigate. What they find is a black, moving magic, that looks like a swarm of bugs and which feeds on paranormal magic. Another shadow of Jen’s is the Quin (Tarquin), the Vampire Consort, who should be immune to any magic, but who ends up infected as does Tracey, and they both slump, before coming to in a rage and trying to attack her! Her magic somehow responds, and they are left with more questions than answers about this new danger. This black magic plaque is part of a much larger problem within the paranormal world, that she has been ignoring and leaving Mat to deal with. He may be powerful and feared by many, but he does not have ruling magic like her! It seems their enemies, the Bellicose, are planning a huge attack and there are traitors within their Coalition helping the enemy. Quin has been searching for their king but has had no luck in identifying who it is, apart from a rumour that he is a First!
Her list of things she needs to sort out and find answers for is growing and she can no longer ignore her title and her expected role in their realm. Mat doesn’t want her to take her role as Queen until she can fix her magic, but no one seems to know what is wrong with it, not that she can really let many people know about that. She has to portray power to the other paranormals in the Coalition, or someone might try to dispose her, not that Mat would allow them to hurt her! She is hoping she can fix her magic and awake at least two more Firsts, she has sensed in pockets she has visited, before she has to become Queen and deal with their enemies and this dark bug magic that seems to be spreading uncontrollably. Her small team of Tracey, Quin and of course, Drake, are her core trusted people, but she seeks out more allies to help with the fight to come. Her first actions as Queen manage to discover some of the traitors within the Coalition Council itself, but there are more around that are passing information to their enemies. If they can’t stop this bug magic, then all the pocket realms could fall to the infection and the tainted paranormals it destroys. A touch of romance as Jen finally gives in to her growing feelings for Drake and uncovers a huge secret that many of her trusted people have been keeping from her. It causes her a lot of pain, but she eventually understands the reasoning behind some of their actions. They must all get ready for the battles that are coming and will be surprised about who one of the key leaders of their enemy is!
Jen may not quite get far through her list of things to do before the main attack arrives, but she does get to one of the locations where she believes a First is asleep, Magic Mountain, but her pig-headed insistence on going off on her own, will get her drawn into an unknown situation, with magic none of them truly understand and which affects her own magic. It leaves her unable to use any of her magic, but also to do so much more than she ever could have before! Drake finds a surprising mentor to help her with this issue and the solution is a lot simpler than she could have imagined! A powerful hybrid turns up out of the blue and will no doubt bring some interesting revelations in the next book. I look forward to seeing them identify who else is leading their enemies and if they can put a stop to al the fighting. I received an ARC copy of this book from BookSprout, and I have freely given my own opinion of the book above.
She has three kinds of magic, healing, inherent magic she was born with, and then her largest pool of magic was Ruling magic, which only a third child of a ruling family would inherit. Her own mother had tried to take this from her and somehow Jen’s magics do not work together as they should and her ruling magic is very unpredictable, having a mind of its own. One of her latest cases is in the human world, where shifters have been getting infected by a strange magic, and she and Tracey, a witch who is very good at potions and her personal guard but also her only friend, go to investigate. What they find is a black, moving magic, that looks like a swarm of bugs and which feeds on paranormal magic. Another shadow of Jen’s is the Quin (Tarquin), the Vampire Consort, who should be immune to any magic, but who ends up infected as does Tracey, and they both slump, before coming to in a rage and trying to attack her! Her magic somehow responds, and they are left with more questions than answers about this new danger. This black magic plaque is part of a much larger problem within the paranormal world, that she has been ignoring and leaving Mat to deal with. He may be powerful and feared by many, but he does not have ruling magic like her! It seems their enemies, the Bellicose, are planning a huge attack and there are traitors within their Coalition helping the enemy. Quin has been searching for their king but has had no luck in identifying who it is, apart from a rumour that he is a First!
Her list of things she needs to sort out and find answers for is growing and she can no longer ignore her title and her expected role in their realm. Mat doesn’t want her to take her role as Queen until she can fix her magic, but no one seems to know what is wrong with it, not that she can really let many people know about that. She has to portray power to the other paranormals in the Coalition, or someone might try to dispose her, not that Mat would allow them to hurt her! She is hoping she can fix her magic and awake at least two more Firsts, she has sensed in pockets she has visited, before she has to become Queen and deal with their enemies and this dark bug magic that seems to be spreading uncontrollably. Her small team of Tracey, Quin and of course, Drake, are her core trusted people, but she seeks out more allies to help with the fight to come. Her first actions as Queen manage to discover some of the traitors within the Coalition Council itself, but there are more around that are passing information to their enemies. If they can’t stop this bug magic, then all the pocket realms could fall to the infection and the tainted paranormals it destroys. A touch of romance as Jen finally gives in to her growing feelings for Drake and uncovers a huge secret that many of her trusted people have been keeping from her. It causes her a lot of pain, but she eventually understands the reasoning behind some of their actions. They must all get ready for the battles that are coming and will be surprised about who one of the key leaders of their enemy is!
Jen may not quite get far through her list of things to do before the main attack arrives, but she does get to one of the locations where she believes a First is asleep, Magic Mountain, but her pig-headed insistence on going off on her own, will get her drawn into an unknown situation, with magic none of them truly understand and which affects her own magic. It leaves her unable to use any of her magic, but also to do so much more than she ever could have before! Drake finds a surprising mentor to help her with this issue and the solution is a lot simpler than she could have imagined! A powerful hybrid turns up out of the blue and will no doubt bring some interesting revelations in the next book. I look forward to seeing them identify who else is leading their enemies and if they can put a stop to al the fighting. I received an ARC copy of this book from BookSprout, and I have freely given my own opinion of the book above.
August 31, 2024
Jen has been enjoying her reprieve from the responsibility of taking the throne and her work as a private detective has given her a chance to meet the people she will one day rule on a more personal level. A call from an old friend will have her wondering if she can continue to ignore her duties as the queen of the many supernatural communities, she has become more familiar with during her PI work. A deadly magic is targeting the shifters so with her best friend, her private eye mentor, and that pesky dragon shadow she will investigate the cause of the deadly magic that puts the entire supernatural community, and possibly, the human world at risk.
Wow, I have read the first book in this series, which I would recommend that other readers do as well, I cannot say enough about the characters in this book. They are all wonderfully written and the author does a fantastic job of portraying each of them, and their unique, sometimes quirky personalities in such a way that it will keep you engaged in their story. Whether they are part of the core group of characters met in the first book or introduced in this one and whether you loved or hated them, they are all absolutely fascinating. This is an action-packed romance with plenty of twists and turns in the plot to keep a reader engrossed in the pages of this book from the first page to the last. I can’t wait for the next book in this series.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.
Wow, I have read the first book in this series, which I would recommend that other readers do as well, I cannot say enough about the characters in this book. They are all wonderfully written and the author does a fantastic job of portraying each of them, and their unique, sometimes quirky personalities in such a way that it will keep you engaged in their story. Whether they are part of the core group of characters met in the first book or introduced in this one and whether you loved or hated them, they are all absolutely fascinating. This is an action-packed romance with plenty of twists and turns in the plot to keep a reader engrossed in the pages of this book from the first page to the last. I can’t wait for the next book in this series.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.
August 21, 2024
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. This is such a great read!! I absolutely love this new series. The author has really done an amazing job of showing the growth of Janella. The growth Janella is working on is realistic, and you cannot help but feel for her as she has to start putting the citizens first; and learn new "better" coping mechanisms as she deals with her childhood trauma. There is a revelation about the coup that is trying to take place that was a whopper. I am enjoying all the characters. They all have such full personalities. The world building is done so well that I cannot wait to revisit it. I am sorry I finished this book so fast. I am excited to see where all this will land. Here's to hoping there are many more installments, and they come fast. Don't miss this series!!
August 24, 2024
Maybe it was just not the right time for me to read this one.. I enjoyed the first book and had high hopes for this one. Unfortunately, it really missed the mark for me.
This story felt really disjointed and scattered to me. There was a lot going on and not a lot of forward progress or solutions.
The character development felt rushed and shallow, with character emotions and interactions swinging wildy between extremes without anything being resolved.
Jenella's relationship with Drake is probably the most disappointing part. I was looking forward to their progression towards being a real couple and this felt not well-thought out.
I gave it two stars because I *did* finish it, so that's saying something I guess.
~ My thanks to BookSirens for the free ARC. This review is my voluntary, honest opinion. ~
This story felt really disjointed and scattered to me. There was a lot going on and not a lot of forward progress or solutions.
The character development felt rushed and shallow, with character emotions and interactions swinging wildy between extremes without anything being resolved.
Jenella's relationship with Drake is probably the most disappointing part. I was looking forward to their progression towards being a real couple and this felt not well-thought out.
I gave it two stars because I *did* finish it, so that's saying something I guess.
~ My thanks to BookSirens for the free ARC. This review is my voluntary, honest opinion. ~
August 27, 2024
I liked this book much, much better than the first! The characters are much more developed and come across as mature as they’re supposed to be. I do have to say that I’m not a huge fan of the title, seems a tad too simple/immature. I love this storyline and some of the twists that take place in this book and I can’t wait for book three to see how it resolves. I also appreciate how this author can add several new characters to each book but it never feels overwhelming or crazy. The fight scenes are always a little rushed. A huge conflict between armies is resolved within a few pages and the good guys always win with one all powerful display of magic. Still, all in all a pretty great read!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
December 10, 2024
This book takes the story to the next level.
While Drake and Jenella try to help each other through some devastating problems, the democracy threatens to fall.
Who are the traitors and who are the ones to rely on?
The story continues in this book and more intricate woven details come to life.
Friendships are formed, battles are fought and magic comes to life.
This book has a nice new perpective on magic, magic users and the way it all started in this world.
There is a lot of trauma and working through all of that makes for interesting dialogues.
When you like Ilona Andrews or Jennifer Estep, try out these books.
While Drake and Jenella try to help each other through some devastating problems, the democracy threatens to fall.
Who are the traitors and who are the ones to rely on?
The story continues in this book and more intricate woven details come to life.
Friendships are formed, battles are fought and magic comes to life.
This book has a nice new perpective on magic, magic users and the way it all started in this world.
There is a lot of trauma and working through all of that makes for interesting dialogues.
When you like Ilona Andrews or Jennifer Estep, try out these books.
September 8, 2024
I am loving this world and those who live in it.
You are very sneaky in your writings; *grin*~ making the good guys bad and vice versa.
Drake and Jen actually confirm their relationship in this book. And once again the author waited until the very last page to throw some unanswered information our way.
She also left a little personal note saying we can expect a few more books in this world before the end of the year! I look forward to the chance to read them and entangle myself back into the daily lives of those living here.
You are very sneaky in your writings; *grin*~ making the good guys bad and vice versa.
Drake and Jen actually confirm their relationship in this book. And once again the author waited until the very last page to throw some unanswered information our way.
She also left a little personal note saying we can expect a few more books in this world before the end of the year! I look forward to the chance to read them and entangle myself back into the daily lives of those living here.
October 11, 2025
Lions and tigers and bears oh my.. oops that should’ve been vampires and Demons and elves and dragons
Elves and dragons. Building a group that works together and prepares for war has got to be exhausting. but it’s a real life example in a sense of how it is to build your allies route out your traders and fight the good fight. The story continues and it’s just as engaging as the first one highly recommend.
Elves and dragons. Building a group that works together and prepares for war has got to be exhausting. but it’s a real life example in a sense of how it is to build your allies route out your traders and fight the good fight. The story continues and it’s just as engaging as the first one highly recommend.
September 3, 2024
The first book introduced the main characters and the second one was just as fun to read. A few more secrets are revealed, some trouble occurs, hilarious scenes, and fun interactions between all the characters. And the ending was epic and loved the twist. Plus Jenella has grown up and come more into her own this time around too. I laughed and enjoyed it all.
September 9, 2024
Bug Magic is Book 2 in The Paranormals of Ahl and is a great continuation of the series. I enjoyed reading both books, the plotlines, worldbuilding and character development. I look forward to reading more from this author.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 13, 2024
This is book two of the Paranormal of Ahi series. The characters and the story is very detailed. You can relate to the main character. Magic, the paranormal and the human world being stalked isn’t fun.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
December 30, 2024
addicting new series
This book is so full of amazing characters who grow and change and become better versions of themselves! The mystery and the action and friendships keep growing and changing! Love this series can’t wait for the next one!!
This book is so full of amazing characters who grow and change and become better versions of themselves! The mystery and the action and friendships keep growing and changing! Love this series can’t wait for the next one!!
June 24, 2025
Action packed
Another extremely well written book. I’m definitely looking forward to continuing the series.
Again I have tons of respect for the author’s decision to end the book at a pivotal moment instead of a manufactured dramatic cliffhanger.
Another extremely well written book. I’m definitely looking forward to continuing the series.
Again I have tons of respect for the author’s decision to end the book at a pivotal moment instead of a manufactured dramatic cliffhanger.
September 9, 2024
On Dragon problem/&Bug Magic books!
Both books were a joy to read! And well ,written I do hope to hear more from ML Conklin in the future.
Both books were a joy to read! And well ,written I do hope to hear more from ML Conklin in the future.
February 28, 2025
So good
♡ Really well written & can't put it down. Honestly love the series. Can't wait to start on book 3 😁
♡ Really well written & can't put it down. Honestly love the series. Can't wait to start on book 3 😁
November 3, 2025
great fun
Love the characters. Great action makes you feel involved right away. I will checkout the next book in the series. This is a series that I can recommend.
Love the characters. Great action makes you feel involved right away. I will checkout the next book in the series. This is a series that I can recommend.
September 16, 2024
I am enjoying this series! There’s great character growth and the building continues with the introduction of new pocket realms. The magic system can be a little confusing but who cares because there’s dragons, and what a dragon Drake is. 😍😍
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews