What do you think?
Rate this book
AURA Series #1
Quinn's Gambit
AURA series:
AURA, the Agency of Unnatural Resettlement and Assimilation: it’s a weird job, but somebody’s got to do it.
A magical catastrophe tears the fabric of reality, causing unpredictable holes between worlds through which anything might fall—elves, centaurs, trolls, yeti. The brave officers and employees of AURA struggle daily to help the lost and injured, and contain the irretrievably violent while their research staff scramble to find a way to reverse the effect.
Anything can and does pop through into the human world, sometimes with disastrous and deadly results. It’s a race against time to see if the AURA mages can repair reality and stop the inter-dimensional flood before something crosses over that proves strong enough to destroy the world.
Quinn’s Gambit by Angel Martinez and Bellora Quinn
Book One in the AURA series
An unregistered human con wizard and a duty-bound, straight-laced elf cop. As New York explodes with dangerous creatures, their passion goes nuclear.
After a terrible magical accident at Berkeley created unpredictable holes between realities, all manner of non-human creatures started popping into our world. These displacements, called Random Anomalous Reality Events or RARE, have taken magic out of fiction and relocated it firmly in reality, resulting in a great deal of chaos and confusion. Displaced elf Valerian works with AURA, the Agency of Unnatural Resettlement and Assimilation, to intercept these beings as they appear in the human world, helping the peaceful ones and subduing the violent, malevolent ones. It’s good, satisfying work, and Val would be happy if he wasn’t so lonely.
Quinten is a young mage just trying to get by, but New York isn’t the easiest city to make a living in. If his methods are sometimes morally dubious, his heart is still in the right place. Of course, for Quinn, the right place means firmly locked away, protected at all costs. Living by his wits and sometimes magically induced luck, he works as a ‘freelance magic user’, or unregistered mage and small-time con, according to the authorities. The last thing Quinn wants is to draw the cops’ attention, but when an Event happens right on top of him, he’s forced to turn to AURA for help. Valerian isn’t at all what he’d expected in an AURA cop, and he certainly wasn’t expecting to join forces with the sexy elf, a snarky drow and a bitter incubus, when certain individuals in power try to stop the RARE by any means necessary.
Things are not all what they seem at AURA headquarters, and a greater evil lurks at the top than anyone could have imagined.
Angel Martinez
About the Author:
The unlikely black sheep of an ivory tower intellectual family, Angel Martinez has managed to make her way through life reasonably unscathed. Despite a wildly misspent youth, she snagged a degree in English Lit, married once and did it right the first time, (same husband for almost twenty-four years) gave birth to one amazing son, (now in college) and realized at some point that she could get paid for writing.Published since 2006, Angel's cynical heart cloaks a desperate romantic. You'll find drama and humor given equal weight in her writing and don't expect sad endings. Life is sad enough.
Bellora Quinn
About the Author:
Originally hailing from Detroit Michigan, Bellora now resides on the sunny Gulf Coast of Florida where a herd of Dachshunds keeps her
AURA, the Agency of Unnatural Resettlement and Assimilation: it’s a weird job, but somebody’s got to do it.
A magical catastrophe tears the fabric of reality, causing unpredictable holes between worlds through which anything might fall—elves, centaurs, trolls, yeti. The brave officers and employees of AURA struggle daily to help the lost and injured, and contain the irretrievably violent while their research staff scramble to find a way to reverse the effect.
Anything can and does pop through into the human world, sometimes with disastrous and deadly results. It’s a race against time to see if the AURA mages can repair reality and stop the inter-dimensional flood before something crosses over that proves strong enough to destroy the world.
Quinn’s Gambit by Angel Martinez and Bellora Quinn
Book One in the AURA series
An unregistered human con wizard and a duty-bound, straight-laced elf cop. As New York explodes with dangerous creatures, their passion goes nuclear.
After a terrible magical accident at Berkeley created unpredictable holes between realities, all manner of non-human creatures started popping into our world. These displacements, called Random Anomalous Reality Events or RARE, have taken magic out of fiction and relocated it firmly in reality, resulting in a great deal of chaos and confusion. Displaced elf Valerian works with AURA, the Agency of Unnatural Resettlement and Assimilation, to intercept these beings as they appear in the human world, helping the peaceful ones and subduing the violent, malevolent ones. It’s good, satisfying work, and Val would be happy if he wasn’t so lonely.
Quinten is a young mage just trying to get by, but New York isn’t the easiest city to make a living in. If his methods are sometimes morally dubious, his heart is still in the right place. Of course, for Quinn, the right place means firmly locked away, protected at all costs. Living by his wits and sometimes magically induced luck, he works as a ‘freelance magic user’, or unregistered mage and small-time con, according to the authorities. The last thing Quinn wants is to draw the cops’ attention, but when an Event happens right on top of him, he’s forced to turn to AURA for help. Valerian isn’t at all what he’d expected in an AURA cop, and he certainly wasn’t expecting to join forces with the sexy elf, a snarky drow and a bitter incubus, when certain individuals in power try to stop the RARE by any means necessary.
Things are not all what they seem at AURA headquarters, and a greater evil lurks at the top than anyone could have imagined.
Angel Martinez
About the Author:
The unlikely black sheep of an ivory tower intellectual family, Angel Martinez has managed to make her way through life reasonably unscathed. Despite a wildly misspent youth, she snagged a degree in English Lit, married once and did it right the first time, (same husband for almost twenty-four years) gave birth to one amazing son, (now in college) and realized at some point that she could get paid for writing.Published since 2006, Angel's cynical heart cloaks a desperate romantic. You'll find drama and humor given equal weight in her writing and don't expect sad endings. Life is sad enough.
Bellora Quinn
About the Author:
Originally hailing from Detroit Michigan, Bellora now resides on the sunny Gulf Coast of Florida where a herd of Dachshunds keeps her
296 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 5, 2015
30 people are currently reading
614 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 109 reviews
April 26, 2015
Overall, this is a really enjoyable and imaginative urban fantasy romance, and fans of that genre should have good time with this fantastical romp in New York City.
What I liked: Overall, I dug the world and all its fantastical beings running around. Also the developing romance between straight-arrow Val, who is an Elf and has difficulties understanding human customs and nature, and skittish Quinn, a human magic-user who tries to lay low, especially from officers of the law (like Val.) Fortunately for romance fans, things keep pushing them together.
I appreciated that the authors threw in a bunch of other characters to carry the story along. It felt colorful without feeling crowded, and I give props to any authors including a Yeti in a romantic relationship. Yetis need love too!
What was harder: The climax happens somewhere between 70-76% of the story, and after that, it's like a longish epilogue and wrap-up. Because the climax happens so early, I kept pondering if something else was going to happen, or if it was something like Samhaim and the story was going to end by 90% and we would be hit with excerpts. I kind of wished for more energy in that last quarter to keep the pacing up.
Do you like urban fantasy? If you do, then this may be a fun ride for you. It's got magic, fairies, cops, baddies, romance, sex, swords, not-mean river trolls, loving Yetis, centaurs, flirting incubi, the roving dead, and more. It's chock full of stuff and an overall fun and very readable story.
What I liked: Overall, I dug the world and all its fantastical beings running around. Also the developing romance between straight-arrow Val, who is an Elf and has difficulties understanding human customs and nature, and skittish Quinn, a human magic-user who tries to lay low, especially from officers of the law (like Val.) Fortunately for romance fans, things keep pushing them together.
I appreciated that the authors threw in a bunch of other characters to carry the story along. It felt colorful without feeling crowded, and I give props to any authors including a Yeti in a romantic relationship. Yetis need love too!
What was harder: The climax happens somewhere between 70-76% of the story, and after that, it's like a longish epilogue and wrap-up. Because the climax happens so early, I kept pondering if something else was going to happen, or if it was something like Samhaim and the story was going to end by 90% and we would be hit with excerpts. I kind of wished for more energy in that last quarter to keep the pacing up.
Do you like urban fantasy? If you do, then this may be a fun ride for you. It's got magic, fairies, cops, baddies, romance, sex, swords, not-mean river trolls, loving Yetis, centaurs, flirting incubi, the roving dead, and more. It's chock full of stuff and an overall fun and very readable story.
May 6, 2015
I seriously thought that this could be a great urban fantasy series...
It had the perfect ingredients: explanation about magic and supernatural beings in modern world (an explosion at Berkeley created Random Anomalous Reality Events or RARE, which pulled supernatural beings from their dimension to ours; Agency of Unnatural Resettlement and Assimilation, or AURA, was then established by magic users to help these beings in assimilation with human's life), introduction of conflict (AURA management tried to suppress magic to stop more creatures to come to our world), as well as INTERESTING characters (we have elves, boggle, YETI, drow, centaurs, incubus, fairies, wyvern, and griffin among others).
Unfortunately, I thought the romance dragged the story down, PLUS it fell into the 'way-too-sappy' moments one time too many for my taste. I understand that this is targeted for romance readers who will definitely demand romance, but personally, I wish that the romance is tone down and the story can focus on the urban fantasy/mystery/action portion.
I LOVE urban fantasy series and I follow several mainstream ones. However, I find it quite difficult to find one with the same quality in MM genre. At first, I was quite excited with Aura's Gambit; the premise was promising. I liked Quinn ... he was a human mage -- untrained though, but had potentials (he could create the strongest protective circle!). I can see Quinn develops his power shall the story moves forward with him being part of the main character.
On the other hand, his love interest was a bit TOO MUSHY for my taste. I wasn't impressed. For an elven battle prince, Valerian needed too much help to win his battles. I couldn't picture him as a warrior at all! In addition, Val was too busy feeling sad because he thought that Quinn didn't want him as well as being jealous to Sin (an incubus who was also Quinn's friend). Seriously, Val, snap out of it! Stop being such a drama queen, jeez!
Another character, Kai, the drow queen's seeker seemed to have potentials as well, but I thought his beloved yeti was pushed to the background. Yes, Tenzin had great healing power but I didn't see him doing many things here yet.
So, yes, the romance was distracting from the 'good' potential of urban fantasy arc. When the climax happened in around 75%-ish mark, what was left afterwards was boring. I agree with Tracy's review here when she said that after the climax it became like a "long-ish epilogue and wrap up". My rating has dropped down by this point (although I admit that one couple is cute).
I see that there's book two (and maybe book three) coming -- and it will still be about this world and apparently combining new and old character as long as exploring threesome relationship (not sure with which couple). As much as I am intrigued, I'm not sure I want to read it. Not because of the threesome relationship but more because it didn't turn out as I wanted it to be. MAYBE if this is more of urban fantasy with a touch of romantic flair rather than the other way around, I would be more eager to continue. For now, I'll stop here.
It had the perfect ingredients: explanation about magic and supernatural beings in modern world (an explosion at Berkeley created Random Anomalous Reality Events or RARE, which pulled supernatural beings from their dimension to ours; Agency of Unnatural Resettlement and Assimilation, or AURA, was then established by magic users to help these beings in assimilation with human's life), introduction of conflict (AURA management tried to suppress magic to stop more creatures to come to our world), as well as INTERESTING characters (we have elves, boggle, YETI, drow, centaurs, incubus, fairies, wyvern, and griffin among others).
Unfortunately, I thought the romance dragged the story down, PLUS it fell into the 'way-too-sappy' moments one time too many for my taste. I understand that this is targeted for romance readers who will definitely demand romance, but personally, I wish that the romance is tone down and the story can focus on the urban fantasy/mystery/action portion.
I LOVE urban fantasy series and I follow several mainstream ones. However, I find it quite difficult to find one with the same quality in MM genre. At first, I was quite excited with Aura's Gambit; the premise was promising. I liked Quinn ... he was a human mage -- untrained though, but had potentials (he could create the strongest protective circle!). I can see Quinn develops his power shall the story moves forward with him being part of the main character.
On the other hand, his love interest was a bit TOO MUSHY for my taste. I wasn't impressed. For an elven battle prince, Valerian needed too much help to win his battles. I couldn't picture him as a warrior at all! In addition, Val was too busy feeling sad because he thought that Quinn didn't want him as well as being jealous to Sin (an incubus who was also Quinn's friend). Seriously, Val, snap out of it! Stop being such a drama queen, jeez!
Another character, Kai, the drow queen's seeker seemed to have potentials as well, but I thought his beloved yeti was pushed to the background. Yes, Tenzin had great healing power but I didn't see him doing many things here yet.
So, yes, the romance was distracting from the 'good' potential of urban fantasy arc. When the climax happened in around 75%-ish mark, what was left afterwards was boring. I agree with Tracy's review here when she said that after the climax it became like a "long-ish epilogue and wrap up". My rating has dropped down by this point (although I admit that one couple is cute).
I see that there's book two (and maybe book three) coming -- and it will still be about this world and apparently combining new and old character as long as exploring threesome relationship (not sure with which couple). As much as I am intrigued, I'm not sure I want to read it. Not because of the threesome relationship but more because it didn't turn out as I wanted it to be. MAYBE if this is more of urban fantasy with a touch of romantic flair rather than the other way around, I would be more eager to continue. For now, I'll stop here.
April 7, 2016
Strange case of liking something, but being slightly disappointed at the same time.
So, I was behind the story, I mean a supernatural relocation task force cruising NYC--what's not to like there? The mix of creatures from elves to yetis was good, and how their skills played into their jobs, also a win.
I guess the big disconnect is that the two protagonist were pretty crappy at communication, and not just stammering, awkward stuff. One's a runner and the other's a wall. Hell, I can't really point fingers because I'm both of those thing. So, you got the pining and the whining. As much as I hate it, all the other characters were smacking them upside the head so it seemed a bit unfair to pile on.
Then there's the hyper symptoms of the mating bond. It was so romantic that it made me want some espresso to cut the sweetness. Hearts beat as one, yada yada ya... Combined with some of the character inconsistencies and thoughts regarding sexual behaviors and "norms" it just wasn't working for me. To be fair, I've been having a bit of a rough time with romances the last couple weeks so I'll try this one again another time.
Because you know the best thing about this book? A FIVE STAR friend gave it to me. Even if I was not jumping up and down and vaulting over walls reading it, I smiled every time I thought of what a great friend I found here on GR. And that made reading this story a great experience.
Gift from the Ghost of Christmas Present, who I hope haunts me forever. Thank you!
So, I was behind the story, I mean a supernatural relocation task force cruising NYC--what's not to like there? The mix of creatures from elves to yetis was good, and how their skills played into their jobs, also a win.
I guess the big disconnect is that the two protagonist were pretty crappy at communication, and not just stammering, awkward stuff. One's a runner and the other's a wall. Hell, I can't really point fingers because I'm both of those thing. So, you got the pining and the whining. As much as I hate it, all the other characters were smacking them upside the head so it seemed a bit unfair to pile on.
Then there's the hyper symptoms of the mating bond. It was so romantic that it made me want some espresso to cut the sweetness. Hearts beat as one, yada yada ya... Combined with some of the character inconsistencies and thoughts regarding sexual behaviors and "norms" it just wasn't working for me. To be fair, I've been having a bit of a rough time with romances the last couple weeks so I'll try this one again another time.
Because you know the best thing about this book? A FIVE STAR friend gave it to me. Even if I was not jumping up and down and vaulting over walls reading it, I smiled every time I thought of what a great friend I found here on GR. And that made reading this story a great experience.
Gift from the Ghost of Christmas Present, who I hope haunts me forever. Thank you!
December 1, 2015
This combined a lot of my favorite paranormal elements: a police force for magical beings a la Men in Black, an ensemble of quirky characters who must work together to save the day, and two difficult MCs whose antagonism generates lots of heat. Add to that well-drawn characters, good world-building and a solidly suspenseful plot, and you have a very enjoyable paranormal read. Also, the book features a yeti, which is seriously the coolest thing ever, especially since the guy is a complete sweetheart. My one annoyance is that despite having a number of really good, interesting and diverse secondary characters--I mentioned the yeti right?--somehow none of the ones we actually get to know are female. They're there in the background, and some of them are kick-ass and heroic, but they don't get speaking parts--it felt a bit like a missed opportunity. Especially for a book which features a super-cool yeti.
Bottom line: this is a solid, well-written, quite entertaining paranormal, which happens to feature a yeti, which makes it and any sequels automatic must-reads.
Bottom line: this is a solid, well-written, quite entertaining paranormal, which happens to feature a yeti, which makes it and any sequels automatic must-reads.
March 12, 2015
Hmmkay, so, when I saw the blurb for this one, I figured I had to have it. It's an Angel Martinez (coauthored, and my first time reading Bellora Quinn) book, firstly, and an urban fantasy second, which is just about my favorite genre ever. So I went there, and settled in to read it this afternoon.
What I appreciated about it: the world building, which was pretty intricate, with an interesting magical system and a lovely reason to bring in pretty much any kind of character you want. Drow, yeti, dryad, you want it, you got it. I liked the action scenes, they're the driver of good UF in my opinion. I liked the main characters, but I find I kind of liked them better...apart.
The relationship was angsty. Which, go figure, many are, but these two in particular were rife with misunderstandings and false pretenses and unexplained mating rituals. After a while it just got a little tired. Then there was the enormous time jump in the beginning, where we go from one particular supposition to a huge amount of action with nothing to support it, just--jump! Here we are months in the future, and it turns out this big thing is happening, and BAM! Which kind of diminished it for me, as it diminished the urgency I first felt when I was getting to know the characters and the world. It turned the first part of the book into something like an extended prologue, almost. And in finally understanding what happened after that, there felt like a lot of telling. I skipped ahead at times, which I rarely do.
My rating is 3.5* but I'm rounding up in hopefulness. Give me a book two that leaps and bounds, without this one's occasional stumbles.
What I appreciated about it: the world building, which was pretty intricate, with an interesting magical system and a lovely reason to bring in pretty much any kind of character you want. Drow, yeti, dryad, you want it, you got it. I liked the action scenes, they're the driver of good UF in my opinion. I liked the main characters, but I find I kind of liked them better...apart.
The relationship was angsty. Which, go figure, many are, but these two in particular were rife with misunderstandings and false pretenses and unexplained mating rituals. After a while it just got a little tired. Then there was the enormous time jump in the beginning, where we go from one particular supposition to a huge amount of action with nothing to support it, just--jump! Here we are months in the future, and it turns out this big thing is happening, and BAM! Which kind of diminished it for me, as it diminished the urgency I first felt when I was getting to know the characters and the world. It turned the first part of the book into something like an extended prologue, almost. And in finally understanding what happened after that, there felt like a lot of telling. I skipped ahead at times, which I rarely do.
My rating is 3.5* but I'm rounding up in hopefulness. Give me a book two that leaps and bounds, without this one's occasional stumbles.
June 3, 2015
OK, So can someone please tell me what the difference is between Erotic Romance (what this book is classified as) and New Adult? Because I can't find a difference content wise. As I understand it, New Adult contains explicit sexual content and so does this.
And so maybe you're thinking "Well New Adult is more about the plot". Well so is this. The authors of this book are super into their plot. The sex is a distant third as far as their writing concerns go.
There are like 5-6 sex scenes in this book, only 2 of which happen before the climax of the plot.
One thing that annoyed me; One of the protagonists is to emotionally scared to have anal sex (and that is just a trope that needs, needs, needs to die). At one stage he thinks to himself, and I'm paraphrasing here, "I'm to messed up to have proper sex". And that's problematic because there are legitimate, long term, sexually fulfilled gay couples who just don't have anal sex cause it's not their thing, and that doesn't mean they are not having "proper sex".
Anyway, it's worth a squirt if you want to expand your horizons beyond mainstream publishers.
And so maybe you're thinking "Well New Adult is more about the plot". Well so is this. The authors of this book are super into their plot. The sex is a distant third as far as their writing concerns go.
There are like 5-6 sex scenes in this book, only 2 of which happen before the climax of the plot.
One thing that annoyed me; One of the protagonists is to emotionally scared to have anal sex (and that is just a trope that needs, needs, needs to die). At one stage he thinks to himself, and I'm paraphrasing here, "I'm to messed up to have proper sex". And that's problematic because there are legitimate, long term, sexually fulfilled gay couples who just don't have anal sex cause it's not their thing, and that doesn't mean they are not having "proper sex".
Anyway, it's worth a squirt if you want to expand your horizons beyond mainstream publishers.
January 20, 2022
4.5 Stars - A delightful story! I loved the melding of our world with the fantasy world. I really liked both Quinn and Val. There was action, drama, danger and romance.
Update:
On second reading, while I still loved the story and characters, the head hopping got to me. I don’t know if it was my ebook formatting that didn’t delineate from one person to another but it sometimes got confusing.
Update:
On second reading, while I still loved the story and characters, the head hopping got to me. I don’t know if it was my ebook formatting that didn’t delineate from one person to another but it sometimes got confusing.
February 7, 2024
What a fantastic world these authors have created. Apparently an accident happened at Berkley which merged magic and technology, and also created holes, so to speak, where other beings dropped through into our world. Suddenly the world is confronted with sphinxes, centaurs, elves, dryads, and numerous other beings who have no clue how they got there, or how to survive. Thus, the Agency of Unnatural Resettlement and Assimilation, or AURA, is created to help these beings acclimate, and deal with the violent ones who show up.
Valerian, Val, is an elf who one day drops through the sky into New York and experiences the fright and overall discombobulation that occurs with Random Anomalous Reality Events, RARE, or Events. Don't worry, the authors do not muddle it up with all kinds of technical stuff to confuse you. There's just enough to make it believable, and definitely hold my attention. Quinn is human, a mage, with some strong powers of his own, which he hides from AURA and instead runs con jobs to keep food on the table.
Please find my full review at Rainbow Book Reviews
Valerian, Val, is an elf who one day drops through the sky into New York and experiences the fright and overall discombobulation that occurs with Random Anomalous Reality Events, RARE, or Events. Don't worry, the authors do not muddle it up with all kinds of technical stuff to confuse you. There's just enough to make it believable, and definitely hold my attention. Quinn is human, a mage, with some strong powers of his own, which he hides from AURA and instead runs con jobs to keep food on the table.
Please find my full review at Rainbow Book Reviews
May 6, 2015
That was a fantastic UF, one of the best I've read for a while.
Want to read
November 26, 2016Woohoo! Price drop to $0.99 at Amazon US, 11/26/16!
August 11, 2017
Quinn's Gambit is a wonderful Fantasy/Paranormal/Urban Fantasy Romance.
The world building is excellent and based on the idea that there is a magical rift dropping all sorts of magic beings into Earth. One of our heroes is a police Elf older and grieving the lost of his mates in the other realm with Alpha mixed in with the social awkwardness of adjusting to a new culture and being deeply hurt. Our other hero is Quinn, troubled in his own ways, a mage hiding the extent of his power and much younger, working as a con man.
They, of course, get together and the save the world.
This is a slow burn romance with a wonderful cast of others and a great premise of being set in this agency of crime solving and magical being immigration. The other all tone is light but with some dark topics, great character driven romance and adventure.
The world building is excellent and based on the idea that there is a magical rift dropping all sorts of magic beings into Earth. One of our heroes is a police Elf older and grieving the lost of his mates in the other realm with Alpha mixed in with the social awkwardness of adjusting to a new culture and being deeply hurt. Our other hero is Quinn, troubled in his own ways, a mage hiding the extent of his power and much younger, working as a con man.
They, of course, get together and the save the world.
This is a slow burn romance with a wonderful cast of others and a great premise of being set in this agency of crime solving and magical being immigration. The other all tone is light but with some dark topics, great character driven romance and adventure.
March 12, 2015
Prism Review of “Quinn’s Gambit”
By Bellora Quinn and Angel Martinez
Four stars
A bunch of Berkeley scientists have managed to blow themselves up while simultaneously ripping open the barrier between our reality and other, magical worlds. Oops.
The resulting sudden, random appearance of magical creatures from other realms has created a new status quo; a world where elves and centaurs—and even stranger things—must help assimilate, comfort and control those beings who have fallen into our world.
What could possibly go wrong?
As always, I love the matter-of-factness of Quinn and Martinez’s set-up. Imagine New York City where a Yeti is a cop, and where elves take the subway to work. You know that after a few months of awkwardness, no one would notice anymore, right?
But when the magic in the world was suddenly acknowledged, and magical creatures began to be part of daily life, it left some humans with magical powers, like Quintan, a little lost. Quinn (I don’t like that they spell his nickname like this—should be ONE n) is sort of an Artful Dodger character, and he makes his way through the world well enough, but not quite happily, weighted down by his own unhappy past. Until one day, trying to take care of a woodland Dryad who dropped out of nowhere on top of him, he runs across Valerian, a displaced elven battle prince who has become an officer with the magical creature control team in the city—AURA.
For all its fantasy framework, “Quinn’s Gambit” is an urban adventure story that merges power-hungry officials with morally dubious paranormal creatures in ways that unleash all sorts of trouble on the world. In the midst of this fun is the more intimate narrative of a stoic, grieving elf and a broken young man, both of them convinced that they don’t deserve happiness.
The writing is good, the action is exciting and engaging, and the many characters that swirl around Quinn and Val are well fleshed out and have emotional heft. If you’re not a fantasy geek, you might have to Google some of the creatures, but that’s a small inconvenience. Bellora and Martinez create a rich background against which love and adventure can run amok in our imaginations.
I hope we’ll see more of these guys. And if I ever see an incubus on the subway, I’ll give him my seat.
By Bellora Quinn and Angel Martinez
Four stars
A bunch of Berkeley scientists have managed to blow themselves up while simultaneously ripping open the barrier between our reality and other, magical worlds. Oops.
The resulting sudden, random appearance of magical creatures from other realms has created a new status quo; a world where elves and centaurs—and even stranger things—must help assimilate, comfort and control those beings who have fallen into our world.
What could possibly go wrong?
As always, I love the matter-of-factness of Quinn and Martinez’s set-up. Imagine New York City where a Yeti is a cop, and where elves take the subway to work. You know that after a few months of awkwardness, no one would notice anymore, right?
But when the magic in the world was suddenly acknowledged, and magical creatures began to be part of daily life, it left some humans with magical powers, like Quintan, a little lost. Quinn (I don’t like that they spell his nickname like this—should be ONE n) is sort of an Artful Dodger character, and he makes his way through the world well enough, but not quite happily, weighted down by his own unhappy past. Until one day, trying to take care of a woodland Dryad who dropped out of nowhere on top of him, he runs across Valerian, a displaced elven battle prince who has become an officer with the magical creature control team in the city—AURA.
For all its fantasy framework, “Quinn’s Gambit” is an urban adventure story that merges power-hungry officials with morally dubious paranormal creatures in ways that unleash all sorts of trouble on the world. In the midst of this fun is the more intimate narrative of a stoic, grieving elf and a broken young man, both of them convinced that they don’t deserve happiness.
The writing is good, the action is exciting and engaging, and the many characters that swirl around Quinn and Val are well fleshed out and have emotional heft. If you’re not a fantasy geek, you might have to Google some of the creatures, but that’s a small inconvenience. Bellora and Martinez create a rich background against which love and adventure can run amok in our imaginations.
I hope we’ll see more of these guys. And if I ever see an incubus on the subway, I’ll give him my seat.
February 6, 2015
Quinten lives his life flying under the radar; deliberately under-preforming when his magic levels were tested. Intelligent and resourceful, Quinn chooses to stay independent, without the burden of society's expectations.
Valerian couldn't be more opposite if he tried. Once a battle prince, his skills as a warrior are formidable, but he has difficulty fitting into his new life in New York. Oftentimes confused by the mixed signals of those around him, Val longs for someone to call his own.
Valarian is instantly attracted to Quinn, but the mage is emotionally withdrawn, and rebuffs Val's admittedly awkward overtures for something more. Drawn together by a magical disaster of epic proportions, they are forced to overcome their differences in order to work towards the greater good.
I read QUINN'S GAMBIT in a single day. The witty dialog, unique variety of magical characters and dramatic story-line instantly engaged me. Quinn and Val are delightfully entertaining and have sexual chemistry to spare. Their friends are loyal, sometimes to the point of being painfully honest, and I frequently found myself turning back the pages to re-read my favorite parts!
My OFFICIAL REVIEW written for Carly’s Book Reviews
Valerian couldn't be more opposite if he tried. Once a battle prince, his skills as a warrior are formidable, but he has difficulty fitting into his new life in New York. Oftentimes confused by the mixed signals of those around him, Val longs for someone to call his own.
Valarian is instantly attracted to Quinn, but the mage is emotionally withdrawn, and rebuffs Val's admittedly awkward overtures for something more. Drawn together by a magical disaster of epic proportions, they are forced to overcome their differences in order to work towards the greater good.
I read QUINN'S GAMBIT in a single day. The witty dialog, unique variety of magical characters and dramatic story-line instantly engaged me. Quinn and Val are delightfully entertaining and have sexual chemistry to spare. Their friends are loyal, sometimes to the point of being painfully honest, and I frequently found myself turning back the pages to re-read my favorite parts!
My OFFICIAL REVIEW written for Carly’s Book Reviews
March 13, 2015
3.8
Интересный мир, многообразие магических существ из всевозможных сказок и мифов, увлекательный сюжет - это было приятное чтение. Даже второстепенные персонажи, целая куча, забавляли и вызывали интерес.
Моя претензия - любовная линия. Главные герои, эльф и человек-маг, были мне симпатичны, но постоянные недосказанности в конце концов начали раздражать. И если социально неадаптированного эльфа можно понять, то упертое нежелание мага поговорить в открытую меня злило. Еще проблема сексуального характера - так ее закрутить, чтобы потом пшик вместо серьезного подхода по ее разрешению. Кстати, под конец сюжет еще и просел немного, и я бы сказала, именно по этой причине.
Но в целом, было увлекательно. Обязательно продолжу серию.
Интересный мир, многообразие магических существ из всевозможных сказок и мифов, увлекательный сюжет - это было приятное чтение. Даже второстепенные персонажи, целая куча, забавляли и вызывали интерес.
Моя претензия - любовная линия. Главные герои, эльф и человек-маг, были мне симпатичны, но постоянные недосказанности в конце концов начали раздражать. И если социально неадаптированного эльфа можно понять, то упертое нежелание мага поговорить в открытую меня злило. Еще проблема сексуального характера - так ее закрутить, чтобы потом пшик вместо серьезного подхода по ее разрешению. Кстати, под конец сюжет еще и просел немного, и я бы сказала, именно по этой причине.
Но в целом, было увлекательно. Обязательно продолжу серию.
July 10, 2015
2.5 stars rounded up.
Good world and plot...but it just seemed kind of "done," if you know what I mean. Nothing terribly new or captivating, besides the overall combination of the magical and humans in our contemporary world, which I did like.
I never got pulled into the story or attached to the characters very much. It was all right, no more or less.
Good world and plot...but it just seemed kind of "done," if you know what I mean. Nothing terribly new or captivating, besides the overall combination of the magical and humans in our contemporary world, which I did like.
I never got pulled into the story or attached to the characters very much. It was all right, no more or less.
March 24, 2015
This was another fun read, this one loaded with all types of strange creatures. My issue is more of a pet peeve, MC's simply not communicating with each other. I hate that! Besides this issue, I will be waiting for the next book in this series!
February 20, 2015
In spite of some slight hitches in the story flow it's a great read with really likeable characters and some good, inventive worldbuilding. I also have an immense soft spot for strong, toppy, badass guys who get socially awkward and helpless when they fall for someone :)
February 7, 2017
I wrote a mini-review, but then started reading book #2 ... my opinion is a bit off kilter now, because what I thought I thought, I am now reassessing. I'll be back here after I finish the 2nd book, as I believe book #2 will directly influence my review of book #1. Oh and YES, they're written like that ... not so much ending on a cliffhanger, but the books it seems are very closely interlinked.
February 8, 2015
Full Review: https://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.c...
Quinten is a small time con. It’s not the best living but he does what he must to survive. Quinn has not had the easiest life. Becoming the ward of the state at a young age he finally run away. On the streets he met a man who taught him how to pickpocket and use magic.
When Quinn made a mistake, the man turned on him, raped him, and allowed others to do the same for a price. This has led Quinn to keep people out and close himself off.
Valerian is a misplaced elf who was pulled through one of the events. The human world is strange to him and also lonely. But he has made a life for himself as an AURA officer.
When he first meets Quinn, he is immediately drawn to him. However, Quinn and his issues make it hard for Val to get close to him. Than all hell breaks, loose and it’s a matter of finding the will to stay alive.
The push and pull Quinn had going on with Val was annoying at times, but also when it was explained about his past it also becomes more understandable. I really felt bad for Val. He is not human, so many things humans just for granted he just does not understand. However once they do finally get their act together, they are pretty intense and sensual together.
The world that was created is very lush and well described. There are so many amazing beings and creatures. The MCs as well as the secondary characters are well thought out. The story was fast paced and kept my attention. The interactions between all the characters were interesting at times and pretty funny at others.
There was a lot of information given about the people and the world, but it was never too much to take away from the story and bog it down. Something I very much appreciated.
Overall, this was a very entertaining book. I enjoyed the world created and look forward to reading more about it. Since this is billed as a series, I cannot wait for the next book.
Quinten is a small time con. It’s not the best living but he does what he must to survive. Quinn has not had the easiest life. Becoming the ward of the state at a young age he finally run away. On the streets he met a man who taught him how to pickpocket and use magic.
When Quinn made a mistake, the man turned on him, raped him, and allowed others to do the same for a price. This has led Quinn to keep people out and close himself off.
Valerian is a misplaced elf who was pulled through one of the events. The human world is strange to him and also lonely. But he has made a life for himself as an AURA officer.
When he first meets Quinn, he is immediately drawn to him. However, Quinn and his issues make it hard for Val to get close to him. Than all hell breaks, loose and it’s a matter of finding the will to stay alive.
The push and pull Quinn had going on with Val was annoying at times, but also when it was explained about his past it also becomes more understandable. I really felt bad for Val. He is not human, so many things humans just for granted he just does not understand. However once they do finally get their act together, they are pretty intense and sensual together.
The world that was created is very lush and well described. There are so many amazing beings and creatures. The MCs as well as the secondary characters are well thought out. The story was fast paced and kept my attention. The interactions between all the characters were interesting at times and pretty funny at others.
There was a lot of information given about the people and the world, but it was never too much to take away from the story and bog it down. Something I very much appreciated.
Overall, this was a very entertaining book. I enjoyed the world created and look forward to reading more about it. Since this is billed as a series, I cannot wait for the next book.
April 14, 2015
This story felt like it would never end. It dragged and dragged and dragged, and when I thought I was close to the end, I was only at 50%! And it's not even a long novel!
I feel like this was because the middle but was so dull. There were so many useless scenes in there that were just boring info dumps that I could've done without. Cutting them out would've streamlined so much. The scene where they all met in the park to discuss strategy was WAY too long. I honestly think all but maybe 10% of it could've been cut, it was that dull.
I also think that the reason I found it to drag was because most of the action, and most of everything, was written in passive voice. UGH. And even in the action-filled climatic bits, there would be info-dumps! And super long sentences! With well-written action scenes, this would've been fantastic.
The climax ended at 75%, which is pretty self-explanatory. There was then 25% of some plot, but mostly sex scenes. The whole thing should've been cut, and the character development spread out more evenly in the first 75%. It felt like instead of integrating the action storyline and the romance storyline, the author dedicated the first 25% to romance, the next 50% to action, then the last 25% to romance again. Ughhhhhhhh.
I feel like this was because the middle but was so dull. There were so many useless scenes in there that were just boring info dumps that I could've done without. Cutting them out would've streamlined so much. The scene where they all met in the park to discuss strategy was WAY too long. I honestly think all but maybe 10% of it could've been cut, it was that dull.
I also think that the reason I found it to drag was because most of the action, and most of everything, was written in passive voice. UGH. And even in the action-filled climatic bits, there would be info-dumps! And super long sentences! With well-written action scenes, this would've been fantastic.
The climax ended at 75%, which is pretty self-explanatory. There was then 25% of some plot, but mostly sex scenes. The whole thing should've been cut, and the character development spread out more evenly in the first 75%. It felt like instead of integrating the action storyline and the romance storyline, the author dedicated the first 25% to romance, the next 50% to action, then the last 25% to romance again. Ughhhhhhhh.
June 27, 2015
3.5 stars for this title :)
I liked this story. The Events were intriguing and opened up a world of possibilities for the author to explore. I enjoyed reading about the mythological creatures and how they’d been integrated into our society. Most Event victims were given jobs that best suited their unique talents, which often had my imagination cooking up comical parodies.
The lead characters, as individuals, were interesting. Quinten was lovable in a screwed up sort of fashion and Val’s steadfast need to be honourable was adorable. However, the development of their relationship was somewhat laborious. At times I found myself thinking that the miscommunications between them were a little forced and repetitive. That being said it didn’t distract too much from the main plot and the flow of the writing was kept at a nice action packed pace.
I liked this story. The Events were intriguing and opened up a world of possibilities for the author to explore. I enjoyed reading about the mythological creatures and how they’d been integrated into our society. Most Event victims were given jobs that best suited their unique talents, which often had my imagination cooking up comical parodies.
The lead characters, as individuals, were interesting. Quinten was lovable in a screwed up sort of fashion and Val’s steadfast need to be honourable was adorable. However, the development of their relationship was somewhat laborious. At times I found myself thinking that the miscommunications between them were a little forced and repetitive. That being said it didn’t distract too much from the main plot and the flow of the writing was kept at a nice action packed pace.
July 19, 2015
A very simplistic book all around, from the plot to the dialogue to the descriptions. No real sophistication and a lot of things that didn't make sense. The book went on WAY too long and there were too many sex scenes-- and the characters were so stupid. If Quinn didn't want anal, why didn't Val offer to bottom sooner? Pointless angst. And in the middle of the book, it suddenly changed from humans wanting to supress magic to a lich wanting... what? I still don't know. Why would a lich want to supress magic? How did it even come to power? Where did it even come from? The authors glossed over its background entirely and it was purely there as a plot device. It's like the book did a sudden 180 out of nowhere.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 13, 2015
3.75 stars
There was a lot to like about this book, it had great bones. But something was missing, something was disjointed, not enough depth, not enough world building. I never felt like I really knew Quinn or Val enough to really like them. Their backgrounds were revealed very late in the book. I didn't feel the "events" were well explained. I think a really good editor could have helped here. I loved Angel's Gravitational Attraction, so this was a surprise, and not in an expected way.
There was a lot to like about this book, it had great bones. But something was missing, something was disjointed, not enough depth, not enough world building. I never felt like I really knew Quinn or Val enough to really like them. Their backgrounds were revealed very late in the book. I didn't feel the "events" were well explained. I think a really good editor could have helped here. I loved Angel's Gravitational Attraction, so this was a surprise, and not in an expected way.
May 7, 2017
3.5 stars. This was a pleasant story, where I liked reading about the world building, the variety of characters and the action driven plot. The emerging romance between the protagonists did not work well, in my opinion. I often found their dynamic to be awkward and not conducive to something more substantial.
March 10, 2015
4.5 stars
With a cast of characters straight from Dungeons and Dragons, this is a great start to what looks to be an appealing series. The characters are flawed but are all the more "human" for being so. Despite a few potentially dark scenes, the overall feeling is a bit of a romp through an alternate magic-filled New York City.
With a cast of characters straight from Dungeons and Dragons, this is a great start to what looks to be an appealing series. The characters are flawed but are all the more "human" for being so. Despite a few potentially dark scenes, the overall feeling is a bit of a romp through an alternate magic-filled New York City.
July 17, 2023
Excellent! Really loved this and will definitely be reading the series!!
March 2, 2015
Fantastic, wonderful, beautiful. Loved it!
June 29, 2015
Cool concept, but the only character I cared about was Val, and I didn't even like him all the time, just when I felt sorry for him.
May 17, 2015
This was a good one. Good world building, good romance, good scary bad guys, good heroics . . . good all over. I'll read more of this series when it comes.
December 11, 2015
I'd agree with 3.75 stars. I enjoyed the world they build, but did not really connect with the characters. I liked the world so much I will probably read the next book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 109 reviews