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Elemental #3
Furious Flames
Alternate Cover Edition can be found here.
Devon Sanders, a private investigator known for his efficiency and discretion, is determined to unearth the secrets of the paranormal university, Quintessence. As the truth of his own past is revealed, he learns that some secrets are better left in the dark.
When a strange sickness spreads through the school, the evidence points to someone Devon never expected. As the university and its students are threatened, it may be time for Quintessence to redesign the rules of the paranormal community. To save the students, Devon must race against time to stop an enemy that is as elusive… as a shadow.
Magic is elemental.
Devon Sanders, a private investigator known for his efficiency and discretion, is determined to unearth the secrets of the paranormal university, Quintessence. As the truth of his own past is revealed, he learns that some secrets are better left in the dark.
When a strange sickness spreads through the school, the evidence points to someone Devon never expected. As the university and its students are threatened, it may be time for Quintessence to redesign the rules of the paranormal community. To save the students, Devon must race against time to stop an enemy that is as elusive… as a shadow.
Magic is elemental.
358 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 24, 2015
41 people are currently reading
81 people want to read
About the author
Rain Oxford
86 books119 followersRain Oxford is a teacher who has been writing stories since she was twelve. She attended Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, Japan. Some of her interests include magic, psychology, and ancient history. When she’s not creating worlds, she enjoys reading, playing the piano, or photographing exotic wildlife.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 2, 2018
4.5 Stars Baby❣️❣️❣️❣️
The narrator change the hero’s pitch and cadence from the first 2 book - much improved
And that cliffy WTH. Sooooo glad I already have Book 4
The narrator change the hero’s pitch and cadence from the first 2 book - much improved
And that cliffy WTH. Sooooo glad I already have Book 4
April 12, 2017
***Listened to as an audiobook***
**Received a free copy in exchange for an honest review**
This is book 3 in the Elemental series by Rain Oxford. It centers around a 31-year-old private investigator, Devon Sanders, who has just recently learned that he's a wizard. Devon is a good guy with strong morals, a strong sense of protectiveness, a foolhardy need to always get to the bottom of any secret he comes across and is fiercely loyal.
Devon's 2 best friends are always at his side. There's Darwin who is a goofy 20-something goofball who loves to joke around and use humor to break down the tension but who simultaneously happens to be an extreme genius that never stops thinking. Darwin is the son of a wolf shifter and a forest fae. He has the ability himself to shift. And then there's Henry - an overly studious, smart, driven young man with a sordid tale, a very odd 3 day a month love cycle (the full moon) and a basic tolerance for other humans.
Together they are a dynamic trio - Devon, Darwin and Henry. They have such a strong sense of connection that they are basically brothers that would literally do anything for each other. Whenever Devon gets the idea in his head to go searching for answers and digging to unravel secrets - he can always count on Darwin and Henry to get into trouble right alongside him.
Devon helps monitor other students - he can get into people's minds and tell them to stop and he also has a very commanding presence and voice that gets shifters to obey him. He's an extremely powerful wizard who still has a great abundance of humanity, thus he is an oddity in the paranormal community.
They aren't quite Harry Potter, Ron & Hermione - but they have that same sense of closeness and that same need for figuring things out & saving the day.
Headmaster Logan Hunt is basically the Dumbledore of this series but he is not as easily loved or trusted - the man just has too many secrets. Logan Hunt does have a great deal of knowledge, does seem to want to do the right things most of the time and is fiercely protective of his students.
Devon's uncle, Vincent, is helping to guide Devon as a wizard. He is helping to give him the knowledge, tools and history necessary for Devon to survive in the twisted paranormal community.
Each semester the wizards learn a new element until they master them all. In book 1 Devon mastered water, book 2 was earth and this book - book 3 is all about fire.
I love how in each book there are elementals. The water book had the kappa which are basically swamp things that love to eat cucumbers. The earth book had little gnomes. And this book had fire salamanders. The books really bring mythological creatures to life in the most delightful way.
There is shadow travel in these books too which uses the Shadow Pass. It is much like Seanan Mcguire's Shadow Realm in the Toby Daye series. It is a means of travel that is nearly instantaneous and negates the need for traveling by plane, car, train, etc. It's pretty cool. Only negative - you have to kill someone to be able to use the Shadow Pass. Devon killed a bad guy so he can use it.
A lot of the mysteries from books 1 and 2 get unveiled in this book. We learn more about Langrell.
It's easy to write about the characters, the secondary characters and the main characteristics. But it's difficult to write about the storyline because I never want to give anything away. I don't want to spoil something.
What I can say is that I give this book 5 stars.
The paranormal detective angle is a lot like some other book series and I'm a lover of this stuff - a huge urban fantasy genre nerd. This series reminds me of The Hollows by Kim Harrison, Toby Daye by Seanan Mcguire, Kate Daniels by Ilona Andrews and The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher.
Normally I am all about the female empowerment driven books - but I absolutely love this series. I think if you found Harry Potter easy to love - that you'll find Devon Sanders equally as easy to go on an adventure with!
**Received a free copy in exchange for an honest review**
This is book 3 in the Elemental series by Rain Oxford. It centers around a 31-year-old private investigator, Devon Sanders, who has just recently learned that he's a wizard. Devon is a good guy with strong morals, a strong sense of protectiveness, a foolhardy need to always get to the bottom of any secret he comes across and is fiercely loyal.
Devon's 2 best friends are always at his side. There's Darwin who is a goofy 20-something goofball who loves to joke around and use humor to break down the tension but who simultaneously happens to be an extreme genius that never stops thinking. Darwin is the son of a wolf shifter and a forest fae. He has the ability himself to shift. And then there's Henry - an overly studious, smart, driven young man with a sordid tale, a very odd 3 day a month love cycle (the full moon) and a basic tolerance for other humans.
Together they are a dynamic trio - Devon, Darwin and Henry. They have such a strong sense of connection that they are basically brothers that would literally do anything for each other. Whenever Devon gets the idea in his head to go searching for answers and digging to unravel secrets - he can always count on Darwin and Henry to get into trouble right alongside him.
Devon helps monitor other students - he can get into people's minds and tell them to stop and he also has a very commanding presence and voice that gets shifters to obey him. He's an extremely powerful wizard who still has a great abundance of humanity, thus he is an oddity in the paranormal community.
They aren't quite Harry Potter, Ron & Hermione - but they have that same sense of closeness and that same need for figuring things out & saving the day.
Headmaster Logan Hunt is basically the Dumbledore of this series but he is not as easily loved or trusted - the man just has too many secrets. Logan Hunt does have a great deal of knowledge, does seem to want to do the right things most of the time and is fiercely protective of his students.
Devon's uncle, Vincent, is helping to guide Devon as a wizard. He is helping to give him the knowledge, tools and history necessary for Devon to survive in the twisted paranormal community.
Each semester the wizards learn a new element until they master them all. In book 1 Devon mastered water, book 2 was earth and this book - book 3 is all about fire.
I love how in each book there are elementals. The water book had the kappa which are basically swamp things that love to eat cucumbers. The earth book had little gnomes. And this book had fire salamanders. The books really bring mythological creatures to life in the most delightful way.
There is shadow travel in these books too which uses the Shadow Pass. It is much like Seanan Mcguire's Shadow Realm in the Toby Daye series. It is a means of travel that is nearly instantaneous and negates the need for traveling by plane, car, train, etc. It's pretty cool. Only negative - you have to kill someone to be able to use the Shadow Pass. Devon killed a bad guy so he can use it.
A lot of the mysteries from books 1 and 2 get unveiled in this book. We learn more about Langrell.
It's easy to write about the characters, the secondary characters and the main characteristics. But it's difficult to write about the storyline because I never want to give anything away. I don't want to spoil something.
What I can say is that I give this book 5 stars.
The paranormal detective angle is a lot like some other book series and I'm a lover of this stuff - a huge urban fantasy genre nerd. This series reminds me of The Hollows by Kim Harrison, Toby Daye by Seanan Mcguire, Kate Daniels by Ilona Andrews and The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher.
Normally I am all about the female empowerment driven books - but I absolutely love this series. I think if you found Harry Potter easy to love - that you'll find Devon Sanders equally as easy to go on an adventure with!
February 12, 2017
Finished 3 books....now for the 4th. The series is very written.
March 30, 2017
TBH, this is my least favorite book in the series. WAY too much backstory (on at least 3 separate characters) and it both dragged and was confusing. I'm on to book 4, which I sincerely hope is better.
December 10, 2016
I have to split this review in STORY TELLING and WRITING SKILL
For Story telling, this is another great book in the series. There are plot twists and turns that you almost see coming, but still surprises. Strange events in the past makes sense as you and the protagonist learns more about the supernatutal world.
Writing skill: The author doesn't make it easy for the audience to follow the story. He is not consistent in referring to his charterers. Example: Headmaster Logan Hunt are sometimes refered to as Logan, Hunt or Headmaster Hunt. With classmates, teachers, bad-guys and other minor charters, a sutten name drop without clear context makes me unsure of the narrative.
Speaking of context, this is the third book. I had to re-read the second book, to remind me of what the "amulet" was, who "Gail" was, what the issue with Darwin was and so on. There were absolutely no reintroduction or re-presentation, that could have helped me, if I don't read the books back-to-back. Other authors can spend a line reintroducing key elements, why cant Rain Oxford?
Now I am debating if I should buy and read the forth book Insidious Winds: Elemental, Book 4. There is still a lot of plot points to sort out, and it is a complexity is intriguing. If I don't do it now I'll most likely be just as lost as I was when I began this one, as there are no reintroduction. But on the other hand, I am a bit fed up with the protagonists "Intuition" that always makes him do the right thing.
For Story telling, this is another great book in the series. There are plot twists and turns that you almost see coming, but still surprises. Strange events in the past makes sense as you and the protagonist learns more about the supernatutal world.
Writing skill: The author doesn't make it easy for the audience to follow the story. He is not consistent in referring to his charterers. Example: Headmaster Logan Hunt are sometimes refered to as Logan, Hunt or Headmaster Hunt. With classmates, teachers, bad-guys and other minor charters, a sutten name drop without clear context makes me unsure of the narrative.
Speaking of context, this is the third book. I had to re-read the second book, to remind me of what the "amulet" was, who "Gail" was, what the issue with Darwin was and so on. There were absolutely no reintroduction or re-presentation, that could have helped me, if I don't read the books back-to-back. Other authors can spend a line reintroducing key elements, why cant Rain Oxford?
Now I am debating if I should buy and read the forth book Insidious Winds: Elemental, Book 4. There is still a lot of plot points to sort out, and it is a complexity is intriguing. If I don't do it now I'll most likely be just as lost as I was when I began this one, as there are no reintroduction. But on the other hand, I am a bit fed up with the protagonists "Intuition" that always makes him do the right thing.
September 8, 2016
For me, the plot went a little too over the top. I enjoy a good story, and this continues to be one, but the plot is getting too hard to swallow. I'll continue with the next book and see how it goes.
May 6, 2017
I'm Hooked!
It took me awhile to read the third book of this series. Not because the series isn't good. It just seemed to get pushed aside for other books. But this book has hooked me on the series. It won't be pushed aside again. This book begins to give the reader some insight on the kreptic messages and vague comments by the elder wizards about what is really happening with the KEYS and the TOWER.
Devon begins to examine his feelings about his childhood vampire friend. I think the love connection is inevitable but glad the author is moving slowly. What I don't get is Devon's ex-wife. Regina stalks him even though Devon has a restraining order against her. How is that possible with a PI with ties to the police? I don't understand the authors reason for even bringing her up in this book. It's like they wrote this small section and forced it to fit with what was happening in the novel. I hope her story line is cut. It's useless.
Now Henry and Darwin get some great character development in this novel. We find out why they both have issues with their magic and love.
My only issues with this novel is that it would get alittle confusing keeping up with the different wizard characters. I can't put it on one thing... the narrator tries to make the voices distinct but I thing it's more of the author flip flopping between story lines that makes it worse. There were at least 4 times I had to rewind to figure out who was talking. But in all, the book is a great character development novel. You learn more about each person in the story, even the secondary characters. Sometimes I will complain that books like these are transitional... but this was done so well that being transitional is a plus. I'm hoping the next one is already available on audible.
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It took me awhile to read the third book of this series. Not because the series isn't good. It just seemed to get pushed aside for other books. But this book has hooked me on the series. It won't be pushed aside again. This book begins to give the reader some insight on the kreptic messages and vague comments by the elder wizards about what is really happening with the KEYS and the TOWER.
Devon begins to examine his feelings about his childhood vampire friend. I think the love connection is inevitable but glad the author is moving slowly. What I don't get is Devon's ex-wife. Regina stalks him even though Devon has a restraining order against her. How is that possible with a PI with ties to the police? I don't understand the authors reason for even bringing her up in this book. It's like they wrote this small section and forced it to fit with what was happening in the novel. I hope her story line is cut. It's useless.
Now Henry and Darwin get some great character development in this novel. We find out why they both have issues with their magic and love.
My only issues with this novel is that it would get alittle confusing keeping up with the different wizard characters. I can't put it on one thing... the narrator tries to make the voices distinct but I thing it's more of the author flip flopping between story lines that makes it worse. There were at least 4 times I had to rewind to figure out who was talking. But in all, the book is a great character development novel. You learn more about each person in the story, even the secondary characters. Sometimes I will complain that books like these are transitional... but this was done so well that being transitional is a plus. I'm hoping the next one is already available on audible.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews