I’m the only healer in a hundred miles, yet I’m probably the poorest in over a thousand.Opening my very own apothecary is the only thing I really want in life, well that and a steady relationship. Lofty goals when you have a felony record for selling illegal potions. Healing neckers for the local vamps, while not all that glorious, has helped me build a good reputation. Then the cops show up at my door asking questions about a dead girl and trying to pin the murder on my employer. Next thing I know, I'm dodging fireballs in parking lots, and my favorite vampire is missing.If you crave fast-paced, potion-slinging, snarky witches, with a side of slow-burn romance, then you'll love Olivia Carter. This witch bites back, literally.Thousands of copies sold! Available in digital, print, and audiobook.What Amazon readers are ★★★★★ "Great book. I couldn’t stop turning pages. I was shocked when the end came and I realized I hadn’t put it down once. I highly recommend."★★★★★ "The plot is fast-paced, the characters seem real, the writing is fresh, and I look forward to reading the second book."★★★★★ "Fantastic world-building and I was out smack dab in the middle of an adventure. I can't wait for the next book."Buy now to jump into a series you won’t want to put down until you finish!
Overall a really good series! The first book was pretty short, capping at around 85 pages, but the rest of the books are much longer. I liked the twists and turns the plot took and I was very satisfied with the ending. Olivia is a compelling character with her abilities being at odds with her selfless personality and her determination to protect her friends and avenge her mother. There were points in the third book where I found myself a bit bored with the lack of progression but luckily that didn't last for very long and the book picked back up. There isn't much in the way of romance with this series as it focuses more on Olivia's growth as a person and her journey to find her own place in the world of Supernaturals.
One thing that I was pleasantly suprised by was the inclusion of Goblins as a major supernatural faction. While the books understandably tend to center around witches and vampires the most, I would have loved to have seen more about the Goblins!
Echaba de menos la Fantasía Urbana. Hacía tiempo que no encontraba una saga que, por lo menos, me entretuviera.
Esta no ha estado nada mal. Me hubiese gustado que los libros fuesen mas largos. También habría estado bien que la protagonista no fuese prácticamente alcohólica. Bebe tequila como si no hubiese un mañana. No estoy en contra del consumo de alcohol pero es que a veces parece que se promueve. Como esta saga es tan corta se queda bastante en la superficie. Si la escritora la hubiese desarrollado algo más, me habría encantado.
I originally read the first book of this series when it first came out. I liked the first book but didn't love it. Good start but not something I would write on my list of MUST have reading list - good, not great. Plus, I was frustrated with the wait for the remainder. I put the book to the side and forgot.
A couple of days ago, I saw that she had issued the remainder and thought, 'why not?' Foxe definitely made up for my wait by issuing the entire series in this box set. I would definitely recommend the read. I would give it 4.5 stars.
The series is four books and the set didn't get five due to two notes I would have given the author if I were her editor. FIRST: There are a couple of poorly chosen breaks between the second and third book, as well as third to fourth. Cliffhangers are not my favorite but have little impact of you're reading the series. If I had gotten the books separately, I would have been pissed. You need some plot resolution in each section of a series, even if you are going to have a cliffhanger. Every book should be able to stand on its own while still delivering a cohesive series narrative that makes you continue on. SECOND: Foxe is still working on how to properly develop characters with clear enough stories to read which don't repeat the same info or angst over and over. She does write about interesting people but is often repetitive. She got better over the course but still needs practice.
All in all, good read, interesting plot, cool characters.😊
The MC is supposed to be strong and kickass and it comes across as if the author truly believes she is actually writing a character like that. But in reality, the MC is a weak-willed pushover that constantly makes stupid decisions. She thinks about a decision, points out to the reader that it is stupid, decides to do it anyway, and then it turns out it was indeed stupid and she ends up suffering consequences. That's the loop these books cycle. I've read ca. 65% and it never changes, round and round.
Beyond that, the plot couldn't be more clichée. The protagonists, as well as the antagonist, are so deeply stereotypical that it borders on parody.
And then there are plot holes everywhere. But the typical plot holes aren't contradictions in the world-building or the magic. Both are way too fuzzy to have any strong rules that could be contradicted in the first place. The plot holes consist of completely illogical and absurd thought processes. Sometimes it's just a plain TSTL MC, but missing common sense affects all characters pretty much equally. This is typically only the case if flawed logic is needed to steer the plot. But it's pretty much the only tool the author uses to steer the plot and it happens constantly.
So I tend to grab books at random on Amazon sometimes when I'm in the mood. This was one of those purchases. I had never heard of the author or the series and stumbled into a true gem. The characters and writing style are familiar, and I'm honestly shocked this is the writer's first series as I've read far more established writer's who weren't as smooth or unique in their storytelling. I really like this authors style and will be following her into the future.
As for the story itself I loved the unique take on magic. The addition of brewing was refreshing as it's not an often used magic style and the mechanics she described it with were frankly magical. I feel like saying much more will be spoiler. The cast of characters is varied and vast, but even with the long cast list they were all unique enough that I had no trouble keeping up.
Definitely check this out if you are at all a fan of magic, urban fantasy, paranormal fiction, and adventure. It's a great combo of all these genres.
Absolutely fantastic read! Olivia has been alone for so long. She had a vampire for a father and a hedge witch for a mother. A definite no-no. So bad in fact that that her Dad desengrated right after her Mom got pregnant. When her Mom left, Olivia got into trouble and the only job she could get was working for the Vampires (neckers). What she really wants to do is open an Apothacary shop but she is afraid she will never be able to raise the money. When people start turning up missing the Sheriff's office automatically blame the vampires, even though some of them are missing too. When Olivia helps solve the case and proves that much of the problem was that the Sherrif's office had been infiltrated, she is thanked but returns to a her house which has been vandalized and pretty much forced by who she thinks is the head vampire to move to California and join a team looking for renegades. This series is great and I am so glad I got to read them all. Do yourself a favor and get the whole set, it's worth it!
Book review of Borrowed Magic by Stephanie Foxe ... I won this book in an Author Contest and decided to give it a try. I had never read anything by Stephanie Foxe so I was hoping it would be good. The only complaint I have about this book is that it is too short! It is well written, has great pacing and characters that pop off the page. I had to pace myself by only reading before bed when I wasn't too tired or this book would have lasted less than 2 hours, lol. I an intrigued by Olivia and Javier especially ... Detective Martinez was a bummer and for a change I didn't see it coming though with hindsight I should have. Give it a read ... I just grabbed book 2 Price of Magic on Kindle Unlimited.
Book review of Price of Magic by Stephanie Foxe ...
This was a great continuation of the story and series ... and whoa the twists that are hiding in this book! I can't wait to read Book 3.
This has been sitting in my TBR pile for a VERY LONG TIME. When I picked it up today, I wasn't sure why it had taken me so long to get to it, and then I read 8 pages. Boom! Understanding hit me. First off the bat, the editing is terrible. So many punctuation errors, one might think this was a 10-year old author. I commend the author on this being her first NaNoWriMo novel, but surely a thorough round of professional editing would have caught all of these errors. After so many glaring issues, it was really difficult to get into the story, and then I got to the excruciatingly detailed recipe of her current brew. Sorry, I do not need to know what she's brewing in that level of minutia. I'm out. Maybe some of her later work is better? But honestly, I have a problem reading any author who doesn't have enough respect for their own work to hire a decent editor, even for older books. This could be a great story, but I'll never know because I cannot get into the story.
These books seriously needed a visit with a good proofreader or editor. I've become somewhat inured to the fact that nobody seems to care whether all the words are correct and in the right order, but I still cannot love writing that is so poorly done. I never did come to love the MC. About halfway through the third book I feared that she was about to become too stupid to live. While it never got quite that bad, there was still a lot that didn't make sense. Not liking any of the characters sufficiently to feel inclined to pass over inconsistencies. Like the MC going from a weak witch to participating in raids with the Feds without any read training. Makes no sense. Also, if she could have just had one actually healthy relationship, she might have been appealing. In the end, the plot was pretty good as these things go. The characters might be more appealing to a younger audience. And I found the whole thing good enough to finish the box set, but not craving more.
I'm glad I get to read this as a Box Set. Just finished Book 1 which reads more like a prologue, setting the stage so speak. So far I'm liking it. The writing style is a bit clumsy at times and there's a fair amount of typos/ grammatical errors, but the story is interesting. Jury is still out on the characters. And it's always a pleasant surprise when a plot twist actually manages to take you by surprise... ;) Curious to see how this plays out...
Called it quits towards the end of the second book. I think I started losing interest the minute Reilly showed up and then that whole business with her mother and the hedgewitch turning out to be another special snowflake and I was done. Didn't help that I really felt connected to her either...
I came across this gem on Amazon unlimited. I like it so much I’m going to buy the audible book. If it cans make me feel a kind of emotions then it’s doing it jobs! Reilly definitely makes me wanted to slaps him around in the beginning. The main character, Olivia is a wonderful character to get to know! She is tough, sassy, and kick ass woman with a heart of gold! She is one of my favorite characters. I wish there were more to read about her! I don’t want to spoil it for you! It’s worth reading or listening from audible! I hope you will like it as much as I do!
Olivia is trying to put her life together after a series of unfortunate decisions. Which is why she's a witch working for vampires. She heals their neckers and brews portions on the side... until she comes to the attention of great forces and more powerful beings.
Why I started this book: Recommended to me, and since I was reading for fun and escape this weekend, I picked it up and read the whole series.
Why I finished it: Fun, but major character motivation holes. And weird forgiveness quirks... like I wouldn't be that quick to forgive someone who betrayed me multiple times, especially after the roles went into "friendship" mode.
I will be honest, I wasn’t sure when I first started reading this series as it took me a while to get into the book. I’m really glad I continued reading (I hate not finishing a book 😜), once I got into the book, my sleep has decreased and my nights have been longer! I got completely immersed in the storyline and was rooting for Olivia and the jhapi team not to mention would Riley ever be in her life as a good guy? I have found a great new author and am about to download the next series.
The pace is brisk, the writing is clean, and the plot doesn’t get cluttered by side plots. The MC is mostly comprehensible, though she doesn’t truly change over the course of the 4 novels.
The end is almost too quick, as the ‘big bad’ is barely there for a chapter or two before he is defeated.
I enjoyed the whole series and would recommend it as a light read to people who like witches and vampires and werewolves but prefer to avoid the broody, angst ridden vampires in other novels.
I was not expecting a fantastic rollercoaster. I got a fantastic rollercoaster. This series was a wild ride from beginning to end. The heroine is snarky and still falls on her face instead of just being a Mary Sue. Her friends are a decidedly mixed bag and the interactions are genuine. Characters have conflicting emotions and ideals that drive plot points instead of being a throwaway. Everyone has a motive and when they don't agree, it's realistic. There character development. Great world building and a wonderful read. Thanks so much for writing this!
This series is filled with great characters, magic and a little romance thrown in for good measure. The heroine is quirky, funny and lovable. She has courage and loyalty that make the reader want to see her succeed and overcome the challenges she faces. Born to be someone who was not supported to exist, she of overcomes her fears, her anger and her losses and still maintains her innate goodness. A great story with lots of battles with magic, excitement and plot twists.
Loved this series! The description promised fast paced and it did not disappoint. The main character had grit and attitude, but it wasn’t annoying as with some books of this type. Liked the descriptive ability of the author to transport me into another place. Definitely a great read to escape into. Read all 4 books in two days, and would have gotten through it faster if I didn’t ha e to work. I’m off to check out more books by this author...
I read a lot. Over 100 books per year. I loved this series because it wasn’t the same old story told a million times. It was exciting and the lead female was strong but also knew when to count on her friends. So many stories today are ruined by a completely reckless lead that is all girl power blah blah blah. Olivia had faults and she knew it. She also wasn’t overly egotistical that she thought she could just conquer the world by herself. Very well written story!
Overall I really liked this series. It was entertaining and it’s hard not to like Olivia. Some of her more foolish decisions were difficult not to get annoyed by, but she definitely had redeeming qualities and grew a lot as a person through the challenges she faced. I found the romance to be lacking in its development, even for a slow-burn. While you get used to the writing, some of the style is difficult to deal with and could be distracting from the story; sentence structures were not what I expected. Still, it was an entertaining read.
It took me a bit to get used to writing style in the beginning and I’ll admit there’s some errors sprinkled about but I devoured these books. I loved Olivia and the action of the story. I enjoyed watching the stakes being raised again and again. Some cliches but you know I really liked reading it.
I’m absolutely going to check out more books by this author. If you want a fun urban fantasy read then this is it! Not spicy, mostly clean and some sort of found family fun with a ton of action!
WOW!!! I was pulled in from the beginning! Fabulous paranormal world, I absolutely love this series of books, the action starts straight away, and the characters are well defined early on and blossom throughout the series. Not a lot of heat which I think would have added to the storey and a bit more sexual tension wouldn’t have gone a miss. But that said this set of books are a really enjoyable read.
What a great series! I was so drawn in to the story from the very beginning that it was all I could think about when I couldn’t listen. I love Olivia, she’s a smart cookie and a likable character who goes through a lot of self discovery as a result of well kept family secrets. This book has it all, adventure, mystery, plot twists and of course magic and more magic. Laurel Schroeder as always did an amazing job bringing Olivia’s story to life. Definitely recommend
I should have read this instead of listening to it because the audiobook narrator is not so good. The rhythm in which she ends every single sentence is extremely annoying and distracts from the story. It's almost as if she's not committed to the story as she reads it. Apart from that, the books are very entertaining with good characters and storyline. In my opinion, the narrator has been somewhat of a detriment to the story, not completely but it definitely plays a part.
I loved this story. Every book caught and held my attention. Very hard to put this book down and thought about it constantly until i could pick it up again. Lots of action and intrigue. A little romance but nothing over the top. I really enjoyed the take on vampires and witches. The ending was great wrapped everything up nicely while still leaving room for imagination. I liked how the ending wasn't hurried and the heroines troubles were not over.
I found this series by chance while hunting through kindle unlimited books. I'm so very glad I did. I devoured all 4 books in this set in a book binge read over the weekend and I'm now going to start another series by SF. The characters in this series where all so different and I couldn't help but become totally invested in them, I really hope that there will one day be a revisit to this world so we can see how everyone's getting on..
Unfortunately I don’t. However I did like the heroine. Olivia is smart, gutsy and loyal. I couldn’t make a connection with her though because of her attraction to the vampire. Foxe has built a complex society which resonates as true to itself. I bought the box set and I did read all of them. FYI every book but the last one ends in a cliffhanger, though so don’t plan on reading any of them either out of order or as a stand-alone.
If you are a fan of urban fantasy you're in for more than a treat , get ready to binge on a feast of words that will you to the point of gluttonous joy! Too much? I'm sorry, but this freaking series is the of series so special you want everyone to read it. So do it. Treat yourself to a world of wonder.
Stephanie Foxe is a new author for me. She doesn't know it, but she just became my new best friend.
I really loved this series. I was intrigued by the description. I used kindle unlimited to read the series but after book I finished book 1 I went and bout the series on Audible.
I highly recommend this series. It has a lot of action, fantasy, cool creatures, and one bad ass heroine.
You will not regret reading this series. I finished it all in about 6 hours I couldn't put the books down.
I got so engrossed in the series I read it in one day. I just had to know what happened next. Each character draws you into the plot and keeps you wondering. That makes a good story teller. Oh we all believe the heroine will battle and win but does she.. this is one of those that you root for her until the very end hoping things go well. But with all the trials, enemies etc. you can't count on it. Even those on the same side have an agenda.
I had a hard time getting through this book. I really didn't care for the main character and she didn't really develop much through the whole book. She is also very rude and childish through most of it. Also I figured there would be some flare between her and Rielly but really there was nothing. All you got there was oh he was sexy but that was it. To me it felt like she had no real connection with anyone who wasn't like a parental figure to her. Sorry line was good just not much character development.