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Mathilda Holiday #1
Magic Today
Magic is real - and it's a bitch.
Between her divorce, her terrible boss, and her dwindling finances, impulsive Mattie’s life is getting more and more complicated by the day. So when she learns that Tillie, her twin sister, is missing, she drops everything and rushes across the country to join her friend Trevor in the search.
As they begin their search, they stumble across a secret room in Tillie's condo filled with crystal balls and books about magic. Suddenly people all around them are doing spells, manipulating time, and disappearing into thin air, and they soon they realize they’re in over their heads.
A group of powerful mages is hunting Tillie. Can Mattie and Trevor find her first? Or will they become targets too?
Magic Today is the first installment of the face-paced Mathilda Holiday series. If you love urban fantasy with strong, complicated heroines and a good dose of humor, you'll definitely want to read this today!
Between her divorce, her terrible boss, and her dwindling finances, impulsive Mattie’s life is getting more and more complicated by the day. So when she learns that Tillie, her twin sister, is missing, she drops everything and rushes across the country to join her friend Trevor in the search.
As they begin their search, they stumble across a secret room in Tillie's condo filled with crystal balls and books about magic. Suddenly people all around them are doing spells, manipulating time, and disappearing into thin air, and they soon they realize they’re in over their heads.
A group of powerful mages is hunting Tillie. Can Mattie and Trevor find her first? Or will they become targets too?
Magic Today is the first installment of the face-paced Mathilda Holiday series. If you love urban fantasy with strong, complicated heroines and a good dose of humor, you'll definitely want to read this today!
- GenresUrban FantasyFantasy
208 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 15, 2020
27 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
About the author
Anna McCluskey
13 books12 followersAnna McCluskey is an autistic indie fantasy author known for her witty dialogue, whimsical storylines, and immersive style. Anna lives in rural Oregon with crapload of pets and plants.
For information on upcoming projects, check out her website, annamccluskey.com.
For information on upcoming projects, check out her website, annamccluskey.com.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 14, 2021
The cover and interesting sounding blurb caught my eye and I decided to buy a copy. Not much later I decided to pick it up. Unfortunately this one didn't quite work for me. It's just one of those reads that just didn't quite work for me.
Magic Today has quite the slow start. We see a bit of Mattie's life and how things in her life slowly go downhill and only get worse. Until she packs up her stuff and moves to the other side of the US to try and find her sister Tillie who has gone missing. She then teams up with Trevor, Tillie's best friend, and together they slowly discover more about why Tillie went missing and get plunged into the world of magic.
I liked the set up with Mattie going to help find Tillie. I just wish it had all progressed a bit faster, there were plenty of scenes that I didn't really care for or didn't see the need for. I think part of this is because I never really connected with Mattie. I couldn't relate to her, she was impulsive and sometimes rushed into things without thinking it through. This is clearly intentional, but I just didn't find it as interesting to read about. I also didn't really like her, although I did like how much she cares about her sister.
My favorite part of this book is when Mattie and Trevor realize magic is real and slowly find out more. That part was exciting and engaging. It's weird to say, but the middle was my favorite part of this book. The start was slow and didn't grab my attention. And the ending didn't work for me either. It felt very anti-climactic and the battle lacked impact for me as I didn't feel the relevance and tension. And there is a certain development that just didn't work for me.
I did like the idea of the world building/ magic. With how there are 3 different classes of magic users and it was nice getting a bit of a feel for each of them. Besides that though I would've loved to see more of the world. To me it didn't make sense magic wasn't more wide spread, they treat it as a big secret, but then everyone seems so careless in it's use and everyone can become a magic user. With those premises it just felt to me that it didn't make sense there weren't more magic users or everyone being aware of it.
To summarize: Unfortunately this book didn't work for me. The start was slow and I had trouble getting into the book and I didn't like or related to the main characters. I like the set-up for how she sets out to find her sister, but found the pacing too slow most of the time. The middle was the best part when Trevor and Mattie discover magic and learn more about it. And then ending felt lackluster and anti climactic to me. The world building concept was interesting, but not as well worked out as I would've liked. Unfortunately this one didn't quite work for me.
Magic Today has quite the slow start. We see a bit of Mattie's life and how things in her life slowly go downhill and only get worse. Until she packs up her stuff and moves to the other side of the US to try and find her sister Tillie who has gone missing. She then teams up with Trevor, Tillie's best friend, and together they slowly discover more about why Tillie went missing and get plunged into the world of magic.
I liked the set up with Mattie going to help find Tillie. I just wish it had all progressed a bit faster, there were plenty of scenes that I didn't really care for or didn't see the need for. I think part of this is because I never really connected with Mattie. I couldn't relate to her, she was impulsive and sometimes rushed into things without thinking it through. This is clearly intentional, but I just didn't find it as interesting to read about. I also didn't really like her, although I did like how much she cares about her sister.
My favorite part of this book is when Mattie and Trevor realize magic is real and slowly find out more. That part was exciting and engaging. It's weird to say, but the middle was my favorite part of this book. The start was slow and didn't grab my attention. And the ending didn't work for me either. It felt very anti-climactic and the battle lacked impact for me as I didn't feel the relevance and tension. And there is a certain development that just didn't work for me.
I did like the idea of the world building/ magic. With how there are 3 different classes of magic users and it was nice getting a bit of a feel for each of them. Besides that though I would've loved to see more of the world. To me it didn't make sense magic wasn't more wide spread, they treat it as a big secret, but then everyone seems so careless in it's use and everyone can become a magic user. With those premises it just felt to me that it didn't make sense there weren't more magic users or everyone being aware of it.
To summarize: Unfortunately this book didn't work for me. The start was slow and I had trouble getting into the book and I didn't like or related to the main characters. I like the set-up for how she sets out to find her sister, but found the pacing too slow most of the time. The middle was the best part when Trevor and Mattie discover magic and learn more about it. And then ending felt lackluster and anti climactic to me. The world building concept was interesting, but not as well worked out as I would've liked. Unfortunately this one didn't quite work for me.
February 20, 2023
(FYI I tend to only review one book per series, unless I completely change my mind on a series, so want to change my scoring down a lot. -- I tend not to read reviews until after I read a book, so I go in with an open mind.)
Interesting idea but didn't gel with the characters. They kept doing things that were IMHO dumb.
First time read the author's work?: Yes
Will you be reading more?: No
Would you recommend?: No
------------
How I rate Stars: 5* = I loved (must read all I can find by the author)
4* = I really enjoyed (got to read all the series and try other books by the author).
3* = I enjoyed (I will continue to read the series)
or
3* = Good book just not my thing (I realised I don't like the genre or picked up a kids book to review in error.)
All of the above scores means I would recommend them!
-
2* = it was okay (I might give the next book in the series a try, to see if that was better IMHO.)
1* = Disliked
Note: adding these basic 'reviews' after finding out that some people see the stars differently than I do - hoping this clarifies how I feel about the book. :-)
Interesting idea but didn't gel with the characters. They kept doing things that were IMHO dumb.
First time read the author's work?: Yes
Will you be reading more?: No
Would you recommend?: No
------------
How I rate Stars: 5* = I loved (must read all I can find by the author)
4* = I really enjoyed (got to read all the series and try other books by the author).
3* = I enjoyed (I will continue to read the series)
or
3* = Good book just not my thing (I realised I don't like the genre or picked up a kids book to review in error.)
All of the above scores means I would recommend them!
-
2* = it was okay (I might give the next book in the series a try, to see if that was better IMHO.)
1* = Disliked
Note: adding these basic 'reviews' after finding out that some people see the stars differently than I do - hoping this clarifies how I feel about the book. :-)
May 9, 2021
Magic Today is one of the few fantasy books I've read so far because normally I am not so much into this genre.
But Anna got me curious very quickly and just after reading the first few pages I was definitely hooked and couldn't stop until I finished. Now I really want to know how the series continues.
The first book in in the Mathilda Holiday series eases you into the world of magic and what is all possible under the surface and I totally recommend it for both fantasy newbies like me as well as those who enjoy this genre already.
But Anna got me curious very quickly and just after reading the first few pages I was definitely hooked and couldn't stop until I finished. Now I really want to know how the series continues.
The first book in in the Mathilda Holiday series eases you into the world of magic and what is all possible under the surface and I totally recommend it for both fantasy newbies like me as well as those who enjoy this genre already.
July 1, 2023
Slowish Start, then Takes Off
The world building takes a while, so it’s a good ways into this book before the plot takes off. But when it does, it flies. The characters are interesting and different from each other.
The only issue I have with the book is that the different ways of approaching and doing magic aren’t well explained. I assume that will be addressed in later books.
The world building takes a while, so it’s a good ways into this book before the plot takes off. But when it does, it flies. The characters are interesting and different from each other.
The only issue I have with the book is that the different ways of approaching and doing magic aren’t well explained. I assume that will be addressed in later books.
November 20, 2022
3.5*
I love fantasy reads but this one did not do it for me. The story felt disjointed. The premise is interesting but the execution fell short. As Mattie and Tillie are twins, one would expect that they might have discussed magic. Mattie and Trevor pick up allies way too quickly, especially in a modern day world.
I love fantasy reads but this one did not do it for me. The story felt disjointed. The premise is interesting but the execution fell short. As Mattie and Tillie are twins, one would expect that they might have discussed magic. Mattie and Trevor pick up allies way too quickly, especially in a modern day world.
May 30, 2022
Magic
This is a great story about family and friends dealing with magic. Always use your skills to help and improve everyone around you. Help and protect your family and friends and remember the innocent around you.
This is a great story about family and friends dealing with magic. Always use your skills to help and improve everyone around you. Help and protect your family and friends and remember the innocent around you.
June 8, 2022
The book ends too soon!
Two more chapters and I would have rated it four stars which is my highest below Shakespeare. Fast moving, intriguing and believable characters, and a sense of humor. A great read for a rainy day!
Two more chapters and I would have rated it four stars which is my highest below Shakespeare. Fast moving, intriguing and believable characters, and a sense of humor. A great read for a rainy day!
May 27, 2021
Loved this book! There's so much intrigue and interest from page one. And I absolutely loved the magic in this book, too. Super cool. If you're looking for a page turner, check this one out!
October 8, 2021
Magic today
Hi all, I chose the rating because I really enjoyed this book. It was fun and there was a story told and plenty of action. I would love to read the rest of the series.
Hi all, I chose the rating because I really enjoyed this book. It was fun and there was a story told and plenty of action. I would love to read the rest of the series.
April 7, 2023
I tried to get into this book and I even managed to complete 80% of it... But I just couldn't do it. The concept is great, but it was just boring.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews