scarr
Written on Sep 11, 2021
- ISBN13 9781641970402
- Publish Date 22 June 2018
- Publish Status Active
- Imprint Nancy Yost Literary Agency, Inc
- Format Paperback
- Pages 392
- Language English
Reviews
EBookObsessed
Written on Feb 21, 2021
Hugh d'Ambray is the villian everyone loves to hate but he has met his equal in Elara Harper. Watching these two fight each other for dominance is almost as exciting at the supernatural attacks where they need to join forces to protect their people.
Hugh d'Ambray is the villian everyone loves to hate. I loved Hugh as Kate's nemesis in Magic Breaks. I appreciated Hugh as the antagonist because he was more evenly matched with Kate as a magic user and as a swordsman. He is just a lot more vicious. A lot more. For the first time in the series, I felt a moment of real anxiety when Hugh had Kate helpless. Roland loomed in the background, always a threat but since he was all-powerful and god-like there couldn't be any real clash between Kate and Roland which would allow Kate a fair chance, at least not at the beginning of the series. Hugh gave us our first flesh and blood villian to fight.
We cheered when Kate manipulated Roland by telling him of Hugh's attack on her knowing Roland would tossed aside Hugh as his warlord. You know you did! Now, we see the sad effect this had on Hugh after centuries by Roland's side. Hugh is a broken man at the start of Iron and Magic. He has spent the last few months drunk. He realizes for the first time in centuries what it means to have nothing. No money, no power, no entitlement. Hugh has become used to being offered whatever he wants, the best of the best, and not worrying about such petty things as cost. He now is left almost begging for aid.
Roland has given his Master of the Dead, Landon Nez, the green light to pick off Hugh's Iron Dogs. Hugh needs money, supplies and a safe place for his men who have stayed loyal to him, not Roland. He send scouts to find the Dogs someplace that would need their services, no matter the cost. What they find is a castle in Berry Hill, Kentucky. Roland wants their land and has sent Landon Nez to force them out. They could use the Iron Dogs protection and Hugh's experience. But after years of doing Roland's bidding, even abandoning allies as Roland demands, the only way they will agree to an alliance with Hugh d'Ambray and his Iron Dogs is he agrees to a marriage of convenience.
Elara Harper isn't any more interested in marrying Hugh as he is her, but they both need to protect their people. She isn't going to allow a manipulative asshole like Hugh d'Ambray to take over either. Everything between Hugh and Elara becomes a battle of wits and wills to stay one step ahead of the other, and everything is negotiable. Especially once they both begin to realize just how much they like the challenge of trying to outmaneuver the other. Elara and Hugh might not be ready for wedded bliss, but they will stand together when death comes knocking on their castle door.
I enjoyed watching Hugh and Elara snipe at each other even as their respect for each other grows. Once they realize they are both working toward the same goals, there is still fun in taking potshots at each other. There is no doubt that Hugh and Elara enjoy their continued friction almost to the point of being an aphrodisiac.
What I love most about Iron and Magic is that the authors, in making Hugh the hero of the story, didn't try to make Hugh into a wonderful, kind soul and misunderstood man. He's a controlling, manipulative asshole from beginning to the end, but as long as he is not attacking our Kate or any of her allies, we can appreciate this controlling, manipulative asshole since he and his Iron Dogs are now focusing on protecting everyone in the castle that we come to care about.
"How is it that (he) made more holes in you than in swiss cheese, but your assholeness survived?"
"(He) doesn't have a knife big enough to kill my assholeness."
Now, I am not saying the I like Hugh d'Ambray (although by the end I did) but we do come to see why he has the loyalty of the Iron Dogs. Never forget he is the cold-blooded killer that Roland and Voron raised and in the end he does what is best for Hugh and for his Iron Dogs but he also comes to see the village and its people as his as well and risks his life to protect them.
There is still so much to learn about Elara and her people. Goodreads notes that this book is The Iron Covenant #1. I haven't read anything confirming this, but I do hope to see more stories of Hugh and Elara, even after the anticipated end of the Kate Daniels' series with Magic Triumphs, so that I can continue to
Received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Rowena
Written on Sep 2, 2020
KitsuneBae
Written on Jun 1, 2020
Love this. I can't wait to sink my teeth into the Kate Daniels series.
booksandcats
Written on Jan 26, 2020
Ok, so I didn't think that I would really like Hugh's book, but I read that it was pretty necessary to really appreciate Kate Daniels #10, so I thought I would give it a shot. The reason why I thought I wouldn't like it is because Ilona Andrews have done a brilliant job at making Hugh a powerhungry, cruel, arrogant Asshole in the previous books and I couldn't see a way how they would make me like him or root for his HEA without completely re-writing his character and story. I am glad to say I was wrong.
Without giving to much away plot-wise, this book is in my opinion exemplary at showing a redemption arch, that is believable. It is explained how Hugh was able to do the atrocities he has done, what bound him to Roland, his whole history. But he is still arrogant, still often an ass and he is most definitely the Character we've got to known in the previous books. We also see his internal suffering, how he has got to come to terms with his past and himself and I love that it wasn't rushed but that he has more time to finish his story.
I really like Elara, her wits, and how she was able to stand up against Hugh, be an equal. I also liked how their relationship developed, from despising each other but in need of the other person to learning mutual respect and a weird sort of friendship before anything else was explored. Plus, her Power make her quite badass, I would love to see her actually face off against Roland or Kate for that matter.
I enjoyed the secondary characters, we got a great insight into the Iron Dogs and I think there are some interesting Characters, that are worth exploring in the future. We see some familiar faces with Ascanio, Raphael and Andrea. I like how Raphael's and Hugh's past was handled and I really enjoyed the strategic and logical Analysis Hugh made of Ascanio. It's always interesting to see known Characters through new eyes (Hughs assessment of Jim was interesting as well for that matter).
The general plot was good as well, with them having to learn to work together while facing the golden Legion plus a new unknown threat. Although it was sad, I'm glad that not everybody survived the fight, it's just more realistic that way.
So, if you enjoyed the Kate Daniels series, you will most certainly enjoy this one as well, if you are looking at this for a new series, that is possible as well I think, most background that you need is explained and given in the book but I'm telling you that you will appreciate everything a lot more if you read the Kate Daniels 1-9 before.
Mercy
Written on Dec 31, 2018
This is the book from Hugh's point of view that I didn't know I needed. It was so good!! I read the last page and it left me wanting for more, I didn't want it to end and I could read about Hugh, Elara and their people forever. I think this might be my most favourite enemies to lovers story. The bickering, angst and banter was a delight to read and I can't wait to read the next two books. 😍 Now onto Magic Triumphs. 🙌
MurderByDeath
Written on Aug 7, 2018
kimbacaffeinate
Written on Jul 24, 2018
Hugh d’Ambray, Preceptor of the Iron Dogs, Warlord of the Builder of Towers comes from the world of Kate Daniels and was one of Roland's men. A favorite until they banished him. When we meet Hugh, he is a shadow of himself having lost Roland's favor and the magic that came with it. Some of his men seek him out when another is hunting and killing the Iron Dogs. Destitute, without weapons and seriously hung over he lifts himself up confronts the enemy and works to protect his remaining men. He must do so quickly because the necromancers are coming!
Enter the White Lady. Elara Harper, is a magical creature tasked with protecting her people. They own a fortress and sell their wares, but a threat is coming and she must prepare. They strike a deal and the two enter an arranged marriage. Oh, lordy was this a sizzling, snark filled union. I laughed at their barbs and bit my lip as the chemistry between them builds. Battles of supplies, ruling and their people ensues, but the danger grows ever closer.
Elara is unusual, and I found her magic so intriguing. Huge who is no longer immortal can heal and is a good strategist. Both are kickass on the battlefield. Despite all the flying barbs, sexual tension and baiting the two have a mutual respect for one another.
The intense battles scenes, talks of Kate, and unexpected encounters were freaking brilliant. Necromancers, vampires, Buffy and bizarre creatures not to mention Elara..O.M.G. I am over the moon excited that there will be more books in the Iron Covenant series.
This was my first time listening to Steven West and I bow to Andrews decision to go with a male narrator. Now I love Renee Raudman but Steven was no less brilliant with a wide range of voices and he captured the snark, tension and story that made listening perfection. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer
Quirky Cat
Written on Jun 30, 2018
In case you don’t know the backstory of how this book came to be, it’s actually a pretty funny tale. Ilona and Andrew Gordon originally made a ‘snippet’ of a Hugh novel as an April Fool’s joke, but it got so much attention and was so loved by the fans that something eventually came of it. I have to give this creative duo credit for this; this listened to their fans and made a novel they had never intended on solely because of the reaction to it. That takes guts, but is also really kind to us fans.
Besides being fun though, this book actually serves a very important purpose. It has to get us, and certain characters, to a specific point in order to have the events in Magic Triumphs make sense. Based on what happened, I’m sure we can all guess what the intent was, but I won’t spoil that for you here.
Ilona Andrews has done it again. Seriously. I shameless bought two copies this novel; a dead tree copy to add to my Ilona Andrews shelf, and a digital copy so I wouldn’t have to wait to read it. I can’t tell you how great of an idea that was for me. I read the whole book in a day, and have no regrets about it.
Actually, once I was finished with the book I had to sit back and think about it for a day or two. I’m not really sure what I was expecting from Iron and Magic, but I certainly got more than whatever that was.
For the sake of honestly I should tell you something. I was never crazy about Hugh. I mean, I thought he was a well-designed character, but I never shipped him and Kate (always thought of them more as siblings than anything…albeit ones that didn’t get along too well) and I certainly never would have pictured him as the main character in his own series. I want to be clear on how I felt about Hugh, so you’ll understand how much this novel changed things for me.
This novel made Hugh human in my perspective. He went from being this big bad guy that I loved to hate to a real person with emotions, thoughts, and reasoning. I wasn’t expecting that, to be honest. It became clear to me that this novel wasn’t so much about redeeming Hugh’s past as it was explaining who he was/is and the reasons for any past and current decisions made.
It’s amazing how humanizing it can be to see how a person thinks. I went into this book expecting a fun read, and came out with a whole new respect for his character, and frankly for the writing talent that makes up the Ilona Andrews team. I was blown away.
Alongside the obvious, there are a whole lot of fantastic points to this novel. The fight scenes were fantastic, the new characters intriguing (I know we all walked away wondering what Elara is), the romance surprisingly well done, and the politics and dynamics enthralling.
While I’ve always loved the politics and scheming that have occurred in the Kate Daniels world, I feel like they were truly brought to the forefront with this novel. There’s so much going on with Hugh’s character, past allegiances, current ones, enemies, fenemies, and the whole nine yards. It’s impossible to escape that, but it was perfectly portrayed and really added something to this book.
Before reading Iron and Magic I would have actually believed Hugh’s transition to a point against Roland. Granted, I think that would have been mostly wishful thinking. Now there’s no doubt in my mind on whose side he’s on, and honestly it fits perfectly with the character we’ve been shown here.
Now I just have to wait a little bit before Magic Triumphs releases... Almost there… I’m trying not to be too anxious to the next book, since it’ll be the conclusion of the series, but it’s very difficult to not be anxious about it.
For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
Cocktails and Books
Written on Jun 30, 2018