Mad Soul Child
Written on Jan 5, 2021
Meet Tori. Sassy redhead, ex-waitress with an attitude, and human bartender of a magic guild. Three Mages and a Margarita opens the hilarious and heartwarming Guild Codex series.
Broke, almost homeless, and recently fired. Those are my official reasons for answering a wanted ad for a skeevy-looking bartender gig.
It went downhill the moment they asked for a trial shift instead of an interview—to see if I'd mesh with their "special" clientele. I think that part went great. Their customers were complete jerks, and I was an asshole right back. That's the definition of fitting in, right?
I expected to get thrown out on my ass. Instead, they . . . offered me the job?
It turns out this place isn't a bar. It's a guild. And the three cocky guys I drenched with a margarita during my trial? Yeah, they were mages. Either I'm exactly the kind of takes-no-shit bartender this guild needs, or there's a good reason no one else wants to work here.
So what's a broke girl to do? Take the job, of course—with a pay raise.
- ISBN10 1988153239
- ISBN13 9781988153230
- Publish Date 14 September 2018
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country CA
- Imprint Dark Owl Fantasy Inc
- Format Paperback (US Trade)
- Pages 312
- Language English
Reviews
funstm
Written on Jul 28, 2020
I'm not holding my breath for the romance. I really hate love triangles. And harems. Reverse or otherwise. But Tori and Aaron and Ezra (and the tiniest bit Kai) were flirty rather than serious - it was easy enough to ignore. But that's my pet peeve rather than a judgement of this book. I've read the Steel and Stone series by this author so I know she's more than capable of weaving a love triangle in the least offensive way possible. I just really hate them. I'm more of a soulmate kind of gal.
I liked the boys and Sin and the rest of the characters - although there's not a whole lot of character development for any of them. But there is a lot of plot. The plot was good and I liked the world building. The alchemical aspect was cool and I hope there's more of it in further installments. I liked Aaron freely admitting he was only saved thanks to Tori and that he was comfortable enough to give her credit where due. I liked Tori's willingness to jump into the fray even while seriously outgunned. I wanted to see more of Justin and the history of his relationship with Tori as well. I'm curious to see how much he knows about the magical community and what notes Tori and him will compare.
While this is urban fantasy, I would categorise it as what I've been calling 'light urban fantasy'. It's not as crass, it's not as sexual and is more fit for a young adult audience. There's not enough fantasy to just label it plain fantasy but it's not dark enough for full on urban. Hence 'light urban fantasy'. It also makes it easier to endure love triangles because it's harmless flirting rather than serious action.
Overall solid effort, can't wait to read the rest of the series.
bookperson
Written on Feb 21, 2020
alindstadtcorbeax
Written on Jul 24, 2019
BTW- IMO this book/ series is perfect for #readingrush! Just a suggestion to help you reach your goals!
[FYI; No clue why this is mislabeled paranormal reverse harem. It most definitely is not. In fact romance isn’t even a main plot line in the novel, although Annette Marie DOES like to remind us how sexy mah new main men are! Lol
kimbacaffeinate
Written on Apr 29, 2019
Depressed but not deterred she heads to the next business on her list when she finds an ad for a bartender at the Crow and Hammer. It borders between the upper and lower side of town but still within walking distance. When she arrives, an overwhelming feeling to run hits her, but Tori pushes through and somehow gets a trial gig. The tale that unfolds was hilarious, sweet, and. snark. It was an all around fun urban fantasy with some suspenseful threads and kickassary.
The three mages are friends/roommates and work together collecting bounties. Tori’s interaction with each was unique. There is a little love interest. However, with someone trying to capture a mage and Tori getting into trouble the romance was served as a side dish.
The current threat wrapped up leaving us in a good place. Three Mages and a Margarita set the tone for the series while establishing the world. We encountered different supernatural creatures, learned about the different guilds and how the supernatural remain hidden among the human world.
New to me narrator Cris Dukehart did a fantastic job with Tori and the rest of the gang. She captured their emotions, enhanced the snark and gave each a unique voice. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer
Liz (Bent Bookworm)
Written on Oct 7, 2018
I was expecting to like Three Mages and a Margarita. I was NOT expecting to love it. And well..let’s just say as soon as I finished I jumped onto GoodReads to see when the next one was coming out!
I signed up for the book tour because I like sassy female characters and felt like I could use a lighthearted, amusing read in the middle of all my heavy science stuff that I’ve been working on for months. The description made me think Jim Butcher and Gail Carriger had a brain-child…and I was NOT disappointed!
Characters
Tori is the bomb. She takes no shit, from anyone, and yet she still has soft heart and she tries to care about people. It’s only sort of hinted at what sort of trauma her past holds (she tries to reveal-but-not-reveal to one other character in the book and it just left some things up in the air), but she has difficulty trusting anyone. She takes care of herself, but she tries to take care of other people too. The dichotomy is something she admits to struggling with, but it doesn’t weigh the book down.
The three mages are, as promised, sexy AF. Despite that, it is not (also as promised) a reverse harem. Just a good dose of sexual tension and admiration on all sides, hence the two flames. Nothing too sexual though, though I feel like the potential is there. I am extremely eager to see what happens in subsequent books, and I’m kind of hoping for a HEA on all counts for this series. Because it just seems like it needs it. All three guys – despite being often seen together and best friends – are quite different and I loved them all but I loved Ezra just a teeny bit more. :heart_eyes: Ahem.
Worldbuilding
Now, I don’t read that much urban fantasy, so it’s possible the magic system isn’t all that original, but I thought it was fascinating. I loved how the explanation of magic users in the modern world was explained, how they stayed hidden from the normal/human set, as well as how they used their powers and weapons.
Storyline
The plot kept it moving, which I really liked. The only reason I didn’t read this all in one sitting was because – well, homework and being a responsible student. 😛 Whomp whomp. (Also when I went to write this review, my ePub had for some reason VANISHED from my computer and I really wanted to look back and re-read a few things before I wrote it, hence the very short review in the actual tour post.) Things just kept happening! I wanted to find out more and more and it didn’t feel predictable at all. I did feel like one part – not the actual climax, but leading up to that – was oddly rushed, but when I thought back over it a scene between wasn’t really necessary, I was just a bit stunned by how fast it moved on. The ACTUAL climax I actually panicked slightly, though I was pretty sure they wouldn’t kill off a particular character it certainly seemed like it was going to happen for awhile and just OMG NO. In the end, everything seemed pretty well-resolved though, aside from the non-romance, so I’m interested to see what else is going to happen in the next two books.
Yes! Two! Aaaaah!! Maybe more? I certainly hope so! I think Three Mages and a Margarita is the start to a series I could see myself enjoying for a very long time to come.
Book 2, [b:Dark Arts and a Daiquiri|40521575|Dark Arts and a Daiquiri (The Guild Codex Spellbound, #2)|Annette Marie|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1533628768s/40521575.jpg|62890470], is due out November 18, of THIS YEAR! Such a short wait between books, I am just over the moon.
Book 3, Two Witches and a Whiskey, titled but no GR page or pub date yet.
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