Magic Study (Study, #2) (The Chronicles of Ixia, #2)

by Maria V Snyder

[ladygrey]

By the time I finished [b:Poison Study|60510|Poison Study (Study, #1)|Maria V. Snyder|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170542921s/60510.jpg|1180409] I loved Valek. So, I was little wary of how much fun a whole book without him would be. I had no reason to worry though; [a:Maria V. Snyder|445303|Maria V. Snyder|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1224476079p2/445303.jpg] is so good with her supporting characters that I enjoyed Yelena's time without him. And also I liked that their love as so strong that she never really was without him.

Cahil was definitely an interesting new mix to the cast and it was strange to see how he evolved, the emotions that ended up ruling him which I wouldn't have expected. He's a character that had every potential to be this one type of guy, but he never really could let himself.

Also, story-sense be damned! I was afraid for a little while that Dax was Ferde because he just kept showing up offhandedly and the killer seemed to have too much knowledge of Yelena. And I would have been so mad if I'd been right. But I was totally wrong and not just because the pieces didn't add up the way I was afraid they would but because Snyder had all sorts of unexpected pieces to add to the puzzle.

And I loved that Ari and Janco showed up. And that Valek was there so these characters that were so much fun from the first book weren't entirely lost. Yelena's a pretty good character, but her charm for me really is about how people around her react. I enjoyed the new cast of supporting characters and am totally afraid of the new villains because Snyder's bad guys don't play around. This is a beautifully conceived world with interesting magic and really enjoyable characters.