The King's Seal

 

The King's Seal (Magicians of Venice Book 3)- Amy Kuivalainen

BHC Press

Release Date: June 24, 2021

Rating: 📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: The search for the legendary ring of King Solomon has begun, and Penelope must sift through its long and convoluted history of lost emperors, crusaders, and other famous historical figures—including one with whom the magicians share their own complicated past— if she hopes to find it in time.

As Penelope's magic continues to grow stronger with the coming high tide, she and Alexis will have to depend upon each other more than ever to keep everyone they care about safe from the continuing attacks by Thevetat’s priests.

When the magical high tide finally peaks, the long-awaited battle against Thevetat will begin, and Penelope, Alexis, and the magicians will have to rely on both powers of old and new if they hope to defeat their enemy once and for all.

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The King's Seal is the third and final book in the Magicians of Venice trilogy- here Penelope and the magicians must find the Ring of Solomon to help them defeat Thevatat and his plan to not only provide a body for himself but also unleash more demons on the world. Penelope learns more about the complicated histories of her friends, meets an emperor, and begins to try and understand her place in this magical world- which includes understanding powers of her own.

The Magicians of Venice is definitely a trilogy that should be read in order. Each book builds on the other as pasts are unveiled, alliances formed, and the danger Thevatat and his followers presents build to the ultimate climax. But it isn't all terror at the coming fight. Like in The Immortal City and The Sea of the Dead, Amy Kuivalainen takes time to develop her cast of characters and provide bits of the joy, awe, and sorrow that must come from being immortal. Meeting the emperor Constantine brings up emotions from all of the magician's pasts and when the Sforzas and Medicis are brought into the mix we get to see Phaidros and Aelia at some of their most emotional states (both for better and worse). Thankfully in a house of magicians there's always someone able to put the thrown china and other breakables back together. 

I enjoyed the continued thread of Phaidros and Aelia in their will-they-won't-they relationship, especially since we finally get to see Aelia at her most vulnerable and hear why they haven't gotten together when the two of them seem to be the only ones who don't realize they are in love with each other. With the continuing threats Alexis is at some of his fiercest Defender moments, but there are also delightfully sweet and tender scenes with Penelope as she helps him remember the good that was Atlantis and not just the wars. Penelope continues to be her strong and stubborn self, refusing to be overawed by ancient magicians or murdering demons.  She and Marco take things in admirable stride, no matter what weirdness gets thrown at them. Constantine helps shake things up but also helps bring together the final battle and fits well into the mix.

At first reading I thought the final battle was a little anticlimactic, but after thinking about it for a few minutes I changed my mind. No spoilers here but I think it ended exactly the way it should have.  In the end, life goes on and learning to celebrate the joys as well as the sorrows is something even immortal magicians need to learn.  Kuivalainen wrapped things up beautifully, but maybe we can still hope for more in this world of hers. Constantine may be a jerk at times but would be an interesting spin off, as would focusing on some of the magicians we get less of like Zo or Galenos and Lyca  Even more interesting would be going back to Atlantis and the first wars that ended the island. But even if this is the last book Kuivalainen writes in this world, it is certainly a world we can be grateful we can return to any time, just by picking up the books. It is certainly one I plan on returning to frequently.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Confidence Men

 

The Confidence Men: How Two Prisoners of War Engineered the Most Remarkable Escape in History- Margalit Fox

Random House

Release Date: June 1, 2021

Rating: 📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: Imprisoned in a remote Turkish POW camp during World War I, having survived a two-month forced march and a terrifying shootout in the desert, two British officers, Harry Jones and Cedric Hill, join forces to bamboozle their iron-fisted captors. To stave off despair and boredom, Jones takes a handmade Ouija board and fakes elaborate séances for his fellow prisoners. Word gets around, and one day an Ottoman official approaches Jones with a query: Could Jones contact the spirit world to find a vast treasure rumored to be buried nearby? Jones, a trained lawyer, and Hill, a brilliant magician, use the Ouija board—and their keen understanding of the psychology of deception—to build a trap for their captors that will ultimately lead them to freedom. 

A gripping nonfiction thriller, The Confidence Men is the story of one of the only known con games played for a good cause—and of a profound but unlikely friendship. Had it not been for “the Great War,” Jones, the Oxford-educated son of a British lord, and Hill, a mechanic on an Australian sheep ranch, would never have met. But in pain, loneliness, hunger, and isolation, they formed a powerful emotional and intellectual alliance that saved both of their lives. 

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When we think of great POW escapes, we generally think of the daring tunnelers who escaped from German POW camps (The Escape Artists).  But in The Confidence Men, Margalit Fox introduces us to perhaps the most unusual POW escape in history.  In a remote POW camp in Turkey, British POWs tried a variety of methods to entertain themselves, including making a Ouija board to try and contact spirits. Harry Jones became an expert at running the board and tricked his fellow officers into believing they were talking to spirits. in séances. When the men running the camp heard Jones was a talented medium, what began as a way for Jones to pass the time and entertain his fellow prisoners became the basis of a long con that would eventually lead to freedom for himself and his partner Cedric Hill- via six months in a Turkish asylum.

Margalit Fox does an excellent job balancing the story of Jones and Hill with explanations on why the con worked- the psychological and sociological factors behind séances and spiritualism of the times, the psychology of cons both long and short, and the various factors that allow them to work.  I never felt like these aspects of the story were forced in, they flowed as a part of a behind-the-scenes aspect of the con Jones and Hill were performing. Using detailed research, including the men's autobiographies, Fox describes how Jones and Hill were able to trick the camp prisoners, commandants, and medical professionals at an asylum into believing first that the séances were real and second that the madness the two men suffered as a result of those séances was real.  

Confidence Men reads as a gripping thriller, a psychological drama that had real life or death consequences, You hear Jones and Hill's voices, feel the weight of the challenge they have set for themselves, the stress they are constantly under and the physical and mental effects when they reach the asylum. You cheer every victory and, even knowing from page one that they will eventually succeed in their plan, you worry along with them every step of the way for all of the things that could go wrong. 

An excellent read for World War I historians, military history aficionados, and people whose interest lies solely in the confidence game, Confidence Men is a book for the casual reader as well as the dedicated historian.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Summer of No Attachments

 

The Summer of No Attachments- Lori Foster

HQN Books

Release Date: June 22, 2021

Rating: 📚📚📚📚

Symopsis: After putting the brakes on her dead-end relationship, local veterinarian Ivey Anders is ready to soak up this summer on her own terms. The way she sees it, no dating means no disappointment. Why complicate life with anything long-term? But when she meets Corbin Meyer—and his troubled young son, Justin—Ivey’s no-strings strategy threatens to unravel before she can put it into practice.

Trust doesn’t come easy for Ivey’s best friend, Hope Mage, a veterinary-clinic assistant who’s affected by an incident that’s colored every relationship she’s had. Though Hope’s happy for Ivey, she can’t quite open her own heart to the possibility of love. Not just yet… Maybe not ever. Soon, however, she’s faced with a dilemma—Corbin’s older brother, Lang. He’s charming, he’s kind…and he may just be the reason Hope needs to finally tear down her walls.

And as the sweet summer months unspool, the two friends discover love won’t give up on them so easily.

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Corbin is a laid back guy who's just discovered he's a dad- to a 10 year old boy. Corbin and Justin move to  the small town of Sunset and meet Ivey, a veterinarian with a huge heart for both animals and people. Having just broken up with her boyfriend, Ivey is planning on having a summer of no attachments- just casual, laid back fun. The biggest attachment she'll have is to a new dog, Daisy, and her pups that have come into the clinic. That plan goes out the window as soon as Ivey and Corbin meet. The two click perfectly. It isn't just a case of explosive chemistry- it is better than that. They click. They discover that together they are the better versions of themselves, that supporting one another makes them an incredible unit. Neither planned to find forever, both are worried about what too much change could do to Justin, but how do you ignore it when the perfect partner falls into your life?

It might sound sappy, but I loved Lori Foster's book because of how easily and nicely the people fit together. This wasn't a story of instant lust, chemistry and danger. It was a story of family and friends who are family, of support and discovering who you are and who you can be.  Ivey didn't have to change anything about herself to fit into Corbin's life, they worked simply by being themselves. I loved how the character of Hope, Ivey's friend, was written- someone who's lived through trauma and is slowly becoming comfortable with herself and others again. Ivey supports her with friendship instead of pity and never suggests Hope can't or shouldn't do something because of her fears. The two women simply give it to each other straight and support whatever decisions are made. Hope gets to come out of her shell and still face some of her past, and we get to see her grow and move on as she does. Hope may be a 'secondary' character but she (and her relationship with Corbin's brother Lang) never feels secondary, and gets plenty of page time and development.

An overall lovely new book, this looks at family and friends, the bad as well as the good, and how we are all more able to face the bad when we have a solid core of good in our corner. And never have to change who we are to get it. A book of humor and fun, heart and heat, a perfect summer romance.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review