*I read this book for my own enjoyment.

Kate and Morales are called in as consultants at a crime scene. A body with his limbs cut off. Kate knows the victim, Charm, from her days in the coven. Uncle Abe's enforcer. Charm's death could be the very excuse the covens need to start a coven war in Babylon city. Kate and the MEA force need to act fast to find the real killer before war breaks out, destroying the city. Kate also is distracted as Charm's death stirs old memories of her mother's death. Then there's life with making sure Danny is taken care of. He is a teenager, and troubles do pop up.

I love going into this book that I know each chapter and scene has something big in it. It may be dealing with Danny or it may be Kate's job. Or, if we are lucky something with John Volos or Morales. Oh John Volos. That usually involves a double whammy of work and sparks. And the same could be said of Morales. I love that Kate is working her way through raising her brother, which gives her a family feel as she stumbles through parenting like many of us do. Family and work are hard to balance, and choices need to be made. Kate does just that.

Speaking of family. Kate learns more about her mothers death. Wow. That's a punch to the gut. I like how Jaye left us with hints about Kate's mother at the end of Cursed Moon, and with this case Kate is drawn to the memories. Kate is determined to know what happened with her mother. I'm not saying any more because you need to read to learn what Kate learns. Oh, and what we learn from John Volos and Morales. Interesting!

Then there's Kate and her own personal life. She feels there's really no time for it with Danny and work. But Kate starts to open up a little bit here, for herself.

This book feels as it expands the world for us. There are other suppliers and covens that we learn about. These expand outside of Babylon city, but are a threat to Kate's home city and the way of life here. This opens up the series for us in a big way.

The book has all the elements I enjoy in one place and constantly has me glued to the words. I have enjoyed this book, world, and characters. ( )

I'm glad this series is not over

Ok This was a good installment in the series. But the story is far from over. There was character growth for everyone, even Mez and Gardner. And the love quadrangle got pared down a bit. For now. I love how the author manages to keep the characters balanced between grays and still sympathetic.

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: A coven war is brewing, and the MEA is running out of time to stop it in this thrilling installment in the Prospero’s War series.

Opening Sentence: There was a body in the church.

The Review:

Things have been quiet the past few months for Kate Prospero and the MEA task force. That all changes when they’re called in to assist on a particularly grisly murder scene. Kate immediately recognizes the victim – the leader of the Votary coven. All the evidence points to the leader of the rival coven, the Sangs, but it’s all a little too convenient for Kate to believe. As the MEA digs deeper, they find ties to a dangerous cartel as well as newly elected mayor John Volos. None of the evidence is strong enough for a solid case though, and time is growing short as tensions continue to rise among the covens. The MEA needs to work fast in order to avoid an all out coven war. Will they be able to find the real murderer in time?

This is turning into a really solid series for me. The books thus far have been fast paced, full of action as well as spots of humor to lighten the mood, and the characters are fantastic. I’m happy to say this book didn’t vary from that pleasant formula. I was interested in the plot from page one, and my interest didn’t wane at any point in time. What more can you ask for?

I really love the character of Kate. I’ve mentioned in reviews of previous books how I greatly enjoy her interactions with her brother, and that doesn’t change here. Danny has done some growing up, and it’s great to see how his and Kate’s relationship is progressing now that some secrets have been revealed. Kate also does some soul searching in this installlment, and it’s interesting to see how much she’s grown already from the person she was in book one. She’s learning how to not let her past hold her down and prevent her from becoming the cop she’s meant to be. It’s really awesome to see that much development in just three books.

I find myself very curious to see what Wells’ end game is for Volos. He keeps popping up, and while it’s obvious he still has feelings for Kate, his actions keep her from feeling anything but scorn for him, so I’m not so sure he’s going to become a love interest. At the same time, I’m not positive he’s going to become a villain either. I can’t wait to see what else his character has in store for Kate (and the readers).

Once again, this installment is light on the romance, although there is a little here. The tension between Kate and Morales is cranking up, and I find myself really loving every scene they have together. This is still mainly urban fantasy though, so those who crave a strong romance storyline in their books may want to look elsewhere.

All in all, this was another very satisfying installment in this series. Those who enjoyed the first two books definitely won’t be disappointed. I’m very much looking forward to book 4!

Notable Scene:

Puck slowly tore the card into pieces. Several of his cronies chuckled. “We don’t help traitors.”

“Suit yourself,” I said. “But let me make one thing clear.” I looked out over the assembled crowd to make sure I had their attention. “Your cousin,” I said, referring to Volos, “has the entire BPD on alert for a coven war. They’ll come down hard on anyone caught even looking at a rival coven the wrong way.” I looked at Puck again. “If I hear about any of your guys making any more moves against Harry Bane or his crew, we will be back with warrants and lots of guys with big guns.”

Puck laughed. “You do that.”

“I mean it, Puck. No war.”

He leaned forward and snapped his teeth at my face.

“Easy,” Morales growled.

Ignoring my partner, Puck whispered, “That’s the tricky thing about a war, Detective.” He held up a finger like a gun and pulled the invisible trigger. “Lots of stray bullets and collateral damage. Never know who will get caught in the crossfire.”

I grabbed his finger and twisted it until he fell to his knees on the ground. The crowd moved forward, but Morales drew his gun to halt their advance. The blonde stood to the side glaring bullets at me.

I leaned down and looked into the pained eyes of the cocky asshole who’d just threatened me. “Your mouth is declaring wars your ass can’t win.” His finger cracked under the pressure. He didn’t yell out in pain, but his jaw tightened and his eyes watered. “I might not be a member of this coven anymore, but I learned everything I know from a ruthless son of a bitch named Abraxas Prospero. If you come after me, I will end you.”

With that, I released his broken finger. “Let’s go,” I said to Morales and marched away without another glance.

It wasn’t until we were both outside and the door slammed behind us that Morales finally spoke. “So that went well.”

FTC Advisory: Orbit provided me with a copy of Deadly Spells. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )

Review from Tenacious Reader: http://www.tenaciousreader.com/2015/03/30/review-deadly-spells-by-jaye-wells/

Deadly Spells regains what I felt was a bit lost in Cursed Moon. This is a stronger and more enjoyable book and I never felt the pace slow down or my interest waiver. There is a murder in the beginning of the book (this is hardly surprising, I mean Kate is a detective). But this turns out to be a member of her former Coven, someone she was quite familiar with. And it seems there is an emerging Coven war. As one might expect, Volos (Kate’s ex, current mayor, and someone that has been known to be enmeshed in Coven politics) if somehow involved as well. I’m not complaining, honestly, Volos seems to make things in Kate’s life a bit more interesting. So, I was actually glad to see how he was also some how pulled into this case.

The love triangle is always a small subplot, never coming close to taking over the story. I appreciate that. We get a small taste of the underlying desires between the characters, but none of them are driven by the relationships, and they certainly don’t allow those desires (repressed or not) to overshadow the real threat and concern of solving this case. There just always seems to be a bit of sexual tension between Kate and Volos and Kate and Morales. And this time, she gets the excitement of a new guy as well (this potential romance is also never a major component of the story).

In my last review I complained about Morales calling her “Cupcake”. Hopefully people don’t consider this a spoiler, but I was quite happy to see her call him out on that in this book. Won’t say more, but it made me happy even if she still has more tolerance for it than I do. Yay for Kate finally saying something to her partner for his demeaning nickname!? Yes, better late than never in my opinion!

One of the things I find interesting in this series is how Kate has to manage not just her career and her romantic interests, but relationships and duties beyond that. Things that normal people contend with in the normal everyday real lives. I think it just makes her a bit more real and relatable. On top of her high pressure job, she has to also juggle in caring for and raising Danny, her teenage brother. And this book, he definitely tests her abilities to handle everything. Danny has girlfriend, and she is struggling to deal with something that happens to her. Danny also has been drawn into trouble at school, causing Kate to have to prioritize and juggle putting out multiple fires at once.

Ultimately, what I enjoy about these books is they are just fresh and fun for me. I enjoy reading an empowered female protagonist that is not defined by her romantic conquests and also is not defined by a single role in her life. She has to deal with both her professional and personal life, both of which are impacted by previous and current relationships. Definetely recommend the series, and for anyone that may have been unsure to continue after book two, I urge you to read on. ( )

It looks like someone is trying to start a war between the Covens in Babylon. The first victim is Charm. Kate has known him since she was a child because he was one of her Uncle Abe's enforcers. After the usual in-fighting between the local police and the Magical Enforcement Agency task force, Kate and the rest of the team begin working the case. The next victim is from a rival Coven. He survives but isn't going to help Kate figure out what is going on.

They soon learn that a killer from a Brazilian Coven has come hunting. They also soon learn the new mayor and childhood friend of Kate's - John Volos - is neck deep in the whole thing. Kate doesn't like the man Volos has grown up to be but he isn't so willing to move on. He keeps trying to tangle Kate up in his life. Meanwhile, Kate is also having relationship issues with her partner Drew Morales who is giving every indication that he would like a more intimate relationship with her.

To add to the complications, Danny is having troubles at the exclusive prep school that he is attending. His friend Luna, who happens to be one of the other Adept scholarship students there, has been raped and won't give up the name of her rapist. Danny comes home on day with a black eye and not much later Kate is called to the school because he used a magical potion on a kid who was bullying Luna. It just so happens that the kid is the son of one of Volos' fiercest political rivals.

This was an entertaining story. I liked the Kate needs to come to terms with what she really wants out of life in this story. Fans of urban fantasy will enjoy this series. ( )