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A thrilling new urban fantasy filled with magic and motorcycle gangs from Jennifer Rush, author of the Altered saga—perfect for fans of Beautiful Creatures.

Eighteen-year-old Jemmie Carmichael has grown up surrounded by magic in the quiet town of Hawthorne, New York. In her world, magic users are called "kindled," and Jemmie would count herself among them if only she could cast a simple spell without completely falling apart. It doesn't help that she was also recently snubbed by Crowe, the dangerous and enigmatic leader of the Black Devils kindled motorcycle gang and the unofficial head of their turf.

When the entire kindled community rolls into Hawthorne for an annual festival, a rumor begins spreading that someone is practicing forbidden magic. Then people start to go missing. With threats closing in from every side, no one can be trusted. Jemmie and Crowe will have to put aside their tumultuous history to find their loved ones, and the only thing that might save them is the very flaw that keeps Jemmie from fully harnessing her magic. For all her years of feeling useless, Jemmie may just be the most powerful kindled of all.

Devils & Thieves was one of my most anticipated novels of the year, ever since I found it while randomly scrolling through my TBR. I mean, how could I not want it? Motorcycle gangs! Magic! Mystery! It has all the makings of a great start to a fresh, unique new series.

And it definitely did not disappoint in that regard. This book was nothing like I've ever read before and now I just want more magic and ambiguous characters using it.

The main character, Jemmie, had a voice that stood out—both funny and refreshing. Her character had a lot of growth to it as well, going from a somewhat childish girl who was afraid to use her magic to someone who owned up to what she had inside her and taking things into her own hands. I adored her! Her thought process and inner monologues were great.

I thought the plot was fast paced and it had plenty of action and I loved it. Things were constantly in motion and it genuinely felt like Jemmie never got a break, the poor girl.

I enjoyed Rush's writing. It felt just right for the book, a good blend of humour and slight angst and action. She knew what she was doing and it showed. I thought it was engaging and I wouldn't have been able to stay up all night otherwise to read this in a sitting.

I don't know what to say about the romance because it definitely is a weird situation. It didn't go exactly how I'd planned, which was for the better. At the same time, there also wasn't a lot of it, which kind of surprised me? But, anyway, that was also for the better: it left more for tension and for any sort of development. 

Also, I'm being exceptionally vague on purpose because if you read this—and you should!—you'll see what I mean.

I also loved that parents were somewhat involved in this. Jemmie's mom was a great and funny and supporting character whenever she was mentioned. Her dad, who wasn't around a lot, looked like he was trying to be a part of her life as well. Her best friend's mom was also mentioned in a scene or two and I already love her. 

This brings me to said best friend and, by extension, her older brother, Crowe.

Alex! Oh gosh, she was such a good friend. While I could definitely relate to Jemmie more than a couple times, I couldn't help but love Alex more. She was so full of life, so comfortable and confident with herself. She reminded me a lot of my best friend, actually!

Crowe, on the other hand, was the complete opposite of Alex. He was a bit broody-ish, and frankly, I was ready not to like him at all. I thought he'd be one of those alpha males that thing they're entitled to everything, including women. [insert eye roll emoji here because um?] Anyway, it didn't quite seem that way and that was both a pleasant surprise and a slight annoyance for me—look, I was really set on not liking him. 

But Crowe surprised me! I wouldn't call him a soft love interest by any means, but he did have his sweet moments and my stomach did get the little flutter. The tension between them is real, guys. It's ridiculous.

My one complaint was with how the magic "types" were mentioned. Most of the different types didn't have an outright explanation on what they did, no matter how brief; instead, the author indirectly told you by letting you know what the character did. While I do believe that was the better way to go, after a time, whenever a magic type was mentioned, I sort of forgot what that ability did. And the types were mentioned a lot! Along with what Jemmie can do—see and smell the magic with colours and scents—it sort of made it more confusing. If there was a guide at the end of the book or something, it would definitely make things easier.

The last quarter of the book felt a little rushed to me. The entire book itself was fast paced, yes, but the last few chapters just seemed like they wanted everything to be over quickly. I wasn't really getting the sense of urgency a reader should feel at the climax of the story, so the ending fell a little flat for me.

Overall, this was a great start to a new urban fantasy series. Full of magic and magic motorcycle gangs, a great main character with a brooding love interest—it's definitely something to add to your TBR! 3.5 stars!

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{ about the author }

Jennifer Rush lives in a little town on the shoreline of Lake Michigan with her husband and two children. She grew up wanting to be an Egyptologist, but realized she hated the desert and declared herself a writer instead. She won her first writing award in the fourth grade (a Mickey Mouse pencil was the prize) and has been crafting stories ever since. In her free time, she likes to read, Photoshop, and consume large amounts of caffeine.

Her Altered Saga includes: Altered, Erased, Reborn, and three novellas—Forged, Betrayed, and Played.

Her next YA series will release in early 2017 with RISING THREE. [Now titled Devils & Thieves]

Her debut middle-grade, BOT WARS, released March 2013 from Dial Books for Young Readers. The Bot Wars series is written under the pen name J. V. Kade and can be found HERE.

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All hail the Fire Queen.

Against all odds, Ruby has defeated the villainous Frost King and melted his throne of ice. But the bloodthirsty Minax that was trapped inside is now haunting her kingdom and everyone she loves. The answers to its demise may lie to the south in Sudesia, the land of the Firebloods, and a country that holds the secrets to Ruby’s powers and past…

Despite warnings from her beloved Arcus, Ruby accompanies a roguish Fireblood named Kai to Sudesia, where she must master her control of fire in a series of trials to gain the trust of the suspicious Fire Queen. Only then can she hope to access the knowledge that could defeat the rampaging Minax—which grows closer every moment. But as sparks fly in her moments alone with Kai, Ruby no longer knows whom to trust. The fates of two kingdoms are now in her hands.

I had very confusing feelings about Frostblood and I have semi-confusing feelings about Fireblood. While I did enjoy it, Fireblood also wasn’t anything “new”. If anything, it was more or less what happened in Frostblood for the first half, only in a different place and with different people.

I don’t want to sound cynical about it—really! But… the first half of the book or so, it’s Ruby finally in Fireblood territory, learning to be a Fireblood master—training for the trials that will deem her so.

But with the new territory comes new faces so that was a definite reprieve! We’re introduced to another fellow Fireblood, Kai, who was an adorable little flirt! I really enjoyed his character despite the fact that it does seem like he was a potential love interest. Still, he was funny and it was great to see another Fireblood with Ruby.

There was also the queen! She takes a bit of warming up to but I found her a nice addition to the book! Her husband was pretty intriguing too, though we don’t see too much of him. (I know I’m being very vague here but this is a sequel and I don’t want to risk anything.)

Okay, so, quickly about the romance: it’s really not a love triangle. You’ll see what I mean. That’s all I’ll say about this!

I missed my darling Arcus! He’s there in the beginning but after Ruby leaves for Sudesia, there’s such a big absence! He was super adorable with Ruby in the few chapters he is in and it was just so darn adorable.

The end of the novel was something I definitely didn’t expect. It didn’t really blow me away, but it did take me by surprise and definitely in need of Nightblood!

Overall, it was a pretty good sequel. Even though it was nothing new for me, the writing and the characters really make this series fun for me! 4 stars.

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{ about the author }

Elly Blake is the NYT bestselling author of FROSTBLOOD. After earning a BA in English literature, she held a series of seemingly random jobs, including project manager, customs clerk, graphic designer, reporter for a local business magazine, and (currently) library assistant. She lives in Southwestern Ontario with her husband, kids and a Siberian Husky mix who definitely shows Frostblood tendencies. 

Her work is represented by Suzie Townsend of New Leaf Literary & Media.

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