Review: ‘A Drop of Magic’ by L.R. Braden
A Drop of Magic
by L.R. BradenSeries: The Magicsmith #1
Published by Bell Bridge Books on July 31, 2019
SubGenres: Urban Fantasy
Format: AudioBook, eBook
Pages: 236
Narrator: Heather Costa
Length: 8 Hours And 3 Minutes
Source: Everand, Purchased
Audience: 18+/Adult
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2020 First Horizon Award Winner for Science Fiction/Fantasy Category
The war isn’t over . . .
With the world clinging to a fragile peace forced on the Fae by humanity after the Faerie Wars, metalsmith Alex Blackwood is plunged into the world of the half-fae who traffick in illegal magical artifacts. Her best friend’s murder and his cryptic last message place her in the crosshairs of a scheme to reignite the decade-old war between humans and fae.
Worse, violent attacks against her and the arrival of a fae knight on a mission force Alex to face a devastating revelation of who and what she is. To catch a killer, retrieve a dangerous artifact, and stop a war, Alex will have to accept that she’s an unregistered fae “halfer” with a unique magical talent—a talent that would change everything she believes about her past, her art, and her future.
Her world is crumbling around her, and Alex will have to decide who to trust if she and the world are going to survive.
A Drop of Magic is the first book in L.R. Braden’s The Magicsmith series. It was my first time reading a book by this author, and I definitely plan to continue with this series and explore other books by L.R. Braden. I loved the worldbuilding in the first book, and I’m eagerly looking forward to delving deeper into the series.
The book is told solely by the protagonist, Alex Blackwood, who ends up being an interesting and unique character in an urban fantasy world. She’s not a fighter, like usual fantasy characters are set up to be, but she’s a metalsmith. When her best friend ends up dead, she’s determined more than ever to find out who unalived him and why everyone thinks she has an artifact that he supposedly gave her. She finds herself immersed in the high-fae world, and not only that, but she may be a half-fae herself.
There were a lot of twists and turns in this book that left me with more questions after I finished reading it, but I’m invested and look forward to reading the next book. I loved the twist in the end with a certain cat that Alex calls ‘Cat’ that she adopted into her home. The only issue I had was keeping up with all the characters being introduced, and it may be because I listened to the book instead of reading it.
I’m not entirely certain, but it seems like there might be a romantic subplot involving one or more possible love interests, but I’m not sure since it was a back burner compared to what was happening to Alex. Maybe it will be touched more in the next book.
Overall, a good start to the series, and I give it 3.5 stars.
Would I recommend this book? Yes. If you enjoy reading Urban Fantasy, which has a mixture of Magic, Fae, shifters, etc., then check out this book.
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About L.R. Braden
L.R. Braden is the bestselling, multi-award-winning author of the Magicsmith and Rifter urban fantasy series, as well as several works of shorter fiction.
When not writing, she spends her time reading in a multitude of genres (speculative fiction is her favorite), playing games with her family, enjoying Colorado’s great outdoors, experimenting in the kitchen, and weaving metal into intricate chain mail jewelry that she sells in her Etsy shop, Wimsi Design.
Connect with her online at https://www.lrbraden.com
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