Mia Marshall

full review at BookDrug

These books are not great literature, but I’m still a fan of the series.

I read and reviewed the first book in the series, Broken Elements, a little while ago and I believe my review was along the lines of it being an enjoyable piece of fiction for its genre.

My feelings on it haven’t changed. It’s not anything groundbreaking, and Marshall hasn’t taken it into that territory with book two. Instead, she’s built on what she created in book one and expanded it, adding more depth and complexity to a fully realised world.

The prose is still fairly basic, but it’s never bad writing, which is better than a lot of works in this genre. Being written in first person means it can be engaging and appealing without being difficult or pretentious, and I appreciate that.… (meer)

check Books Are My Drug for more reviews.

My review copy was a free eARC provided by Red Queen Press through Netgalley.

I told you you’d get something different after the last two, didn’t I? Here it is. Broken Elements is a short-but-fun Urban Fantasy. I found it entertaining but forgettable.

There’s nothing really that special about Broken Elements – it follows a lot of the same trails that have been marked out by other writers. Even the writing is familiar. I’m not sure if it’s just that this is Marshall’s first novel, but she doesn’t really have a defined style that I can latch on to – it just reads like most Urban Fantasy novels that are already out there. You know, first person, sarcastic and witty, lots of one-liners and self-deprecation. Perhaps it’s a little better-written than most – there are no passages that make me cringe, and some that actually made me laugh.

I liked the concept – that’s fairly new in Urban Fantasy, as far as I know – and I liked the characterisation. One thing I really appreciated is that this avoided the usual technique of making the obsessive, needy man the love interest or ‘secretly a good guy’. No, he was a villain, and a stalker, and his actions were marked as solely his fault, not the fault of the woman who he was fixated on. This is rare in the genre. Another thing I appreciated was the way the MC has friendships with other women who are different to but just as capable as her. This is rare in most fiction. The MC isn’t the *one single woman* who is acceptable as a female.

The actual plot is perhaps a little obvious, but there’s nothing really wrong with that. Sometimes you just want a quick, mostly predictable read after a long day. If you;’e looking for great literature that will last the ages, that isn’t this book. But if you’re wanting something to read on the train or in the bath, you could do a lot, lot worse. It’s a fun book.

Book 2 in the Elements series will be released in April 2013, and I’ll probably pick it up.… (meer)

full review at BookDrug

These books are not great literature, but I’m still a fan of the series.

I read and reviewed the first book in the series, Broken Elements, a little while ago and I believe my review was along the lines of it being an enjoyable piece of fiction for its genre.

My feelings on it haven’t changed. It’s not anything groundbreaking, and Marshall hasn’t taken it into that territory with book two. Instead, she’s built on what she created in book one and expanded it, adding more depth and complexity to a fully realised world.

The prose is still fairly basic, but it’s never bad writing, which is better than a lot of works in this genre. Being written in first person means it can be engaging and appealing without being difficult or pretentious, and I appreciate that.… (meer)

A brilliantly written and intriguing paranormal mystery. With no over tone of a romantic subplot. Which worked very well. I loved the use of magic, the elemental powers were fascinating, and the murder mystery was gripping. I was completely surprised when I discovered who was responsible, never even saw it coming.

The story starts with a lone woman sat on her porch, Aidan Brook has been in hiding for ten years and dragged back into a world she had run from when her former best friend turns up asking for her help. I didn't particularly like Aidan much as a main character, she came of very distant and rather cold. As the story progresses into the murder mystery, we learn why she ran away and why she is the way she is. As she gets back into the swing of things with her former friends, the character develops well throughout as the plot grows. She's smart, she's got a brain in her head and thinks before she acts.

Even though I didn't particularly like her all that much, the novel was so well written I was able to over look that and thoroughly enjoy it.

The writing is clear and very visual, and there's well placed touches of humour as well as scary stuff and magical world building throughout. Though on the world building there's a huge info dump right at the start on how all the elementals came to be and where the power comes from which I could have done without right off the bat.

All in all, a very good read with some great twists in the plot that propel the story forwards at a fast and exciting pace. I look forward to more from this author.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to view this title.
… (meer)