Alexandra Ivy

The Murder Club by Alexandra Ivy
Pike Wisconsin series #5. Romantic suspense. Can be read as a stand-alone.
Over the years, Pike, Wisconsin has become famous for its murders and serial killers. Bailey Evans has enjoyed helping solve cold cases online. She’s good at the detail, and being a nurse, has a vast knowledge of medical issues. But when she’s invited to a Murder Club, it’s a bit too much and she declines. One of the elderly women at the nursing home where Bailey works, dies and Bailey is surprised that she is included in the inheritance. The family protests and threatens and Bailey ends up on an unpaid leave. Another elderly person in town dies and Bailey is getting threats from someone. Dom Lucier is in town and having met Bailey at a wedding, jumps in to protect Bailey from whatever threat exists. Now they have to discover who this newest killer is before Bailey is the next victim.

You’d think having a relative as the sheriff in town would make a person safe. Not in Pike. Twists and clues make this adventure gripping and thrilling. You know Dom and Eric will try to keep Bailey safe, but a determined threat will find a way.
This series is intense. You’ll want to read every one. But stay out of Pike! I’m thinking not all the killers have been revealed.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley.… (meer)

Wild Magic by Alexandra Ivy
Paranormal vampire mage romance.
At sixteen, Peri Sanguis was forced to flee Wyoming when her mother and her coven tried to kill Peri because of her wild magic. Now the entire coven is dead and Peri must return to the ranch to find answers of who could have killed the twelve women. Cabel Vampire leader Valen won’t let Peri investigate on her own. Anything so evil that could kill a coven that easily should not be faced alone.

🎧 I alternated between an ebook and an audiobook. For some reason, the best option for me was the two together for this story for the first couple of chapters. World building and character cementing.
The audiobook is narrated by Elizabeth Russell who does a great job distinguishing between Peri and Valen. One character (Stella) has an intense accent and it was quite different from the main characters. There was an impressive conversation between Stella and Peri that had to be difficult to perform but came through very cleanly and clearly. This is one of the best things about listening to an audiobook over reading. Accent variations and emotional portrayal.

Vampire Valen hasn’t had a relationship in 2000 years but he can’t resist Peri. And he will do anything for her. Including putting his own life in danger. Swooning. He doesn’t notice or care about all the other women throwing themselves at him. He has eyes only for her now.
Peri is quite independent because she’s had to be. She has made family with Maya and Skye at the bakery where she works. She’s not alone, but she does know there is something different about herself and her magic. She is drawn to Valen but doesn’t want to be like every other female panting after him. There’s more than a spark in her heart when he’s near.
There’s lots more than romance here and in fact that’s probably less than 10% of the story, but it does factor into some important moments.

My biggest impression is that this is just the beginning and that there is a lot more world building to come. That is a bit of an educated guess based on advertising. And I’m intrigued to see where it could go and how the world will expand. And how the wild magic will expand.

🎧📖 reading vs. audiobook: generally I like both equally for different reasons. I’m busy and an audiobook will fit into my schedule easier. In this case, I felt the world building and the inflection of Valen’s personality was better through reading. For me, it’s a visual experience and while I was reading and listening together, I preferred my inflections of his voice, over how some of it was done in the audio. But as I said above, the audiobook for accents was phenomenal and I would have totally missed that had I only had the ebook at the point.
Go with your preferred in this case.
I will definitely continue the series if it should turn into one.
The writing is compelling storytelling and I was hooked into to magic world immediately.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley and the publisher RB Media.… (meer)