Industrial Magic

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A very contemporary supernatural thriller - Rated
Paige Winterbourne is ousted as leader of the American Coven of Witches but desperate to protect those she loves she is thrown into a maelstrom of sorcerers, necromancers, druid gods and vampires. This makes for an appetising mixture of horror, sensual thriller and comedy. Well written with a very modern heroine. This book (& the series) will appeal to all those fans of Poppy Z.Brite/Charlaine Harris/Wayne Sharrocks & Storm Constantine...

Fast, Freaky and Fun: much better than Dimestore - Rated
After reading Dimestore Magic, the book which immediately precedes this one in Kelley Armstrong's series, I was in two minds about whether I wanted to bother reading Industrial Magic at all. I really enjoyed the mix of adult adventure and supernatural skullduggery in Bitten and Stolen, and was disappointed that DSM was so very mundane by comparison. So I picked up IM, expecting to be disappointed again...

Couldn't have been more wrong! The action switches back to adults, away from teenage angst, and there's a meaty plot to power the characters along. The sorcery ramps up and the cast of characters and supporting mythology all mesh together to create a satisfying quick-quick turn-the-pages-faster feel. It's almost as if Kelley Armstrong is making up for the domesticity of the previous installment by throwing everything at this one: you start off with witches and sorcerers but very soon you have international cabals, necromancers, the werewolf pack (yay!), vampires and probably a demon or two - and without a hint of cliché. Kelley Armstrong has the knack of incorporating the supernatural into the 21st century without it seeming absurd, so you can just sit back and enjoy the ride.

My only criticism of this novel is that maybe there are *too many* protagonists in the final chapters. Some of them aren't well established enough to stand out in the reader's mind so you get a bit of a mishmash of characters as the plot gallops to its climax. It's a little bit confusing - but to be honest I'd rather there was too much action than not enough!

So now I'm all fired up for the next one: Haunted. Great.

If you're thinking of buying this then it is possible to start here, although you'll need to bear with it a bit in the first couple of chapters and may struggle with some of the already established characters and their universe. I can't recommend starting with DSM (it really isn't `horror' or event very `supernatural adventure'), but try Bitten and the Stolen if you want to get into the swing of things. They introduce the world of Industrial Magic and many of the players, so then you could safely skip DSM and get to the good one!

Industrial Magic - Rated
In the latest instalment of the Women of the Otherworld series we see the return again of Paige Winterbourne. Paige is now living with Lucas and they are trying to keep Benicio Cortez at a safe distance, which proves difficult as benicio wants Lucas, despite being not only the youngest but, also illegitimate as heir of Cortez Cabal.

Benicio thinks that asking for Lucas & Paiges help in an investigation involving a young witch, who also happens to be the daughter of an employee of Cortez Cabal, would be a good way to approach him. Paige & Lucas really want to say no but, find out the assault is relating to other assassinations of offspring's of Cortez Cabals employees. They noon realise they really cannot say no.

We also see again Jeremy, Elena and Clay albeit briefly and also Cassandra and Aaron the vampires we saw in Stolen. We also see a new character in Jamie who not only is a TV personality but, also a necromancer who really livens things up.

I really enjoyed this one even more so than Dime Store Magic, and can't wait to read Haunted which tells the story of Eve, Paiges deceased mother.

Supernatural Thriller - Rated
Supernatural novels may be a dime a dozen nowadays, but Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series stands out as being a lot more worthy than that. Very contemporary, it combines humour and thrills with the otherworld, where danger is abundant, and powers are required in order to survive.

What also makes this series a winner is its rotation of main characters. "Bitten" and "Stolen" were told through the eyes of Elena Michaels, our werewolf narrator. But Paige Winterbourne, a witch and former coven leader, hosts "Dime Store Magic" and "Industrial Magic".

However, Paige's partner is Lucas Cortez, a sorcerer and sometimes-unwanted member of the Cortez Cabal. Witches and sorcerers normally don't get along, but Paige joins the investigation into a ..........

To get to the bottom of it, though, Paige needs help. With werewolf Elena Michaels to ........, Savannah, Paige then enlists the help of necromancer Jaime Vegas, a ..........

Disconnecting vampire Cassandra DuCharme also ...... And then there's Savannah and her binding spells, not to mention a male vampire who thrives on stereotypes. The kills are gory, the vampire stereotypes are made fun of, and there's less sex than you'd expect from this genre. The writing is witty, and the characters are believable. Sure, our heroines Elena, Paige and the upcoming Eve Levine have similar personalities, but Cassandra and Jaime seem more distinctive. The lovey-dovey stuff is a bit cloying, but there are no explicit sex scenes. Explanations are long, but unfortunately it's still easy to get confused about supernatural murder motives and the spirit world.

But if you're looking for a supernatural series with more bite and more clothing than other books, then you've come to the right place.

I want to read the next books in the series NOW !! - Rated
"Industrial magic" is the fourth book in Kelley Armstrong's "Women of the Otherworld" series, and you are highly likely to enjoy it a lot, specially if you read the others before. "Bitten", "Stolen" and "Dime store magic" introduce you to a world where magic and the supernatural are just part of everyday life. "Industrial magic" just takes you further into it...

As you know, in "Dime store magic" Paige, a witch, had to fight for the custody of a young girl named Savannah. In order to do that she had to face a powerful Cabal, which is a mafia-like organization of sorcerers. Should I tell that witches and sorcerers aren't exactly on good terms?. And that Paige got to meet her new boyfriend Lucas, a sorcerer/lawyer, in the process of gaining Savannah's custody?.

In this book we get to see Paige and Lucas living together, and trying to keep Lucas's father, powerful Cabal leader Benicio Cortez, at a distance. The problem is that Benicio wants Lucas to assume the place of heir to the Cortez Cabal, despite being his youngest son, illegitimate, and the proud owner of quixotic tendencies that take him to endorse causes against the Cabal. Benicio loves his son, so he decides that asking for Lucas and Paige's help in an investigation involving the assault on a young witch (daughter of a Cortez Cabal employee) is a good way to approach him.

Clearly, both are very tempted to say no to Benicio's offer, but soon enough they realise that the assault is related to quite a few assassinations of other teenagers that belong to Cabal's families, and possibly to a supernatural killer. After that, can Paige and Lucas really say no?.

In "Industrial magic" we get to meet again our favourite werewolves (Elena, Clay and Jeremy), some of the vampires we already met (Cassandra and Aaron) and a few others, more half- demons and shamans, and even a necromancer. Also, we learn a lot more about the different Cabals and their inner struggles, about Lucas' dysfunctional family and Paige's attempts to come to terms with it. Of course, that isn't easy for her: how would you feel if your prospective brother-in-law had tried to kill you?.

So far, the first two books in the "Women of the Otherworld" series were centered on the werewolf Pack (through Clay and Elena's story), and the other two were centered on witches and sorcerers (through Lucas and Paige's story). I'm eager to read more from all of them, so Kelley Armstrong please write the other books in the series quickly :)

If you want to know more about the books I already mentioned, future release dates, or prequels to the novels in the series (available for free in Armstrong's website), visit www.kelleyarmstrong.com and you won't be disappointed.

On the whole, I believe this book is really great, and quite original. I heartily recommend it to you, if you like to mix the supernatural/ horror theme with a little bit of romance and a whodunit.

Belen Alcat