Dirty Magic by Jaye Wells

JWells--Dirty Magic

JWells--Dirty MagicAs many of you probably know by now, I’ve been in a huge book slump. It lasted for all of 2013.  Well, I think I am finally out of it.  Part of that may very well be due to Dirty Magic by Jaye Wells. I became a Jaye Wells fan when I read her Sabina Kane series; I love her writing style and have been eagerly awaiting new works by Ms. Wells.  The wait is finally over with Dirty Magic, the first novel in her new Propsero’s War series.

The last thing patrol cop Kate Prospero expected to find on her nightly rounds was a werewolf covered in the blood of his latest victim. But then, she also didn’t expect that shooting him would land her in the crosshairs of a Magic Enforcement Agency task force, who wants to know why she killed their lead snitch.

The more Prospero learns about the dangerous new potion the MEA is investigating, the more she’s convinced that earning a spot on their task force is the career break she’s been wanting. But getting the assignment proves much easier than solving the case. Especially once the investigation reveals their lead suspect is the man she walked away from ten years earlier—on the same day she swore she’d never use dirty magic again.

Kate Prospero’s about to learn the hard way that crossing a wizard will always get you burned, and that when it comes to magic, you should be never say never.

I completely love this new world she’s created. Ms. Wells proves once again that her writing keeps getting better and better with each new book she writes.  The world is dark and gritty, both of which I truly love in my UF series’s.  Ms. Wells’s world feels, to me at least, very similar to Stacia Kane’s Downside Ghosts series. It’s probably because both have a heavy focus on drug usage and the effects of drugs on abusers. Don’t get me wrong, Dirty Magic is very different, despite the seemingly similar backdrops – urban setting, focus on “drugs”, I guess the tones (dark, grittiness) are similar in each series.  To me, these similarities are why I love this new UF series that Ms. Wells is creating.  If you like Kane’s Downside Ghosts series, you should pick up Dirty Magic.

Dirty Magic differs because the “drug” is actually magic, similar to what you would think of as “black magic”. Dirty magic is addictive to its users and they become dependent on this kind of magic, often committing crimes to get their next fix. You have to “cook” dirty magic as well. For me, I prefer Wells’s series simply because the heroine isn’t whiny and “poor pitiful me, my childhood sucked and while I know I shouldn’t do drugs, I can’t stop, despite hurting myself and everyone I care about”.  Even though Dirty Magic  is just the first in the series, I don’t get the impression Wells will take the heroine to that kind of level.

I felt Dirty Magic was pretty well paced, in that I kept wanting to read more and more and didn’t feel bored.  That said, Dirty Magic is the first in a new UF series, so that does mean there is quite a bit of worldbuilding to be completed. Therefore, there are some slower sections where you’re getting information about this world.  Thus far, the world seems to be “open” in that the supes (witches/warlocks/wizards) are known to humans.  I feel that Ms. Wells did an excellent job of weaving information into the plot and ensuring that there wasn’t a lot of info dumping wherein the action would stall and a reader would get bored.

Overall, I really enjoyed Dirty Magic and cannot wait to see what comes next for Prospero. Will there possibly be a love interest woven in or will it remain some friendly flirtation/sexual tension?  If you’re looking for a new, fresh UF, look no further than Dirty Magicthough I have a feeling the best for this new series is yet to come…and I cannot wait.

Read Order:
Dirty Magic
Cursed Moon (Aug 12, 2014)

About Nicole 146 Articles
Attorney by day, Publicist for Barclay Publicity and reviewer/LE (assistant) editor by night. I'm a huge book nerd and love to read. I have 2 dogs, both Labrador retriever mixed breeds, who are very rotten and think they run the house. Let's not lie, they totally do, I just can't them know it ha ha! My usual genre is romance or urban fantasy. I love all things having to do with paranormal, with the occasional good contemp/BDSM/erotica thrown in to spice it all up.