Review: The Reburialists by J.C. Nelson

The Reburialists by J.C. Nelson

Burying the dead is easy. Keeping them down is difficult.

At the Bureau of Special Investigations, agents encounter all sorts of paranormal evils. So for Agent Brynner Carson, driving a stake through a rampaging three-week-old corpse is par for the course. Except this cadaver is different. It’s talking—and it has a message about his father, Heinrich.

The reanimated stiff delivers an ultimatum written in bloody hieroglyphics, and BSI Senior Analyst Grace Roberts is called in to translate. It seems that Heinrich Carson stole the heart of Ra-Ame, the long-dead god of the Re-Animus. She wants it back. The only problem is Heinrich took the secret of its location to his grave.

With the arrival of Ra-Ame looming and her undead army wreaking havoc, Brynner and Grace must race to find the key to stopping her. It’s a race they can’t afford to lose, but then again, it’s just another day on the job . . .

I have rather mixed feelings about this one. On one hand, the characters and their dynamics were top notch, and the plotline is very well paced and had the perfect amount of stakes. But unfortunately to be blunt, the world didn't make a lick of sense, which left me more than a little frustrated throughout the entire read. I realize part of the book is supposed to have to do with different beliefs as to why the dead didn't stay dead, but nothing was really explained. We're just thrown into things without any knowledge or understanding at all. Even towards the end as more explanations came, I still frankly was confused. Perhaps by that point I had just given up trying to make sense of it and was just going with the flow. It's a shame because there's so much potential here, but I needed more explanation to really get sucked into the series. It was almost like everyone just accepted that the reanimates were there, and that was that. No one really tried to get to the route of the problem, or try and find ways to get rid of them once and for all. Just rang a bit false to me. I realize I've been a bit vague here, but even after finishing the book I still don't understand any of the mythology to explain it myself.

Now onto the good. I really enjoyed Brynner and Grace's characters. Where the world building lacked depth, their three dimensional characters made up for it. Brynner is incredibly damaged goods, and yet so strong at the same time. And of course Grace's fierce yet gun shy character was the perfect thing to help "tame" his wild ways. So I really enjoyed their progression together. It was more than a little bumpy along the way, making for a very enjoyable journey in the romance aspect. No complaints on that angle. The other good thing about THE REBURIALISTS is that despite my confusion on the world and mythology, it didn't stop the plot from progressing quickly and the stakes being very high. I was engaged and invested from the start, which when you think about it is rather impressive considering the disadvantage of the world.

I'm not sure if this is going to be a new series, or if it's a stand alone. Things ended well enough that I'd be satisfied here. But as there's potential for more, if it does continue I just hope there's more digging into the world to bring just a bit more depth.

All in all THE REBURIALISTS is an entertaining read with some world building flaws, but great characters that I enjoyed.

(Received a copy from the publisher)

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Early Review: Wish Bound by J.C. Nelson

Wish Bound by J.C. Nelson

Grimm Agency #3

From the author of Armageddon Rules, the fanciful and fun continuation of the Grimm Agency novels...

As a partner at Grimm’s magical Agency, Marissa Locks is used to working odd jobs. But when an evil queen reappears in Kingdom, life becomes too strange to handle…

Even when she’s not starting it, trouble follows Marissa everywhere. First there was the incident with the homicidal Fairy Godmother. Then there was the time she accidentally started Armageddon. But the problems that always seem to arise on Marissa’s birthday take the cake.

This year, her annual bad-luck presents include an army of invading goblins, the resurrection of two vengeful enemies from hell, and the return of the Black Queen, the evil sorceress whose reign of terror still haunts Kingdom and who happens to have claimed Marissa as her servant.

As Marissa’s friends try to save her from the Black Queen’s clutches, Marissa fights to end a bitter war that started before her birth. But her quest for peace is about to bring up some inconvenient truths about her own past—ones that might cost her the happily ever after she’s always dreamed of…

This book is going to be really hard for me to review. I enjoyed it, but there were things that stuck out to me, keeping me from fully immersing and loving the story as much as I did in book two. But on the flip side, nothing really amazing stuck out to me, so unfortunately this review will focus on the less than great things. From the start, WISH BOUND proceeds at an almost frenetic pace. While this kept me completely hooked into the story, at times it was a a bit hard to follow. There's just so much going on with the story jumping all around that I found myself having to go back and re-read paragraphs just to make sure I didn't miss anything. I enjoy a fast paced plot as much as the next gal, but it needs to flow and allow me to fully immerse in the story, which just didn't happen here.

I have a feeling this is a series ending book, based on how many loose ends were tied up. After finishing I'm not quite sure about how I feel about everything in the end. On one hand, the end result has me content, but the path taken there and the motivating reasons which had been hid previously just seemed a bit forced to me. Between Grimm's secrecy, the reveal behind everything with Marissa, and the Dark Queen's motivations, I was left scratching my head at times. I feel like there's been this huge build up over the series, and while I wouldn't say the reveals fell flat, they didn't wow me either. Perhaps I'm judging things too harshly, but after the 2nd book knocking things out of the park for me, I was just hoping for a bigger end result.

I realize this review probably makes it seem like I wasn't a fan, but I did enjoy the book, if not as much as I had hoped I would. I almost wish I had more to say on the positive side to balance out the things that bothered me, because it is a good read. The book more than kept my attention, and I didn't want to put it down once I put it up. I'm glad I read WISH BOUND, and fans of the series should enjoy it as well. Marissa and company are left in a satisfying place that makes the overall journey in this series worth it

(Received a copy from the publisher)

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     1. Free Agent
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Early Review: Armageddon Rules by J.C. Nelson

Armageddon Rules by J.C. Nelson

Grimm Agency #2

Marissa Locks, newly appointed partner of the Grimm Agency, has a reputation for making a mess of magical matters—although causing Armageddon is a new low, even for her…

Marissa is due for a little happily ever after. After all, she did kill the evil Fairy Godmother, end a war, and snag a sweet promotion within the Fairy Godfather's magical-problem-solving Agency. But between maintaining a relationship with someone whose amorous advances can cause third-degree burns, dealing with a killer-poodle infestation, and helping her best friend, Princess Ari, learn to wield spells more powerful than curing a hangover, she’s not getting as much peace and quiet as she hoped.

When an enemy from her past appears to exact a terrible revenge, Marissa’s life goes from hectic to hell on earth. With Grimm inexplicably gone and Ari trapped by a sleeping spell, Marissa decides to fight fire with hellfire—and accidentally begins a countdown to the apocalypse.

With the end of days extremely nigh, Marissa will have to master royal politics, demonic law, and biblical plagues in a hurry—because even the end of the world can’t keep the Agency from opening for business…

This was such a fun book! I love Marissa's character. She's so quirky and sassy, plus has a backbone of steel to boot. And trust me, she needed it with everything that was thrown at her in this book. Considering what happened to her in the last book, it's impressive that the bag of nasty tricks this round was worse. But she handled everything in her usual quirky way. And let me just say, how she managed the apocalypse curses? Priceless. She kept me entertained throughout the entire book. If you are a fan of Darynda Jones' Charley Davidson, you'll love Marissa as well. And of course the rest of the cast is pretty fantastic as well. From Her best friend Princess Ari, to her dragon cursed boyfriend, and even the Fairy Godfather himself, Grimm, each one added another interesting layer to the series.

This series is perfect blend of modern fantasy, humor, fantastic character, and a killer plot. I loved every minute of this book and I can't recommend it any higher. If you looking for something fun, yet action packed, look no further than this terrific series. It's the perfect book to kick back and enjoy the ride. I'll be counting down the days until the next book releases.

(Received a copy from the publisher)

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     1. Free Agent

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Early Review: Free Agent by J.C. Nelson

Free Agent by J.C. Nelson

Grimm Agency #1

When it comes to crafting happily-ever-afters, the Agency is the best in the land of Kingdom. The Fairy Godfather Grimm can solve any problem—from eliminating imps to finding prince charming—as long as you can pay the price…

Working for Grimm isn’t Marissa Locks’s dream job. But when your parents trade you to a Fairy Godfather for a miracle, you don’t have many career options. To pay off her parents’ debt and earn her freedom, Marissa must do whatever Grimm asks, no matter what fairy-tale fiasco she’s called on to deal with.

Setting up a second-rate princess with a first-class prince is just another day at the office. But when the matchmaking goes wrong, Marissa and Grimm find themselves in a bigger magical muddle than ever before. Not only has the prince gone missing, but the Fae are gearing up to attack Kingdom, and a new Fairy Godmother is sniffing around Grimm’s turf, threatening Marissa with the one thing she can’t resist: her heart’s wishes.

Now Marissa will have to take on Fairies, Fae, dragons, and princesses to save the realm—or give up any hope of ever getting her happy ending…

There are two things that really drive a really good read for me for me, the characters and the romance. While the latter was only a small part of this book, I still connected. That being said, Marissa stole the show for me. I simply adored her character. She's so tough yet vulnerable at the same time. She's quirky and stands up for what she believes in no matter the odds it seems. At first it seems like life has dealt her a raw deal, but as time went on, I got the feeling there was a lot more going on than first met the eye. I'm looking forward to seeing more from Marissa in future.

I'll be honest that books that lie on the more fantasy side of Urban Fantasy can be rather hit or miss for me. I just find all the complicated rules can get a bit overwhelming. So while the blurb of this one intrigued me enough to pick it up, I did so with a bit of trepidation. I'm happy to say that FREE AGENT landed on the "hit" side. Sure there was a bit of a learning curve to the world and the Kingdom sections were a bit confusing, but overall this was a pretty interesting read. The plot moved quickly and the pacing was steady keeping me well entertained, and the characters, specifically Marissa were fantastic. So, if you are looking for a good read you'll want to check out FREE AGENT.


(Received a copy from the publisher)

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