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Smoke and Mirrors (Blackhollow Academy #1) by Jess Haines


Smoke and Mirrors (Blackhollow Academy #1)

by Jess Haines

Introduction

Smoke and Mirrors was gifted to me by the author in exchange for an honest and fair review. This review was done for Reader's Hollow.

Genre /Intended audience

Urban fantasy / adults

Narration

Third person past tense with shifting POVs

Characters

Kimberly Wells - a sorcerer, student at Blackhollow Academy for mages

Heather Wells - human, Kimberly’s mom

Professor Eleanor Reed - a professor at Blackhollow Academy

Cormac Hunter - a powerful “Other” recommended to Kimberly by Professor Reed; owner of the Wild Hunt, an eclectic rare items store

Don - human, Kimberly’s boss, owner of Allegretto’s Café

Xander - a mage student, friend of Kimberly

Rieva - fae owner of the Black Star Café

Viper - a wyvern who takes an interest in Kimberly

Setting

Present day alternate version of our world, where paranormal Others recently revealed themselves

Theme

Trust

Plot

Twenty-one year old Kimberly Wells is nearing graduation from the prestigious Blackhollow Academy, but to graduate she must find a familiar. Unable to conjure one like the other students, Kimberly must find an earthbound supernatural creature who’ll agree to be bound to her. Her professor suggests a dragon. Kimberly sets out to do just that, though she thinks it’s crazy. Enter Cormac Hunter. Sexy and mysterious, he keeps his nature hidden from Kimberly even as he promises to help her find what she needs.

About the Author

Jess Haines is the author of the H & W Investigation series . Smoke and Mirrors is the first in a new series set in the same world. Find out more about the author on Goodreads or the author’s website.

My Opinion

My reviewer is posted here.

Conclusion

Despite those flaws, there are some very interesting elements to Smoke and Mirrors. Romance fans, especially, will probably enjoy it and urban fantasy fans might find it an interesting set up for an on-going series. I give it a solid three stars (3.5 X 5 on the Reader’s Hollow scale).

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