I'm a sucker for Kindle freebies lately. And since this was a Kindle freebie, in one of my favored genres, with an author who knew to have a great cover for her book, I decided to give it a shot.I know a bit about RPGs, board games that aren't Monopoly, and comic books, but I admit that in the grand scheme of things they aren't my favorite. Jade has a comic and game store in a small town, which also happens to be an attractive area for paranormal beings. Somehow, (perhaps through a surfeit of nerds in the area?) she makes a living, even though the local stores in my area in Idaho (and in a larger city) barely coast by. Being that this is urban fantasy, I wasn't too at odds with it, but when some of the minor inconsistencies that irk me started adding up, I began to question why I was reading this.
The Plot (As Seen on Goodreads):
'Gamer. Nerd. Sorceress.
'Jade Crow lives a quiet life running her comic book and game store in Wylde, Idaho. After twenty-five years fleeing from a powerful sorcerer who wants to eat her heart and take her powers, quiet suits her just fine. Surrounded by friends who are even less human than she is, Jade figures she’s finally safe.
'As long as she doesn’t use her magic.
'When dark powers threaten her friends’ lives, a sexy shape-shifter enforcer shows up. He’s the shifter world’s judge, jury, and executioner rolled into one, and he thinks Jade is to blame. To clear her name, save her friends, and stop the villain, she’ll have to use her wits… and her sorceress powers.
'Except Jade knows that as soon as she does, a far deadlier nemesis awaits.
'Justice Calling is the first book in The Twenty-Sided Sorceress urban fantasy series. Readers who enjoyed The Dresden Files or The Iron Druid Chronicles will likely enjoy this series.'
One thing I enjoyed about this book was it did have some humorous moments, but there was a quote I found tasteless (not to mention other things):
He wears his hair in a long Mohawk and has enough piercings in his face that I joke I could peel his skin and use it to strain pasta.~Justice Calling by Anne Bellet, 3% Kindle Edition (of the first three books)
At one point while reading this book, I'd just had enough. Because I like to finish all the books I start, though, I checked how many pages were left. Given I was more than halfway through, I decided to finish, even though I connected to zero of the characters and felt like most of the book was a rehash of urban fantasy things I'd seen before. Don't get me wrong- I can endure/adore a lot of vampire, werewolf, and evil magician rehashes, but the author has to make them their own. I'm not sure if it was the short length of the book or the way the author went about it, but I found myself not giving a crumbly cookie about what happened in Justice Calling or how it ended.
Justice Calling is urban fantasy that might appeal better to those who are deeper into the game side of nerd than I am. For me, it just didn't cut it. I'm tempted to read the next book in the series just to see if there's any improvement for me, but only because I got the first three books as freebies.
Rating: 2 of 5 Stars for an urban fantasy I just didn't care for.
Age Advisory: Ages 16+ for the occasional swear (including f-bombs), violence, and lines I wish I hadn't read.
Page Count: 119 pages
