Murder of Crows (The Twenty-Sided Sorceress Book 2)

Although the first book in Bellet's series contained issues with the plot, grammar, and overall editing issues, the main storyline and characters were intriguing enough to get me to continue to read the next book in her series. As with the previous book, I love the cover artwork which artfully portrays the female protagonist wielding her magic and sets expectations for the book. I enjoyed the tie-in to Jade's ancestry and Native American Heritage. It was clear however that a non-native was writing about the natives though and lacked the detail and finesse some other book I've read contain. The plot continues to be compelling with intriguing twists and turns. Bellet does increase the suspense to keep you reading, and I find the humor and sarcasm to be enjoyable.

Unfortunately I was highly disappointed that the explanation for the "Twenty Sided Sorceress" title is finally revealed... in the first chapter of the second book in the series. This makes it feel like book 1 is more like a pilot episode on a new sitcom that the author isn't sure will make the cut, and when it does, she's left scrambling with rushed explanations that leave gaping holes. Moreso than the first book did. There are major continuity flaws at the beginning of book 2 that are difficult to ignore. It's disappointing that book 1 introduced a new series with supporting characters that remained underdeveloped after the conclusion of book one only to whisk the main character away to a new location with one supporting character, only to introduce more underdeveloped new characters. In the end, the main character Jade goes AWOL doing everything she should not do, trusting those she should not trust, and in the process endangering and hurting those she cares about. I understand the need of the author to expose her to her mistakes in order for her to grow, develop, and mature as a character, but it's still painful to read. The ending has closure for this story, but is not as propelling into the next book as the first book was.

Again this is a short read, whereas Iike a longer book to fully flush out worlds and characters.

Similar issues as the first:
1) all other characters but the main feel flat and one dimensional
2) bad language used as an indicator of "bad a$$Ness" but feels more like bluster
3) "love interest" is wah-wah ....almost nonexistent
4) main character spends whole book hung up and bitter which causes poor decisions
5) not a 're-readable' book in my estimation

I am undecided if I care about the next book.

This series is fantastic and I hope it continues. I devour anything worth reading that involves magic and mystery, so the premiss was right up my alley, but there was even more to love about this book. The main character, Jade is totally relatable, even as a powerful supernatural being she feels perfectly flawed, and in a way, very human. The sci-fy references and sarcastic humor brought a chuckle or two and the "battles" in between were vivid, and easily imagined. One thing I would like to see in the next book is greater development between the main character and Alek, the connection is there but the story needs to delve deeper. I look forward to reading more, to discovering Jades history, and enjoying her next magical adventure.

I purchased this after reading the first. It was good. Bellet creates characters with depth and flaws, even the secondary characters. With fine pacing and plot, it was worth the $3 for the digital version, even though it's not very long.
Jade returns to her home and family at the request of her father - the same man who tossed her out at 14. I don't want to spoil it, but we learn the answers to questions about Jade's past, but those questions are replaced by others - and we still don't know much about her ex-boyfriend, the evil sorcerer. I enjoyed the twist on the Native American folklore and the further exploration of Jade's magic. Her interactions with Alek felt plausible, and I'm interested to see where they go and where Jade's story goes.

I enjoyed having an author who concentrated on building a believable set of characters and an interesting world without tossing in unnecessary sex scenes every ten pages. This is a book I would not mind recommending to my nieces and nephews, the grandchildren are too young yet!

Enjoy the constant problems that she comes up against and how she gets out of them. Her friends help a lot and all have their input as well. reading and watching how she learns and grows with learning her powers as well.