I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
"Purpose"
by
Ilona Andrews
magical realism in a PDF edition that was published by the author and has 11 pages.
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Must Love Hellhounds, Dark and Stormy Knights, Angels of Darkness, Hexed, Fate's Edge, Hex Appeal, An Apple for the Creature, "Magic Gifts", Gunmetal Magic, Innkeeper Chronicles, Steel's Edge, Magic Bites, Magic Burns, Magic Strikes, Magic Bleeds, Magic Slays, Magic Rises, Magic Bleeds, Burn For Me, Night Shift, Magic Shifts, Magic Binds, White Hot, Wildfire, Iron and Magic, Magic Triumphs, "Gerard Demille and Helen Meet", "Diamond Fire", "Sweep with Me", Clean Sweep, Sweep in Peace, "A Mere Formality", Blood Heir, "The King of Fire", Sapphire Flames, "A Misunderstanding", Emerald Blaze, "The Cool Aunt", One Fell Sweep, Sweep of the Blade, "Silent Blade", Fated Blades, On the Edge, Bayou Moon, "George and Jack in School", Sweep of the Heart , Magic Tides, Small Magics, "The Wilson Building", "Conlan’s Birthday Text", "Dabwaha", "Don't Fight with Fate", “A Bit More of Roman”, “Getting Distracted”, "Sgt Munoz Had to Go", Ruby Fever, "Regina", Magic Tides, "The King of Fire", Magic Claims, "Sandra", "No Heroes", "A Mere Formality", "I Will Explain Everything"
A free short story, 2.6 in The Wilmington Years magical realism fantasy series (that continues on from the Kate Daniels series) revolving around Kate Daniels and Curran Lennart. The focus is on those multitude of towers that make up the Fort in the Woods. If you’re interested, there is a chronological listing of the Kate Daniels books on my website.
My Take
The story is written in first person protagonist point-of-view from Kate’s perspective, so everything we see and experience comes from Kate, as Kate and company continue to take stock of the fort they won back in Magic Claims, 2.
Theme-wise, it’s a quick peek-in at Narra and how she’s adjusting to being awake in this millennium. Andrews used an unexpected tack to introduce us to various characters as she has Kate take us on a tour of various characters and why they’re performing.
There’s not much character-wise, and the action is fairly minor with a moderate pace, even though it is the action that is the most fun of this short story.
The Story
It’s Luther’s idea of Christmas, this third visit of his to the woods. Eighty-three feet. All those towers. Towers that need to be cleared.
And it’s Tuesday. Tower Day.
The Characters
Fort in the Woods, or Fortwood, had been . . .
. . . the Pale Queen’s home base and now it belongs to Kate Daniels-Lennart, who is back to being the “Consort”, and Curran Lennart, who is back to being the “Beast Lord”. Grendel is Kate’s mutant attack poodle.
Shapeshifters from the Wilmington Pack include Andre and Owen, a werebison, who has decided he’ll be shepherd to the Ager animals, which include Mona, one of the mastodons, who have proved to produce a wool of a high quality.
Narra is one of the Ager hunters, a woman, and has chosen to be Kate’s bodyguard. Orun is the other hunter, a man. Torlen is the elder of the horned people; Mura is one of the children. A hrrrt is a giant bug.
Isaac Silverstein, a knight-pathfinder, has been assigned to Fortwood by Damian Angevin, the grand master of the Order of the Knights of Merciful Aid. Paul Barnhill is the Lennarts’ general contractor.
Luther Dillon is the assistant director of Biohazard in Atlanta and one of Kate’s friends. The arrogant Talius Burse, a fae, was a “definitive authority” in the field of fae studies.
The Pale Queen (Magic Claims, 2), a fae, had taken her people into sleep back during the Ice Age.
The Cover and Title
The cover is from Ilona Andrews’ website of a string of receding towers with embedded designs. All the text is in white from the title superimposed over the towers, the author’s name below the graphic, and the series info at the bottom.
The title is about everyone, for all, including Narra, have a “Purpose”.
