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SERIES REVIEW: Signs and Wonders & Cursed (Witchbane Books 7 & 8) by Morgan Brice
Witchbane: Signs and Wonders – Morgan Brice
When a coven of dark warlocks killed Seth Tanner’s brother, Seth became a man driven by vengeance, sworn to stop the cycle of ritual killings, willing to die for the cause. He never expected to fall head over heels in love with the witches’ next intended victim. Evan Malone didn’t believe the supernatural was real until Seth swept in with his magic and motorcycle to save him from being the next sacrifice.
Now they’ve gone on the road together, hunting the rest of the coven while they figure out how to keep the white-hot, once-in-a-lifetime bond between them. Days are filled tracking their paranormal quarry, honing their monster hunting skills, and gaining control of the small magics that have made a life-or-death difference. Nights are spent together, entangled in adrenaline-fueled passion, learning how to make this love last forever despite the odds. Seth fears that if they don’t eliminate the rest of the coven, they’ll be on the run forever, and more people will die. Evan is afraid that Seth’s obsession with revenge means they might not survive to get a happily ever after.
Seth and Evan head to West Virginia to confront one of the dark warlocks, a master con man running a cybercrime empire. Can Seth and Evan save the warlock’s next target, bring down his crime syndicate, and live to tell the tale?
Signs and Wonders is a thrill-packed supernatural thrill ride with plenty of paranormal suspense, hurt/comfort, hot nights, found family, deadly magic, immortal witches, determined hunters, haunted places, creepy ghosts, impressive explosions, spooky chills, and sexy thrills, and features an evolving, established romantic relationship with all the feels.
Rating:
4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bitsSoundtrack: Vigil
Artist: The Mars Volta
Album: The Mars Volta
Witchbane: Cursed – Morgan Brice
Seth Tanner and Evan Malone head to Savannah, Georgia, to hunt the seventh of the coven members responsible for the death of Seth’s brother and so many other victims over the past hundred years.
Seth and Evan fell in love when Seth rescued Evan from one of the dark witches, and they went on the road together to stop the murders. Their relationship is new and intense, growing deeper with the danger, giving them both a reason to survive and gain vengeance.
Sterling Vernon is a prominent restaurateur with a thriving array of businesses, and he’s also the seventh witch-disciple with a new victim in his sights. His reputation and wealth protect him, and his dark magic enables him to evade consequences. Vernon needs to work his ritual to replenish his power soon, and that requires a new sacrifice.
Paxton Miller is Vernon’s next intended victim. When Vernon puts a killing curse on Evan to force a confrontation with Seth, it’s going to take all of Seth’s courage and cleverness, as well as help from their friends with supernatural abilities, to save Evan and Paxton and stop Vernon once and for all.
Rating:
4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bitsSoundtrack: The Curse of the Fold
Artist: Shawn James
Album: The Dark & The Light
Witchbane by Morgan Brice has become my comfort read, and by now it’s easy to see how the series has evolve while still delivering everything we love about Seth and Evan’s scenic paranormal quest.
Signs and Wonders, the 7th book and possibly the shortest installment so far, takes our boys to West Virginia’s National Radio Quiet Zone (NRQZ), where radio transmissions are heavily restricted due to scientific and military reasons. What started as a mission for two now involves a network of friends across states, with delightful cameos from the author’s other series.
This time, the witch they’re hunting runs a wellness retreat inside the zone and taking him down is tricky as magic and technology don’t mesh well. Seth and their hacker allies target the witches’ cybercrime empire while Evan infiltrates the wellness orientation seminars.
While the plot is straightforward, the writing is fast-paced and there’s plenty of tactics and action to keep things exciting. I loved going over the how-tos of the mission and Seth and Evan collaborating with the secondary characters made it even more dynamic.
There’s also a change in internal dialogue, Seth and Evan think less of revenge and more about life after the mission. Despite lingering fears, they remain rock solid, comfortable and settled yet always passionate. I enjoyed their cozy boyfriends dynamics and how they’re still as endearing as ever.
Cursed, the 8th book, took our boys to the food havens of Savannah, Georgia which seriously made me hungry. The witch is a prominent restaurateur mentoring his next victim, a food truck owner. This is another tricky setup because how would Seth and Evan convince him of the danger? Also, Evan was hit by a curse which left him in the sidelines.
Like in the previous book, our boys had help from friends and the local good witches. The culinary angle has a gruesome aspect with monster meat being sneaked in. The victim’s boyfriend is a musician and I loved the neat musical spell he and Evan used in the end to power up the good guys.
There’s a change in Seth and Evan’s hectic pace, our boys finished dealing with the bad guys early and took some downtime. They went on a proper date, sight seeing around Savannah and enjoying the food. There’s more talk about dreams of a life after the mission and while I’m rooting hard for a happy ending for our boys, I couldn’t help but feel a pang that the series might be ending soon.
Witchbane is my tour guide across America, taking us to real life weird and wonderful places. I hope the author could give us a map of Seth and Evan’s roadtrip because if ever I could afford a trip to the US, I want to trace their journey.
Overall, I’m happily tagging along till the end!
P.S.
Witchbane should be read in order. Follow the map below:
Burn
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SIGNS AND WONDERS: Amazon UK | Audiobook
CURSED: Amazon UK | AudiobookIf you like my content, please consider supporting me on Ko-fi or PayPal. Your donations will help keep this website going. Thank you so much!
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PROMO BLITZ: Drake by Jodie Harper
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PROMO BLITZ: Mending Hearts by Becca Seymour
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EXCERPT REVEAL: Secrets and Lies by Willow Dixon (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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RELEASE BITZ: Match Made by T.A. Moore (Excerpt)
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NEW RELEASE BLITZ: Golden Boy by Freddie Braun (Excerpt)
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RELEASE BLITZ: Everything, Every Day For Eternity by E.W. Silver
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REVIEW: Vigilant by Cora Rose & Lark Taylor
The Firm: Vigilant – Cora Rose & Lark Taylor
As the eldest brother and leader of The Firm, I take my responsibilities very seriously. There’s nothing I won’t do to keep my family safe. Staying vigilant, always thinking ten steps ahead, and holding the pieces of my life together with steady hands. Control is everything, because if I loosen my grip for even a moment, the darkness I’ve buried inside will claw its way free.
Everything is stable. Predictable. Safe.
Until Neo.
He’s a distraction I can’t afford but a temptation I can’t seem to ignore. My darkness is drawn to him; it wants to be set free.
And as our enemies close in, Neo becomes the one variable I can’t control… and the one risk I find myself wanting to take. Because for the first time, surrendering to the dark doesn’t feel like weakness.It feels a lot like love.
Vigilant is the third book of the dark billionaire romance series, The Firm by Cora Rose and Lark Taylor. This is my most anticipated installment, starring my favorite Buckingham brother, Wylder.
The Buckinghams were molded into killers by their ruthless father. As the eldest, Wylder endured the worst abuses while shielding his younger brothers. Now leader of The Firm, he shoulders every responsibility, holding the family together with iron control.
He didn’t count upon a bratty, blue-haired hacker to test that control. Neo is the bestfriend of Ancel (Deviant) and they are both living in the Buckingham mansion because of the threat from Umbra.
Neo lived to annoy Wylder, pranking, pushing and sassing him just to see how far he could. Wylder’s PA was on leave and he declares Neo take the position seeing the hacker was already neck-deep in Buckingham business. Neo lost no time upping his game and this time, Wylder’s walls are starting to crack.
Wylder totally made the book for me! He’s not a grump with a soft center. He’s a grump with a monster inside, and when it’s unleashed, it’s glorious! My favorite part about Wylder is that beneath the scowl, he’s a secret do-gooder: funding scholarships, protecting his family, and quietly helping those in need without expecting recognition.
Also, the megane moe slays!!!
Neo nearly ruined the book for me. More bully than brat, he was too pushy, too desperate for attention, his pranks felt more infuriating than humorous. He harrassed and manipulated Wylder for fun, just to see him fall apart. Then he sulks whenever Wylder pushes back.
And everyone would be on Wylder’s ass because he hurt Neo’s feelings. I hated how everyone made it appear that it’s Wylder’s fault and he had to do the groveling every time when really, it was Neo who started it.
Another thing that annoyed me to no end was how Neo would be all concerned about how exhausted Wylder looks and how he had too much responsibilties. Then proceeds to disrupt his sleep every night and pull pranks that added to Wylder’s burdens. He was even glad he made Wylder lose sleep because it means he’s getting under his skin.
One time, his fucked up prank even caused Wylder to pay millions of dollars for a settlement. Neo promised to repay him in blowjobs. Meh. His sob story of being a foster kid didn’t make up for his poor behavior.
My heart went out to Wylder at that scene when everything was too much, he crawled into his secret hidey-hole closet and just be. Seriously, the man needs peace, quiet and uninterrupted sleep more than he needs a blowjob. He’s really trying, damn it, even if emotions are something he struggles to understands.
Neo became somewhat tolerable when he got what he wanted, a.k.a. Wylder’s monster a.k.a. primal play in the woods. Still, not the guy for Wylder. I’d even go for Brennan, their head of security. At least, he always got Wylder’s back.
The rest of the Umbra mission was crammed in the last parts. I missed seeing the Buckinghams in action and I wished the plot was more mission-focused.
Vigilant is a story of control versus chaos. Despite being saddled with the totally wrong guy, Wylder endeared himself and charmed me to no end. I rooted so hard for him every step. Overall, it lies somewhere between like and love but Wylder completely made it worth the ride!
Rating:
3.5 Stars – that place between like and loveSoundtrack: Wild Child
Artist: The Black Keys
Album: Dropout BoogieP.S.
The Firm is best read in order.
Watch a Buckingham arranged his marriage to his enemy in Covenant.
Witness a Buckingham happily guide his own kidnapper in the how-tos of abduction in Deviant.
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VIGILANT: Amazon UK | Audiobook
If you like my content, please consider supporting me on Ko-fi or PayPal. Your donations will help keep this website going. Thank you so much!
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RELEASE BLITZ: Stealing Forever by Lizzie C. Koz (Giveaway)
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COVER REVEAL: Secrets & Lies by Willow Dixon (Excerpt)
