fuonlyknew

Cassie Scot Mystery Series

by Christine Amsden

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I have a really great series to tell you about!

Cassie Scot: Paranormal Detective, Book One and Secrets and Lies, Book Two.

There be witches and sorcerers, and some nasty vampires and even a werewolf.

A town full of supernaturals, magic everywhere, and a detective with no powers of her own.

Throw in some danger and romance, and stir slowly til the cauldron bubbles.

There’s a giveaway too!

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Book One

Cassie Scot: Paranormal Detective

Cassie Scot is the ungifted daughter of powerful sorcerers, born between worlds but belonging to neither. At 21, all she wants is to find a place for herself, but earning a living as a private investigator in the shadow of her family’s reputation isn’t easy. When she is pulled into a paranormal investigation, and tempted by a powerful and handsome sorcerer, she will have to decide where she truly belongs.

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My Review

Imagine you come from a large family of sorcerers. Everyone has a power, except you. That’s how it is for Cassie Scot. She doesn’t have any powers at all.

Now she’s 21 years old and it’s time to find herself. Taking a job at the sheriff’s department seemed like a good idea. Except, with no powers of her own, it’s hard to work paranormal cases. So she becomes a private investigator. Her plan is to only take cases that are not paranormal. Unfortunately, most of her calls are for spells, exorcisms, and other paranormal business.

When she’s offered a job to serve papers on a powerful witch, she figures it’ll be a quick job and she seriously needs the money.

What does she find when she gets there?  No witch, but lots of blood. Definitely a paranormal case. No human could get past the witches protective spell.

I liked Cassie right from the beginning. She’s full of sass, says what she’s thinking, and isn’t afraid to go for what she wants.

After spilling a lust potion, what she wants is Evan. He’s a powerful sorcerer and her best friend since they were little. When the potion takes affect, she sees Evan in a whole new light, noticing how sexy he is.

I could see why Evan thought this was funny. But I wonder if having Cassie lusting after him will make him see his best friend in a different light too.

This could be complicated as their fathers are blood enemies.

There is never a dull moment in this book. Between the murder, the nasty vampires, Cassie lusting after Evan, and her family throwing a huge curve ball at her, I rushed to turn the pages, excited to see what was going to happen next.

So much was happening, but I never lost my way. Christine led me from scene to scene, keeping me connected and curious. Humor was dabbled throughout the story, along with some romance and scares and a mystery that kept me searching for clues.

In the end, you get some answers, while the author leaves some things open for more in this series.

I’m very curious to see where things may go.

5 Stars

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Enjoy this excerpt for Book One

At random, I picked up a bottle of perfume from the top shelf and read: “Induces powerful lust. Spray on your intended and make sure you are the first person they see. Lasts about an hour.”

The thing you have to understand about any magic is that there are good ways to use it, and bad ways to use it. The concept of black magic is a hotly debated topic among sorcerers. Even death, in self defense, is a shade of gray. As I stood there, reading the functions of the various love potions, I thought of all the innocent and harmful ways they could be used. A couple in a committed relationship might have a lot of fun with a spray of lust. On the other hand, using it on an unwilling victim…

I shuddered as I replaced the bottle and accidentally knocked one of the neighboring bottles of perfume to the ground. It shattered, splashing perfume all over my open-toed sandals.

“Crap.”

“What happened?” Evan asked, his voice hard and alert. I could hear him moving closer.

“Stop! I don’t want to see you right now.”

“Which potion was that?” Evan asked, still in that hard-edged voice of command.

I pointed to the row of similar bottles on the top shelf. “Lust.”

One of the little bottles floated away from the shelf, but I did not turn around to see what Evan was doing with it. Instead, I started looking through my purse for a pack of tissues to clean the mess off my feet.

“Cassie, I have some bad news for you.”

“Worse, you mean?”

“This potion doesn’t take affect until you actually look at someone. Your hour starts then.”

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Just wanted to warn you that this next review is for the second book in this series. I’ll try not to put in spoilers.

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Book Two

Secrets and Lies

Cassie Scot, still stinging from her parents’ betrayal, wants out of the magical world. But it isn’t letting her go. Her family is falling apart and despite everything, it looks like she may be the only one who can save them.

To complicate matters, Cassie owes Evan her life, making it difficult for her to deny him anything he really wants. And he wants her. Sparks fly when they team up to find two girls missing from summer camp, but long-buried secrets may ruin their hopes for happiness.

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My Review

This story takes off with a bang and never lets up.

Struggling to make it on her own, Cassie latches onto a case of two missing girls. Evan works with her, worried about her safety. Sorcerers can’t find these girls with their powers, which means something paranormal is afoot, something strong.

Cassie now owes a blood debt to Evan after he saved her life. He wants Cassie. She’s unsure of her feelings. She did kiss him and his kisses have the power to make her swoon. Is it the magic or is she falling for him?

As they team up to search for the missing girls, their attraction intensifies. Things are further complicated by Cassie’s anger and hurt over something her parents did. Now the family is in chaos and Cassie doesn’t know if she can find it in herself to forgive them.

Danger is all around. No one can be trusted. Lives are in peril.

What a rush. There is so much happening.

I felt for Cassie. Imagine worrying about whether you’ll be given a choice or be forced to marry someone. On top of that, your family betrays you, you need money, and the case you take is turning out to be extremely dangerous.

Sometimes, when I start the second book in a series, I worry that it won’t be as good. Like a sequel in a movie.

My worries were null as soon as I started Secrets and Lies.

The back and froth between Cassie and Evan at turns kept me anxious, hopeful, and merry. These two are meant for each other.

I got to know these two a lot better and also got to understand the motivation behind their families.

As with the first book, there was a lot going on. I liked that. The author made it easy to follow along. I never stumbled over who was doing what. And the humor lightened the mood when things got heavy. Which they did.

The best thing for me was that the author kept to her character in Cassie. I didn’t want a flashy change, no sudden powers emerging. I do wonder about her though. There were times I thought I glimpsed something.

Secrets and Lies felt darker than the first book. There were some intense scenes, and some emotional moments when secrets were revealed.

Many things get resolved at the end. But there’s still more questions, more to come.

One more thing about the ending. I was shocked. I couldn’t believe what I read. I’m so glad the next book will be releasing this year.

5 Stars

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

 

Award-winning author Christine Amsden has written stories since she was eight, always with a touch of the strange or unusual. She became a “serious” writer in 2003, after attending a boot camp with Orson Scott Card. She finished Touch of Fate shortly afterward, then penned The Immortality Virus, which won two awards. Expect many more titles by this up-and-coming author.

Website / Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads / Google+

Amazon / Barnes and Noble

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