Blue Flame
About the Book:
Rachel comes from a dimension that exists adjacent to ours. The people there have structured their society around daemon collecting: they locate, catch, and repair malfunctioning daemons (creatures out of phase with our world that tempt people to do good or evil).
While introducing Leda Morley, last of an ancient line of gatekeepers, to the ins and outs of her daemon-collecting work, Rachel Wilde encounters something far more dangerous than any daemon: a young boy who stands alone against an unseen yet terrifying enemy that has invaded his home—an inhuman creature who, hellbent on revenge for a minor slight, intends to harm the boy’s oblivious family. Meanwhile, Leda’s brother, Simon, is feeling left out of his maternal family legacy but is coping partly by helping Rachel’s friend Bach—a previously homeless man with unusual mental abilities—get his life back on track.
In the midst of all of this, Bach unintentionally but serendipitously makes contact with a capable otherworldly being who, with great reluctance, agrees to help Bach and his friends take on the dangerous creature that’s just become their problem to solve. Together, this group of unlikely allies must put aside their differences to save an innocent child, and his family, from a monster—before it’s too late.
Review:
Rachel Wilde is a daemon hunter from the Arcana dimension. On her last mission, she found the last gatekeeper, Leda and tried to stop a person from breaking down interdimensional barriers. Along the way Rachel also acquired Bach, a human oracle whose insights had driven him to the brink of madness and a defective daemon who now roams her home. Rachel's new assignments should be easy, she is showing Leda the ropes of what being a gatekeeper means and taking her on some fact finding missions. However, one of Rachel's fact finding missions turns out to be something more than the typical daemon where a maligned being is torturing a local family for a mistake that a young boy made while discovering his new powers. Meanwhile, Bach and Leda's brother, Simon are trying to get Bach's life together when they figure out that Bach may be able to help with Rachel's situation.
Blue Flame is another wonderful installment in the Daemon Collecting series. I would highly recommend reading book one, Gatekeeper first to understand the dimensions and the characters. I was so glad to continue with many of the characters' stories from the first book and go deeper into their backstories. Rachel continues to be strong and fierce, with Leda's help she begins to break down her unyielding personality. Through Leda's human eyes, a better understanding of the Arcana and it's social structure is shown. Leda's thirst for knowledge and gentle nature unravels some of the mysteries of the Arcana and smooths some of Rachel's edges. I was elated to learn more about Bach's history, see him move forward with his life, get a grip on his gift as well as learn of its origins. The being that Rachel and Leda discover in Blue Flame is surprising and interesting to learn about. I loved that the point of view switched to these special beings and they were very interesting to read, written in a prose style. The solution to help the being and the family that is being tortured by it was creative and lends itself towards better relationships in the future. Blue Flame is an action packed, fast paced urban fantasy adventure that I can't wait to read more of.
Rachel comes from a dimension that exists adjacent to ours. The people there have structured their society around daemon collecting: they locate, catch, and repair malfunctioning daemons (creatures out of phase with our world that tempt people to do good or evil).
While introducing Leda Morley, last of an ancient line of gatekeepers, to the ins and outs of her daemon-collecting work, Rachel Wilde encounters something far more dangerous than any daemon: a young boy who stands alone against an unseen yet terrifying enemy that has invaded his home—an inhuman creature who, hellbent on revenge for a minor slight, intends to harm the boy’s oblivious family. Meanwhile, Leda’s brother, Simon, is feeling left out of his maternal family legacy but is coping partly by helping Rachel’s friend Bach—a previously homeless man with unusual mental abilities—get his life back on track.
In the midst of all of this, Bach unintentionally but serendipitously makes contact with a capable otherworldly being who, with great reluctance, agrees to help Bach and his friends take on the dangerous creature that’s just become their problem to solve. Together, this group of unlikely allies must put aside their differences to save an innocent child, and his family, from a monster—before it’s too late.
Review:
Rachel Wilde is a daemon hunter from the Arcana dimension. On her last mission, she found the last gatekeeper, Leda and tried to stop a person from breaking down interdimensional barriers. Along the way Rachel also acquired Bach, a human oracle whose insights had driven him to the brink of madness and a defective daemon who now roams her home. Rachel's new assignments should be easy, she is showing Leda the ropes of what being a gatekeeper means and taking her on some fact finding missions. However, one of Rachel's fact finding missions turns out to be something more than the typical daemon where a maligned being is torturing a local family for a mistake that a young boy made while discovering his new powers. Meanwhile, Bach and Leda's brother, Simon are trying to get Bach's life together when they figure out that Bach may be able to help with Rachel's situation.
Blue Flame is another wonderful installment in the Daemon Collecting series. I would highly recommend reading book one, Gatekeeper first to understand the dimensions and the characters. I was so glad to continue with many of the characters' stories from the first book and go deeper into their backstories. Rachel continues to be strong and fierce, with Leda's help she begins to break down her unyielding personality. Through Leda's human eyes, a better understanding of the Arcana and it's social structure is shown. Leda's thirst for knowledge and gentle nature unravels some of the mysteries of the Arcana and smooths some of Rachel's edges. I was elated to learn more about Bach's history, see him move forward with his life, get a grip on his gift as well as learn of its origins. The being that Rachel and Leda discover in Blue Flame is surprising and interesting to learn about. I loved that the point of view switched to these special beings and they were very interesting to read, written in a prose style. The solution to help the being and the family that is being tortured by it was creative and lends itself towards better relationships in the future. Blue Flame is an action packed, fast paced urban fantasy adventure that I can't wait to read more of.
Gatekeeper
Alongside our world is another dimension, the Arcana, whose people live and work with ours in order to keep our dimension working properly. Rachel Wilde is one of those Arcanans who works as a demon collector. Rachel catches malfunctioning daemons and brings them back for repair. Rachel's latest caseload involves a bunch of unusual assignments: first, a riot daemon who no longer wants to affect humans negatively and is assigned to live with Rachel since it is unable to be repaired at this time; second, a human man who is trying to break down the inter-dimensional barrier to bring back the daemon Apep and lastly, the woman who is the last gatekeeper for Apep, keeping the daemon locked in the wasteland. Rachel's assignments turn sour as the two human marks cross paths, but she may finish her assignment with the help of some new friends.
Gatekeeper is a fun daemonic adventure through alternative dimensions and a diversity of daemons. The prologue sucked me in as a mysterious murderer brutally kills off what he believes is the last of the gatekeeper line. Rachel's character is strong, edgy and impulsive. I was very interested in the other dimensions and Rachel's dimension of Arcana. Arcana seems similar to ours, but with a better social structure. I would love to explore more of Arcana and how the people there came to be in charge of the daemons in the different dimensions. I also really enjoyed the human Oracle, Bach. I know that he probably has a great backstory, but it hasn't been explored yet. The riot daemon is a wonderful addition and I hope it doesn't get sent away just yet. I have a lot of questions about Apep and why a human would kill to have the daemon back on Earth. The ending was suspenseful and kept my interest up right until the end. There is definitely a lot more to explore in the series and I want to know what happens next!
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
Gatekeeper is a fun daemonic adventure through alternative dimensions and a diversity of daemons. The prologue sucked me in as a mysterious murderer brutally kills off what he believes is the last of the gatekeeper line. Rachel's character is strong, edgy and impulsive. I was very interested in the other dimensions and Rachel's dimension of Arcana. Arcana seems similar to ours, but with a better social structure. I would love to explore more of Arcana and how the people there came to be in charge of the daemons in the different dimensions. I also really enjoyed the human Oracle, Bach. I know that he probably has a great backstory, but it hasn't been explored yet. The riot daemon is a wonderful addition and I hope it doesn't get sent away just yet. I have a lot of questions about Apep and why a human would kill to have the daemon back on Earth. The ending was suspenseful and kept my interest up right until the end. There is definitely a lot more to explore in the series and I want to know what happens next!
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
About the Author:
Alison Levy lives in Greensboro, North Carolina with her husband, son, and a variety of pets. When she is not writing or doing mom things, she crochets, gardens, walks her collies, and works on home improvement projects.
Her books feature female characters who are strong but flawed, making them more relatable. They stay rooted in everyday life while world-building in their fictional cultures. Intolerance of differences has become widespread in recent years. Gatekeeper encourages readers to look beyond what they consider normal and see through foreign eyes, a message that I hope will appeal to many in today’s climate.
Follow Alison Levy on social media:
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Alison Levy lives in Greensboro, North Carolina with her husband, son, and a variety of pets. When she is not writing or doing mom things, she crochets, gardens, walks her collies, and works on home improvement projects.
Her books feature female characters who are strong but flawed, making them more relatable. They stay rooted in everyday life while world-building in their fictional cultures. Intolerance of differences has become widespread in recent years. Gatekeeper encourages readers to look beyond what they consider normal and see through foreign eyes, a message that I hope will appeal to many in today’s climate.
Follow Alison Levy on social media:
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
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