A Questionable Client by Ilona Andrews
Series: Kate Daniels (#0.5)
Rating: ★★★★☆
In a world beset by magic waves, Kate Daniels works as a mercenary. She is tired, hungry, and there is foul-smelling blood on her boots. All she wants to do is to go home, but when Mercenary Guild offers her a job she can’t refuse, she finds herself protecting a man against Russian wizards.
This work of fiction was previously published in Dark and Stormy Knights anthology and is currently available as part of Magic Bites, Special Edition and as an independent release, Magic Graves.
Book 0.5: A Questionable Client
Book 1: Magic Bites
Book 2: Magic Burns
Book 3: Magic Strikes
Book 3.5: Magic Mourns
Book 4: Magic Bleeds
Book 4.5: Magic Dreams
Book 5: Magic Slays
Book 5.4: Magic Gifts
Book 5.5: Gunmetal Magic
Book 6: Magic Rises
Book 7: Magic Breaks
Book 8: Magic Shifts
Book 8.5: Magic Stars
If you’ve read the Kate Daniels series you’ll instantly recognize the scene set here – of when she first meets Saiman. Though it’s very short, and a quick read, there’s plenty of ass kicking and snark.
“What happened?”
“You fell.”
“Really? What did I fall into?”
“My fist.”
Kate’s a merc, and when she takes a job for bodyguard detail she ends up getting more than she planned for.
But bodyguard detail was a couple’s kind of dance. You had to work with the body you guarded, and in my experience, bodies proved uncooperative.
You get to see why Saiman is so fascinated with Kate – and it’s not just because she says no the first time. As I love Kate, too, I can’t really blame Saiman; even if he is a creepy bastard.
My paper said the client’s name was Saiman. No indication if it was his last or first name. Perhaps he was like Batman, one of a kind.
I love anything to do with Kate Daniels, and I have a hard time thinking about anything but how much I love these books when I read this. This is a short story, so it’s an incredibly quick read, but well worth it. Definitely recommended to anyone that enjoys the Kate Daniels series; and for those that aren’t too sure about Kate after the first book (some of my friends, can you believe it?) I think this novella offers some additional intriguing insights into her character. Even though it is a prequel, you needn’t read it before Magic Bites.
May 2012 Re-read
Ilona Andrew’s Kate Daniels series is one that I continuously go to when I need a pick-me-up. After a couple of books that I couldn’t finish, it was just what I needed.
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