Max was burned at the stake when she was 14, thinking that was the last she was going to live. But she survived and was outcasted from her coven by her mother, that was four hundred years ago. Still not knowing who her father is, just knowing she is a witch that cannot die. Until she has a run-in with an incubus that is dead set on controlling Max. Maxima, with her friends, set out to destroy the incubus and free her from his mark. Can she succeed?

2.5 stars. buddy read

Maxima is a rogue witch that owns a tattoo shop. When a young pregnant woman and her boyfriend come in for an appointment, she realizes there is something wrong. Can Maxima help this girl get out of an abusive relationship or will she have to die (again) trying?

I really wanted to like this book, but the story was too short to get attached to the characters and their backgrounds. I feel like this is a spin-off from another series, so as a newbie in the Ethereal universe there is a lot left to be desired. To be completely honest the first half was terrible, but the second half came close to being redeemed but fell flat.

While I think this series is much better written so far, it's a good idea to read the Phoenix Rising series first so that you understand the world building around Aurelia and the rest of the Phoenixes and Wraiths and the current state of the world before jumping into this series. I had started this book initially before the other one and had the kitchen sink of characters thrown at me, none of which I could follow along, so I read the other series before coming back for this one for a much better understanding.

I honestly didn't understand the magical obsession of the FMC Max's partner Striker towards the pregnant lady Melody that they were trying to save, and it seemed like such a cop-out to explain that it was a magical

Spoiler

angel

bond, but since it was a relatively minor plot point, I didn't count it that heavily towards my enjoyment of the book.
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Ratings - completed series:
#1 Woman of Blood & Bone (this book): ★★★★☆
#2 Daughter of Souls & Silence: ★★★★☆
#3 Lady of Madness & Moonlight: ★★★★☆
#4 Sister of Embers & Echoes: ★★★★☆
#5 Priestess of Storms & Stone: ★★★☆☆
#6 Queen of Fate & Fire: ★★★☆☆

DNF @ 20%

Got the book on KU after reading the Facebook add and it seemed like something I'd enjoy on my holidays. Had no idea that it was a spin off of a previous series when I started reading but figured it out pretty quickly when whole chunks of the story seemed missed or skipped over. Felt completely lost while reading this and just couldn't focus on the story as I was constantly feeling I'd missed something. Came on here and realised there's a whole series I should have read before this, where all these characters were introduced and the flashback events happened. I find this really frustrating, so I've given up for now. Shame, because I probably would enjoy this series, but I feel if you're going to write a spin off that it so closely tied to previous story lines and characters, then it's probably a good idea to make readers aware they should read in order.

I might give the Phoenix series a go and come back to this, but I'm annoyed I wasted some precious downtime on this so for now I'm going to find something else.