The Mage in Black by Jaye Wells

Sabina Kane #2
Published April 2010 by Orbit
326 pages
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Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy
Source: Purchased
Rating: Loved It

Sabina Kane doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to family. After all, her own grandmother, the leader of the vampire race, just tried to kill her. When she arrives in New York to meet the mage side of her family, the reunion takes the fun out of dysfunctional.

On top of that, the Hekate Council wants to use her as a pawn in the brewing war against the vampires. Her mission will take her into the bowels of New York’s Black Light district, entangles her in mage politics, and challenges her beliefs about the race she was raised to distrust. And Sabina thought vampires were bloodthirsty. (Source: Goodreads)

I immediately fell back into Sabina’s world. You’ll get your daily dose of snarky humor and action from the get go. A vampire, a mage and a demon go on a road trip. That is like an opening line to a joke. It could have been a book of its own. But they do end up in New York only a little worse for the wear. Sabina enters a tangled world of politics where being her only complicates things more.

Though she is meeting her long-lost sister, the vibe within the Hektate Headquarters definitely chafes. Maybe it’s because the Mages feel they are better than most of the other races plus their desire to appease made me not really trust any of them. Even Maisie.

So it is no wonder that she feels more at home hanging out at Vein, the sleazy vamp bar and underground demon fighting ring. Giguhl is making a name for himself in the ring and with the local nymphs. Giguhl is one of the BEST SIDEKICKS EVER. Oh! The laughs he brings me and the joy. Not to mention certain forked unmentionables.

Vein holds a few surprises not even Sabina suspects. Slade, AWOL Dominae Assassin and ex-lover, happens to be the owner. Adam is away. Not they have established a relationship, but there is the promise of maybe. But here when she needs a friend is Sex-in-a-Suit, Slade. That name just oozes sex appeal. Wells had me flipping the pages trying to find out…Is there going to be a love triangle? Is one more her potential lobster than the other?

I will tell you that shit hits the fan. Things go wrong. Plots are uncovered. Action is taken. Things go really wrong. A few things go right. In the end, Sabina really grows. She questions her role in the pending war, where her loyalties lie, the people she trusts, right and wrong and her heart. She is both vulnerable and power in the same instance. I really understood her need to hit something to help her work through some of the nagging questions. I wasn’t sure how it was going to play out, but all I can say is “well done, well done.”

When the going gets tough, Sabina keeps coming. BE WARNED.

Series: Red-Headed Stepchild | The Mage in Black | Violet Tendacies | Green-Eyed Demon | Silver-Tongued Devil | Blue-Blooded Vamp