Magic Stars (Grey Wolf Book 1) Kindle Edition

before I get into my actual review of this story I need to explain some things :) I actually already finished the whole series and I may have binge read them, so all of the installments may or may not got blurred together in my mind… ;) but hey, I will do my best to separate them at least a little bit :) it happened, because I read this series during a two month long period of time when I struggled with a lot of changes in my personal and professional life, so I read a lot, cause I needed something to relax, but at the same time I was in no mood to write any reviews… so here we are today, when I am doing my best to catch up on those :)Before we get into my thoughts and feelings about this particular installment, here are a few things that are true about all of them and that you can read without any fear of spoilers :)#1 this series is absolutely phenomenal and you all need to read it if you haven’t yet :) I blew through all of the stories in it in record time, cause I was unable to put them down and read something else :)#2 the whole series follow Kate, the main character, and tells one big story… so even though each installment revolves around a smaller event / issue, I highly encourage you to read them all in order, including the novellas and side books that happen along the way, because they all bring something extra to your overall experience :) the reading order of all those stories can be easily found on Goodreads if you look for the series Kate Daniels :) I read them all in that order, as it was recommended to me by my good friend who already finished it, and I am very happy I did that :) of course I can’t force you to listen to me, I’m no #BookPolice ;) it’s just a friendly suggestion ;)#3 a few more words about the series in general :) it’s a paranormal / urban fantasy story, set in an alternate version of our world… in it, there are magic waves that crash over the world, making basically all technology useless for some time… because it’s impossible to predict when exactly they will come and go, it alters the way people live… of course, with magic came all sort of gifts and talents… not to mention magical creatures :) we definitely have vampires and necromancers of some sort who control them, shapeshifters who can change into all sorts of animals, not to mention the fact that we get to see magical influences and practitioners from very different belief systems… it’s a lot to explain and we don’t have that much time to get into all the details right now :) just know it’s phenomenal :) each book is action packed, fast paced and full of surprising twists and turns… I can’t even begin to count the number of times when I gasped in shock because the plot went in a completely different way than I anticipated :) once you get to know this world and these characters, you will be completely hooked… and speaking of characters… ;)#4 diverse and interesting characters are one of the main reasons why I love this series so much :) not only the main one, Kate, goes through a pretty spectacular character development arch throughout the whole series, but along the way we keep meeting new ones… and before you know what happened, you have a whole bunch of people you love and with each book you are quietly chanting “don’t kill any of them, don’t kill any of them” as if that might change some outcomes :) obviously I won’t name anyone right here, because a lot of them might come as a surprise to you… what I will say is that it will be a pleasure to re-read those books again soon, knowing how certain characters end up… that’s all I’m gonna say ;)#5 DO NOT READ THE REST OF THIS REVIEW if you are not caught up on the previous stories… I will be mentioning people and events from previous books next, because I cannot possibly write more about my feelings without them, and you will be spoiled about some major surprising turns… I won’t spoil anything when it comes to the book I am currently reviewing, but everything that happened before is fair game :) you’ve been warned ;)This little novella revolves around Julie and Derek… not in a sense you might think, because she’s still pretty young, but you can definitely see glimpses of something more from both of them and I certainly hope that we will revisit this duo in some future books :)

This 64 page novella is a spin-off of the Kate Daniels series. Fans of that series will REALLY enjoy this read, as it about two of the favorite characters - Julie, Kate's ward and Derek, a member of Curran's immediate staff.The Ives family were human, but their profession was smiths who made weapons for the Pack. Because of this, they were well-liked friends of Curran and Kate. When Derek finds the entire family slaughtered, he goes hunting for the killers. Catching up with a few, he realizes they are hired guns who were sent to retrieve a magical object - a rock that glows gold. What the rock does is unknown, but its important enough to kill over. Continuing to investigate, he runs into Julie who is also after the rock. Julie, because of her talent to detect all types of magic, can literally see the rock miles away. Derek and Julie join forces and the fun begins.For such a short story, Ilona Andrews managed to fill this novella was some BIG surprises, magic, intrigue, new monsters, fighting and subtle undertones of romance. The plot was well-developed, the writing excellent and the character development was huge. I was pleasantly surprised to see that this is Grey Wolf, Book 1, which I'm guessing means we are in for more of this luscious treat, priced at only 1.99 - what a buy!The only thing I had problems with was the character of Julie. Julie is 16 years old in this story. When we left Julie, she was showing signs of thoughtful and smart maturity, but was still an occasionally obnoxious teenager, arguing with those around her and not wanting to go to school. In this story, Julie is not only VERY adult in thoughts, action and words, but she is a gifted fighter and magician. The Andrews team was clever enough to throw in bits and pieces relating to the pasts of both main characters, so the reader was reminded that Julie and Derek both had incredibly hard lives, which had aged and matured them above their years; however, I felt off-balance almost the entire read. Julie - all of a sudden - seemed like she was 28 years old instead of 16. This is my only complaint about this book, and it is a small one to be sure. I thoroughly enjoyed the short read, and I look forward to more of the Gray Wolf series. Side note which may be somewhat spoilerish - I simply can't wait to find out Kate's reaction when she realizes that Roland and Julie have been communicating. That will be fun!

Part of the Kate Daniels’ series, this book is set between Magic Shifts and Magic Binds, and is told mostly from Derek’s point of view (there’s just a bit from Julie at the end). Note this story does have spoilers for earlier books in the series. but is complete enough that I think even people unfamiliar with the setting could enjoy it.As I said, this is a complete story on its own, full of the action, magic, and mythology that the Kate Daniels’ world is known for. What I like best about Ilona Andrews books, though, is the characters, and this story gives us a deep dive into Derek’s thoughts and struggles—as well as that bit from Julie—making this story required reading for series fans,

I really enjoyed this the 2nd time around. We get a glimpse of how Julie is progressing as she ages. She is 16 and Derek is 20. They have a strong friendship. I’m rooting for them to be together when she’s older. She had a huge crush on him when she was younger and I think it hasn’t gone away. Derek seems to care deeply for her but it’s unclear whether it’s romantic or not. She is incredibly mature for her age, having to grow up fast when she was homeless on the streets for a little while before Kate took her in. We find out that she’s been talking and taking lessons from Roland, Kate’s estranged father is is their enemy. We get to see how well Julie can fight and how powerful her magic is. I also enjoyed seeing how well she knows Derek and his various expressions. They have fun banter and I enjoyed seeing them working together to get the bad guys.I can see me reading this again and recommend this novella and the Kate Daniel’s series.

I love Friends to Great Loves stories. Something about knowing a person, inside and out, but still being able to maintain the admiration and attraction necessary to be a couple.Julie and Derek complete each other, have each other's backs and have each survived terrible childhoods, emerging as dauntless fighters.They walk the path of true heroes and know that as long as they have each other, they have someone to rely on, absolutely.It's beautiful, really.Now, I have to go read Blood Heir for the 3rd time, obviously.

Love it! I want more of these two badly! Derek y Julie siempre han sido de mis personajes favoritos. ¡Espero con ansias mas libros de esta serie!

This story is very well written and it pushes you inside Kate's world immediately. It will be nice to find out what the future will give to Derek. I am sure we won't be disappointed. When I finished reading, I just wanted to read more about him, the perfect evidence that I was reading a good story.

This book's charm lay in better understanding Julie and Derek's relationship from Derek's perspective. There's a nascent awareness of Julie as a girl that Derek furiously tries to ignore, rigidly treating her as a child even though he respects and acknowledges her growing abilities in combat and magic. They make a good pair as they follow the trail of the murdering warlock and try to solve the mystery of a magical object. But it's an Ilona Andrews mystery. It's really more about the fights and the monsters and the banter. Even then I was s little disappointed at how little detective work was actually involved. The antagonists were way more one dimensional than I'm used to in their works. Of course a novella doesn't give you much space to flesh out every character, but the villain here was much too thin even by short story standards.The much more interesting reveal that almost made the book worth its price was that Julie was in direct contact with Roland. It makes me nervous to think how she might get manipulated by him (especially since Julie is already hiding stuff from Kate) even as she thinks that she's manipulating him. I can't wait for book 9 to bring this to the fore and watch Kate grapple with a teen Julie who thinks she knows what she's doing.

I am a big fan of the Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews. When I saw the Derek and Julie were getting a story I knew I had to read it, and I purchased Magic Stars with the fastest one click ever.Although Magic Stars is set in Kate Daniels world, Magic Stars is a book set in its own series (Grey Wolf). Magic Stars also takes place after Magic Shifts, so make sure you are up to date with Kate Daniels series before venturing into this new world as there is a spoiler or two within the pages.Magic Stars gives us the chance to get inside Derek's head, to see what he is really thinking and feeling. We also get to see him work alongside Julie, both of those as individuals are pretty kick ass by themselves, but throw these two together and you have true awesomeness, and from the very beginning we get a small taste of what these two will be like together...and it's hilarious.The mane was white too, ridiculously long, and wavy. It was wavy because the horse's owner braided it and sometimes put flowers into it. Because she couldn't get a normal horse. She had to have a draft version of My Little Pony.[Derek kindle location 13%]Julie sighed again and glanced at him. "This is taking way too long. That was a declaration of murderous intent. We're clear. The big one is yours; I'll take the ginger."[Julie kindle location 16%]I devoured Magic Stars and it didn't take me long to read it. I love that Derek gets his own book, we get to see a lot of ass kicking but also some sad parts, where he remembers his childhood and how he became who he is today. Derek and Julie make an awesome team, and I can see some traits of Kate in what Julie does, but also how Julie is her own person and isn't afraid of a little fight or two.If you read the Kate Daniels series then you know of a concern between Kate and Julie. In Magic Stars Julie actually reveals that she knows about this concern, and it worries her about how she may turn out in the future. We also learn of a little secret she has been keeping from Kate and Curran, and I think it's a stupid thing to do, even if it is helping with her own powers.Magic Stars was a great read, and I am gutted that it's over, with no new book in the works yet. This is a great way to get your fix of the Kate Daniels world, but also leaves you wanting more.Final VerdictCan I please have the next book now.