Owl and the City of Angels by Kristi Charish

October 5th, 2015 Kimberly Review 56 Comments

5th Oct
Owl and the City of Angels by Kristi Charish
Owl and the City of Angels
by Kristi Charish
Series: The Adventures of Owl #2
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Source: Publisher
Purchase*: Amazon *affiliate
Goodreads
Rating: One StarOne StarOne StarOne Star

The wild second adventure for unforgettable antiquities thief Owl—a modern-day “Indiana Jane” who reluctantly navigates the hidden supernatural world—from the pen of rising urban fantasy star Kristi Charish. For fans of Kim Harrison, Jim Butcher, Jennifer Estep, Jenn Bennett, and the like. Alix Hiboux, better known as Owl, international antiquities thief for hire, is settling into her new contract job for Vegas mogul Mr. Kurosawa, a red dragon with a penchant for ancient, supernatural artifacts. And now he has his sights set on some treasures of the mysterious Syrian City of the Dead that are sitting in a recluse’s private collection. There’s just one wrinkle. To stop the resurrection of an undead army that could wreak havoc on Los Angeles, Owl must break into a heavily guarded archaeological sight in one of the most volatile regions in the world. A detour through Libya and a run-in with Somali pirates sends the clock ticking hastily toward total paranormal disaster. Meanwhile, Alexander and the Paris vampires have stopped stalking Owl’s apartment, but they have by no means forgotten their death grudge against her. To top everything off, Owl finds out the hard way that there is nothing heavenly about the City of Angels...

Owl and the City of Angels by Kristi Charish is the second book in the Adventures of Owl series. I just learned that these will also be available on Audible and yep, I intend to check them out. Owl and the City of Angels has our thief extraordinaire, Owl and her sidekick, Captain traveling the globe and escaping trouble. Once again I slipped into the world and had a blast reading about her adventures.

I recommend reading the Adventures of Owl series in order.

Five reasons to grab Owl and the City of Angels

  • Alix Hiboux, known to all as Owl is a unique, outspoken, stubborn, risk-taking antiquities thief. Owl is a complex character who is brilliant when it comes to artifacts, solving puzzles and escaping danger but equally stubborn and immature. I adore this spunky, snarky girl. Sure, she is unreasonable at times, but she does not gripe and somehow manages to get the job done. She is a gamer and plays the multiplayer game WorldQuest with an elf. Until a few years ago, Owl knew nothing of the supernatural creatures dwelling in her world; that was until she messed up a heist and pissed off a vampire. Now she finds herself living in Vegas and working for Mr. Kursosawa, a dragon who has a fondness for ancient and supernatural artifacts. While I did not see as much growth, and her wavering opinion of the supernatural annoyed me, Owl lives up to the hype of being a modern-day Indian Jones. While I wanted to see more growth in Owl, I do think we saw some progress. She is always going to be outspoken, hotheaded and a little rough around the edges, but she does seems to have a strong moral compass.  We see hint that are attitude regarding supernatural creatures is softening a little.
  • The world Charish has created is fascinating, never have I met so many unique supernatural creatures as we travel the world in search of ancient artifacts. We meet zombies, vampires’ sirens, succubus, snake people, Jinn, and elves. While the creatures may appear in other stories, Charish has given them unique attributes and destroyed myths about garlic, life forces and more – giving me a unique story full of surprises.
  • While the overall story arc involves Owl, each book takes us on a madden quest that has our heroine in peril. In Owl and the City of Angels the IAA (the international archeology responsible for keeping supernatural artifacts and creatures secret) are after Owl, whom they believe has stolen artifacts from the City of the Dead. These objects are cursed and her boss wants them retrieved and the identity of the person impersonating Owl caught. Poor Owl, the girl has people and things chasing her from every angle. Even, the creators of WorldQuest are gunning for her because they believe she is using the game to plot robberies. All of this led to an action-packed game of chase that took us all over the globe and deep into ancient burial sites. While at times the story read like an Indian Jones movie with improbable action scenes, I had a blast as we raced through streets and fought off the dead. Owl and the City of Angels was fully developed providing readers one heck of a ride. I loved the little tidbits weaved into the tale about the burial sites, and artifacts.
  • Owl and the City of Angels has a nice blend of humor, similar to those one would find in the Hollows by Kim Harrison, or the snark in the Kate Daniel’s series by Ilona Andrews. The author has done a fantastic job of fleshing out the characters; expect maybe Ryan, Owl’s love interest, but we keep learning more. Lady Siyu is the dragon’s assistant and oh man, I love this dreadful, snarky seneschal. Even, Captain, Owl’s vampire hunting cat adds humor. Friendship and a slow-developing romance round out Owl’s crazy life, along with her relationship with Carpe, her elfin gaming partner.
  • Fans of quests, action-packed danger and unique characters will enjoy Owl and her merry group of friends and enemies. Charish has offered us a unique world and the storylines are unlimited when it comes to Owl and her quests. Each book develops the overall arc while still giving the reader a satisfying conclusion to the current predicament. I highly recommend this fun, engaging series.
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About Kimberly
Kimberly is a coffee loving book addict who reads and listens to fictional stories in all genres. Whovian, Ravenclaw, Howler and proud Nonna. She owns and manages Caffeinated PR. The coffee is always on and she is ready to chat. BlueSky | Facebook | Instagram

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56 Responses to “Owl and the City of Angels by Kristi Charish”

  1. Jennifer

    I’ve been wanting to try this series but after finding out that they are going to be produce on audio I’m waiting to see who the narrator is before I start reading. LOL

  2. Tyler H Jolley

    Just the supernatural creatures is enough reason for me to check it out. The rest will just be gravy. White, delicious, sausage gravy. Sorry, I’m starving.

  3. melliane

    I’m a little late I confess so I’m just reading it right now but I’m so curious to see if we’ll have the same feelings about it! I really liked book 1!

  6. Christy

    I grabbed the first one awhile back. It’s on my must read list, but I kind of want to wait for more installments to come out before I start. I don’t think I’ll be able to wait much longer though.

  8. Braine Talk Supe

    I thought this was releasing next year! Now I have to scramble my reads around because NO WAY am I missing this!

    Love this series, always exciting and I love the different creatures to be found.

  9. Angela Adams

    “The author has done a fantastic job of fleshing out the characters…” — one aspect of a great read. Thanks for the post!

  10. Melissa (Books and Things)

    I have the first book but I haven’t read it yet. Oh so that means I’ll read in order when I get a chance. Don’t faint or anything.. 😉 This sounds like a great worldbuilding series.

  13. Sophia Rose

    I was intrigued when I saw your review of the first book. I love the antiquities quest side that you describe. I’ll get to these eventually. 🙂

  15. Heidi

    I have this one and I am excited to dig in and see how it goes. I am a tad bit disappointed to hear that Owl doesn’t grow more because I recall having issues with her in the first book, still it sounds like a good read.

  16. Ramona

    Sounds every bit as good as the first volume, which I still haven’t read… :\ I like the sound of the brisk pacing, humor, and quirky characters. Definitely different. Happy Monday!

  17. Silvia

    Glad to hear you loved this second instalment so much, Kimberly! I’ve already added the first book on my list, I don’t know when I’ll get to it but I will 😉

  18. Sarah

    Okay, you have sold me on antiquities thief Owl and her sidekick Captain. Those two have the most interesting names 😀 And did I see zombies? Okay, I am determined to pick up book one this week!

  19. kindlemom1

    So happy this was a fabulous sequel for you Kim! I really need to try this series. I feel like I have been saying that a lot lately. I need more hours in the day!

  20. Katherine

    I really want to read Owl and the Japanese Circus so I’m glad to hear the 2nd book is also really good. I always hate when a series with a lot of promise just fizzles.

  21. Bookworm Brandee

    I’m happy to hear the sophomore release in this series is a winner. This series seems so unique and I really want to meet all the different supes. Glad you enjoyed it, Kimberly. Hopefully I can get started on this series sooner than later. 🙂 Happy Monday!

  22. Jenny

    “Each book develops the overall arc while still giving the reader a satisfying conclusion to the current predicament.”

    Love that Kim! It’s why I’m such a big fan of the Kate Daniels series and Jennifer Estep’s books – I know I’m going to get a complete story in each installment with no cliffhanger to drive me crazy. Glad this series is in the same vein, I definitely need to give it a try:)

  24. Nick

    Ooh! An Indiana Jones like story with a strong and stubborn heroine! I’m very intrigued and it sounds like the book was so much fun to read too.
    Great review, Kim!

  27. Kim

    This was SO good! I’m such a fan of this series and love the direction it’s going. I agree with all the things you mentioned about Owl – such a great heroine. I can’t wait for the next adventure 🙂