Caffeinated Reviewer

The tenth book in the fast-paced InCryptid urban fantasy series returns to the mishaps of the Price family, eccentric cryptozoologists who safeguard the world of magical creatures living in secret among humans.

Just when Sarah Zellaby, adopted Price cousin and telepathic ambush predator, thought that things couldn’t get worse, she’s had to go and prove herself wrong. After being kidnapped and manipulated by her birth family, she has undergone a transformation called an instar, reaching back to her Apocritic origins to metamorphize. While externally the same, she is internally much more powerful, and much more difficult to control.

Even by herself. After years of denial, the fact that she will always be a cuckoo has become impossible to deny.

Now stranded in another dimension with a handful of allies who seem to have no idea who she is–including her cousin Annie and her maybe-boyfriend Artie, both of whom have forgotten their relationship–and a bunch of cuckoos with good reason to want her dead, Sarah must figure out not only how to contend with her situation, but with the new realities of her future. What is she now? Who is she now? Is that person someone she can live with?

And when all is said and done, will she be able to get the people she loves, whether or not they’ve forgotten her, safely home?

Calculated Risks by Seanan McGuire is the tenth novel in the Incryptid urban fantasy featuring the Price family. Giant bugs, brilliant math, and memory loss made for an intense listen.

“Hail the Calculating Priestess!”

I was so excited to get back to Sarah’s story after the cliffhanger ending of Imaginary Numbers. Emily Bauer narrates the series except for Pocket Apocalypse, which features Alexander Price’s point of view. Emily does a fantastic job of giving voice to these characters and setting the tone. Listening is pure joy.

Sarah Zellaby, adopted cousin of the Price family and resident Cuckoo, was kidnapped by her birth family, and underwent a transformation called an instar, all so the cuckoo’s could travel to another dimension. Sarah did her best to stop them, but was transported to the new dimension along with Annie, Archie, and others. Only none of them know who she is. Can Sarah get them to trust her and get them back home?

I am not a fan of math, but can appreciate the awe of it and the calculations Sarah performs. While it was exciting to see some Price family and friends with her, it was so hard realizing what happened, particularly with Artie. He was mean to her and Sarah struggles with the emotional loss. I spent time worrying on how McGuire was going to fix this. Can she fix this? She had better fix this. *stomps foot*

Eep! Only McGuire could make me warm and fuzzy about a spider. That’s all I am saying. We learn so much about Sarah and her species. It was intense with giant bugs and ah, err, zombies? Well, sort of. You’ll see. We meet the indigenous people of this dimension, which proved very interesting.

We learn more about Grandma Alice. McGuire loves to tease us with tidbits. While groups of books focus on one of character, I highly recommend you listen/read this series in the order of their release. This story contains major spoilers and history. It has it all danger, romance, intense battle scenes and more.

This story is brilliant, well the entire series is brilliant. I adore the Aeslin Mice; keepers of the records of the Price family. I loved what McGuire did with Sarah’s stories and cannot wait for more. The ending left me excited for more.

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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