Review: Blood Tied (The Warlock Brothers of Havenbridge #2) by Jacob Flores

Thad Blackmoor’s heart is as cold as his icy magical abilities. He considers emotions a waste of his time and prefers to study the arcane, using the sacred books of his coven to grow in his craft. He aspires to supersede his father and elder brother Pierce in power, and now that his younger brother Mason has tapped into the rare warlock power of darkness, he needs to work harder than ever. 

But Thad's ambitions are halted when he saves Aiden Teine, a fire fairy, from a banshee. Thad’s immediate attraction to Aiden catches him off guard and thaws his cold heart for the first time. As Thad, Aiden, and his brothers investigate the connection between the banshee attack and the vampyre and shadow weaver who almost killed them, Thad tries to dodge Ben, a sexy warlock who won’t let him be after a one-night stand.

Their search leads them to the Otherworld, where something even more insidious is at work—something Thad will need more than logic to stand against.

I read and reviewed the first book in this series and I gave it five stars. I was excited to read this addition to the Warlock Brothers' tales... but for some reason it didn't work quite as well for me as the first.

For me this has all the hallmarks of a great story; I love the magical world that intertwines (mostly) unknowingly with the human world. The characters are great - I loved Mason and Drake's story - the whole Blackmoor family and friends are intriguing; each character carefully different and thoughtfully written.

The magical darkness they are fighting, the fantasy aspects of the story that build and fall, the danger that twists and turns... they are great. The fight between good and evil - I particularly like how Jacob Flores makes the line between these blurred. That the line is not clear. The coven, keepers of the gate, supposedly good and working for the best for the magical beings, but their role is not that clear cut. The road to hell is paved with good intentions and all that.

So, why didn't this work? Well I racked my brains to try and figure this out. I'd pick up this book, read a  little, then put it down - yet everything about it should have ticked all my boxes. I came - eventually - to the conclusion, that it felt like too much tell for me. The story was great, but, even in first person, I felt detached from it. I didn't feel it... and because I didn't feel, I didn't care as much as I could.

I kinda guessed some of the twists, that doesn't bother me (I like figuring out what is going to happen sometimes, it makes me feel clever!). I mean didn't always know exactly how things were going down, and some things caught me by surprise, but some of it I guessed.

Looking at other reviews, many people have loved this book, so go and read some of those reviews; this is just my opinion and (despite what I tell my husband) I'm not always right!! (I'm not even going to go into the it's an opinion and an opinion is neither right or wrong but both! territory, you guys know this!) It didn't completely work for me but it just might for you, all the elements of a fab story are there.

A copy of this book was given in exchange for an honest review.

For me see Goodreads.