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Mystic Caravan Mystery #1
Freaky Days
The show must go on … even when monsters are afoot.
Poet Parker is Romani by birth and a fortune teller by choice. As a member of Mystic Caravan Circus, she’s spent the past ten years using her psychic talents to tell people what their future holds by day and hunting paranormal monsters by night.
You see, Mystic Caravan is more than just a circus – it’s also a force of good in a world that needs help fighting evil.
Poet is set in her ways – and happy with her life – until Kade Denton shows up and upends the entire operation. He’s loud and proud – and Poet doesn’t like anyone telling her what to do.
As the new head of security, Kade thinks his only job is going to be tackling drunken revelers when they get out of hand. He’s in for a rude – and bloody – awakening.
When monsters strike and the truth comes out, Kade finds he has to learn on the job with Poet as his somewhat reluctant instructor.
Sparks are flying – both real and figurative – and when a truly terrible beast targets the circus for extermination it’s all magical hands on deck for the final showdown.
Some things are born evil, but the people in Mystic Caravan were born to fight it.
Prepare to be amazed.
Poet Parker is Romani by birth and a fortune teller by choice. As a member of Mystic Caravan Circus, she’s spent the past ten years using her psychic talents to tell people what their future holds by day and hunting paranormal monsters by night.
You see, Mystic Caravan is more than just a circus – it’s also a force of good in a world that needs help fighting evil.
Poet is set in her ways – and happy with her life – until Kade Denton shows up and upends the entire operation. He’s loud and proud – and Poet doesn’t like anyone telling her what to do.
As the new head of security, Kade thinks his only job is going to be tackling drunken revelers when they get out of hand. He’s in for a rude – and bloody – awakening.
When monsters strike and the truth comes out, Kade finds he has to learn on the job with Poet as his somewhat reluctant instructor.
Sparks are flying – both real and figurative – and when a truly terrible beast targets the circus for extermination it’s all magical hands on deck for the final showdown.
Some things are born evil, but the people in Mystic Caravan were born to fight it.
Prepare to be amazed.
294 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 5, 2016
About the author
Amanda M. Lee
260 books2,721 followersWhen I was a kid, I was torn between whether or not I was going to grow up and be the Incredible Hulk or Wonder Woman. I flirted with being a Jedi Knight for awhile, but I wasn't up for the intense travel associated with the gig. In my teens, I settled on being a writer -- although I had no idea the effort that would entail.
Not only am I a writer now, but I'm a writer in several different mediums. I'm a longtime newspaper reporter, an avid reader and a voracious science fiction fanatic.
Not only am I a writer now, but I'm a writer in several different mediums. I'm a longtime newspaper reporter, an avid reader and a voracious science fiction fanatic.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 303 reviews
July 3, 2019
I was pleasantly surprised with this book and I’m over the moon with the cover!!
Loved the characters and the supernatural element! Look forward to this series!!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Loved the characters and the supernatural element! Look forward to this series!!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
June 8, 2018
What I'm about to write may give you an impression I hated this book. I didn't. I enjoyed parts of it. However, there are quite a few things that ruined the rest of it for me so much that I read all the blurbs for the next three or four books from this series. I'll get to the blurb of this one in a moment.
Starting with the good - the idea for it all is great. Mystic Caravan is an interesting place. To the outsider, it's a circus with all the things you might expect to find there. Undercover, though, most of them are paranormals who hunt other evil paranormal beings and an occasional human.
The characters, being paranormal, are an interesting bunch. The protagonist is a psychic and the rest of them range from fae to shifters to whatever decides to pop up at any given moment.
I wasn't thrilled by the rest. Starting with the blurb, which gave away almost the whole story, to juvenile characters, whom I'd expect to find in a book about much younger characters.
As for the plot point which the blurb gave away, I kept waiting for the thing to happen and it did - much, much later.
The characters are likeable, I guess. Their behaviour was a bit distracting because it would be better suited and expected of teenagers than adults. And three or four times of 'women here are stronger than men' was a bit weird too.
The thing I find the most unfortunate is a missed opportunity. Instead of focusing on the dealings of the Caravan and all that paranormal stuff, a huge chunk of it went to immature kind-of-love-triangle between Poet, Kade and third character(s) and some drama.
As I said, I read all the blurbs after this one and it's more drama than I enjoy. I might try the next one in the hope that the focus would be more on the hunting part than romance or drama.
Starting with the good - the idea for it all is great. Mystic Caravan is an interesting place. To the outsider, it's a circus with all the things you might expect to find there. Undercover, though, most of them are paranormals who hunt other evil paranormal beings and an occasional human.
The characters, being paranormal, are an interesting bunch. The protagonist is a psychic and the rest of them range from fae to shifters to whatever decides to pop up at any given moment.
I wasn't thrilled by the rest. Starting with the blurb, which gave away almost the whole story, to juvenile characters, whom I'd expect to find in a book about much younger characters.
As for the plot point which the blurb gave away, I kept waiting for the thing to happen and it did - much, much later.
The characters are likeable, I guess. Their behaviour was a bit distracting because it would be better suited and expected of teenagers than adults. And three or four times of 'women here are stronger than men' was a bit weird too.
The thing I find the most unfortunate is a missed opportunity. Instead of focusing on the dealings of the Caravan and all that paranormal stuff, a huge chunk of it went to immature kind-of-love-triangle between Poet, Kade and third character(s) and some drama.
As I said, I read all the blurbs after this one and it's more drama than I enjoy. I might try the next one in the hope that the focus would be more on the hunting part than romance or drama.
Shelved as 'dnf'
September 24, 2022Yeah, I think I'm DNFing this at 63%
It sucks because the concept is really interesting- a circus full of supernaturals that go around luring in and stopping both evil supes and corrupt humans? Sounds cool right?
Well...we do get to see the excitement of the circus along with learning about new and interesting supernaturals and their powers.... sparingly. However, the majority of the story is all about Poet and Kade's will-they-wont-they annoying relationship.
Maybe this book would have been better from Kade's POV? Or a dual POV at least, because I cannot tell you how annoying it was chapter after chapter to read about Luke or Max pushing the idea of Poet and Kade together. In fact, it was so constant all I could think was Shut up already!!
Yeah its bugging me too... this was only a SMALL handful of the pushy high school-esque comments that were made making me wonder how old the characters are meant to be? Maybe it just me, but I have a pet peeve where friends of the h/H spend a large amount of time insisting that the main couple get together despite the lead telling them they aren't interested.
Also, don't get me started on how every character was snappy, bitchy, whiney, and just crapped on each other all of the time. I mean I had a love/hate relationship growing up with my sibling (bc well..teenagers..) but I didn't say crappy things to antagonize them every chance I got. Nor did I have friendships where we sniped at each other over absolutely nothing and were still considered cool. So maybe thats just me that doesn't get it?
So yeah, despite the interesting premise I had to quit after the drunk kiss. I mean, first of all Kade kisses Poet when he thinks she has a boyfriend- and then he's making out with her when he knew she was plastered drunk. Then afterwards Luke says:
So he was drunk, but aware enough to know it wasn't right....so what... Give him an award for not sleeping with her? Give a mouse a cookie for only taking slight advantage?
Le sigh.
It sucks because the concept is really interesting- a circus full of supernaturals that go around luring in and stopping both evil supes and corrupt humans? Sounds cool right?
Well...we do get to see the excitement of the circus along with learning about new and interesting supernaturals and their powers.... sparingly. However, the majority of the story is all about Poet and Kade's will-they-wont-they annoying relationship.
Maybe this book would have been better from Kade's POV? Or a dual POV at least, because I cannot tell you how annoying it was chapter after chapter to read about Luke or Max pushing the idea of Poet and Kade together. In fact, it was so constant all I could think was Shut up already!!
“Now I get it. You two are hot for each other, but you don’t want to admit it."
“I knew you were hot for him.” “I am not hot for him,” I argued."
“Are you going to join Luke’s crusade to get Kade and me together?”
“I am not interested in him.” “You’re such a bad liar,” Luke said, organizing the bistro table and chairs we shared between our trailers. “You like him. I know you do.”
“Will you stop with your matchmaking quest?”
“You guys could fall in love and have really weirdly named children eventually.” He was starting to bug me. “Will you stop saying stuff like that?”
Yeah its bugging me too... this was only a SMALL handful of the pushy high school-esque comments that were made making me wonder how old the characters are meant to be? Maybe it just me, but I have a pet peeve where friends of the h/H spend a large amount of time insisting that the main couple get together despite the lead telling them they aren't interested.
Also, don't get me started on how every character was snappy, bitchy, whiney, and just crapped on each other all of the time. I mean I had a love/hate relationship growing up with my sibling (bc well..teenagers..) but I didn't say crappy things to antagonize them every chance I got. Nor did I have friendships where we sniped at each other over absolutely nothing and were still considered cool. So maybe thats just me that doesn't get it?
So yeah, despite the interesting premise I had to quit after the drunk kiss. I mean, first of all Kade kisses Poet when he thinks she has a boyfriend- and then he's making out with her when he knew she was plastered drunk. Then afterwards Luke says:
“Poet, don’t even think about going all … pouty … about this,” Luke warned. “He didn’t take advantage of you. He drank quite a bit last night, too, although I think his tolerance is greater than yours. He could’ve easily lost his head, but he didn’t.”
So he was drunk, but aware enough to know it wasn't right....so what... Give him an award for not sleeping with her? Give a mouse a cookie for only taking slight advantage?
Le sigh.
March 24, 2016
Imagine sitting down in your breakfast nook and eating corn flakes with Marilyn Monroe and Jimmy Stewart. I mean Hey! Marilyn Monroe and Jimmy Stewart are eating cornflakes in my breakfast nook!!!
But you know what? Eating corn flakes isn't all that interesting and it doesn't really matter who's doing it.
So this book is populated with really interesting characters who don't do anything particularly interesting. I can't help but think if Neil Gaiman was given this premise it would have been spectacular...but it's not Neil Gaiman and it feels just a little too Young Adult Cutesy to be good.
But you know what? Eating corn flakes isn't all that interesting and it doesn't really matter who's doing it.
So this book is populated with really interesting characters who don't do anything particularly interesting. I can't help but think if Neil Gaiman was given this premise it would have been spectacular...but it's not Neil Gaiman and it feels just a little too Young Adult Cutesy to be good.
June 28, 2019
I was in love with the story. I don't normally read this type of genre. I am love a good circus book and the cover on this book intrigued me and I seen all the good ratings. Also, the story line was very compelling.
I love the story of Poet, which this name is awesome for this book, and Kade. They were pulled together since he first hired on by Max. Poet wanted to tell Kade the story behind the traveling circus and the powers they contained but Max refused to let her tell him. Strange deaths began to happen and Poet would be gone long periods of time with Luke, which made questions arise for Kade about Poet and Luke. When Kade would question them being together, no specific answer would be given. He just assumed they were dating. When things began to happen inside the circus parameters and not set off the dream catcher, questions began to arise if someone inside the circus was the mystery behind some of the changlings that were showing up and the deaths that happened.
Don't miss out on this book. You must read to find out what happened and the story between Poet, Kade, and Luke. You will be amazed as it unveiled before your eyes. And the secret that been long hid inside the circus crew they call family. Someone has held a long secret.
I love the story of Poet, which this name is awesome for this book, and Kade. They were pulled together since he first hired on by Max. Poet wanted to tell Kade the story behind the traveling circus and the powers they contained but Max refused to let her tell him. Strange deaths began to happen and Poet would be gone long periods of time with Luke, which made questions arise for Kade about Poet and Luke. When Kade would question them being together, no specific answer would be given. He just assumed they were dating. When things began to happen inside the circus parameters and not set off the dream catcher, questions began to arise if someone inside the circus was the mystery behind some of the changlings that were showing up and the deaths that happened.
Don't miss out on this book. You must read to find out what happened and the story between Poet, Kade, and Luke. You will be amazed as it unveiled before your eyes. And the secret that been long hid inside the circus crew they call family. Someone has held a long secret.
January 19, 2016
Very teen like story, creatures a bit too placid, too much banter got on my nerves.
December 17, 2018
Interesting in inventive but the lead characters were annoying and juvenile...
Interesting and inventive but the lead characters were annoying and juvenile...
Poet was petulant and immature, her and Luke didn’t have the maturity level of your average 6th graders....
The way the bickered back and forth and back and forth started to give me a headache....
Her and Luke both acted,Ike two 6 yr. olds on a sugar rush when they were together, alone or dealing with a human during a fortune telling or some evil rapist age was great, but have her boss introduce her to a new employee, with Luke or watched said employee with another woman and she’s an immature child w/way too much attitude ;(
27 ? Heck no! I don’t care what the book says her age is , she acts some where between 7 and 17 ...
I felt no passion , no chemistry between these two , two kids in junior high falling in Love would have been more fun and less aggravating to endure...
And from what I could tell , ( I had to skip around to keep from throwing my kindle in frustration due to just how annoying these ppl were ) it’s also a clean romance...
Seriously Phineas and Ferb were a 100% more mature than these ppl, and if I want a clean romance and be annoyed I’ll take a one the sillier movies on the Hallmark channel...
I love that channel but some of those movies are silly and annoying , but still not as childish or immature as the MC’s here...
3 stars are purely out of respect for the writers efforts ..
I love the concept but I lose my patience w/the horrible characters before any real world building or backstories were introduced and that was chapter 15...
I’m just grateful this was KU, but I’m also disappointed because the plot was soo interesting and different and intriguing I was really hoping it would be better...
Interesting and inventive but the lead characters were annoying and juvenile...
Poet was petulant and immature, her and Luke didn’t have the maturity level of your average 6th graders....
The way the bickered back and forth and back and forth started to give me a headache....
Her and Luke both acted,Ike two 6 yr. olds on a sugar rush when they were together, alone or dealing with a human during a fortune telling or some evil rapist age was great, but have her boss introduce her to a new employee, with Luke or watched said employee with another woman and she’s an immature child w/way too much attitude ;(
27 ? Heck no! I don’t care what the book says her age is , she acts some where between 7 and 17 ...
I felt no passion , no chemistry between these two , two kids in junior high falling in Love would have been more fun and less aggravating to endure...
And from what I could tell , ( I had to skip around to keep from throwing my kindle in frustration due to just how annoying these ppl were ) it’s also a clean romance...
Seriously Phineas and Ferb were a 100% more mature than these ppl, and if I want a clean romance and be annoyed I’ll take a one the sillier movies on the Hallmark channel...
I love that channel but some of those movies are silly and annoying , but still not as childish or immature as the MC’s here...
3 stars are purely out of respect for the writers efforts ..
I love the concept but I lose my patience w/the horrible characters before any real world building or backstories were introduced and that was chapter 15...
I’m just grateful this was KU, but I’m also disappointed because the plot was soo interesting and different and intriguing I was really hoping it would be better...
January 3, 2021
Updated Review...
4.5 Stars... I hold true to the thoughts presented in my initial review... I re-read this book so I could continue on with the series and have a clear idea of the storyline... I enjoyed this read even more the second time around... I look forward to traveling with this mystical circus and watching this strangely entrancing cast of characters fight the good fight against the evil in this world, both human and supernatural:)
4 Stars...Taking the strangely fascinating elements of the circus lifestyle and adding a supernatural twist, Amanda Lee creates a unique world for her readers to get lost... Poet heads up this all star cast of characters as a Romani with a sharp intelligence and even sharper tongue; a survivor of life’s harsh circumstances, she does not trust easily especially in matters of the heart... Enter in Kade Denton, ex- military alpha male who finds himself absolutely besotted with Poet; unbeknownst to him is the true nature of this magical circus, monster hunters... These two must come together to protect the innocent and keep the family thriving for everyone knows “The show must go on!”... Filled with memorable characters, witty one liners, and a variety of paranormal beings this read was fun from start to finish.:)
4.5 Stars... I hold true to the thoughts presented in my initial review... I re-read this book so I could continue on with the series and have a clear idea of the storyline... I enjoyed this read even more the second time around... I look forward to traveling with this mystical circus and watching this strangely entrancing cast of characters fight the good fight against the evil in this world, both human and supernatural:)
4 Stars...Taking the strangely fascinating elements of the circus lifestyle and adding a supernatural twist, Amanda Lee creates a unique world for her readers to get lost... Poet heads up this all star cast of characters as a Romani with a sharp intelligence and even sharper tongue; a survivor of life’s harsh circumstances, she does not trust easily especially in matters of the heart... Enter in Kade Denton, ex- military alpha male who finds himself absolutely besotted with Poet; unbeknownst to him is the true nature of this magical circus, monster hunters... These two must come together to protect the innocent and keep the family thriving for everyone knows “The show must go on!”... Filled with memorable characters, witty one liners, and a variety of paranormal beings this read was fun from start to finish.:)
February 4, 2020
Mind the dreamcatcher.
Loved this, even if it seems like it’s just reinforcing the stereotype that circuses are creepy AF. Poet is an intelligent woman who is dealing with a newcomer, Kade, stepping on her turf (so to speak) as he takes over the position of security for the circus. This leads to all sorts of complications Poet does not need including developing feelings for the new guy, dealing with a BFF with a raging case of foot in mouth, and a smattering of jealousy on the side; all while trying to hunt down the evil monsters that are drawn to the circus.
4 stars ⭐️
Loved this, even if it seems like it’s just reinforcing the stereotype that circuses are creepy AF. Poet is an intelligent woman who is dealing with a newcomer, Kade, stepping on her turf (so to speak) as he takes over the position of security for the circus. This leads to all sorts of complications Poet does not need including developing feelings for the new guy, dealing with a BFF with a raging case of foot in mouth, and a smattering of jealousy on the side; all while trying to hunt down the evil monsters that are drawn to the circus.
4 stars ⭐️
August 21, 2022
Fun read with plenty of snark and a smidgen of sexiness.
January 11, 2021
DNF at 51%
It started out great but became very very boring and shallow, not interesting enough for another 49%
It started out great but became very very boring and shallow, not interesting enough for another 49%
January 8, 2021
So much talking !!! And nothing happens . I've had enough .
DNF at 67%
DNF at 67%
January 18, 2021
Okay, easy read.
I have to agree with some of the reviews I've seen, this come across as a high school romance rather than an adult story. Poet is immature, even though she's supposed to be in charge of the show. She fights with Raven over a boy, pretends she's unavailable to Kade but then gets jealous when he spends time with Raven. She acts like a petulant child when Max won't tell her what she wants to know, just generally seems more like a sixteen year old.
I did like the different paranormal characters, there were some that you don't normally see like Romani and wendigos. The caravan travelling around fighting monsters reminded me of the tv show Supernatural, different monsters in every city lol. There was also some funny banter between Luke and Poet that made me chuckle and gave a lighthearted feel to the story.
The audiobook was really quick to get through and the narrator did a good job reading Poet.
I have to agree with some of the reviews I've seen, this come across as a high school romance rather than an adult story. Poet is immature, even though she's supposed to be in charge of the show. She fights with Raven over a boy, pretends she's unavailable to Kade but then gets jealous when he spends time with Raven. She acts like a petulant child when Max won't tell her what she wants to know, just generally seems more like a sixteen year old.
I did like the different paranormal characters, there were some that you don't normally see like Romani and wendigos. The caravan travelling around fighting monsters reminded me of the tv show Supernatural, different monsters in every city lol. There was also some funny banter between Luke and Poet that made me chuckle and gave a lighthearted feel to the story.
The audiobook was really quick to get through and the narrator did a good job reading Poet.
September 6, 2019
Fun and clever
For the first quarter or so of this book I thought that the main character, Poet, was too whiny and immature for words. Fortunately, she improved and her character flaws got explained and/or ironed out over the course of the story or I'm not sure I could have continued, no matter how fun and clever the rest of the story turned out to be. Which it was, fun and clever. I love the traveling circus setting and this one is done pretty well. The characters are diverse and the interactions are pretty humorous. I'll keep reading the series.
For the first quarter or so of this book I thought that the main character, Poet, was too whiny and immature for words. Fortunately, she improved and her character flaws got explained and/or ironed out over the course of the story or I'm not sure I could have continued, no matter how fun and clever the rest of the story turned out to be. Which it was, fun and clever. I love the traveling circus setting and this one is done pretty well. The characters are diverse and the interactions are pretty humorous. I'll keep reading the series.
October 5, 2018
First time reader of this author and now i am hooked. This was such a great, easy and creative series. i was hooked after the first page.
The characters were easy to fall in love with and follow, along with the story. the author made the mental visions so easy and vivid of the surroundings and the characters actions felt so real.
i would highly recommend this author and this series.
The characters were easy to fall in love with and follow, along with the story. the author made the mental visions so easy and vivid of the surroundings and the characters actions felt so real.
i would highly recommend this author and this series.
July 30, 2024
This was last week's pick for my Tarot Book Challenge.
It was randomly chosen for the Major Arcana XII - The Hanged Man, also found as THE HANGING MAN in some decks, like mine here, in this pic - Tarot Grand Luxe by Ciro Marchetti.
Tarot doesn't play a major role here, even though Poet, the FMC, uses a deck for fortune telling, because neither the cards nor their inferred meaning are described at any point - apart from a mention of shuffling and cutting the deck now and then. But the book is great.
Fun banter, sass and snark, an intriguing mystery and solid characters are the perfect recipe for a potentially addictive read and this book delivers.
Poet is a Romani making a living as a fortune teller at a circus. Nothing extraordinary about that, right? Except that Mystic Caravan is more than just a circus – it’s also a force of good in a world that needs help fighting evil, and its performers entertains people by day while hunting paranormal monsters by night. And after 10 years on the job, they have everything down to a comfortable routine, until the boss hires a new head of security - Kade.
Kade doesn't even suspect a supernatural world exists and the boss wants to keep him in the dark. But that is something a tiny bit hard to do, with drained bodies popping up, alongside eviscerated owls and all sorts of nasties of the dark kind. Especially for Poet, who's in charge of showing him the ropes. And it doesn't help that they seem to resent each other from the get-go. The two will have to find a way to work together without killing each other, especially Kade, who might need to 'pull the stick out of his really well-shaped and ridiculously muscular rear end.' And of course sparks end up flying. The way these two love each other while wanting to kill each other at the same time is truly something to behold. But that wasn't the main highlight of the tale for me. That was the found family.
I loved the Circus and all the crazies travelling with it. Except for Mark the jackhole and Sid the creepy groper that is. And Raven rubbed me the wrong way on occasion too.
But the rest of the crowd makes up for a totally awesome found family, of the crazy kind. My favourites were Nellie, the resident bearded lady, with a penchant for sequined evening gowns and head chopping, and Luke, the BFF, who finds his greatest joy in making people laugh. Though I must admit his bedroom jokes at the expense of Kade and Poet did become a tad over the top annoying now and then.
All in all, this was a thumping fun read I highly recommend.
And, as a side note for those who were wondering, despite all the mentions of 'rumble in the jungle, burying the bone, making the beast with two backs, bagging the bishop, rolling in the hay and putting the basilisk into the Chamber of Secrets', there's no on page sex in this book. Like... at all.
It was randomly chosen for the Major Arcana XII - The Hanged Man, also found as THE HANGING MAN in some decks, like mine here, in this pic - Tarot Grand Luxe by Ciro Marchetti.
Tarot doesn't play a major role here, even though Poet, the FMC, uses a deck for fortune telling, because neither the cards nor their inferred meaning are described at any point - apart from a mention of shuffling and cutting the deck now and then. But the book is great.
Fun banter, sass and snark, an intriguing mystery and solid characters are the perfect recipe for a potentially addictive read and this book delivers.
Poet is a Romani making a living as a fortune teller at a circus. Nothing extraordinary about that, right? Except that Mystic Caravan is more than just a circus – it’s also a force of good in a world that needs help fighting evil, and its performers entertains people by day while hunting paranormal monsters by night. And after 10 years on the job, they have everything down to a comfortable routine, until the boss hires a new head of security - Kade.
Kade doesn't even suspect a supernatural world exists and the boss wants to keep him in the dark. But that is something a tiny bit hard to do, with drained bodies popping up, alongside eviscerated owls and all sorts of nasties of the dark kind. Especially for Poet, who's in charge of showing him the ropes. And it doesn't help that they seem to resent each other from the get-go. The two will have to find a way to work together without killing each other, especially Kade, who might need to 'pull the stick out of his really well-shaped and ridiculously muscular rear end.' And of course sparks end up flying. The way these two love each other while wanting to kill each other at the same time is truly something to behold. But that wasn't the main highlight of the tale for me. That was the found family.
I loved the Circus and all the crazies travelling with it. Except for Mark the jackhole and Sid the creepy groper that is. And Raven rubbed me the wrong way on occasion too.
But the rest of the crowd makes up for a totally awesome found family, of the crazy kind. My favourites were Nellie, the resident bearded lady, with a penchant for sequined evening gowns and head chopping, and Luke, the BFF, who finds his greatest joy in making people laugh. Though I must admit his bedroom jokes at the expense of Kade and Poet did become a tad over the top annoying now and then.
All in all, this was a thumping fun read I highly recommend.
And, as a side note for those who were wondering, despite all the mentions of 'rumble in the jungle, burying the bone, making the beast with two backs, bagging the bishop, rolling in the hay and putting the basilisk into the Chamber of Secrets', there's no on page sex in this book. Like... at all.
March 1, 2023
Great start
I have a good feeling about the rest of this series if book 1 is anything to go by. Well written with great characters and a well timed storyline, this author hasn't missed a beat
I have a good feeling about the rest of this series if book 1 is anything to go by. Well written with great characters and a well timed storyline, this author hasn't missed a beat
August 26, 2022
This book is a great reminder that reading other people's reviews is fine, but you shouldn't let them make decisions about whether or not you read a book. I really enjoyed this, but if I'd let other people's reviews decide for me I probably wouldn't have tried this out and that would have been a loss.
Other reviews talked a lot about how immature Poet is, and how her snarkiness got old very fast. I didn't react to this book that way at all. In fact I LOVED how sarcastic Poet is! Her approach is very similar to mine, except I usually keep my snark inside my head rather than saying it out loud . . . usually. I loved Poet's sense of humour and dark approach to the crazy her life is made up of. In fact not only did I laugh out loud multiple times, but I even snorted a few times from laughing. The humour in this story was great!
I found this story to be unique, creative, quiky and very entertaining. A travelling circus that doubles as a troupe of monster-hunters has so much scope for great stories, and this author told a very clever and exciting story here. I was delighted to discover that there are a number of additional books in this series and I am definitely going to be buying them and continuing to go along on Poet and the gang's adventures. This book was really good!
Other reviews talked a lot about how immature Poet is, and how her snarkiness got old very fast. I didn't react to this book that way at all. In fact I LOVED how sarcastic Poet is! Her approach is very similar to mine, except I usually keep my snark inside my head rather than saying it out loud . . . usually. I loved Poet's sense of humour and dark approach to the crazy her life is made up of. In fact not only did I laugh out loud multiple times, but I even snorted a few times from laughing. The humour in this story was great!
I found this story to be unique, creative, quiky and very entertaining. A travelling circus that doubles as a troupe of monster-hunters has so much scope for great stories, and this author told a very clever and exciting story here. I was delighted to discover that there are a number of additional books in this series and I am definitely going to be buying them and continuing to go along on Poet and the gang's adventures. This book was really good!
July 14, 2018
A different kind of supernatural book.
First I must say that the cover of this book is what drew me in. Second, it sounded very interesting. Third, this is a different kind of supernatural book.
Absolutely awesome! Poet is funny and tough. Luke... Gotta love the funny as hell gay bestie! Absolutely love him! Kade grew on me with his humor as well. Poet and Kade are absolutely cute! This would be a super long review if I went through all of the characters. Each one is cool, funny and unique. This being my fist book by this author, I was not disappointed. If you love the supernatural world, this is a book you should read. I know that I will be reading the entire series! This book was that good!
First I must say that the cover of this book is what drew me in. Second, it sounded very interesting. Third, this is a different kind of supernatural book.
Absolutely awesome! Poet is funny and tough. Luke... Gotta love the funny as hell gay bestie! Absolutely love him! Kade grew on me with his humor as well. Poet and Kade are absolutely cute! This would be a super long review if I went through all of the characters. Each one is cool, funny and unique. This being my fist book by this author, I was not disappointed. If you love the supernatural world, this is a book you should read. I know that I will be reading the entire series! This book was that good!
January 7, 2016
Really didn't enjoy this new series. Characters to too similar to others in established series (like Harper and Zander - they are the equivalent to Poet and Luke in this one). Maybe as the characters are developed in future books things will feel more coherent. The entire premise is just too surreal to find appealing at this point. There are some fun characters (like Kellie) but overall, I wasn't a fan. I love all of Ms Lee's other books - she is a talented writer. Overall I guess it was that the characters just weren't different enough from others she had to make it truly feel like a new series.
January 12, 2022
I know 80% of the things I read tend to be straight up romances (and another 19% are things that have significant romantic elements to them) but I was just not in the mood for romance today. I wanted to read about a monster hunting traveling circus with possibly some romantic elements and what I got was a romance I was not in the mood for. And not one I was particularly invested in, at that. Honestly, Poet and Kade's issues could have easily taken a backseat to a bulked up version of the monster hunting story and I would have been perfectly happy. This series is something like 10 books in, so I'm not in a huge hurry to get to the boyfriend-girlfriend stuff and one of the things I enjoy about reading a series is that there is frequently a slower burn when there are romantic relationships.
As for the mystery... eh. There were several things that I thought were going to happen, but never did. I had kind of accidentally spoiled myself as to what was going to happen by reading a synopsis of the next book (a little irritated with myself for doing that) so it's hard to tell if the ending of the book was a big shocker.
I'm not sure if I'm going to keep going with this series. The writing was fine, but the plotting was a little lacking, and Poet got a wee bit over the top at times. By the end, I just kept thinking how much I wanted the book to end so I could listen to something else. It's possible the books get better as they go, but I'm not sure if I care enough to find out -- which kind of sucks because I could seriously go for a series about monster hunting carnies.
The narrator was solid, although there were a few shaky bits. Four stars for her.
As for the mystery... eh. There were several things that I thought were going to happen, but never did. I had kind of accidentally spoiled myself as to what was going to happen by reading a synopsis of the next book (a little irritated with myself for doing that) so it's hard to tell if the ending of the book was a big shocker.
I'm not sure if I'm going to keep going with this series. The writing was fine, but the plotting was a little lacking, and Poet got a wee bit over the top at times. By the end, I just kept thinking how much I wanted the book to end so I could listen to something else. It's possible the books get better as they go, but I'm not sure if I care enough to find out -- which kind of sucks because I could seriously go for a series about monster hunting carnies.
The narrator was solid, although there were a few shaky bits. Four stars for her.
March 26, 2019
I probably wont carry this series on, although the different paranormal's were a great addition and the whole circus lifestyle was a great fresh take on things I felt the big ending could have had more references to its disturbance throughout the book, most of the bad activity had no connection the the final reveal.
Also although funny Luke did grate on me with so so so so so many sex references, its all he seemed to do, it probably takes up quarter of the actual novel.
The characters did seem a little lacking in the chemistry and personality, i would have like to have a little more of Poet's inner monologue to understand were her thoughts were rather than trying to understand her while batting constantly at Luke.
It did have a great LOL moment for me though.
“What was he doing?”
“Sweeping.”
“How can you be sure?” Kade pressed.
“Because he had a broom and he wasn’t using it to play Quidditch,”
Also although funny Luke did grate on me with so so so so so many sex references, its all he seemed to do, it probably takes up quarter of the actual novel.
The characters did seem a little lacking in the chemistry and personality, i would have like to have a little more of Poet's inner monologue to understand were her thoughts were rather than trying to understand her while batting constantly at Luke.
It did have a great LOL moment for me though.
“What was he doing?”
“Sweeping.”
“How can you be sure?” Kade pressed.
“Because he had a broom and he wasn’t using it to play Quidditch,”
June 28, 2018
A fun start to the Mystic Caravan series. I always wanted to grow up and join the circus! Now i can just read about it. A great premise for this series makes it a fun read. I know I will be reading more of Poet, Kade, and Luke!
January 30, 2021
Well what can I say. there were some great parts to this like the pixie twins, yet some parts were lacking. The love triangle was annoying and all the characters seemed really immature and it took away from the story. i like the dream catcher and some of the powers. Not too sure whether to read on or not.
May 24, 2022
Really interesting premise and most of the characters are fun. The plot is intriguing.
It could have been 4 stars but the main couple was frustrating. The will-they-won’t-they was too forced and took up too many pages.
It could have been 4 stars but the main couple was frustrating. The will-they-won’t-they was too forced and took up too many pages.
April 22, 2021
DNF - Stopping at 63% - It's an okay book, but I'm not going to force myself to finish it.
I picked this book up because of the covers.
It starts out strong, the premise of a traveling circus of super natural people fighting the evils of humanity and paranormals. How awesome does that sound?
That's not what this books is about. The set up gave so much potential for many monsters to be discovered and deep dives into everyone's powers/back story. But instead this is the sub-sub plot. The battles with evil as if it's a huge inconvenience on their life.(even though they ask for the evil to find them.) At the 63% point, the cast has taken out 3 villains, but each of them were a hassle, something dealt with in a page or so to get back to the main plot.
Poet's Instant Love life.
I read through the future blurbs and it looks like the main plot of this series is Poet's drama. The series title has Mystery in it, but there was no such plot in this book unless it included Poet's personal drama.
There was one point that she read a guys mind, and he was thinking, "I really thought she was the one." I got ready for this to be some deeper mystery that we were going to explore, but no,
Then there is the mystery of why Luke is trying so hard to hook Poet up with Kade, his obsession with sexual innuendos (these lines alone have to be a 3rd of the book), and Kade's secret that Max has been hinting to, but Kade hasn't noticed. (I assume this plot line will end up being the true 'mystery' of the story but the entire cast except Poet was ignoring Max's weird behavior with Kade, and Kade's strange joining of the circus, so . . . ) We'll call this the sub-plot.
Onto the main plot. High School Drama.
"Kade's so hot, I'm hot, you're hot. We're a circus of gorgeous people. Sexy. The exact word our patrons think when they enter our circus." Said by Luke at some point I'm sure. *eye roll*
The cast acts like they are apart of the Mean Girls cast. Love triangles over the new model-esk guy that comes into the circus one minute, then being a crew the next. Poet's personality makes zero sense. Some scenes she is the second in command, running the circus, others she is a bratty 16 year old. Whining about the guy she has only known for a week.
Oh yes, instant love is all over this book.
No one falls in love in a week. Especially if they are a tight nit band of shunned from society freaks. Trust should take time. Has this relationship been a slow burn the book would have been much stronger for it. I'm quitting at a point that it just the last straw with the annoyance of how much this really is the full plot.
I am disappointed at the lost potential. This series had a ton of it.
I picked this book up because of the covers.
It starts out strong, the premise of a traveling circus of super natural people fighting the evils of humanity and paranormals. How awesome does that sound?
That's not what this books is about. The set up gave so much potential for many monsters to be discovered and deep dives into everyone's powers/back story. But instead this is the sub-sub plot. The battles with evil as if it's a huge inconvenience on their life.(even though they ask for the evil to find them.) At the 63% point, the cast has taken out 3 villains, but each of them were a hassle, something dealt with in a page or so to get back to the main plot.
Poet's Instant Love life.
I read through the future blurbs and it looks like the main plot of this series is Poet's drama. The series title has Mystery in it, but there was no such plot in this book unless it included Poet's personal drama.
There was one point that she read a guys mind, and he was thinking, "I really thought she was the one." I got ready for this to be some deeper mystery that we were going to explore, but no,
Then there is the mystery of why Luke is trying so hard to hook Poet up with Kade, his obsession with sexual innuendos (these lines alone have to be a 3rd of the book), and Kade's secret that Max has been hinting to, but Kade hasn't noticed. (I assume this plot line will end up being the true 'mystery' of the story but the entire cast except Poet was ignoring Max's weird behavior with Kade, and Kade's strange joining of the circus, so . . . ) We'll call this the sub-plot.
Onto the main plot. High School Drama.
"Kade's so hot, I'm hot, you're hot. We're a circus of gorgeous people. Sexy. The exact word our patrons think when they enter our circus." Said by Luke at some point I'm sure. *eye roll*
The cast acts like they are apart of the Mean Girls cast. Love triangles over the new model-esk guy that comes into the circus one minute, then being a crew the next. Poet's personality makes zero sense. Some scenes she is the second in command, running the circus, others she is a bratty 16 year old. Whining about the guy she has only known for a week.
Oh yes, instant love is all over this book.
No one falls in love in a week. Especially if they are a tight nit band of shunned from society freaks. Trust should take time. Has this relationship been a slow burn the book would have been much stronger for it. I'm quitting at a point that it just the last straw with the annoyance of how much this really is the full plot.
I am disappointed at the lost potential. This series had a ton of it.
May 16, 2019
usual good mix between comedy and great story line.
August 14, 2018
I enjoyed the setting and characters, although it did read a bit more YA than expected as the characters are in their 20s.
What I enjoyed:
* Setting - a traveling circus/carnival where most the workers are paranormal of some sort and they are also monster hunters.
* Poet - other than acting like she was 12 around Kade for most the book, she was really interesting. She is basically in charge of the circus. Her friendship with Luke is adorable. She is the fortune-teller and can read minds.
* Luke was adorable to read, although I'm pretty sure I would be ready to kill him after about 10 minutes in person.
* Kade - the newcomer in charge of security who isn't aware of the secrets and who is definitely interested in Poet, but the cause of a love triangle as Raven is very interested in him.
* the rest of the circus - the characters are intriguing and it is interesting that it is mentioned a few times that the females are much more powerful than the males
What could have been better:
* Poet acting liking a 12-year-old with her first crush was ridiculous for someone who likes to be in charge of everything.
* It took a long time to get to the actual main mystery and then it wrapped up quickly.
What I enjoyed:
* Setting - a traveling circus/carnival where most the workers are paranormal of some sort and they are also monster hunters.
* Poet - other than acting like she was 12 around Kade for most the book, she was really interesting. She is basically in charge of the circus. Her friendship with Luke is adorable. She is the fortune-teller and can read minds.
* Luke was adorable to read, although I'm pretty sure I would be ready to kill him after about 10 minutes in person.
* Kade - the newcomer in charge of security who isn't aware of the secrets and who is definitely interested in Poet, but the cause of a love triangle as Raven is very interested in him.
* the rest of the circus - the characters are intriguing and it is interesting that it is mentioned a few times that the females are much more powerful than the males
What could have been better:
* Poet acting liking a 12-year-old with her first crush was ridiculous for someone who likes to be in charge of everything.
* It took a long time to get to the actual main mystery and then it wrapped up quickly.
August 13, 2022
WARNING: Crude content; sexual innuendo and euphemisms.
I thought I had read this series a few years ago and noticed new books, so I went back to book one for a refresher. I was wrong, and it was a Bad Plan!
The series is pretty good, over all. But the first book--this one--is almost entirely sexual innuendo and euphemisms. There are a couple of dozen (not in a row) pages of story; the rest is supposed to be humorous joking. Instead, it's disgusting trash.
Reading this book is not necessary for the series. If you decide to read it, skim over everything Luke says, and you will miss most of the worst.
What the author was thinking, releasing this again--with new covers but no changes or corrections to the text--I can't imagine. It certainly lowers my expectations for her other books, and tells me how little she respects me as a reader.
Fortunately, I skimmed and skipped to the end this time, but I now keep copies of my reviews, so this mistake will not be repeated.
1/5 Stars
P.S.
Good heavens, woman! Stop saying people cross their arms "over their chest!" Where else do people cross their arms? Is it ever unclear? Just in book 1, you said it over 14 times, and it continues in other books! Enough, already!
I thought I had read this series a few years ago and noticed new books, so I went back to book one for a refresher. I was wrong, and it was a Bad Plan!
The series is pretty good, over all. But the first book--this one--is almost entirely sexual innuendo and euphemisms. There are a couple of dozen (not in a row) pages of story; the rest is supposed to be humorous joking. Instead, it's disgusting trash.
Reading this book is not necessary for the series. If you decide to read it, skim over everything Luke says, and you will miss most of the worst.
What the author was thinking, releasing this again--with new covers but no changes or corrections to the text--I can't imagine. It certainly lowers my expectations for her other books, and tells me how little she respects me as a reader.
Fortunately, I skimmed and skipped to the end this time, but I now keep copies of my reviews, so this mistake will not be repeated.
1/5 Stars
P.S.
Good heavens, woman! Stop saying people cross their arms "over their chest!" Where else do people cross their arms? Is it ever unclear? Just in book 1, you said it over 14 times, and it continues in other books! Enough, already!
September 11, 2019
Let the good times roll - bring out the monsters!
A good read. Okay the real mystery didn't take place until nearly the end of the book and I have read several other books on a similar theme. However the characters are brilliant - individual, zany, sometimes funny but all come across as real and vibrant. The imagery cast actually let's you see all the action in your minds eye in full colour whilst the dialogue is witty, funny and full of emotion.
She was pulled off the streets and has been a member of the troupe for years (along with her BFF, a wolf shifter) but now she feels threatened. Her boss has brought in a new head of security, a human. Worse he doesn't know that the gang are all different supernaturals and they are monster hunters. Monsters that might be supernatural or human. Watch as they try to hide the truth whilst see tries to hide her growing attraction to the human. However it all comes to a big showdown when they are attacked again. The difference this time is that the monster could be hiding in plain sight! The monster could be one of them!
A good read. Okay the real mystery didn't take place until nearly the end of the book and I have read several other books on a similar theme. However the characters are brilliant - individual, zany, sometimes funny but all come across as real and vibrant. The imagery cast actually let's you see all the action in your minds eye in full colour whilst the dialogue is witty, funny and full of emotion.
She was pulled off the streets and has been a member of the troupe for years (along with her BFF, a wolf shifter) but now she feels threatened. Her boss has brought in a new head of security, a human. Worse he doesn't know that the gang are all different supernaturals and they are monster hunters. Monsters that might be supernatural or human. Watch as they try to hide the truth whilst see tries to hide her growing attraction to the human. However it all comes to a big showdown when they are attacked again. The difference this time is that the monster could be hiding in plain sight! The monster could be one of them!
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