I hope your holidays were quiet and peaceful. Our Christmas was low stress and chill, with lots of gifts and warm and cozy family time. I got a new toolkit, markers, and yarn. Beautiful yarn! Hehehehe.
It’s Monday. All of the previous giveaway winners have been taken care of. Their prizes have been sent or put into production and they should be receiving them shortly.
I’ve had a very frustrating morning. Our health insurer pulled out of the state exchange and so we are back to BCBS HMO, and that means trying to get a primary doctor for all referrals. I cannot even explain what a PIA that has been so far. Grrr. I finally gave up and called Jeaniene to vent.
Oh, by the way, this was not from my cousin-in-law but from Jeaniene.
I should’ve known!
Also the following dialogue had taken place just before Christmas.
Gordon: Strange package from Amazon. No specific sender.
Me: What’s in it?
Gordon: Wagyu beef lard, black garlic, and a stuffed toy French fires. Who would send us expensive lard?
Me: I have no idea. Was this misaddressed?
Gordon: I have to tell you, the idea that unknown and possibly random people are sending us packages is vaguely upsetting.
The next day…
Grace Draven, texting: Did you get an Amazon delivery yesterday?
Me: It was you!
Grace: I thought you would figure it out because of the fries.
I am in possession of gourmet lard and black garlic. I must do something with it. But the French Fries are probably the best. I’ve hugged them already. They helped.
The Last 2024 Giveaway
I promised you one more. This one will be a very simple one and will have no monetary value assigned to it. Not very exciting. There will be just one prize.
Prize:
- The winner will receive one spot on ARC list for all Ilona Andrews fiction for the year 2025. Meaning, you will get to read Maggie early and whatever else is coming down the pipeline.
Limitations:
- For the legal purposes, we might have to ask you to sign a document stating that you will not upload or share confidential files. It will not be a full NDA, as in we will not prevent you from discussing the book, but we might request that you stick to a certain time frame. We will have to coordinate with our publisher. This is not a reflection on BDH trustworthiness, but more of a standard operating procedure because there is a publishing partner involved.
Who Can Enter:
- Anyone.
How to Enter:
Leave a comment on this blog post telling us which is your favorite Ilona Andrews book and why. If you are a new reader and haven’t tried us before, leave us a comment wishing us happy holidays. You must comment here, on the blog. Not on Facebook or on Insta, on this blog post. Here is a link if you are reading the article in your email newsletter.
Deadline:
You must enter by the end of Thursday, January 2nd. Winners will be announced on Friday.
I love Magic Bites, the first Kate Daniels book. . . but I also love all of your books. Thank you for the work you do!
After MUCH deliberation, I think my favorite is Magic Strikes. I love the banter, all the characters together, and the Midnight games. The first two are good (of course) but this is where the Kate series really gets going.
Happy New Year to you all! My favorite book at the moment is Sanctuary. I think sometimes that some music fans enjoy music like that: the composition of setting, feelings, characters and dialogue. This time of year it feels to me as if the novel very subtly but with strong images walks through the maslow pyramid. I have no eggnog – but Glühwein works for me and the local pair of korgurusha-kin keeps me company reading the novel.
I wish you a very healthy 2025 and a lot of Puffles for all of us.
Happy New Year!
Of Swine and Roses would be my most read book. I love that Alena is a precursor to all the Baylors and her world made me love hidden legacy before its inception. Even at a young age, Alena does what is needed to take care of the innocent around her and knows how to handle duty to family. I read it whenever I don’t have the time to fully immerse myself in one of the Andrew’s’ full novels.
This is a very hard choice! I think overall my favorite IA book is Sweep of the Blade, because Maud is a fascinating character and I very much enjoy all interactions between her and any vampire. Also Helen is adorable and perfect.
Happy Everything and Merry Always (as a post I saw somewhere on The Socials said)!
My favorite Ilona Andrews book this quarter (i.e.: whatever I just re-read for the umpteenth time) is Magic Bites- it introduced me to the Magipocalypse of Post-Shift Atlanta without an infodump! Just enough info to keep me intrigued- the character voices were SPLENDID, and by the time we got to “Here, kitty, kitty,” I knew I would follow Kate and the authors _anywhere_ they led me. And I have.
Happy Holidays! How can I pick just one? I think they are all my favorite!
My favorite is the from the Edge series! Steel’s edge!
Spoilers alert!
A female lead who rages against infertility, has the ability to mass slaughter a country, but instead chooses to take down a ring of slavers. And does this with class, charm and impeccable manners.
Also, she gets a man as classy as she is but with a roguish back ground
One Fell Sweep. For lots of reasons, but let’s sum it up with f* genocide.
If I had to choose, my favorite book would be Hidden Legacy (yes, all of them, even the snippets!). Well, if I’m not reading Kate that is, ‘cause then it’s Kate. Oh, or Julie! Or Hugh! I also love The Edge series, especially Bayou Moon… And if it’s Innkeeper, then Maud’s book is my favorite! And… ok, I’m sorry, I can’t choose! I’ll just stop now. Thank you so much for doing what you do!! You rock!!
Hi, Happy New Year!
I love all IA books as they tend to be my comfort reads. I find myself reaching for them whenever I’m stressed or even just bored. I still get the same thrill I had when I first discovered them, I especially love rereading Magic Bites over and over.
Kate will always be my favorite fantasy heroine.
White Hot! I love the world building, magic structure, Mad Rogan, and all of House Baylor. Absolutely epic.
It’s so hard to choose just one. Going with Burn for Me, just because. Love all the books in all the worlds.
At the moment, my favorite is Magic Claims, because of all the new possibilities that have opened up by the end!
Hard to choose a favorite. I’ve been binging through all the series this holiday season. They have kept me sane.
But if I must choose, it’s Sweep of the Blade. Something about surviving a bad husband and the planet from hell and finally ending up with the respect of the best house in the Holy Anocracy that just makes me love Maud.
It’s hard to pick a favorite, but Magic Bleeds and Wildfire hold special places for me.
Happy New Year! It’s so hard for me to choose but I think I have to go with Silent Blade, which is one of my comfort reads. My favorite series is definitely Innkeeper.
Magic Binds because it has a little bit of everything and is magical✨
Iron and Magic is my fav! But I really do love them all, haha.
Innkeeper, Sweep of the Heart (but gosh, picking a favorite book is like telling me to pick a favorite child!)
Thanks for all the stories and countless hours of entertainment your writing has provided! Happy holidays!
My favorite book is One Fell Sweep …. well really all of the Innkeeper books (because who wouldn’t want a house that can adjust its shape and has portals to different worlds!), but that is probably my favorite one. I love how deep Dina’s relationship with Gertrude Hunt is portrayed and shown in this book. I love the development of Dina and Sean’s relationship after his hardships. I love Dina being able to help the Hiru because of her convictions. So many things to love about this book even when some of them make me cry every time I reread it
Sweep of the Blade because of the rule of Bronwyn. World building at it’s best
Boy, this was a tough choice – like trying to choose between dark chocolate with peppermint, dark chocolate with raspberries or dark chocolate with hazelnuts. All equally delicious and satisfying when in need of comfort. I’m leaning towards Sweep of the Blade because Maud+Helen+rippercushions = dark chocolate plus laughs and Maud holding her own against Lady Ilemina was just so epic. Happy New Year everyone and wishing you all good health, comfort, gratitude and as much chocolate as needed to get through the easy and tough times.
Happy New Year! I love so many of your books. I think I’m going to say my favorite book is the one that introduced me to you all which was Clean Sweep.
Happy New Year. I hope you have a great year. I am a frequent reader my whole life. I hope I can assist with this opportunity. Thank you Charlene
Sweep of the Blade
Magic Bites. Because first Kate Daniels book and I was hooked forever.
Happy New Year to all!
Oh my god. It’s like trying to choose your favorite child. I think my favorite is probably Magic Strikes. I love reading the Midnight Games. But my favorite line is from Magic Binds—I have family in town for the wedding
So hard to pick just one but I guess it would be Sweep of the Blade because I have listened to at least 5 times.
I have to say I’m torn between One Fell Sweep and Magic Claims, but if I choose based one which IA title I’ve re-read the most, it’s One Fell Sweep!
I can’t pick a single favorite, but recently have been rereading Magic Claims the most.
Magic Bites would be my favorite because it’s the start of one of my favorite series. I never get tired of reading it. I love the line “‘Here, kitty, kitty, kitty.’” it still makes me smile every time I read it.
Cautiously optimistic New Year to House Andrews and the BDH.
As much as I love ALL your books, I think my favorite is Sweep in Peace because of the factions – Vampires and Otrokars and Arbitrators, oh my! – the stakes, and the introduction of Orro. The Autumn Festival alone would put it near the top of my list.
Burn for Me, I love pretty much all the books in Hidden Legacy the most the world itself fascinates me. So similar to ours and yet so very different. 🙂 Also I’m curious do the fries come out of the holder? I got emotional support nuggets for secret Santa and I love them.
Magic Shifts is always a favorite because there lives change so much! It truly is a world changer. It is also full of the sly humor I love from the series, like.
“You see, the mailman saw your husband during one of his walks.”
“He’s my fiancé,” I told her. “We are living in sin.”
Heather blinked, momentarily knocked off her stride, but recovered. “Oh, that’s nice.”
“It’s very nice. I highly recommend it.”
Thanks 4 all the books Love them all
This is a tough choice, but I guess I’d say Magic Bites is my umbrella favorite, since it’s the book that got me into all other Ilona Andrews books. They have seen me through some dark times and some light times, and they will continue to do so.
PS. Pro tip about the black garlic, as a recently enlightened recipient of my own sample: it’s fantastic when spread on a cracker and paired with a mild, nutty cheese, like Manchego.
HAPPINESS AND LOVE FOR YOU.
Magic Bleeds is one of my favorite, a lot happen we discover the heritage, the love
the loyalty they experience for each other.
Ooh, picking a favorite Ilona Andrews book is like picking a favorite gourmet chocolate- I love them all. I recommend them to anyone and everyone. Emerald Blaze may be my favorite, by a hair. Sweep in Peace is a close second, maybe tied with Blood Heir. But there’s not a single book I wouldn’t pick up as a comfort read. Y’all are my favorites.
I find it really hard to choose just one. I am going with Burn for Me, because I read and re-read it during a difficult pregnancy. But also love Kate very much.
Hey House of Andrews! I absolutely love Nevada and Rogan and Caitlin and Alessandro. Their family bonds and the warmth that exudes from them is amazing! I have to say that one thing I absolutely love about all your book couples is that the women aren’t waiting for the menfolk to come and save them. Cant wait for more of your books to come out!
Happy New Year. To get an exact would be a dream! No matter how many times I reread your book, I am sucked in and can’t put it down until the end. Now a favourite. Hmm. The Innkeeper series has so many favourite moments. But Kate and Hidden Legacy do as well. 😭😭😭 I can’t pick a favourite. 😭 they are all perfect in their own way.
Hmmm…favorite is probably Sweep of the Blade, but that’s because it is the one that convinced my son that audiobooks are a good mother/son bonding experience LOL. And also, my your 2025 be an exceptionally good year!
I love any and all things Kate Daniel’s. But I have to say I am loving the spin offs with Julie and Derrick and Hugh. It’s like asking to pick a favorite child.
I love all the books! Kate, Julie and Catalina are my favorites – but I also have a soft spot for Maud.
I love everything House Andrews writes, but Kate Daniels has a special place in my heart, as I started reading it in high school.
Difficult deciding which was my favourite. But it has to be Sweep of the Blade. I just love the way she is always at least one step ahead of Onda and Seveline.
Clean Sweep is my go-to comfort read. Who knew vampires, werewolves and violence helped my zen? Maybe retiring from teaching high schoolers has something to do with it
I reread all your books depending on my mood. Last week I just wanted to read the Doolittle explanation of racism and hatred. Rage. Yesterday it was Luther checking out the pale queen’s loot. Have a wonderful new year.
Hi, The Hidden Legacy and Innkeeper series are a constant reread. I think my current favourite is Emerald Blaze. Looking forward to the start of a new series!!!
What a difficult question; I enjoyed all of them. If I had to pick one I think it is Magic Tides. I really like like the books at the end of the long series where I know all the characters. And I thought I would not see those characters get their own book again.