Boundary Crossed

Boundary Magic, Book 1

By: Melissa F. Olson

Narrated by: Kate Rudd

Length: 9 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

After her twin sister’s brutal murder, former US Army Sergeant Allison “Lex” Luther vowed to protect her niece, Charlie. So when two vampires try to kidnap the baby, it quickly turns into a fight to the death - Lex’s death, that is.

She wakes up to two shocking discoveries: she has miraculously survived the fight, and baby Charlie is a “null”, gifted with the ability to weaken supernatural forces...and a target for creatures who want to control that power. Determined to guarantee her niece’s safety, Lex makes a deal with the local vampires. She sets out with the mysterious - and undead - “fixer” Quinn to track down whoever’s responsible for the kidnapping, sharpening her newfound magic skills along the way. But the closer she gets to the truth, the more dangerous her powers become.

Boundary Crossed is a dark, thrilling journey into a world where the line between living and dead isn’t nearly as solid as it appears...

©2015 Melissa F. Olson (P)2015 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Vampires & Witches.... yes!

This was a fun book to listen to on a long drive, with a new spin on vampires and witches.
I am looking forward to the next book in this book series.

Loved It

The narrator did a good job. The world building was easy to follow and I enjoyed the characters and story. I will be picking up the next book in the series immediately.

Too many gaps

For the life of me, I can’t figure out how this rated 4.4 stars. There are so many gaps in logic, common sense and emotional intelligence that I just can’t rate past 3.
She leaves a note and her drugged 18 month old niece unattended in her crib to drive off to the vampire stronghold??? In what dimension is that ok? This was just the last and most glaring of the gaps.
I was left with no desire to continue the series.
Rudd does a decent but uninspired job of narration.

Really good first book

What about Kate Rudd’s performance did you like?

She was fantastic with the main character, struggles with the male voices - becomes somewhat robotic - but great job none-the-less.

Any additional comments?

Very cool character in the modern urban fantasy books. Love the main character and the storyline. Can't wait to get more books in the series!

Great!

The narrator was wonderful, so easy yo understand. The story was great! I enjoyed it a lot!

Great book, great author

Melissa Olsen is a fantastic writer, especially for this genre. I have thoroughly enjoyed all her books to date. Her writing and storytelling are both quite good, and her world and characters extremely engrossing. If you like paranormal fantasy, I highly recommend her books. But, you should start with Dead Zone, as the two series tie together, and the null series should be read first, at least up to book three.

WAY Better Than I Expected

I am honestly weary when it comes to books like this. Vampires, witches, werewolves, etc. It's REALLY easy to make these stories two dimensional and cheesy. By some magic (hey, magic!) Olson is able to bring these characters to life and create a protagonist I really root for.

The main character is a war vet that has struggled with loss both overseas and at home. As the story progresses we see that her strength isn't just her tactical training, but also her love for her family and her niece. There is a nice balance between having a character that is strong, but also motherly.

While there was a little less action than I hoped for, I was still deeply engaged. I got through this book QUICKLY. It's an easy listen, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have substance.

The narrator was also excellent, and she was able to bring the characters to life.

If you are a fan of the supernatural but you don't want a one-note vamps sparkle love story, this is the book for you!

Good book.. Fantastic narration..

Let me start by reiterating AGAIN how lazy I think authors are that write in the first person. Yeah, I know you can get each book out faster BUT to only want us to know what’s going on with the MC and no one else is just terrible. I mean, a lot of us want to know what’s going on elsewhere and what others might be thinking and doing. But, as much as I hate first person narratives, I have no choice but to read them because more and more authors are going in that direction. AND I really, really, really hate it when a vampire or shape-shifter or Fea or any other creature does NOT exist is written in the first person. Do you think we want to read I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, through a whole book? It’s lazy writing! This is not the first time I’ve mentioned this and it sure won’t be the last. And that’s MY opinion.

Now to the book, since I’ve finished my rant.

Overall, it was a decent story, about Lex, a Boundary Witch, who was pretty powerful. She could “press” a vampire, make him tell her everything she wants to know AND she brought Simon back from the dead, and this was all happening while she was taking lessons in being the witch, she never knew she was AND keeping her 18 month old niece safe from vampire kidnappers. Oh, and she talked to her dead sister Samantha, too.

Quinn was our vamp hero but there was nothing more than a little kiss that happened between them. The most un-sexual vampire book that I’ve ever read.

So, no romance whatsoever. And the F-bomb was used 15 times.

This was a free read and free listen, but I doubt I’ll read any more from this series. I felt like I was cheated out of so much because it was written in the first person. But if YOU are interested in this series that are ALL free read and free listen.

As to the narrator: Love, love, love Kate Rudd. She laughs, cries, yells, whispers, whatever the book calls for. AND her men sound like men, what more can you ask for.

Interesting Start

Fun story with some surprise turns. Few areas with adult language and subject matter, but more of a Teen / Young Adult story. I liked the audio book too. Well done.

Great!!!!

Immediately as I'm listening to the book it draws you in and completely grasp your attion. Great book I loved it can't wait to Finnish the series!