Cursed

Alex Verus, Book 2

By: Benedict Jacka

Narrated by: Gildart Jackson

Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

Since his second sight made him infamous for defeating powerful dark mages, Alex has been keeping his head down. But now he's discovered the resurgence of a forbidden ritual. Someone is harvesting the life-force of magical creatures-destroying them in the process. And draining humans is next on the agenda. Hired to investigate, Alex realizes that not everyone on the Council wants him delving any deeper. Struggling to distinguish ally from enemy, he finds himself the target of those who would risk their own sanity for power...

©2012 Benedict Jacka (P)2014 Tantor Audio

Critic reviews

"Jacka follows his urban fantasy debut, Fated, with an even more impressive tale of gunplay and spellcraft in present-day London...Jacka keeps the emotional tension high with a series of wakeup calls for Alex regarding his relationship with Luna, his place in London's magical social circles, and his image of himself. [Listeners] will savor this tasty blend of magic, explosions, and moral complexity." ( Publishers Weekly)

Entertaining

I think this book was even better than the first and I found myself unable to put it down. The action kept me on the edge of my seat and the suspense was nail biting. Benedict Jacka is a brilliant writer and Gildart Jackson is the right narrator for this book. I'm on to book 3.

So far story line getting better

What made the experience of listening to Cursed the most enjoyable?

It reminded me of when I started Jim Butcher's "Dresden Files" series. Each book in the series got better and better. More outrageous character interactions and twists and turns.

What other book might you compare Cursed to and why?

If you crossed "The Night Side" series bye Simon Green and "The Dresden Files" by Jim Butcher, you'd get "Alex Verus" series. can't wait to read book three(3)

Which scene was your favorite?

*SPOILER........The next to last one with Martin........where his wish backfires on him.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I stayed up all night until I did finish, it was so worth it.

Any additional comments?

So far Audible has 5 books in this series, I hope there will be more I know I'll really enjoy them if Mr Jacka keeps the story lines as interesting as the first two.

Fresh, and really enjoyable.

Not earth shattering, not show stopping, just enjoyable.===Seems I have to add a few more words, so I have.

👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

This is becoming one of my favorite series. The story is solid and the narrator does a great job. I recommend it to all. Hi John and Sarah.

Go Luna

World building and character development keeps you interested. Good storytelling. Hero can take a punch physically and emotionally and keep on ticking as we have to do in real life. I will keep reading.

Even better than the first book!

I liked this book even better than the first installment. I think that the biggest difference was that I was already familiar with the characters and the rules of the world instead when I started this one. It was really easy to slip back into Alex's world and I was really curious about how everything would work out. This was a book that I wanted to listen to for hours at a time so I finished it up pretty quickly.

This book picks up shortly after the events of the first book. Alex has received some attention but he is back in his shop just getting through each day as it comes. One of Luna's friends stops in the shop and picks up a dangerous item despite Alex's warnings. There also seems to be some strange deaths of magical creatures that are raising a lot of questions. To top things off, someone seems to be trying to kill Alex.

I am really growing to like this group of characters. Alex is very loyal and is determined to protect those that he considers his friends. As far as that goes, Alex is pretty quick to try to protect anyone who he thinks needs it. I love how he is able to use his abilities and I think that it really keeps the story interesting. Luna is a fun character but she makes some terrible decisions in this book. There are some other really colorful characters that help to move the story along as well.

I thought that this book was pretty exciting. There was a lot going on and I was never quite sure what would happen next. It was fun to watch Alex try to juggle so many things while looking into the future to see potential outcomes. There were a few twists that I didn't see coming and a few moments that had me a bit worried before everything drew to a close.

Gildart Jackson continues to do an amazing job with this series. It was so easy to listen to this book for hours at a time. His pacing is perfect for the story and I think he adds a lot of excitement and emotion to the reading. He does a great job with all of the character voices as well. I do believe that I probably liked this book just a little more because I made the decision to listen to it.

I would recommend this series to others. This is the second book in the Alex Verus series which really does need to be read in order. I found this to be a very exciting and intense story that was very hard to put down. I cannot wait to start the next book!

I really like this series

I love the narrator, he brings a lot to the story . This book really let you get to know the characters better . definitely getting the next one in the series

Mostly entertaining.

The story was mostly entertaining. With certain moments like the customer scene standing out. But other moments like the otherworld section dragging it down.

It never really got exceptional in any way or dropped to dull mediocrity. Alex sometimes seems a bit wooden like he is describing his surroundings but not reacting to or a part of them. Luna sometimes made decisions that made her a bit annoying and flat. And both the action and story were entertaining but not gripping. I never felt a desire to skip ahead or put it down, but I dont think I would have been hurt if I did

cool series

This is a fun magical journey. I love the protagonist and his growing crew. moving in to the next book!

Maybe better than the first book

Another solid book with an intriguing plot and good character growth. Still not quite Dresden Files quality, but getting closer.