Hunting in Bruges

Hunters' Guild, Book 1

By: E.J. Stevens

Narrated by: Melanie A. Mason, Anthony Bowling

Length: 7 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

Finalist for the 2017 Raven Award for best urban fantasy.

The only thing worse than being a hunter in the fae-ridden city of Harborsmouth, is hunting vampires in Bruges.

The medieval city of Bruges is quaint, but the local Hunters' Guild is understaffed, the canals are choked with dead bodies, and there's no shortage of supernatural predators as likely suspects.

On second thought, maybe Bruges isn't so bad after all.

With a desire to prove herself, protect the innocent, and advance within the ranks of the Hunters' Guild, Jenna Lehane hits the cobbled streets of Bruges with blades at the ready. Someone, or something, is murdering tourists and dumping their bodies in the city's scenic canals. With the help of a mysterious stranger, Jenna begins to piece together clues that are dotted throughout the city like blood spatter.

Determined to stop the killings, Jenna delves into a bloody local history that only raises more questions - but some secrets are best left buried. Jenna must put her combat training to the test as she struggles to unearth the truth about an ancient enemy.

"I quite enjoyed the tale." (Jana Oliver, award-winning author of The Demon Trappers series)

"Hunting in Bruges is a must read." (Book Lover's Life)

"I flat out loved it!" (Rabid Reads)

"[Hunting in Bruges] is a well-crafted and fun urban fantasy." (The Jeep Diva)

Hunting in Bruges is the first novel in the Hunters' Guild urban fantasy series set in the world of Ivy Granger. The world of Ivy Granger, including the Hunters' Guild series and the award-winning Ivy Granger Psychic Detective series, is filled with bloodsucking vampires, psychotic faeries, and snarky, kick-butt heroines.

©2014 E.J. Stevens (P)2018 E.J. Stevens

Loved this!!

I absolutely loved this book!!

Jenna is an awesome character. She kicks ass and takes no names. She has been in the Guild since she was 13 and loves her work but when she is sent on an assignment to Bruges, she thinks its as a punishment. She doesn't like leaving Harborsmouth because bad things seem to be happening there but she has no choice. People are dying in Bruges and someone has to stop it. When Jenna arrives in Bruges she is trust into the job straight away. Can she figure out why the vamps are killing people with no regard to secrecy? More importantly though is can she stop them when the Guild in Bruges is working on a skeleton crew?

Lets take a moment to talk about Bruges. I've never been there but the authors descriptions of the place make me want to go. She brings life to the city and I think it's the perfect setting. It's such an old city steeped in history and I loved learning about it along with Jenna. Jenna can see ghosts and Bruges is a place where you could imagine a lot of ghosts would linger.

Hunting in Bruges has a host of different characters and I think Ash was my favourite. He was a breath of fresh air!! Kooky, fun and sweet, he captured my heart a little. I so want to read more of his back story though!! I loved the dynamics of his relationship with Jenna and loved seeing it develop. Jenna is my second favourite. She is such a worthy heroine! Strong, smart and kind, she does everything she can to keep innocents from getting hurt (even if it gets her in trouble with the Guild!!). I loved her fire as well. She is spunky but also quite vulnerable. She was so easy to like and is right up there with my favourite heroines ever.

Anyway, Hunting in Bruges has everything a great Urban Fantasy should, a kick ass heroine, a lovable hot guy, pleanty of different supernatural beings and a fast paced story line. The plot was also well thought out and I loved the idea of a vamp turf war! Every time I picked this up, I didn't want to put it down again. Its an action packed story that will keep you guessing till the very end. From the superbly written characters to the fascinating setting, Hunting in Bruges is a must read. I loved everything about this book and so cant wait for book 2!

Both narrators did an excellent job narrating this. They were clear, concise and easy to follow. I'm starting to enjoy the dual narration!!

I was given this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. This in no way affected nor influenced my thoughts.

Excellent Fast Paced Urban Fantasy

This is a fast paced Urban Fantasy with a strong heroine. Here you will find mystery, action, danger, violence, and a touch of romance. Jenna meets a handsome stranger on the train to Bruges that helps her navigate the city she is assigned to investigate. There are dead bodies being found all over the city and Jenna is there to find out what is going on.

Narration is excellent and brings the story to life. Melanie and Anthony do an amazing job with the narration.

There is a good amount of character development so we can understand what drives Jenna and why she has decided to join the Hunter's Guild. Ivy Granger is mentioned a few times as being a trusted friend of Jenna. Perhaps she will make an appearance in future books. This is a great start to a new series.

I'm looking forward to book 2 in this new fast paced Urban Fantasy series.

"I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review."

A hunter of creatures, a kick butt gal!

Hunting in Bruges
Hunters' Guild, Book 1
By: E.J. Stevens
Narrated by: Melanie A. Mason, Anthony Bowling
This is an audible book I requested and the review is voluntary. What a terrific action packed book! The main character is a tough female that is a hunter of the supernatural and she is the deadly one! Others are a sexist jerk, another hunter with a secret past, a witch with drug problem, a doctor with a drinking problem, and a blind librarian. This is her team! She also can see ghosts. She is sent to Bruge due to the increase in supernatural attacks. She has to figure out what is going on, which she does.
Great narration that enhances the story.

Fun paranormal mystery is captivating in audio

This is the first novel in the Hunters’ Guild series by E.J. Stevens, which is a spinoff of the Ivy Granger, Psychic Detective series. This story stands on its own.

Steeped in history, the city of Bruges forms a perfect backdrop for this urban fantasy. I loved the setting, the plot was interesting, and I was delighted with the variety of supernaturals that make an appearance—in addition to vampires, ghosts, and shifters, we have swan maidens, rusalkas, and a grindylow, oh my!

It took me a while to warm up to the brusque heroine, hunter Jenna Lehane. I don’t mind tough women, but it’s hard for me to relate to someone who is so detached from everyone around her. Some of the secondary characters are fun, though—I adored Ash! The drug-addicted witch Celeste, blind librarian Darryl, and bloodthirsty demolitionist Aleksey all provided some laughs. And Jenna becomes more likeable once she starts to trust the people around her and work as part of a team.

I really appreciated the narration by Melanie A. Mason and Anthony Bowling. Their performances were well paced and easy to understand, and I enjoyed the character voices, especially with such a diverse cast of humans and supernatural creatures. I think the narration adds a lot of enjoyment to this story, so I definitely recommend the audiobook.

If you enjoy snarky urban fantasy, I recommend this book and any of Ms. Stevens’ other books in this setting, and I think they are a great choice for listening.

I was given a free copy of this audiobook by the author and volunteered to provide an honest review.

Fantasy

I enjoyed this book more then I thought I would. There are a lot of books about vampires and vampire hunters but the author knows how to write a good cast of characters, suspense and a good pace. There is a twist in the book that I did not see at all. Looking forward to the next book.

Can’t wait to read the next one

I just finished the first book in the hunters guild series and I loved it. It’s a great urban fantasy with a sassy female action hero. I likes the unusual take on ghosts and the fight between good and evil.
The narrators also did a great job really bringing the story to life. I will definitely put the next books in the series on my wishlist, and I look forward to see how the series develops.

Likable Characters, Action-Packed Story

Hunting in Bruges is the first novel in the Hunters' Guild series, set in the world of E.J. Stevens' psychic detective, Ivy Granger. This novel follows Ivy's fellow Guild member Jenna Lehane as she travels to Bruges to battle vampires and other supernatural threats. She also faces threats from within the Guild itself. Along the way she meets Ash, a companion who turns out to be more than he seems and who is just as likable a character as Jenna herself. The character interaction is what sets this apart from other urban fantasy novels and what has me looking forward to the next book in this series. The narrators of the Audible version, Melanie A. Mason and Anthony Bowling, do an excellent job of bringing the characters to life and setting the tone for this exciting, action-packed story.

Really good Urban Fantasy

I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

This was a fun and entertaining urban fantasy story. I loved how the author handled the world building and character development. The narration was good as well. All in all, a REALLY good book.

Bruges turns out to be more than she expected...

"Hunting in Bruges" introduces us to the "Hunters' Guild" series, with Jenna Lehane as the main protagonist and a bunch of other memorable characters as her sidekicks:)

It starts rather innocently - Jenna is sent to Bruges to solve the mystery of an overflow of dead bodies found in the town's canals. The task seems easy enough but very soon she discovers she has to deal with much more than just one or two rogue vampires... Unfortunately, the local Hunters' Guild is of almost no help, as they are heavily understaffed, and the few members still present there are not the best you could be looking for. Still, Jenna's job must be done, so she has to settle with what's at hand...

That's the starting point for the book that turns out to be a gripping, engaging and really entertaining urban fantasy. The story starts quite slow but soon gathers speed and doesn't slow to the end. Events that at first seem to have no plausible explanation soon start to connect and finally find their logical place in the big picture. And although it's a part of a series, the book has a satisfactory conclusion, at the same time leaving us ready to go on another adventure with Jenna.

As the main protagonist, Jenna takes the front seat among the cast of characters, but all of them have their 5 minutes in the story. Jenna is not this perfect, always-know-everything-never-miss-a-clue unrealistic character I met in other books, on the contrary, she feels very real and very human; she can be unobservant at times, she is not always right and the wrong decisions she makes have consequences she then has to deal with. She is strong when it's needed, but she also has a sensitive side she doesn't even try to hide... And her sidekicks? A witch addicted to mandrake, a blind archivist, an art student with secrets of his own... You really can't ask for a more colourful, unpredictable bunch of vampire hunters...:)

The interpretation of the book by Ms Mason and Mr Bowling, who respectively read female and male parts, is very good. It's fast-paced but clear, with very good differentation of the voices of individual characters and quite a bit of good acting added into the mix.

Generally, it's a really entertaining story in a very good interpretation. I listened to it in one sitting and will definitely look for the next part.

DISCLAIMER: I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Wow, It's great.

I loved it. The way the two narrators worked together to tell the story was fantastic. It was almost like an old radio play. If the next one is this good, I can barely wait.

I was given a free review copy audiobook at my request by the author and have voluntarily left this review.

Loved this!!

Jenna is an awesome character. She kicks ass and takes no names. She has been in the Guild since she was 13 and loves her work but when she is sent on an assignment to Bruges, she thinks its as a punishment. She doesn't like leaving Harborsmouth because bad things seem to be happening there but she has no choice. People are dying in Bruges and someone has to stop it. When Jenna arrives in Bruges she is trust into the job straight away. Can she figure out why the vamps are killing people with no regard to secrecy? More importantly though is can she stop them when the Guild in Bruges is working on a skeleton crew?

Lets take a moment to talk about Bruges. I've never been there but the authors descriptions of the place make me want to go. She brings life to the city and I think it's the perfect setting. It's such an old city steeped in history and I loved learning about it along with Jenna. Jenna can see ghosts and Bruges is a place where you could imagine a lot of ghosts would linger.

Hunting in Bruges has a host of different characters and I think Ash was my favourite. He was a breath of fresh air!! Kooky, fun and sweet, he captured my heart a little. I so want to read more of his back story though!! I loved the dynamics of his relationship with Jenna and loved seeing it develop. Jenna is my second favourite. She is such a worthy heroine! Strong, smart and kind, she does everything she can to keep innocents from getting hurt (even if it gets her in trouble with the Guild!!). I loved her fire as well. She is spunky but also quite vulnerable. She was so easy to like and is right up there with my favourite heroines ever.

Anyway, Hunting in Bruges has everything a great Urban Fantasy should, a kick ass heroine, a lovable hot guy, pleanty of different supernatural beings and a fast paced story line. The plot was also well thought out and I loved the idea of a vamp turf war! Every time I picked this up, I didn't want to put it down again. Its an action packed story that will keep you guessing till the very end. From the superbly written characters to the fascinating setting, Hunting in Bruges is a must read. I loved everything about this book and so cant wait for book 2!

Both Melanie A. Mason and Anthony Bowling read this well. It always takes a few minutes to get used to dual narration but I always enjoy it when I do. Melanie A. Mason performs Jenna brilliantly and I loved her performance. Anthony Bowling also performed really well but I felt like he didn't capture Ash like I was hoping. I still enjoyed his performance though.

A great addition to urban fantasy

Note: This is a spin off from the Ivy Granger series and works perfectly fine as a stand a lone.

Hunting in Bruges is a worthy addition to the urban fantasy genre. I really enjoyed this book. So much fun and intensity! Jenna is an excellent character. She’s got her past and a core set of values, both of which serve her well as she’s tossed into a difficult situation. Bruges is not her first choice of where to serve the Guild. She finds thing in quite the state when she gets there. The resident witch Celeste is strung out and not in neat, tidy control of her powers. The second in command, Simon Chadwick, is a sexist pig who’s not above using his position to take advantage of people. The Guild coroner, Doc Martens, is lazy, drunk, and not dedicated to his job. Yes, indeed, looks like Jenna is on her own for solving a string of murders.

At least until Ash appears. He gives her info on the local Bruges scene and also makes her laugh. However, there is something odd about Ash. My one little quibble is that Jenna didn’t pick up on this until well into the story when it was so obvious to me as the reader. Still, she did have her hands full with the pile of bodies, the messed up Bruges Guild, and a child-killing water fae. Luckily she has a knowledgeable Guild archivist (Darryl Lambert) and a disabled munitions expert (Aleksey) on hand!

The story was well balanced with action, character growth, and setting. I’ve never been to Belgium but now I would like to! Of course, I would go after Jenna has cleared the major cities of paranormal nasties. As Jenna digs into the pile of bodies, it quickly becomes clear that vampires are involved. There’s two major vampire families in Bruges. They are ancient and well established. Jenna certainly has her hands full!

Jenna herself is someone I would want on my team. She’s not perfect but she’s loyal, stubborn, and handy with weapons. She and Ash make a good team even though Jenna doesn’t completely trust him. I really liked how she tried to clean up the Bruges Guild as best as she can without stepping on toes. That is until it becomes necessary to risk punishment by the Guild in order to save innocents. She had tough choices to make and she did it well.

The other characters round out the story. I really liked the archivist, Darryl. He used to be a good fighter out in the field but now his blindness keeps him behind a desk. He requested his current position and he serves it well. Aleksey came into the story pretty late and I look forward to seeing what Stevens does with his character in the future. Celeste brought that sexuality and a bit of playfulness to the tale. I do have to note that we had few female characters in this tale and I would have liked a few more to balance things. Celeste eventually rises to the occasion.

The story ramps up with a potential impending disaster for humanity. I was on the edge of my seat for the last 2 hours of this book. I didn’t want to put it down. The tale wraps up well, completing the story arc for this book. I greatly look forward to future additions to this series. 5/5 stars.

The Narration: Melanie A. Mason and Anthony Bowling narrated this book. Mason had the lion’s share making a great Jenna Lehane. Bowling’s voice was used for when male characters spoke. While Bowling did well, felt that it wasn’t really necessary to have 2 narrators for this book. I think I would have enjoyed the narration a touch more if it was just Mason. While the recording was well done, I always knew that Bowling wasn’t in the same room as Mason for his small parts. The volume was good and Bowling didn’t sound tinny, but there was still something that made his additions stand apart. Setting that aside, Mason did great with the various character voices. Celeste sounds like a drug-abusing under-sexed witch. Jenna has a variety of emotions and those were performed well for the entire book. There were also a variety of accents and those all came across well. 4.5/5 stars.

Fabulous story

Tale about female supernatural hunter and her adventures. Main character felt really strong. Liked the variety of the monsters. Overall very enjoyful book. Narration was well done.

Jenna the Vampire Slayer

I had never heard of this author before this book, but enjoyed my first introduction to her work with it being an enjoyable urban fantasy novel with a strong lead character and a good supporting cast. This book supposedly links to some of the author's previous work (including the main character of this one) but not having read them did not detract from my enjoyment of this one.

Jenna is a highly trained young hunter who finds herself assigned to investigate some deaths in Belgium and while the deaths are supernatural in origin, they are actually only part of a much larger plot taking place in that city.

Both narrators do a good job in this book, having a suitably distinctive range of voices for the main cast, but the jumping between the two of them was a little jarring at first since the usual variation from a single narrator tends to be a jump directly to a full cast rather than a duo, but once used to the changes it did work well for this book.

Overall, an enjoyable start to a series and one that encourages me to look into more works from this author in the future.

[Note - I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.]

Really enjoyable.

I’m a fan of the Ivy Granger books and Jenna was one of my favourite characters I’ve been looking forward to this audiobook.
Love the new characters especially Ash.
I would have liked to hear what happened to Chad.
Both the voiceover artists did a wonderful job and I hope they do the next book.

I was given acolytes of this audiobook but any opinions are honest and my own.

Good

I was given this free review copy at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
Good

Fantastic story

Loved this. The story is great as always and the audiobook was a lot longer than expected.

Outstanding audio production!

I received this audiobook for free in exchange for an honest review.

This audiobook production was really outstanding! But sadly, the story disappointed me a bit.

This book is an award-finalist, so obviously I don’t really know what’s good. But let me list the problems I had with the story:

#1 The secret of the protagonist’s new companion, the “mysterious stranger”, is apparent pretty early on. Yet Jenna herself only figures it out in the second half of the book. The reason for that felt very weak to me. I know this is a tool that some people love (knowing something that the protagonist doesn’t), but for me, it just doesn’t work. It made me think she’s a bit daft 🙁

#2 The story didn’t have a very good flow. The pacing was off for me and I found it difficult to figure out where we were going and what the point of everything was.

#3 Jenna is a very serious young lady. Her companions try to banter and flirt but she only gets super annoyed and would seriously prefer to be ambushed. This bothered me because it just made her not very likeable. Of course not every protagonist has to crank out the jokes. But her reaction to her friends flirting and joking felt way too harsh.

On to some positive aspects. A female protagonist, and one male, one female sidekick? That was already awesome in Buffy and it makes for a great slayer.. uhh.. Hunter team! The paranormal concept of vampires using a glamour to appear attractive was creative. Damn bloodsuckers don’t always have to be perfect!

Now that I’m done, I can say that the storyline overall has some good substance. But it took me a long time to finish this and I interrupted it for two other audiobooks because I was bored. “Hunting in Bruges” just didn’t grab me. The pace picked up a bit in the second half though.

As I said initially, the audio production was fantastic. It was a new to me concept and I truly wish everyone would do it like this! Melanie A. Mason is the main narrator. The story is told entirely from Jenna’s point of view so that makes sense. But the bonus is, that Anthony Bowling is narrating all male characters’ lines. Not only are both narrators really great, with very distinct voices, but the editing is done very well, so the men’s lines fit in seamlessly. The narration itself was very captivating.

I so wanted to love this audiobook. Because it’s a great Urban Fantasy concept and the production is so amazing. But I just can’t.

Bruges

LOVED this first of a two part book!Jenna has the world on her shoulders.She takes it very seriously.The whole team are likable.Well,except for Chad.Narration by Melanie A. Mason and Anthony Bowing was fantastic!Looking forward to part two!
I was given this book by the narrator,author or publisher free for an honest review.