If Wishes Were Curses

The Steel City Genie, Book 1

By: Janeen Ippolito

Narrated by: Melissa Schwairy

Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

So I accidentally killed a shifter. On purpose.

With genie powers I shouldn’t be able to use, thanks to my curse mark.

In my defense, the damn grizzly was threatening civilians and might have been a vampire as well. Pittsburgh is safer without him. Only the fae court doesn’t believe my story, and the shifters are out for blood.

Now I’ve lost my job as a romantic investigator, and I’m on death row. My only hope is an oddly outgoing vegetarian vampire lawyer who seems strangely familiar. Too familiar. Almost like we’ve met before, and this whole thing was a setup to take us both down. Wishing won’t get us out of this mess. But my forbidden wish magic just might.

A snarky urban fantasy with a heart, some romance with heat (nothing graphic), and gleeful send ups of many tropes, all wrapped up with an otter-shifter in the bargain.

©2019 Janeen Ippolito (P)2019 Janeen Ippolito

Fun and Creative

Wonderful venture into an alternate universe full of magic. Enjoyable listening. Loved the otters and coffee!

Deep worldscape and intriguing characters

The Steel City Genie series by Janeen Ippolito, Author is a PG 13 world with deep worldscape building and really fun characters. In Urban Fantasy there are two primary deviations - either the Other (creatures, magic) is known by all, or it is hidden. In this case, elves and shifters and genies work together and are integral to society.

I enjoyed Alice, the FMCs, growth as she discovered how and why her abilities mattered. All of the characters were very relatable as they worked through issues we all could relate to. I really enjoyed the little pieces of worldscape that made you want to visit!

The author integrates the flavor of Pittsburg into the story in a great way.

Highly recommend! Bonus recommendation - the audiobook reader delivers the story magnificently.

Snarky fantasy with serious depth

If wishes were curses is everything I've always wanted in an urban fantasy. Sarcastic character who make lots of pop culture references and is just fun. Even the dark parts of this story are full of laughs and hope.

this novel's message of belonging and self worth are timely and much needed for everyone to hear.

the performance by Melissa Schwairy was perfect for the first person narrative. Main Character, Allis's trademark Whit and snark shine through Melissa's reading.

great storytelling

I don't like urban fantasy, vampires, or romance. But I could. not. stop. listening to this book! Ippolito created a fun yet complex magical system and characters I'd like to be friends with. Compelling romance that's not over the top and otter-shifters. The narration was honest and beautifully done. Looking forward to book 2!!! (I was given a free code for this book in exchange for an honest review.)

Good story

Fun story that is fast paced and full of magic and magical beings as well as a heroine who isn't afraid to stand up for herself and say what she is thinking.

nice start

nice start what looks to be a unique story....and can I say that an otter shifter is a first for me.

Good Listen

This was a good listen with excellent narration.The pace was steady and the story interesting.There were a few action scenes and some romance to round it out.

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook at my request by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Promising New Clean Urban Fantasy Series

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

Janeen Ippolito makes a very promising beginning to a new urban fantasy series.

The Good: The main character, her love interest and supporting characters are well crafted. They each have interesting personalities and original power sets (which is a rarity in urban fantasy) but the real draw is the complexity she gives each character. We see the layers slowly unpeel and each character as well as their relationship to each other is much more than we were lead to believe. There are a few bread crumbs that are doled out so once the reveals start coming you can see the swerves did not come out of nowhere. That is the sign of a strong writer. The world is well realized and the book makes a great standalone adventure while promising more to come in the future.


The Less Good: This book is a little exposition heavy. That sadly is the price of originality. A lot of urban fantasy is like our world but add some flavor of vampires, werewolves and magic users. Full stop. The main character is a half genie, with a brother who is an adorable otter shifter. A friend that's a kitsune shifter and a love interest that is a cool mix of _________ and _______. (to avoid spoilers) This means they need to explain their world, the rules and power sets repeatedly. However the fun banter and occasional pop culture references more than make up for it. All of it winningly brought to life by narrator Melissa Schwairy. I hope she sticks around for the sequels.


The (Lack of) Ugly: One last accolade I want to mention is that this is surprisingly a clean urban fantasy. There is plenty of action, high stakes and our heroes are in and out of peril repeatedly. This is all done without graphic violence or strong profanity. The romance is strong without resorting to graphic sex. These are all triggers for some, so enjoy some urban fantasy without sacrificing quality.

I look forward to seeing where this series goes next.

Genies and Shifters and Vampires, oh my!

Oh so fun! I don’t typically read urban fantasy, especially ones with vampires (the only vampire I’ve ever liked is Dracula, and I liked him as a villain that needed to be killed), but I loved Ippolito’s steampunk, dragon-shifter series so I thought I’d give this a try. So very glad I did—can’t wait for the sequel!

The world Ippolito has created is so fun and full of surprises. We’ve got our genie protagonist, a hot-but-not-broody vampire (❤❤❤ Cendric!), shifters of so many kinds (otter-shifters, anyone?), elves, sirens, and so many more. The plot is interesting, the romantic sub-plot sweet, the humor snarky, and the characters wonderful. Again, super-fun and I can’t wait for the sequel!

And, as far as the audio goes, I quite enjoyed it! The voice actor was great, and I especially loved her mixed voices (when two characters were saying the same thing at the same time). Well done!

Extremely enjoyable

I found this audiobook to be extremely enjoyable listen. It has a great combination of suspense, action and drama. The narrator has done a wonderful job reading this book.