Book Review: Time-Marked Warlock by Shami Stovall

So Finch retired. From magic. From PI work. From everything.

Welcome to one of the October 2nd stops on the blog tour for Time-Marked Warlock by Shami Stovall with Goddess Fish Promotions. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for more reviews and a giveaway! More on that at the end of this post.

Please note that this post contains affiliate links, which means there is no additional cost to you if you shop using my links, but I will earn a small percentage in commission. A program-specific disclaimer is at the bottom of this post.

About the Book

Time-Marked Warlock
The Chronos Chronicles Book One
by Shami Stovall

Published 20 August 2024
Capital Station Books

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Page Count: 374
Add it to your Goodreads TBR!

Adair Finch is the most powerful warlock in the world, and one of the best private investigators for hire. He has dealt with corporate vampires, murderous werewolves, and even fae royalty. Everything was perfect until he lost one case—the case where he also lost his brother.

So Finch retired. From magic. From PI work. From everything.

Bree Blackstone, a twelve-year-old witch, doesn’t know or care about any of that except Finch’s reputation. In the middle of the night, she bangs on Finch’s door. Her mother has been murdered, and now the assassin is after Bree as well.

Reluctantly, Finch agrees to help, only to discover something sinister has been brewing in town while he ignored the world… He’ll need to dust off all his old skills and magic before it’s too late.

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Excerpt

Finch sighed.

Right as he was about to turn to head inside, a loud crack rang out across the parking lot.

Blood splattered across the Nissan. Dr. Colton hit the side of the vehicle and tumbled to the asphalt, a hole in the side of his chest, his brown outfit quickly soaking in crimson.

Another crack, and Finch understood what was happening. Someone was shooting at them. Somewhere far off. Only rifles made that harsh kind of bang that sounded like something cracking in half.

Bree didn’t even have time to cry out. She fell forward, shot in the back, and hit the ground hard.

A third shot was coming, but Finch didn’t give the shooter a chance.

Finch manipulated time itself.

Everything froze. The leaves in the trees, the cars on the distant road—even the wind.

Then the color drained from the world, turning it into a black-and-white movie devoid of all vibrancy. The shadows were pitch black, and the sky a pool of pristine white.

One by one, all the nearby objects melted away, unraveled by Chronos’s powerful and disturbing time magic. The university disappeared. The cars disappeared. Even the people—Bree and Dr. Colton—until there was nothing left but an empty, white void.

Finch’s body jerked. He blinked his eyes.

And then he was back in his bed, dressed in his ratty pajamas, flailing around in the sheets. He sat up, his heart hammering.

His phone displayed the time.

4:34am.

My Review

My Rating: 5 Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Consider “liking” my review on Goodreads!

I received multiple invitations to review this title and accepted my review copy as part of my participation in a review blog tour with Goddess Fish Promotions. Thank you to all involved in affording me this opportunity, including the opportunities that reached out after I’d already accepted my copy. As always, my thoughts are my own and my review is honest.

I was first introduced to Shami Stovall’s work two years ago when I reviewed the LitRPG title The Nexus Games and I’ve been wanting to read more of Stovall’s work… but I also just spent the last two years on a back to school in my 30s adventure earning an accounting diploma so, yeah, time! I’m so happy to have finally had the opportunity to dive back into one of Stovall’s books and I simply must read the rest of this series!

As before, the cover art and catchy title are what caught my attention here. Before I even read and recognized the author’s name, I was in! This cover looks like it promises a gem for fans of The Dresden Files, and although I am by no means calling this derivative (it definitely isn’t! Not even close.) I do think Dresden fans will find a lot to love here. Unless you only read Dresden for Bob. There is no Bob.

As you can already tell from the synopsis and the excerpts that have been released, this is a fast paced, detail-oriented urban fantasy “who dunnit” adventure featuring a protagonist who’s a little bit Harry Dresden, a little bit Sherlock Holmes, a little bit Dr Strange, and a little bit the recluse at the end of your street who everybody sees on the regular but nobody ever talks to. I love the precise, somewhat cinematic way Stovall puts us in Finch’s head and describes his world so visually. I can picture the way a director would want the final cut of each scene to look.

The plot hinges strongly on the time loop dilemma, but fear not! I’ve read a lot of tired attempts at translating “Groundhog Day” into different genres, decades, or character dynamics, but this isn’t one of them. This is a genuinely fresh plot that just happens to use a time loop well. What’s so important about 4:34am? Read it to find out!

About the Author

Shami Stovall is a multi-award-winning author of fantasy and science fiction. Before that, she taught history and criminal law at the college level, and loved every second. When she’s not reading fascinating articles and books about ancient China or the Byzantine Empire, Stovall can be found playing way too many video games, especially RPGs and tactics simulators, or hugging John.

If you want to contact her, you can do so at the following locations:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Amazon | Goodreads

Giveaway Alert!

The author will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner.

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