Review – Slaying Monsters for the Feeble (The Guild Codex: Demonized Book 2) by Annette Marie (5/5 Stars)
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Length: 305 pages
Publisher: Dark Owl Fantasy Inc.
Release Date: November 1, 2019
ASIN: B07XDVMP9C
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Guild Codex: Demonized series
Source: Borrowed through Kindle Unlimited
Rating: 5/5 stars
“I’m bound to a demon.
For my entire life, I avoided magic at all costs. Now, I’m responsible for a demon who wields magic more powerful than the toughest mage or sorcerer.
Demons are evil.
That’s what my textbooks say. That’s what I see. He’s ruthless, he’s temperamental, he’s cold. But he protects me without fail. I wonder if he’s hiding a heart behind his hostility.
My demon is a monster.
Whether he’s heartless or not, my contract with him is illegal and beyond dangerous. Together, we must find a way to return him to his own world before anyone discovers our secret. If that wasn’t bad enough, I’ve come to realize something else:
My demon isn’t the only monster I should be worried about.”
Series Info/Source: I borrowed this through Kindle Unlimited. This is the second book in the Guild Codex: Demonized series.
Story (5/5): Robin is still trying to track down her mother’s grimoire in hopes of finding a way to send Zylas home. Meanwhile strange goings on are happening, with vampire sightings increasing. On top of that these vampires are much stronger and more organized than normal. There is concern that this leads back to the RedRum rogue guild and that somehow Robin’s uncle might be involved.
I enjoyed this story a lot and it tied in nicely with both the earlier book and with some of the events in the Guild Codex: Spellbound series.
Characters (5/5): The highlight of this book are the interactions between Robin and Zylas. Robin is super timid but slowly finding some backbone, she also has her own areas of strength and can be very resourceful, caring, and thoughtful. Zylas is amazingly complex and I love him; he is a demon and unfeeling but also seems incredibly intelligent and shows hints at starting to figure out how to care. We don’t see a ton of other Hammer and Claw guild members but Robin is starting to show up at the guild once in a while and is starting to strike up some friendships there.
Setting (4/5): The setting wasn’t really the focus of this story. It mostly takes place in Vancouver, but not at the guild. I do enjoy the world-building here and love learning about the different types of fae.
Writing Style (5/5): This is a fast-paced and fun read. I always tear through these books at record speed. Marie does an amazing job writing a fun story where you really care about the characters. I also love the amazing fight scenes and interesting magic throughout.
My Summary (5/5): Overall I am loving this series even more than the Guild Codex: Spellbound series. The push and pull relationship between Robin and her demon, Zylas, is very well done. I love the introduction of new types of fae and love watchin Robin grow into her new role as a demon contractor. I look forward to reading the next book in this series and definitely recommend this series to those who enjoy light-hearted and action packed urban fantasy full of magic.
