Novella Review – More Than a Little Warped (The Guild Codex: Warped, Book 3.5) by Annette Marie, Rob Jacobsen (4/5 stars)
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Length: 137 pages
Publisher: Dark Owl Fantasy
Release Date: December 16, 2022
ASIN: B0BNKFKM5Z
Stand Alone or Series: 3.5th book in The Guild Codex: Warped series
Source: Bought ebook for Kindle
Rating: 4/5 stars
“As a conman-turned-MPD-Agent, I’m fairly new to the whole “upholder of justice” thing, but even for me, there are some lines you just don’t cross. Agent Söze of the MPD’s Internal Affairs department, on other hand, seems determined to slime his way across every ethical line in existence like an over-sized eel on a power trip.
Can you tell I don’t like this guy?
While he’s dismantling the precinct and hunting down rule-breakers among the staff—a category which my partner and I definitely fall into—a veritable storm of crazy is spreading through the city. Local troublemaking guild, the Crow and Hammer, has been accused of harboring a demon mage, and while I’m not sure what to believe, I’ve got bigger problems to tackle.
That is, until a certain notorious rogue druid calls me up about that big IOU I accidentally promised him. Now I have no choice but to dive into the chaos—though if I can knock Söze down a peg or two in the process, it’ll be worth it.”
Series Info/Source: This is the 3.5th book in The Guild Codex: Warped series. I borrowed this on ebook through Kindle Unlimited.
Thoughts: This is a fairly short novella that covers events from Damned Souls and a Sangria but from Kit’s POV. I don’t have a ton to say about it. It was fun to revisit these characters and to see what was happening in the the MPD while the events from Damned Souls and a Sangria were playing out.
The whole Guild Codex:Warped series is still the weakest in the Guild Codex world in my opinion. I think part of it is that I just don’t enjoy Kit as a character and his warping magic feels a bit half-baked.
This story basically has Kit, Lienna, and Blythe fighting against a takeover of the MPD by internal affairs department Agent Soze. There was a lot of action and magic and it was a quick enough read. I enjoyed it but didn’t love it. Books that rehash the same events from a different POV are generally so-so for me.
My Summary (4/5): Overall this was decent filler between Guild Codex: Warped books. It was nice to see what was happening in the MPD while the events of Damned Souls and a Sangria were playing out at the Crow and Hammer. This was a quick and entertaining read that I would recommend if you are a fan of the series. Now, unfortunately, you do have to buy this installment rather than get it through Kindle Unlimited. I went ahead and did that because I had a lot of digital credit built up on Amazon, but I am not sure this is really worth the cash if you don’t have digital credit. Maybe at some point it will be available free someplace, it’s pretty short.
