Wish Bound by J. C. Nelson

wish-bound“Even when she’s not starting it, trouble follows Marissa everywhere. First there was the incident with the homicidal Fairy Godmother. Then there was the time she accidentally started Armageddon. But the problems that always seem to arise on Marissa’s birthday take the cake.

This year, her annual bad-luck presents include an army of invading goblins, the resurrection of two vengeful enemies from hell, and the return of the Black Queen, the evil sorceress whose reign of terror still haunts Kingdom and who happens to have claimed Marissa as her servant.

As Marissa’s friends try to save her from the Black Queen’s clutches, Marissa fights to end a bitter war that started before her birth. But her quest for peace is about to bring up some inconvenient truths about her own past—ones that might cost her the happily ever after she’s always dreamed of…”

If I didn’t know that this series was going to continue, I’d be convinced that this was the end of the story.  Nelson does an awesome job of wrapping up the major conflicts that began in the first two novels, but she leaves plenty of room to keep going.  I personally expected the plot involving the Black Queen to be of much longer duration, but having it resolved at this point was quite satisfying.  The author delivers solid plotting and has a good grasp on what she can draw out and what she’s better off dealing with without too much waffling around.

It’s also nice to see Nelson pulling in characters from the first two books to be part of the events in this one.  It’s something that is common to see as a series concludes, but I liked seeing here when the author is simply bringing a particular plotline to fruition.  And also, it’s nice that there haven’t been so many characters introduced that bringing them together turns into the text equivalent of a Ben-Hur style crowd scene.  You actually know who everyone is and can easily remember their place in the overall narrative.

The thing that I like best about this series is the humor.  While there’s nothing in this story to top the previous book’s invasion of demonic poodles that get cuter the more people they kill, there are plenty of lines that will get a giggle from readers.  The humor is along the lines of Jim Butcher or Kevin Hearne–funny, but not over the top.  And I’m fully aware of the irony of saying that with regards to a series with demonic poodles.

Grimm Agency has rapidly turned into one of my favorite urban fantasy series, and Wish Bound is a solid addition to the story, bringing some aspects of the plot to conclusion and leaving the door open for more adventures to come.  I highly recommend you pick up Nelson’s books.

This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

(Description nicked from B&N.com.)

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