I read this series for the 2020 Hugo (Best Series) awards and felt it was the best of the nominated series, although I enjoyed the earlier short stories more than the 'modern times' stories.

Thank you for providing this book as part of the 2020 Hugo Awards Voter’s Packet (finalist for Best Series).

Copy of book received as part of this year's Hugo packet, therefore will not be reviewing at this time.

Listen, I long ago joined the church of Seanan McGuire, when I read Rosemary and Rue for the first time with Felicia Day's Vaginal Fantasy book club. From that moment on, I was completely hooked. Seanan has never failed me. So when this series was nominated for a Hugo and I received the first eight books in the series as part of my Hugo voter packet, I was beyond pleased. This series gives me the same warm and fuzzy feelings that I get when reading Toby Daye books, but just ever so slightly lighter and I love the kind of monster-of-the-week feeling. One of my favourite parts about this series is that we get to follow different characters, which I honestly was skeptical about when I first got to a book not from Verity's point of view. But it really widens the possibilities of the series. The Aeslin mice are my favourite. As always, the balance of character building and world building is pretty close to perfection.

When we get to the later books in the series, I think she straddles the line perfectly of reviewing what has happened previously in the series (a kind of "previously on" but for books) while also moving on with the series. If I wasn't reading them all in a row, I'm sure I would appreciate that even more, as so often I feel like I have to completely re-read a series in order to remind myself of what's happened before I read the newest installment, which tends to mean that i put off that reading.

Overall, really pleased to have finally started this new-to-me series from McGuire and equally pleased to look forward to future books to come.

In the 7th book in the InCrypted series by Seanan McGuire, we are taken on quite a ride when the protagonist, Antimony Price, AKA Melody West looks for refuge from her self-exile by taking a job as a cast member at Lowryland in Florida. Lowryland is not to be confused with Disneyland, but thinking about Disneyland is a good starting point to understand the setting. Our heroine is in a sad and lonely situation in the first few pages of the novel as she is on the run by herself from the Covenant of Saint George, trying to prevent them from finding and killing her friends and family. The plot becomes less lonely as she starts coincidentally encountering friends that want to help her. Then the story takes a turn for even more exciting territory as she goes to battle against the evil magic misusing cabal at the highest executive levels of Lowryland in order to save herself and her loyal friends. This book, like others in the series, is an enjoyable adventure that is quite hard to put down.

Whilst just as well written as previous instalments in this series, Tricks For Free is possibly my least favourite of the entire series so far. There are two reasons for this; one, it felt like a bit of a filler book. Not a lot happens, the whole narrative with the Covenant is completely on hold and it didn't really feel linked in any real way to the overall plot of the series. Secondly, there are no Aeslin mice. This is a major flaw, as those little critters have become one of my favourite aspects of this series and I really felt the lack of them here.

In honesty, this could have been - and probably should have been - a novella rather than a full length novel. There's a lot of words for not a lot of things happening at all. Antimony has disappeared off grid and found her way to Lowryland, a competitor to Disney. I liked how some of the early novel filled in a lot about her background and how those around her saw her as a teenager, but with the exception of a few 'freak' accidents, things really don't get rolling until the final third of the novel. There's a lot of exposition about Lowryland, and McGuire has clearly put in a huge amount of research to build her own theme park. Unfortunately, as a reader we really didn't have to know all of it. I love Disneyland, and even I was getting bored. So for anyone with no interest in theme parks, I can see it being far too much information without enough plot to back it up.

I did appreciate that for the majority of the book there was a complete lack of a romantic sub-plot for once, but all good things come to an end and of course Antimony's boyfriend had to show up to be part of the big finale. The finale was impressive and really sets things up for the next book well; but again, that kind of links to my initial point. This is really a novel that sets things up for the next book. And that is all well and good, but it means that there isn't really enough of a narrative to carry this on it's own as a full-length piece. The inclusion of some magic users was interesting, particularly as we haven't really seen much of them other than Antimony's own efforts to not set anything on fire. But again, this all comes to a head close to the end of the book... meaning that the first two hundred odd pages felt like unnecessary filler.

I have high hopes for the next book though and hope I won't be disappointed.

This is the 7th book in the InCryptid series by Seanan McGuire.

This has been a fun series to read throughout and this book is no exception.

This book follows on from the last with Annie running solo on the run from the Covenant.

No family back-up, no mice.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this when it came out - and again recently during a series reread.

I highly reccomend this series to any fan of urban fantasy and or fun!

Thank you for the chance to review prior to Hugo voting. It was very helpful to get the full series on NetGalley!

This is a book I am accessing via Netgalley for the Hugo nomination packet. Due to this, I will not be reviewing this book via Netgalley at this time.

I got this as part of the Hugo Awards Voting Packet. I love this series! I look forward to reading the author’s next book.

Thank you so much for providing this book as part of the Hugo voting packet. When I have read this book my review will be posted to my blog, Goodreads and retail websites.

Antimony Price was on the run from the Covenant after the destruction of the carnival in Magic for Nothing. So she ran for anonymous by becoming a worker at Lowryland, an amusement park in Florida. Things were working out until Antimony found out that magic was going on at Lowryland. She signed up for training, but found out the hard way that not everyone is honest or abides by their covenants. Luckily, Antimony has backup in unexpected places and Sam has joined the team as well. In the end, Lowryland has its luck turned while Antimony is out of a job and under future obligation to the Crossroads. And the fun continues!

While I have become an ardent fan of Seanan McGuire's writing, I am a relative late-comer to her body of work and this is the first book in her InCryptid series that I've read even though it is listed as the seventh in the series. But one (of the many) great things about McGuire's writing is that she manages to give you everything you need to know to enjoy the story, without slowing down the action for those who are already familiar with the characters. It's brilliant and seems to be a lost art among many of today's authors.

Antimony Price is a cryptozoologist (studies monsters) and she is trying to get away from her present life. The Covenant (a group who hunt and kill those monsters she would like to study) are trying to track her down, which has everyone she knows in danger. But finding a safe haven isn't particularly easy. Antimony heads to Florida where she decides the safest place to hide is in a crowd. She applies for a job at the Lowryland Amusement Park and finds that a former 'friend' - her high school cheer-leading captain (who looked after "Annie" when she thought that there was a no-good boyfriend in the picture) is in the position to hire her - and look after her once again.

But when accidents start happening and people begin dying at Lowryland, Annie learns that a secret enclave of magic users are behind the scenes, running Lowryland and they want to help Annie learn to control her powers. But help is never free. Fortunately she's got some new (and old) friends to get her through.

I don't think there's anyone writing urban fantasy better than Seanan McGuire today. Her characters are strong (but fallible), unique, identifiable people. And not just the main characters. Anyone we are introduced to comes alive in her books and that is an absolute treat.

The stories are engaging and the plots unfold deliciously in these books, and this is no exception. Although i know what I needed to in order to enjoy this book, I am definitely tantalized her by Antimony's past and I look forward to going backward and getting caught up on her story.

I find that McGuire is also combining a number of her worlds or at least crossing over with themes and world-building. The mention of The Crossroads in this story was instantly familiar to me as I not long ago read and reviewed books 1 & 2 in the Ghost Roads series. For her fans and followers, this is definitely a lot of fun.

And while I didn't mind starting here on book #7, my recommendation would be to start at the beginning. You don't want to miss out on a single moment of McMuire's stories.

My ARC included a novelette "The Recitation of the Most Holy and Harrowing Pilgrimage of Mindy and Also Mork" - the story of two mice. In this instance I was lost. I got the sense that I really needed to know more about who these characters were and why this was important to me.

Looking for a good book? <em>Tricks for Free</em> by Seanan McGuire is a strong urban fantasy in the InCryptid series (#7) and definitely worth reading for fans of the genre, but perhaps you will want to start with the first book in the series!

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Much as I love Antimony, <i>Tricks for Free</i> is one of the weaker InCryptid installments. It's stricken with seventh book syndrome, if that were a thing, but it's totally not. Seriously, though, the issues here are reminiscent of "second book syndrome," in that the plot's a bit lacking and the book's more about setting things in motion for a larger and more exciting plot in the next book.

Antimony's on the run and living as Melody West, while working at Lowryland, a competitor of Disney, in Lakeland, FL. Things are pretty quiet for the first quarter to half of the book. There's a series of accidents but no clear motive or connection to Antimony for much of it, so there's really not much forward motion until Sam arrives and the plot actually kicks into gear. <i>Tricks for Free</i> is by no means a bad book (four stars, duh), but I've read a LOT of McGuire, and it's not her best.

Sam and Antimony are adorable. Fern and Megan are pretty awesome too. A theme park's a cool setting. And, as is often the case in this series, McGuire's sense of humor shines through. I'm looking forward to the next book, which I suspect will be thoroughly badass.

"Penance, noun:
1. Punishment for past actions.
2. An attempt to pay for what can't be bought.
3. See also "exile."

Antimony Price is on the run. With the Covenant on her tail and her family still in danger, she needs to get far, far away from anyone who might recognize her--including her own mice. For the first time in a long time, a Price is flying without a safety net. Where do you go when you need to disappear into a crowd without worrying about attracting attention? An amusement park, of course.

Some people would call Lowryland the amusement park. It's one of the largest in Florida, the keystone of the Lowry entertainment empire...but for Annie, it's a place to hide. She's just trying to keep her head down long enough to come up with a plan that will get her home without getting anyone killed. No small order when she's rooming with gorgons and sylphs, trying to placate frustrated ghosts, and rushing to get to work on time.

Then the accidents begin. The discovery of a dead man brings Annie to the attention of the secret cabal of magic users running Lowryland from behind the scenes. They want the fire that sleeps in her fingers. They want her on their side. They want to help her--although their help, like everything else, comes with a price.

No plan. Minimal backup. No way out. Annie's about to get a crash course in the reality behind the pretty facade. If she's lucky, she'll survive the experience."

How does Seanan get this many books written? Seriously.

I had no idea what this book was even about, let alone had I read the series it was from. It's not a book you can pick up without reading the others. That being said I thought it was interesting, action-packed, and full of well-made characters!

The InCryptid series has lots of daring action with Antimony Price hiding out at an entertainment park while she fights off bad luck and protects the local supernatural critters. Be sure to read this seventh in the series.

I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley for an honest review.
A great addition to this series. I love this book. The characters and world building are well-developed.  Antimony is on the run from the Covenant. She ends up in California at Lowryland, a knockoff of a famous amusement park in California. Things start to heat up when accidents start to happen in the park. Antimony must find out what is happening or die trying. This book has been a great read, and I recommend it to everyone. I give Tricks for Free (InCryptid) 5/5 stars.

I have no idea what took me so long to pick this one up. Maybe it was my stubborn stupidity in action.

Being the second one by Antimony's perspective and with the way the last one ended, I had huge expectations for Tricks for Free. In Magic for Nothing, we get to know a whiny Antimony, with a chip on her shoulder the size of Mt Everest. That travels to the other side of the Atlantic on a somehow suicidal mission feeling like the sacrificial lamb because her older sister was selfish and wanted to dance. Although I had some issues with the plot and Annie's personality, I fell in love with the story, with her and with the book - which caused me to be a crushed mess at the end, all brokenhearted, sobbing while asking "why, Seanan, why?" over and over.

This one.. well this one is so different that I basically started listening to it while coloring and doing errands and then switched to the kindle version because omigosh-is-so-good-I-need-to-end-it-today-and-audio-is-too-slow. The book takes place a few months after the events of the first book and it shows us a new Annie. She has grown.. a lot... she still has issues with her sister, but while before they were typically younger sibling complains, now they have more depth. We get to know Annie. How she worked as part of a team. How she cares for the people surrounding her, and how she makes decisions. I also found the plot more probable, and who doesn't want to know how an amusement park works?

In the end I loved the book - sure, it was almost 2:30 when I finally finished, but I went to sleep with a deep satisfaction that I didn't mind to pay the price the next day. Because every choice you make, there's always a price to pay.

3.5 stars

I love the Incryptid series, the crazy Price family and the huge variety of weird and wonderful creatures (particularly the Aeslin mice!) are just so much fun to read about so of course I was excited to read Tricks for Free even though Antimony is actually my least favourite of the siblings. I enjoyed her first book a lot more than I expected to but unfortunately this one just wasn't as good as I was hoping it would be. Antimony is the youngest of the Price children and she shows a lot of immaturity here, she tends to blame her family a lot and act like she was never loved as much as Verity and Alex but at the same time she complains that they're overprotective of her because she's the youngest. Which one is it Antimony? Either they don't care or they care too much - they can't be both at the same time! I can understand why she has to keep her distance from her family here but I missed them all in this story, Mary pops up a few times but it's just not the same as having all the characters I love around and since she's also separated from the Aeslin mice we don't even have them to lighten the tone a bit.

We do get to see a few of Antimony's old friends from her roller derby days but to be honest I've always found Antimony's endless talk of skating pretty boring in the short stories about her so that didn't really help me much. Seanan McGuire has obviously spent a lot of time and energy creating her own theme park called Lowryland, it's a full scale thing with it's own imaginary characters and lots of fun rides and Antimony is currently hiding out there as one of their newest employees. I appreciate the effort that the author has gone into making somewhere that feels so real but the endless descriptions of the place started to get boring after a while. It's a bit like having a friend come home from Disneyland and then wanting you to sit through a slideshow of the 600 photos they took, the first few are interesting enough but it's not long before your eyes start to glaze over, especially if you know you'll probably never be able to afford to go there yourself! Some things are only THAT interesting if you're actually there at the time and I felt the endless descriptions really slowed down this story.

There wasn't really a huge amount happening in this book and for probably the first two thirds I was pretty bored which is unheard of for this series. Things definitely got more interesting when Sam finally turned up, the last third of the book was far more exciting and it's definitely set things up for the next instalment but I just didn't love Tricks for Free as much as I'd hoped to. I still think Seanan McGuire is an incredible author, this series is usually so much fun to read and I'm also a huge fan of the October Daye books so she remains on my auto-buy list.