The author delivers a rapid-paced, suspenseful, gripping, well-written and perfectly executed fictional fantasy/ thrilling murder mystery.

Overall tells an interesting narrative with a complex main character and interesting surrounding characters. Most of the characters featured in the narrative are well fleshed out and have their own personality rather than just being the side-kick or bad guy

An escapist read that would be perfect for a summer camping trip, or in September when fall is just creeping into the edges of the season.

The premise to this story sounded intriguing. The story had mystery and magic set in alluring Venice. However, the novel was not executed well. The story had on a undeveloped romance rather than on the world-building or mystery. The characters were one-dimensional. The bad guys were typical with no complexities. The historical aspect could have been more detailed and developed. Overall, this novel suffered the most from telling and not showing. This novel had the potential to be the next Da Vinci Code, but sadly it did not deliver. I recommend this for fans of The Fortune Teller and The Lost Sisterhood.

I have picked this book strictly by title, description and cover. I am glad I read it and I am thrilled to say. The adventure, magic, humor and romance was wonderful in this book. I am glad that there would be a sequel because I cant wait to read more of this author's books!
I recommend this book to every reader who loves to escape into magical journey with twists and turns mixed with humor from time to time. For me this book deserves 5 solid stars!

Once I started reading I could not put down Kuivalainen's novel. It's an action packed thriller that draws you in and doesn't disappoint. I enjoyed being transported back to Venice. Looking forward to sequel.

I love the mix of romance, mystery, thrills and ancient mythology seamlessly blended together in this book. The characters are all quite distinct and play off each other well, creating a welcome feel for the less action focused parts of the story. I will definitely be continuing the series when the next instalment arrives.

I can’t remember the las time I cried and laughed so hard over a book but The Immortal City by Amy Kuivalainen did just that to me.

Dr. Penelope Bryne is an academic who is obsessed with Atlantis. In all her she was convinced it was real especially after she found a piece of tablet near Crete. But she was ridiculed, no one believed her. She is living a boring life when she gets an e-mail from an inspector from Venice. She travels there to try and help him with a ritualistic murder because some simbols at the crime scene seem to be atlantean. And this is where she meets Alexis Donato, a magician. Forget Harry Potter, Alexis is something else entirely. As the story goes on and Penelope finds out more and more about Alexis’s past, they grow closer but their relationship can have some serious consequences for them both.

Will the two of them stop the murderer before it’s too late?

That is just but one interesting part of the whole story. This is also a romance novel so there is love in it too. I just wish I could have a love like this.
The Immortal City is a captivating love story full of magic and fun. I want to have the sequel now, I need to have it.

Thank you to NetGalley, BHC Press and Amy Kuivalainen for my copy. All opinions are my own.

The Immortal City
Book 1 of The Magicians of Venice
By: Amy Kuivalainen

Publisher - BHC Press
Release Date: September 19, 2019
Category: Fiction/Fantasy/Contemporary

I received this book for review from NetGalley

Book Summary from the Publisher

In the heart of Venice, a woman is sacrificed to a forgotten god, sparking a mystery lost for thousands of years.

Dr. Penelope Bryne is ridiculed by the academic community for her quest to find the remnants of Atlantis, but when an ancient and mysterious script is found at a murder site, she flies to Venice determined to help the police before the killer strikes again.

Penelope has spent her entire life trying to ignore the unexplainable and magical history of Atlantis, but when she meets the enigmatic Alexis Donato, everything she believes will be challenged. Little does she know, Alexis has spent the last three years doing his best to sabotage Penelope’s career so doesn’t learn the truth—Atlantis had seven magicians who survived, and who he has a duty to protect.

As Alexis draws her into the darkly, seductive world of magic and history, Penelope will have to use her heart as well as her head if she is to find the answers she seeks. 

With the new MOSE system due to come online, and Carnivale exploding around them, Penelope and Alexis will have to work together to stop the killer and prevent dark magic from pulling Venice into the sea. 

Overall Opinion:

This was a book I could not put down. I would have read it a day if it wasn’t for the fact that real life kept getting in the way (don’t you hate when that happens?)

I found myself towards the middle of the book almost afraid do turning the page because I didn’t want what I thought was going to happen to actually happen. At one point it was almost as if I were watching a movie and I almost had to put my hands in front of my eyes so as to protect myself from what would come next (not very helpful if you’re reading with your eyeballs — may work better if you choose the audiobook option.)

There were some scenes which I felt were a bit slow but the rest of the pacing made up for it. It was a quick book to read (take it from me, I read pretty slow) and it kept me interested in what happened to the protagonist throughout the entire narrative. There was never one point where I could say I didn’t care for the characters (even when they got me really annoyed - see below).

There certainly was a lot of care put into the world I felt the book could have done a much better job at the building the characters. Especially, Penelope. Some times I couldn’t help but feel that she acted like a child instead of a world renounned archeologies. It felt as if sometimes she was confused as to whether she wanted to be a strong grown up woman able to take care of herself and then other times it felt as if she would break if anyone touched her. I felt frustrated not knowing which Penelope I was going to encounter at any point in my reading.

I started feeling a bit concerned when I realized that there was going to be romance in the book. I’m not much for romantic novels. However, the romance was done so well that I found myself wanting some of the characters to get together and sometimes felt disappointed that they didn’t and other times was sort of glad that they didn’t. I guess there is a time and place for everything right? (you’ll have to read the book to figure out exactly what I’m talking about.)

There were some very detailed descriptions of sacrifices done with animals and people and if your stomach is super weak I would say maybe not to read the full descriptions because they can go into a bit of a detail but for me, being one who does not enjoy gore at all and look away if someone gets a paper cut I found that I was able to cringe through them and they added to the hate I wound up feeling for the villain and the love and admiration I was lead to feel for the protagonist and Alexis Donato.

I think this is a great introduction book to the world of Fantasy and I give this book four stars. I would do five but the development of the protagonist made me crazy sometimes.

Thank you NetGalley for sending me an advance copy and your partnership.

Keep Reading
Ana

This was quite a riveting book, from beginning to end! I really enjoyed the storyline and thought it was very Dan Brown. The characters were each easily separated and had different voices and I found that I just couldn't put this book down!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to review this book.

Wow! This was a fantastic read! Penelope is a once renown academic that is called in as an expert of ancient languages in a Venetian murder. What happens from there spirals out from danger untold. I was captivated from the very first page. This book is a quick read, but even so, the pacing is just right. The reader is always held in just the right amount of suspense and interest as new discoveries are made by Penelope.

The characters all form a rich tapestry, each thread fully realized and developed richly. The descriptions are so vivid that it's easy to feel as though you are in the book as well. You can see and even smell what Penelope does. I highly recommend this book, and am already hoping for sequels!

The Immortal City is a fascinating book that hooked me and I could not out of down. The writing is good and I loved the characters.

In the heart of Venice, a woman is sacrificed to a forgotten god, sparking a mystery lost for thousands of years.
Dr. Penelope Bryne is ridiculed by the academic community for her quest to find the remnants of Atlantis, but when an ancient and mysterious script is found at a murder site, she flies to Venice determined to help the police before the killer strikes again.
Penelope has spent her entire life trying to ignore the unexplainable and magical history of Atlantis, but when she meets the enigmatic Alexis Donato, everything she believes will be challenged. Little does she know, Alexis has spent the last three years doing his best to sabotage Penelope’s career so doesn’t learn the truth—Atlantis had seven magicians who survived, and who he has a duty to protect.
As Alexis draws her into the darkly, seductive world of magic and history, Penelope will have to use her heart as well as her head if she is to find the answers she seeks.
With the new MOSE system due to come online, and Carnivale exploding around them, Penelope and Alexis will have to work together to stop the killer and prevent dark magic from pulling Venice into the sea.

This book is definitely a piece of escapism and made a welcome change to the books I generally read.
It has its dark and grisly moments but also a sprinkling of romance with very interesting magicians.

The historical aspect is fascinating and very thorough and rich in detail.

The plot is fast and well developed, I was gripped from start to finish.

The characters are generally well developed, the romance between the hero and heroine perhaps a bit cliched but still a lot of fun.

A lot of work has obviously gone into this book and it brought back wonderful memories of Venice which is such a magical city it is the perfect setting for this book.

I would recommend as a book to get lost in, and aren't they the best?

A very unique take on the mystery of Atlantis. There's a little bit of everything included in this tale, mystery, magic, murder, humor, romance, history, and drama, all beautifully woven together to create an intriguing story that takes place in the alluring city of Venice.

Overall, an enjoyable read that kept me up late wanting to know what happened next. This story is certainly a stand alone, with a solid ending, but I'm greedily hoping for more stories about the Immortal City!

Wow! What can I say about this book??? I loved it. I have always been intrigued by the legend of Atlantis. This story combines both present day Venice and the myth of Atlantis flawlessly. Full of mystery, danger, intrigue, Magic, and romance-you will keep turning the page wanting more! Complex characters with depth, and all too human emotion. Fast paced with a great flow! I anxiously await the next installment.

The Immortal City
by Amy Kuivalainen
Book details
Hardcover, 324 pages
Expected publication: September 19th 2019 by BHC Press
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This book was received as an ARC, from NetGalley, In exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own


Genre:
Fantasy, Mystical Realism , Mystery, Fiction, Adventure fiction, Contemporary fantasy

Synopsis:

In the heart of Venice, a woman is sacrificed to a forgotten god, sparking a mystery lost for thousands of years.

Dr. Penelope Bryne is ridiculed by the academic community for her quest to find the remnants of Atlantis, but when an ancient and mysterious script is found at a murder site, she flies to Venice determined to help the police before the killer strikes again.

Penelope has spent her entire life trying to ignore the unexplainable and magical history of Atlantis, but when she meets the enigmatic Alexis Donato, everything she believes will be challenged. Little does she know, Alexis has spent the last three years doing his best to sabotage Penelope’s career so doesn’t learn the truth—Atlantis had seven magicians who survived, and who he has a duty to protect.

Penelope Byrne, is the lead protagonist. Who, is not really excepted by her peers in the academic world,
Penelope is contacted by a the lead detective in a homicide case in Venice Italy. To use her expertise in Atlantean history and help decipher some glyphs at Ritual Murder Scene.
The Immortal City, is an engrossing and at times dark cat-and-mouse mystery, thrill ride where the writing is detailed and rich with magical realism .With the perfect amount of romance, dynamic characters, skillful character development, and masterful, yet at times harrowing plot makes for a gripping and wonderful read and if you love anything that is Atlantean , then I definitely recommend you read this one!


Oh by the way Amy Kuivalainen , has done her research. This is not a copycat Book . Very original
Thevetat, Thevetata An ancient king of one of the divisions of Atlantis, the submerged continental system of the fourth root-race (SD 2:222). He is instanced as one of the natural born adept-magicians who neither learned nor acquired knowledge, but who knew all without being initiated. "Under the evil insinuations of their demon, Thevetat, the Atlantis-race became a nation of wicked magicians" (IU 1:593).

The author delivers a rapid-paced, suspenseful, gripping, well-written and perfectly executed fictional fantasy/ thrilling mystery

I can highly recommend this book and I will be waiting anxiously for the next book in this series!

Amy Kuivalainen
“The Magicians of Venice is a three-book series and is the culmination of many weird pieces of ancient history and personal passions finally coming together. While The Immortal City (book one) is mainly a magical, murder mystery, Sea of the Dead (book two) and The King’s Seal (book three) have a treasure hunt feel. As a student of ancient history, “

Author :
Amy Kuivalainen is a Finnish-Australian writer that is obsessed with magical wardrobes, doors, auroras and burial mounds that might offer her a way into another realm. Until then, she will write about fairy tales, monsters, magic and mythology because that's the next best thing. She is the author of The Firebird Fairytales Trilogy and The Blood Lake Chronicles series that mash up traditional tales and mythology in new and interesting ways.

I was provided a copy by NetGalley for an honest review of this book.

The premise of this book made it sound like it would be a really cool adult, urban fantasy. However, when I started reading it, I found that it was as sophisticated as I originally thought. I loved the introductory chapters. It set up a really cool mystery that had a basis in Greek mythology. I find mythology fascinating so I figured that I would immediately connect with the main character, who was a scholar. She was a researcher and I love research, so I thought it would only be natural.

However, I found her to act very young. She got herself stuck in so many situations that, if she would have either brought someone along or trusted them enough to actually tell them, would have been better. I also didn't really enjoy the book once we actually encountered things from mythology. I wanted it to stick with the murders and get more in depth. I think this book would have been better had there not been any fantastical element and instead stuck to a series of cult murders who believe in the fantastical things.

When I started this book I wasn’t really into it, something just didn’t click, but before I knew it I was hooked.

I absolutely ADORE anything related to Atlantis and would definitely recommend this book.

I wish I could have liked The Immortal City more than I did. It has a great premise with plenty of potential, and it was a fast-paced, quick read. However, I found Penelope hard to fathom, as she acted a bit 'young' at times. I also would have liked a little more menace around the murders, as I never really felt that concerned about any of it. Every time she got captured, I wanted to roll my eyes at her stupidity, but I was never truly worried. The foreign-language use nagged at me, too, as the Italian wasn't always correct. In one sentence there was a random Spanish word, instead of Italian, for example. If you are going to include foreign text, it does need to be properly checked for accuracy. That said, this was entertaining enough as stories go, so I am still giving it three stars as it will appeal to readers of fantasy mystery or Atlantis fans. It certainly wasn't unreadable; however, it could have been better.

I'm awfully glad I picked this book up on a whim, and the author has earned a place on my list of new releases to track. I love scholarly chick lit (which, since I enjoyed this and Discovery of Witches, is apparently a genre, and one that I am quite into.)

Dr. Bryne is a historian facing a fair amount of ridicule in her field after declaring she had found real evidence of the existence of Atlantis and wanted to pursue it further. While otherwise maligned for her interest in the subject, she does find herself called to Venice to advise on a murder case where the murderer seems to have used symbolism seen in her research.

Having lived a rather mundane life until this point, she is startled to encounter in Venice what can only be described as magical phenomena, and recurring through it all is a handsome man she saw once in a dream.

The two of them must work together through dangerous circumstances to stop the killer before he strikes again, while discovering that the lost secrets of Atlantis aren't so lost at all.

This could have been a good urban(ish) paranormal thriller. But it isn't. It's full of problems. The plot: a scholar of Atlantis is drawn into a conspiracy to raise old and bad gods when she's called to consult on a murder case in Venice. She inserts herself into the case and then meets a nearly-immortal Atlantean man into whose meditation she has astrally projected. He turns out to have been instrumental in wrecking her career as an academic, but they fall in love anyway. There are police folks involved, but their roles are to flatter the scholar and to serve as a comparison point for her. The author's treatment of academia is unbelievable, as is the police reaction to the scholar, and let's not even get into the scholar's idiotic behavior. Also, everyone is "hot"--the cop, the scholar, the immortal, his friends.... and the gender politics of the book are a mess, with the scholar constantly being useless/needing to be rescued/bait and the other female characters being either foils for the protagonist's perfection or more beautiful immortals. There's rape and torture of women, a woman's self-sacrifice for men, and more. The initial idea--that a scholar who had found a forgotten alphabet was called on to help decipher more of that same alphabet, which was being used in ritual killings--is fine. The rest is a disappointment.

4 pleasantly surprised stars

To be honest, I wasn't really sure what I would get into with this book. I do, however, have an obsession with extinct cultures and legends, to name the Celts and Atlanteans, to give you an idea. Naturally, I had to request this book, when it was up for Review on #NetGalley and I couldn't be happier that it was approved. #theimmortalcity is a fast-paced and well-written piece about a series of ritual murders in Venice.

In the middle of it is an Australian-Irish academic, Penelope, whose career is somewhat questionable. A while ago she found a tablet in the Meditarennean Penelope identifies as Atlantean heritage. While some colleagues certainly have an open ear for her theory, the biggest part of the academic realm, however, sees nothing more but the wild fantasies of a woman. Pen is contacted by Marco, the inspector responsible for the homicides in Venice. The second she lays eyes on the pictures of the crime scenes she is sure: this is connected somehow, maybe even only loosely connected to the tablet she found. Pen doesn't even have to think about it, just jumps on the next best plane to Italy, thereby putting her right in the middle of the investigations...and the focus of a couple of Atlanteans, some of them eviler than others.

Amidst in one of her calming meditations, she finds herself opposite a mysterious man she also runs into in person the following day. As she gets caught up more and more in this mess, the mystery man even saves her life. He pretty much pulled her back from the dead. It is then she fully comes to comprehend that her passion for Atlantis, a lost civilization advanced in so many ways even 10.000 years ago, is definitely real. Because Alexis, her saviour, is an Atlantean magician, thousands of years old and pretty easy on the eyes.

Also, Alexis and his fellas live in this amazing palazzo, including archives that are filled with texts and artefacts. Goes without saying, that our academic geek is absolutely smitten by Alexis. To be honest, I would luuurvee to have a look at this library (and the sexy Atlanteans) as well....

He and his friends got wind of the murderers and recognized it as the ritual doings of the priests of Thevetat, a demon that, once he got through with the necessary preparations, would wreak havoc over La Serenissima. And these priests have their eyes on Penelope: several attempts on her life and a couple of abductions prove that Thevetat's priests will not stop until they got everything they want.

As if this weren't stressful enough already, Penelope and Alexis cannot deny there is a pull between the two that makes it pretty much impossible for them to stay away from each other. But is it love? If so, can they both survive to enjoy it? She is human and he is pretty much immortal, after all...

If you have an open ear for fantastic tellings of civilizations who have fascinated us since the dawn of time, then this is definitely for you. Time flies by with this fast read.
_______________________________________________________-
Writing Quality + ease of reading = 4*

pace = 3,5*

plot development = 4*

characters = 5* (sorry, a girl can only resist so many Athlanteans...)

enjoyability = 3,5*

insightfulness = 2*