Thank you NetGalley, Deborah Wilde, and publisher for allowing me to have this ARC. If there’s one type of book that usually steals my heart it’s a witty, snarky, bad-ass heroine. However, many times this type of book isn’t executed well. Blood & Ash did not disappoint and was such a fun read, I was thoroughly entertained throughout the book. Looking forward to reading more in the series and other books by Deborah Wilde!

This may not have been my first audiobook, but it was my first audiobook from NetGalley (YAY for ARC audiobooks!).

Ahhh, I always am never sure what to think about audiobooks. Sometimes a terrible narrator can totally butcher the beautiful prose, and sometimes a great narrator can make a bad book sound a tad bit better. And then there are those few instances where the planets align and a perfect narrator and book just fall into each others’ hands. Then there are those -iffy ones. This was one of them.

I’m not saying the narrator is terrible, but I wasn’t in love with how she tried to bring the story to life. In the end, I got used to her and will probably not be able to hear another narrator take over because Hollie Jackson is officially the voice of Ash. Honestly, it might ruin it for me. Oops! But anyway, Jackson’s voice actually seemed to fit Ash’s PI attitude.

Ashira, known to her friends as Ash, is a normal old Private Investigator. In Ash’s own words, she only deals with human cases. Until she was unwittingly pulled into a runway teen case in which both teens turned out to be of magical descent and nearly cost Ash her PI license.

Except Ash’s father was a magical being (one that left her when she was in a terrible childhood accident). But that means nothing because Ash doesn’t have magic running through her veins, right? WRONG-O. At least, in the beginning. Ash’s magic ends up developing later in life, unlike normal children whose powers appear at a young age. So to say, it’s a little interesting, and I wanted to know more.

What caused Ash’s magic to be hidden for so long? Did her mother know Ash had magic? Her dad? And what is the deal with her old “friend” Levi who is now head of one of the most powerful magical families? (totally a friend-to-lovers bit which was irritatingly slow to grow into something more; but that’s just me)

Ahh, so many things were going on and so many things I was dying to understand.

Also, is it bad that I kind of pictured Levi as a kind of Christian Grey? I mean, Levi’s not as . . . well, you know, but Levi had that imposing nature about him. Though that could have been how the narrator was portraying him.

Side note: this has nothing with the plot of the book but I would like to point out that there is a character named Talia, which made me squeal with excitement! I love seeing my name in books. Until I learned that Talia was an absolute pain-in-the-ass and I hated every fiber of her being. And still do. Totally unfair!

Overall, the story was good and the narrator was alright (still not my favorite but I liked her a bit more in the end) and I actually cannot wait to read the next book in the series because I would love to see how the series plays out. Though next time, I will probably snatch an eBook version to see if that changes how I feel about the story. I mean, why not?


Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this review copy!

Ashira is a mundane PI whose career is limited by her lack of magic until, in the middle of a case, she suddenly uses unheard-of blood magic. She must figure out the source of her abilities and keep them hidden from influential society leaders, while also racing to keep her client safe and solve the case.

I really liked that Wilde's magic system is based in Judaism. It was a refreshing change from angel-demon battles, vampires being hurt by holy water, and other conflicts that come from Christianity as the default culture. Magic in this world comes from an ancient gathering of Jewish holy men who petitioned the Powers that Be. As magic passed down the generations, it trickled into the non-Jewish population until it has become reasonably commonplace.

Wilde is Jewish herself and has written about the importance of representation on her blog. While I can't speak to the accuracy of her portrayal, I enjoyed the "what-ifs" of Judaism, not Christianity, as the dominant culture..

For better or worse, this plot is uncannily similar to Ilona Andrews' Hidden Legacy series. While the storyline is pretty formulaic paranormal romance, I will happily recommend it for the worldbuilding and the protective, independent heroine.

Great start to a new urban fantasy series.

First off: I listened to the audiobook narrated by Hollie Jackson. Hollie brought the characters to life and made the story more enjoyable. Her voice and tone was great for each character. I 100% recommend the audiobook and I will be listening to the second audiobook soon.

The story takes place in Vancouver, Canada in an alternate reality where some have magic. It is packed with interesting elements and enjoyable secondary characters. Our main character Ashira is strong, intelligent and snarky. Working as the only female P.I. in Vancouver, she takes on a case that leads her to more than one mystery to solve. That leads to questions about what is really happening in the magic world and to herself. The mysteries build as the story progresses.

I wasn’t sure about this book at first. Although it was fast paced from the beginning, it took about 5 chapters before I really started enjoying it. By the 50% mark I couldn’t stop listening. My problem in the beginning was the lack of world building. It did come but it was too slow for me. It’s an interesting and unique world. I still have questions and hope they will be answered in the second audiobook.

I received this audiobook from NetGalley. All opinions are my own and in no way reflect the author, publisher or NetGalley. Thank you to NetGalley for helping me discover this series and author.

I recieved this book in exchange for an honest review (Thanks Netgalley!<3)

This story follows Ashira, a sassy private eye mundane (human) in Vancouver, Canada. Her world is split between people with magic abilities and those without (mundane). She discovers that those lines can be blurred and the consequences for those blurred lines can lead to trouble.

She ends up working with her long time nemesis, Levi, who of course, is the main romance antagonist. There's also a lot of seemingly random sub plots with family which I assume will be wrapped up in later books.

They story tries to have the enemies to lovers troupe but their background story is a bit... underwhelming.
They went to a gradeschool camp together, he has magic, she doesn't. ENEMIES.
They grow up, he's hot, she's hot. LOVERS.

Over all I'm giving it a full 4 stars.
It was an interesting read, love the Canada references, but the enemies to lovers storyline was a bit blah.

I'm legitimately interested to find out where her story goes and how the magic develops throughout the next books. I liked that there is some mystery regarding her powers and the other Jezebels.

I loved Blood & Ash and can't wait to get my hands (or ears) on the next installment of the series. The magic system is interesting with consequences that up the stakes and adds to the political tension of the book's world. It was nice to have a more diverse cast of characters than can usually be found in contemporary fantasy, as well. As for the plot, I found it fast paced and fun with a enjoyable romance arc that was at turns steamy, tender and realistically uncertain. Overall, I can say I'll definitely be hand-selling this book and its future installments.

In the end, I enjoyed this story but at the beginning I wasn't sure if I was going to finish it. The main character, Ashira, was certainly snarky and sarcastic and kinda over the top which put me off at first and had me focusing on her word choice instead of the story. So it took me longer to get into the story and understand where it was going. It did get much better but I was a little disappointed in the barely there romance. It could definitely progress in the next books though. I did enjoy the bantering between Ash and Levi and their sometimes obvious attraction.

It was an interesting take on magic users, Nefesh, and mundanes. With the different houses, it kinda reminded me of a grown-up Harry Potter story.

Blood & Ash is the first book in the Jezebel Files. The story follows a private detective who discovers powers while on the case to find a missing person.. Ashira works with her childhood nemesis to crack the case.

I have very conflicting feelings about this audiobook. None of my main issues are the author or narrators fault so I am trying to temper my review to reflect an actual review of the book. This is a NetGalley book and to listen to audiobooks I have to use their app. There app is very problematic kept pausing randomly it jumped ahead on me and started over so it makes reviewing this hard.

To the actual review, I enjoyed the book from what I could tell. It was fun, the characters were engaging. The romance is obvious right now. Plot was not anything mindblowing but it was still an enjoyable listen. You know what you are getting when you pick up this book. Its a paranormal dystopian world with female lead with special powers. I am giving 4 stars because even with all the issues with the app I actually finished the book. I thought overall this was a fun listen.

Thank you to NetGalley and Te Da Media for a free copy. This is an honest review.

With thanks to Netgalley and Te Da Media for providing me with an audiobook of Blood & Ash, Book 1 in The Jezebel Files by Deborah Wilde.

This is my first book by this author and I pretty much went in blind. The gorgeous colours of the cover drew me in, but I was not disappointed. A female PI, unexplained magic, her broody (hot) nemesis and a mystery to solve. This was a solid 4 star read for me and I’ll definitely be continuing with the series. A thoroughly enjoyable read!

**I received an audio copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

I absolutely loved this book! I've been saying for so long that I find it strange that there is rarely books that have Jewish characters unless it is related to the Holocaust or biblical times or that there is no fantasy books that incorporate Jewish folktales and myths. Well this book had it! I loved the premise, detective strong female lead needs to uncover the truth about herself and what is happening in her world. I loved the diversity in characters, and the friendships Ash forms. Ash is definitely a strong woman and I love that about her, she is also caring and passionate and even shows her vulnerability sometimes. She is very relatable. The love interest is also smoldering in all the right ways. A great enemies to lovers trope. I also thought it was cute how much Sherlock Holmes was incorporated into the story as well.

For the audiobook, the narrator was good overall. She changes the tone and pitch of voices when switching characters which I really liked. I felt like she spoke very slow and when I tried to speed it up past a 2x speed it seemed to get choppy, but that could have just been Netgalley's app. The only other negative I have is that when she spoke Yiddish and Hebrew words the pronunciation seemed a little off to me. This may also be due to the fact that the story takes place in Canada and I'm American. I don't know if there are different accents in these countries for these languages.

This book had the perfect level of snark, humor, detective work, and sexual tension all dosed in a delightful world of magic. Ashira is a badass private investigator with a heart of gold no matter how she may try to hide it. When a secret the size of the moon blows up her carefully crafted world and she finds there is virtually no one she can trust, she doesn't let that stop her from finishing the task she first started. This book follows her on one adventure after another slowly world-building and introducing new characters that are all pretty wonderful in their own right. The sassy best friend, the too perfect to be real new neighbor, the arch-nemesis turned client/boss and a whole host of others each of whom plays an amusing if not important role. I'm excited to continue on with this series.

The narrator was spot on for this character and this book. She did a fantastic job keeping with the story and using her voice to best represent each scene. I listened to the book at 1.5x speed after trying a few different options and it worked perfectly for me.

*I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*
I listened to the audiobook version of Blood & Ash by Deborah Wilde a new snarky urban fantasy novel. The first of the series it spent quite a bit of time laying out the backstory and explaining the characters relationships with each other. Unlike some other urban fantasy novels where the setting is in the future or right after the reveal of the fantastical world, there is a change to history that runs through the world. Personally I enjoyed this book and will continue reading the series. My one criticism would be that it was overly snarky until the end. I felt that there could have been a better balance. If you enjoy urban fantasy then definitely check this book out.

Got the audiobook via NetGalley.

Once I got over my initial irritation with the narrating voice, the book pulled me in. It is an interesting, fast-paced read in a complicated world with a mysterious magic system. The heroine has both strengths and weaknesses, and a tragic backstory, that makes her a fleshed-out character. All the side characters also had their own voices and traits, which made this an enjoyable read.
The story itself was quite compelling. I facepalmed a bit at every mention of "smudges" - this wouldnt be a word id use as a nickname for such a serious magical novelty. But I am very curious as to the whole Jezebel magic and creed and I will continue on with the series to find out where it all ends up.

The one drawback is the evident tunnel vision of the author. At times the plot isnt going smoothly, genuinely, instead following evident red herrings (there were few moments where I feel that Ash shouldve arrived at the conclusions faster) or driving towards bullseye while ignoring all the other possibilities. Either or - I think the author could use some breathing room from time to time to wonder where the action could go in an organic way, instead of the author evidently moving the action where she wants it to go.

Over all, I recommend this book.

Surprisingly entertaining audiobook. The narrator was exceptionally snarky as befitting the subtitle. The book is a slightly different spin on most books of this genre and makes it unique enough to be notable. The main protagonist is scrappy and interesting, with enough flaws to definitely populate a series. The romance is fiery and the author and narrator do a great job at conveying the passion. I look forward to reading/listening the rest of this series.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I loved the cover, which is what drew my eye, to begin with, but it was also filled with humor and mystery. I greatly enjoyed that we found out things alongside the heroine, but she wasn't TSTL, she had some knowledge about the world, and her deductive reasoning was on point.

The romance in the book wasn't overwhelming, it was more of a background piece that didn't dominate the storyline, it had just enough to leave it steamy, but not so much that it took away from the overall plot.

I struggled a little with the narrator, but it was more in the sense of attuning myself to her voice, and once I did, I fell deep into the story.

I can't wait to read the next book.

Sadly with this one I DNF it , I just couldn't make it though the story at all, there was nothing that was keeping pulled into the story .

The book was performed by a single narrator. In the first few minutes I was out off by what I felt was a bit over the top snarky bordering on juvenile but then I eased into the flow- she didn’t need to change anything. I realized her snarky accents were entirely appropriate. I suddenly couldn’t imagine the character without the voice she used. After all, the character is written as snarky so the narrator closely follows the main character. It works.

She does very well differentiating each character, male and female. However, accents are not her strength. Santino and the Queen of Hearts accents often devolve into a fake vampire accents.

I did not read the book so I cannot speak to whether the voice is appropriate to the text. But I can say that her voice, her narration, was appropriate to the story. She gave a convincing, satisfying and entertaining performance. I would recommend this audiobook to my patrons.

This audiobook was good, I really recommend it, it was really funny, it was interesting and I would give it a try if it comes out a second part, I would be pleased to listen to it.

Well written and well read this story is entertaining and snarky - just the way I like them. I look forward to reading more of the series!

This was, as advertised, a snarky book. I did like it, but it had to grow on me. At first, Ashura kind of got on my nerves. She was just another Charley Davidson wannabe. I stuck with the book and by the time the kidnapping took place, I was firmly entrenched.

As the personality of the protagonist started becoming more dimensional, she started making me care for her. She hasn’t the best life has to offer, but she is making it. After getting hit on the head, she was stunned to discover she was a magic user (called Nefesh) and also that she was warded to keep her magic firmly stoppered. As the book proceeded, the story kept winding around and overlapping in other mysteries that Ashura found herself. There were weird “things” that Ashura could see slithering around victims that ended up dead. There were magic haters and fear mongers and politicians that wanted them gone.

The author made Ashura’s nemesis an egotistic, arrogant and Uber privileged jerk. They also grew up together, which I thought was an interesting thing to mention before the story actually did. It made the things Ash said and felt more understandable. Levi was the head of the “House” of Nefesh. There are other “Houses”, but that wasn’t important to know for story purposes.

I found that Ash’s obsession with Sherlock Holmes endearing and not annoying. She and her best friend had nicknames which was cute. Ashura was Jewish and covered some interesting things regarding Golems and also where the term “Jezabel” originated. Ash had good side characters- her sidekick and the neighbor next door. They didn’t have a lot of depth but enough, I suppose, for secondary characters. Her mother and father played a part and even the scary supervillian modeled after a mafia queen pin. The book had a good mystery, had a bit of a cliffhanger (not bad, though) and left the door open for another book.

There wasn’t a lot of graphic death, but there was some. There wasn’t a lot of sex, but there were two scenes and it wasn’t something that the book depended upon to make the story good. It was a nice little side note and a glimpse of a relationship builder.

The narrator was pretty good. She didn’t have a LOT of voice variation, but the characters did have their own voices. She didn’t seem to be reading the book, more like making it come alive. All in all, I’d give this book a 4.