The Mage in Black by Jaye Wells

The Mage in Black is the second book in the Sabina Kane series by Jaye Wells. The second book is just as engrossing as the first. From the moment I picked it up, all I wanted to do was lock myself away so I could finish it.

The plot in The Mage in Black moves along slower than Red-Headed Stepchild. There's still plenty of ass kicking and action, but this one concentrates more on the characters. The first one was also character driven, but that's ramped up even more in book 2.

After the showdown at the end of Red-Headed Stepchild, Sabina is heading to New York to meet her twin sister. It's very clear from the moment that they meet that while both girls are half-vampire half-mage, they couldn't be more different. Sabina finds herself in a completely new world with new politics and new rules to learn. On top of all of that, she's dealing with a prophecy that she doesn't believe in, and someone is out to kill her.

Like I did with Sabina, I feel completely in love with her sister Maise. Maise and Rhea are great additions to the world. Maise is the sweet sister who wants to get to know Sabina, Rhea is a tough taskmaster responsible for Sabina's mage training. Of course Gighul, is back to help Sabina out and serve as comic relief. Wells is a master at creating characters that the reader can easily fall in love with. She did it with Vinca in Red-Headed Stepchild, and she does it again with The Mage in Black.

The action increases as you get near the end of the book, and I promise that by the time you finish you will be cursing Wells because the third book isn't out until next Spring. Jaye Wells is an author to watch. Her world building gets stronger with each book, and with her first two books, she has built the foundation for a phenomenal series.