Smoke and Mirrors: Blackhollow Academy Book 1
Smoke and Mirrors: Blackhollow Academy Book 1
by Jess Haines
Read the book readers are comparing to Harry Potter, Throne of Glass, and Anne Bishop's Others Series!
A girl who uses her illusions to fool the world into thinking she's just like all the other magi.
A dragon who sees through her lies.
Together they just might survive a world that wants to control or destroy them both.
Kimberly may wield ultimate cosmic power, but even a mage has to pay the rent. No one will hire her for her magic talents until she's got the credentials, so she’s stuck in a crappy rent controlled apartment with her mother, yearning for treats she can't afford at her part time job in a café, counting down the days until she graduates the secret Blackhollow Academy school for magi. Only then will she have the certificate she needs to land her dream job in a coven.
The problem? She needs a familiar to graduate.
As an illusionist, she doesn't have the ability to summon or create a familiar of her own. Her only option is to convince a supernatural creature to let her bind it instead. Since having a powerful Other at her beck and call would guarantee her a place in a coven after she graduates—and legendary treasure hoards are an added bonus—she thinks binding a dragon as her familiar will solve all her problems...
Because sometimes a girl needs a dragon, not a knight.
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"It was an interesting mix of Harry Potter meets Lost Girl, meets Dresden – and it worked."
-Amazon Reader ★★★★★
"Magic, dragons, romantic tension. What more could you ask for? I am a sucker for most fantasy but it's been a long time since I found I book I couldn't put down and I could not put this book down!"
-Amazon Reader ★★★★★
"Part of having a successful book or series that deals with magic or fantastical things is creating a believable world, and the author did just that. There are the obvious things like whether magical creatures are out in the open or hidden, and who the different beings are (from vampire to dragons to your average magical human), but the book went beyond those details and dealt with discrimination, slavery, powerful leaders that could misuse their influence, and the taboo-ness of magical and non-magical co-mingling. This was a well developed world and I loved to soak in all the details of it."
-Amazon Reader ★★★★★
"I love the writing style. I love the plot line, I love the surprises. Yeah I just loved this one."
-Amazon Reader ★★★★★
"This was a strong start to a new series. I think that fans of the Other books, Kim Harrison The Hollows series, Kelly Armstrong Otherword series, and Jeanne Stein's Anna Strong Vampire series will enjoy this book."
-Amazon Reader ★★★★★
