Although I appreciate the excellent writing done by this author, this was too far down the fantasy hole for me.

Marina Ermakova is an extremely talented writer, but this book didn't capture my attention like I'd hoped. It took me ages to read through because I felt like some parts dragged a bit. I enjoyed reading about Jordans journey with Legends, but I feel like she lacked depth. She's talented and know how to do everything, how? The characters just felt... stale.

This book has potential both the hook and overall storyline is a win for me. I think is an absolutely fabulous idea and the unique world-building opportunity is definitely a good premise. With that said the book falls a bit short for me in character development and storyline. It feels underdeveloped but I really think this could be a good start for something great! I really hope the author delves deeper into fleshing out the characters, world and plot lines and finds the hidden gem waiting to shine. I would definitely read the next installment with fingers crossed.

I really loved the idea of world-building with the creatures of legends being back living on Earth. And we started great with a chimera and a basilisk.
But all the rest was not really right for me. I was hoping to be hooked up, but the characters and their interactions, especially their interactions, didn't really work for me.

While I applaud the author on writing a book, I thought the writing style was a little too basic for me. I didn’t feel connected to the characters and I didn’t really care what happened to them. I did not finish this book, and stopped reading at 50%. I am giving 3 stars, however, because I thought the premise was original and has a lot of potential for the rest of the series.

this was a great start to a series, I enjoyed getting to know Jordan. It did it's job in introducing us to the world and characters and I enjoyed that. It was a interesting take on mythological story and I look forward to more in the series.

I am giving this book 3.5 stars. This was my first Marina Ermakova book. I loved the idea of the book, the blurb was interesting and I looked forward to starting with this book as it was a bit of fantasy which is my favourite genre.
The book was written beautifully but the story did not grab me as I hoped it would. Some parts were a bit to long. I would have loved to see more magic as well. I felt that I could not associate with the characters. This book may be a better fit for someone else.

Author Marina Ermakova offers up a twist to the usual fantasy stories that are all over the market. “Terrestrial Magic” captured my interest right from the start, and Ms. Ermakova’s talent shines through in several areas.

Most fantasy stories involve magic, with a focus on the hero or heroine’s prowess in this area. This alternate history story is different, in that a specific type of magic is present in certain families and has been for centuries. Jordan Sanders does not belong to those families (known more formally as Houses) and studies legimals (legendary animals) which appeared on Earth 30 years ago. An attempt to murder Jordan and her team kicks off the book, and she finds herself involved in a web of intrigue as she tries to determine which of the Houses are involved.

I enjoyed the characters in the book. Jordan is level-headed with a touch of snarkiness that is never overwhelming. Her best friend Hayley exudes that breath of fresh air that spices up any conversation. Luca is the newest member of Jordan’s team, and his actions in the story constantly cause her to reassess his skills. Tony and Carter round out Jordan’s team and co minor co be considered minor characters. Even so, when they appear in a scene, you know enough about them that you have a good idea what they might do in a given situation.

One item that I thought the book could do without was the occasional use of strong language, including the f-bomb. Ms. Ermakova is a talented writer, and I didn’t find that the use of coarse words added to the book. While I don’t take off stars for this I know some folks take offense to any vulgarities so consider this an fyi.

Overall, I was happily surprised with “Terrestrial Magic.” It is an inventive tale with good world-building and interesting characters that are different and don’t blend together. As the first book in the series, there is a definite end (no cliffhanger) and I will definitely be moving on to the next book in the series. Four stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for a complimentary electronic copy of this book.

This book manages to mix sherlock holmes vibes with the world of magic, this has become one of my favourite books from NetGalley . I like Jordan the main character but she does seem to be one of those characters who has every skillset going,

I really liked the premise, the idea of a magic and human community living side by side. The world inventedby Marina Ermakova was original and well-depicted. It took me some time to get in the story, which shouldn't be the case given that we were right in the middle of a life or death situation. Once I read a few chapters I really wanted to know more about the magic system and who wanted Jordan and her team dead and why. Somehow I never warmed up to Jordan herself, but it doesn't mean that other readers won't.
Am I interested in reading the next book in the series? absolutely.

Imagine a world that was changed radically after a cataclysmic event called the Boom happened and all of the sudden mythic creatures started popping up in their previous designated areas about 30 years prior to beginning of this story. As if it wouldn't be alarming enough that creatures like chimeras & basilisks are roaming large swaths of land that's been lost to normal human inhabitation there also are descendants of Deities called Legends that share attributes of their line [like Apollo etc in these instances from the Italy area] some of which have passed for human for some time. The world of humans & population has been cut down radically to small unlinked or barely linked communities. Thus starts this tale with a scientific team out in the 'free zone" tasked to monitor & observe these mythic creatures & then apparently are almost set up to be killed by one of these demiGods. Thus the story goes on from there to a mystery who done it & cause & effect & age old issues of power control. Fast paced & enjoyable but a bit odd in the thought processes of characters. It is a fun read diversion & apparently the beginning of a series I would have no problem reading more

This fell between liked and really liked for me. There were some very good aspects but also some areas for improvement. The author had imagined a very intriguing world but parts of it needed a little more fleshing out. I believe the author may have been trying to avoid an information dump, however some of the exposition came too late in the story, leaving me unable to build a clear mental picture, rather like trying to follow a TV show having missed one of the episodes.


I did find myself drawn quickly into this story, especially since it metaphorically started with a real bang. The story had plenty of unique features to it, and it didn't feel the need to rely on tired and cliched tropes. Overall the pace was good, and I did find myself invested in the story enough to want to finish it. The heroine, Jordan, doesn't come across as feminine at all, indeed at times I forgot I was reading a female character. She felt very genderless, which isn't an issue and I'm very happy to read diverse characters, but I was never sure if it was deliberate or poor characterisation. It just wasn't made clear enough.


In a similar vein, I also found Jordan difficult to relate to. Possibly she's meant to be socially awkward, autistic or just plain lacking empathy, and whilst some of her internal monologue was enjoyable, there were occasions where it made her seem immature or emotionally stunted. Too often when emotions were portrayed it was in a telling not showing manner. For me to believe a character is feeling something, I want descriptions of the psychological or physiological effects of them. I'm very character driven, and I think the fact that I was very impassive about Jordan is why this wasn't a better read for me.


On balance I enjoyed the writing, the author definitely has a pleasant "voice" and a good imagination, which she employed well in the creation of this book. Fleshing out of secondary characters was achieved to various degrees, though occasionally felt a touch repetitive - I got that Tony was grumpy the first half dozen times it was mentioned. It did feel as though this were the second book in a series, or a spin off book, because whilst the world building was colourful it was rather like a Turner seascape. You can see an amazing picture but none of the fine detail, however it is only the first book in a series, so I'm willing to allow that the author may have plans to paint in that depth of detail in future books.

Thank you Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to review this book.
I was really fascinated by the blurb of the book and this was one of the reasons I requested it.
However, from early one I realized that I couldn't quite connect with the story nor the characters.
In all honesty, I tried to finish it but after some point I wasn't really invested in it, so I just kind of skimmed through the rest of it.
It wasn't my cup of tea, but maybe it's somebody else's!

An interested entertaining read, nice world building, nice writing too, but I just couldn’t connect with the characters for some reason, enjoyable enough and might just be me, but the story was still fun.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Read this one in almost one sitting. The world building was perfect, it didn’t overwhelm all at once. The idea of studying legendary creatures is genius. But I had a hard time relating to what the main characters motivation was. There were some parts of the book that felt like more could have been said or done, so that I could really understand her thought process. None of that took alway from the story though. It’s a great concept and I look forward to reading more.