Lineage

By: C. Vonzale Lewis

Narrated by: Taylor Barton

Length: 11 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's summary

Smart-mouthed Nicole Fontane has a way of getting herself into trouble. She’s been fired from every job she’s had but still refuses to work in her father’s apothecary shop because of his practice of Earth Magick. On Tulare Island where Nicole grew up, Magick has always been a way of life - one she’s determined to avoid at all costs.

With less than 200 dollars in the bank and rent due, Nicole is forced to take a job at Tribec Insurance as a last resort. Little does she realize, the moment she sets foot inside the building, she becomes a pawn. A sinister force has set its sights on her and will stop at nothing to use her in a sadistic game.

Tribec’s proprietors, the Stewart family, are curiously preoccupied with the Naqada, the mysterious pre-dynastic Egyptian society. Nicole finds it creepy, but on the bright side, the job reconnects her with her estranged friend, Marta. Yet the eerie atmosphere, disappearing Magick wards, and the smell of blood inside Tribec bring Nicole to a startling conclusion - the Stewarts are practicing Blood Magick, the deadliest of the Five Principles.

By the time Nicole uncovers the truth, Marta and her four children have gone missing, and all signs implicate the Stewarts and an archaic blood ritual to an Old One, a Naqada god imprisoned on Tulare Island. Battling the evil of Blood Magick will demand Nicole to confront a hidden past and unlock the Magick buried within. But can she set aside her deep-rooted fears to work with a team of vigilante Mages? Or will the clock run out on Marta and her children - and on Nicole?

©2019 Machovi Productions Inc. (P)2020 Machovi Productions Inc

I need more fantasies like this.

I received this audiobook at no-cost from Audiobookworm Promotions. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.

This was super interesting! Almost like Men in Black minus the aliens. It was a slow build but once it picked up, it was full of action.

I love how Lewis wrote Nicole's character. Not afraid to want sex with whomever she wants, something that society still judges women for. So yes, there are some extra steamy parts.

I need more fantasies like this.

Nicole is to magic as the Anita Blake is to Zombies

Intense, emotional, laugh out loud hilarious, super steamy erotic scenes. Gruesome fight scenes and so many twists and turns Lineage will keep you guessing! A fantastic urban fantasy thrill-ride that any modern person can relate to. Office worker? Yes, will you need therapy after this book? Maybe. If you love beautiful descriptions of well-thought out characters that come alive in your mind then this tale of action/adventure/suspense and romance is for you! Take a leap and dive into the fascinating world of Lineage. Be warned, you’ll be hungering for more —next up is Zealot.!Carla,more writey writey pretty please;) ❤️CoryDoodle

Impressive

Nicole is not the type of person to take flack from anybody. She doesn't care who she offends or the consequences it brings her. The problem is her mouth is getting her into a bit too much trouble. She's finding it harder and harder to find a job. She can't control her mouth and has been let go of every place that has hired her. She finally gets a tty decent job at an insurance company. She immediately has bad feelings about it. She continues working despite multiple warnings telling her to stay away. It's not until an old friend and current co-worker of hers goes missing that she begins to see the true danger she and everybody that works there is in.
I really loved the idea behind this story. It kind of had a very Charmed episode feeling. For those of you who are familiar with that show, it definitely reads like an episdoe, but without the charmed ones. Which makes it sad, but it's still a nice read becasue of it. It had a lot of great potential and many interesting characters. I didn't write this review right away so I can't remember all the character names sadly, but there were some that just had me laughing out loud with how crazy they could be.
Here's where I have to talk about the things I don't like. It's my least favorite thing to do, but I will never post a review that is not authentic and honest. That means pointing out the praises and the flaws. I'll start with the main character. I couldnn't stand her at all. It made me hate my own name. Sadly, this is a thing that happens with many Nicole like characters on shows, movies, and books. It's maddening. But I digress. Also, I really want to put more explanation on the comment I made about loving the idea behind the story. It had so much potential, but in ciritical moments, it felt really flat in my opinon. It could use a small polish.
This book was narrated by Taylor Barton. I'm pretty amazed with her performance. I'm going to be honest, I think that it's a big reason on the reason I didn't just stop reading it. She took the sting I felt of Nicole's attitude out of it as best as she could. She made the story enjoyable. The way she pitched her voice during the intense times was impressive. I also loved her authentic accents for all of the characters in the book. It was pretty impressive.
Overall, I really thought this book was impressive. It had amazing potential. I do wish that the drama was notched up a bit more. I also wish they would have downplayed Nicole's personality a lot. I really don't feel comfortable with giving my full opinion of how she was. I wouldn't want my review taken down for vulgar langauge. I know that most of that is probably personal considering my name. I don't try to make my reviews too personal. It would just be nice to see an AMAZING Nicole that everybody adores. While I think this book could use a rewrite, I do recommend it.

A unique Fantasy Read

Lineage is the first book in the Blood and Sacrifice Chronicles by C.Vonzale Lewis. I have read a few fantasies this year, but nothing like this book. This had a unique movie like feel to it. The book is narrated by Taylor Barton.
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🌟🌟🌟💫/5
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Nicole lives on Tular Island where magick is the way of life. Nicole has never been good at accessing her Earth magick and so stays away from it. Reeling from a trauma that she faced years ago, Nicole has been unable to hold a job or relationship. She is forced to take a job at Tribec insurance to keep her afloat. A lot of things at Tribec set off alarms for Nicole, but she pushes them away when she reconnects with her long estranged friend Marta. However, when Marta goes missing with her kids and Nicole starts being marked by powerful entities,Nicole decides to do everything she can to solve the mystery of Tribec, even if it means risking her life.
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The audiobook narration for this book was done wonderfully. The narrator has such excellent voice modulation and the different characters are portrayed so well that it was a movie in my mind’s eye.The story took a little while to pick up but when it did, I was completely captivated by Nicole and her inner & outer demons. Everything Nicole does or feels has a backstory and it was revealed in parts as the story progressed. With every new revelation, I had an Aha moment and liked how twisted and suspense filled the story got.
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Nicole is sassy, a badass & unapologetic. She has got her self doubts, but one thing she is – bold & that was so refreshing. She gave me Lara Croft vibes at times. There were so many unanswered questions when there were only 30 minutes left in the audiobook and I got worried I wasn’t going to get all my answers. But the book finished on an open ended note, answering some questions & also leaving some - hopefully to be addressed in the sequel. So, I am not unsatisfied but pleasantly looking forward to the next book.
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A story with magical vigilantes and a sinister plot, this is a fantasy that is deeply rooted in reality.
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Thank you Audiobookworm Promotions And C. Vonzale Lewis for the gifting me this audiobook as a part of the Blog tour. All thoughts and content are my own.