[Book Likes] Flex

Flex / Ferrett Steinmetz (Powell's Books)

Freelance 'mancers are feared and reviled, beings of nightmares who's magic threatens tears in the fabric of the universe.  Fortunately 'mancers are rare, but the magic infused crystals allowing anyone access to 'mancy as a street drug costs lives.  Magic has two sides, flex and flux.  Flex is the manipulation of chance to impose your order on the world around you.  Flux is the the backlash as the universe balances your manipulations, backlash that you may not survive.

Once upon a time Paul Tsabo was a cop who survived a confrontation with a 'mancer.  Now he's a paper-pusher for an insurance company and struggling with his own emerging 'mancy.  Paul's life is turned upside-down when a flux-fueled fire engulfs his apartment building, nearly killing his young daughter.  Paul needs to master his 'mancy and find the 'mancer who is tearing the city apart.


Technically, Flex is an urban fantasy.  Toss out any pre-conceptions you may hold on what urban fantasy entails beyond magic in a modern day city.  This magic filled thriller gives you a touch of Breaking Bad while delivering an urban high fantasy.  Fast paced and high tension, Flex makes for an engaging read.

Advanced Reader Copy copy courtesy of Netgalley; differences may exist between uncorrected galley text and the final edition.

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