The Return of Beaumont and Beasley

Beaumont and Beasley #4

by Kyle Robert Shultz

Two new tales of Beaumont and Beasley! The investigators of magic and mayhem are back-but events set in motion a century ago could spell their doom...The Janus Elixir1816 E.A. Long before Nick Beasley and Lady Cordelia were ever born, dragon archaeologist Malcolm Blackfire and possibly-reformed jewel thief Melody Nightingale search for the stolen brain of a dead god. It doesn't take long for a dark design to emerge behind the bizarre theft. The mysterious Dr. Henry Jekyll is performing dangerous experiments. A powerful sorcerer named Hyde has suddenly emerged in the Talesend underworld. The answer to the mystery is clear...or is it?The Hound of Duville1923 E.A. Wealthy man-about-town Gregory Duville has fallen victim to a baffling (and embarrassing) curse, and Beaumont and Beasley are on the case. Except...they're not. Lady Cordelia Beaumont has gone missing, leaving only detective-turned-monster Nick Beasley and his brother Crispin to tackle the mystery. Even worse, the curse afflicting Mr. Duville is targeting all other men in the city of Talesend as well. An ancient witch may hold the key to stopping the spell in its tracks, but is she everything she seems? Can Nick solve this case without the aid of Cordelia's magic? Or will the secrets he's keeping from Crispin doom Talesend forever?

Genres: Fantasy, Retellings, Fairy Tales

242 pages, Paperback

First published October 31, 2018

About the author

Kyle Robert Shultz is the creator of the Aftermythos, an interconnected collection of stories set in an alternate universe where fairy tales and mythology are history. Shultz is a completely ordinary human being with no remarkable qualities whatsoever. Accounts suggesting that he is a dangerous wizard exiled from a parallel reality, a cleverly-disguised magical creature passing off the history of another world as original fiction, a mysterious trickster entity described in the folklore of a circumscribed region of Wales, or a pseudonym adopted by three talking otters stacked up in a trench coat should be dismissed as not entirely accurate.

Note: I'm not active on Goodreads, so I may not see messages or other notifications. I only use this profile for business, so don't be offended if I don't accept your friend request. If you want to get in touch with me, email me at kyle@aftermythos.com.

Reviews

[Christine Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Janus Elixir:

I. Loved. This. Story. Though this is the first of 6 novellas that will comprise Beaumont and Beasley book #4, if you've never read any of the Beaumont and Beasley books but want a sampling of them, this is a good one to start with. Some events in it may come into play later on, but it has no spoilers to previous books.

This story is about MALCOLM. In all his grumpy, dragon-y glory. ‘Cause yeah, HE’S A DRAGON. And a SHAPESHIFTING DRAGON. He can be in human form or dragon form at will. You really can’t get any cooler (hotter? lololol dragon puns) than that. We’ve met Malcolm a few times in previous stories, but this time he’s the protagonist and just SDKJFLJKSD YES. I LOVE Malcolm. We also get to see more of his associate, the mysterious Melody Nightingale, which I was thrilled about!

Every book in this series is a retelling or continuation of some some sort of fairytale or myth. This one is Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, with some fun Greek mythology thrown in, and I seriously don’t see how you can ever go wrong with that.


THIS STORY INCLUDES


- MALCOLM. Oh wait, I’ve already mentioned that. But I’m saying it again. Because MALCOLM. It was so fun being in his head with this one. Though he most often is in his human form, he does not let others forget he is, in fact, a dragon. He does so love to threaten people and remind everyone he is much older and wiser and more dangerous then any of us puny humans. What’s not to love about a dude who threatens to eat everyone who crosses him? Really now. Also, he’s an archaeologists. And a dragon. Best combination ever? I think so.

- Melody Nightingale! I’ve been so wanting more of her ever since we met her in The Stroke of Eleven . And I finally got my wish! I adored how she’d put Malcolm in his place, while also being concerned for his wellbeing despite the fact that he’s an ancient dragon. I think she brought out the more human side of him, which I loved. Except there are certain thiiiings about her and just I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS. Ahem.

- BANTER. This would not be a true Beaumont and Beasley story without it! This may be the most quotable of the stories yet. I just want to quote everything that comes out of Malcolm’s mouth. I was choking on laughter all the way through.

- Plot twiiiists. Did this one have ‘em. O___O And that’s all I’m gonna say. But just…wow.

- Hilarious twists on some Greek mythology, soort of in the vein of Percy Jackson. But you’re going to have to read it to find out what kind of twists!

- A certain character who shall not be named but whom I realized was possibly supposed to be a Certain Someone and skdjflsjldjfljsdf. Wow. That was vague. XD You’re welcome. Let’s just say I had to set the book down to compose myself when it hit me WHO THIS PERSON IS. True story.

- Feels. Feels everywhere! I did not expect this many feels from this one novella. NOT AT ALL. But just…HOLD MY BLEEDING HEART BECAUSE WHAT IS HAPPENING???

- THE. ENDING. Um. Wut. WHAAAAAAT????? This kinda goes into the feels section. Just WHAT EVEN. I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS. AND FEELINGS. AND I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MYSELF. I just kind of sat there in shocked silence for several minutes once I got to the ending. IT WAS SO UNEXPECTED. Just…yeah. Get ready!

Basically, YOU NEED TO READ IT.

Review originally posted on my blog:
Musings of an Elf


The Hound of Duville:

THIS. STORY. This one is now up there as one of my top favorite Beaumont and Beasley stories!

In The Hound of Duville we’ve returned to Nick and Crispin (after all the events in the last book, The Stroke of Eleven) and just YESSSS. I’ve missed these brothers so, so much. It’s been a while! But now they are back doing their detective thing and I LOVED IT.

This one harked back to the first book, with Nick and Crispin working together again, solving a mystery in Talesend. The whole thing made me feel so nostalgic and happy. The first book may be my favorite of any of them, and I loved how this one really brought us back to the early days before well…everything. Eheheh. *distant sobbing* It was an utter delight from page one to the end!

THIS STORY INCLUDES

- Nick and Crispin working together and being all brotherly and banter-y and my adorable, precious Beasley boys whom I’ve missed so very much. <3 Nick is basically like the tired, no nonsense old cat and Crispin the overactive puppy and their relationship gives me life.

- An utterly hilarious curse spreading all across Talesend (basically the London of this universe), that, yes, involves dogs. Naturally.

- A lighthearted tone (with a touch of feels). Though I adore books that rip my heart out because I’m one of those psychotic fangirls, it’s also nice to just have some purely comedic reads. This one is mostly that! It’s pretty much fully a fun romp of an adventure from start to finish. Which I think is perfect after all we suffered through in A Stroke of Eleven. I’m totally loving the sliiightly darker, more serious, high-stakes plot this series has been taking. BUT, at the same time, it was good to have a bit of a breather before all of that continues. But no fears, this one still had some feelsy things in it because…well, yeah. For those of you who’ve read The Stroke of Eleven you should know. Eheheheh…heh… *sobs*

- REFERENCES. Oooh, the references. There were a couple of fun references from well-known and loved movies in this one. In fact, one entire section was a total blatant reference to one of my favorite movies and oh. my. word. I was cracking up SO HARD. It was good I read this one in my room alone, because if I had been reading it in public I would have gotten looks as I sat there grinning and cackling madly to myself. And just having to stop reading altogether a couple of times to compose myself. IT WAS A RIOT. I loved every second of it!

- A sentient house/office/thing. And yes, it is as cool as that sounds.

- A fun retelling aspect. Every story in this series retells some kind of fairytale or myth. And…I’m not sure if I should have known from the start which one this one was retelling or not??? It may have been my own blondeness not grasping it at first, but when I did realize OH MY GRACIOUS. I was delighted. It was perfect. Let’s just say these books do not retell stories in orthodox ways. I love it. XD

- A feelsy ending. I totally lied when I said this was an utter delight from page on to the end. THE ENDING WAS NEITHER LIGHTHEARTED NOR FUNNY. I need the rest of these novellas nooooow!!!

Other than the ending (which isn’t reeeally a con, because there did need to be some consequential continuation (wow, say that 5 times fast) things going and I appreciated that aspect), this was truly a riot of a read. I read it just a few days ago and already want to reread it! But do take note that this one is very heavily tied into the previous books, which means you’re absolutely gonna want to read the first 3 Beaumont and Beasley stories before this one. Ya know, unless you want to be really confused and have spoilers everywhere. Juuust sayin’.

Review originally posted on my blog:
Musings of an Elf

[Merie Shen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shultz has risen up to one of my top favorite authors of all time-- his fairytale mashups are purely amazing. The Return of Beaumont and Beasley certainly doesn't fail to deliver.

The Janus Elixir~ A mishmash of Greek mythical figures and the classic Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, with some elements of Frankenstein and Peter Pan thrown in-- clearly a combination of those four brilliant works can only mean another brilliant work. Better yet, it's told in the point-of-view of Malcolm Blackfire, the epitome of brilliant work, so what's not to love? The twists on this is nothing like you can imagine; you can take my word for that. Also, Melody's name... Is it too much to assume that she has some connection to one of my favorite Andersen fairytales?

The Hound of Duville~ Beaumont and Beasley strike again! Okay I'll admit that at first, I actually thought this one would be a twist on The Hound of Baskervilles. But it is a twist on... something I won't impart in this review, since it was a rather surprising twist. (Shultz doesn't do "fairytale retellings." His stuff is too grand and scary for that.)

Naturally, it deserves five stars. Malcolm Blackfire deserves that much, anyway, and so do Beaumont and Beasley.

[Jesse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Janus Elixir:

4.5 stars rounding up to 5!

The Janus Elixir is one romp of a story!

I'll admit, the beginning made me a bit wary of how well Malcom would gell as a protagonist. While his snarky, slightly snobby personality has always been my favorite aspect of his character, I've also always enjoyed the mysterious side of him too. So I was unsure how I would feel about him losing some of that mystery. On the whole however, he made for a very delightful, fun protagonist, and was still very much the same Malcom as the one we've come to know and love (even though I do still like him better as a mentor).

Another great aspect of this novella was Melody. I already loved her character in Stroke of Eleven, and this story only furthered that. She's one of, if not the most relatable B&B characters, and is the absolute perfect compliment to Malcom (they're one if my favorite duos ever)! And I'm especially intrigued about some of the mysterious elements of her past that have yet to be explained.

It was also great to finally get an explanation of how the B&B universe was created (especially since Malcom told the story), and I loved Shultz's spin on how the Greek deities and capital G God coexist.

As far as critiques go, I only have one. I wish the story had had some overarching character arc. Considering how long before Beast of Talesend this story took place, it would've been nice to see a slightly different Malcom. Maybe see some growth from him that carries over to present day B&B. However, I get that this critique is more subjective, and it does not at all hinder what this story is meant to be: a fun little adventure that develops the world and connects to some plot points of Stroke of Eleven (Even though I don't know how yet) .


Hound of Duville:

Hound of Duville was another great installment to B&B Returns!

As multiple reviewers have mentioned, this one returns more to the origin of the series, returning to an incredibly light hearted tone and once again centering on Nick and Crispin.

Like all other Shultz stories, this one contains brilliant banter, yet there's something about the bro banter between Nick and Crispin that's just a little elevated over the rest.
And speaking of Nick and Crispin, I really felt like their relationship had some fascinating development. It was very interesting to see the slight shift in dynamics the aftermath of Stroke of Eleven created between them. Making their relationship a bit strained, but all the more layered.

Perhaps my favorite thing about this novella (Next to the Nick and Crispin banter), however, is the overarching character arc Nick has. I like how Shultz chose to make it about Nick's insecurities about where he figures into the group (given that he's the only one without powers), and whether or not he was even needed. It just felt like a very realistic every day struggle that everyone can relate to, which I loved (Not saying the other struggles in the series aren't amazing too, but this one just had such a touch of realism to it) !
However, with this pro also comes a con, as I felt like the arc was taken a tad too far. It's just that some of the things Nick did as a result of the struggle didn't feel entirely in character to me. It felt a bit off to me that Nick would give a whole speech on how he figured out the villain's plan before nabbing her, as well as afew other minor instances along similar lines.


That critique out of the way, Hound of Duville is still a very solid installment in the B&B series, and was such a romp to read (plus, Emperor's New Groove refrences!)! I can't wait to see what Shultz has in store next!

[Tess · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read these stories already so here goes:

The Janus Elixir:

Malcolm Blackfire!
So this takes place about a hundred years before Nick, Cordelia, and Crispin. It follows Malcolm Blackfire and Melody Nightingale as they try to figure out who stole the brain of Janus.
I loved how Melody had to kind of hold Malcolm back from lighting people on fire whenever he didn't get his way. I loved Malcolm's impatience and snobbery(Come one, you can understand why).
Plus, we got Victor Frankenstein and Dr. Jekkyl. Honestly, I don't like either of those books. A little weird for me, but I loved the twist that this book put on them and it actually fit together really well.
I can't wait for the next one. More Malcolm! More Melody! Plus, the way it ended has me in agony. Blah.
But read this!


The Hound of Duville:
I'm smitten.
I don't think there's ever going to be a book that takes place in the afterverse that I won't read.
The men of Talesend are turning into dogs. And so, the people turn to Beaumont and Beasley to figure it out. Cordelia can't be found, so Nick and Crispin venture off to figure it out.
These characters keep developing in ways that continue to darken the looming cloud that's been hovering since The Stroke of Eleven.
Nick was still his grumpy, beastly self, with a twinge of uncertainty as to whether his skills as a P.I. are really needed when he's got charmbloods like Crispin and Cordelia and Molly.
Crispin is trying, for Nick's sake, not to use his rabbit holes and time abilities. And it's hard to resist.
Cordelia is running out of patience. Not only has she been captured, but she also knows that Nick needs to come clean with his brother and Molly about what happened.
This was such a fun novella. Filled with Mr. Shultz's trademark humor and balance of tone, I was never bored.
I recommend! Utterly and completely! Read this book! If you haven't read the series, then read it! And then read this one!

[Beth Wangler · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Janus Elixir:
Shultz's books just keep getting better! The Janus Elixir had everything I love about the Beaumont and Beasley books (well, everything minus the titular characters), PLUS it also deepened the history of Talesend and mixed mythology and Gothic lit in with the fairy tales.

And, of course, there's a dragon. And that dragon is Malcolm Blackfire. So of course it was epic. I loved the way Malcolm and Melody played off and balanced each other.

The Hound of Duville:
How far we've come from the days of "Ma'am, that frog is not your fiance!" I love seeing Shultz's characters grow and adapt to the new world they're in, and it was cool to start seeing the implications of the ending in "The Stroke of Eleven" play out. I loved that the mythology introduced in The Janus Elixir, with gods and goddesses, continued to play a role in this story. Seeing Crispin and Nick working together and bickering as brothers together brought me joy. Shultz continues to create plot twists that take me by surprise, and I can't wait to see what comes next for Beaumont and Beasley (and the rest of the gang).

[Jonathan King · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beaumont and Beasley are back in fine form in this two-for-the-price-of-one release. Malcolm is fast becoming one of my most favorite characters in the series, with his caustic wit and confidence in his own superiority (like the Sixth Doctor if he breathed fire and ate people). I love that he's getting his own stories now, and I can't wait to read more. Nick and Crispin's brotherly dynamic is so fun and leads to a lot of great banter, but the secrets between them lead to a lot of feels for the reader. And the subject matter is fantastic, tackling everything from ancient Greek mythology to The Emperor's New Groove and putting a unique spin on all of it. The twists are fantastic, almost chill-inducing. And the overarching story of the Afterverse continues to build to a terrifying climax. This series is the most fun I've had with a fairytale retelling; you won't want to miss it!

[Hufflepuff Book Reviewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The two tales that comprise The Return of Beamont and Beasley are as fun and ingenuitive as anything else Shultz has written! Here are my reviews for the individual stories!


The Janis Elixir: 4 out of 5 stars

Kyle Robert Shultz has done it yet again! The Janus Elixir a brilliantly constructed and thoroughly charming blend of sharp satire piece, early 19th-century detective mystery, and fun fantasy adventure. Honestly, I think my favorite thing about the story might have been the way that Shultz blends all these genres together so seamlessly. It was just perfectly executed!

The Janus Elixir is told from the first-person perspective of Malcolm, everyone’s favorite sassy dragon. And, as another reviewer has mentioned, this can take some getting used to, after having seen him exclusively in the mentor role—but I ended up really enjoying him as a protagonist. I have come to love his character all the more after reading The Janus Elixir—which is something I would have previously doubted was even possible! The other characters in this story are great, too, though! Melody, who never made all that much of an impression on me in Stroke of 11, really grew on me in this installment! She is the textbook foil for Malcolm, providing the perfect sense of calm reason to balance out his hotheadedness. Not to mention, their banter is glorious! With the exception of Nick and Crispin, I’m not sure I’ve ever enjoyed two character’s interactions in the Beaumont and Beasley series quite as much as I enjoyed Malcolm’s and Melody’s! Yet another one of my favorite characters was James. Beyond his sheer sense of relatability, I’m not quite sure what it was about that him I loved so much, but he’s unexpectedly become one of my new favorite Beaumont and Beasley characters! I just find him highly relatable and completely hilarious.

I also really appreciate the way that Shultz added the Roman gods to his fictional universe while also making it clear that they are simply overpowered humans, as opposed to being the One God—who Malcolm seems certain exists. In a couple of his stories thus far, Shultz—as a Christian—has provided hints of his faith without ever putting all that much emphasis on it. Anyone, regardless of their religious beliefs, can enjoy Beaumont and Beasley—but, for a Christian, these references add such depth to the series!

My only major critique for the Janus Elixir would be the existence of one chapter that briefly switches to Melody’s third person point of view in order to better sustain narrative tension—while the rest of the story has been written exclusively from Malcolm’s first-person perspective. I’ve seen other authors attempt such things, and I’ve never been much of a fan. I feel like these kinds of singular POV switches will always cost a story in terms of narrative continuity. Maybe that’s just me, though. I initially had another critique for The Janus Elixir—one singular plot-point that just didn’t seem to add up or jive well with me—but a major reveal at the end got me suspecting that this plot-point might get better fleshed out in future installments.

All things considered, The Janis Elixir is a more than welcome addition to Beaumont and Beasley cannon! I ate the story with a smile on my face and can’t wait for the next installment! (I mean, seriously, Shultz, you can’t leave me hanging on that kind of cliffhanger!)


The Hound of Duville: 3 out of 5 stars

“‘You want to know who I think it is?’ [asked Crispin]
‘No.’ [I said.]
Naturally, he told us anyway. ‘Rilla…Because she’s the last person we’d suspect.’
‘Crispin…we’re not in a mystery novel.’
‘No, wait you’re right.’ He nodded enthusiastically. ‘We’re in a fairytale. So it must be a witch. Some evil sorceress from ancient time who’s been resurrected in the modern day.’
‘We’re not ‘in’ a fairytale!’ I exploded. ‘We’re not in anything! This is real life!’
‘Aha! That’s exactly what they want us to think.’

The Hound of Duville is a fun, whacky 101 Dalmatians retelling about a singular case that the Beaumont and Beasley detective agency—well, mainly just Nick and Crispin—have to solve together. The story sets out to expand upon what were already some of my favorite aspects of the series. For instance, it hones in on the charming, brotherly bond between Crispin and Nick—as well as some insecurities and feelings of uselessness that arise on account of Nick being the only major character without any magical powers. (Somehow, I’d always loved the fact that the main character of Beaumont and Beasley was the one without powers. I just find it to be such a unique twist on the hero’s journey!) Also, as one can perhaps infer from the passage at the beginning of this review, The Hound of Duville is gloriously self-aware. There are several such self-aware jokes in this story, and they constantly had me cackling.

As far as critiques go, I eventually got a bit burnt by Nick’s continual refusal to tell Crispin about the events of Stroke of Eleven. At first, Nick’s decision provides some interesting and heartfelt conflict, but I personally felt that Shultz stretched it out for too long. Nick intends to protect Crispin, but it seemed pretty obvious to me that his strife will probably prove counter-productive. And I kind of found it beneath Nick’s intelligence for him to think that he is helping his brother by keeping him in the dark.

And then I also found The Hound of Duville to somehow lack the oomph of most of Shutlt’z other pieces. The story is fun to be sure, and I definitely enjoyed it, but it didn’t stand out to me nearly as much as most of the other longer Beaumont and Beasley stories. In fact, out of the novel/novella/novelette sized stories in the series, I think The Hound of Duville would be my personal least favorite. However, one must remember that we are talking about Kyle Robert Freaking Shultz here. Literally everything he writes is so captivating that ‘least favorite’ is not really much of a disparagement.


And then…just for the fun of it…here would be every ‘afterverse’ story I’ve read ranked from my least favorite to my favorite:

13-The Wolf at the Door
12-The Lady of Thorns
11-Love’s Labors Won
10-Mythaken
9-Shadow Boy
8-The Hound of Duville
7-The Last Days of Lady Cordelia
6-Christmas in Talesend
5-Someday at Christmas
4-The Janus Elixir
3-The Beast of Talsesend
2-Stroke of Eleven
1-Tomb of the Sea Witch

[Joseph Leskey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those compound books, and it just so happen that I have read and reviewed The Janus Elixir separately. So, at minimal inconvenience to myself, I will pull a quick copy and paste for my review of that selfsame book. I won't do that for The Hound of Duville, however, because I haven't generated a review for it yet, more's the pity.


~~~~

The Janus Elixir

Text extracted from my original review of this book, https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..., 2018-01-21

The virtue of The Janus Elixir lies in the fact that, despite being relatively short, the story has exemplary development. It also does no harm to the story's quality, of course, that a dragon (who is often humanoid) is the narrator. He is quite my favorite dragon ever, incidentally.

The plot twists in this book are as fine as any that ever were, but they leave a person wanting a great deal more because these twists are the kind that could make a person say "whuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut?" biannually for the next seven or eight years. I suppose all will probably be revealed in good time. (I am waiting patiently for good time to be accomplished, by the way.)

And, naturally, the writing, plot, characters, concepts, stuff, and setting are all palpably marvelous.

~~~~

The Hound of Duville

  Text extracted from my personal neural network that I like to keep enclosed in my cranium

I'm just going to write a very nice, brief review because I imagine myself uncommonly busy.

The Hound of Duville is brill, as the English informally have it. And brill rhymes with dill, which means you can count yourself very lucky – I nearly burst into the impetuous production of quatrains. It's a dangerous thing when one is on the brink of producing such quatrains.

Titanic quantities of hilarity are to be found in this story. The writing, plot, and characters are far beyond amazing. The author makes it blatantly obvious that he has one of those brains.

Now that's a review. But I think I'll write some more stuff—all fairly useless, of course.

But the plot! By itself, I suppose the book doesn't have a unnaturally complicated plot. But ALL THESE AFTERVERSE BOOKS ARE CONNECTED. Why was that in all caps? As was said in the early 20th century, I really don't know. Anyway, the plot is collectively getting very complicated, and I enjoy it immensely, thank you very much.

The characters are, of course, exactly what you want a character to be. And Nick's insecurities! I'm not afraid to say that all ended up a fair bit on the funny side. And Crispin is being Crispin, which is sufficient for assurance of entertainment. Unless if you don't know who Crispin is, but would that be my fault? No.

And that's all. For I really do imagine myself quite busy.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Janus Elixir: GR 2.9/ Amazon 3.4; The Hound of Duville: GR 3.1/ Amazon 3.6

The Janus Elixir:

This time, KRS takes on the lore of Jekyll and Hyde, plus Dr. Frankenstein, and even young James (with one hand, and a fondness for pirates), well... Remember, though: the tales we know have always gotten it wrong!

Dragon Malcolm Blackfire (able to take human form, but with no great opinion of its physical capacities) makes a great PoV/narrator, with Melody at his side, only sometimes as a restraining influence. We get a few interesting glimpses and clues about both of them, but mysteries remain for future stories, which is fine.

However, I was NOT satisfied with the way the killer's story ended, which is why I had no hesitation over giving this otherwise-good long novella a Goodreads 3, not 4.

Also, keep in mind that no Beaumonts or Beasleys themselves appear in this story, given its much-earlier setting.

The Hound of Duville:

Mix Circe's transformation of men into animals with a certain Disney villainess (I cackled when I realized!). Add Nick's tangling his life in knots trying to (A) trying to protect his "little brother" from some scary facts, and (B) prove he's still the detective he once was, not just dependent on Cordelia or Malcolm for magical assistance. You end up with an investigation jumping at embarrassing red herrings, and personal conflict that comes to a painful climax, NOT resolution, in the end.

The *case* is solved, and the curse stopped, this time — though with consequences I didn't see coming until almost the last moment — but the Crispin issue is left for Nick to face in the next outing. At Cordelia's insistence, it will not wait any longer!

*****

Overall, while I enjoyed many clever allusions and humorous interactions along the way, and would like to see more of some characters (such as poor Inspector Oswalt), neither of these two novellas was a fully satisfying reading experience for me in terms of the "aftertaste" they left.

As for proofreading, though, I only caught a handful of times where the author didn't notice that a should-be-apostrophe at the beginning of a word had become (thanks to his word-processor's default assumptions) an opening single quotation mark. That's literally a very SMALL mistake!

[Julia Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This would be the second time I've actually read these stories (The Janus Elixir and The Hound of Duville), but I noticed so much more the second time round.

THE JANUS ELIXIR

Things I loved:

Malcolm! Okay, I don't think it's a secret that I love dragons and Malcolm is probably my favorite. I love his character and the way he starts a tirade when he gets mad. Plus he's also an archaeologist.
Ever since childhood I've loved stories with archaeologists (i.e. Indiana Jones, The Cooper Kids series by Frank Peretti). So what do you do when you place a dragon archaeologist in a story? You love it.

Melody. Melody is a precious person. I love her wit and her compassion. She is a perfect companion for Malcolm. Also, I need some things cleared up now about her because I noticed more the second time round.

World-building. Shultz went crazy with the world-building and history here and I loved it! It was never too much and totally added to the story.

Things I didn't like:

Um... nothing except now I want more of Malcolm and Melody's story.

THE HOUND OF DUVILLE

Things I loved:

Crispin! Seriously this character has my heart in so many ways. Before Crispin came along I didn't really like humorous characters. Maybe their humor was wrong or just too much, but Shultz gave Crispin the right amount while making him very relatable and loveable.

Nick. Oh Nick... *shakes head* He's grown so much since the first book and while he's accepted magic, he still is not entirely comfortable with where he stands. The added layer of insecurity was a nice touch. Well done, Shultz!

All the references.
Seriously, there were so many references and Easter eggs it made my nerdy/geeky heart happy. I don't want to spoil it, so go and read it for yourself.

Things I disliked:

Nothing really. Just wish it was longer. With the epilogue I'm left on a cliffhanger and really worried for a few of my favorite characters.

Overall, great job Kyle! Keep writing.