Time-Marked Warlock is an amazing story full of compelling characters, interesting magic mechanics, and a mystery that leaves you wondering. Shami Stovall wrote an incredible tale that kept me invested.

I really enjoyed the dynamics between Adair and Brie. Adair has a tendency to be rather snarky. Meanwhile, Brie seems to serve as a strong moral compass that contrasts his rather cynical outlook well.

The author’s use of the time-rewind ability made for a very unique twist. As the investigation unfolds, Adair and Brie both continue to chase lead after lead, but any mistakes can be undone. Furthermore, each rewind still feels like the plot is advancing, rather than being a retelling of the previous time loop.

Probably one of my favorite things about the story, aside from the characters, was the magic mechanics that Shami created for the story. Like in dungeons and dragons, Warlocks gain magical abilities by forging contracts with entities. They can be gods, demons, spirits, or various other magical creatures. What these creatures do is feather their abilities to one of the five anchor points of the warlock, which include the crown, the eyes, the heart, the soul, or the loins. Different entities prefer different anchor points, and the abilities a warlock gains can also vary depending on which anchor point they use.

Then there is the narrator for the audiobook, Jeff Hayes. This is the only audiobook I’ve listened to that he narrates, but it was exceptional. His voice, his tone, everything matched exactly how I expected Adair Finch would be. I’ve also seen several comments on Facebook praising his narration of both this book and others. I couldn’t agree more that he did an exceptional job.

All-in-all, I think Shami Stovall did a wonderful job with Time-Marked Warlock. I see a lot of potential in this series, and I’m looking forward to reading the Frith Chronicles by this author as well.