The Serpent's Coil: Tin Star Witches - Witches of Ruby Gulch Book 1, Elizabeth Silver

Even though this is listed as first in the series, it doesn't have to be read in order since it's not a chronological series, only related in that the world they all exist in are shared amongst all the books.  That being said, some elements are also the same, not just the setting.  There are certain powers in weapons and relationships with guardians that are common throughout, but the individual powers can vary.  In this case, there are elements involved and this was unique to this story and was something I really, really drawn to simply because it was new to me in this world.

Both men in this story have something incredibly interesting to offer this world of the Tin Star witches.  Their powers aren't something we've seen in other stories and I was fascinated to see where it would take us.  We got a quite general introduction to their powers, that they were related to the elements, but not a ton about how they use them or anything really deep about the possibilities or implications of their powers.

I have to admit the outcome was quite tame and everything was an HFN finish, even that with the family and the source of the earthquakes.  I wish so much that were not the case because the buildup was there, the climax however, wasn't as powerful as we were leading toward.  Even the chemistry between the men was tame and more sweet, but with a lot more feeling coming from William than Marcus.  I didn't feel the depth of love or longevity coming from Marcus to match William's sweet intent and that was another avenue of importance that wasn't given its due.  So overall the story was fine, it just wasn't as strong as others in the series I enjoyed, like Ruby Run.

*$3.99 on Amazon

New Mexico Territory. 1868.

Marcus Rivers knows something is very wrong with the magic around Ruby Gulch. He’s kept his suspicions to himself, but his investigations have gone nowhere. And after months of living rough and fruitless searches, he’s on the verge of giving up. Then the mine owner’s son comes home.

Freshly graduated from the San Francisco University of Magic, William Dolan returns to find the town on edge. Even the land thrums with tension. When he meets Marcus and together they stumble onto the secrets of the mine, Will is going to have decide if he’s able to defy his father. If he’s strong enough to go for what, and who, he knows what’s right.

The differences between the two men are as wide as the desert. Wealth, race, status – despite all this, fate keeps throwing them together again and again. They’re going to have to work together if they’re going to save countless lives. The hard part, however, is going to be figuring out what to do with their hearts if the ruby dust ever settles.