Rust & Relics by Lindsay Buroker [Series Review]

Rust & Relics by Lindsay Buroker
Format: ebook
Source: purchased
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Rust & Relics
1. Torrent - Paperback | Kindle
1.5. Destiny Unchosen - Paperback | Kindle
2. Thorn Fall - Paperback | Kindle

Lindsay Buroker
| Website | Amazon |

Torrent (Rust & Relics #1)
Date read: April 8, 2022
Synopsis (Goodreads):

When Delia chose to major in archaeology, she imagined herself as the female Indiana Jones of the Southwest. She didn't imagine herself crawling through abandoned mine shafts, scrounging for rusty pickaxes and gold pans to sell on auction sites, but Indiana Jones didn't have to make student loan payments.

Scouring the mountains of Arizona with Simon, her best friend and computer geek extraordinaire, Delia dreams of turning their scavenging enterprise into a legitimate business. More, she longs to earn the respect of peers who shun her for turning into a treasure hunter. What she doesn't dream of is stumbling across a decapitated body in an old mine near Prescott.

Something dangerous has come to the mountains, and a pair of Harley-riding strangers are the only ones who seem to have a clue. They speak a language Delia has never heard and carry mysterious artifacts she's never seen. Investigating these strangers might lead her to discoveries that change the face of archaeology forever... or it might lead her and her best friend into a deadly monster's lair.

Thoughts on Torrent: Okay. Exciting adventure, strange monsters, people who aren't quite what they seem, and a whole slew of other things. Delia and Simon had NO idea what they were stumbling into when they went scavenging in the mountains and things only got weirder after they found the first dead body.

On the other hand, they picked up a side gig as monster hunters. Sort of. Maybe I should say monster-reporters. Folks who report on monstrous events happening in the area. As people who keep ending up in the middle of dangerous situations (thanks in part to their propensity for rushing headlong toward said danger while trying to convince themselves and others they're not), they do seem well positioned to keep the public informed. Well, Simon's dedicated to that cause, at least.

Meanwhile, monsters are out and about, dangerous men are being less than forthcoming, an old friend has tentatively joined their group, and there's a strange gallery of old-timey warriors hanging out under a mountain. Because Delia's life isn't complicated enough, amirite?!?!

Destiny Unchosen (Rust & Relics #1.5)
Date read: April 8, 2022
Synopsis (Goodreads):

Before tragedy left her crippled, Artemis “Temi” Sidaris was a world-class tennis player at the height of her career. The sport was her passion, her dream, and all she ever wanted to do. Fighting monsters… was not part of the plan.

But when a pair of pointy-eared strangers offers to heal her injury if she’s willing to wield a powerful sword to protect humanity… how can she resist?

Thoughts on Destiny Unchosen: Temi's ability to wield the sword is a good thing (because humanity needs her!), but it's also a little problematic. You know, since she's not versed in sword fighting and all that. Fortunately for her, there's a solution. One that involves her traveling to another world, getting all healed up, and being trained by a master swordsman.

All in the course of a week.

On the down side, her new teacher is a bit of a grump, the elves aren't big into sharing info, and the wildlife seems out to get her. So, yeah. Temi's got a lot to learn and not much time to learn it in.

Thorn Fall (Rust & Relics #2)
Date read: April 9, 2022
Synopsis (Goodreads):

Delia never thought her love of adventure and artifact hunting would lead her to discover such oddities as man-slaying monsters, magical swords, and elves on motorcycles. Oh, and there’s also the Ancient Spartan warrior who’s been stranded in the present—he’s offering to work as her bodyguard in exchange for English lessons.

She’s barely wrapped her mind around these strange new developments when another monster arrives, this time in Sedona, Arizona. The tourist town is known for its majestic rock formations, “healing vortexes,” and ruins left by the Sinagua, a native people who mysteriously disappeared hundreds of years ago. Monsters are a more recent development. This one is leaving death and destruction in its wake, and Delia and her friends are the only ones who know what’s going on. They’re also the only ones with a weapon that can harm the creature—if they can find it.

To add to their problems, a centuries-old evil has been reawakened, one that threatens to deliver the people of Sedona to the same fate as the Sinagua. And Delia and her friends along with them.

Thoughts on Thorn Fall: Delia and crew managed to stop the first monster they encountered, but it turns out there are more monsters out there. Or, more monsters being created. Or something. Regardless, they're stuck trying to figure out what they're dealing with while attempting to track it down and keep the general population safe.

For the record, that's NOT an easy thing to do.

But Delia and the others give it the old college try. With Temi wielding the only weapon that can harm the monsters, the elves off doing whatever they do in their downtime, and a brooding Spartan warrior tagging along to help, there's a lot going on and things keep getting hairier every time they turn around.

A whole lot of danger, a mystery as to what the elves are up to, and secrets being unearthed (sometimes literally). Del and crew might not know what's going on in its entirety, but they come out swinging anyway.