The Asylum Interviews: Bronx: An Asylum Tales Short Story

By Jocelynn Drake

The first of two prequel stories to Jocelynn Drake's Angel's Ink. It's not easy being a tattoo artist and a wizard, especially when you're in hiding. Or when a botched ink job has amplified an incubus's existing sex appeal into one that could wreck the whole town. And your only help is a troll.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Jul 3, 2012
• ISBN: 9780062118233

Jocelynn Drake

Jocelynn Drake is the New York Times bestselling author of the Dark Days series and lives in Florida. When not at her desk, she is most likely to be found playing video games, watching movies, or hanging with her family.

Reviews for The Asylum Interviews

[darkfaerietales_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: Entertaining look into a new series about a loyal tattoo artist. Opening Sentence: “What the … Get the hell out of here!” The Review: The Asylum Interviews: Bronx is the first of two short stories about how Gage, the mysterious tattoo artist of Angel’s Ink, meets one of his two employees. First up is Bronx, a talented tattoo artist who happens to be a troll. Gage meets Bronx in a most hilarious yet uncomfortable situation while at a bar. Undeterred, Bronx tells Gage he is looking for a new job but then gets sucked into a search for Gage’s friend Parker. Parker is an incubus. He is looking for a way to suppress his feedings and the best way to do that is by getting a tattoo. Unfortunately the tattoo doesn’t work as planned and Gage and Bronx undergo an adventure to fix Parker’s tattoo. This was a highly enjoyable look into Gage and the supernatural world around him. Gage is quite mysterious and the hints into his background really left me wanting to read more about him. Gage claims to not really have any close friends but he went out of his way to help Parker (one of the few people who put up with Gage). This really shows the limits that Gage will go in order to help a friend. Gage comes off as someone I would really want as a friend even though it is obvious he is hiding something. The “Interview” part of the title did confuse me at first. I really thought the novella’s would be told from the secondary characters of Angel’s Ink point of view, in this case Bronx but the tale is told from Gage’s point of view. The Asylum Interviews: Bronx is a pleasant look into a world where the supernatural are known and living among us. I enjoyed this look into Gage, Bronx, incubi and Vestal Virgins. I was intrigued enough by Gage’s mysterious past that I would definitely pick up Angel’s Ink. Notable Scene: “Then Bronx isn’t your real name? It’s a nickname?” “It’s my birth name. Trolls are named after the places in which they are born.” My face scrunched up as I mentally digested this unexpected bit of information. I had only spoken to one or two other trolls in my entire life and I hadn’t caught their names. Truth was there wasn’t a lot known about trolls because they didn’t tend to be very talkative. Most people thought that they just weren’t very bright and tended to avoid them because they weren’t pleasing to the eye like elves and were frighteningly strong like ogres. “So, there could be several other trolls running around with the name Bronx,” I said. “I would imagine so, but then there are other humans running around with the name Gage, correct?” “Probably. But do you also have siblings with the same name as you?” “No, I’m an only child. Most trolls have only one child.” “Really? Why?” “The mother tends to eat the spares.”FTC Advisory: Harper Voyager/Harper Collins provided me with a copy of The Asylum Interviews: Bronx. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.

[starrk_3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was my first anything by Jocelyn Drake, and I liked it! I can immediately tell that she is a great storyteller. Though this was a quick glimpse at the characters in her new series, it was also entertaining. At the end, I knew that I wanted more. I had to have more. I think that this was a great introduction to Gage and Bronx. While it was slightly humorous at the beginning, there was depth that isn't necessarily shown in the shorter stories. There was a nice glimpse into Gage's past and the secret that he is hiding, which creates a deeper sense of understanding. I am not sure of the roles each character will play, but I look forward to reading more about them. 4 Stars ****What's Next?The Asylum Interviews: Trixie (The Aslyum Tales 0.6)

[literaladdiction · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Our review by LITERAL ADDICTION's Pack Alpha - Michelle L. Olson:Jocelynn Drake is easily in my top 4 Urban Fantasy Author list, and I love the way she writes. I was a steady Dark Days fan from book #1 to the conclusion, so when we hosted Jocelynn for an Author Event and she told us in a live chat about the new series concept she was working on I was immediately excited.The Asylum Interviews - Bronx is the first story of The Asylum Tales series, released as an eNovella.In Bronx, we meet the central hero of The Asylum Tales series, Gage, a Mage and Tattoo Artist masquerading as strictly human. Tattoo parlors in Low Town aren't like those that we know.... While you CAN get some amazing permanent skin art, the ink is mixed with potion ingredients to give the purchaser that little extra magickal edge (depending on what they need and are willing to pay for). It's evident from his actions in the story that Gage is a good guy, a loyal friend, and a savvy businessman. It's also apparent that he's having trouble fighting his true nature by not doing magic, but he's not willing to give up his independence. Keeping his secret and living on the straight and narrow as much as possible takes its tole on Gage though, and I am very excited to learn more about him and how he handles this balance as the series continues.We also meet Parker, Gage's best friend. Parker could prove to be an interesting character as well... An Incubus madly in love with his girlfriend and desperately seeking a strictly monogamous relationship, despite the fact that it's killing him - literally. My favorite character of the Novella was its namesake though. Bronx is a troll looking for a job at Gage's tattoo shop - Asylum. He's an enigma - where trolls rarely speak, Bronx is well spoken. Where trolls are generally solitary creatures, Bronx proves that he can be a great friend and ally. He's also an incredibly talented Tattoo artist. He's very multi-dimensional and I can't wait to find out more about him. Given the outcome of the first couple hours and days that Bronx and Gage knew each other, the engaging storylines surrounding these two could be infinite. The Asylum Interviews - Bronx was action packed, engaging, and in true Jocelynn Drake fashion...beautifully written. The world is wonderfully crafted, unique, and full of magick and interesting players. It was a nice sneak peak into the Asylum Tales world and just made me want more right away. I had been excited for Angel's Ink for quite some time, but after reading the prequel eNovella I wanted it even more.LITERAL ADDICTION gives this fresh, new approach to Urban Fantasy 4 Skulls. I immediately Pre-ordered The Asylum Interviews - Trixie, which will be coming out on 9/4/12, and I already had October's release of Angel's Ink Pre-ordered. I can't wait to get even more engrossed in these characters and this world! Like the tattoos that Gage and Bronx provide, I have a feeling they'll leave a permanent mark. :)

[bookwhisperer · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I knew that I just had to check out Asylum Interviews. After following Jocelyn Drake through the Nightwalker series; I am dedicated to trying anything from her in the future. Bronx, Asylum Interviews, was different from the start. After several chapters of confusion the haze began to clear. Drake has a strong story, but be forewarned that she includes an abundance of characters. It can prove difficult to keep them all straight. I was not as impressed by the overall story, as much as, the Nightwalker. This was an intense and entertaining story, but I was hoping for something a little better. ~ BookWhisperer Reviewer Jo~

[amberfib · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Let me start this review by saying that since it was a short work, the review will be shorter than usual. That being said, I did not enjoy this novella as much as I wanted to. Drake wrote from the first person perspective of Gage, a male tattoo artist. However, Gage, nor any of the other men in the novel, came across as men. They came across as a bunch of gossiping women. It was very clear that a female was writing this instead of a man, and I couldn't buy the male perspective for a minute. Men just don't sit around drinking and talking about feelings. They sit around drinking and talking about obscene things, video games, and sports. Not how much they love someone. That just really bugged me. Because of that, I couldn't get into the story. The world Drake created was intriguing, at least. I really love it when all of the supernatural creatures are out in the open like they are in this book. The way the world operates reminded me of Kim Harrison's The Hollows series. The writing itself was good, too, and the pacing was pretty spot on. I was never bored throughout this novel. As I said, my main (and really only) problem with this book is that I just didn't buy that the story was being told by a man about himself and his male friends. It just wasn't believable. However, the rest of the book was excellent, and I will be giving the full length novel a try as well before making a final judgment on the series. Overall, I'd say give this a try since it's just a novella. It gives you a chance to get to know the characters, for one thing, even if they do act like a bunch of gossipy old women. Also, it introduces you to the captivating world that Drake has created. Fans of Kim Harrison and Laurell K Hamilton will love this series.