WARNING: This story was originally published in the short-story collection "Hexed." Do not buy if you own that book. 
 Most urban fantasy stories have female lead characters, and usually they're tough, allegedly butt-kicking twentysomethings who swoon in front of alpha males. So it's nice to see a more realistic heroine at the heart of "Magic Dreams," a beautifully suspenseful, clever story set in Ilona Andrews' Kate Daniels universe. 
 Awkward, nerdy weretiger Dali Harimau is shocked when she comes home to find the werecat alpha Jim semiconscious in her bedroom. He's dazed and suffering from missing time, which seems to be connected to four missing shapeshifters -- and a mysterious woman that he saw. So Dali knows that it must be magic. 
 Fortunately, Dali has some knowledge of magic, meaning that she may be the only one who can find out what is slowly killing Jim. But this is no ordinary killer -- and as she tries to save the man she loves, Dali must confront a secret horror that she cannot possibly defeat except with her brains. 
 "Magic Dreams" is set in the same world -- even the same city -- as Ilona Andrews' glorious Kate Daniels' series, but the focus is on a character we haven't seen before. And Dali is a refreshingly realistic heroine: despite being a rare white weretiger, she's nerdy, puny and not very intimidating. And unlike most UF heroines, she uses her brains rather than brawn. 
 And despite being only a short story, Andrews' writing. is absolutely brilliant, weaving together urban fantasy settings with Asian folklore (including yokai and Indonesian fairy tales). But at heart, it's the story of an "ugly duckling" whose brains must be used to save the man she loves. It's funny, wrenching, and its ending reminds me of JRR Tolkien's "The Hobbit." 
 "Magic Dreams" is a solid addition to the "Magic" series' canon -- but the best part is the thoroughly atypical weretiger heroine. And for new readers, it's not a half bad place to jump on.