My favorite books of 2009

Thorn Queen ‘Dark Swan #2’ by Richelle Mead

I was very disappointed to read Mead’s announcement a few months ago that there would be no book #3 released in 2010. According to Mead, a decision had to be made and her publishers cast the final vote that the 5th ‘Georgina Kincaid’ and 5th ‘Vampire Academy’ would receive more publicity (and Mead would do more author tours to promote the books), which meant she wouldn’t have time to release 3 books in one year. To be honest, I would have been more upset by this news if ‘Thorn Queen’ hadn’t been so damn satisfying. So much happened in this second instalment – true, it finished on a serious cliff hanger that left readers dangling over the edge of a potentially explosive plot for ‘Iron Crowned’ – but there was so much Dorian/Eugenie smuttiness and such HUGE plot advances that I can forgive Mead’s decision to hold off on book 3 until she has more time to properly promote it.

Succubus Heat ‘Georgina Kincaid #4’ by Richelle Mead

She is clearly a favourite author of mine – but I have a love/hate relationship with this series. No doubt I absolutely *LOVE* ‘Georgina Kincaid’, but I *HATE* how emotionally invested I get. I don’t think I ever laugh or cry so hard when I read these books. One minute I’m chortling along after one of Georgina’s wise-cracks, the next I’m bawling my eyes out over Seth’s callous actions (or feeling furious and wanting to poke a fork through Maddie’s eye!). Never before has the emotional rollercoaster of Georgina’s life been so hellish and smutty as in ‘Succubus Heat’. It was a phenomenal read, even if the ending left me feeling a bit depressed. I went to Richelle Mead’s book signing for ‘Blood Promise’ – and I am really looking forward to book #5 ‘Succubus Shadows’ after hearing a few of her comments regarding character development.

‘Soulless’ by Gail Carriger

I LOVED this book! Thankyou to Mandi at Smexy for pushing me to read it. I was a little hesitant at first because of the whole ‘Steampunk’ genre being totally foreign to me – but Carriger has written such a brilliantly fanciful and lustful supernatural story that is impossible not to love. Parasols and vampires, dirigibles and werewolves – what’s not to be obsessed about? I loved leading lady Alexia Tarabotti and her beau Lord Maccon – they were such a hot couple, they put the ‘steam’ into ‘steampunk’ and I cannot wait to read more of their adventures in ‘Changeless’ (March 30th 2010).

‘Frostbitten’ by Kelley Armstrong

This was the 10th book in Armstrong’s ‘Women of the Otherworld’ series – and it went back to being about my favourite ‘Otherworld’ couple, Elena and Clay. So much has changed for these two since we last saw them in ‘Broken’, I kind of loved that while there have been books in between, Elena and Clay have been expanding their family and carrying on in their lives. ‘Frostbitten’ had a fantastic, edge-of-your-seat mystery at its centre, delved deeper into Elena’s past and included plenty of lovey-dovey scenes between Elena and Clay. But best of all, ‘Frostbitten’ revealed the depths and changes to Elena and Clay’s characters and relationship – making this my favourite ‘Otherworld’ book yet. It will be a bit of a wait until Elena and Clay take centre stage in Armstrong’s series again, but ‘Frostbitten’ well and truly tied me over until that book comes.

Hunting Ground ‘Alpha & Omega #2’ by Patricia Briggs

Patricia Briggs is one of my all-time favourite authors. My favourite thing about Ms. Briggs’ writing is her masterful character development. Briggs’s characters are flawed, damaged and just generally frayed around the edges – none more so than Charles Cornick and Anna Latham. Charles sees himself as a cold-blooded killer, and doesn’t believe he deserves his mate, Anna’s, love. Anna is a werewolf Omega still recovering from the abuse she suffered under her previous werewolf pack. Charles and Anna are mated werewolves – two slightly damaged individuals who are learning to heal with and because of each other. I love this series. To be sure it is a fantastic Urban Fantasy – and this series, more so than ‘Mercedes Thomspon’, delves into the fascinating world of werewolf politics – but at its core ‘Alpha & Omega’ is a love story. ‘Hunting Ground’ had a wonderful mystery as its central plot, but it was amazing because it delved further into Anna and Charles’s romance and explored the repair of their fractured psyches.

Bone Crossed ‘Mercedes Thompson #4’ by Patricia Briggs.

This is probably my all-time favourite Urban Fantasy series. I loved everything about ‘Bone Crossed’ – from the cover art (drool worthy by Daniel Dos Santos) to the development of Mercy and Adam’s relationship. Mercy and Adam have been in a ‘will they or won’t they?’ dance from book #1, and in ‘Bone Crossed’ their mateship was finally cemented in a fairly anti-climactic, but wonderfully romantic mating. ‘Silver Borne’ is probably my most anticipated book for 2010, mostly because I want to see how Mercy and Adam handle their newfound relationship.

Magic Strikes ‘Kate Daniels #3’ by Ilona Andrews

Oh. My. God.

That’s all I could think reading the last 2 chapters of this book. Such an amazing final battle – I was bawling my eyes out, and cheering Kate on. And that Kate/Curran tub scene – woah! It says a lot about this author-duo that their leading man and lady have still only gone as far as first base but readers are 100% hooked on their relationship. I am *dying* for book #4, the first teaser chapter has only whet my appetite and now I need May 25th to hurry the hell up.

‘Goddess of the Hunt’ by Tessa Dare

My favourite regency romance – possibly ever. I love, love, loved this book! Again, thanks to Mandi at Smexy for recommending. The romance between naïve tomboy Lucy Waltham and stiff-upper-lip Jeremy Trescott was heart meltingly romantic. These two are such sweethearts, and even though I didn’t like the other 2 books in Dare’s series, ‘Goddess’ has made her a ‘must buy’ for me. One of the best scenes in this book occurs in a wardrobe – a wardrobe! Any author that can make a wardrobe sexy deserves to be an automatic buy.

‘Jane Jameson’ series by Molly Harper

This debut series from Molly Haper is brilliant! A comedic Urban Fantasy with one of the best and funniest leading ladies I have ever read. Jane Jameson is my hero – I want to be her BFF. Book #3 ‘Nice Girls Don’t Live Forever’ came out December 29th, but I’m still waiting for my copy – though I am sure I will love that book as much as her first two. This series has made Harper an instant buy for me – so unbelievably good, I hope Molly Harper is contracted for many more books in the series.

‘The Forest of Hands & Teeth’ by Carrie Ryan

One of the best books I have ever read (with one of the best titles). It’s a very different post-apocalyptic zombie book – Ryan writes beautifully and vividly, and the story is edge-of-your-seat from the first page. I adored this book. It is very bleak, but Carrie Ryan is such a masterful storyteller, and the world she’s created is so fascinating you can’t help but be 100% sucked in. I could easily see this book being adapted into film – it has a very cinematic quality and an epic feel to it. Ryan has a second book (set in the same universe) called ‘The Dead-Tossed Waves’ coming out March 9th 2010 – I am definitely reading that one!

'Lady of Light & Shadows' by C.L. Wilson

From the BLURB:

Ellysetta Baristani and her betrothed Fey lord, returning hero Rain Tairen Soul, are days away from their wedding, but the wicked Eld lords are drawing ever closer to locating Ellysetta, whose magic they hope to use for their own ends. As the intrigues of the Eld plot ripple throughout the court, Ellysetta wrestles with personal demons and the mysterious power within her. Meanwhile, tensions on the country's borders mount as the specter of war draws nearer.

‘Lady of Light and Shadows’ is the second book in C.L. Wilson’s ‘Tairen Soul’ series. This book picks up right where ‘Lord of the Fading Lands’ left off, the timelines are literally side-by-side.

When Wilson left off in ‘Lord of the fading lands’, she hinted at dire things to come for Rain and his truemate, Ellysetta. I can’t give anything away without spoiling a huge plotline – but in this book much is revealed about Ellie’s origins. There was a huge build-up to this ‘big reveal’ concerning Ellie’s birthright, and I personally don’t think Wilson delivered a big enough pay-off.

When the truth about Ellie’s origins is revealed, as readers we expect there to be a huge tumult – and there is, initially – but everything is smoothed over and forgotten pretty quickly. Considering the fact that Ellie has been pretty blessed so far in this series (woodcarver’s daughter turned Fey Queen – ultimate rags to riches) I would have appreciated it if Ellie went through a period of real struggle and doubt, just to shake her up. That being said, Ellie does go through a lot in this book as she learns about her bloodline and growing powers – as well as dealing with her ever-evolving relationship with Rain.

He was her hero, the magic prince she’d dreamed of all her life, a legend larger than life. She was just a twenty-four-year-old woodcarver’s daughter, a nobody. She should not have the power to make a legend tremble, and yet she did. She didn’t want that power. She could not bear to see Rain humbled, especially not by her hand.

I must admit, this ‘Tairen Soul’ series is very romantic. Wilson certainly knows how to write a captivating romance with just the right amount of sizzle – and considering the fact that in this book Rain and Ellie still aren’t officially married, Wilson does an admirable job of writing some very hot scenes that make up for the lack of outright sex.

I really liked the fleshing out of secondary characters in this book. Bel is one of Ellie’s guards; he has the weight of death on his soul, but feels lightened because of Ellie’s powerful healing magic. I really love him and his rough exterior, and I hope he finds his own truemate in books to come. I also loved the introduction of a character called Gaelen, who was previously mentioned in passing as a sort of Tairen ‘boogeyman’, but comes to life in this second book. He is a fantastic secondary character – funny and charming with Ellie, bull-headed with her other guards. I can definitely see the potential for great things with Bel and Gaelen’s storylines.

Even though I firmly believe Wilson could have done a lot more with the reveal of Ellie’s origins, the series as a whole is progressing nicely; enough that I am looking forward to reading the 3rd book. The plot is thickening and Wilson’s villains are taking shape and showing themselves to be very disturbing and macabre bad guys – among the best villains I have ever read. I’m also enjoying the rough progress of Rain & Ellie’s romance (and in this book the romance heats up!)

3.5/5

'Divine Misdemeanors' by Laurell K. HAMILTON

From the BLURB:

You may know me best as Meredith Nic Essus, princess of faerie. Or perhaps as Merry Gentry, Los Angeles private eye. In the fey and mortal realms alike, my life is the stuff of royal intrigue and celebrity drama. Among my own, I have confronted horrendous enemies, endured my noble kin's treachery and malevolence, and honored my duty to conceive a royal heir - all for the right to claim the throne. But I turned my back on court and crown, choosing exile in the human world - and in the arms of my beloved Frost and Darkness.

While I may have rejected the monarchy, I cannot abandon my people. Someone is killing the fey, which has left the LAPD baffled and my guardsmen and me deeply disturbed. My kind are not easily captured or killed. At least not by mortals. I must get to the bottom of these horrendous murders, even if that means going up against Gilda, the Fairy Godmother, my rival for fey loyalties in Los Angeles.

But even stranger things are happening. Mortals I once healed with magic are suddenly performing miracles, a shocking phenomenon wreaking havoc on human/faerie relations. Though I am innocent, dark suspicions of banned magical activities swirl around me.

I thought I'd left the blood and politics behind in my own turbulent realm. I had dreamed of an idyllic life in sunny L.A. with my beloved ones beside me. But it becomes time to wake up and realize that evil knows no borders, and that nobody lives forever - even if they're magical.

This is the 8th book in Laurell K Hamilton’s ‘Merry Gentry’ series.

Ever since ‘Narcissus in Chains’ (Anita Blake #10) I have preferred Hamilton’s ‘Merry’ books to ‘Anita’. At least in the ‘Merry’ books all the erotica, orgies, BDSM etc is legitimized by Merry and her men being Sidhe (fey) who are a very sensual, sexual species. Plus it was essential to the storyline that Merry have as much sex with as many of her men as possible – since she was in a race to make an heir and be crowned Queen of the Unseelie (fey) court. All the sex was for a legitimate reason – versus Anita’s sudden downward spiral into sluttiness, despite being a morally upright character prior to book #10.

So, I am a fan of Hamilton’s ‘Merry’ books. But to be honest I thought the series could have happily concluded with book #7, ‘Swallowing Darkness’, because a huge story ARC was wrapped up nicely. I was a little cautious going into ‘Divine Misdemeanors’ because I couldn’t really gauge where Merry’s story would go since so much was concluded in the previous book.

I was right to be wary.

‘Divine Misdemeanors’ flounders from page one. Merry is back to being a Private Detective and the opening chapter has her consulting on a crime scene. Once upon a time Laurell K. Hamilton could masterfully mesh science and crime fiction – she was at the top of the Urban Fantasy genre with her ‘Anita Blake’ series. But her ‘Merry’ books have never had the same crime/fantasy angle as ‘Anita’, so I don’t really know why Hamilton felt the need to start now in book #8. ‘Merry’ was always the series that explored politics, royal families and despotism. The crime storyline in ‘Divine’ is boring, made more so by the lack of uber-villain Queen Andais.

Queen Andais is to Merry what Belle Morte is to Anita; a seriously delicious, conniving mega-bitch. Hamilton may lag behind in plot and spout tired and trite sentences in her many sex scenes (‘I screamed my orgasm into his mouth’, ‘so tight, so wet’ etc, etc, etc) but she knows how to write a good bad-girl. Queen Andais is Merry’s aunt and reigning Queen of the Unseelie court. She is also a raving lunatic, and sado-masochist. She is an atrocious character; so evil that she’s fun to read – and her absence is keenly felt in ‘Divine Misdemeanors’.

In previous books ‘Merry Gentry’ did a good job of exploring politics through mythological creatures – observing the tyranny of autocratic leaders, and the power plays that go on behind closed doors. It made for fascinating reading. From Merry negotiating a treaty with Kurag, the Goblin King (not David Bowie, unfortunately) to playing humble before her insane aunt, Andais. But all that is missing from ‘Divine’. I really hope that Hamilton turns it all around in book #9, because the crime storyline may sometimes work in Anita’s universe, but it certainly doesn’t in Merry’s. The best part in all of ‘Divine Misdemeanors’ comes when Barinthus (Sidhe politician) gives Merry a dressing-down for refusing to step up and become Queen – that was the only high point in the entire book.

I’m not really all that surprised that the ‘plot’ of ‘Divine Misdemeanors’ was lacking. Tags for Hamilton’s books on Amazon.com are along the lines of ‘erotica without plot’. While that was more the case with her recent ‘Anita’ books, Hamilton’s ‘Merry’ series did have previously interesting plotlines (with heavy does of erotica) but in ‘Divine’ Hamilton falls into the same traps.
It’s actually pretty funny – Hamilton tries to inject her vapid sex scenes with legitimate character discussion, with hilariously bad results. While having sex with Sidhe/Goblin Kitto, he and Merry randomly get onto the topic of her alliance with the Goblin King. As though she realizes that all the sex is getting in the way of storyline, Hamilton tries to negotiate by combining the two.

“But what does all the politics have to do with the oral sex in the privacy of our own bedchamber?”

Exactly.

To be honest, I was halfway through ‘Divine Misdemeanors’ and seriously considering giving the entire series the flick from here on in. Then Hamilton pulled out one line of dialogue that gave me hope that books from here on in will become more interesting.

“Are you all going to be sitting in some rocket-powered car a century from now telling our children about me?”

From book one we’ve known that Merry is mortal (her mother was part human, while her father was Sidhe – Merry is aging at a slow rate, but she will eventually die of old age) while Merry’s men are all immortal. Merry has said in passing on several occasions how sad it is that she will one day die, while her lovers and children will go on without her. I’ve always thought it was odd that Merry has never had a little cry about this fact. She’s just fallen in love with all these Sidhe men, she’s pregnant by six of them and while pregnant with these fey twins she has the knowledge that she won’t be around to watch over them forever, while their fathers will. It’s mentioned a few times in ‘Divine Misdemeanors’ – which leads me to think this will be the focus of book #9. If so, that’s one storyline I would love to read about, so even though number 8 left me cold, I do intend to read book 9.

1.5/5

It's Christmas Eve over here in Australia (currently at a balmy 31 degrees celsius in Melbourne) and I just want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas for tomorrow.

Make sure you stay safe over the break, eat lots of food and get plenty of awesome pressies (i.e.: books).

Love, Danielle

xoxo

'Vicious Circle' by Linda ROBERTSON

From the BLURB -

Being a witch doesn't pay the bills, but Persephone Alcmedi gets by between reading Tarot cards, writing her syndicated newspaper column, and kenneling werewolves in the basement when the moon is full -- even if witches aren't supposed to mingle with wolves. She really reaches the end of her leash, though, when her grandmother gets kicked out of the nursing home and Seph finds herself in the doghouse about some things she's written. Then her werewolf friend Lorrie is murdered...and the high priestess of an important coven offers Seph big money to destroy the killer, a powerful vampire named Goliath Kline. Seph is a tough girl, but this time she bites off more than she can chew. She needs a little help from her friends -- werewolf friends. One of those friends, Johnny, the motorcycle-riding lead singer for the techno-metal-Goth band Lycanthropia, has a crush on her. And while Seph has always been on edge around this 6'2" leather-clad hunk, she's starting to realize that although their attraction may be dangerous, nothing could be as lethal as the showdown that awaits them.

Robertson’s ‘Vicious Circle’ throws us in the deep-end from page one. The book starts with Persephone Alcmedi learning that a werewolf friend of hers, Lorrie, has been violently murdered. Not long after learning this news Persephone receives a call from the local witch Priestess, Vivian Diamond, who wants to enlist Persephone’s help to find and kill the murderer. Persephone feels obligated to hunt down the guilty party, mainly as a way to give Lorrie’s young daughter, Beverley, justice.

The plot starts off helter-skelter, right in the thick of action, and because of that ‘Vicious Circle’ feels like half a book, or the 3rd or 4th book in a series, not the first. In ‘Vicious Circle’ Persephone already has a standing relationship with the waerewolf community, since she kennels them on the full moon. Because of this relationship, Persephone also has a standing romantic interest, with waerewolf biker ‘Johnny’. When we meet him, Johnny and Persephone already have witty repertoire and a heavy flirtation going on.

Much is made of Persephone’s previous friendship with murdered waerewolf, Lorrie – especially the bond she made with Lorrie’s young daughter, Beverley. We never read a scene depicting Persephone’s interaction with Lorrie and Beverley prior to the murder – but we are expected to believe that Persephone would risk life and limb to kill Lorrie’s murderer, just for Beverley’s sake.

It’s not that I want every book I read to have a ‘David Copperfield’ beginning to it, I don’t need to start with the protagonist’s birth. And sometimes starting a book in the thick of action works extremely well. Lee Child’s ‘Killing Floor’ is a good example, as is Kim Harrison’s ‘Dead Witch Walking’ – both books take a while to properly introduce the protagonists, letting the action play out and suck readers in. ‘Vicious Circle’ isn’t clumsy because it starts in the thick of action; it just sometimes feels as though Linda Robertson denied the reader a lot of good background and character introductions.

The romance also feels a little bit too easy – when we meet Johnny he is clearly infatuated with Persephone, and she admits that for a year now he’s been pushing for a date with her. But Persephone also admits that she’s been reluctant to start anything – mostly because of Johnny’s outward appearance (tattoos everywhere, rides a motorcycle). Yet when we meet Persephone she is right at the point in their friendship where she starts seeing him as something more than a simple flirtation, and seriously considers dating him.

The romance comes a little bit too easily – I am a fan of ‘will they or won’t they?’ relationships. Kate & Curran (Ilona Andrews), Ivy & Rachel (Kim Harrison) or Barrons & Mac (Karen Marie Moning) – there isn’t a whole lot of romantic tension between Johnny & Persephone, making it a little hard to invest much in them.

There is a second possible relationship in the second half of the book that I found far more interesting because there’s an edge to it – a certain amount of danger if Persephone chooses to pursue it.

It may seem like I have a lot of gripes about this book, and despite my big concerns, I did really enjoy it. I loved Johnny; he’s a contradiction; tattooed waerwolf with a heart of gold. I also really liked the witchy aspect of the book – there’s lots of rhyming incantations that are great to read. And I genuinely liked Persephone, she seems like a cool down-to-earth girl and I look forward to reading more of her adventures in future books.

‘Vicious Circle’ isn’t reinventing the Urban Fantasy wheel; this isn’t anything new in the increasingly popular genre, but it is a fun read. It does feel as though the book is starting in the middle of the story, to the detriment of character background and relationship investment. Despite that draw-back, I am really looking forward to the second book ‘Hallowed Circle’, due out on the 29th of this month, and a third book set to be released in 2010.

3/5

2010 Book Releases

JANUARY 4 - Kitty's House of Horrors 'Kitty Norville #7' (Carrie Vaughn)

JANUARY 5 - Death's Mistress 'Dorina Basarab' #2 (Karen Chance)

FEBRUARY 2 - Unknown 'Outcast #2' (Rachel Caine)

FEBRUARY 2 - Flirt 'Anita Blake' novella (Laurell K Hamilton)

FEBRUARY 2 - Blood Magic 'World of the Lupi' #6 (Eileen Wilks)

FEBRUARY 9 - First Drop of Crimson 'Night Huntress spin-off', Spade (Jeaniene Frost)

FEBRUARY 23 - Black Magic Sanction 'Rachel Morgan' #8 (Kim Harrison)

MARCH 30 - Silver Borne 'Mercedes Thompson #5' (Patricia Briggs)

MARCH 30 - Succubus Shadows 'Georgina Kincaid' #5 (Richelle Mead)

APRIL 6 - Hell Fire 'Corine Solomon' #2 (Ann Aguirre)

APRIL 13 - Tales of the Otherworld, 'Women of the Otherworld' anthology (Kelley Armstrong)

APRIL 20 - Radiant Shadows 'Wicked Lovely #4' (Melissa Marr)

APRIL 27 - The Reckoning 'Darkest Powers #3' (Kelley Armstrong)

APRIL 27 - Lover Mine 'Blackdagger Brotherhood' #8 (J.R. Ward)

MAY 4 - Dead in the Family 'Southern Vampire: Sookie Stackhouse #10' (Charlaine Harris)

MAY 4 - Kiss of Death 'Morganville Vampires #8' (Rachel Caine)

MAY 4 - Shade (Jeri Smith-Ready)

MAY 18 - Spirit Bound 'Vampire Academy #5' (Richelle Mead)

MAY 25 - Magic Bleeds 'Kate Daniels #4' (Ilona Andrews)

MAY 30 – Changeless ‘Alexia Tarabotti #2’ (Gail Carriger)

JULY 27 - Eternal kiss of Darkness 'Night Huntress spin-off', Mencheres (Jeaniene Frost)

AUGUST 3 - Waking the Witch 'Women of the Otherworld # 11' (Kelley Armstrong)

'Lord of the Fading Lands' by C.L. Wilson

From the BLURB:

Faerie king Rain Tairen Soul, a man tormented by age-old grief: a thousand years ago, the woman he loved was slain in battle, and in his rage he laid waste to half the world. Now his people are dying out and the evil mages of Eld are rising again. When Rain hears the call of his lost soul mate, Ellysetta, he journeys to the neighboring kingdom to find her; when he claims a woodcarver's daughter as his mate, he scandalizes the nobility of her country and rouses the interest of Eld's wicked wizards, who come seeking her in order to get at Rain.

I don’t normally read fantasy, unless the word ‘urban’ is in front of it. I don’t have a whole lot of patience for mythological creatures that aren’t vampires and werewolves – and I tend to get frustrated with made-up fantasy worlds, languages and creatures etc. But Mandi of ‘Smexy Books’ fame recommended C.L. Wilson’s ‘Tairen Soul’ series, so I thought I would put my prejudice aside and give it a try… and I’m glad I did.

C.L. Wilson’s series is fantasy – but it’s more fantasy romance. The plot trigger in ‘Lord of the Fading Lands’ is Faerie King Rain Tairen Soul finding his ‘truemate’ after living a thousand years believing he would always be alone. Rain is a ‘tairen’ which is some sort of panther/bird hybrid (to be honest I wouldn’t have known that much if it wasn’t for the book cover’s depiction of Rain’s tairen). Rain is among the last of his kind, and the fey have always believed that tairen’s had no ‘truemate’ – but they are proven wrong when Ellysetta ‘Ellie’ Baristani calls to Rain’s soul.

It’s a very romantic premise – and feels like a fantastical spin on the ‘Cinderella’ fairy tale, as a woodcarvers’ daughter falls for a Faerie King.

The romance is pretty hot and heavy – but it’s also frustrating to read. There’s three weeks until Ellie and Rain’s wedding, and Rain has promised Ellie’s father that there won’t be any coupling until the wedding night. It does get a little bit tedious to keep reading about how much Rain’s tairen beast wants to claim his mate, and how both he and Ellie have to reign in their lust.

He gave a low, deep-chested growl, the warning purr of a stalking tairen, and invisible hands, hot and hard, cupped her through her dress. Invisible lips, firm and silky, tracked a burning path down her neck.

At times it also feels as though Ellie and Rain’s romance comes a little bit too easily. Much is made of the fact that Rain lost his wife a thousand years ago during the Mage Wars, and when he first learns that Ellie is his truemate Rain feels as though he is betraying the memory of his first wife by taking Ellie as his truemate. But that remorse is pretty quickly brushed aside – as is Ellie’s acceptance of the fact that Rain *loved* his first wife, but has no choice in taking Ellie as his truemate.

To begin with I thought the romance had a little too much smooth-sailing – but by books end it becomes pretty clear that in upcoming novels Rain and Ellie will have quite a few hurdles to overcome in their mateship. Because there is a hint at turmoil to come for these two, I was willing to forgive Wilson’s initially glossing over their relationship in this first book.

C.L Wilson is a beautiful writer. It’s a testament to her skill that even though ‘Tairen Soul’ is a series firmly grounded in fantasy, she writes her characters so vividly and makes their inner turmoil so intriguing that the human struggles balance out the heavy fantasy writing.

Battered and bruised, but still fighting for dominance, his was not the selfish, petty pride that made bullies of lesser men, but rather the quiet, determined dignity that turned men into heroes and made heroes crawl back to their feet from the bitter dust of defeat and stand tall once more.

Even when I thought Ellie and Rain’s romance was a tad false, Wilson’s writing was so captivating, and the plot so fascinating that I could forgive that small hiccup in favour of her master storytelling.

I really liked ‘Lord of the Fading Lands’, and fully intend to stick with this ‘Tairen Soul’ series – I have the feeling it’s going to be epic.

Thanks to Mandi for recommending!

4/5