A Legendary Spellbook. Everyone desires it, but he controls it.
The most feared mercenary in the New Realms, Merc takes what he thinks is a routine job – guarding a magic spellbook until a secret auction takes place, one where only the most powerful and influential will have the opportunity to bid. But one moment of carelessness makes this job the most personal he has ever had, and if that wasn’t enough, his dreams are being invaded by a woman who his every instinct warns is trouble, but he can’t stop wanting.
A Legendary Power. Everyone covets it, but can she master it?
One moment of terror took away Amana’s security and her brother’s freedom. Now her life is doing whatever she must to survive, all the while trying to find the way to release her brother from prison. Her answer comes in an offer from the Guild, but the cost is high – using a power she has kept locked away on a man who terrifies her even as he fascinates her.
As the auction draws ever closer, Merc and Amana are drawn into a game of cat-and-mouse, captor and captive as they battle for control, even as they work together to thwart the various factions who are willing to do anything to collect the spellbook for themselves. While grudging respect and mutual desire begin to shape their relationship, in the end, only one can prevail. What will be the ultimate decision, when the price of victory means the end to the other’s dearest dream?
This is an Urban Fantasy series set in a world where a “Great Cataclysm” happened and all of a sudden our boring, mundane world collided with another realm and we are now inundated with gargoyles and elves and vampires and all sorts of creatures of legend. What I particularly like about this series is that the stories are about more than the usual shifters and vampires. The first book was about a gargoyle and this one about a dream walker/crafter- not your run of the mill paranormal hero and heroine.
I was a fan of the first book in this series so was very excited to be given an ARC of this book to review. First off I do think that you have to read the first book, Stone Guardian, in order to understand a lot of references in this one. Being a fan of the author and reading all her books I was able to pick up on the history and terminology but a first time reader may struggle with it a little bit.
I stayed up late reading this book which is one of the best compliments I can give as my sleep is very precious to me! There were plenty of action scenes and plot points that kept the story moving along. I enjoyed the fact that the story included scenes and chapters about secondary characters as the overarching plot lines are moved along- I think this is also unfortunately what makes this a not great starting point for the series (NB: I just checked and the first book for $4.35 in the Amazon Kindle Store, totally worth the one-click).
The plot in this story is moved along by a spellbook that everyone wants. The hero, Merc, is the mercenary hired to obtain this book. Unfortunately, Amana steals it from him so he is seriously angry with her for a few chapters of the book. In spite of all the anger, he never crossed over into serious asshole territory which I appreciated. Merc was portrayed like a bit of a batman on steroids- dark and mysterious with superhero powers. Amana has a tragic backstory which is why she gets caught up with stealing the spellbook.
One of the things that I especially liked about their romance is that there was an element of fate and being drawn to each other but it was handled well and their relationship developed without any unbelievable instant-love. I do feel this was a happily together for now but definitely moving into happily ever after as the whole book takes place over a very short period of time. It was a very low-key romance for me and I have to admit that having read this books a few weeks ago now the secondary characters stand out more in my head than Merc and Amana.
I didn’t love this book as much as I loved the first one but thoroughly enjoyed it anyway. I will definitely be auto-buying future books from this author. B
romancefangirl 