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kriscent's review
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
2.0
You really don't see many books featuring gargoyles so I was thinking that this would a great original concept and in some ways it was but boy, I was really disappointed with the story in this book. There was so much going on it all felt rushed. I think the author needs to pick a storyline and stick with it in the future.
There's no connection with the characters, there's nothing all that interesting about the world, the romance with significantly lacking and the battle was rather anticlimactic.
I should really be giving this book 1 star but some of it was well written so I'll give it that.
There's no connection with the characters, there's nothing all that interesting about the world, the romance with significantly lacking and the battle was rather anticlimactic.
I should really be giving this book 1 star but some of it was well written so I'll give it that.
amybraunauthor's review
3.0
I really, really wanted to love this book. Gargoyles are criminally underrated in fantasy books, and the idea of it is just so much fun. And I will give credit where credit is due: This book does not lack in creativity, imagination, action, bold choices or writing style. It really does sweep readers up in that category.
Sadly, it just didn't strike any other chords for me. It really stretched the urban fantasy realm, introduced characters and then didn't bring them back or explain their relationship to Lillian or Gregory, and fell into the trope of the main character being capable of doing incredible things without needing to think about it. There were some loops in regards to this, but I still didn't buy it.
Nor did I buy the romance. The characters are OBSESSED with each other, but even the fated mate trope seemed exaggerated here. I also didn't feel like Lillian and Gregory were "real people."
I also struggled with understanding some of the creatures and world building. Maybe all these things will be expanded on later, and I would say it's great for anyone who is open to wild rides and inventive writing, but it sadly is not for me.
Sadly, it just didn't strike any other chords for me. It really stretched the urban fantasy realm, introduced characters and then didn't bring them back or explain their relationship to Lillian or Gregory, and fell into the trope of the main character being capable of doing incredible things without needing to think about it. There were some loops in regards to this, but I still didn't buy it.
Nor did I buy the romance. The characters are OBSESSED with each other, but even the fated mate trope seemed exaggerated here. I also didn't feel like Lillian and Gregory were "real people."
I also struggled with understanding some of the creatures and world building. Maybe all these things will be expanded on later, and I would say it's great for anyone who is open to wild rides and inventive writing, but it sadly is not for me.
vikingwolf's review
3.0
I had seen a lot of reviews about this book and I was pretty sure I wasn't going to like it. I'm not a massive fan of fantasy magic and I hate romance so it wasn't looking great. But I LOVE the book cover and I liked the short prequel I read to the series and decided to give it a try anyway.
Gregory is a gargoyle who can take human form and is sworn to protect his sorceress. They have been reborn to different forms over the many years together and always unite in a partnership to defeat evil. This time, the sorceress has been born in the kingdom of and brought up by the evil Lady of Battles and Gregory fears his mistress may have been tainted by evil when he rescued her and left her as a child in the protection of a witch coven. Now Lillian is a young women with no memory of her magic or who she really is, and is under attack by supernatural enemies and Gregory must awaken from his healing sleep to come to her aid.
I liked the plot of the book. Lillian and Gregory are trying to deal with the complex emotional relationship that they have which is made difficult by Gregory trying to prevent her from discovering the truth and her real memories and magical power. The Coven and the Clan, allied supernatural creatures in the area, are banding together to help Gregory fight the monsters and protect their land, but some are wary of whether to trust Lillian, especially when her true nature is revealed. Lillian herself is unsure if all of their allies can be trusted, and she doesn't even know if she can trust herself.
What really works for me in this series are the characters. I love Gregory, especially in his gargoyle protector form. He stole Lillian's memories when she was rescued as he was unsure what the Lady of Battles had done to her. If she could remember nothing of magic and her past lives, she would be safe from whatever evil may be hidden inside her, until Gregory can determine what it is and how to cure it. It does mean that Lillian is not aware of being his Sorceress and Mistress and struggles to accept what is happening around her. Gregory is a proper hero-brave, dedicated and willing to die for Lillian. He also loves her, knowing that mating is forbidden and punishable by death, which causes him great anguish.
Lillian is discovering that her whole life has been based on lies and that the family she grew up in are protecting her from evil and are not related to her in blood. She knows that Gregory is keeping secrets from all of them, and she feels magic and rage stirring within her that both excites and scares her. What I liked about her is that she is not a whiny brat who lashes out at them over the secrets. She quickly accepts her situation and tries to deal with it the best she can. I prefer that to chapters of 'life is unfair' stroppy kid angst! It was interesting to see Lillian developing her dryad and demon magic, and fighting not to lose control of herself.
The other characters are decent but I'd like to see them fleshed out a bit more. We only see flashes of Lillian's 'brother' Jason so I don't really have any thoughts about them. Her Gran is a great character-a powerful witch who loves Lillian as if she was her own blood, and she will fight to protect her. I want to see more of the amusing conflict between the unicorn and the pooka as I feel a bit more humour would add to the book. We also have dire wolves, dryads, evil vampires, fae, evil hounds and The Wild Hunt featuring in the battle scenes. There are no shortages of interesting creatures and different types of magic to enjoy through the book.
There are several action scenes spaced out throughout the book. The first is used to set the scene and introduce us to the characters , and it certainly gets the book off to an exciting start. We then delve into Lillian's changing world, whether or not the other Coven and Clan members will accept her and her confusing relationship with Gregory. The big battle occurs in the middle of the book and I very much enjoyed the way it was written. It leads to some of the secrets starting to be revealed to Lillian. There is more action towards the end of the book where we get a decent resolution to this part of the story without a terrible cliffhanger. There are also flashes of humour and the endearing relationship between Gregory and Lillian.
There are no sex scenes in the book as that is forbidden in their relationship but we explore their love in several lustful scenes, but mostly through their emotional connection to each other. I think that is why I was so invested in their relationship, despite my aversion to paranormal romance in general. Their agony over not being able to be together was almost heartbreaking at times and I hope they can find a solution where they can be happy together in a later book. Their hurt feelings over a thought in the other's head was very endearing at times and the urge to protect each other at their own expense was bittersweet.
I got quite involved in the emotional aspects of the book and despite it being slower paced than my normal reads, I found myself wanting to know what happens next. I liked the way the author put the story together, the way she developed the characters, and I certainly want to read more in the series. I recommend this for fans of fantasy and paranormal romance, yet those like me not heavily into the genres might enjoy it as well.
3.5 stars I think...
Gregory is a gargoyle who can take human form and is sworn to protect his sorceress. They have been reborn to different forms over the many years together and always unite in a partnership to defeat evil. This time, the sorceress has been born in the kingdom of and brought up by the evil Lady of Battles and Gregory fears his mistress may have been tainted by evil when he rescued her and left her as a child in the protection of a witch coven. Now Lillian is a young women with no memory of her magic or who she really is, and is under attack by supernatural enemies and Gregory must awaken from his healing sleep to come to her aid.
I liked the plot of the book. Lillian and Gregory are trying to deal with the complex emotional relationship that they have which is made difficult by Gregory trying to prevent her from discovering the truth and her real memories and magical power. The Coven and the Clan, allied supernatural creatures in the area, are banding together to help Gregory fight the monsters and protect their land, but some are wary of whether to trust Lillian, especially when her true nature is revealed. Lillian herself is unsure if all of their allies can be trusted, and she doesn't even know if she can trust herself.
What really works for me in this series are the characters. I love Gregory, especially in his gargoyle protector form. He stole Lillian's memories when she was rescued as he was unsure what the Lady of Battles had done to her. If she could remember nothing of magic and her past lives, she would be safe from whatever evil may be hidden inside her, until Gregory can determine what it is and how to cure it. It does mean that Lillian is not aware of being his Sorceress and Mistress and struggles to accept what is happening around her. Gregory is a proper hero-brave, dedicated and willing to die for Lillian. He also loves her, knowing that mating is forbidden and punishable by death, which causes him great anguish.
Lillian is discovering that her whole life has been based on lies and that the family she grew up in are protecting her from evil and are not related to her in blood. She knows that Gregory is keeping secrets from all of them, and she feels magic and rage stirring within her that both excites and scares her. What I liked about her is that she is not a whiny brat who lashes out at them over the secrets. She quickly accepts her situation and tries to deal with it the best she can. I prefer that to chapters of 'life is unfair' stroppy kid angst! It was interesting to see Lillian developing her dryad and demon magic, and fighting not to lose control of herself.
The other characters are decent but I'd like to see them fleshed out a bit more. We only see flashes of Lillian's 'brother' Jason so I don't really have any thoughts about them. Her Gran is a great character-a powerful witch who loves Lillian as if she was her own blood, and she will fight to protect her. I want to see more of the amusing conflict between the unicorn and the pooka as I feel a bit more humour would add to the book. We also have dire wolves, dryads, evil vampires, fae, evil hounds and The Wild Hunt featuring in the battle scenes. There are no shortages of interesting creatures and different types of magic to enjoy through the book.
There are several action scenes spaced out throughout the book. The first is used to set the scene and introduce us to the characters , and it certainly gets the book off to an exciting start. We then delve into Lillian's changing world, whether or not the other Coven and Clan members will accept her and her confusing relationship with Gregory. The big battle occurs in the middle of the book and I very much enjoyed the way it was written. It leads to some of the secrets starting to be revealed to Lillian. There is more action towards the end of the book where we get a decent resolution to this part of the story without a terrible cliffhanger. There are also flashes of humour and the endearing relationship between Gregory and Lillian.
There are no sex scenes in the book as that is forbidden in their relationship but we explore their love in several lustful scenes, but mostly through their emotional connection to each other. I think that is why I was so invested in their relationship, despite my aversion to paranormal romance in general. Their agony over not being able to be together was almost heartbreaking at times and I hope they can find a solution where they can be happy together in a later book. Their hurt feelings over a thought in the other's head was very endearing at times and the urge to protect each other at their own expense was bittersweet.
I got quite involved in the emotional aspects of the book and despite it being slower paced than my normal reads, I found myself wanting to know what happens next. I liked the way the author put the story together, the way she developed the characters, and I certainly want to read more in the series. I recommend this for fans of fantasy and paranormal romance, yet those like me not heavily into the genres might enjoy it as well.
3.5 stars I think...
jrc2011's review
4.0
Earlier this week, I got notice from Amazon that I had purchased this book for $0.00 -- I thought it might be a Goodreads Giveaway but couldn't find any other e-mails about it and didn't even find the book in my list of Giveaways entered or won!
I took a peek at it and confess - I was hooked! It's not my usual genre of reading, but Lisa Blackwood is a very good writer and has obviously thought through a lot of the loopholes. The protagonist thinks she's a 22 year old human woman, but it turns out that she's a dyad -- but then turns out she's got a demon embedded in her consciousness that takes over. There are spells cast to block her memory to keep the demon's activity from reaching strength -- and the author does a really nice job of reflecting the protagonist's inner life and "who's in charge now" -- like Sybil.
The author also does a nice job of writing up titillating attraction dialogue - and it's all tease - the protagonist and her soul mate are never ever allowed to consummate or Bad Things Will Happen. Keeps the whole thing rather PG and forces focus on developing more of the characters and plots. I could see this going to the silver screen.
I took a peek at it and confess - I was hooked! It's not my usual genre of reading, but Lisa Blackwood is a very good writer and has obviously thought through a lot of the loopholes. The protagonist thinks she's a 22 year old human woman, but it turns out that she's a dyad -- but then turns out she's got a demon embedded in her consciousness that takes over. There are spells cast to block her memory to keep the demon's activity from reaching strength -- and the author does a really nice job of reflecting the protagonist's inner life and "who's in charge now" -- like Sybil.
The author also does a nice job of writing up titillating attraction dialogue - and it's all tease - the protagonist and her soul mate are never ever allowed to consummate or Bad Things Will Happen. Keeps the whole thing rather PG and forces focus on developing more of the characters and plots. I could see this going to the silver screen.
krigjer's review
2.0
Eh
This is way too convoluted to be as short as it is.
The Divine Ones? A Battle Goddess that's evil? A heroine with selective amnesia concerning her magic?
Exposition Grandma.
At the final battle we're supposed to care that the heroine's brother is in danger but they didn't have a single meaningful interaction for the entirety of the book. So he's just a convenient tool to get the final conflict started.
Author tried, but there's just too much happening too fast.
I was expecting a cute, lighthearted paranormal romance judging by the excerpt in the ad I saw. This was an actual slog.
This is way too convoluted to be as short as it is.
The Divine Ones? A Battle Goddess that's evil? A heroine with selective amnesia concerning her magic?
Exposition Grandma.
At the final battle we're supposed to care that the heroine's brother is in danger but they didn't have a single meaningful interaction for the entirety of the book. So he's just a convenient tool to get the final conflict started.
Author tried, but there's just too much happening too fast.
I was expecting a cute, lighthearted paranormal romance judging by the excerpt in the ad I saw. This was an actual slog.
saucyknits's review
2.0
I tried. DNF at around 20% - soooooo cheesy :( such a shame since the rest of the series seemed to get decent reviews….may have to give it another whirl in the future if I can get past all the “she’s my lady and I am her gargoyle who wears a loincloth” business…..
tranquiltides's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
An interesting read. The first book in a series I‘ll add too my TBR to pick up later. I will be very interested to see where this story goes.
I had hoped it might be a little bit spicier, but maybe that comes later in the series as well.
I had hoped it might be a little bit spicier, but maybe that comes later in the series as well.
desheria's review
2.0
Eh
This is way too convoluted to be as short as it is.
The Divine Ones? A Battle Goddess that's evil? A heroine with selective amnesia concerning her magic?
Exposition Grandma.
At the final battle we're supposed to care that the heroine's brother is in danger but they didn't have a single meaningful interaction for the entirety of the book. So he's just a convenient tool to get the final conflict started.
Author tried, but there's just too much happening too fast.
I was expecting a cute, lighthearted paranormal romance judging by the excerpt in the ad I saw. This was an actual slog.
This is way too convoluted to be as short as it is.
The Divine Ones? A Battle Goddess that's evil? A heroine with selective amnesia concerning her magic?
Exposition Grandma.
At the final battle we're supposed to care that the heroine's brother is in danger but they didn't have a single meaningful interaction for the entirety of the book. So he's just a convenient tool to get the final conflict started.
Author tried, but there's just too much happening too fast.
I was expecting a cute, lighthearted paranormal romance judging by the excerpt in the ad I saw. This was an actual slog.
alyssacollins's review
There was no world building, no explanation of the magic system of this book. It felt like the author just made up things without any explanation.
kesnit's review
2.0
This book starts off really good. The characters had a good basis for development, the plot was interesting, and the setting was decent. Sadly, about 25% of the way through the book, it starts going downhill. First, no one seems to want to Lillian what is going on. I understand Gregory's concerns about what happened to her, but the least everyone can do is fill her in on the reality of the world she is living in. Instead, she takes showers, eats, and makes goo-goo eyes at Gregory. Which is another issue... The book quickly went from a good fantasy novel to a sickening-sweet romance. (I have no problem with romance novels, but they have to have some kind of plot underlying the romance.) The book would have been a lot better if the author had left out many of the unrequited love scenes and just gotten on with the story.