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erikajay's review against another edition
3.0
We waited so long for this reunion! I was pretty disappointed with the reunion in the previous book, but I’m glad it was fleshed out more in this one.
A lot of people are really upset with Laura turning submissive again after she’s reunited with Magni. But this is 100% realistic! As much as she might want to change, it’s not going to happen so suddenly. People don’t change that fast. She’s lived her entire 20 years with always being the submissive good girl. But she DOES learn to stand up for herself - and Magni learns to let her. (Also being submissive sexually doesn’t equal being a submissive person in general. It’s fine if she wants to keep that dynamic the way that it is!)
I really enjoyed this book because of the growth that we see from both characters. They both show love in such different ways, which is such a common issue in couples! Magni thinks he’s showering Laura with love, but she doesn’t view his protectiveness that way. If only they could both take the 5 Love Languages quiz! But they do get there eventually.
A lot of people are really upset with Laura turning submissive again after she’s reunited with Magni. But this is 100% realistic! As much as she might want to change, it’s not going to happen so suddenly. People don’t change that fast. She’s lived her entire 20 years with always being the submissive good girl. But she DOES learn to stand up for herself - and Magni learns to let her. (Also being submissive sexually doesn’t equal being a submissive person in general. It’s fine if she wants to keep that dynamic the way that it is!)
I really enjoyed this book because of the growth that we see from both characters. They both show love in such different ways, which is such a common issue in couples! Magni thinks he’s showering Laura with love, but she doesn’t view his protectiveness that way. If only they could both take the 5 Love Languages quiz! But they do get there eventually.
lifeinthebooklane's review
5.0
In every book series there is a character who's story you are desperate for. Since first meeting Magni in The Protector, I have been eager for his book but also worried that it wouldn't live up to my expectations. Pah - how foolish of me to have worried so needlessly. If I hadn't literally fallen asleep whilst reading this, I would have read it in one sitting.
I laughed, I cried and I fell totally and utterly in love, again, with the complex and wonderful man that is Magni Aurelius. Small wonder Laura found him so hard to resist, even when he was being a pig-headed fool there is still something special about him. We find some amazing things out about Magni in this book, some of them will break your heart. They all work to build a picture of the amazing man underneath the hard, gruff and controlling shell.
Laura is simply amazing, and in many ways she is the character most similar to a woman of our time. I loved that she realised she had made mistakes too and that changes were needed from both her and Magni if they were ever to find the HEA.
As with all the books in this series, there are two stories running at the same time. Along side Laura and Magni's story of discovering their love is the ongoing story of integration between the Northlands and Motherlands. Although you could read this as a stand alone, it would work so much better if you have read at least The Protector and better still all four previous books.
Every single book is extremely well written, thought provoking and has made me both laugh and cry. The stories within them are powerful, captivating and lasting. I can't wait to read the next book, The Genius, to see both what the future holds for Shelley and for the Nmen and Motlanders too.
PS - almost forgot to mention that writing talent obviously runs in this family. There are two amazing poems quoted in the book, that were written by the author's daughter. Well done, you make an awesome writing pair!
I laughed, I cried and I fell totally and utterly in love, again, with the complex and wonderful man that is Magni Aurelius. Small wonder Laura found him so hard to resist, even when he was being a pig-headed fool there is still something special about him. We find some amazing things out about Magni in this book, some of them will break your heart. They all work to build a picture of the amazing man underneath the hard, gruff and controlling shell.
Laura is simply amazing, and in many ways she is the character most similar to a woman of our time. I loved that she realised she had made mistakes too and that changes were needed from both her and Magni if they were ever to find the HEA.
As with all the books in this series, there are two stories running at the same time. Along side Laura and Magni's story of discovering their love is the ongoing story of integration between the Northlands and Motherlands. Although you could read this as a stand alone, it would work so much better if you have read at least The Protector and better still all four previous books.
Every single book is extremely well written, thought provoking and has made me both laugh and cry. The stories within them are powerful, captivating and lasting. I can't wait to read the next book, The Genius, to see both what the future holds for Shelley and for the Nmen and Motlanders too.
PS - almost forgot to mention that writing talent obviously runs in this family. There are two amazing poems quoted in the book, that were written by the author's daughter. Well done, you make an awesome writing pair!
romanceandraindrops's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
africreole's review against another edition
4.0
They are having a hard time adjusting
Both Magni and Laura are having a hard time adjusting to their new normal, especially after the wall collapsed during an earthquake. Some Northmen want to take advantage and invade the south and some Northman want a woman. Quelling a treasonous uprising, recapturing Northmen who went south, the Motlanders and the Northmen come to an agreement to merge their cultures.
Laura finally gets Magni to understand what she needs in their narriage. Magnificent realizes he can not live without Laura, and Mila needs his presence in her life.
The merger of the two cultures after 400 years of separation seems to be working out. I would have loved to read more about what happened during the matching program and if it worked.
Both Magni and Laura are having a hard time adjusting to their new normal, especially after the wall collapsed during an earthquake. Some Northmen want to take advantage and invade the south and some Northman want a woman. Quelling a treasonous uprising, recapturing Northmen who went south, the Motlanders and the Northmen come to an agreement to merge their cultures.
Laura finally gets Magni to understand what she needs in their narriage. Magnificent realizes he can not live without Laura, and Mila needs his presence in her life.
The merger of the two cultures after 400 years of separation seems to be working out. I would have loved to read more about what happened during the matching program and if it worked.
isitcake's review
adventurous
fast-paced
2.75
I'm left feeling unconvinced that Magni's and Laura's relationship is mended. Like he finally seems to accept that women need more rights, and Mila plays a big role in that, but I feel like their relationship was kind of weird from the start.
Picking up right after the earthquake that hits, Laura decides to go after the 19 Nmen who managed to cross the border without being caught. So she leaves Magni again. Their reunion was shortlived anyway because he still doesn't view women as equal and he doesn't think women should have jobs. He's depressed and takes comfort in Mila's childlike concern for him. She asks how he and Laura met and part of the story is told in flashbacks.
Magni and Khan were sparring when a 9-year-old Laura saw 18-year-old Magni and asked if he would wait to compete for a bride so that he could marry her. Time passes and they occasionally see each other. When she's 14 he overhears men talking about her sexually because back then the age to be a bride was 15. That and some sorry deaths of a young man made Magni push Khan to pass laws that raised the minimum age to compete in bride tournaments from 16 to 22 and brides from 15 to 18. This also means Magni waits 11 years for Laura to turn 18. But she's a twin, and her sister April is 7 minutes older. At their dual tournament, April picks Magni first so she and Laura have a "cat fight" before 29-year-old Magni chooses 18-year-old Laura. Laura was instantly submissive and a "good little wife."
This was only 2 years ago. Laura is only 20 now when she ran away in book 1 and is going after bad men now. She's tall for a woman but it's easy to see why Magni would be concerned. The Motlanders catch most of the men so Laura only has to catch a few. She comes back while waiting for tips on the last one, Devlin, and she and Magni have a fight where she chooses living in the Motherlands over him in the heat of the moment. He runs off to Alaska for a month and she captures Devlin with the help of Hans (the fraud mediator from Finn's book) - although Devlin was happily living with a Motlander obsessed with Nmen at the time.
Laura goes back and lives at the school with Mila while Magni is gone. Some of Magni's soldiers hold Khan, Pearl, and Laura at gunpoint thinking that Khan has Magni locked up somewhere. When Magni finally makes contact, Khan tricks him into thinking Marco and Laura have been together to make Magni jealous and spur him home. Laura prevents Magni from fighting Marco and they truly reconcile. Later they adopt Mila as their daughter.
In the epilogue there's shit tons of kids.
Boulder and Christina have 3 and Raven
Khan and Pearl have 1 (Freya) and pregnant with another
Kya and Archer have 2
Finn and Athena have 2 boys and she's pregnant, and there's Tristan too
Laura and Magni have 3 - Mila, twins Aubri and Mason, and she's pregnant with another
Shelly goes back to the Motherlands to get a degree in psychology and Marco will become a mentor at one of the many experimental mixed schools that will be opening.
The Motlander and Nmen matching program is implemented with an algorithm that matches the woman (or 20 Motlander men) to 10 Nmen and from there she's supposed to pick 5 to meet. Devlin was one of the people in the program, hoping to get back to his Motlander woman.
Magni and Khan were sparring when a 9-year-old Laura saw 18-year-old Magni and asked if he would wait to compete for a bride so that he could marry her. Time passes and they occasionally see each other. When she's 14 he overhears men talking about her sexually because back then the age to be a bride was 15. That and some sorry deaths of a young man made Magni push Khan to pass laws that raised the minimum age to compete in bride tournaments from 16 to 22 and brides from 15 to 18. This also means Magni waits 11 years for Laura to turn 18. But she's a twin, and her sister April is 7 minutes older. At their dual tournament, April picks Magni first so she and Laura have a "cat fight" before 29-year-old Magni chooses 18-year-old Laura. Laura was instantly submissive and a "good little wife."
This was only 2 years ago. Laura is only 20 now when she ran away in book 1 and is going after bad men now. She's tall for a woman but it's easy to see why Magni would be concerned. The Motlanders catch most of the men so Laura only has to catch a few. She comes back while waiting for tips on the last one, Devlin, and she and Magni have a fight where she chooses living in the Motherlands over him in the heat of the moment. He runs off to Alaska for a month and she captures Devlin with the help of Hans (the fraud mediator from Finn's book) - although Devlin was happily living with a Motlander obsessed with Nmen at the time.
Laura goes back and lives at the school with Mila while Magni is gone. Some of Magni's soldiers hold Khan, Pearl, and Laura at gunpoint thinking that Khan has Magni locked up somewhere. When Magni finally makes contact, Khan tricks him into thinking Marco and Laura have been together to make Magni jealous and spur him home. Laura prevents Magni from fighting Marco and they truly reconcile. Later they adopt Mila as their daughter.
In the epilogue there's shit tons of kids.
Boulder and Christina have 3 and Raven
Khan and Pearl have 1 (Freya) and pregnant with another
Kya and Archer have 2
Finn and Athena have 2 boys and she's pregnant, and there's Tristan too
Laura and Magni have 3 - Mila, twins Aubri and Mason, and she's pregnant with another
Shelly goes back to the Motherlands to get a degree in psychology and Marco will become a mentor at one of the many experimental mixed schools that will be opening.
The Motlander and Nmen matching program is implemented with an algorithm that matches the woman (or 20 Motlander men) to 10 Nmen and from there she's supposed to pick 5 to meet. Devlin was one of the people in the program, hoping to get back to his Motlander woman.
mepayne15's review against another edition
5.0
Amazing!!!
This book was an amazing continuation of the series!! I was so happy when I realized this was Magni and Laura's book! I couldn't wait to see them butt heads and to see who had the stronger will.
This book was an amazing continuation of the series!! I was so happy when I realized this was Magni and Laura's book! I couldn't wait to see them butt heads and to see who had the stronger will.
ciaramcd's review
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
ezichinny's review
4.0
❤️❤️❤️½
In book 1, Laura left her husband Magni after two years of marraige because she wanted a partnership and equality. She felt suffocated, dominated and dependent. It is book five and Laura has finally returned from the Motherlands to an angry Magni.
I was disappointed with the relationship evolution. It was a surface treatment and I didn't really feel Magni's pain like I did Finn's background.
I was hoping this book would really deal with Motherland females need for equality and respect as a partner as they are merging cultures. This book became more of Magni does this and that because that's how he shows you love. He uses actions, not words. Magni is a protector, blah blah blah.
The author didn't really deal with this relationship to my satisfaction but I dislike Magni just a tad bit less than when I started this book. I respect what he does for the Northlands and his brother Khan, but he is still a jerk.
In book 1, Laura left her husband Magni after two years of marraige because she wanted a partnership and equality. She felt suffocated, dominated and dependent. It is book five and Laura has finally returned from the Motherlands to an angry Magni.
I was disappointed with the relationship evolution. It was a surface treatment and I didn't really feel Magni's pain like I did Finn's background.
I was hoping this book would really deal with Motherland females need for equality and respect as a partner as they are merging cultures. This book became more of Magni does this and that because that's how he shows you love. He uses actions, not words. Magni is a protector, blah blah blah.
The author didn't really deal with this relationship to my satisfaction but I dislike Magni just a tad bit less than when I started this book. I respect what he does for the Northlands and his brother Khan, but he is still a jerk.
amyiw's review
3.0
Wow, another one that I wanted to love for the characters but only liked the two main characters and love more what was going on in the background. Magni and Laura work but they are both too stubborn... more on Magni's part. In the end I liked how he came around but ended up liking Laura less and less. She thought too much of herself after 6 months of training and it was unrealistic to believe at all. Then her stubborn personality too. Sigh. They were not horrible but not my favorite.
xakyr's review against another edition
4.0
FTC DISCLAIMER: I RECEIVED AN E-ARC FROM THE AUTHOR. HOWEVER, I ALSO PURCHASED A COPY FROM A RETAILER AT MY OWN COST! I VOLUNTARILY OFFER MY HONEST REVIEW OF THE BOOK, THOUGH IT IS NOT EXPECTED OF ME! RECEIPT OF THIS BOOK IN THESE MANNERS DOES NOT AFFECT MY OPINION OF THE BOOK OR THE CONTENT OF MY REVIEW!
Magni's story was one that had been anticipated for quite a while, ever since the beginning of the series, but I was not one of the people that were anticipating this story. I didn't have much interest in Magni, always content to think of him as an entitled jerk. This book revealed a good bit of his softer side, which improved my opinion of him a good deal.
I thought that Laura was rather hard on Magni, often castigating him for things she herself could not do, especially in the communication department. I also hated her manipulation of Magni with her comments about decisions she was making. She knew the impact she would have on him, but did it anyway. It came across as cruel, and I hated her for it, even though I could see myself within her actions.
Laura and Magni were separated for much of the book, and while it was great for introspection and growth, after the long separation of the previous books, it came across as more of the same and rather detracted from the story in my eyes.
I loved the epilogue of the story, and am excited to see where the saga goes from here!
Magni's story was one that had been anticipated for quite a while, ever since the beginning of the series, but I was not one of the people that were anticipating this story. I didn't have much interest in Magni, always content to think of him as an entitled jerk. This book revealed a good bit of his softer side, which improved my opinion of him a good deal.
I thought that Laura was rather hard on Magni, often castigating him for things she herself could not do, especially in the communication department. I also hated her manipulation of Magni with her comments about decisions she was making. She knew the impact she would have on him, but did it anyway. It came across as cruel, and I hated her for it, even though I could see myself within her actions.
Laura and Magni were separated for much of the book, and while it was great for introspection and growth, after the long separation of the previous books, it came across as more of the same and rather detracted from the story in my eyes.
I loved the epilogue of the story, and am excited to see where the saga goes from here!