Review by Chronic Betty
To most people, the realm of magic is the stuff of nursery rhymes and dusty libraries. But for Capt. Gabriel Huntley, it’s become quite real and quite dangerous…
IN HOT PURSUIT…
The vicious attack Capt. Gabriel Huntley witnesses in a dark alley sparks a chain of events that will take him to the ends of the Earth and beyond—where what is real and what is imagined become terribly confused. And frankly, Huntley couldn’t be more pleased. Intrigue, danger, and a beautiful woman in distress—just what he needs.
IN HOTTER WATER…
Raised thousands of miles from England, Thalia Burgess is no typical Victorian lady. A good thing, because a proper lady would have no hope of recovering the priceless magical artifact Thalia is after. Huntley’s assistance might come in handy, though she has to keep him in the dark. But this distractingly handsome soldier isn’t easy to deceive…
This is the book I picked for Read a Happy Book Week, and I was quite delighted with it. You know what was so delightful? The conflict. There was some. I've read so many romances lately where the one thing standing between the Hero and Heroine goes something like this: "My mother left my father, who was an abusive asshole. Therefore all women are dirty whooores!" Ugh. In this one, their stumbling block to happiness went more like: "We're being chased by a pack of madmen searching for a magical treasure that will allow them to rule the world. Maybe now is not the best time for humperating." Also, there was a small misunderstanding that was quickly resolved by communicating with one another. What a concept.
Beyond the refreshingly realistic interpersonal conflict, Warrior is just a fun story. Archer does a good job of laying out her new world without slowing down the action. Most of the story takes place in Mongolia, which is a new setting for me. And the two leads, Thalia and Gabriel, really seem to fit together. He was protective without being smothering; she's the one with all the knowledge and experience with magic, and she doesn't make the second-rate heroine mistake of running off half-cocked and then expecting to be rescued.
One thing that I found slightly distracting is that a couple of the descriptions of magic in the story strongly reminded me of scenes from The Mummy and Lord of the Rings, and the setting and situation for the final showdown reminded me quite a bit of Helm's Deep from The Two Towers. These things were enough to make my mind wander from the story for a minute, but not enough of a distraction to make me put the book down.
I'm also a little concerned about The Blades of the Rose (the name of the group fighting to protect the magical items) and their overall motivation for the series. They're determined to protect these items, called Sources, for the native people and cultures in which they're found. They're not allowed to collect or use the magic themselves. So instead of being proactive, they're constantly reacting to the moves of the Heirs of Albion (the bad guys) and behind the 8 ball, because the Heirs have no problem with using what they take. It's a negative goal and a war that they can't ever really win. I understand the thinking to a certain extent-- if they start gathering Sources too, what makes them different from the Heirs? But it also strikes me as a slightly... wimpy stance. I hope in future books the Blades find a way to get more proactive in their defense of the Sources.
This was fun adventure and an excellent start to the series. I'm glad I read it, and I'm glad that I have the next two books ready to go in my TBR file. I don't remember for sure, but it was on the Pocket, so I must have picked this one up from Kobo with a coupon. I give it a B++. (Only books that make my hair stand on end, in a good way, get an A rating. Warrior didn't have that final zing to push it over into that category, but it came very close.)
Beyond the refreshingly realistic interpersonal conflict, Warrior is just a fun story. Archer does a good job of laying out her new world without slowing down the action. Most of the story takes place in Mongolia, which is a new setting for me. And the two leads, Thalia and Gabriel, really seem to fit together. He was protective without being smothering; she's the one with all the knowledge and experience with magic, and she doesn't make the second-rate heroine mistake of running off half-cocked and then expecting to be rescued.
One thing that I found slightly distracting is that a couple of the descriptions of magic in the story strongly reminded me of scenes from The Mummy and Lord of the Rings, and the setting and situation for the final showdown reminded me quite a bit of Helm's Deep from The Two Towers. These things were enough to make my mind wander from the story for a minute, but not enough of a distraction to make me put the book down.
I'm also a little concerned about The Blades of the Rose (the name of the group fighting to protect the magical items) and their overall motivation for the series. They're determined to protect these items, called Sources, for the native people and cultures in which they're found. They're not allowed to collect or use the magic themselves. So instead of being proactive, they're constantly reacting to the moves of the Heirs of Albion (the bad guys) and behind the 8 ball, because the Heirs have no problem with using what they take. It's a negative goal and a war that they can't ever really win. I understand the thinking to a certain extent-- if they start gathering Sources too, what makes them different from the Heirs? But it also strikes me as a slightly... wimpy stance. I hope in future books the Blades find a way to get more proactive in their defense of the Sources.
This was fun adventure and an excellent start to the series. I'm glad I read it, and I'm glad that I have the next two books ready to go in my TBR file. I don't remember for sure, but it was on the Pocket, so I must have picked this one up from Kobo with a coupon. I give it a B++. (Only books that make my hair stand on end, in a good way, get an A rating. Warrior didn't have that final zing to push it over into that category, but it came very close.)
Wait? You mean when they're being stalked by murderous bad guys it ISN'T a good time for humping? Someone call John Grisham, Tom Clancy, David Morrell and Ken Follett and fill them in.
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This book sounds fantastic. Although i do think you are reading the arc like a READER and not like someone who Watches Action Movies, the plot of which are always "We Can't Let the Bad Guys Get the Thing". There doesn't actually have to be a goal in mind other than that as long as stuff blows up. That's why it's dumb fun. ;D
I poked around in my Kindle and realized that I have a prequel novella for this series. I'm not loving it. Two words: zombie boner. I still have high hopes for book 2, though.
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