Review: I want more...
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 02 15, 2013
I must have more of this series... not only because it is a good book, but because, by the time the book ends, the story seems to only be getting started.Gwynn is completely bored out of her skull with her life (boring job, on her way to becoming a trophy wife not allowed to speak her mind, etc) and it doesn't take long for her to leave it completely, driving away without a true destination in mind. But she finds herself at The Devil's Tower, rumored to be magical. She takes refuge for the night at a nearby B&B.; The next day, as she wanders the grounds of the Tower, she feels compelled to perform a ritual - though only the reader recognizes it as such. To Gwynn, this is simply an act of saying "I'm here."It immediately transports her to another world. Brighter, bolder colors, beautiful scenery - in her words "Disney Ireland." When she wishes for something (such as water or bird song) and it shows up or happens - but not without consequence. And that is a huge part of this book - consequence.One of my favorite facets of Rogue's Pawn is the communication between Gwynn and the Fae. She can communicate with some of them telepathically, which she's not used to, so therefore she's "yelling" most of the time, having all the rest glare at her and tell her to "turn the volume down". Also, she doesn't speak the same language as them, yet she's able to understand what they're trying to say. A perfect example of this is when a particularly distasteful fairy informs Gwynn that she hopes that everyone votes to kill her (Gwynn) in the most painful way possible. Gwynn replies, "Well, that's honest." Rogue has to remind "Nasty Tinker Bell" that Gwynn does not speak their language and therefore hears what they actually mean to say rather than what they do - this shuts up "Nasty Tinker Bell" quickly and she scurries away. No nasty-double talk here. It's quite fun. The process made me laugh several times, especially as Gwynn is introduced to people - not having their real name, at first, so only what she perceives. Therefore, the healer is Lady Healer, and so on and so forth (you can guess why "Rogue" is named "Rogue").The story progresses slowly but steadily as Gwynn has to pay back a debt owed for her life being saved after the attack by the dog. Negotiations begin and Gwynn is sentenced to training, servitude and then a life for a life - her first born child, to be sired by Rogue, after the servitude is completed.To the readers (all of whom, I'm assuming, will be human) it will seem quite unfair. But the Fae are distinctly not human. For those who are not familiar with the ways of the Good People, you'll soon learn this one true fact.I have always been fascinated by the Fae, which was why I was so interested to read this book. Kennedy's version of them seems to be true to form of all folklore and myth:"Most of the fae did not seem possessed of noble intentions. Playful at best, cruel at worse - they operated on a totally different ethical system." (pg 230)If you, like me, are fascinated with the culture and ways of the Fairies, you enjoy learning about different ways of life, you enjoy being taken away from your own reality and plopped into another... if you simply enjoy reading about a strong woman build herself back up, no matter how many times she's been knocked down - you will love this book.You will also learn to be careful what you wish for - whether it's for birds or to speak to a goddess... all have consequences.As it ends, you will want to yell at Kennedy for not having the second book out already - I did visit her site, jeffekennedy.com and, though this book is listed as book one of the "Covenant of Thorns" series, there is not yet news of when a second book might be forthcoming. I will be keeping an eye out. Until then, I shall endeavor to look up her other books in the "Facets of Passion" series. I have done another review for her first book in the "Blood Currency" series, so be sure to check that out as well.--------------------------------------------------I write reviews for UrbanGirlReader.com with some other pretty awesome chicks. For many more reviews, check out the site!