Review: A different kind of fantasy novel!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 23, 2013
I don’t know why this novella has been incurring 2 and 2.5 star reviews. I enjoyed it very much and am not sure why the things that bothered the other reviewers did.The Mine series takes place in the fantasy land of Chardonia where both men and women are born with magic in their blood, but only men can use it. Women are valued based on the amount of magic they will gain their husbands and their potential to bear powerful sons. This makes for an interesting twist on the traditional arranged marriage stories and Falor’s imagination builds a fascinating and original world of power hungry warlocks and daring rebels seeking change.The plot:I read You Are Mine, the proceeding novel to this story, first and was pleased to find the same tasteful balance of suspense and danger here. There were a few twists, a few turns, and more than enough action to keep me breezing through until I reached the end.The characters:Katherine is a supporting character in You Are Mine, so I was already a little acquainted with her, but it was nice to have a deeper look into her backstory and how she came to be who she is. From the very beginning, we see she has a rebellious, indomitable streak, but it takes awhile for that part of her to come out enough for her to take full control of her own life. She was a very brave character who I thoroughly enjoyed reading and didn’t give in when most other people would have.I might be mistaken, but I think Charles and Mavis, two principle characters here, were both mentioned in You Are Mine. I very much appreciated how forgiving Katherine was toward Mavis and the budding romance between Katherine and Charles was incredibly sweet.The main villain, Nigel, Katherine’s new owner and would-be husband, was disgustingly nasty and incredibly easy to loathe. He represented all that was wrong with Chardonian society—a warlock drunk on power with no respect for women, servants, or anyone he considers beneath him. (Though I could have cared less about him being old. I thought it more mattered that he was vindictive, cruel, and perverted.) I liked what happened to him at the end a bit too much and when he got his comeuppance, all that came to mind was, “Good for you, Katherine!”I found this to be an exceptional piece of literature and I recommend it to people looking for a different kind of fantasy novel—one where the focus is less on swords and sorcery and more on courage and morality.