Review: Exiled into my heart!!! Spoiler Alert
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 25, 2012
This was a fantastic book and all the other reviewers have done a great job going over the plot, so I'm going to focus my review on the characters and world building.Your story often rests on the shoulders of the protagonist. Is this a believable character? Do you root for him or her? I was worried that I wouldn't like Lissa in the beginning of the book because she was protesting over what she would need to do for the mission.  In my head I was saying, "If you're not going to touch this hunka, hunka mass of burning man flesh, I know I will".  As Lissa's character developed, I came to the conclusion that Lissa possesses a quiet strength, a need to protect those less fortunate, and a sense of humility - traits that make her a strong Priestess.  When placed in this world that Evangeline created, a world where women dominate and men are subjugated to an extreme, her strengths shine.I actually wish I could have learned more about Saber's character to explain some of his actions.  Here is a leader of men, who planned on renouncing his position when he was younger and now that he has Lissa again is going to transfer his position to Reddix (can't wait for book 8).  So, it seems that we have an equally strong man that is willing to sacrifice everything for love, yet when his masculinity feels threatened, he thinks that his female will lose all respect for him?  I was a little confused on this.  I understand the need for this to move the plot/conflict, but I wasn't sure I believed that he would turn Lissa aside after everything they've been through.  So, I was thinking that if I knew more about Saber, I could understand why he did what he did.  Based on their history, it seems that he shares some of the same qualities as Lissa - that need to protect others less fortunate, but what else?  There was this gaping hole in his life after Lissa left that also shaped him and I wish I could have learned more about this time period.Also, Evangeline has the admirable talent of introducing us to even the worst characters (e.g., Draven) and making us love them.  I knew she was going to give Draven his HEA, and I skeptical on how this was going to happen and if I was going to believe this soul transformation, but OMG - if that didn't happen - she did it!  Someone else mentioned that the story between Draven and L seemed rushed, but just because Draven gets a HEA doesn't mean he gets his own story - that would be pushing it. Although I do look forward to reading more about Draven and L in the next book.That's another thing that folks have mentioned - that Evangeline keeps us connected to all our favorite characters.  I cannot image how hard it is to remember all these distinct `voices' while you're writing.  Even when folks were soul switching, EA describes the characters so well that I could distinguish between all the shenanigans.I'm just splitting hairs - in my humble opinion Evangeline Anderson is the BEST author out there and I have been reading romances for over 20 years! So any critiques I give are just gilding the lily (as they say).  Onward and upward!