Eye of the Sword
Karyn Henley
WaterBrook, Mar 13 2012, $9.99
ISBN: 9780307730145

In Camrithia, King Laetham completes the ceremony that makes Trevin a comain military leader. At the same time, Dregmoorian Prince Varic arrives at the castle with a peace proposal that Laetham considers as a means to end the raids from his neighbor to the east. Varic offers to marry Princess Melaia, who Trevin loves. Daughter of a late angel, Melaia tells her father that she will wed Trevin only, but after she obtains the three missing harps that will restore The Wisdom Tree.

Laetham sends Trevin on a mission to find the missing comain; while Melaia asks him to bring back the harps; one of which is possessed by the Dregmoorian Secondborn Benasin. Trevin loathes leaving her with Varic, the sly treacherous heir to the Dregmoorian throne. Still he leaves on his missions to prove his worthiness to his beloved Princess and himself. On his horse Alamarin who once had wings, Trevin’s journey begins when his steed leads him to Eldarra Prince Resarian and the Golden. As Varic tries to kill him, Trevin’s horrible deeds while working for the Dregmoorian FirstBorn Lord Rejius, haunts him.

The second Angelaeon Circle thriller (see Breath of Angel) is an exhilarating quest fantasy starring an honorable champion who’s driven by his love for the princess and his obsession to for redemption. The storyline is action-packed from the moment the vile Varic and the tense Trevin meet and never slows down until the readers learn why the Dregmoorian heir wants the newest Camrithia comain dead. Though it behooves the audience to read the first tale to better understand the complex Henley mythos, fans will enjoy walking and riding in a realm where the Angelaeon interact with people and often rule.

Harriet Klausner

Eternity’s Mark
Maeve Greyson
Kensington Brava, Mar 1 2012, $14.00
ISBN: 9780758273390

On Jasper Mills, veterinarian Hannah MacPherson grieves the death of her husband though he died in Iraq four years ago. Frustrated by her lack of response to the missives he sent to the stubborn Hannah that she inherited a Scottish castle, dragon-human Taggart de Gaelson arrives in Jasper Mills to bring her to Taroc Na Mor. Though wary, she goes to Scotland with Taggart.

He and his race need her to save his breed as she is the last sacred guardian of the Draecna magical dragons who guard the portal between worlds. Hannah is a whisperer who talks with animals. Taggart believes her uncanny skill will bring out the hatchlings from their eggs. However, she soon finds herself caught in the crosshairs of the bitter war between brothers.

This is an award winning entertaining romantic urban fantasy starring a stubborn American and a desperate hybrid. The romance seems too stereotypical as a woman in mourning for several years attracted to an outsider wanting to disrupt her life is a sub-genre staple. However, the dragons waging an inbreeding dark good and evil civil war with the Yank tilting the edge to one side makes for an exciting thriller.

Harriet Kalsuner

Enchanted Again
Robin D. Owens
Luna, Dec 20 2011, $14.95
ISBN 9780373803415

In Denver, genealogist Amber Sarga understands the cost of using her gift as a curse-breaker; every time she deploys her skill she reduces her life span dramatically as she ages. Thus she is wary to deploy her talent.

Friends Conrad Tyne-Cymbler and Rafe Davail visit Amber at her place in Mystic Circle so she can help them break their respective curses though Rafe ridicules the concept of the paranormal. Conrad’s wife Marta left him with their son Dougie and vanished. Based on what his father told him on their only encounter when he next sees his child he will die. In Rafe’s family history, the first born son dies before turning thirty-three. Amber wants to help both, but can’t even use a mirror as she looks ten years older than she is chronologically. She agrees to look into their ancestry to identify the curse and what can be done to stop it. However, she feels sympathy for both cursed men and is attracted to Rafe.

The second book Mystic Circle romantic urban fantasy (see Enchanted No More) is an engaging tale based on the premise that magic costs to the practitioner. This concept is the conflict as Amber faces a moral conundrum with between to do and die young, and not to do and die lonely. Although the romantic relationship between the generalist and the skeptic feels forced, readers, craving for chocolate brownies, will want to know the outcomes of the curse.

Harriet Klausner

Eyes Like Leaves
Charles De Lint
Tachyon, Feb 1 2012, $15.95
ISBN: 9781616960506

On the Green Isles, magic has remained in a state of harmony seemingly forever due to the power equilibrium between Lothan the Icelord king of Everwinter and his rival Hafari the Summerlord. However, recently the magic has waned and the balance of nature threatened by Lothan who plans to subjugate the people of the Green Isles to Everwinter after he disposes of his dormant adversary.

Puretongue, the great wizard leader of the dhruidery, understands the peril to the land. As time is running out he sends his loyal student Tarn on a mission to gather anyone displaying Hafarl’s magick before Lothan finishes his ethnic cleansing of the only viable counter insurgency. Meanwhile as Tarn does his search, the Samarand raiders continue unabated their practice of assaulting and plundering villages. Carrie, lost her family to these vicious marauders, meets Tarn who realizes she is powerfully blessed by warmth of the Summerlord. The pair and Deren the novice stand between Everwinter in the Green Isles.

This is the first publication of a quest Celtic mythological fantasy written by Charles de Lint during President Reagan’s first term. The storyline starts very slow as the author sets the locale and the key players in the seasonal civil war. From that snail opening, the plot goes hyperspeed with plenty of action as the bad and the ugly hunt the good and the innocent with genocidal intent. Fans of the author will enjoy this fine tale even without a visit from Jilly Copporcorn or a stop in Newford.

Harriet Klausner

Eternal Captive
Laura Wright
Signet, Feb 7 2012, $7.99
ISBN: 9780451235879

The three Pureblood vampiric Roman brothers (Alexander, Nicholas and Lucian) left the Eternal Order community due to a dispute over tyrannical rules and the prejudicial mistreatment of the Impure half breeds, vowing never to return. However the road has been difficult land-mined with cravings though Alexander (see Eternal Kiss) and Nicholas (see Eternal Hunger) have found their respective soulmates. The two siblings vow to help their brother Lucien from being a chop off their unknown father’s block by preventing him from becoming a maniacal breeder.

Lucien knows he is in trouble as his doomsday clock began the final countdown when he gave blood to Bronwyn Kettler. He craves killing Bronwyn. His apparently only choices are the status quo path of doom leading to his murdering Bronwyn and her vampire fiancé, or committing suicide. None of the Roman siblings or their mates realizes that Cruen the ex Eternal Order member needs Roman insanely out of control as part of his diabolical scheme.

The excellent third Roman brother Mark of the Vampire romantic urban fantasy continues to expound on vampiric genetics that make the Wright mythos the right stuff. Action-packed with a powerful psychological obsession as its key base, fans will relish this superb tale and series while hoping for future visits to the world of Laura Wright.

Harriet Klausner

Expedition to the Mountains of the Moon
Mark Hodder
PYR, Jan 24 2012, $16.00
ISBN 9781616145354

In 1863 British Empire Prime Minister Lord Palmerston wants to prevent the seemingly inevitable world war that will devastate western civilization. He possesses two of the three Eyes of Naga black diamonds and seeks the last one because he believes the gems will give him the power to stop the war from occurring. He assigns King’s Agent Sir Richard Francis Burton to retrieve the third gem; rumored to be buried in the Mountains of the Moon.

Burton relishes the assignment as he remains upset and angry over his failed mission last year to find the source of the Nile which is somewhere in the Mountains of the Moon due to the betrayal of his partner John Hanning Speke. While Burton and his sidekick poet Algernon Swinburne begin their exploration, the Kaiser sends Speke to obtain the third Naga diamond.

With a nod to Jules Verne’s Five Weeks in a Balloon but in an alternative historical Victorian era, Expedition to the Mountains of the Moon is an exciting cross the African continent race. The fast-paced story line focuses mostly on the quirky British pair though the audience does obtain some insight into Speke. Readers will enjoy the convergence of time-stream dissonance with steampunk innovation as Burton and Swinburne conduct the amazing race in their latest expedition (see The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man and The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack).

Harriet Klausner

Echoes of Betrayal: Paladin’s Legacy
Elizabeth Moon
Del Rey, Feb 21 2012, $26.00
ISBN: 9780345508768

King Kieri of Lyonya and hybrid elf Arian prepare to marry. However, his dead ancestors caution him to trust no one as treachery follows him and he needs to watch his beloved; but especially his elven grandma queen of the Ladysforest clan. Although he plans to still wed Arian, he wonders if his grandma’s elf clan who have mostly stayed away or humans are planning to assassinate him; as each race detests him.

King Mikeli of Tsaia angers his nobles when he gives the dukedom of Verrakai to former Lyonya Captain Dorrin who helped him survive the seditious dangerous acts of treason by the former Verrakai magelord. His aristocracy rejects the outsider due to her gender, her combat experience for another kingdom and her forbidden magic skills. Loyalists to the traitorous magelord former duke attack Dorrin’s squires and threaten Mikeli’s rule.

Although Kings Kieri and Mikeli face betrayal, they have a greater threat to their respective kingdoms. Feral young dragons are killing humans, elven and gnomes. War between dragonkind, humans, elves, and gnomes seem imminent.

The third Paladin’s Legacy fantasy (see Oath of Fealty and Kings of the North) is a great military-political complex thriller as readers will understand that the Paladins are agents of chaos whose interventions gave long term consequences. The storyline is fast-paced as Elizabeth Moon’s relativity-inertia premise that for every positive action there is a negative reaction (on someone) makes for a strong entry in the superb Eight Kingdoms mythos.

Harriet Klausner

Everything Is Broken
John Shirley
Prime, Jan 17 2012, $14.95
www.prime-books.com
ISBN 9781607012924

Freedom, California libertarian Mayor Lon Ferrara, owner of a bar and barbeque, privatizes all local government services including first responder emergencies. He also rejected any help from the county, state or feds as he believes in government being the size of a bathtub.

Twenty years old Russ Haver comes to the pristine coastal town to visit his dad Drew. In Freedom Russ meets Pendra, a young woman who fascinates him. A tsunami hammers the West Coast turning Freedom into a wasteland. After being trapped on a rooftop that he defends with his brother from others joining them, the mayor remains adamant no FEMA in spite of the townsfolk in dire straits as services collapse and shelter is limited; instead he makes a deal with a gang leader. Making matters worse is the violence by some of the survivors like predatory drug dealing gangbanger Dickie Rockwell, who sees the chaos and lack of leadership as an opportunity to impose his brutal vision of civilization on others.

Although improbable, this powerful environmental thriller extrapolates the dual premises of those who want to eliminate government providing services as a corollary to paying no taxes into what happens when disaster strikes leading to Everything Is Broken inside of Freedom. Action-packed form the moment the immense tidal wave attacks the town and never slows down as the only “proactive” response comes from the gang leader, fans will enjoy this strong condemnation of political leaders vowing pledges rather than performing governance.

Harriet Klausner

Earthbound
Joe Haldeman
Ace, Dec 6 2011, $24.95
ISBN: 9780441020959

After earthling Carmen Dula made contact with Martians (see Marsbound), a third mysterious race, the “Others” destroy the moon and the planet’s space fleet. Splintered into several billion pieces, the rocks that were once earth’s lunar serve as a barrier to keep humans Earthbound.

Carmen returns to earth to find five decades passed while she was in space trying to meet with the Others. She finds two groups argue over their vision of the planet. Meanwhile mankind has always tested limits and does so again when they send a rocket to determine whether the obstruction can be by-passed. The Others act with impunity at this affronting test by devastating the world when they shut down all power causing many deaths. Carmen and her allies including a stranded Martian try to fight back using pre-Edison technology.

The latest Marsbound science fiction thriller (see Starbound) is a great finish to a strong saga. The story line starts off with a Rapture-like scenario as the Others retaliate to the affront of the humans testing their mettle by pulling the plug on power and never slows down. Carmen has come a long way from the angst-laden teen whose family are first wave colonists on Mars as she takes responsibility to save her race. Readers will enjoy the exploits of the heroine and others as they try to take the fight to Goliath.

Harriet Klausner

Endurance
Jay Lake
Tor, Nov 8 2011, $26.99
ISBN: 9780765326768

Green was sold by her father as an infant to the Immortal Duke. She was trained as a courtesan assassin, but instead of using her skills to further her owner’s ambition, she killed her owner and created the God Endurance before fleeing (see Green).

The Interim Council of Copper Downs needs her assistance. Bittern Court diplomats have arrived from Green’s homeland. They conceal their agenda except for the demand that pregnant Green return home to them. At the same time, magical practitioners are murdering the deities. Green is confused even though she understands a fight to fill the power vacuum is occurring. Mother Vajpai the assassin dedicated to the Lily Goddess like Green is has teamed up with the brutal Surali; and the Pardines non-humans declare war over the stolen Eyes of the Hills jewels. Finally the God of Pain demands her son once born and powerful murderous priests Osi and Iso have plans to use the chaos caused by the death of the Immortal Duke.

This is an entertaining fantasy starring an unlikable fresh heroine who has no qualms with assassinating her enemies though she does not revel in the kill. There are several exciting subplot that are held together by Green who struggles with her pregnancy reducing her skills (think of Frances McDormand in the movie Fargo). Although the Jiminy Cricket like “mentoring conscience” leads to overly long soliloquys, genre fans will enjoy the latest adventures of Green; struggling

Harriet Klausner