This romantic fantasy takes place right before the Norsunder War sequence. Sasha is more than ready to kick some bad-guy butt, but is the stylish pirate Zathdar the bad guy?
Or artistic, dreamy Prince Jehan, son of the wicked king? Paperback Barnes and Noble. Her passions are ballet, fencing, Jane Austen, and swashbuckling, romantic old movies. Only this Mr. Darcy acts like he knows her. When she goes out for a drink and wakes up on a train, the adventure begins.
This story began as an homage to Prisoner of Zenda , only with a female having to prove her courage, dash. Amazon Barnes and Noble.
Kim decides the only way to fix the disaster she left is to return to Dobrenica, but what she finds there is far more shocking and dangerous than she ever imagined. Not just politics and personalities but ghosts and magic, murder and mystery, ballroom dancing and moonlit sleigh chases await her. Once again Kim has to take sword in hand as she tries to make peace, she risks her heart when she finds love, but there can be no happiness until she learns the truth.
Only whose truth? Here is a book trailer for Blood Spirits , made by Karen Osborne. Amazon, print Audio book Barnes and Noble. Kim is happily planning her wedding when she finds herself pulled two centuries back in time. Yes, the child called Aurelie de Mascarenhas must get to Dobrenica, or more than the Dsaret family will vanish. Kim hates time travel conundrums, and knows nothing about kids.
How is she going to guide a kid born on Saint-Domingue, with whom she has nothing in common? Along the way to wedding bells or annihilation, Kim makes a shocking discovery. With story connections to Danse de la Folie. A light-hearted Regency folly, starring Miss Clarissa Harlowe who wants a quiet life-but falls in love with a smuggler, the marquess of St. Philip Devereaux, is inexplicably intrigued by Lady Kitty, who is doing her best to encourage the match between him and Clarissa, except that Clarissa is now betrothed to.
Lord Wilburfolde. And so the madness of changing partners begins in the dance of love. In , all of Europe is at war. Minutes after the wedding he sets sail. The threat of French invasion causes Anna to flee to Paris. At the end of the Revolution, Napoleon Bonaparte is transforming France; Anna must transform herself into a professional singer in order to survive.
For Henry Duncannon as well as Anna, everything changes: the demands of war, the obligation of family, the meaning of love, and the concept of home. Can they find a new life together? Fair Winds and Homeward Sail ; Spring The Poignant Sting ; Spring A look at three marriages in Highbury with a touch of magic and wonder. The Dancing Monkeys ; Spring This story accepts the ending that Jane Austen wrote, and follows a bitter Henry Crawford wandering the world after his failure at winning Fanny Price.
An unexpected encounter with an equally bitter Captain Wentworth, during a sea battle with the French, brings about changes for both gentlemen. Graceful feet tracing courtly steps. Eyes behind jeweled masks meeting across a room of twirling dancers.
Gloved hands touching fleetingly—or gripping swords… Anything can happen at a ball. I collected thirteen stories intended for sheer escapism, full of beautiful ballrooms, intrigue, some swashbuckling, a balance of dark and light with light winning. Trade paperback Kindle Hardcover at Lulu. Journey back to Oz with Dori and Emma, along with old favorites like Scraps and Polychrome, as they travel through the skies over Oz.
There is no unconscious imitation here; the author is very up-front about her influences. California native Kim Murray is doing genealogical research in Europe in hopes of discovering the source of her fragile grandmother's silence. With no warning, she is scooped up and spirited away by Alec, a handsome young aristocrat who mistakes her for his missing fiance. Once Alec is convinced of Kim's identity, he asks her to impersonate his fiance, in order to lure her or her abductors out of hiding.
Kim, who in addition to being multilingual, accomplished in both ballet and fencing, and slightly psychic, is extraordinarily well equipped for the adventures that ensue. The journey through Europe, the tiny exquisite nation of Dobrenica, more than a touch of the supernatural, and a pair of intriguing potential love interests make this a romantic entertainment in the old fashioned sense.
Kim narrates her adventures as she experiences them--with zest and verve. Her voice is clear and distinctive, and her courage, wit, and independence are immensely engaging.
Her ability to recover quickly from both emotional and physical trials sometimes taxes one's credulity, but the fact that not all of her efforts end successfully rescues her from the pitfall of Mary Sue-ism. Romantic elements are emotionally intense but not graphic, and somehow the semi-bad guy is much more likeable than our hero. The only thing that distracted me from unadulterated enjoyment of this novel is the way that Kim's use of slang seemed like a tour of late 20th century idiom.
Even if she did have old hippies for parents, the mix of bummers, dudes, and totally-s with more current slang came across as very awkward at times and improbable for a woman in her mid-twenties. The range of her knowledge also seemed a mite improbable for her age, but the many things I loved about this book more than outweighed the clunkers.
I was completely willing to suspend disbelief because it was simply so much fun to do so.. This story is engaging from the start, and the characters really carry it. Kim, the narrator and protagonist, is highly educated and a really cool person, who makes even the most complex historical snarl seem interesting and intimate to the reader. She's a smart, determined, generally easy-going, all around kick-ass kind of gal without ever being obnoxious about it.
The other characters seem to jump between white hats and black hats until Kim herself can't tell who is really on her side and who may be plotting behind her back, but at the same time, I can't think of one character in the lineup that isn't likeable The setting is vivid, and so compelling that to me, Dobrenica really became another character in an already rich cast. The mystery, the characters' constant shifts, and the engaging attitude of the narrator really kept me turning pages.
For example, there was one sentence in particular wherein one character walks across the room and takes something out of a cabinet - and I had to look up five of the eleven words in that sentence. I have a fairly expansive vocabulary and I speak three languages, so I can't help but feel that maybe such extravagance was overkill. Regardless, the story, the characters, and even the settings are fascinating; this book is more than worth the time and money to read it.
This is the way all Long-Lost Princess stories out to be told! I've been a fan of Sherwood Smith's since stumbling across "Crown Duel" nearly ten years ago.
She's put a lot of time and effort into honing her craft, and it shows. The first one had me enthralled from page one as I was sucked into this alternate not-exactly-here urban fantasy world taking place mostly in Dobrenica, a microscopic European country that never was with politicking embroilments like you wouldn't believe!
What drew me into the first book was the characterization and the fun hijinks that ensued with a bit of romance and a lot of political entanglements thrown in to spice things up. There was just en I wasn't quite sure what to expect of this book. There was just enough of everything to leave me wanting more and I waited with baited breath for the next installment to come out.
This story takes off after a couple month hiatus when Kim left Dobrenica. She's now teaching French and German at a school in Oklahoma trying to outrun all of the painful memories that she left behind when she fled the country to go back to the US. And now months later - and a brush with a colleague's near-death experience - she has decided to go back and once again face those problems. I have to admit that I'm only giving this 3 stars though.
I'd almost put this at a 3. This was far more of a Dobrenican political book focusing on familial and hierarchical relations within the five royal families. New characters were introduced and names from the first book were fleshed out but the overall characterization and charm was not really there for me. I still plowed through this book in one-marathon session which I tend to do with books and authors that I absolutely love but it pains me to say that this book was a little bit of a let-down.
Kim's self-absorbed ways and ridiculous use of "Americanese" started getting on my nerves. I grew up in SoCal - part of that in L. The characters I loved reading about were not really present in this book and there wasn't much interaction with Kim and Alec at all throughout most of the book and the new names introduced fell a bit flat for me.
Also, while I loved the meticulous attention to detail the Dobrenican politicking and maneuvering started to get a little overwhelming after a while; I found myself tuning out every now and again when governmental procedures or precedents were mentioned. I just couldn't care enough about the politics to love that aspect of the book. Well, not where I expected this book to go at all. I did like the fact Kim generally maintained her tenuous grasp of magic prism power?
Well, I knew this was an urban fantasy which was hinted at in the first book but because it was mentioned only in passing I didn't put much stock in the magical aspect of this story. It just seemed a little I plowed through that aspect of this book because it did not feel like the important part of this plot.
With all of that said, I still very much enjoyed this book. It was a far darker journey but the writing was top-notch, the characterization was decent, the story kept pace, and I still had to keep turning pages because I needed to know how it was going to end.
FYI: the spoilers in this review assume you have read the book. If you display them you will be confused, at minimum, and probably spoiled. I'm a happily-ever-after kind of person. Not in the sense that all stories must end that way, but in the sense that What will upset me is if you leave m FYI: the spoilers in this review assume you have read the book. What will upset me is if you leave me with that sense and then in the next book everything has irretrievably fallen apart and then it just gets worse from there.
Ancient Light , I'm looking at you. So, generally, I'm not a fan of that kind of deconstruction in fiction. But weirdly, after this book, I kind of want it. I want to see the ten years down the road story when Kim and her conspecifics have worked out a more complicated relationship dynamic. Ideally one that doesn't make the Blessing fall apart. But I guess that wouldn't be a deconstruction so much as it would be a subversion. Oh, how I do. Smith props for dealing doing the thematic wrestling albeit subtly with a lifestyle that a lot of people are leery of, in fiction and real life.
But it weirds me out a bit that there was a bunch of info that seems like it should have been in the first book if it was going to be a thing.
Theoretically this should make them more real. But the nature of the mistakes made me see some of them as Stop trying to drink yourself to death! And Kim, stop rushing into things and acting like the least genre savvy person alive!
Beka and Tony were much more convincing even though there was much more tell than show there. And definitely brain-engaging, even if you don't have my interest in imaginary countries. I might even buy it in paperback format, or as an ebook if I ever decide it's worth getting on that train. This next part is not actually a spoiler, just my ramblings from before I read it. Knowing that something is theoretically available elevates the itching quotient. There's at least one person ahead of me in the library queue though.
Oddly, the publisher's page doesn't make an excerpt available. Nor does the author's web site, or anything official that I could find anywhere. However, Google Books makes some pretty big chunks available. But there are skipped pages between the sections, which makes it not at all like reading the actual book would be. But if you want to read it despite that it's spoilery as allget out , it's here. Apr 11, Anne Osterlund rated it liked it.
Kim is attempting to forget Alec, the gorgeous Mr. Darcy lookalike that she fell in love with last summer and who just happens to be the crown prince of Dobrenica. AKA the man Kim left behind so that he could marry her cousin and defend his country from all manner of deadly and hazardous danger. And then she sees Ruli. Or rather, a vision of the beautiful cousin now married to Alec. A cousin who opens her transparent lips and cries, Help me.
Which sounds, honestly, like a decent invitation. Or it does until Kim steps off the train and finds out that. Alec is being accused of the murder. And rumor has it, Kim must be involved as well. Blood Spirits is the second book in the Dobrenica series by Sherwood Smith. I love the action scenes and the blend of a traditional fantasy-style kingdom within a modern day setting. I really enjoyed this book but it wasn't quite as good as Coronets and Steel.
I think in part this was because Coronets inherited some structure from Prisoner of Zenda that was lacking here. That said, I've read this book twice now—it's been out a week— and by any normal standard it's excellent; it has the misfortune to be a sequel to a book that was BEYOND excellent. On the first reading, I felt the early days of Kim's return to Dobrenica was such a downer and such slow going that I nearly despa I really enjoyed this book but it wasn't quite as good as Coronets and Steel.
On the first reading, I felt the early days of Kim's return to Dobrenica was such a downer and such slow going that I nearly despaired, but the book picks up after and from there I was hooked.
When I reread it, the beginning didn't bother me at all. Curiously, this is exactly how I felt about the camping scenes in the last Harry Potter book, so there must be something about knowing a book picks up later that makes slow parts more bearable on a reread. Without giving away anything, the end of the book is upbeat but hardly resolves all the issues, so I hope this means Sherwood Smith will write another book or more than one! I loved this one too, just not as much. It has: - an intelligent, liberal female protagonist who is classically schooled in the American system, yet ends up being a long-lost relative of royalty - a Central European setting in the made-up country of Dobrenica, which is quaintly behind-the-times in terms of technology but pretty heavy on the folklore and mysticism - political intrigue - murder plots - fancy roya This is the sequel to Coronets and Steel , which I haven't reread since last year but LOVED.
It has: - an intelligent, liberal female protagonist who is classically schooled in the American system, yet ends up being a long-lost relative of royalty - a Central European setting in the made-up country of Dobrenica, which is quaintly behind-the-times in terms of technology but pretty heavy on the folklore and mysticism - political intrigue - murder plots - fancy royal events - more than one roguishly handsome lead male - and vampires.
The basis is on folklore, which makes a difference. I think I might like to reread this once the big vampire craze has passed, though. Sep 13, Andrea rated it liked it Shelves: urban-modern-fantasy. This second book had pretty much everything I thought the first one lacked.
It's almost as if she wrote the first one without a clear idea of where everything would go or who the characters were, but she had it all figured out in the second book. The first book was great for the Kim and Alec characters, but the supporting cast was pretty flat. In this book, the supporting cast really shined, and I wanted to know more about their stories.
The first book didn't do much more than hint at the fantas This second book had pretty much everything I thought the first one lacked. The first book didn't do much more than hint at the fantasy elements, but here they were front and center.
Authors: this is the way to get me to read a vampire book--don't tell me it's about vampires until the second book when I'm already hooked. And don't make the vampires all lovesick. I think what I like most about this series so far is that I've found it to be entirely unpredictable.
I expect a third book, as I'd say the story isn't nearly done yet. Wooo -- love the opening! I'm looking forward to the start of a four day weekend tomorrow when I can hunker down and just blitz through the rest of it. This is the sequel to Coronets and Steel which should definitely be read first. I loved it and have been looking forward to the sequel. Update: This sequel did not disappoint. It was just as much fun as the first book, and in some respects there Wooo -- love the opening!
It was just as much fun as the first book, and in some respects there was a little more depth. I liked that the heroine was able to sort out the difference between love and mere attraction. I loved the author's portrayal of love between kindred spirits. And I appreciated her use of humor. Really not my kind of book. Might be other people's kind of book, though. I really just don't like the protagonist.
She feels really self-centered and shallow to me and I had a hard time buying into the whole concept of the novel. I will admit that the fact that the vampires are repelled by sparkly things was amusing, though. Also, the character named Nat annoyed me because I am sorry, that is not an acceptable nickname for Natalie. Okay, it's not an acceptable nickname for this Natalie: I have a Really not my kind of book.
Okay, it's not an acceptable nickname for this Natalie: I have always hated it and hardly anyone is allowed to call my by it--it's family use only. At first I thought this book was a bit of a letdown from the constant adventures of "Coronets and Steel," the first book in this series, but it's grown on me over time.
It does have a slower pace, but I enjoyed reading more about the country and people of Dobrenica and Kim's development of her magical skills and her relationship with Alex, and her search to resolve the mystery of what happened to her identical second cousin. The ending was a surprise but very satisfying to me. Thankfully Sherwo At first I thought this book was a bit of a letdown from the constant adventures of "Coronets and Steel," the first book in this series, but it's grown on me over time.
Thankfully Sherwood departed from the disappointing ending of the sequel to Prisoner of Zenda! Jan 13, VeganMedusa rated it did not like it Shelves: not-finished. Having adored the Inda series, I looked forward to trying another series by this author. The first book was okay, but 70 pages into this I just couldn't be bothered persisting. I don't like the characters, there's too much description of scenery, clothes, etc, it all seems a bit silly - how many times can someone kidnap you, attack you with a sword, etc, until you stop forgiving him because he's hot?
My number is obviously lower than Kim's. I love the idea of this series, but the reality hasn't g Having adored the Inda series, I looked forward to trying another series by this author. I love the idea of this series, but the reality hasn't grabbed me at all.
Aug 26, Hallie rated it it was amazing Shelves: ya.
0コメント