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Changeless (Parasol Protectorate Book 02) by Gail Carriger

Description: Alexia Tarabotti, the Lady Woolsey, awakens in the wee hours of the mid-afternoon to find her husband, who should be decently asleep like any normal werewolf, yelling at the top of his lungs. Then he disappears – leaving her to deal with a regiment of supernatural soldiers encamped on her doorstep, a plethora of exorcised ghosts, and an angry Queen Victoria. But Alexia is armed with her trusty parasol, the latest fashions, and an arsenal of biting civility. Even when her investigations take her to Scotland, the backwater of ugly waistcoats, she is prepared: upending werewolf pack dynamics as only the soulless can. She might even find time to track down her wayward husband, if she feels like it. Buy From:

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Review:In the second book in the Parasol Protectorate the ‘Soulless’ Alexia Maccon, Lady Woolsey is investigating the cause of all the supernatural people in an area becoming human and follows her husband to Scotland while trying to solve the case.

The book is written in a decidedly cheeky fashion with Alexia using her wit, biting civility and her trusty parasol to get answers. I loved the main character who in-spite of being a woman in the 1800’s is a person with brains and has a surprising lack of the ability to have vapors.

The book was quite fast paced and the plot was streamlined so at no point in the book did I get distracted or wanted to stop.

Though Alexia’s sister was a character that I could have done without as she apparently was only there to annoy her sister and keep making idiotic snippy comments.

Final recommendation: A great read

Storm Breaking (Valdemar: Mage Storms Book 03) by Mercedes Lackey

Description: Storm Breaking is the third book in the Mage Storm Trilogy. As mysterious, magical onslaughts ravage Valdemar and the kingdoms of the West, the western allies have traveled far to locate the ruins of the Tower of Urtho, Mage of Silence, and excavate his legendary Vault, hidden stronghold of some of the most powerful magical weapons ever devised. They now know that the mage storms are an ‘echo’ through time of the prehistoric Cataclysm which permanently warped their world more than two thousand years ago. If they don’t find a way to stop these magical vibrations they will culminate in another Cataclysm- this time destroying their world for good. But Urtho’s Vault is not the only thing buried below the Dorisha Plains, and camped in the ruins of what was once the workplace of the most ingenious mage their world has ever known, the desperate allies soon realize that their solution may lie beneath their feet. The saving of their world just might be accomplished by the work of a man who has been dead for millennia! Buy From:

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Review:Storm Breaking is the Third and final book in the Mage Storms trilogy. Things are coming to head in this book with the Mage Storm slowly increasing in magnitude to the point that the temporary solution implemented in the previous book is no longer effective. Karal and the rest are still in Urtho’s tower trying to reach a solution while Elspeth and Darkwind are with Duke Tremane trying to solve the problem from that end.

This book gives us a lot broader view of the Eastern Empire and some of it residents who had been mere hints in the previous books. We learn a lot more about life in the empire and the way the storms affected it.

A few surprises were there when the nature of Iftel’s barrier is revealed and another piece of the puzzle drops into place showing us a broader image of what happened after the Mage wars.

The book was faster paced than the previous books in the trilogy and was more action than introspection. A minor thing that annoyed me and stood out was the way the Imperials used the term ’40 little Gods’ in the first book when referring to their Gods but in the second and third book they started using ‘100 little Gods’ . Not a major issue but something that should have been caught by the copy-editor and/or proof-reader.

Other than that the book was a great read.

Final Recommendation: A great read.

Storm Rising (Valdemar: Mage Storm Book 02) by Mercedes Lackey

Description: Storm Rising is the second book in the Mage Storm Trilogy. The dire threat of war with the powerful, sorcerous, Eastern Empire has forced the kingdom of Valdemar into an uneasy coalition with its traditional enemy, the neighboring kingdom of Karse. But now, mysterious mage-storms are wreaking havoc on both Valdemar and Karse, plaguing these lands not only with disastrous earthquakes, monsoons, and ice storms, but also with venomous magical constructs- terrifying creatures out of nightmare. As Valdemar’s Herald and Karse’s Sun-Priests struggle to marshal their combined magical resources to protect their realms from these devastating, spell-fueled onslaughts, the still fragile alliance between these long-hostile lands begins to fray. Only the personal intervention of Solaris, the High Priestess and ruler of Karse, can defuse what is rapidly becoming a dangerously explosive situation. But Solaris also confirms the worst fears of the Heralds- that these storms come from a mysterious, unknown source. And unless Valdemar and Karse can locate and destroy the elusive and enigmatic cause of these storms, they will see their entire world demolished in a final magical holocaust. Buy From:

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Review:Storm Rising is the second book in the Mage Storms trilogy and continues the story from where the previous book ended. Karal is now the official envoy from Karse in Valdemar and he is facing a lot of opposition from other members of the council thanks to his youth.

A lot of members of the council are under the impression that the breakwater created in the previous book is a permanent solution for the Mage storms and are not happy when told otherwise.

An’desha comes to terms with his memories and realizes that he is not the same person as Falconsbane which causes a rift between him and Firesong. Who feels that he is being neglected by the rest of the characters.

A temporary truce is declared between the Imperial soldiers in Hardorn and the Alliance and between them they manage to create another stopgap measure for the storms.

The book focuses a bit more on the emotional and physiological aspects of the situations the characters deal with instead of just plain tactical aspects. But it doesn’t get to the point where you just want to put a character out of his/her misery.

Final Recommendation: A great read.

Storm Warning (Valdemar: Mage Storms Book 01) by Mercedes Lackey

Description: Storm Warning is the first book in the Mage Storm Trilogy. Karse and Valdemar have long been enemy kingdoms- their peoples filled with mutal prejudice and mistrust. Only the vile deeds perpetrated on both kingdoms by Ancar of Hardorn, and the subsequent emergence of the armies of Eastern Empire in the wake of his defeat, have forced these two so-different lands into an uneasy alliance. For the Eastern Empire, which has long been isolated and shrouded in mystery, is ruled by a monarch whose magical tactics may be beyond any sorcery known to the Western kingdoms. Forced to combat this dire foe, not only must traditional enemies unite, but the Companions may, at last, have to reveal secrets which they have kept hidden for centuries… even from their beloved Heralds. Buy From:

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Review:Storm Warning is the first book in the Mage storms trilogy and it picks up the story from where the Mage Winds trilogy ended.

It gives us our first look into the Empire of the East that Baron Valdemar had fled from before he founded Valdemar at its current location. The empire was founded by Mercenaries fighting in the Mage wars against Ma’ar. Actually by this time almost all of the various people and countries introduced to us in the series have been shown to have been part of either Ma’ar or Urtho who fought against each other in the Mage wars. Hints are given about the war in the various histories remembered by each of the people and the gryphon’s keep mentioning Skandranon (the Black Gryphon) who was a soldier and friend of Urtho.

Parts of the book did seem a bit long especially the portions where An’desha was going through a period of self-doubt and pity. I never really liked the tragic hero character that is so popular in certain kinds of books so when it was used in this book I didn’t like it much, but thankfully it wasn’t dragged out much and it was actually relevant to the storyline so it wasn’t too bad.

A couple of new characters were introduced and some secrets about the Companions were revealed along with certain new abilities in them. It was a fun read and sets the stage for the next book in the series and the series after that.

Final Recommendation: A great read. Highly recommended.

Winds of Fury (Valdemar: Mage Winds Book 03) by Mercedes Lackey

Description: Winds of Fury is the third book in the Mage Winds Trilogy. Valdemar is once again in peril, threatened by Ancar of Hardorn, who has long sought to seize control of the kingdom by any means at his command. Yet this time Ancar may well achieve his goal, for by harnessing the power of Mornelithe Falconsbane, the Dark Adept, he has set into motion a magical strike against Valdemar the like of which hasn’t been attempted in more than five hundred years- not since Vanyel, the last Herald-Mage, shielded the kingdom from attack by the deadliest of sorceries. And with Valdemar’s ancient spell-generated protections finally breaking down, Queen Selenay, Herald-Princess Elspeth, and their people could soon be left defenseless against an enemy armed with spells no one in Valdemar has the knowledge to withstand. But as the long dormant magic of Valdemar begins to awaken, Elspeth finds that she too has a mysterious ally- a powerful spirit from the long-forgotten past…. Buy From:

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Review:Winds of Fury is the last and final book in the Mage Winds Trilogy and covers the return of Elspeth along with other allies to Valdemar to train the newly recognized Herald-Mages in the use of magic and defend the kingdom against Ancar.

Through a lucky (for Ancar) accident Falconsbane ends up in Ancar’s custody from his prison in the Void and since Falconsbane’s mental defenses were down at the time Ancar set a coercion spell on him to force him to help Ancar against all his enemies and some of his erstwhile allies.

In this book the focus is on Valdemar and Hardorn with a few unexpected visits from ancient allies. There is not a lot of personal development / changes in the lives of the major characters from the previous books in the trilogy but the new characters introduced have their own story and some of them do undergo a lot of changes and upheavals. A lot of points not explained in the previous books are explained here and the book sets the stage for the next trilogy in the series while ending this one concisely and gives the author the opportunity to introduce a whole new set of characters and story lines in later books.

Final recommendation: A great read.