| | | Location: Home » Books » General » Spell of the Highlander (The Highlander Series, Book 7) | |
|
|
| Spell of the Highlander (The Highlander Series, Book 7) | 
 enlarge | Author: Karen Marie Moning
Publisher: Dell
Category: Book
List Price: $6.99
Buy Used: $0.87
You Save: $6.12 (88%)
New (46) Used (47) Collectible (2) from $0.87
Avg. Customer Rating:  108 reviews
Sales Rank: 22955
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 416
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.2
ISBN: 0440240972
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780440240976
ASIN: 0440240972
Publication Date: May 30, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Standard used condition.
|
| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 106-108 of 108 | | « PREV 1 ... | | |
MacKelter Druid imprisoned in the Dark Glass for 11 centuries. He wants out bigtime!! September 1, 2005
14 out of 18 found this review helpful
I may be Karen Marie Moning's biggest fan! I have read every one of her books and Daegus MacKelter, the dark, intense, super-alpha hero from the "Dark Highlander," and his time traveling brother Drustan, ("Kiss of the Highlander"), are two of my favorite fictional men. Although I remain loyal to Daegus, the MacKelter brothers may have some competition now with the introduction of their 9th century kinsman, Laird Cian MacKeltar, in Ms. Moning's latest novel, "Spell of the Highlander." A major bonus in this new book is that all three McKelters, along with their mates, appear here.
Cian is a Celtic warrior and the most powerful Keltar Druid ever to live. He is heir to the arcane magic of the Old Ones, but has been imprisoned for eleven centuries in The Dark Glass, one of the four coveted Unseelie Hallows, objects of seemingly boundless powers. The Dark Glass has been stolen, along with other priceless antiquities, due to the intervention of Aoibheal, Queen of the Fae, (the Tuatha De Danaan), who is determined to destroy the dark Druid sect of the Draghar.
Lucan Myrddin Trevayne, a former pupil of Cian's back eleven hundred years ago, is the evil sorcerer and ancient enemy who imprisoned him and who will stop at nothing to reclaim the Dark Glass and gain more power.
Jessica St.James, a graduate student in archeology at the University of Chicago, receives a midnight phone call from her doctoral advisor. Apparently he has been involved in a fender bender and needs her to go to his office on campus to accept an important emergency delivery. What kind of package, she wonders, gets delivered in the early morning hours? A mysterious one. The package is huge, the size of a sarcophagus. It turns out to be a mirror with an ornate golden frame carved with symbols and glyph-like shapes, apparently an ancient relic. Her first thought is that she would love to authenticate its age and origins. But sleep and a hard days work beckons, especially since she will have to take the professor's classes the following day. When she returns to the office the next evening to grade students' papers, she finds a strange man there who attempts to kill her. Cian MacKelter calls to Jessi from inside the mirror and gives her the Celtic words which will temporarily free him from his prison to defend her. Her terror overcomes her disbelief and she recites the spell. Cian keeps his word and does save her. Did you doubt?
Cian's freedom is transitory and he has a lot of work to do before he can break the spell which has ensorcelled him and free himself permanently. He desperately needs Jessica to help him. Actually, he needs her to believe that he really exists and that she is not crazy first. On Samhain, in twenty-two days, Cian's hated enemy Lucan Trevayne must pay a tithe to the mirror to keep MacKelter imprisoned. All "Tuatha De bindings, both the Seelie (the good fae) compacts, and the Unseelie (bad fae) indentures, must be periodically reaffirmed by gold. Usually compacts only require reaffirmation if something is changed or violated within the agreement. However, since the Dark Arts run counter to the nature of things, the Dark Glass must be paid every one hundred years, on the anniversary of the original date of binding at midnight." Cian has to keep himself and the mirror hidden during the twenty-two day period and plan his revenge. He cannot allow Trevayne to continue to live. Lucan looks to obtain the Dark Book, the contents of which are so potent that "continual exposure to it will change a man forever...and not for the better." Lucan Trevayne is bad enough to begin with - the world does not need him to get worse! He must be stopped at all cost.
Obviously, Cian is the typical mouthwatering male hunk Ms. Moning usually creates. And Jessica is bold, beautiful, intelligent, etc., in other words, a perfect MacKelter mate. Their courtship is similar to previous MacKelter romancing rituals. I really enjoyed the "Spell of the Highlander," however, here's where I might run into some trouble with other fans. My critique is totally constructive and I do write as a loyal Karen Marie Moning reader. Her storylines are usually much more complex - intricate plots, subplots, etc. Not so here. The narrative is interesting, but very simple, without any real twists and turns. Cian is a likeable character, but not at all complicated. In fact, at times he is almost caveman-like. And Jessi is so stereotypical. Heroines like Jessica exist in hundreds of romance novels. I have read many books by this author and know what she is capable of. Maybe it's me, but I wonder if pressure from her publisher is forcing her to pump out the books. I really hope not, because I so look forward to reading Ms. Moning's work. Also, BASTA!! Enough with women drooling all over men and visa versa. It is getting old and there are more subtle ways, and sexier ones, to express lust and sensuality.
From what Ms. Moning writes in a brief afterward, she is planning more novels about the MacKelters and the Fae. I say "terrific!!" I only hope the author grows as a writer as she further develops her wonderful characters. Highly recommended!
JANA
 Wait for the paperback!!!!! August 31, 2005
13 out of 22 found this review helpful
I agree with the other reviewer. This was just a retread of the Immortal Highlander and not even a good one at that! The villian in this was so pathetic and one dimensional as were all of the characters. The storyline was so predictable that even the villian knew where Jessi and Cian were going to hide. Please save your money on this one. check it out from the library or wait for the paperback and get it used.
 exciting romantic fantasy August 31, 2005
8 out of 11 found this review helpful
In the ninth century, women have always loved Celtic Druid Lord Cian MacKeltar, who as the only male in his family (his sire died just before his birth) has always been spoiled by the females. Still he enjoys studying Druid tomes as much as bedding the lasses until Samhain "buried" him alive in an underground library sealed for eternity. Over the centuries Cian became a myth although he still lives in a hellish dark mirror prison.
While Chicago based archaeology graduate student Jessi St. James plans a post PhD life filled with boyfriends, Lucan Trevayne panics over a break and entry. Someone stole the Dark Mirror amongst other "Unseelie" Hallows artifacts at a time when his tithe is due.
Professor Keene asks Jessi to accept a delivery for him. She does and looks at the ancient mirror, but sees a hunk looking back from the glass at her. Cian is freed but knows his powerful and most likely affluent enemy still lives and is coming for him and the mirror. With Jessi at his side to keep the woman he is falling in love with safe, Cian knows he must stop Lucan from regaining what he lost and regain the final fourth Unseelie Hallows object.
This exciting romantic fantasy never slows down from the moment that Cian is trapped inside the Dark Mirror until the final confrontation. The story line is action packed (the first paragraph above is only a few pages) as the ninth century warriors battle in the twenty-first century with Lucan having all the advantages expect the love of a good woman. Karen Marie Moning provides a terrific saga.
Harriet Klausner
|
|
|
Visit our Pictures of Scotland
| |
|
