My Lady Mage by Alexis Morgan (Warriors of the Mist #1)
July 3, 2012
Paranormal Romance
Signet

Reviewed by Mandi

The Warriors of the River are five men who have been banished to sleep beneath the river, who can be summoned when a champion is needed. And Merewen is in dire need of a champion. Finding an old text in her late father’s library, she learns of these men, and goes out to the river late one night to see if the magic will work. After chanting some words, five men rise from the river, and Merewen knows she no longer has to battle alone. After her father’s passing. Merewen went under the guardianship of her Uncle Fagan, a cruel and vicious man, not only to her but to all her tenants. Merewen has a magical connection to horses, able to call them to her at will and soothe them. Fagan won’t let Merewen leave him, knowing she would take her gift of horses with her, and he is greedy and likes to abuse her power.

These five men are led by their captain Gideon. Each warrior has an avatar, or an animal that he can call at will. Gideon has a gyrfalcon that lives within his shield and can come out to assist Gideon when needed. For the next three months, these five warriors will be available to her to fight her battles. If the warriors can prove themselves and balance the scales with the gods, they will be able to move onto to a more peaceful resting place, rather than the cold dark river. Gideon and his men soon learn they are not only going to have to fight Merewen’s uncle but also a much darker force that is lurking on her land.

My Lady’s Mage is the first book in a new series by Alexis Morgan. I really like the premise of this book. The five men that rise to champion for Merewen all have great personalities. Gideon is the leader, the more serious and stoic of the bunch. He not only takes Merewen’s safety very seriously, but also the safety of his men. They have a very strong camaraderie between them that I very much enjoyed. One man in particular, Kane, is so very tortured and dark. His depressed and angry nature really intrigued me and added a lot to this story. I can’t wait for him to get a book.

Merewen’s uncle Fagan is a very evil villain. He is slimy, and cruel and the author does a nice job making you hate him. We get a lot of page time with him, which I think is often lacking in other books and I’m glad a lot of focus is put on him. I also enjoyed Merewen’s interactions with him. She guards her people closely, always willing to take the blame, if that means others will be safe. She is a really strong female, yet also realizes she can’t fight this battle alone.

While there is nice action as an easy pace at the beginning, this story does slow down quite a bit in the middle. It got a little stale for me, as scenes seemed to be drawn out. I also think the romance in this one is a little weak. Much of this story is focused on Merewen’s struggle with her uncle and getting to know the five warriors. There is not a lot of emphasis on the developing romance. There is a HEA, but I didn’t feel a ton of chemistry between Gideon and Merewen, which is unfortunate. I think they needed more page time together.

With all that being said, I like this world and I’ve very interested to learn more about these warriors. They still have battles to fight and I’m interested to see how it all ends up.

Rating: C+

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