Review: The Fire Lord's Lover by Kathryne Kennedy

The Fire Lord's Lover by Kathryne Kennedy (The Elven Lords #1)

bought


Synopsis from Goodreads
In a magical land ruled by ruthless Elven lords, the Fire Lord's son, Dominic Raikes, plays a deadly game to conceal his growing might from his malevolent father—until his arranged bride awakens in him passions he thought he had buried forever.

Lady Cassandra has been raised in outward purity and innocence, while secretly being trained as an assassin. Her mission is to bring down the Elven Lord and his champion son. But when she gets to court, she discovers that nothing is what it seems, least of all the man she married.

But beneath the gilded castles lies an unspeakable evil, greater than either Dominic or Cassandra had ever fathomed, and without each other they may not survive.

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8/10

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The Fire Lord's Lover has been on my wishlist for absolute ages because of the unique premise of this book, - alternative history, 18th century England, where mad  Elven Lords rule 7 separate realms. Magic, court poisons, intrigues, and hello? Assassins. Need I say more?


The fantasy elements in this book are superb. Little servant girls of Dominic's young wife, for example, have slight hint of elven blood in them which gives them their own unique talents. One girl can find anything which is lost in the castle. Another is a weaver, she weaves Cassandra's hair and even makes her a cloak from her dreams  and hopes.


Cassandra's own talent is dancing which she uses in her assassin skills, for what is a fight if not another kind of a deadly dance? Dominic himself is a pretty complicated and realistic character who doesn't want to care about his young wife because his mad and cruel father tortures and kills everyone Dominic ever got close to in order to gain power over his bastard son.

So there are little gems lying around here and there in this book and fueling your imagination.


My problem with The Fire Lord's Lover however is not the sum of its fantasy parts, but the love story which follows all the usual conventional tropes of a romance novel. I wanted more of that wonderful world development, more dialogues with the wise dragon, dangerous mood swings of paranoid Mor'ded, Dominic's father, more war and adventures, rather than emphasis on how I feel or you feel...


For a fantasy with romantic elements Kathryne's work is lacking but for a romance with elements of fantasy she nails it. I guess, it all depends on your expectations.


I do recommend this book, but I'm undecided whether to continue with the series or not.

P.S. love the cover which reminds me of the portraits from that era, - dainty but alluring.

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Работа Кэтрин Кеннеди конечно интересна, но немного разочаровывает. Идея сама по себе замечательна: Англия 18  века, которой правят семь сумасшедших древних эльфийских лордов, борьба за власть, дети с эльфийской кровью и их многочисленные таланты, постоянные попытки заговоров против эльфийских правителей...


Фэнтэзийные находки в этой книге бесподобны и красочны, как например девочка-служанка, которая может сплести что угодно - волосы в сложнейшую причёску или твои сны и надежды в накидку-невидимку.


Однако проблема сюжета лежит в постоянном акцентировании на любовной истории Доминика и Кассандры и их чувствах, следующих обычным клише любовных романов, вместо того что сконцентрироваться на построении мира и углублении остальных сюжетных линий, которые ну очень поверхностны.


Так что вот так. Как любовный роман с фэнтэзийными элементами - очень даже неплохо, а вот как фэнтэзи с романтическими элементами книга эта - увы и ах...