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Sia Mara #1
A Lonely Magic
Fen’s life is on track—she works, she studies, she pays her rent—until a gorgeous guy points a gun at her and demands that she choose how she wants to die. What the hell? When a teenage boy, Luke, comes to her rescue, she survives, but escape won’t be so easy.
Luke’s sexy older brother, Kaio, offers to help her, but his protection simmers with unnerving undercurrents. The brothers have secrets and Fen has questions. Who are they? How did they find her? And why was she targeted for murder in the first place?
When Fen and Luke are forced to run for their lives, Luke spirits Fen down into an enchanting underwater city. But every enchantment has its dark edges. Caught in tides of romance, fear, and a plot to destroy humanity, Fen must look deep within herself to find the strength and courage she’ll need to stay afloat in an amazing new world.
Luke’s sexy older brother, Kaio, offers to help her, but his protection simmers with unnerving undercurrents. The brothers have secrets and Fen has questions. Who are they? How did they find her? And why was she targeted for murder in the first place?
When Fen and Luke are forced to run for their lives, Luke spirits Fen down into an enchanting underwater city. But every enchantment has its dark edges. Caught in tides of romance, fear, and a plot to destroy humanity, Fen must look deep within herself to find the strength and courage she’ll need to stay afloat in an amazing new world.
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First published July 7, 2014
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590 people want to read
About the author
Sarah Wynde
19 books191 followersSarah Wynde graduated from Wesleyan University with a degree in English, which she actually managed to put to use by becoming an editor. She's worked on magazines, websites, and books, including ten years spent as a senior acquisitions editor with Pearson. Eventually, her love of writing pushed her into independent publishing. She likes to think of the stories she writes as unexpected fiction—bending, blending, and occasionally breaking genres.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews
July 6, 2014
I received this Kindle ARC through NetGalley, courtesy of the author
Sarah Wynde has changed her genre, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I’ve been her fan since her first Tassamara novel, A Gift of Ghosts (my review here ). All three Tassamara novels were delightful paranormal romances.
This one is pure fantasy with lascivious overtones. No romance manifested, but the story is super-inventive on the world building side. The writer’s imagination must’ve been on overdrive when she wrote this book.
It starts with the protagonist Fen, a twenty-one-year-old bookstore clerk, deciding how to die. Of course, she doesn’t want to die, but a strange man traps her in a dark alley and offers her a choice: a bottle of pills or a bullet in the brain. She chooses pills as the lesser evil, but then she gets lucky, the story flips around, and Fen is plunged into a fantastic adventure.
Her life before the bookstore hadn’t been easy. Her mother died when she was a teen, she went through several foster homes, lived on the streets, did drugs, but that’s all in her past and only hinted at in the story. When the novel starts, Fen has already got her act together. She works, studies, and generally lives like a responsible if poor adult. But nothing in her existence has prepared her for what happened after her aborted murder.
She meets gorgeous guys, discovers she has magic galore (if only she knew how to use it), learns to communicate telepathically, and gets swept willy-nilly to an underwater city full of marvels, a mix between a Disney World and Atlantis.
The pacing is uneven, a bit slow in the beginning but it picks up nicely after about 20% mark on my Kindle.
Many of the characters are fascinating, but Fen as the protagonist stands out. Her intimate acquaintance with tragedy and poverty made her tough and smart, but she hasn’t lost her decency or her moral compass. She accepts the ugly with the beautiful, and she fights like a cat for what she believes in. If only the others didn’t keep her in the dark and explained things, she might’ve done even better.
The others all belong to the alien underwater world. Most of them are good guys but they think differently and act differently than humans. The author is consistent in her depiction of their exotic society, its weird but logical rules and its ancient history. Along with Fen, I sometimes wished for a textbook on this bizarre and unique civilization.
As you see, I loved many aspects of this book. So why 4 stars instead of 5? I didn’t like two things. First – Fen is a bit risqué. Instead of falling in love with one guy, as is customary in most novels, she falls in lust with almost every guy. There is no sex on the pages or in the story, but she longs for it, indiscriminately, like a bitch in heat. Of course, they are all splendid male specimen, like mythical elves, but I wish she would choose one.
On the other hand, this underwater world has a skewed gender ratio: one female for every four or five males. Maybe the women there are encouraged to take more than one partner? Maybe the author is preparing the ground for the next installment of her story.
My second complaint – the novel ends in a cliffhanger. I dislike such endings. Nothing is resolved by the last page. In fact, it feels like it’s only the first part of the story. Everything is half-done: every relationship and every plotline. I would’ve read the second book of the series anyway: I like this writer. She didn’t have to trick me into continuing.
Otherwise – an adorable romp across an unfamiliar landscape with a charming heroine.
Recommended.
Sarah Wynde has changed her genre, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I’ve been her fan since her first Tassamara novel, A Gift of Ghosts (my review here ). All three Tassamara novels were delightful paranormal romances.
This one is pure fantasy with lascivious overtones. No romance manifested, but the story is super-inventive on the world building side. The writer’s imagination must’ve been on overdrive when she wrote this book.
It starts with the protagonist Fen, a twenty-one-year-old bookstore clerk, deciding how to die. Of course, she doesn’t want to die, but a strange man traps her in a dark alley and offers her a choice: a bottle of pills or a bullet in the brain. She chooses pills as the lesser evil, but then she gets lucky, the story flips around, and Fen is plunged into a fantastic adventure.
Her life before the bookstore hadn’t been easy. Her mother died when she was a teen, she went through several foster homes, lived on the streets, did drugs, but that’s all in her past and only hinted at in the story. When the novel starts, Fen has already got her act together. She works, studies, and generally lives like a responsible if poor adult. But nothing in her existence has prepared her for what happened after her aborted murder.
She meets gorgeous guys, discovers she has magic galore (if only she knew how to use it), learns to communicate telepathically, and gets swept willy-nilly to an underwater city full of marvels, a mix between a Disney World and Atlantis.
“All right,” she said. “Okay. Not elves. Atlantis. That’s cool. I get that. This is Atlantis.”A little humor goes a long way, but Fen also learns that not everything is as smooth and glittering in the not-Atlantis as it seems on the surface. Sparkling lights and gurgling fountains can’t camouflage the political intrigues that explode in her face. Her tattoos talk to her, and too many rules she can’t understand bombard her on all sides. Oh, and she keeps escaping from the bad guys who keep trying to kill her. All in all, a fantasy caper worth reading about.
…
“Of course not,” Luke said … “Lan Tis is at least three thousand miles away. It’s nowhere near here.”
The pacing is uneven, a bit slow in the beginning but it picks up nicely after about 20% mark on my Kindle.
Many of the characters are fascinating, but Fen as the protagonist stands out. Her intimate acquaintance with tragedy and poverty made her tough and smart, but she hasn’t lost her decency or her moral compass. She accepts the ugly with the beautiful, and she fights like a cat for what she believes in. If only the others didn’t keep her in the dark and explained things, she might’ve done even better.
The others all belong to the alien underwater world. Most of them are good guys but they think differently and act differently than humans. The author is consistent in her depiction of their exotic society, its weird but logical rules and its ancient history. Along with Fen, I sometimes wished for a textbook on this bizarre and unique civilization.
As you see, I loved many aspects of this book. So why 4 stars instead of 5? I didn’t like two things. First – Fen is a bit risqué. Instead of falling in love with one guy, as is customary in most novels, she falls in lust with almost every guy. There is no sex on the pages or in the story, but she longs for it, indiscriminately, like a bitch in heat. Of course, they are all splendid male specimen, like mythical elves, but I wish she would choose one.
On the other hand, this underwater world has a skewed gender ratio: one female for every four or five males. Maybe the women there are encouraged to take more than one partner? Maybe the author is preparing the ground for the next installment of her story.
My second complaint – the novel ends in a cliffhanger. I dislike such endings. Nothing is resolved by the last page. In fact, it feels like it’s only the first part of the story. Everything is half-done: every relationship and every plotline. I would’ve read the second book of the series anyway: I like this writer. She didn’t have to trick me into continuing.
Otherwise – an adorable romp across an unfamiliar landscape with a charming heroine.
Recommended.
kts
February 13, 2015Free on Kindle!
UK - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00LMM3BXI...
US - http://www.amazon.com/Lonely-Magic-Sa...
UK - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00LMM3BXI...
US - http://www.amazon.com/Lonely-Magic-Sa...
January 24, 2022
I've had this baby on my TBR since March 2015!!
When I picked this one up for free, it was not a series or it did not state it was one or going to be turned into one. And this version still does not state that it is a series, but I'm here to tell you it is and there's is a cliffhanger.
The setting is Chicago here and now, for the first few chapters then it changes to fantasy world for the rest of the story.
Characters were ok.....she (MFC) was a little on the rough side, more street than anything. Her way of speaking was not my favorite, but there were some sections that she was witty and funny. The other characters were better and I liked them better. maybe a little to proper.
The story was quick and fast. Didn't really know what was going to happen and I don't know what will happen in the second book.
When I picked this one up for free, it was not a series or it did not state it was one or going to be turned into one. And this version still does not state that it is a series, but I'm here to tell you it is and there's is a cliffhanger.
The setting is Chicago here and now, for the first few chapters then it changes to fantasy world for the rest of the story.
Characters were ok.....she (MFC) was a little on the rough side, more street than anything. Her way of speaking was not my favorite, but there were some sections that she was witty and funny. The other characters were better and I liked them better. maybe a little to proper.
The story was quick and fast. Didn't really know what was going to happen and I don't know what will happen in the second book.
July 3, 2017
2.5 stars
Finally it ended! I am relieved. I don't think i have skimmed through any book like this, apart from if there is a really graphical intimate scene which always makes me cringe, though i did it for only one chapter. The first 10 to 20 % or 30 maybe was good. I was enjoying it and wanting to read it but then all the boring and too much lengthy details by sia mara and all and so many of their houses left me keeping an eye on how many percentage did i cover. Not going much in details but this is definitely one of the "nit my cup of tea" kind of books. I like getting information about characters but this one wasn't one of that. Instead of making sense n intriguing it left my mind confused n zoning out. I would have given it max of 2 stars but. 5 for thw last 30% when there really was some action.
Finally it ended! I am relieved. I don't think i have skimmed through any book like this, apart from if there is a really graphical intimate scene which always makes me cringe, though i did it for only one chapter. The first 10 to 20 % or 30 maybe was good. I was enjoying it and wanting to read it but then all the boring and too much lengthy details by sia mara and all and so many of their houses left me keeping an eye on how many percentage did i cover. Not going much in details but this is definitely one of the "nit my cup of tea" kind of books. I like getting information about characters but this one wasn't one of that. Instead of making sense n intriguing it left my mind confused n zoning out. I would have given it max of 2 stars but. 5 for thw last 30% when there really was some action.
March 12, 2016
(This is not the actual cover of my copy, but that cover was... unfortunate. And this is ebook, so I can choose!)
I really liked this! I loved the beginning, then thought it meandered a bit while in the islands, but it definitely got kicked up a notch or two once Fen went travelling. I love stories where people have powers that even they ignore, makes for cool identity reveals. I liked the world, even though I am actually not much for straight-up fantasy. There are lots of cool relationships to build on in future books (Malik, Luken, his sister, the Queen - look, I am already terrible at remembering normal people's names, I am hopeless for fantasy). And the idea of Fen adapting to that new world will be interesting in future books, too. The writing flowed well and there were a couple cool ideas for clearing the exposition stuff, like Elfie, whom I loved.
I really liked this! I loved the beginning, then thought it meandered a bit while in the islands, but it definitely got kicked up a notch or two once Fen went travelling. I love stories where people have powers that even they ignore, makes for cool identity reveals. I liked the world, even though I am actually not much for straight-up fantasy. There are lots of cool relationships to build on in future books (Malik, Luken, his sister, the Queen - look, I am already terrible at remembering normal people's names, I am hopeless for fantasy). And the idea of Fen adapting to that new world will be interesting in future books, too. The writing flowed well and there were a couple cool ideas for clearing the exposition stuff, like Elfie, whom I loved.
July 17, 2014
A Lonely Magic actually came out a few days ago, on July 10th, which is great, because that means that if you’re looking for a fast-paced YA novel with a hearty dose of magic and a plethora of attractive people, you can go out and get it right away! To sum up, Fen, a young bookseller, is accosted in an alley and told to choose her death - pills or pistol. A stranger comes out of the gloom and rescues her, but is shot himself in the act. She tries to call for help, but falls unconscious before she can. When she wakes up, she’s somewhere she’s never been before, and no one around her will give her any answers. Before long, she finds herself in and out of a very unofficial protective custody and discovering secrets about a world she had no idea existed - as well as secrets about her own past.
The briskness with which Wynde handles the setup is definitely commendable; she whisks Fen right through to the main action of the story while still managing to establish what I am fairly certain will be major plot points in the sequels. Fen has a fairly strong narrative voice, though occasionally her interior narration gets repetitive (she begins a surprisingly large number of sentences with ‘God, …’). There are also some really good character notes in there; when her rescuer’s older brother, Kaio, brings her clothes, her embarrassment is very realistic, and later I was particularly enchanted by her focus on her coat. She’s being hustled into a private jet and flown to who knows where, but what really strikes her as impossible about this situation is that this is happening and she doesn’t have a coat in a Chicago winter! Unfortunately, the writing in the first third of the book feels somewhat forced and is more than a little prone to triteness and cliché. And by that it was wince-worthy. Also, the section following her hasty removal from Chicago drags a lot; I think it’s supposed to mimic Fen’s own frustration and confusion, but it’s not a long section and it felt like it went on for ages.
The writing did pick up in the second third, and by the time we hit the politicking in the third section I was fairly well hooked. The world Wynde introduces is satisfyingly detailed on the surface, and while I can’t say for sure, it seems likely that many of those surface details will turn out to be part of some fairly complex worldbuilding in the sequels. I’d lay you odds that Theresa, Fen’s boss at the bookstore, is going to turn out to be significant. While the world of A Lonely Magic is not the most original by any means - it builds off Atlantis in a way I’ve definitely seen done before - it’s very pretty and atmospheric, and it looks like she’s got some definite ideas about where to go with the internal politics. Also, the idea of the skewed population ratio - and Fen’s gut reaction to realizing that she’s trapped in an underwater city in which the men outnumber the women four to one - is a pretty good one, and definitely adds a lot of momentum to the plot.
On the whole, though, it felt more like a first novel than it should’ve, given that Wynde has five novels and a number of short stories under her belt now. I think my biggest problem was consistency of dialogue; the speech patterns of the non-human characters, the Sia Mara, are all over the place, swinging from archaisms to colloquialisms. In part, this is explained by the translation magic. None of the Sia Mara are actually speaking English. However, at least three of the characters have had considerable exposure to contemporary media (ET, and apparently The Vampire Diaries) and their speech patterns should reflect that. Moreover, later on another of the Sia Mara uses extremely colloquial language. This is explained as a class difference; the speaker is a member of a lesser house, while the other characters are all closely connected to the rulers of the city and are therefore expected to speak formally. However, this doesn’t explain the archaic speech patterns, though it does explain the elevated vocabulary.
Which was another thing I had an issue with; the vocabulary wasn’t all that intense, and yet Fen, a bookseller by trade, insists that she doesn’t understand it. She’s a bookseller reading Romeo and Juliet and she struggles with “Suffice it to say that I believe my ability to prioritize our needs exceeds that of the local authorities.”? He could certainly have spoken more simply, but it’s not like he’s spewing technical jargon. And speaking of technical jargon, the entire thing with the data access pattern (a spell allowing Fen to access Sia Mara archives) was ridiculous, stylistically. It doesn’t seem in any way plausible for a culture that values aesthetics so highly as this one seems to to spew technobabble. Blank verse, sure. Haiku, why not? It’d be irritating and contrived, but more in keeping with the worldbuilding. Moreover, while its gradual descent into more accessible speech patterns is adequately explained later on, examples of it show up long before the explanation itself makes sense - as an example, when Fen asks it where she can find some clothes and it suggests she “try the sheet” before descending back into overly-computerized language.
My biggest problem with the book, though, was not the style, the numerous inconsistencies, or the bizarre hottitude of every single character in the book, but the utterly implausible failure of any of the characters to provide any sort of explanation at all. They’re not Sidhe, they have no excuse for failing to provide so much as a destination to Fen! While they do need to keep some secrets, it would’ve been a lot more plausible and a lot less manipulative and controlling if any of the characters had provided any sort of explanation at all, glossed and transformed or no, before they were absolutely forced to do so by circumstances. There’s really no reason they couldn’t have done, and that they didn’t really rubbed me the wrong way.
In the end, I did enjoy the book, but the first third of it was irritating and as a fifth novel it was pretty inexcusably unpolished. While I’m intrigued by the ending, I don’t think I’m intrigued enough to bother with the sequel. Also, the title makes absolutely no sense whatsoever,
tl;dr - fast-paced, atmospheric, with a clear character voice, but full of inconsistencies and stylistically frustrating. If you’re looking to fill a couple of hours, this book will do. Warning for manipulative behavior.
The briskness with which Wynde handles the setup is definitely commendable; she whisks Fen right through to the main action of the story while still managing to establish what I am fairly certain will be major plot points in the sequels. Fen has a fairly strong narrative voice, though occasionally her interior narration gets repetitive (she begins a surprisingly large number of sentences with ‘God, …’). There are also some really good character notes in there; when her rescuer’s older brother, Kaio, brings her clothes, her embarrassment is very realistic, and later I was particularly enchanted by her focus on her coat. She’s being hustled into a private jet and flown to who knows where, but what really strikes her as impossible about this situation is that this is happening and she doesn’t have a coat in a Chicago winter! Unfortunately, the writing in the first third of the book feels somewhat forced and is more than a little prone to triteness and cliché. And by that it was wince-worthy. Also, the section following her hasty removal from Chicago drags a lot; I think it’s supposed to mimic Fen’s own frustration and confusion, but it’s not a long section and it felt like it went on for ages.
The writing did pick up in the second third, and by the time we hit the politicking in the third section I was fairly well hooked. The world Wynde introduces is satisfyingly detailed on the surface, and while I can’t say for sure, it seems likely that many of those surface details will turn out to be part of some fairly complex worldbuilding in the sequels. I’d lay you odds that Theresa, Fen’s boss at the bookstore, is going to turn out to be significant. While the world of A Lonely Magic is not the most original by any means - it builds off Atlantis in a way I’ve definitely seen done before - it’s very pretty and atmospheric, and it looks like she’s got some definite ideas about where to go with the internal politics. Also, the idea of the skewed population ratio - and Fen’s gut reaction to realizing that she’s trapped in an underwater city in which the men outnumber the women four to one - is a pretty good one, and definitely adds a lot of momentum to the plot.
On the whole, though, it felt more like a first novel than it should’ve, given that Wynde has five novels and a number of short stories under her belt now. I think my biggest problem was consistency of dialogue; the speech patterns of the non-human characters, the Sia Mara, are all over the place, swinging from archaisms to colloquialisms. In part, this is explained by the translation magic. None of the Sia Mara are actually speaking English. However, at least three of the characters have had considerable exposure to contemporary media (ET, and apparently The Vampire Diaries) and their speech patterns should reflect that. Moreover, later on another of the Sia Mara uses extremely colloquial language. This is explained as a class difference; the speaker is a member of a lesser house, while the other characters are all closely connected to the rulers of the city and are therefore expected to speak formally. However, this doesn’t explain the archaic speech patterns, though it does explain the elevated vocabulary.
Which was another thing I had an issue with; the vocabulary wasn’t all that intense, and yet Fen, a bookseller by trade, insists that she doesn’t understand it. She’s a bookseller reading Romeo and Juliet and she struggles with “Suffice it to say that I believe my ability to prioritize our needs exceeds that of the local authorities.”? He could certainly have spoken more simply, but it’s not like he’s spewing technical jargon. And speaking of technical jargon, the entire thing with the data access pattern (a spell allowing Fen to access Sia Mara archives) was ridiculous, stylistically. It doesn’t seem in any way plausible for a culture that values aesthetics so highly as this one seems to to spew technobabble. Blank verse, sure. Haiku, why not? It’d be irritating and contrived, but more in keeping with the worldbuilding. Moreover, while its gradual descent into more accessible speech patterns is adequately explained later on, examples of it show up long before the explanation itself makes sense - as an example, when Fen asks it where she can find some clothes and it suggests she “try the sheet” before descending back into overly-computerized language.
My biggest problem with the book, though, was not the style, the numerous inconsistencies, or the bizarre hottitude of every single character in the book, but the utterly implausible failure of any of the characters to provide any sort of explanation at all. They’re not Sidhe, they have no excuse for failing to provide so much as a destination to Fen! While they do need to keep some secrets, it would’ve been a lot more plausible and a lot less manipulative and controlling if any of the characters had provided any sort of explanation at all, glossed and transformed or no, before they were absolutely forced to do so by circumstances. There’s really no reason they couldn’t have done, and that they didn’t really rubbed me the wrong way.
In the end, I did enjoy the book, but the first third of it was irritating and as a fifth novel it was pretty inexcusably unpolished. While I’m intrigued by the ending, I don’t think I’m intrigued enough to bother with the sequel. Also, the title makes absolutely no sense whatsoever,
tl;dr - fast-paced, atmospheric, with a clear character voice, but full of inconsistencies and stylistically frustrating. If you’re looking to fill a couple of hours, this book will do. Warning for manipulative behavior.
March 13, 2020
An interesting beginning to a series. Very cool world building.
September 7, 2016
I would firstly like to thank the author and netgallery for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. The review is as follows
This book was an unexpected surprise, mainly because I wasn't really sure what to expect as I'd requested it from netgallery so long ago and have only now got round to reading it I had forgotten the synopsis or why I'd requested it. It was a great story with a lot of promise, interesting characters and a huge amount of possible directions of where it could go with the rest of the book's in the series, and I am assuming it's going to be a series as otherwise I would be disappointed with the ending.
The main character is Fen, a girl who at the start of the book is facing a choice, death by what would appear to be suicide or being shot in the head. After being saved from this rather odd choice by a mysterious stranger she gets dragged away to an exotic island for almost a witness protection kind of ordeal by her saviour and his family. I can't write much else for fears I'd be going into 'spoiler territory' but I can tell you that I loved Fen as a character for being highly sarcastic and adventurous and open to the new possibilities she faces.
There are a lot of secondary characters in this book but I would like to reserve judgement as I am looking forward to reading more about them in the rest of the series.
The storyline was original and unexpected, what I thought was going to be one thing it turned into something completely different. And the pacing was good especially the ending where we are left uncertain of what is going to happen next to our characters.
3.5 stars,an unexpected and enjoyable read.
This book was an unexpected surprise, mainly because I wasn't really sure what to expect as I'd requested it from netgallery so long ago and have only now got round to reading it I had forgotten the synopsis or why I'd requested it. It was a great story with a lot of promise, interesting characters and a huge amount of possible directions of where it could go with the rest of the book's in the series, and I am assuming it's going to be a series as otherwise I would be disappointed with the ending.
The main character is Fen, a girl who at the start of the book is facing a choice, death by what would appear to be suicide or being shot in the head. After being saved from this rather odd choice by a mysterious stranger she gets dragged away to an exotic island for almost a witness protection kind of ordeal by her saviour and his family. I can't write much else for fears I'd be going into 'spoiler territory' but I can tell you that I loved Fen as a character for being highly sarcastic and adventurous and open to the new possibilities she faces.
There are a lot of secondary characters in this book but I would like to reserve judgement as I am looking forward to reading more about them in the rest of the series.
The storyline was original and unexpected, what I thought was going to be one thing it turned into something completely different. And the pacing was good especially the ending where we are left uncertain of what is going to happen next to our characters.
3.5 stars,an unexpected and enjoyable read.
August 20, 2014
A fun and engaging book by a unique author, A Lonely Magic is (no surprise) a delightful read. It's rare these days that I'll stay up into the night and read obsessively, but I did for this one.
A Lonely Magic tells Fen's story. She is a street smart orphan with a past she thinks she knows all about. She's wrong. Perhaps dead wrong. She's a different character from Wynde's other heroines, and it shows a lot of strength that the author can switch to a new voice so readily.
Fen is abrasive and independent, a former street kid who's pulled herself up by her bootstraps. She's tough, but fragile, is independent, but makes mistakes. She is in all the best ways a strong female character, which is a real treasure in today's literary world.
The other characters are just as refreshing and engaging. Each has his or her own life to them, they all act according to their motives, and wow are there some big motives in this book. But above all, they each feel real. They have flaws that feel like real flaws, be it overconfidence, panic attacks, or even inconvenient senses of honor.
But beyond the characters, the world of the Sia Mara is a beautiful tapestry to run around in. It's a place full of magic, though the magic fades, and stuffed with intrigues as old as humanity itself, populated by a people that might look like us, but most definitely aren't. I loved the city and its' people.
And the end... no spoilers here, but at the end I realized I couldn't wait for the sequel.
Excellent book. Get a copy and get stuck in it.
A Lonely Magic tells Fen's story. She is a street smart orphan with a past she thinks she knows all about. She's wrong. Perhaps dead wrong. She's a different character from Wynde's other heroines, and it shows a lot of strength that the author can switch to a new voice so readily.
Fen is abrasive and independent, a former street kid who's pulled herself up by her bootstraps. She's tough, but fragile, is independent, but makes mistakes. She is in all the best ways a strong female character, which is a real treasure in today's literary world.
The other characters are just as refreshing and engaging. Each has his or her own life to them, they all act according to their motives, and wow are there some big motives in this book. But above all, they each feel real. They have flaws that feel like real flaws, be it overconfidence, panic attacks, or even inconvenient senses of honor.
But beyond the characters, the world of the Sia Mara is a beautiful tapestry to run around in. It's a place full of magic, though the magic fades, and stuffed with intrigues as old as humanity itself, populated by a people that might look like us, but most definitely aren't. I loved the city and its' people.
And the end... no spoilers here, but at the end I realized I couldn't wait for the sequel.
Excellent book. Get a copy and get stuck in it.
July 3, 2014
Another excellent book by Sarah Wynde! A Lonely Magic is quite different from her Tassamara series, but is just as good (with the potential to become even better as this new series progresses).
Like Wynde's previous novels, A Lonely Magic is carried by a strong heroine, in this case a 21-year-old who spent much of her late teens on the street but is now working toward pulling her life together. Enter two mysterious men, who remind me delightfully of the love interests in Cassandra Clare's The Infernal Devices series, then add in some not-quite-as-bad-as-you-think bad guys, and you have the recipe for a page-turner.
Next, expand your imagination with a unique fantasy world that's as intricate as it is enticing. There are functional tattoos, sunken cities, and sentient magic. This is where A Lonely Magic really soars, and why I think the series could become even better than Tassamara as the world-building continues to expand in later books.
A Lonely Magic is clearly part of a series, so it doesn't wrap up all that many threads in this first volume. On the other hand, book one doesn't end on a cliffhanger either, and while I would have loved to read the second book right away, I didn't get that pain my stomach that comes when a first book in the series leaves me in agony.
If you're looking for a thoughtful and gripping fantasy, A Lonely Magic is it! I got to read a pre-release copy, but it will show up on Amazon next week, I believe.
Like Wynde's previous novels, A Lonely Magic is carried by a strong heroine, in this case a 21-year-old who spent much of her late teens on the street but is now working toward pulling her life together. Enter two mysterious men, who remind me delightfully of the love interests in Cassandra Clare's The Infernal Devices series, then add in some not-quite-as-bad-as-you-think bad guys, and you have the recipe for a page-turner.
Next, expand your imagination with a unique fantasy world that's as intricate as it is enticing. There are functional tattoos, sunken cities, and sentient magic. This is where A Lonely Magic really soars, and why I think the series could become even better than Tassamara as the world-building continues to expand in later books.
A Lonely Magic is clearly part of a series, so it doesn't wrap up all that many threads in this first volume. On the other hand, book one doesn't end on a cliffhanger either, and while I would have loved to read the second book right away, I didn't get that pain my stomach that comes when a first book in the series leaves me in agony.
If you're looking for a thoughtful and gripping fantasy, A Lonely Magic is it! I got to read a pre-release copy, but it will show up on Amazon next week, I believe.
July 7, 2014
After reading the Tassamara books by Sarah Wynde, I was very excited to read her newest novel A Lonely Magic. I was not disappointed! A Lonely magic is a wonderful story about finding yourself in the most exotic of ways. Fen finds herself in the most terrifying and illogical of situations when she walks out of work right into a hitman determined to take her life. Fen's life has not been easy and now that she is actually getting her act together this happens! This is just the beginning of a circular tale of loss, love, and life! A story of finding yourself, even though you may not have realized you were looking. The characters are loveable, mysterious, and some even quite scandalous. This story has more twists and turns than the tilt-a-whirl. I had a rough time putting it down, I couldn't wait to find out what was going to happen next. If your looking for a fantastic story that will keep you on the edge of your seat, with love, loss, and best of all magic, this is the book for you. Thank you Sarah Wynde for yet another story that made me want to smile, and sometimes even to cry! I sincerely hope there will be a sequel to this story. Also, thank you Sarah, for sending me this book at no cost!
August 2, 2014
Prepare to be amazed: A world without any books? A place where Google is unheard of? I should mention that Sarah Wynde's new fantasy A Lonely Magic is also set in a secret location deep under the ocean, from where 'watchers' visit the surface to check out human progress.
It is really when we take the plunge to the mysterious underwater world that we see Sarah's creative imagination notch up a gear, with a whole civilisation to get your head around. Rather than take the easy option and slip into complete fantasy, I liked the way Sarah has gone to the trouble of providing the 'magic' of the title with an almost plausible quasi-scientific explanation.
Well paced and easy to read, with a great cast of characters, I'm sure we'll hear more of in the future. Recommended!
It is really when we take the plunge to the mysterious underwater world that we see Sarah's creative imagination notch up a gear, with a whole civilisation to get your head around. Rather than take the easy option and slip into complete fantasy, I liked the way Sarah has gone to the trouble of providing the 'magic' of the title with an almost plausible quasi-scientific explanation.
Well paced and easy to read, with a great cast of characters, I'm sure we'll hear more of in the future. Recommended!
July 29, 2014
This is the first non ghost story book of Sarahs that I have read. Her stories are all really well crafted and edited. The story of a somewhat prickly young woman thrust into a difficult and evolving situation. This is the first book of what is hopefully a multi book series - perhaps a trilogy. While the book is complete in itself, I can't see how she could just leave it without telling us more of the woman's story.
The story drew me in and kept me reading the whole book in just a couple of sessions. I didn't want to put it down! Highly recommended.
The story drew me in and kept me reading the whole book in just a couple of sessions. I didn't want to put it down! Highly recommended.
July 11, 2014
The creativity in this novel is top notch. A fantasy place set apart from the “real world” that I feel was done so well that it actually IS real and I could go visit. I’ve felt this way about Middle Earth for years, and now I can add the land created below the ocean to the list.
A well thought out plot that took me on loops and bends. The ending, woah! What a frown I had when the final twist was put in the plot and the novel ended. I am already yearning for the next book to come out!!!
A well thought out plot that took me on loops and bends. The ending, woah! What a frown I had when the final twist was put in the plot and the novel ended. I am already yearning for the next book to come out!!!
July 26, 2014
After devouring each Tassamara book as it was released, I was less than sure about a departure from muggy central Florida. But Sarah Wynde has built a world, a set of realities that is fascinating, engrossing and credible. Meanwhile, the protagonist, Fen, is full of street smarts, but, here, in the book, she learns how to trust and maybe, how to love. Her interior monologue is hysterical, on point and bodacious. Read this one!
August 26, 2015
What a surprise! I wasn't too sure I was going to enjoy this young adult fantasy (not my type of genre) but it jumped right into the action. I enjoyed the fantasy aspect of this story much more than I expected to. Fen is a great character with magical abilities in a strange new world. That sums it all right up. It's not masterly crafted, but it was such a fun experience that I felt lighter when it was over. I'll be looking for the second book in the series!
August 19, 2014
Loved the book. Sarah Wynde has such a beautiful way of telling a story. Fen is an orphan and working in a bookstore when a man tries to kill her. Out of nowhere, a boy appears to save her. Who is he and why is someone trying to kill her? The story becomes magical as it continues. Great story.
April 13, 2015
I really enjoyed this book. Fen is a great character and a strong women, which I always like. The secret underwater world is amazing and I wish I could go. The magic on this world is different that what you would normally find in books. Great read. It would be 5 star but I wasn't thrilled with where the book ended. But is definitely a cliff hanger that will have me buying the next book. :)
April 9, 2020
I really enjoyed reading this book. It was different from anything that I have read. It involves magic, mysterious places, unusual people, a little humor, a lot of courage and loyalty to friends and family. I highly recommend it.
May 10, 2022
GREAT new series! Can't wait for book two! Amazing interesting, entertaining, imaginative, page-turner, work of fiction!!
Read it, just for fun and enjoy some just plain fun reading!!
AMAZING author!
Read it, just for fun and enjoy some just plain fun reading!!
AMAZING author!
August 5, 2015
Excellent Story
So many different themes cleverly woven into a very fascinating story, could not put this book down.
Am anxiously awaiting to read more of this exciting saga .
Thank you, Ms. Wynde
So many different themes cleverly woven into a very fascinating story, could not put this book down.
Am anxiously awaiting to read more of this exciting saga .
Thank you, Ms. Wynde
July 29, 2014
This book was a great book. I really like this author. I have read all of her books so far. If you like books with magic this one is for you. I recommend this one..
January 9, 2016
Is a great book to read forever and ever
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September 3, 2022I’ve previously enjoyed Cici and the Curator by this author, so I was curious to see what she’d do with an urban fantasy.
This was a quick and easy read. Fen is a pretty sympathetic character. The plot was straightforward, with an interesting dollop of politics thrown in which no doubt will be explored in the sequel. The other characters’ concerns seemed to focus predominantly on Fen (rather than the rest of their lives), which is something I also tend to associate with YA writing.
Romantic elements weren’t prominent in the plot, which made the scattered “Wow, this guy is hot!” thoughts feel a bit irrelevant and distracting. Though again, this feels in keeping with a YA readership.
Overall, an engaging YA urban fantasy.
This was a quick and easy read. Fen is a pretty sympathetic character. The plot was straightforward, with an interesting dollop of politics thrown in which no doubt will be explored in the sequel. The other characters’ concerns seemed to focus predominantly on Fen (rather than the rest of their lives), which is something I also tend to associate with YA writing.
Romantic elements weren’t prominent in the plot, which made the scattered “Wow, this guy is hot!” thoughts feel a bit irrelevant and distracting. Though again, this feels in keeping with a YA readership.
Overall, an engaging YA urban fantasy.
September 11, 2019
Another cracker of a book in Sarah's unique & magical writing style! Loved her Tassamara series & this book doesn't disappoint as we're taken into another supernatural realm - with a distinct difference! Great female MC, Fen, who finds herself a long way from home after surviving an attack by a mystery assailant who shot someone trying to come to her aid! Recommend you read this book & follow Fen's unusual, other-worldly adventure as she finds out where & who she really is, & discovers magical powers, people & lands she never dreamt existed! Excellent descriptive read & hope there's another book to come - need to know what happens to Fen, Luke, Kaio & Malik.
April 12, 2023
Fen is a 21 year old who has had a very, very rough life and has finally found a little corner of the world where she is content, so, of course, somebody had to go and try to kill her! From this point forward, her life is changed in ways she couldn't even imagine, and she's not quite sure how to feel about that.
The first thing I have to mention is the world building, which was just phenomenal! The characters were likeable and easy to connect with, and the story itself was fresh and unique.
I enjoyed this book very much and look forward to reading the next book in the series.
5/5 stars.
The first thing I have to mention is the world building, which was just phenomenal! The characters were likeable and easy to connect with, and the story itself was fresh and unique.
I enjoyed this book very much and look forward to reading the next book in the series.
5/5 stars.
September 11, 2019
Another cracker of a book in Sarah's unique & magical writing style! Loved her Tassamara series & this book doesn't disappoint as we're taken into another supernatural realm - with a distinct difference! Great female MC, Fen, who finds herself a long way from home after surviving an attack by a mystery assailant who shot someone trying to come to her aid! Recommend you read this book & follow Fen's unusual, other-worldly adventure as she finds out where & who she really is, & discovers magical powers, people & lands she never dreamt existed! Excellent descriptive read & hope there's another book to come - need to know what happens to Fen, Luke, Kaio & Malik.
June 2, 2020
A play off of an Atlantis them and also sort of little mermaid only just under the sea without the tails.
Fen is given a choice of pills or gun for her death one night outside the bookstore where she works. She is saved by Lucas and Kaio. She is taken to a Caribbean island to keep her safe. While there events lead to her discovering a big secret the brothers share. By the end secrets about Fen are also revealed.
This was well written and an interesting story. I would be interested to see what comes next.
Fen is given a choice of pills or gun for her death one night outside the bookstore where she works. She is saved by Lucas and Kaio. She is taken to a Caribbean island to keep her safe. While there events lead to her discovering a big secret the brothers share. By the end secrets about Fen are also revealed.
This was well written and an interesting story. I would be interested to see what comes next.
December 29, 2018
Bought this one as a Kindle. It turns out I don't just like Sarah's Tassamara series, but really enjoy *everything* this author writes. This one is the first book of a very engaging...what I'd classify as a YA fantasy series (but rated R for language). As far as I can tell, book 2 isn't published yet.
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