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Heart of Crystal
Ever since her family was kidnapped, Azara, a woman of fire mage stock, has survived with a warrior's will and the hope of one day finding them. Whispers of their fate have finally led her to the Empire, where her brother and sister are now prized possessions of His Celestial Majesty's court. Unable to immediately negotiate their freedom, Azara reluctantly agrees to the Emperor's accompany his devoted magus Jin across their rival's border in search of other fire mages while her siblings remain in the Emperor's hands.
Posing as married tea merchants, Azara and Jin's masquerade begins. For a fierce young woman devoted to a heartening cause, and a man beholden to his duties, it's an uneasy alliance—but one that quickly turns passionate.
It's also a dangerous proposition, for although the attraction between Jin and Azara is real, both the Emperor and Azara have ulterior motives. It's only when Azara explores her unique powers and puts her faith in Jin that their fight for family—and for their very destiny—can succeed.
This book is approximately 96,000 words
Posing as married tea merchants, Azara and Jin's masquerade begins. For a fierce young woman devoted to a heartening cause, and a man beholden to his duties, it's an uneasy alliance—but one that quickly turns passionate.
It's also a dangerous proposition, for although the attraction between Jin and Azara is real, both the Emperor and Azara have ulterior motives. It's only when Azara explores her unique powers and puts her faith in Jin that their fight for family—and for their very destiny—can succeed.
This book is approximately 96,000 words
318 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2017
7 people are currently reading
71 people want to read
About the author
Lauren D.M. Smith
3 books89 followersI'm a huge geek, book fiend, and someone who refuses to grow up (Popcorn for dinner is a perfectly legitimate decision. As is sliding down banisters). I have a bad case of wanderlust that has taken me all over the world, I've lived in three countries now and visited many more. This has also led me to have a rather...eclectic series of jobs up until now.
I have finally settled down in a small village just outside of my hometown with my long-suffering husband and our daughter. He puts up with my bouts of insanity and fan-girling and he even tolerates me forcing him to cosplay.
Right now I work in Brockville in marketing/events and spend most of my free time reading, writing, binge-watching shows, or swearing up a storm while playing video games.
I have finally settled down in a small village just outside of my hometown with my long-suffering husband and our daughter. He puts up with my bouts of insanity and fan-girling and he even tolerates me forcing him to cosplay.
Right now I work in Brockville in marketing/events and spend most of my free time reading, writing, binge-watching shows, or swearing up a storm while playing video games.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 18, 2017
3.5 stars
*An advanced copy of this book was given by the publisher via Netgalley for an honest review.*
I stumbled upon this book a few days ago and the description seemed interesting so I decided to give it a shot. And what a surprisingly pleasant read it was!
In this book we're presented with Azara's journey and adventures while she searches for her family. Her parents and her siblings were captured and turned into slaves when Azara was fourteen because they are fire mages and everyone wants to use them. So she spends a lot of years looking for them and she finally finds her brother and sister, who are owned by the Emperor. The Emperor is willing to help her find her parents, he even sends his right hand man, Chief Magus Jin, to help her while she looks for them in enemy territory.
At first Jin and Azara don't trust each other but they have to pretend to be married tea merchants so it was nice to see how they grew closer.
I kind of liked that Jin was the inexperienced one in their relationship, unlike almost all the other books where usually the woman in the innocent virgin.
The romance was slow and sweet, a good start for the beginning of their love story.
Beside the romantic aspect, the story was good, full of action. There's kind of a lot of violence, the fighting scenes well done. I wouldn't recommend this to readers under 18 years old due to the sexual details.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read, if a little slow at times.
*An advanced copy of this book was given by the publisher via Netgalley for an honest review.*
I stumbled upon this book a few days ago and the description seemed interesting so I decided to give it a shot. And what a surprisingly pleasant read it was!
In this book we're presented with Azara's journey and adventures while she searches for her family. Her parents and her siblings were captured and turned into slaves when Azara was fourteen because they are fire mages and everyone wants to use them. So she spends a lot of years looking for them and she finally finds her brother and sister, who are owned by the Emperor. The Emperor is willing to help her find her parents, he even sends his right hand man, Chief Magus Jin, to help her while she looks for them in enemy territory.
At first Jin and Azara don't trust each other but they have to pretend to be married tea merchants so it was nice to see how they grew closer.
I kind of liked that Jin was the inexperienced one in their relationship, unlike almost all the other books where usually the woman in the innocent virgin.
The romance was slow and sweet, a good start for the beginning of their love story.
Beside the romantic aspect, the story was good, full of action. There's kind of a lot of violence, the fighting scenes well done. I wouldn't recommend this to readers under 18 years old due to the sexual details.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read, if a little slow at times.
September 21, 2017
Overall 3.5 stars.
This book has one of my favorite things - a strong, smart, and capable heroine!
Azara is so refreshing! She is a kind of elemental so to speak, as are the rest of her family, in that she is a fire mage. Sadly though in this culture fire mages are slaves, and Azara's family was torn apart and sold throughout the land. Thankfully she escaped that fate, but has since spent her entire life searching for her family and saving as many fire mages as she could.
Azara's next mission though requires she team up with Jin, his Celestial Majesty's chief mage. This may is smart, able to lead or follow, strategic, and fair. He thinks through situations clearly and is just so kind!
I really enjoyed the relationships between all the characters in this book! They seemed genuine, well thought through, and positive.
My only complaint about the book is the setting. it was really difficult to get a grasp on because most of the locals had generic settings with distinct cultures, but one nation seemed to take its inspiration from China. It was the only country that seemed familiar, and since the story starts there I expected all the countries to feel familiar. So when they didn't I was a bit confused.
I enjoyed the book, and I will definitely try other works by this author.
Thanks to Netgally and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book has one of my favorite things - a strong, smart, and capable heroine!
Azara is so refreshing! She is a kind of elemental so to speak, as are the rest of her family, in that she is a fire mage. Sadly though in this culture fire mages are slaves, and Azara's family was torn apart and sold throughout the land. Thankfully she escaped that fate, but has since spent her entire life searching for her family and saving as many fire mages as she could.
Azara's next mission though requires she team up with Jin, his Celestial Majesty's chief mage. This may is smart, able to lead or follow, strategic, and fair. He thinks through situations clearly and is just so kind!
I really enjoyed the relationships between all the characters in this book! They seemed genuine, well thought through, and positive.
My only complaint about the book is the setting. it was really difficult to get a grasp on because most of the locals had generic settings with distinct cultures, but one nation seemed to take its inspiration from China. It was the only country that seemed familiar, and since the story starts there I expected all the countries to feel familiar. So when they didn't I was a bit confused.
I enjoyed the book, and I will definitely try other works by this author.
Thanks to Netgally and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
January 27, 2022
A fun action story with another strong and capable heroine, this time in a more complex alternate world with steampunk elements and magic. I particularly enjoyed the evolution of the main relationship from antagonistic to true partners - I think the author took the time needed to show how their understanding of each other grew through experience learning to appreciate each other's strengths. I would definitely read another story in the same universe.
January 4, 2018
Ok read. A nice turnabout of the f/m roles (f confident and experienced, m shy and virginal).
However...
The romance is a little unbelievable.
The world building is a little clunky.
The sex scenes are dreadful (honeyhole?!? Pleasure bead?! Please no) and honestly unnecessary as they detract from pace of the story.
Disappointed this falls short of Lauren's first book.
However...
The romance is a little unbelievable.
The world building is a little clunky.
The sex scenes are dreadful (honeyhole?!? Pleasure bead?! Please no) and honestly unnecessary as they detract from pace of the story.
Disappointed this falls short of Lauren's first book.
September 8, 2017
3.5
Nice paranormal romance.
This review is based on the ARC provided by the author and/or the publisher via NetGalley in exchanger for my honest opinion.
Nice paranormal romance.
This review is based on the ARC provided by the author and/or the publisher via NetGalley in exchanger for my honest opinion.
January 3, 2019
Ever since her family was kidnapped, Azara, a woman of fire mage stock, has survived with a warrior’s will and the hope of one day finding them. Whispers of their fate have finally led her to the Empire, where her brother and sister are now prized possessions of His Celestial Majesty’s court. Unable to immediately negotiate their freedom, Azara reluctantly agrees to the Emperor’s suggestion: accompany his devoted magus Jin across their rival’s border in search of other fire mages while her siblings remain in the Emperor’s hands. Posing as married tea merchants, Azara and Jin’s masquerade begins. For a fierce young woman devoted to a heartening cause, and a man beholden to his duties, it’s an uneasy alliance—but one that quickly turns passionate.
This was a decent story with a strong female lead. I had some issues with it but overall not a bad read.
**I voluntarily read and reviewed this book
This was a decent story with a strong female lead. I had some issues with it but overall not a bad read.
**I voluntarily read and reviewed this book
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews