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Magick #2
Midsummer Magick
Tudor England, 1559
The Virgin Queen's Court whispers about shy scholar Lady Linnet Norwood, who spent a year and a day trapped in the Faerie realm and returned as a ruined woman. Linnet, however, is not yet free of magick. Otherworldly forces plot to use her to incite a bloody uprising that will twist the fates of mortal and Faerie realms alike.
Exiled angel Zamiel wavers on the edge of accepting an offer from his fallen father to become Prince of Hell. Lucifer knows Lady Linnet's significance, and urges his son to pursue and protect her for sinister ends.
As Linnet flees those who would make her a pawn, Zamiel follows, tempting her trust and her passion. But the more he employs his killing rage on her behalf, the more he dreams of laying it aside in favor of peace.
If the two can find faith together, they might sunder the unholy alliance that threatens the dawn of the Golden Age of England.
Book two of The Magick Trilogy.
The Virgin Queen's Court whispers about shy scholar Lady Linnet Norwood, who spent a year and a day trapped in the Faerie realm and returned as a ruined woman. Linnet, however, is not yet free of magick. Otherworldly forces plot to use her to incite a bloody uprising that will twist the fates of mortal and Faerie realms alike.
Exiled angel Zamiel wavers on the edge of accepting an offer from his fallen father to become Prince of Hell. Lucifer knows Lady Linnet's significance, and urges his son to pursue and protect her for sinister ends.
As Linnet flees those who would make her a pawn, Zamiel follows, tempting her trust and her passion. But the more he employs his killing rage on her behalf, the more he dreams of laying it aside in favor of peace.
If the two can find faith together, they might sunder the unholy alliance that threatens the dawn of the Golden Age of England.
Book two of The Magick Trilogy.
400 pages, Paperback
First published August 12, 2013
1 person is currently reading
98 people want to read
About the author
Laura Navarre
23 books1,146 followersAmazon category bestselling author Laura Navarre (she/her) whisks you away from your day-to-day with spicy-shifty wild & witchy why-choose romance starring hot bi heroes and the women who love them.
A long time ago in a galaxy far away, Laura wrote dark fantasy romance for Harlequin, while her sinister twin Nikki Navarre wrote sexy spy romance. Now, with eighteen sexy stories released worldwide, this Washington, DC-based nomad writes dark witch adult academy why choose romance featuring bi heroes, badass heroines, and enough heat to set your Academy uniform on fire!
Laura is a cat lover, globetrotter, wine addict, PhD candidate, and president of Ascendant Press. When she isn’t conjuring witchy worlds, she’s a diplomat with a professional background in weapons of mass destruction and an MFA in writing popular fiction. She’s a Golden Heart finalist, two-time winner of the Golden Pen, winner of the Pacific Northwest Writers Association romance award, 2023 New England Readers Choice award winner, 2023 winner of the Holt Medallion for Best Virginia Author, 2023 Fantasy, Futuristic & Paranormal RWA PRISM dark paranormal romance finalst, and other awards.
She’s also relentlessly obsessive, alarmingly efficient, and a recovering perfectionist. She’s deeply suspicious of the Oxford comma, but she’s never met an em dash she doesn’t love.
Do you love possessive alphas, dragon riders, dragon shifters, British bullies, teacher-student forbidden love, age gap angst, and dark witch adult academy why choose romance? Follow Laura for free in the Witching World, her reader community on Ream, and score monthly free reads here! https://reamstories.com/witchingworld
Stalk Laura across the witching world like the queen killer stalks Zara at the Icarus Academy! Her adventures are trackable by witches, warlocks, wolf shifters, and mere mortals alike at:
https://reamstories.com/witchingworld
http://www.LauraNavarreSciFi.com
https://www.facebook.com/LauraNavarre...
https://www.tiktok.com/@LauraNavarreA...
https://amzn.to/3FrX5t7
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/laura...
http://www.goodreads.com/LauraNavarre
A long time ago in a galaxy far away, Laura wrote dark fantasy romance for Harlequin, while her sinister twin Nikki Navarre wrote sexy spy romance. Now, with eighteen sexy stories released worldwide, this Washington, DC-based nomad writes dark witch adult academy why choose romance featuring bi heroes, badass heroines, and enough heat to set your Academy uniform on fire!
Laura is a cat lover, globetrotter, wine addict, PhD candidate, and president of Ascendant Press. When she isn’t conjuring witchy worlds, she’s a diplomat with a professional background in weapons of mass destruction and an MFA in writing popular fiction. She’s a Golden Heart finalist, two-time winner of the Golden Pen, winner of the Pacific Northwest Writers Association romance award, 2023 New England Readers Choice award winner, 2023 winner of the Holt Medallion for Best Virginia Author, 2023 Fantasy, Futuristic & Paranormal RWA PRISM dark paranormal romance finalst, and other awards.
She’s also relentlessly obsessive, alarmingly efficient, and a recovering perfectionist. She’s deeply suspicious of the Oxford comma, but she’s never met an em dash she doesn’t love.
Do you love possessive alphas, dragon riders, dragon shifters, British bullies, teacher-student forbidden love, age gap angst, and dark witch adult academy why choose romance? Follow Laura for free in the Witching World, her reader community on Ream, and score monthly free reads here! https://reamstories.com/witchingworld
Stalk Laura across the witching world like the queen killer stalks Zara at the Icarus Academy! Her adventures are trackable by witches, warlocks, wolf shifters, and mere mortals alike at:
https://reamstories.com/witchingworld
http://www.LauraNavarreSciFi.com
https://www.facebook.com/LauraNavarre...
https://www.tiktok.com/@LauraNavarreA...
https://amzn.to/3FrX5t7
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/laura...
http://www.goodreads.com/LauraNavarre
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 22, 2013
Disclosure: I received the ARC through Netgalley. (Thank you to Laura Navarre and to Carina Press for accepting my request.) Yes, this is an honest review.
* * *
Linnet Norwood, whom we met in Magick by Moonrise , her purpose to Rhiannon fulfilled, has left the Summer Lands with no clear memory of her stay there. Bastard, mad -- these are the words whispered about Linnet who struggles to fill in the gaps in her memory. Now as the Countess of Glencross, and the last of her line, Linnet has traveled to London, in the guise of seeking a husband for Glencross, to find clues about her mother and, perhaps, her true lineage.
But someone wants Linnet dead -- and Zamiel stepped in to rescue her, setting into motion a series of events that will lead to his salvation or downfall.
For Zamiel isn't mortal and not just an ordinary angel -- but the Angel of Death, one touch and your soul is forfeit to either heaven or hell. And Zamiel stands apart as the son of Lucifer, the first fallen angel.
As the Severity of God, Zamiel is not supposed to save lives but to take it -- but something about Linnet and the fire and passion he senses in her stops him from stepping aside and letting the Almighty do His will. As punishment for his insubordination, he is exiled from heaven and trapped in his mortal body.
Limbo. The characters in Navarre's story are all standing on precarious ground: Linnet must play her role as noblewoman and loyal subject if she is to protect her heritage. One misstep could mean the loss of Glencross and her life. She skirts about the fleeting images from her memory of her time inthe Summer Lands or else she will be imprisoned again at Glencross Abbey.
Even the position of Elizabeth I isn't secure: she is constantly on-guard against those who threaten her reign as Queen of England. She is besieged from within her realm and from outside.
When Linnet and Zamiel discover that the key to recovering her memory is a pagan ritual, both must decide if it is worth the sacrifice.
The choice is a painful one for Linnet to make and equally difficult for Zamiel. He must decide between his salvation or Linnet's -- for he cannot have both. To return to his heavenly home, he must repent -- but, if he succumbs to his mortal cravings, he will fall.
Navarre crafts a suffocating, claustrophobic world -- there are eyes and ears everywhere: on earth, in Heaven and in the world of the Faeries and each character has their own agenda, their own gains to pursue -- power teeters on the balance.
For we are created in His image and likeness. I loved the politics in Midsummer Magick and it amazed me how cleverly Navarre mirrors the problems of Heaven and on earth. Zamiel is considered the rebel in his circle in Heaven and Navarre depicts a power struggle between the different hierarchies. Navarre's knowledge of angel mythology is astounding and she weaves it so wonderfully in this story. (Really enjoyed the discourse in pp. 194-196)
I'll end this with a word about the romance -- it was well-done. I loved the tension of wanting but not having that both Zamiel and Linnet experienced: Zamiel could not succumb to his desires because it would mean his fall. If he left her alone, he would be allowed to return to his former life and live through infinity alone. And Linnet must preserve her purity for the sake of her future husband, a man who would be chosen for her by the queen in a relationship forged not by love but by necessity. Love comes at a cost and both must figure out what they are willing to sacrifice to be together.
Laura Navarre continues her mesmerizing world building of angels, faeries, Arthurian legend and Tudor England in Midsummer Magick, the second novel in her Magick Trilogy. This was an engrossing read -- and one that really put my iBooks' dictionary skills to the test with words like arquebus, cressets, tocsin (different from toxin!), stramash, hippocras, etc. -- as I was reading through the novel, I kept thinking how thoroughly Navarre did her research on the period. This is not a book to read casually -- one needs to invest quiet time and attention in order to fully enjoy the book -- but, trust me, it is worth it.
* * *
Linnet Norwood, whom we met in Magick by Moonrise , her purpose to Rhiannon fulfilled, has left the Summer Lands with no clear memory of her stay there. Bastard, mad -- these are the words whispered about Linnet who struggles to fill in the gaps in her memory. Now as the Countess of Glencross, and the last of her line, Linnet has traveled to London, in the guise of seeking a husband for Glencross, to find clues about her mother and, perhaps, her true lineage.
But someone wants Linnet dead -- and Zamiel stepped in to rescue her, setting into motion a series of events that will lead to his salvation or downfall.
For Zamiel isn't mortal and not just an ordinary angel -- but the Angel of Death, one touch and your soul is forfeit to either heaven or hell. And Zamiel stands apart as the son of Lucifer, the first fallen angel.
As the Severity of God, Zamiel is not supposed to save lives but to take it -- but something about Linnet and the fire and passion he senses in her stops him from stepping aside and letting the Almighty do His will. As punishment for his insubordination, he is exiled from heaven and trapped in his mortal body.
Limbo. The characters in Navarre's story are all standing on precarious ground: Linnet must play her role as noblewoman and loyal subject if she is to protect her heritage. One misstep could mean the loss of Glencross and her life. She skirts about the fleeting images from her memory of her time inthe Summer Lands or else she will be imprisoned again at Glencross Abbey.
Even the position of Elizabeth I isn't secure: she is constantly on-guard against those who threaten her reign as Queen of England. She is besieged from within her realm and from outside.
Unable to remain still, Elizabeth Tudor sprang to her feet and paced, agitated as the caged lion in her menagerie. "Are you aware the Scottish succession is a matter of desperate concern to this court? I must contend with that viper Mary Stuart, raised and nurtured in the bosom of the French court, and her damned French mother who keeps the throne in Edinburgh warm and waiting for her. This Scottish-French alliance is the greatest threat to my realm.
"And the nightmare that wakes me sweating in the night is the prospect that my loving brother-in-law Spanish Philip, who plots ceaselessly to steal my throne, will ally with the French. Then I'll have them all at my throat."
- pp. 97-98
When Linnet and Zamiel discover that the key to recovering her memory is a pagan ritual, both must decide if it is worth the sacrifice.
"...Ye must sacrifice yer maidenhead to the Goddess, take a lover tonight before the sacred fire and regain all ye've lost."
- p. 225
The choice is a painful one for Linnet to make and equally difficult for Zamiel. He must decide between his salvation or Linnet's -- for he cannot have both. To return to his heavenly home, he must repent -- but, if he succumbs to his mortal cravings, he will fall.
Navarre crafts a suffocating, claustrophobic world -- there are eyes and ears everywhere: on earth, in Heaven and in the world of the Faeries and each character has their own agenda, their own gains to pursue -- power teeters on the balance.
For we are created in His image and likeness. I loved the politics in Midsummer Magick and it amazed me how cleverly Navarre mirrors the problems of Heaven and on earth. Zamiel is considered the rebel in his circle in Heaven and Navarre depicts a power struggle between the different hierarchies. Navarre's knowledge of angel mythology is astounding and she weaves it so wonderfully in this story. (Really enjoyed the discourse in pp. 194-196)
I'll end this with a word about the romance -- it was well-done. I loved the tension of wanting but not having that both Zamiel and Linnet experienced: Zamiel could not succumb to his desires because it would mean his fall. If he left her alone, he would be allowed to return to his former life and live through infinity alone. And Linnet must preserve her purity for the sake of her future husband, a man who would be chosen for her by the queen in a relationship forged not by love but by necessity. Love comes at a cost and both must figure out what they are willing to sacrifice to be together.
Laura Navarre continues her mesmerizing world building of angels, faeries, Arthurian legend and Tudor England in Midsummer Magick, the second novel in her Magick Trilogy. This was an engrossing read -- and one that really put my iBooks' dictionary skills to the test with words like arquebus, cressets, tocsin (different from toxin!), stramash, hippocras, etc. -- as I was reading through the novel, I kept thinking how thoroughly Navarre did her research on the period. This is not a book to read casually -- one needs to invest quiet time and attention in order to fully enjoy the book -- but, trust me, it is worth it.
August 9, 2013
What has the world of books come to? Did you ever thought or fantasied about what it would have been like to read a story of fairies in an era where Kings and Queens ruled the land? Well now you have the chance. Midsummer Magick book two of the Magick Trilogy by Laura Navarre brings you just that, a story with Fairies, Queens, Exile Angels and wait for it…Lucifer into the picture.
Now I know what you must be thinking what the hell, right? But do not fret this is an amazing story that Laura Navarre has created to pull you into a world of magnificent words of fiction made to dull your senses to everything around you except for the book in your hand.
Once started reading you are intrigued to where the story will go. You know that all these supernatural things are supposed to happen but not exactly when or how so you continue reading. Then you ask yourself what is so especial about the main character Lady Linnet Norwood. Is she human, or is she something else? So you keep reading, falling deeper into the story line.
Linnet has a vivid imagination but who wouldn’t after what she has been through but never the less she sets herself on a journey to find out where she comes from. To be able to marry and have the life she so much craves she needs to find out what happened to her mother twenty or so years ago that left her father less.
Label as a bastard and a lunatic Linnet continues on her journey to London England where a clue was left for her to follow. But her journey is not a simple one, she will encounter roadblocks after roadblocks to the point of frustration but she would not give up. There are beings and people that will stand in her way and will make it very hard for her to find the answers she seeks. But not all is, as it seems while she seeks her answers others want her for something much different WAR.
Will Linnet find her answers; will others succeeded in capturing her to use her as a pawn in their evil plans or will all of the bad happenings have a silver lighting call love. Yes, you read right. Love. Will she find it and help her or will he just be as evil as everyone else and use her for his own purpose?
Well I guess you would have to read and find out.
Midsummer Magick by Laura Navarre is wonderful, easy read full of descriptive language and visual aids to make you part of the story and keep you captivated and entranced as you read. I give it 4 olives/stars for an outstanding read and for wanting to read more.
Now I know what you must be thinking what the hell, right? But do not fret this is an amazing story that Laura Navarre has created to pull you into a world of magnificent words of fiction made to dull your senses to everything around you except for the book in your hand.
Once started reading you are intrigued to where the story will go. You know that all these supernatural things are supposed to happen but not exactly when or how so you continue reading. Then you ask yourself what is so especial about the main character Lady Linnet Norwood. Is she human, or is she something else? So you keep reading, falling deeper into the story line.
Linnet has a vivid imagination but who wouldn’t after what she has been through but never the less she sets herself on a journey to find out where she comes from. To be able to marry and have the life she so much craves she needs to find out what happened to her mother twenty or so years ago that left her father less.
Label as a bastard and a lunatic Linnet continues on her journey to London England where a clue was left for her to follow. But her journey is not a simple one, she will encounter roadblocks after roadblocks to the point of frustration but she would not give up. There are beings and people that will stand in her way and will make it very hard for her to find the answers she seeks. But not all is, as it seems while she seeks her answers others want her for something much different WAR.
Will Linnet find her answers; will others succeeded in capturing her to use her as a pawn in their evil plans or will all of the bad happenings have a silver lighting call love. Yes, you read right. Love. Will she find it and help her or will he just be as evil as everyone else and use her for his own purpose?
Well I guess you would have to read and find out.
Midsummer Magick by Laura Navarre is wonderful, easy read full of descriptive language and visual aids to make you part of the story and keep you captivated and entranced as you read. I give it 4 olives/stars for an outstanding read and for wanting to read more.
August 14, 2013
I loved this book!
Arthurian lore, Tudor England, Fae and Angels -- all blended together by a well-written story full of descriptive language, active narrative, interesting characters, intrigue, tension, and romance. Yummy!
Full review posted at The Book Pushers: http://thebookpushers.com/2013/08/14/...
Arthurian lore, Tudor England, Fae and Angels -- all blended together by a well-written story full of descriptive language, active narrative, interesting characters, intrigue, tension, and romance. Yummy!
Full review posted at The Book Pushers: http://thebookpushers.com/2013/08/14/...
Read
April 25, 2024Despite these being pretty trashy, I’m actually really starting to enjoy the world that has been built here and I’m keen to read more. I don’t like the language used in the spicy scenes though, it’s genuinely annoying to read.
August 25, 2013
Originally published at Rookie Romance.
Lady Linnet Norwood has a year missing from her memory, and when she was found she was sent to a convent to hide her madness. Now she's back in Queen Elizabeth I's court, searching for a husband to serve as a strong Laird to her family estate. Whilst in London she meets the dashing Lord Zamiel, when he rescues her from murderous thugs. Drawn to each other, Linnet and Zamiel struggle to fight their impossible attraction and find out who wants Linnet dead.
Linnet struggles to come to terms with the memories that hide just from her grasp. Linnet's a strong woman, and she's definitely not had an easy life- her mother 'died' when she was young, then her father declares on his deathbed that she's a bastard, and a brutish half-brother. You can really feel her frustration, and I liked seeing her go from being rather timid, to a much more determined woman. There were times when she was on the edge of being a bit too stubborn for her own good, but she's a very likable heroine.
Zamiel is the son of Lucifer and has been temporarily banished from the heavens until he repents. Deciding to take full advantage of his exile, Zamiel indulges in all manner of vices at court. He's drawn to Linnet and doesn't see the shy, half-mad Scottish Catholic, but the passionate and strong woman that she is. Zamiel was dashing and repeatedly comes to Linnet's rescue, which were definitely points in his favour. He's angry with God and the other angels, but I found him to be a bit immature and petulant at times.
I was initially drawn into the story, but I felt my interest was lost a bit because I didn't connect much with Zamiel. There's a lot going on, which means that the plot is fast-paced and intriguing. I really had no idea how they would find their HEA with so many impediments, but I was satisfied with how everything is resolved, and it leaves it open for the next book in the series.
Overall, the plot held my interest and there were plenty of mysteries to unravel, but personally I didn't really feel the chemistry between Linnet and Zamiel.
*I received a review copy from the publisher for my honest review. Thank you!
Lady Linnet Norwood has a year missing from her memory, and when she was found she was sent to a convent to hide her madness. Now she's back in Queen Elizabeth I's court, searching for a husband to serve as a strong Laird to her family estate. Whilst in London she meets the dashing Lord Zamiel, when he rescues her from murderous thugs. Drawn to each other, Linnet and Zamiel struggle to fight their impossible attraction and find out who wants Linnet dead.
Linnet struggles to come to terms with the memories that hide just from her grasp. Linnet's a strong woman, and she's definitely not had an easy life- her mother 'died' when she was young, then her father declares on his deathbed that she's a bastard, and a brutish half-brother. You can really feel her frustration, and I liked seeing her go from being rather timid, to a much more determined woman. There were times when she was on the edge of being a bit too stubborn for her own good, but she's a very likable heroine.
Zamiel is the son of Lucifer and has been temporarily banished from the heavens until he repents. Deciding to take full advantage of his exile, Zamiel indulges in all manner of vices at court. He's drawn to Linnet and doesn't see the shy, half-mad Scottish Catholic, but the passionate and strong woman that she is. Zamiel was dashing and repeatedly comes to Linnet's rescue, which were definitely points in his favour. He's angry with God and the other angels, but I found him to be a bit immature and petulant at times.
I was initially drawn into the story, but I felt my interest was lost a bit because I didn't connect much with Zamiel. There's a lot going on, which means that the plot is fast-paced and intriguing. I really had no idea how they would find their HEA with so many impediments, but I was satisfied with how everything is resolved, and it leaves it open for the next book in the series.
Overall, the plot held my interest and there were plenty of mysteries to unravel, but personally I didn't really feel the chemistry between Linnet and Zamiel.
*I received a review copy from the publisher for my honest review. Thank you!
September 27, 2020
3.5 stars - (pretty good)
Exiled angels, faery touched maidens, Tudor court and a wisp of Arthurian legend...
Midsummer Magick was very hard to get into at the beginning, part of that was the heaviness of the language early on - I should mention that I am not much of a historical romance reader - but the story didn't pick up for me until Linnet's quest to find her missing mother and she finally actually accepts that she needs the answers about her missing years (in faery perhaps.) It was also hard for me to initially connect with the leads, both the timid Linnet and the rebellious angel who attempts to immerse himself in debauchery. It took until about midway through the story until I finally become invested in Zariel's redemption, even as his feelings for Linnet put him on the verge of 'falling' and becoming his notorious father's right hand man.
It was when the pair reached Tinagel that melange of angelic and Arthurian myth became really interesting and I have to say that I never saw that it was possible for Linnet and Zariel to even achieve a HEA, much less the way they gained one. So the last 70% of the book is what really made this story for me and made up for the slow start.
Carina Press ARC via NetGalley - I received no compensation for my review and my opinions are my own. Release date 8/12/13
Exiled angels, faery touched maidens, Tudor court and a wisp of Arthurian legend...
Midsummer Magick was very hard to get into at the beginning, part of that was the heaviness of the language early on - I should mention that I am not much of a historical romance reader - but the story didn't pick up for me until Linnet's quest to find her missing mother and she finally actually accepts that she needs the answers about her missing years (in faery perhaps.) It was also hard for me to initially connect with the leads, both the timid Linnet and the rebellious angel who attempts to immerse himself in debauchery. It took until about midway through the story until I finally become invested in Zariel's redemption, even as his feelings for Linnet put him on the verge of 'falling' and becoming his notorious father's right hand man.
It was when the pair reached Tinagel that melange of angelic and Arthurian myth became really interesting and I have to say that I never saw that it was possible for Linnet and Zariel to even achieve a HEA, much less the way they gained one. So the last 70% of the book is what really made this story for me and made up for the slow start.
Carina Press ARC via NetGalley - I received no compensation for my review and my opinions are my own. Release date 8/12/13
October 22, 2013
Linnet Norwood, a newly-minted countess, is on a mission to recover her lost memories as well as her lost mother. Someone, however, seems to have other plans as attempts against her life become commonplace. A mysterious stranger, Zamiel, comes to her rescue, but who is he, really, and what is he hiding? And who is Linnet, really? The answer would impact the fates of multiple nations and two different worlds.
This is an interesting blend of Christian and pagan folklore with everything from fallen angels to the Holy Grail and King Arthur thrown in amidst the backdrop of Queen Elizabeth I's court. While part of the Magick Trilogy, I didn't feel that I had really missed anything by not reading the first book as the necessary parts of that story were retold in this second book so that the reader could fully understand.
This is an interesting blend of Christian and pagan folklore with everything from fallen angels to the Holy Grail and King Arthur thrown in amidst the backdrop of Queen Elizabeth I's court. While part of the Magick Trilogy, I didn't feel that I had really missed anything by not reading the first book as the necessary parts of that story were retold in this second book so that the reader could fully understand.
February 22, 2015
The premise was interesting, and I do like the historical/magic blend. There was a lot of information pushed through the first half of the book which slowed down the read. I noted that Linnet's accent/word choice changed throughout the book, which was disconcerting. The descriptions of the settings were well done and I certainly felt like I was right there -- in London and beyond the Veil. But overall, it was slow and disjointed, and I didn't enjoy it as much as I'd hoped.
August 8, 2013
Full review soon @ thebastardtitle.wordpress.com
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews