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Wizards #1
The Wizard of Seattle
She looked like a ragged, storm-drenched urchin, but from the moment Serena Smyth appeared on his Seattle doorstep, Richard Patrick Merlin recognized the spark behind her green eyes. Serena had crossed a country to find him, guided by her determination to become a master wizard. She knew he could be her teacher—but she never expected the charismatic, seductive power that was Merlin's. Nor had she dreamed of the fire he ignited in her body and soul, a flame that burned even hotter than the powerful talent she possessed but did not yet understand. Their love forbidden by an ancient law, Serena and Richard will take a desperate gamble and travel to a long-lost world to change the history that threatens to separate them. But they risk being torn apart forever, destroyed by a cursed land...and their own fierce desires.
336 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 1, 1993
64 people are currently reading
897 people want to read
About the author
Kay Hooper
97 books2,447 followersKay Hooper (aka Kay Robbins) was born in California, in an air force base hospital since her father was stationed there at the time. The family moved back to North Carolina shortly afterward, so she was raised and went to school there.
The oldest of three children, Kay has a brother two years younger and a sister seven years younger. Her father and brother are builders who own a highly respected construction company, and her mother worked for many years in personnel management before becoming Kay's personal assistant, a position she held until her untimely death in March 2002. Kay's sister Linda works as her Business Manager, Events Coordinator, and is playing a major role in the creation and operation of The Kay Hooper Foundation.
Kay graduated from East Rutherford High School and attended Isothermal Community College — where she quickly discovered that business classes did not in any way enthrall her. Switching to more involving courses such as history and literature, she also began to concentrate on writing, which had been a longtime interest. Very quickly hooked, she asked for a Christmas typewriter and began seriously working on her first novel. That book, a Regency romance titled Lady Thief, sold to Dell Publishing in 1980. She has since published more than 60 novels and four novellas.
Kay is single and lives in a very small town in North Carolina, not far from her father and siblings. Deigning to live with her are a flock of cats — Bonnie, Ginger, Oscar, Tuffy, Felix, Renny, and Isabel — of various personalities who all like sleeping on manuscripts and whatever research happens to be spread across Kay's desk. And living amongst the many felines are two cheerfully tolerant dogs, a shelter rescue, Bandit, who looks rather like a small sheepdog, and a Sheltie named Lizzie.
The oldest of three children, Kay has a brother two years younger and a sister seven years younger. Her father and brother are builders who own a highly respected construction company, and her mother worked for many years in personnel management before becoming Kay's personal assistant, a position she held until her untimely death in March 2002. Kay's sister Linda works as her Business Manager, Events Coordinator, and is playing a major role in the creation and operation of The Kay Hooper Foundation.
Kay graduated from East Rutherford High School and attended Isothermal Community College — where she quickly discovered that business classes did not in any way enthrall her. Switching to more involving courses such as history and literature, she also began to concentrate on writing, which had been a longtime interest. Very quickly hooked, she asked for a Christmas typewriter and began seriously working on her first novel. That book, a Regency romance titled Lady Thief, sold to Dell Publishing in 1980. She has since published more than 60 novels and four novellas.
Kay is single and lives in a very small town in North Carolina, not far from her father and siblings. Deigning to live with her are a flock of cats — Bonnie, Ginger, Oscar, Tuffy, Felix, Renny, and Isabel — of various personalities who all like sleeping on manuscripts and whatever research happens to be spread across Kay's desk. And living amongst the many felines are two cheerfully tolerant dogs, a shelter rescue, Bandit, who looks rather like a small sheepdog, and a Sheltie named Lizzie.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 83 reviews
November 26, 2015
Most of Kay Hooper's novels, the ones that made her successful, are thrillers that follow a strict formula: a serial killer, sometimes with psychic powers, being pursued by a government agent(s) with psychic powers. Usually this takes place in some podunk town where there is also a local with psychic powers to be guided by the agent. They fall in love, or so the text wants the reader to believe. After three or so I gave up reading Hooper's books because I couldn't tell them or the characters apart. Why, I wondered, couldn't she have a little more originality?
This book answers that question. Kay Hooper + originality = batshit insane. But in a lame and boring way. There are wizards. In Seattle. And reporters. And rape. And time travel. To At-fucking-lantis. And a ridiculously underdeveloped romance between a mighty wizard and his too-stupid-to-live apprentice, whom I have no idea why he didn't just kick to the curb years ago. The few supporting characters are totally cardboard: Ugly Rapist Yokels. Evil hedonistic promiscuous wizards. Stupid friends of TSTL heroine. Obnoxious alcoholic reporter. Even the rape victim isn't sympathetic.
I got this by accident years ago when trying to find Wizard of the Pigeons, which I could not at the time recall the name of. In the past decade or so I have managed to read a little over half the book, a couple pages at a time before clutching my hair, exclaiming "arggh!" and returning it to the shelf. Today I skipped to the end, which harkened back to the plot she seemed to be introducing in the start, which has not been referred back to in over two hundred pages. Although this book is too awful to finish, it gets a second star because it is at least imaginative, and because Hooper uses the English language correctly, without the annoying mistakes in grammar and word usage that mark many recent books of this disposable sort.
This book answers that question. Kay Hooper + originality = batshit insane. But in a lame and boring way. There are wizards. In Seattle. And reporters. And rape. And time travel. To At-fucking-lantis. And a ridiculously underdeveloped romance between a mighty wizard and his too-stupid-to-live apprentice, whom I have no idea why he didn't just kick to the curb years ago. The few supporting characters are totally cardboard: Ugly Rapist Yokels. Evil hedonistic promiscuous wizards. Stupid friends of TSTL heroine. Obnoxious alcoholic reporter. Even the rape victim isn't sympathetic.
I got this by accident years ago when trying to find Wizard of the Pigeons, which I could not at the time recall the name of. In the past decade or so I have managed to read a little over half the book, a couple pages at a time before clutching my hair, exclaiming "arggh!" and returning it to the shelf. Today I skipped to the end, which harkened back to the plot she seemed to be introducing in the start, which has not been referred back to in over two hundred pages. Although this book is too awful to finish, it gets a second star because it is at least imaginative, and because Hooper uses the English language correctly, without the annoying mistakes in grammar and word usage that mark many recent books of this disposable sort.
June 13, 2025
This slightly unusual book won me over.
It takes place in modern times (80s or 90s) and also back in time during imaginary time of Atlantis.
I thought there was something really meaningful in portraying the crumbling segregated society of Atlantis in which women live in cities and men in mountains.
But I don’t want to give away too much of the plot.
Needless to say this was a slow burn romance with well written sexy parts albeit pretty sparse.
However I do feel like the author wanted to tell a deeper story besides just the one of romance which I respect.
Plus the book is full of wizards and you should suspend your belief somewhat in order to enjoy it.
It takes place in modern times (80s or 90s) and also back in time during imaginary time of Atlantis.
I thought there was something really meaningful in portraying the crumbling segregated society of Atlantis in which women live in cities and men in mountains.
But I don’t want to give away too much of the plot.
Needless to say this was a slow burn romance with well written sexy parts albeit pretty sparse.
However I do feel like the author wanted to tell a deeper story besides just the one of romance which I respect.
Plus the book is full of wizards and you should suspend your belief somewhat in order to enjoy it.
November 24, 2008
This book was an impulse buy for me in the check out line of the grocery store a few years back. I like magic, I like Seattle--this seemed perfect! Honestly, I didn't even turn the book over to read the back before I bought it. If I had, I would have seen the steamy harlequin romance picture there and probably would have put this right back on the shelf. This is definitely a romance novel and not a fantasy novel. Yes, the main characters are nominally wizards and yes, they do inexplicable things, but I doubt many fans of fantasy would include this novel in that genre. And yes, the story is partially set in Seattle, but nothing happens to distinguish the setting from any other city in the world--I don't think it even rains. The story goes that a male and a female wizard in present day Seattle fall in love, but for some reason it's taboo for male and female wizards to fall in love. So they decide to go back in time to Atlantis before it disappears so that they can attempt to fix whatever happened to cause this taboo and then go back to present day and live happily taboo-free ever after. I'll give the author points for coming up with an elaborate scenario that would somehow induce wizards to not want to marry each other, but she would've racked up a few more points had this scenario been remotely believable. If I try to set aside my hope that this might have some merit as a fantasy novel and just look at it from a purely harlequin romance perspective it still doesn't rank highly, although I have to admit I've never read anything in the genre to which I can compare this. The steamy bits of the story were all between the bad guy and his mindless "brood mares," which, to me at least, was just gross. The main romance was so obvious from the beginning and so poorly developed throughout, it made me wonder why they even bothered with the steamy picture of these two on the back cover. All of this on top of a very weak supporting cast. Although I wasn't completely bored while reading this book, the highest compliment I can bear to give this is that it could've been worse.
October 16, 2018
Reviewed for THC Reviews
I actually read “Arts Magica,” the sequel novella to The Wizard of Seattle several months ago without knowing it was part of a series. I enjoyed it very much, so I decided to go back and see how it all started. This book is a very intriguing mixture of a number of different elements. For starters, it puts a whole new spin on Atlantean mythology and exactly what destroyed the lost continent. (Hint: It was wizards.:-)) In fact, even before Atlantis sank into the ocean, it was being polluted by magical energies that were distorting plant, animal and human life. There is also an extreme form of patriarchal culture in the wizard world that has essentially seeped into the very DNA of all male wizards. This makes it nearly impossible for them to trust anyone of the female persuasion, human or wizard, and keeps them locked in a competition of sorts with other male wizards to the point that they need their own territory devoid of other male wizards in which to live. Additionally the wizard council is all male, and there are laws on the books that forbid male wizards from training female wizards, instead instructing them to siphon off the female’s power by force if necessary. Into this male-dominated society comes a male wizard who decides to buck convention by taking in a young female wizard as his apprentice. After nine years together, they realize that they have feelings for one another that go far beyond that of teacher and pupil. But in order to find out exactly what happened to create this world they now live in and to rid themselves of the stigma, they must travel back in time to ancient Atlantis and put together the pieces of the puzzle, while hoping to change history, making it possible for them to be together in their own time. Although the romance itself was somewhat muted (which I’ll get to shortly), it was a fascinating and unique story that I enjoyed.
Richard Merlin, who usually simply goes by Merlin, is a high-level Master wizard. He knows the rules of his wizard society that forbid him from training a female, but nine years ago, something compelled him to take in the orphaned teenage waif who showed up on his doorstep. He became both her guardian and teacher. Now that she has grown into a lovely young woman, she stirs unfamiliar feelings inside him that make him want more, but he knows that will most likely be impossible. He’s already broken wizard laws simply by training her, and the thought of mating her brings an uncomfortable combination of desire and mistrust. He seeks out his father’s advice to discover what fuels this long-held inability to trust females, but the male wizards on the council have long forgotten where the law and these feelings of animosity originate, only that they simply exist. Merlin is instructed to take away Serena's powers, but he knows he cannot do that to her without trying to get to the bottom of this mystery first. Therefore, he proposes that they travel back in time to find the source. I liked that Richard is clearly someone who is above all the male domination. That he took a chance on Serena and trained her, knowing it was illegal, and that he cares enough for her to want to try to figure out what happened in the past and change it speaks volumes to his character. However, by virtue of simply being a male wizard in this society, he’s very unemotional for a large part of the story. It’s something he can’t help, partly passed down through DNA and partly through how he was raised, but it did put something of a damper on the romantic feelings. Once he starts to understand the past and finds the proverbial switch to turn off the mistrust and get back in touch with his emotions, I liked him even better.
Serena is an orphan who sensed Merlin’s presence with her own powers and sought him out at the age of sixteen, looking for guidance. She’s an apt pupil, who is well on her way to becoming a Master herself, when Merlin gets the directive to take away her powers (something he doesn’t tell her at first), and suggests that they travel back in time to find out what really happened so long ago. Serena is madly in love with Merlin and would do just about anything to help him find the answers he seeks, even though she isn’t certain if he feels the same way about her. She’s a feisty young woman who is none too happy when she discovers the subjugation females have to endure in Atlantis. Because of what those women are going through and Merlin finally telling her the truth of why they traveled back in time, she begins to doubt him a little herself. But I liked that ultimately she was able to trust Merlin to not become like his ancient counterparts. She was a heroine I could definitely relate to and one that made a very worthy mate for Merlin.
There is also a sweet secondary romance that I enjoyed as well. Tremayne is a young wizard from Europa who came to Atlantis to visit a distant kinsman. Relations between male and female wizards in Europa haven’t yet deteriorated to the point they have in Atlantis. He disdains the way the women are treated there and falls in love at first sight with a female wizard named Roxanne. Little does he know, though, that she’s fallen victim to some of the human men on the continent who have been told by male wizards that if they take a female wizard by force, they’ll gain some of her power. Of course, this, along with the general distrust between the sexes, puts a major roadblock between Tremayne and Roxanne that I enjoyed seeing them work to overcome along with Merlin and Serena’s help.
My only real complaint about The Wizard of Seattle is that because of all the mistrust that’s going around within both sexes, Merlin and Serena’s romance is pretty slow to take off. It’s obvious that they care for one another, but they don’t even kiss until a long way into the story. Therefore, it takes quite a while to get to the actual romance. It helped that there were two different couples to root for, although Tremayne and Roxanne’s romance is even slower building, which is understandable given all she’s been through. However, I did like the payoff that occurs when both couples finally discover a twist with their powers that shows that male and female wizards were meant to be together all along, but trust is a key ingredient in being able to harness this power successfully. Otherwise it was a very interesting story with lots of intriguing elements. I would certainly recommend it to fans of fantasy romances who don’t mind a story that’s a little heavier on the fantasy and lighter on the romance.
I actually read “Arts Magica,” the sequel novella to The Wizard of Seattle several months ago without knowing it was part of a series. I enjoyed it very much, so I decided to go back and see how it all started. This book is a very intriguing mixture of a number of different elements. For starters, it puts a whole new spin on Atlantean mythology and exactly what destroyed the lost continent. (Hint: It was wizards.:-)) In fact, even before Atlantis sank into the ocean, it was being polluted by magical energies that were distorting plant, animal and human life. There is also an extreme form of patriarchal culture in the wizard world that has essentially seeped into the very DNA of all male wizards. This makes it nearly impossible for them to trust anyone of the female persuasion, human or wizard, and keeps them locked in a competition of sorts with other male wizards to the point that they need their own territory devoid of other male wizards in which to live. Additionally the wizard council is all male, and there are laws on the books that forbid male wizards from training female wizards, instead instructing them to siphon off the female’s power by force if necessary. Into this male-dominated society comes a male wizard who decides to buck convention by taking in a young female wizard as his apprentice. After nine years together, they realize that they have feelings for one another that go far beyond that of teacher and pupil. But in order to find out exactly what happened to create this world they now live in and to rid themselves of the stigma, they must travel back in time to ancient Atlantis and put together the pieces of the puzzle, while hoping to change history, making it possible for them to be together in their own time. Although the romance itself was somewhat muted (which I’ll get to shortly), it was a fascinating and unique story that I enjoyed.
Richard Merlin, who usually simply goes by Merlin, is a high-level Master wizard. He knows the rules of his wizard society that forbid him from training a female, but nine years ago, something compelled him to take in the orphaned teenage waif who showed up on his doorstep. He became both her guardian and teacher. Now that she has grown into a lovely young woman, she stirs unfamiliar feelings inside him that make him want more, but he knows that will most likely be impossible. He’s already broken wizard laws simply by training her, and the thought of mating her brings an uncomfortable combination of desire and mistrust. He seeks out his father’s advice to discover what fuels this long-held inability to trust females, but the male wizards on the council have long forgotten where the law and these feelings of animosity originate, only that they simply exist. Merlin is instructed to take away Serena's powers, but he knows he cannot do that to her without trying to get to the bottom of this mystery first. Therefore, he proposes that they travel back in time to find the source. I liked that Richard is clearly someone who is above all the male domination. That he took a chance on Serena and trained her, knowing it was illegal, and that he cares enough for her to want to try to figure out what happened in the past and change it speaks volumes to his character. However, by virtue of simply being a male wizard in this society, he’s very unemotional for a large part of the story. It’s something he can’t help, partly passed down through DNA and partly through how he was raised, but it did put something of a damper on the romantic feelings. Once he starts to understand the past and finds the proverbial switch to turn off the mistrust and get back in touch with his emotions, I liked him even better.
Serena is an orphan who sensed Merlin’s presence with her own powers and sought him out at the age of sixteen, looking for guidance. She’s an apt pupil, who is well on her way to becoming a Master herself, when Merlin gets the directive to take away her powers (something he doesn’t tell her at first), and suggests that they travel back in time to find out what really happened so long ago. Serena is madly in love with Merlin and would do just about anything to help him find the answers he seeks, even though she isn’t certain if he feels the same way about her. She’s a feisty young woman who is none too happy when she discovers the subjugation females have to endure in Atlantis. Because of what those women are going through and Merlin finally telling her the truth of why they traveled back in time, she begins to doubt him a little herself. But I liked that ultimately she was able to trust Merlin to not become like his ancient counterparts. She was a heroine I could definitely relate to and one that made a very worthy mate for Merlin.
There is also a sweet secondary romance that I enjoyed as well. Tremayne is a young wizard from Europa who came to Atlantis to visit a distant kinsman. Relations between male and female wizards in Europa haven’t yet deteriorated to the point they have in Atlantis. He disdains the way the women are treated there and falls in love at first sight with a female wizard named Roxanne. Little does he know, though, that she’s fallen victim to some of the human men on the continent who have been told by male wizards that if they take a female wizard by force, they’ll gain some of her power. Of course, this, along with the general distrust between the sexes, puts a major roadblock between Tremayne and Roxanne that I enjoyed seeing them work to overcome along with Merlin and Serena’s help.
My only real complaint about The Wizard of Seattle is that because of all the mistrust that’s going around within both sexes, Merlin and Serena’s romance is pretty slow to take off. It’s obvious that they care for one another, but they don’t even kiss until a long way into the story. Therefore, it takes quite a while to get to the actual romance. It helped that there were two different couples to root for, although Tremayne and Roxanne’s romance is even slower building, which is understandable given all she’s been through. However, I did like the payoff that occurs when both couples finally discover a twist with their powers that shows that male and female wizards were meant to be together all along, but trust is a key ingredient in being able to harness this power successfully. Otherwise it was a very interesting story with lots of intriguing elements. I would certainly recommend it to fans of fantasy romances who don’t mind a story that’s a little heavier on the fantasy and lighter on the romance.
November 7, 2015
The prologue depicts 2 events that set the stage for the story. In one a young female wizard is brutally attacked by 3 men when she is unable to use her powers to defend herself. In the other a young 16 year old young untrained female wizard shows up at the door of a Master Wizard in a storm and begs to be trained by him and he takes her in. Nine years later Serena is flexing her 'muscle' and questioning her life with Richard Merlin. She is falling in love with him but there is a barrier around him. When a stunt of hers results in the Wizard Council becoming aware of her everything changes and she learns of the true nature and rules regulating the Wizard world. In order for her and Richard to move forward they must go back to Atlantis where history seems to indicate that these currents laws were established and see if they can influence a change. Time travel through the gate takes them to a fragile hostile Wizard world on the brink of destruction. They learn about the culture and look for the link that needs to be fixed without making any major changes to the time continuum. A very well done world building and enjoyable story.
April 30, 2009
The first Kay Hooper book I ever read - one of my all-time favorites. Paranormal before paranormal became hot!
September 24, 2021
Excellent story. This was a reread, the first time back in 2004, and I thought it held up well. The "present day" setting is 1993.
August 19, 2009
This is on my all-time keeper shelf. I loved this book!!
July 21, 2010
This would have been a lot better story if the author didn't come across as a total man-hater. All the men were portrayed as power hungry, sex addicts or emotionless morons.
January 25, 2024
the lore of the magic did not really make sense but my god did i have fun reading it. if you are looking for a piece of literature this isn’t it. but i would recommend for something to take less seriously.
January 16, 2016
For my #9 challenge (Title With Place in it), I read The Wizard of Seattle by Kay Hooper. When Richard Merlin first sets eyes on Serena Smyth - the bedraggled sixteen-year-old runaway who shows up on his doorstep one stormy night - he can sense the barely restrained power within her. Guided by pure instinct, Serena has come over three hundred miles in order to find a Master Wizard to teach her a forbidden art. For Serena's sake, Richard will teach her his art, despite a taboo so ancient that the reasons for its existence are all but forgotten.
Nine years later, Richard never expects to risk all that he has and all that he is in order to save Serena, and in the process find a love none of his kind has ever experienced. Richard and Serena's quest will bring them back in time to a lost civilization called Atlantis and will test their faith in and love for each other. I give this time travel romance a B+!
Nine years later, Richard never expects to risk all that he has and all that he is in order to save Serena, and in the process find a love none of his kind has ever experienced. Richard and Serena's quest will bring them back in time to a lost civilization called Atlantis and will test their faith in and love for each other. I give this time travel romance a B+!
July 20, 2019
Urban fantasy romance is not my favorite genre, and there has been an awful lot of it flooding the market, but I'm glad I picked this book up. It had an interesting premise and managed to surprise me every now and then. On the whole, it was a good read, the ending was satisfying and I never felt that the writing let me down. Was it a bit misogynistic...well, yes. A little. But that was the world, not the story, and I felt the male MC was treated well enough by the story. An honestly, I'll take an honest misogyny over the stealth misogyny that makes all male characters either colorless, or basically woman with male equipment. Or Bad Guys.
January 31, 2012
This book put a whole new spin on the phrase "making magic" . . . Wow. I'm giving this four stars because I read it as part of my trashy romance novel collection, and as far a that goes this one is a winner. The antagonist ignored by the couple because they were too busy having sex: check. A troubled character who's past makes it hard for them to trust and let love in: check. bad sex descriptions: check. As a piece of good literature please do not read this book. For a good laugh and light read I highly reccomend the wizard of seattle.
August 2, 2012
It is not the usual style for Kay Hooper, but I really likes it. The idea of the story was fresh.When I saw the picture on the back of the book, I thought going to be really sleazy. It was a pleasant surprise, and I finished it quickly. To soon in fact. I would own this one and re-read it on a rainy day. A cozy book....a good read, especially for an older book. A little romance, mixed with time travel and magic..what is not to like? Plus the leading man was darkly handsome and brooding, and of course so capable..Is there any other type? Worked for me!
August 18, 2019
The Wizard of Seattle
This is another winner. I just love this author. I have been reading her books for years and have never four a bad one. She writes wonderful characters and great storylines in every book. I highly recommend all of her different paranormal mysteries and love stories and her series that is my favorite is the FBI series. With paranormal and ghosts in every book. Diana Romano
This is another winner. I just love this author. I have been reading her books for years and have never four a bad one. She writes wonderful characters and great storylines in every book. I highly recommend all of her different paranormal mysteries and love stories and her series that is my favorite is the FBI series. With paranormal and ghosts in every book. Diana Romano
February 13, 2012
I read this expecting a cheesy romance novel (which are my guilty pleasures, like every other woman on earth). I was actually sad to finish this one. I LOVED IT!! This is probably one of my favorite books in this category. It's refreshing to have a little originality to the romance genre. I would definitely recommend it :)
January 19, 2022
I would love to see Ms. Hooper write a sequel to this book. With a movie adaptation scheduled for 2014, I am looking forward to seeing what the silver screen can do with the story.
The Wizard of Seattle offers an interesting look at the dynamics of the male/female relationship and a wonderfully original theory as to what really happened to the lost island of Atlantis.
The Wizard of Seattle offers an interesting look at the dynamics of the male/female relationship and a wonderfully original theory as to what really happened to the lost island of Atlantis.
January 4, 2022
It was pretty good. I love age gap romance books and this didn’t disappoint. I got a bit bored of the semi poorly thought out plot once they time travelled. It failed to hook me in at a certain point. I need more books like this though!
January 12, 2009
One of the few romances I've ever read and liked, heh. There's enough actual plot and supernatural stuff in it to make it well-balanced.
May 6, 2012
I think this book gets a bad rap. It's a fun read, an original premise and a great love story.
Plus, it's about WIZARDS.... how cool are they?!?!
Plus, it's about WIZARDS.... how cool are they?!?!
July 7, 2012
I think it's a great book. I love the frustrated connection between the main characters. This is on my "read again when I haven't any new books" list.
September 26, 2012
Unexpectedly liked it. Very sci-fi and unlike me but I did enjoy the love story and the cheesy storyline.
October 6, 2018
I read this book on a dare from a coworker. It's an intriguing premise, and the first 2/3 of the book read more like an alternate history with some fantastic world building. It's not actually a romance book, and I can't believe it was billed as one. The last third of the book read like the author was instructed to "turn up the romance already!" and tie up loose ends. What results is a great story plunging off a cliff. The romance feels forced and unnatural - in fact it gets downright cheeseball, like really really bad, and the world that Hooper painstakingly built falls apart (literally as well as figuratively). The last couple of chapters brought back a thread that wasn't very interesting and some cheesy melodrama straight out of a lifetime movie.
No. No. No. Publishers should have left the author alone - it could have been awesome.
Two stars bc it was resurrected, and then sacrificed once more to the Book Sale pile in the library closet.
No. No. No. Publishers should have left the author alone - it could have been awesome.
Two stars bc it was resurrected, and then sacrificed once more to the Book Sale pile in the library closet.
February 1, 2021
I only finished this book because it's one my mom gave me and recommended. (Oops. Sorry, Mom, but this was not for me.) Even if I hadn't been immediately turned off by the opening prologue being a rape scene, the storyline itself was ridiculous, populated by ineffective "villains" who were defeated in a blink and boring insta-love that existed because we were told it existed and not because of any justification within the story. It's barely even a romance. The time travel plot is just silly, and the use of Atlantis is, frankly, entirely wasted, because the famed city was turned into something alternatingly disgusting and uninteresting. The only reason I'm not giving this 1 star is because there were a handful of elements I thought were mildly interesting (mostly related to the magic system).
August 9, 2017
I first read this book years ago and really enjoyed the plot. I must admit that Atlantis and the myth surround it are not a topic I search for while looking for reading material (in fact, I would say that I actively avoid the whole subject). However, due to my enjoyment of Kay Hooper and her writing, I read the book and was pleasantly surprised.
Now I've re-read the book and like it just as much (if not more) as the first time through.
An excellent story and a sensible, while intriguing, tale about the destruction of Atlantis.
Now I've re-read the book and like it just as much (if not more) as the first time through.
An excellent story and a sensible, while intriguing, tale about the destruction of Atlantis.
May 10, 2023
This . . . was something! Kind of a Mad Max: Fury Road vibe, but with wizards and time travel? There are some interesting ideas here but maybe too many for one book? and like poor execution? The writing wasn't bad - actually, it was quite good (minus all the times the bad guy referred to his conquests as bitches, as in property). There are two slow-burn romances in the book and I wish we had more time developing both of those instead of all the magical realm history. Ahh well.
February 7, 2019
I've been re-reading some old books on my shelf and I have to say, I have no idea why I didn't give this one away years ago. Sure, magic, time travel and Atlantis are cool. Gang rape, a nonsensical gender war, one-dimensional characters and stilted romance - not so much. I may have enjoyed it years ago, but my tastes have definitely evolved.
October 30, 2019
The title drew my attention to this book. When I was done, I was quite pleased with the story as a whole. However, I wasn't a fan of how magic was described, particularly towards the end, though the story itself was good.
July 13, 2020
Loved it.....even more the second time around!!! I love ALL of Kay Hooper's books!! Highly recommend this one!!! Highly recommend ALL of them!!!
February 13, 2021
Really enjoyed this book. I love reading where the Twitter makes everything visually appealing. Makes you feel like you are standing where the characters are.
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