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The Crystal City
Zenobia—the crystal city—lay hidden for centuries in the western desert of Glendarra undetected by the clans or by the Techs until its ruler's only daughter Chrysana foresaw danger…
Warned in her dreams about the man who would destroy her father's city, Chrysana d'Morne prepares to murder the sensual Drew Richards, but when she falls in love with him, she is forced to choose between her city and her heart.
Warned in her dreams about the man who would destroy her father's city, Chrysana d'Morne prepares to murder the sensual Drew Richards, but when she falls in love with him, she is forced to choose between her city and her heart.
311 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 7, 2023
Waking up to a pain like he's never experienced before, the hero realizes he's in the hospital after the car crash that killed his wife, injured his year-old son and paralyzed himself. Losing hope that life can go on, he mentally calls to his sister whom he's always shared a psychic bond with. She comes to him from her home in the future and take him and his boy away to a world 2000 years into the future. She heals him and shares her home with him and while he's a peace with the loss of his wife and the life he knew, there's something calling to him beyond the gates of the city and deep into the desert.
So, after soul searching, he ventures off into the unknown trying to discover this calling and who the mysterious but beautiful woman is that haunts his dreams.
The heroine is the seer for her people, a sacred and powerful position which she uses to help her people. But old traditions die hard, she's not permitted to marry or have children of her own. Yet, this stranger that seems to have complete control over her father has decided that it's time she marry...and that she marries him. Angry over the betrayal of her father and the fear that her home as she knows it is at risk, she instead turns to the threat she can handle. The visions have shown another stranger coming into their city and this own is destined to destroy everything she holds dear. So, she's determined to kill him before he can succeed, even knowing her views against the slaughter of any animal. When she discovers a band of travelers wounded by an attack by her own people, she's horrified to learn that amongst them is this man who she's dreamt of. But she can't bring herself to carry out her vow to kill him, instead, she brings him home and instills her as his bodyguard.....From then on, the hero devotes himself to protecting the woman he's come to care of from the enemies that seek to kill her before she can use her influence with the people to stop the takeover. It's only natural that they fall into an affair but when the heroine is kidnapped, the hero, in desperation to get her back, goes to her father, the king, for help. The man, blinded by greed and weakness, turns him away and instead locks the hero in prison for treason. Mentally calling to his sister once again, he vows to see the heroine returned safe and sound even if it means the death of him.
At no point during this story was I ever interested in the slightest with the hero, heroine or the weak and lifeless plotline. From start to finish I was bored to tears and longing for when it would be over. I didn't like the start where the hero, widowed from his beloved wife only a short time ago turns away from his infant son and any devotion to his dead wife to instead run out into the desert, in a bizarre world in search of.... a lost city and a woman? What? I didn't like the middle where nothing at all happened and every single conversation was drawn out of beyond necessity in a ploy, it seemed, to fill pages. And I didn't like the ending which was rushed and sloppy and completely stupid. I hated the characters who I didn't relate to at any level and who I thought were shallow and pointless creatures and some of the decisions they made had me rolling my eyes or shaking my head at the stupidity of it all. What a disappointment, not that I was expecting much mind you. Safe to say I would be seeking out any further books by this author.
So, after soul searching, he ventures off into the unknown trying to discover this calling and who the mysterious but beautiful woman is that haunts his dreams.
The heroine is the seer for her people, a sacred and powerful position which she uses to help her people. But old traditions die hard, she's not permitted to marry or have children of her own. Yet, this stranger that seems to have complete control over her father has decided that it's time she marry...and that she marries him. Angry over the betrayal of her father and the fear that her home as she knows it is at risk, she instead turns to the threat she can handle. The visions have shown another stranger coming into their city and this own is destined to destroy everything she holds dear. So, she's determined to kill him before he can succeed, even knowing her views against the slaughter of any animal. When she discovers a band of travelers wounded by an attack by her own people, she's horrified to learn that amongst them is this man who she's dreamt of. But she can't bring herself to carry out her vow to kill him, instead, she brings him home and instills her as his bodyguard.....From then on, the hero devotes himself to protecting the woman he's come to care of from the enemies that seek to kill her before she can use her influence with the people to stop the takeover. It's only natural that they fall into an affair but when the heroine is kidnapped, the hero, in desperation to get her back, goes to her father, the king, for help. The man, blinded by greed and weakness, turns him away and instead locks the hero in prison for treason. Mentally calling to his sister once again, he vows to see the heroine returned safe and sound even if it means the death of him.
At no point during this story was I ever interested in the slightest with the hero, heroine or the weak and lifeless plotline. From start to finish I was bored to tears and longing for when it would be over. I didn't like the start where the hero, widowed from his beloved wife only a short time ago turns away from his infant son and any devotion to his dead wife to instead run out into the desert, in a bizarre world in search of.... a lost city and a woman? What? I didn't like the middle where nothing at all happened and every single conversation was drawn out of beyond necessity in a ploy, it seemed, to fill pages. And I didn't like the ending which was rushed and sloppy and completely stupid. I hated the characters who I didn't relate to at any level and who I thought were shallow and pointless creatures and some of the decisions they made had me rolling my eyes or shaking my head at the stupidity of it all. What a disappointment, not that I was expecting much mind you. Safe to say I would be seeking out any further books by this author.
July 19, 2009
Okay, I have to admit that I only read about 2/3rds of this one, but I feel I should be rewarded for my perseverance, and so I'm going to put this book on my "read" shelf.
When I got this book, I was hoping for a cheesy, so-bad-it's-good, bodice-ripping romance. I was severely disappointed. The author spent almost two hundred pages introducing the characters and background before getting to the bodice ripping part. This might have been forgivable, but the characters were so bland and one dimensional that I just couldn't take it. The main female character is obviously a Mary Jane, and the main male character just exists to support and fulfill her needs. Not to mention that there was something vaguely wrong and unrealistic about all of the characters. Like they were an alien's mostly uninformed depiction of how human beings would act. The plot consisted of boringness, yawn inducing monotony, and poor writing. I was trying to make myself finish this book, but I just couldn't take it anymore.
When I got this book, I was hoping for a cheesy, so-bad-it's-good, bodice-ripping romance. I was severely disappointed. The author spent almost two hundred pages introducing the characters and background before getting to the bodice ripping part. This might have been forgivable, but the characters were so bland and one dimensional that I just couldn't take it. The main female character is obviously a Mary Jane, and the main male character just exists to support and fulfill her needs. Not to mention that there was something vaguely wrong and unrealistic about all of the characters. Like they were an alien's mostly uninformed depiction of how human beings would act. The plot consisted of boringness, yawn inducing monotony, and poor writing. I was trying to make myself finish this book, but I just couldn't take it anymore.
May 13, 2018
sigh. I pushed myself to finish.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews