Guardians of the Desert

Children of the Desert #2

by Leona Wisoker

Lord Alyea of Peysimun grows into her strength.Deiq of Stass confronts his greatest weakness.Lord Eredion of Sessin tries to live with his compromises.Meanwhile, someone plots a brutal retaliation. . . .Not long ago, Alyea Peysimun was a shallow young noblewoman maneuvering for personal power. Her first attempt at politics proved far more dangerous than she dreamed possible, and nearly ended her life. Now she is a desert lord, one of the powerful, little-understood southern elite. But power changes everything—including who to call friend and enemy.Deiq of Stass has long hidden his dual heritage by passing himself off as a mysterious quasi-noble. He has a facility for lying and a strange sense of ethics; but he'll honor his promise to guide Alyea into her new life. To uphold that commitment, he must navigate more obstacles than even he could imagine—not least those within himself.Eredion Sessin is the only desert lord who stayed in Bright Bay during King Ninnic's reign. He endured the worst of the insane king's excesses and helped to remove Ninnic from the throne; his guilt over the people he couldn't save is almost as deep as his self-loathing. He has come to hate all the ha’reye represent. And yet something deeper than loyalty binds him to Deiq, who he knows better than to trust.As the truth of the ancient, mysterious ha'reye begins to emerge and those who oppose their ways marshal new strategies, the repercussions of Scratha's desperate gambit threaten to destroy a precarious balance that has held since the Split. And this time, there’s no turning back.

Genres: Fantasy

406 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2011

About the author

Leona Wisoker is the author of the Children of the Desert fantasy series (Secrets of the Sands, Guardians of the Desert, Bells of the Kingdom, Fires of the Desert, and the side-novellas Fallen City and A Small Price To Pay).

Leona's short stories have appeared in Futures: Fire to Fly, Alienskin Magazine, and Anotherealm, as well as in the anthologies Cats in Space, Sha'Daa:PAWNS, The Society For The Preservation of CJ Henderson, and Galactic Creatures.

Reviews

[Tanabrus · Rating 2 out of 5]

Chiariamoci, il libro non è scritto male.
E malgrado la forte venatura romance, si lascia leggere bene.
Dirò di più: fintanto che si legge, non ci si annoia e la lettura scorre bene.

Perché allora il giudizio negativo?

Perché è un libro perfetto se si legge tutto d'un fiato.
Se si commette l'errore di chiuderlo per riprendere la lettura il giorno dopo, tipo, allora ecco l'inghippo. Si scopre di non avere alcuna curiosità per la storia, alcun interesse nel riprendere in mano il libro. Si tergiversa, si pospone, ci si mette a fare qualsiasi altra attività che non sia procedere con la lettura.
Si guardano anime, si guardano film, si guardano serie tv, si fanno le pulizie di primavera, si gioca a ruzzle, si scattano foto... tutto tranne riprendere il libro.

E non perché sia scritto male, o lento, o noioso, o quanto altro.
Pura assenza di interesse.
Ci sono libri che magari sono lenti, o in cui la trama complessiva rimane troppo sullo sfondo mentre la storia si focalizza su vicende piccole e personali. Ci sono libri che magari accentuano troppo un lato della storia lasciando perdere gli altri.
Ci sono libri in cui il bel background strozza la storia.

Qui non si tratta di questo.
Anche se in effetti la grande trama complessiva, se esistente, è ben mimetizzata.
E il lato romance-amoroso-sessuale ha una leggera prevalenza su tutto il resto, con tutte le stereotipizzazioni del genere.

E' semplicemente che finché si legge, è anche piacevole.
Ma appena ci si allontana ci dimentichiamo di questo libro, non avremmo problemi a riprenderlo ma qualsiasi altra attività ci appare all'improvviso più piacevole, più importante, più interessante.


E un libro che distrugge così l'interesse del lettore per me non è assolutamente salvabile, mi dispiace.
Avrei fatto meglio a fidarmi del giudizio del primo e lasciare perdere, purtroppo.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

THis one was a bit melodramatic, and the basic premise is what will happen when Alyea gets the desert lord powers, especially the super power sex drive. And if/when she does, will she shtup Deiq who is "literally" starving for it, because ya know he's part human part ha'rethe, whom we haven't met yet except in super quick cuts from memories and seem to me to be somewhat dragon-like in that they have silver scales. They seem to get off need to feed from humans and from sex is the most fulfilling way even tho it's death to regular people (tharr) and very painful to the desert lords, to whom they've made the exchange of lots of power to make up for it. They are quite monstrous and other.

So it's kind of sci bodice-ripper! But well done.

Still, very enjoyable. Love the world she sets up, the characters are intelligent, flawed and sympathetic, as we watch Alyea mature. Oy what a victim she is here, tho it helps her gain her strength. Frankly that aspect annoyed me which is a part of the reason this is 3 star.

Even so, I'll grab the next book as soon as it comes out.

[Marsha · Rating 5 out of 5]

A terrific sequel to the first book. The characters are wonderful in that they aren't perfect...their flaws and weaknesses make them even more loveable and understandable.

The twists and turns in the plot kept me interested and wanting to read more and more. I'm sad that the book is over and know that since this was just published it will be quite a wait until the next one comes out. So I will be waiting and hoping. She's going to be a favorite author of mine, I can tell.

[Ashes 🌚🥀🌝 · Rating 5 out of 5]

******SPOILERS******

I really enjoyed the first book but i think i enjoyed this one the most, all because of the developing story between Alyea and Deiq that can't quite be described as love, but something in between and above it. A lot of horrible things took place in this book. At first, i was a bit confused as to what Deiq actually did. I couldn't tell if he fed on memories, blood, or had sex with them all. It was quite vague but was explained later on. The ending was pleasant and i was actually surprised and grateful because they've both been through so much and I wanted them to finally be on stable ground.

One thing i wished is to see Alyea fight more, physically since she's been trained.

I dont know what will happen once she remembers Tank and will prob end up leaving to be with him (part of me hopes not), i'm excited to read the other books (found out theres 5 in total and im quite happy). You've built a wonderful world Leona and developed characters and stories with such precision.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a solidly good time reading this book and will continue the series.

[Liviu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Guardians of the Desert continues the story from Secrets of the Sand essentially picking up where the other ends; while the first book was focused more or less equally on Lord Scratha and Idisio on one hand and Alyea on the other, this book is 80% Alyea's and deals with her acceptance of her role as Desert Lord and the consequences that flow from that; I would not like to spoil Secrets of the Sands more and a lot of the events and choices she makes can be understood only if you know the twists at the end from the first book, so I will only remark that that the book will bring in some sense full circle the story that started when the new king Oruen sent her to assume the Scratha' guardianship.

Both Scratha through letters penned to Oruen about the nature of the South and Idisio appear too but in this book Deiq and several Southern lords play a much more prominent role overall than the two.

In a way this book is a typical middle series one since while it offers a story arc, there is no real resolution and the book ends with a big to be continued.

As usual I will add the full FBC review at some point in late March, closer to the publication date

[Kaylee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful sequel to Secrets of the Sands, which I picked up on a whim (because of a recommendation from Tamora Pierce). This seamlessly picked up where the first book left off -- with none of that annoying recapping in the first three pages that series' books seem to do. Yes, there was a little history, but it was sprinkled naturally throughout, thank heavens. Wisoker has a way of meandering through major plot and character developments, just lightly touching on things that turn out to be pivotal. I'm pretty certain there are no small details in either of these books.

The only thing that felt jarring about this book was the format -- the first book had substantially-sized chapters; this one seemed to have an average chapter length of four pages. The writing was still flawless, but I had to wonder why that decision was made.

[Kane · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good book but I felt lost more than a few times. I wonder if it was my fault. It had been a while since I read the previous book in the series and I think I should have revised the first book more thoroughly before starting the second. After I starting reading book 2, I realized I need to refresh book 1. I went back a chapter or two, but it was not enough. I think that the author deserves praise for creating such a complex world with so many complex characters that are intertwined. I felt I let the author down and should have paid more attention. LOL. I would definely advise anyone who picks up the second book to refresh their memory thoroughly with all that's happened in the first book. Had I done that I wouldn't be trying to figure out who and what in the middle of the second book as often.

[Jennifer Heise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Back to newly minted desert lord Alyea Peysimun and Deiq, who has carelessly made himself responsible for her... Wisoker's characters and world are addictive, and I love to spend time with them. This second volume is a bit less convoluted than the last, since we already know some of the world building. The main plotline is also a bit clearer. Some things Alyea doesn't know/understand are making this rather complicated, and not all of them are politics. Because some of them have to do with both sex and Deiq, and because a lot of people are not being forthright about a lot of things, there is a hint of romance-novelesque "if people would just be honest with one another this whole piece of plot could be cut right through!" Still, learning what we learn in this volume is worth it.

[Maureen E · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the first book last month and really enjoyed it a lot. So I was looking forward to this one. Unfortunately, I wasn’t nearly as enamoured of it. I like the resolution of the central relationship, but there was this whole plotline that I didn’t like at all, and one of the major characters from the first book just sort of disappears! There appear to be two more books in the series, and I’ll probably stick around for them, especially since I liked the first book so much. (And hopefully that disappearing character will reappear.) [June 2011]

[Saphana · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the first book was a really good read, presenting fantasy in a completely new setting (and a convincing one at that); what we get here is a slightly romantic, eroric, vampiric turn of of events. Not completely unexpected, but rather drawn out.

[Jennah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful :) My favorite in the series so far! I absolutely adore Deiq and Alyea's unique love-hate relationship. I liked this much more than the first one. Alyea reminds me a lot of my self at times.

[Selina Harvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible bang-up sequel to an awesome first book, this is a more than fitting follow-up! Continuing the growth of both the world and the characters, the sequel does not disappoint readers of the first in the series in any way!

Enjoy!

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

But disappointing after first book; hopefully back to Ilsidio's tale for book 3.

[Hafiza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding fantasy
Can't wait for the next book.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leona Wisoker has built a fascinating culture with an amazing depth and beauty.

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

The struggle of Deiq and the becoming of Lord Alyae are really powerful. A great depth to these characters and the bleak views of Lord Eredion made this a very strong book. The depth surprised me!

[Anne Vale · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was reading this book for Idisio. Like you know, the Main Character from the previous book? Well guess what. He wasn't here. Boooo