"An emotional and engrossing character driven paranormal romance and sequel to SEA WITCH"
Regina Barone's hopes for finding Mr. Right go out the
window as Caleb Hunter, the last eligible single man on the
island, ties the knot with island newcomer Margred (Maggie).
Judging men had never been her strong suit anyway,
accounting for her status as a single mother of five year
old Nick. At least Caleb had been pleased with her catering
efforts and had given her the rest of the evening off. And
so she slips off with a bottle of wine to wallow in her
woes, but not for long. Out of the darkness appears a man
she'd been two young to remember, Dylan Hunter, Caleb's long
lost brother. Beware Regina, for although the sexy newcomer
is undoubtedly different from anyone you've ever met, what
he is looking for tonight is not commitment. Dylan Hunter is a man of mystery to be sure. When Alice
Hunter (a.k.a. Atargatis) had left her husband along with
Caleb and his sister Lucy, she had taken the oldest son
Dylan with her. When Dylan has reached puberty at thirteen
he'd discovered his parents' secret the hard way. Imagine a
teenaged boy suddenly transforming into a creature that he
had never even known existed. Shortly thereafter Dylan had
discovered his mother's pelt and returned it to her. She had
taken him back with her to the sea. Imagine a confused
teenaged boy opened up to a whole new world, a world of
wonder beneath the waves where he would be immortal and
never age. He
draws his own conclusions and turns his back on the father
he believed had betrayed his mother in the worst possible way. When Dylan's mother drowns a year later in a fisherman's
net, his resentment against the humans builds further. He is
then fostered by the selkie prince Conn ap Llyr. Dylan sees
the world in black and white. Either you are human or you
are selkie. He is selkie; the family he'd left behind was
human. He'd not given them much thought since. However, in
reality the half breed selkie doesn't completely fit into
his adopted world either. His heritage is a little too human
for him to be considered for the prince's elite guard, the
position he covets most. His selkie magic is weak as well
and when he is finally given an important mission it just
has to be in World's End, Maine. The peaceful island fishing
town where he'd spent his childhood had recently experienced
a fire demon attack. Two selkie females had been attacked,
one brutally murdered. The other, Margred had been rescued
by his brother Caleb and two had fallen madly in love. Dylan had followed Margred to the island and now chafing in
his human wedding attire, he goes in seach of what selkies
desire most, sex, and happens upon a lonely and slightly
drunk Regina. It doesn't take much of Dylan's considerable
seduction capabilities to convince her as Regina has been
alone for a very long time, unfortunately neither is
thinking of birth control until it's too late. Dylan plans
to walk away and not look but then he is assigned the job to
discover the reason for the sudden shift in the balance
among the elementals and how it relates to the human race.
He is also told of a prophesy which claims that a daughter
of the line of Atargatis will one day change the balance of
power between the forces of good and evil and the destiny of
her people. Since Lucy is obviously human (at least that's
what everyone believes), the only current possibility would
be a female child of Caleb's union with Margred, until he
learns that Regina might be pregnant and as the fire demons'
focus shifts from Margred to his woman and her young son,
Dylan finds himself drawn back into the world of humans not
by duty but by love. But is love enough? As much as I loved SEA WITCH, as with most first books in a
series much of the tale was given to setting up the plot.
Caleb had not had an easy life to be sure, but for the most
part one felt he had his act together. Dylan on the other
hand has so many issues to work out. His perception of his
parent's marriage, whether true or not (there are some
details in SEA FEVER which lead you to believe it was not
quite so simple) left him bitter and resentful. Yet there
are moments when you feel his wistfulness beneath his
carefully laid mask of indifference to the world he left
behind. His feelings for Regina, her son, and their future
child contrast sharply with his deep love of the sea. But as
danger threatens what is his, he finds his true strength and
the choice becomes simple. Regina is great as well. She's
been rejected in the worst possible way and has picked
herself up and gone on with her life. She is a strong woman
who loves deeply, enough to let Dylan go if it is what he
needs. She never asks him to be anything but what he is and
I think this makes it all the easier for him to let the past
go and embrace all of what he is. I have no doubt we will
see him again in selkie form soon, for although the demons
have been thwarted temporarily they are sure to regroup, but
I'm equally certain that the prodigal son is back home to stay. The youngest Hunter sibling, Lucy's, story is next. The
prince himself is her romantic interest. We are not yet sure
if Dylan's child is female and Margred is pressuring Caleb
for a baby as well, but I'm not ready to count Lucy out just
yet. Although those who appear to be in the know believe her
to be human,
I'm not so sure. In SEA WITCH it was revealed that Lucy
became violently ill when she traveled any distance from the
sea. Hm, and in SEA FEVER Dylan observed that he felt
compelled to look away any time he tried to examine his
sister closely, as if glamour was being employed. Lucy was a
very young infant when her mother took Dylan home to sea.
Caleb had left home by the time Lucy reached puberty and
their broken hearted father had long since retreated into
his bottle. What if Lucy herself had experienced a change
she had no way of understanding with no one to explain to
her what was happening or why? She hasn't been let in on
Margred and Dylan's secrets either so she'd have no way of
knowing she was not alone. Why would she tell anyone? An
interesting thought, no? I definitely can't wait to find
out. In addition to learning Lucy's secrets, and how her
romance progresses, I'm looking forward to seeing her
estranged family knit itself further together (I'm really
looking for them to reel their father back in) and of course
to see how the prophesy is fulfilled. In the meantime I
highly recommend SEA FEVER for an emotional and engrossing
character driven paranormal romance and sequel to the
equally fascinating plot driven SEA WITCH. I hope Ms. Kantra
keeps mixing it up, I am seriously enjoying this series. All
I can say is wow! Look for SEA LORD in 2009.
Reviewed by Leslie Tramposch
Posted December 8, 2008
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**A PNR Staff Recommended Read** One family. Three loves that will change their lives . . . and whose destiny could change the world.
For centuries, the children of the sea have co-existed in uneasy peace with their fellow elementals, the children of fire. Now that balance of power is tested as three siblings born of a human father and a selkie mother become embroiled in an ancient rivalry. Follow their stories:
Caleb, the soldier, who returns from the desert to fall in love with a woman from the sea ;
Dylan, the loner, who must choose between the freedom of his mother's kind and the bonds of mortal love; and
Lucy, the dreamer, whose heart and fate are tangled with the sea king's son . Set off the coast of Maine, the Children of the Sea series was inspired by the Celtic legends of the selkie, immortal creatures of the sea living apart from humankind but able to shape-shift into seductive human form. SEA FEVER: Dylan's story Some heat cannot be quenched... A desire for life...
Regina Barone knows something is missing from her life. She spends her days working in her mother's restaurant on the Maine island of World's End and her nights caring for her young son. When the island's only eligible bachelor marries another, Regina realizes that the love she yearns for isn't just going to appear by magic. Or is it? A denial of blood...
Dylan Hunter has returned to World's End for his brother's wedding, but he is troubled by his human ties. Years ago, he chose his life as a selkie - an immortal being of the sea - over the fragile and treacherous emotions of humanity. The same emotions that destroyed his family, and that will strike at his very heart... A danger to both...
Neither Regina nor Dylan can control their attraction to each other - or foresee its disastrous consequences. But their destiny has been foretold, and their fate will be decided in the stormy tides of water and fire, where only love can save them - and the world! Genre: Paranormal Romance, Shapeshifter, Mermaid, Fantasy CHILDREN OF THE SEA books
- Sea Crossing (Prequel) from SHIFTER anthology
- Shifting Sea (Prequel) from BURNING UP anthology
- Sea Witch
- Sea Fever
- Sea Lord
- Immortal Sea
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