A little mystery with a dash of fantasy: I have read everything Sharon Shinn has written. In some cases twice. I was dying to get a hold of her first novel, The Shape-Changer's Wife. How could I pass it up? The hero is a young apprentice wizard who is sent by his mentor to study with the powerful wizard, Glyrenden. Lilith is his wife. A mystery all her own. Aubrey is determined to figure out who she is...or more to the point...what she is. If you enjoy this book, this is a great jumping off point for any of Sharon's other books. I love her imaginative way describing her characters. You get a real sense of who they are and connect with them. I am glad I discovered Sharon Shinn quite by accident.

Aubrey is a gifted young student of wizardry who leaves his first teacher, Cyril, who refuses to teach him the "barbaric" art of shape-changing, to study with Glyrenden, a feared and reviled wizard with no scruples. Aubrey, a sociable and kindly man, immediately feels out of place in Glyrenden's strange home, which is also inhabited by Glyrenden's wife Lilith and two servants, all of them distinctly odd. As the novel progresses, Aubrey's feelings of indifference to Lilith change into obsession, his powers grow faster than even Glyrenden can imagine, and he is tempted by the power that has become his. ( )

What an almost perfect little book. The ending though, or rather the epilogue: it was though she could not forgoe the happy romance-novel finish, or the chance of it. She left an alternative, but that was believing Lilith burned in the fire, in the Grove, so carefully guarded. At least she did not let Aubrey overpersuade Lilith. That would have diluted the story unbearably.The first time I've seen a good portrayal of a good wizard, a happy-in-magic wizard: some real sense of joy in his abilities, even if they have a dark side. And contrasted was Gyrenden's very unpretentious, low key, comprehensive evil. He wasn't a threat to the world, probably a benefit to the realm overall given the services he did for the king. I don't think he even indulged in mass murder, and when he coerced the coach-driver, it was just to make the man finish his job, and he paid him extra. And he tortured animals, of course. ( )

This novella was quite enchanting. Plot points are revealed a little at a time so you are figuring out the story as you go and there is no need for large dumps of information on the main characters. ( )

An excellent, light fantasy novel. The premise is simple - Aubrey goes to Glyrenden the master shapechanger to learn more advanced magic. But the master mage holds dangerous secrets, and his wife is far more than she seems. This story had a great twist at the end when the readers learns the true nature of Lilith. I have read many shapeshifter novels, but this is the first to surprise me. Well worth reading. ( )