Shadow Spell

As my previous reviews will attest, my love for Nora Roberts runs hot and cold, depending on the book/series. Although this is book two in the Cousins O'Dwyer series, I had not read number one.

The premise for SHADOW SPELL is interesting: dual time lines, a circle of witches several hundred years apart but related by blood, the classic battle between good and evil. The setting is brilliant - near Ashford Castle in Ireland, where the author includes detailed descriptions of the stables and falcon/hawk mews. The hero is a witch and a falconer, and we accompany him on a hawk walk. The heroine is a horsewoman who's handy with a sword. The combination has the potential for pure magic.

Unfortunately, there are chinks missing out of the story. show more Scenes seem disjointed, without transitions to keep the reader oriented. Several times I found myself wondering, "Wait - one minute we're in the kitchen, the next we're out in the fields." Since the heroine is not a witch and falls several times under the "shadow spell," some of this confused, dreamlike state is to be expected. But in other places it seemed as though the author simply failed to write effective transitions.

And speaking of the kitchen: I have never read a book where so much of the "action" takes place in the kitchen, with the characters cooking and eating. Some of the important discussions between the characters accompanies this meal planning/cooking/eating frenzy, but in many cases it seemed like the author was simply padding the word count. Did it really matter exactly what they ate for breakfast every single morning?

That being said, no one can deny Roberts' skill at weaving words. Her musical prose, along with the excellent narration (I listened on Audible) by Alan Smyth kept me listening to the very end. An end that promises a sequel, yet satisfies for this hero and heroine.

I wonder which pair of characters will star in the next book? show less

Falconer Connor O’Dwyer is part of a circle of friends and family battling an ancient evil that has stalked their family, one that dates back to 1263 when their ancestor Sorcha, the Dark Witch, did battle against the sorcerer Cabhan, whom she cursed and almost destroyed. One of Sorcha’s last acts was to imbue three copper bracelets with power and tie the horse, the hawk and the hound as protectors to her three children. Conner, his sister Branna and cousin Iona each inherited one of the amulets. But now Cabhan is stalking Connor's life-long friend Meara Quinn, seeking a weak link to break the circle of six. Meara and Connor’s paths cross almost daily, as Connor takes tourists on hawk walks and Meara guides them on horseback. That show more there is an attraction there is obvious to everyone but themselves. But when Connor has a brush with death the two are drawn more deeply to each other. Meara has issues with her father abandoning the family, and Connor has had many women in his life but no serious solid relationship. Cabhan stalking Meara is bringing out a deep rage in Connor which may effect the others. Great to be transported to mystical Ireland once again. show less

I'd give 4 stars for the witchy part of the story, but the poetic speeches that are part of the romance dimmed the appeal of the book for me. It was still a worthy read, but realistically only 3 stars for me.

I first ordered Dark Witch because I thought it was going to be a paranormal story and it is, but in my naiveté about the romance genre and it's authors, it didn't really click with me that I had bought a book that was a romance first, and a paranormal read second. Still, I enjoyed it enough, and I was invested enough in the witchy part of the story, to want to see the big bad conquered and knew I was in for all three books.

Shadow Spell is the story of Meara and Conner. She's pragmatic and strong and unfortunately a big walking show more cliche of "i-have-father-issues-and-will-never-let-myself-love-any-man". Conner is everybody's best mate and brimming with optimism and love. I'll stop there since this is such a well-worn device it's almost a spoiler in itself. Still, what little I've read of Nora Robers so far has left me a bit disappointed that she's fallen back on the 'damaged goods' plot device for this book. Luckily, in keeping with what I have read so far, we aren't made to constantly be drowning in the love; it's nicely balanced out with the parallel plot line involving the three witches.

I am enjoying the paranormal story arc; the battle over the centuries between The Three and Cabhan, the evil, witch? sorcerer? Not sure what to call him, but he's deftly written so that the reader does not doubt that he's ruled by lust, greed, hunger for power. No redeeming qualities at all. Black vs. White, Dark vs. Light. I'm pretty sure I've cottoned on to how they'll ultimately defeat him, but until I find out if I'm correct or not, I'm enjoying watching the battles and preludes to war.

Family, the power or friendship and love are constant themes as I suspect they are in all Ms. Roberts books, and while it's a bit heavy handed at times, she makes it work well enough.

The third book will be, I think, the one I'll like best for lots of reasons, but the dynamic between Branna and Fin seems to me the one that offers the least possibilities for gooey romance. Only one way to find out, and I'll be looking forward to the next, and last, book. show less

sigh

I carried on with this series because I'm generally a Finisher and the story concept is actually very good. The setting is perfect -- Ireland, complete with a castle, a falconry school and horses. There's a little witchy cottage with a garden and a shop that sells magical lotions and potions. ALL things that should, in theory, appeal.

BUT, I'm struggling to connect with any of these characters...and I'm not entirely sure why. I feel like the fantasy/paranormal/magical realism elements are merely a set-dressing for the ongoing romances...I'm going to make a wild prediction that the third book will tidily settle things between Branna and Fin. There's just so much more that I think could be done with the story, so much more potential show more but it never quite goes deep enough for me.

Anyway.

I have the third one on hold from the library and so will more than likely finish the series...clinging (perhaps vainly) to the hope that it'll all redeem itself in the end. Or, I'll continue to not give a rat's backside whether they sort it all out or not because their efforts are feeble and without genuine commitment and so deserve to spend the rest of their lives haunted by their malevolent nemesis. ;) show less

Overall I loved it but she almost lost me with potatoes in Ireland in 1268 on page 9. NONONONONO. It wasn't until 1570 that the Spanish brought them back to Europe (http://www.potato.ie/history/) and I found that link in 2 seconds.

Meara Quinn is trying to deal with her mother and her own trust issues while Connor O'Dwyer realises that he loves her. Getting in their way is also the power of the evil that is hunting them that is trying to break the ties that are binding the friends.

Yes, the Irish elements are more for an American than Irish audience
and while some of it reflects reality it's through a somewhat distorted lens.

It's entertaining but nothing deep.

Fantastic story of friends to lovers as well as good versus evil. Connor and Meara have been friends all their lives, but that's about to change. There have been hints of the possibility, but neither has taken that step.

The book starts out with a couple of chapters about the original three siblings who were involved in the fight with the evil Cabhan. The main focus is Eamon, the brother and ancestor to Connor. Like Connor, his affinity is to the hawk. Both are protective of their family and friends. Throughout the book, their stories are interwoven in a fascinating way, as they seek a way to destroy the evil that stalks their families.

The relationship between Connor and Meara starts as that of a deep friendship. They accept each other show more for who they are. As the danger for the group increases, things start to change. When Connor is attacked and nearly dies, it brings the simmering chemistry between the two to the surface. Connor is quick to realize that what he feels is love, but Meara resists the idea.

I loved Connor. He is a generally happy man, content in his work with the birds, comfortable in his identity as one of the O'Dwyer witches. He is loyal to and protective of his friends and the current crisis has those instincts working overtime. Besides fighting Cabhan for her safety, Connor also has to fight Meara's fear of commitment. I thought he had an amazing amount of patience as he waited for her accept the realiity of their feelings.

Meara was a strong and independent woman, seemingly fearless, until she has to face her growing feelings for Connor. They've always been friends, but since the troubles with Cabhan began she's felt like something is changing. She's been feeling stirrings of attraction and she doesn't want to. She's afraid of what something like that could do to their friendship. Meara only sees the misery that romantic love can bring, as she has seen what her father's desertion did to her mother. She doesn't want to risk that for herself.

When an attack by Cabhan nearly kills Connor, suddenly Meara is ready to acknowledge and act on the attraction between them. But she refuses to accept that it is more, and really freaks out when he tells her he loves her. This causes her to do something really stupid and puts her in grave danger. Though it eventually brings them closer, they are in for a tough time until then.

The buildup of the trouble with Cabhan is intense. Because they hurt him at the end of the last book (Dark Witch), he isn't up to taking on the whole group. So the focus of his attacks is on trying to hurt them individually. Meara is his target most of the time and we see her strength and that of the others as they come to the rescue. We also see how he takes advantage of her vulnerabilities. I loved seeing how the group of six work with and support each other. Even though Meara and Boyle have no magick of their own, they are still integral parts of the plan. With each new encounter the intensity builds, until they are driven to take action at the end. Of course, as there is still another book to go, they are not completely successful, but the entire event had me in suspense as to how far it would go and if our people would come out safely.

One of the best things about the series so far is the relationships among the six friends. There is respect for who and what they are. Even with Fin having the blood relationship to Cabhan, they all know what side of the battle he is on. I love the fact that they don't judge one another, even when mistakes are made. The problem is discussed and then they move on. I loved seeing the teasing that went on and how they could have fun even in the midst of all that stress. I am really looking forward to the next book with Branna and Fin. I can see that there is something in their history that has them wanting each other but is keeping them apart. I expect that they will have to deal with that before they are able to defeat Cabhan. It should be a wild ride. show less

“If you can’t yet believe you love me, you should believe I love you. I’ve never told you a lie, or not one that mattered, in your life.” – Connor O’Dwyer

Second book in the series, and I gotta say, Connor really helped the whole ordeal here - meaning, if it wasn't for this cutie pie I would have dropped the book long ago, and abandoned ship, errr, this trilogy, I mean.

Cabhan, the big bad evil, is back and even stronger, targetting the group of our six heroes and using some kind of shadow magic to become corporeal. The six will have to become better at teamwork, planning, and fighting, to survive him and to make sure he doesn't attack Sorcha's children to end things before they get started - as he has already proven he can. show more But that doesn't mean they don't have their own personal issues to deal with. Especially Meara Quinn and Connor O'Dwyer. When friendship becomes something much more intense, killing a dark sorcerer seems sometimes much easier...

I've said it before, this reminds me of another series of NR, the one with the Three Sisters Island. Waaaaay too much. And it follows the same problematic steps that the second book of the Sign of Seven did. What were those, you may ask?

Talking. Planning. Describing and explaining dreams and visions to the group of heroes. Aaaaand... repeat. All over again. All the way to the end of the book, where we FINALLY get to see some action.

Don't get me wrong, I like seeing action scenes in Nora's stories. It's just... When it takes toooooo long to come, I'm a little fed up with all the talking and stuff. It explains a lot, yeah, but it's still tiresome on a certain level.

The only thing that kept saving this book from the DNF state was, like I admitted, Connor. That yummy darling was such a sweetheart, I was cooing at my screen and swooning like crazy! The perfect combination between sweet and hot, manly and adorable, romantic and pervertedly goofy. Connor was a fresh breath of a male lead, and reminded me of one of the things this writer does well: create realistic characters, straight out of everyday life. His lines, his jokes, his gestures, everything was flawed perfection, and I loved it.

Now, I don't want to be mean to Meara, but God woman there were times I wanted to strangle you in your sleep! How can someone so funny, so open-minded, so badass... be so stupid?! What is wrong with you!?! Distancing yourself, putting yourself and the team in danger, freaking out - and all because he said the three magic words! IT TAKES YEARS OF DEAD-END RELATIONSHIPS, BROKEN HEARTS, AND A SACRIFICE TO WHATEVER DEMON OR PAGAN GOD WILL BE WILLING TO LISTEN, FOR SOME WOMEN TO HEAR THOSE LITTLE WORDS!!! UNGRATEFUL IDIOT!

Ok, ok, rant's over. Seriously, though, the book owes its four stars to Connor the darling, hands down. Hope Branna doesn't disappoint me the way her bestie did - though, judging by her behavior so far, I wouldn't be betting against it....

“I love you, Connor, and ever will.” – Meara Quinn show less