The Mage's Daughter

I liked the first book in this trilogy, Star of the Morning, enough that I had hardly turned the last page before I dove into the sequel, The Mage's Daughter. I felt like I was reading a totally different series, about characters I'd never met before, and didn't like all that much. In Star of the Morning, Morgan was tough, no-nonsense, and a good leader. The force of her personality convinced a passel of hardened men to follow her lead, and she was competent enough to handle the responsibility. In The Mage's Daughter, Morgan is frail and weepy, constantly in need of reassurance, always following someone else's lead. At first, I understood. She almost died at the end of Star of the Morning, after all, and it takes time to recover. She show more learns a few things about her ancestry that are hard to swallow, and that would knock anyone off balance. A quarter of the way through the book, I was glad the author took the time to show us that even heroes are human. Halfway through the book, I was ready for Morgan to act a little bit more like herself. And from there on out, I just started getting mad. Who, I wondered, is this weepy little miss who couldn't take care of a potted plant, let alone a troupe of adventurers? Not the same leading lady I got to know in Star of the Morning, that's for sure.

And Miach...well, admittedly, Miach is dealing with the new, feeble Morgan, not the old spunky one, but that doesn't really excuse his behavior. In Star of the Morning, Miach was troubled because the woman he loved was a magically gifted warrior, fated to live a dangerous life. But he loved her confidence and determination, and he had a lot of respect for her. He didn't try to upstage her position as head of their traveling band, and trusted her to guard his back in a fight. He worried for her, but he understood that fear was simply the cost of loving a woman like Morgan. In The Mage's Daughter, Miach treats Morgan like a delicate piece of glass that will break if it's exposed to a vigorous breeze. He keeps her out of the loop as he continues to investigate the evil threatening Neroche, he doesn't discuss his discoveries with her, and he won't accept her aid. Even as it becomes increasingly clear that Morgan's help is essential to his success, Miach schemes to keep her out of danger.

Star of the Morning was a fantasy romance about two strong, powerful people who fall in love. Miach and Morgan were equal partners, stronger together than apart. The Mage's Daughter is a damsel in distress novel, and Miach gets to perform all the heroic deeds. He's pushed to the limit, juggling the herculean tasks of saving his country from disaster and winning his lady-love. It was the opposite of what I hoped to see. Once the romance fell apart for me, the weakness of the fantasy elements was doubly apparent. What is this evil, and why is it always described so vaguely? What are these nightmare creatures, and could I get a decent description of them? The nature of magic in the Nine Kingdoms is a little frustrating too - it's so plentiful, and there's no system of checks and balances.

I think I'm done with this series. Kind of a shame, since it started out with so much promise. show less

{second of 10 in Nine Kingdoms series; fantasy, magic, romance, elves, dragons, sorcery}

I found this a bit disappointing after having enjoyed the first one so much that I borrowed this sequel straight away. Morgan of Melksham, the shield maiden, was seriously incapacitated at the end of [Star of the Morning] and hovers at death's door for a while. Miach, the archmage of Neroche, keeps a magical eye on her from afar - being preoccupied by a still unidentified threat to the kingdom which keeps eroding his wards. Suddenly he can't sense her anymore and, fearing the worst, abandons his brother's (the king) wedding and rushes to Melksham to discover what has happened to her. He ends up staying on the island for over a month and then going on show more a journey to investigate the evil magic insidiously eating away at the integrity of Neroche and the other of the Nine Kingdoms, all the while trying to shore up his magical defences.

About the first two thirds of the book just seemed to be Miach trying to convince Morgan that he loved her/ Morgan discovering that she loved him. And just about everyone was constantly on the verge of bursting into tears, even the men; mind you, Morgan was the only female in the book (apart from a couple of glimpses of the elven queen). Granted, she did have an excuse for being emotionally fragile, having just been almost fatally poisoned, but it totally contravened her personality in [Star of the Morning]. (From chapter 14):

It was a truly alarming turn of events. She was a hardened, seasoned mercenary with scores of sieges and battles under her belt, yet all she seemed to be able to do of late was weep and cling to a man as if she couldn’t stand up on her own.

There were a lot of emotional reactions from different people throughout the book which I didn't connect with. I also felt there was a lot of repetitive dithering; from Morgan as to whether she loved Miach enough to overcome her distrust of mages and magic and accept her heritage and from Miach as to how to protect Morgan from ... just about everything. I found this quote (from chapter 26) ironic:

The feeling that washed over her was every bit as unpleasant as the one she’d experienced when Miach had told her about her parentage at Lismòr. She thought, for a moment, that she just might be ill—she who had never shied away from the difficult.

It seemed to me that Morgan had spent the whole book 'shying away from the difficult'. Maybe I just wasn't in the right mood to read it - it's due back on Overdrive in the next 20 hours with other borrowers waiting on it so I rushed through it and finished it in the nick of time.

The one third of the book which had actual plot was a continuation from the first book of trying to discover the source of evil which was undermining the defensive spells of the kingdom of Neroche and how to fight it and I would have been less frustrated with the story if that had been the focus instead. We did get to find out about different sorcerers, wizards and elves of legend and even meet some of them, since they live for several human lifespans, and we discovered more about Morgan's family. There was the very occasional spark of the magic that made me enjoy the first book so much - but not enough.

I missed the easy bickering between Miach's brothers from the first book though we do, at least, get to see a bit of that at the end and a little bit of the same between the royal elvish family of Tòrr Dòrainn. As I mentioned in my review for the first book, a map would have been very useful to visualise the physical and political geography of this world which is quite fundamental to the story, not to mention letting me discover which the nine kingdoms (of the series title) are.

This was not a bad book; it was just a let-down for me juxtaposed against the first one, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I'll give the third book a go, since the series seems to have originally been a trilogy, but I might not last for the whole ten.

(March 2025)
3-3.5 stars show less

Don't get me wrong, I like the series overall. I love Miach, he's a total cinnamon roll. Love that this one had more romance than the first. However, do not like the change in character with Morgan. She literally spent the entire book crying or trying not to cry and did absolutely nothing. I mean NOTHING. I get that she's recovering from being poisoned, but come on. Hopefully she gets back to her strong-willed self in the next book. I also hope the action picks up because it is very slow and gets boring at times. I wanted something comforting and not too angsty, and this fits the bill for the most part. But I think a little bit more action to keep you interested would be nice. It feels like most of their time is spent doing nothing but show more traveling and taking turns guarding each other while they sleep. show less

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review. Also my tags may have spoilers in them so be forewarned before checking out full review.

Book Evaluation:
Plot: 🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️
World Building:🌎🌎🌎🌎🌎
Cover:📔📔📔📔📔
Hero: 🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻
Heroine:🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️
Intimacy Level: 🔥.5
Relationship Building: 💒💒💒💒💒
Heart & Feels:💞💞💞💞💞
Witty/Banter/Reaction of Laughter: 😂😂😂😂
Page Turner Level:📖📖📖📖
Ending:🧧🧧🧧🧧🧧
Overall View: ✨✨✨✨✨

First Impressions
The Mage's Daughter is the continuation of the first book in the show more Nine Kingdoms and this continues the saga between Miach and Morgan. The Mage's Daughter is more of a cozier type of read in comparison to the first book "Star of the Morning". This is more focused on the actual romance between Morgan and Miach and so it will be a different kind of pace than what you see in the first book. But I feel like this type of book is what is needed for this couple. I honestly loved seeing a more cozy feeling in this story and will leave you swooning and breathless in that beautiful ending.

First Line
Winter's Chill hung in the air like thousands of polished silver shards, poised to fall soundlessly to the ground.

The Main Protagonists
The Hero: Miach of Neroche
The Heroine: Morgan of Melksham

Summary
Morgan has fled to a sanctuary that doesn't allow any magic and is recovering from a injury and a broken heart. Miach is determined to find the woman he loves and repair what he damaged. He needs to know that she is safe and protected and happy no matter what happens to him. But he knows that he will have to sacrifice to prove himself to her. But there is a lot more happening in their world and Morgan will have to face the truth if she wants to survive the coming tides of magic. But the love and she Miach continue to build will be their foundation for what is to come...

What I Loved
The Mage's Daughter was brilliant and I loved it more than I did the first book. Although I think if I had physically read Star of the Morning instead of the audio version, I probably would have enjoyed it a bit better if I am being honest. I am so glad that I decided to come back to this series because this book really hit the spot just right. I loved the way in which we see everything come together in this one here. The romance....the wooing and courting ...the secrets being revealed and the third act there that just leaves you in suspense and excitement for what is coming next was superb. Lynn Kurland has such a voice in her writing that delivers all the heart and now I am seeing glimpses of what makes this series so well loved.

The ROMANCE is key to this book. There isn't too much happening plot wise to be honest. There are some little things here and there and some secrets being revealed .....however the focus of the book is their relationship. And I have a feeling book three will have plenty of plot happenings and less romance so I am grateful that this author took the time to really focus on the relationship in this one. The way in which Miach is willing to sacrifice so much for Morgan, to help her realize her own strength and identity and the way that he goes about to "woo" her was so captivating. You just don't see that in modern fantasies anymore. And I was ALL IN for that. Loved the drama with her grandfather and other family members though, and I can't wait to see them find their HEA as its well deserved.

What I Struggled With
The pacing was a bit slow at first until I realized it was meant to be a bit more cozier and less paced as the first book and then I really settled into it better. If you know going into it, its not as thrilling plot wise especially at first, you will adjust better to it.

Overall View
The Mage's Daughter takes you on a adventure of spell binding magic, a epic beautifully crafter fantastical world and a love that is worth fighting for...

Book Details (also in my shelves)
Sub Genre: Epic Fantasy Romance
Character Types: Protector, Assassin/Mercenary Heroine, Royalty, Mage
Themes: Heart/Emotionally Touching, Woo/Courting, Saving The Damsel, Caretaking, Pining Hero
Tropes: Epic Love, Forbidden Love, Friends to Lovers

Book Perspective
3rd POV

Relationship Conflict vs Plot Conflict
Both but more focus on the relationship than plot in this book

If you like these authors, I recommend This Book
C.L. Wilson
Jeffe Kennedy
Sharon Shinn

Song This Book Inspires
Power Over Me by Dermot Kennedy

Recommendation For Reading Order
Yes, you need to read these books in order if you can. Or at the very least the couples in order.

Steam/Spice Explanations

Simmering cup of tea---soft warm touches and light intimacy show less

Moving on in the Nine Kingdoms series, the best book of the first trilogy is the second one, The Mage's Daughter. In this book, Morgan has to make a choice. To take on her magic and her past, and in exchange have the chance to build a lasting love with Miach, or to run away from her past and her magic and lose Miach in the bargain. But Miach is not willing to let Morgan go quietly into the night. He is willing to fight for her - and fight for her he does! :)

This is the best book of the first trilogy for me because it is far and away the most romantic of all the Nine Kingdoms books. The gentle love story that was set up in the first book comes to full life in this book. We see Morgan and Miach come to terms with the quest that they show more realize is before them and we see Morgan grow into the young woman she was meant to be before circumstances took it away from her.

If I had one criticism of this book, which I really don't, it is that this book doesn't have much action til the end. The first 3/4 of the book focuses on the relationship between Miach and Morgan and not much else happens. For me, that was not a problem! :) In fact, I loved that about this book since I came to Nine Kingdoms from Kurland's other books which are romance novels. However, I will warn that it is possible that one could be turned off of the fact that the book doesn't move along much in terms of events until the end. show less

Si bien me gustó y pasé un buen momento con su lectura, se me hizo pesado, si bien pasan muchas cosas en este libro es como que los personajes fallan en algún punto... aunque esté justificado por la historia.. no me gustaron tanto como en el primer libro.

I am thuroughly enjoying Lynn Kurlands departure from her usual fare (time traveling romance... really fun and enjoyable time traveling romance...).

The Mage's Daughter is the second in her Nine Kingdom's trilogy. The kingdom of Neroche continues to be assulted by a mysterious magic that is sapping the king's powers and confounding the king's brother Miach as he tries to protect the kingdom.

As he tries to enforce protective shields - - he is also following his hearts desire - Morgan of Melksham - how turns out to be much more than a wily shieldmaiden. Morgan must make an important decision to accept (or not) her heritage. For she is much more than a simple mercenary. And she is connected to the mysterious black magic that is seeping into show more Neroche.

This book was enjoyable. Kurlands sense of self deprecating humor is remarkable and the banter between the main and secondary characters were definite highlights. show less