I wasnt sure what to expect from this book: funny? dark? serious? Well, hang on, because you get a little of everything.
This book introduces a strong character (Eugenie Markham) right from the start. A couple of times I found myself thinking, Would I do that? while reading about Eugenie handling ordinary (and not so ordinary) problems that have a paranormal twist.
The plot unfolds quickly, with twists and turns that kept me reading well into the night. There are sex scenes and fight scenes, but they are well-balanced throughout the story. The ending is satisfying, yet left me interested to find out what happens next.
This is another great book to add to your reading list! Happy reading!
This book introduces a strong character (Eugenie Markham) right from the start. A couple of times I found myself thinking, Would I do that? while reading about Eugenie handling ordinary (and not so ordinary) problems that have a paranormal twist.
The plot unfolds quickly, with twists and turns that kept me reading well into the night. There are sex scenes and fight scenes, but they are well-balanced throughout the story. The ending is satisfying, yet left me interested to find out what happens next.
This is another great book to add to your reading list! Happy reading!
Helpful Score: 3
Grade: B+
Storm Born is the first book in Richelle Mead's Dark Swan series. Eugenie Markham is a shaman. This means that she can walk two worlds, the natural world and the unnatural. Eugenie has been trained since she was a young girl to banish the unnatural back to their world. Recently, more and more attacks by these supernatural creatures have been aimed specifically at her. She becomes the object of much attention because of a prophecy and these creatures even know her by name. Eugenie discovers that a young girl has been kidnapped by the fey. To get the girl back Eugenie must traverse the unnatural world and face a most dangerous fey. To do that, she needs the help of Dorian, another dangerous fairy king. Along the way she also meets a sexy shapeshifter.
Why has it taken my so long to read Richelle Mead? I loved this book! It was rich with world building. I loved the strange fairy world and the beautiful picturesque descriptions. I found Eugenie to be a very straight forward and endearing character. She is a total hard ass when it comes to banishing the bad guys. She doesn't hesitate. Yet she does have a soft vulnerable side, which makes her very appealing to readers. I liked that Eugenie is a work in progress. She doesn't have all the answers. As she walks among the fairies and she learns more about them, she realizes that maybe she misjudged them.
As far as the romance goes, there is a little bit of a love triangle. I know some readers love that and some readers hate it. This has to be the one time that I really can't pick the hero the heroine is leaning towards. I have my own favorite, but I am not sure if that is who Eugenie will pick. I really enjoyed this first installment of Richelle Mead's new urban fantasy series. I can't wait to see where she takes readers next into this interesting world.
Storm Born is the first book in Richelle Mead's Dark Swan series. Eugenie Markham is a shaman. This means that she can walk two worlds, the natural world and the unnatural. Eugenie has been trained since she was a young girl to banish the unnatural back to their world. Recently, more and more attacks by these supernatural creatures have been aimed specifically at her. She becomes the object of much attention because of a prophecy and these creatures even know her by name. Eugenie discovers that a young girl has been kidnapped by the fey. To get the girl back Eugenie must traverse the unnatural world and face a most dangerous fey. To do that, she needs the help of Dorian, another dangerous fairy king. Along the way she also meets a sexy shapeshifter.
Why has it taken my so long to read Richelle Mead? I loved this book! It was rich with world building. I loved the strange fairy world and the beautiful picturesque descriptions. I found Eugenie to be a very straight forward and endearing character. She is a total hard ass when it comes to banishing the bad guys. She doesn't hesitate. Yet she does have a soft vulnerable side, which makes her very appealing to readers. I liked that Eugenie is a work in progress. She doesn't have all the answers. As she walks among the fairies and she learns more about them, she realizes that maybe she misjudged them.
As far as the romance goes, there is a little bit of a love triangle. I know some readers love that and some readers hate it. This has to be the one time that I really can't pick the hero the heroine is leaning towards. I have my own favorite, but I am not sure if that is who Eugenie will pick. I really enjoyed this first installment of Richelle Mead's new urban fantasy series. I can't wait to see where she takes readers next into this interesting world.
Helpful Score: 1
The characters are interesting and well developed and the plot moves right along. Good begining to a new series
Helpful Score: 1
Richelle Mead is an excellent author. Everytime I start one of her books, I can't stop reading them. This book is no exception. I loved the characters. Ms. Mead creates some witty, fun, energetic characters in this book. Of course, the romance is hot!
This is the first book in the Dark Swan series by Richelle Mead. There are four book in this series: Thorn Queen, Iron Crowned and Shadow Heir. It was an okay read but neither the characters nor the world really grabbed my attention much.
I listened to this on audiobook and the audiobook quality was very good. The narrator wass pleasant to listen to and distinguished between different character voices well.
Eugenie Markham is a powerful Shaman who makes a living banishing spirits and fey. When she takes a case to recover a girl that has been stolen by the Fey she is forced to journey into the Other World. There she discovers startling things about her past and a prophecy that says that her first born will rule the Fey. Suddenly every Fey is interested in being the one to sire a child on her.
I usually love books about the Fey, I love the mythology behind it and the interesting world built around it. Unfortunately this book wasnt as much about Fey as it was about sex. Every Fey thing is trying to rape and/or have sex with Eugenie for a good portion of the book. Seriously there is a lot of sex in this book...so yeah...I guess just be aware of that.
Eugenie is a pretty one dimensional character. In the beginning she dislikes Fey and cant remember her past. We never really learn why she cant remember her past just that eventually she starts to. It would have been nice to have this better explained. The other things we learn about Eugenie are that she likes rough sex and bondage sex. Believe me the sex thing is a major part of her character.
There are two males that feature in this story. The first is Kiyo a gorgeous shapeshifter that Eugenie is very attracted to. He falls in love with Eugenie very quickly and for reasons that arent really ever explained. The second is Dorian, a fairy king with a taste for bondage. Eugenie is willing to have sex with Dorian in exchange for favors that will help her case to rescue a human girl from Fey hands.
I didnt really like any of the characters all that much. They were just so 2D and so very driven by sex. I dont mind sex in my books, but none of these sex scenes were even all that good. The whole thing was just kind of ho-hum.
There are some positives to this book as well, the book does have some awesome action scenes. I also really enjoyed watching Eugenie learn to use her storm magic. The world is an interesting one and I wish we had got to spend more time learning about that than reading about Eugenies luke-warm sex life. I also wish we had gotten to see more different types of Fey, there are some interesting races introduced in this book...but they are talked about so briefly.
This is by far the worst of Meads books. The book is easy to read, but the characters were hard to engage with and the story was predictable and lacked something to really drive the story forward.
Overall a very mediocre urban fantasy. I love fey urban fantasies, but cant really recommend this one. If you want to read an excellent fey urban fantasy series check out Seanan McGuires October Daye series...it is an absolutely stunning series featuring Fey. I wont be reading any more books in this series.
I listened to this on audiobook and the audiobook quality was very good. The narrator wass pleasant to listen to and distinguished between different character voices well.
Eugenie Markham is a powerful Shaman who makes a living banishing spirits and fey. When she takes a case to recover a girl that has been stolen by the Fey she is forced to journey into the Other World. There she discovers startling things about her past and a prophecy that says that her first born will rule the Fey. Suddenly every Fey is interested in being the one to sire a child on her.
I usually love books about the Fey, I love the mythology behind it and the interesting world built around it. Unfortunately this book wasnt as much about Fey as it was about sex. Every Fey thing is trying to rape and/or have sex with Eugenie for a good portion of the book. Seriously there is a lot of sex in this book...so yeah...I guess just be aware of that.
Eugenie is a pretty one dimensional character. In the beginning she dislikes Fey and cant remember her past. We never really learn why she cant remember her past just that eventually she starts to. It would have been nice to have this better explained. The other things we learn about Eugenie are that she likes rough sex and bondage sex. Believe me the sex thing is a major part of her character.
There are two males that feature in this story. The first is Kiyo a gorgeous shapeshifter that Eugenie is very attracted to. He falls in love with Eugenie very quickly and for reasons that arent really ever explained. The second is Dorian, a fairy king with a taste for bondage. Eugenie is willing to have sex with Dorian in exchange for favors that will help her case to rescue a human girl from Fey hands.
I didnt really like any of the characters all that much. They were just so 2D and so very driven by sex. I dont mind sex in my books, but none of these sex scenes were even all that good. The whole thing was just kind of ho-hum.
There are some positives to this book as well, the book does have some awesome action scenes. I also really enjoyed watching Eugenie learn to use her storm magic. The world is an interesting one and I wish we had got to spend more time learning about that than reading about Eugenies luke-warm sex life. I also wish we had gotten to see more different types of Fey, there are some interesting races introduced in this book...but they are talked about so briefly.
This is by far the worst of Meads books. The book is easy to read, but the characters were hard to engage with and the story was predictable and lacked something to really drive the story forward.
Overall a very mediocre urban fantasy. I love fey urban fantasies, but cant really recommend this one. If you want to read an excellent fey urban fantasy series check out Seanan McGuires October Daye series...it is an absolutely stunning series featuring Fey. I wont be reading any more books in this series.
My used book seller recommended this series of books, Storm Born being Book 1. I just don't understand why she recommended it, because I had an easy time putting it down, and read another book in the middle of it.
Richelle Mead doesn't make her main character anybody I like. Just one example is Eugenie gets mad at her boyfriend for fathering a child with someone else, even though that is one of the first questions you ask when dating. I have 3 other books for this series but it will take me a while before I pick up another.
Richelle Mead doesn't make her main character anybody I like. Just one example is Eugenie gets mad at her boyfriend for fathering a child with someone else, even though that is one of the first questions you ask when dating. I have 3 other books for this series but it will take me a while before I pick up another.
Quick read! Wanted it to continue! Looking forward to reading the next in the series.
This is my kind of book - a great read, it kept me coming back over and over until I finished it. It has a great mix of excitement, humor, romance and intrigue all in a great, captivating story. I'll have to check to see if there is a sequel. If so, I'm going to have to get it!
Not a bad start to a new series. Id have to say though my favorite part of this book was without a doubt Dorian he is hands down my favorite character in the whole book. Knowing mead Ill probably start to hate him later, Oh Well. The worse part of the book was without a doubt Kiyo seriously this is the best she could come up with. I mean do we really believe that he cares for her or is he just a secret spy getting close to her waiting to see what she does???? And the way he tries to possess Eugenie is just ridiculous, especially all the talk about how he cant help it because he has to fight with his inner animal oh come on. Eugenie is however a strong lead character who so far isnt the sharpest tool in the shed when she needs to be. I mean sure shes knowledgeable about how to kill things but she know nothing about the gentry at all other than that. I though the overall outcome of this book was good, I might read it again some time.
A decent but not particularly inventive entry in the urban fantasy genre. Mead has an easy to read writing style. The characters and story arc of this new series have potential.
How can you not like a book that starts with a possessed sneaker? Very unique and certainly catches and keeps your attention.
What do you do when everything male in the Otherworld is out to rape you and get you with child? Well Eugenie Markham takes names and kicks ass. She's in fight after fight with all things Otherworldly with the end result brutal rape if she fails. I kinda got tired of the rape threat but the author quickly down played that with death threats instead. Oh yay.
Eugenie is an unbelievably strong shaman who interacts in the Otherworld all the time usually by killing the offending demons and sending them to hell. Now she must cultivate and use Otherworld allies just to survive. Fairy king Dorian and shapeshifter Kiyo are the greatest help but the demons Eugenie controls also give invaluable assistance and boy are the demons sarcastically funny. They are not happy with Eugenie's control of them and aren't shy about telling her. Dorian taunts her sexually and promises so much but Eugenie hates all things Otherworldly and tries to resist his pull. However it's lust at first sight with foxy Kiyo. Reminded me a little of Anita Blake in the beginning when sex with shifters was new and she rapidly acquired boyfriends. I surely hope that the Dark Swan series doesn't head in that direction. One Anita is enough.
What do you do when everything male in the Otherworld is out to rape you and get you with child? Well Eugenie Markham takes names and kicks ass. She's in fight after fight with all things Otherworldly with the end result brutal rape if she fails. I kinda got tired of the rape threat but the author quickly down played that with death threats instead. Oh yay.
Eugenie is an unbelievably strong shaman who interacts in the Otherworld all the time usually by killing the offending demons and sending them to hell. Now she must cultivate and use Otherworld allies just to survive. Fairy king Dorian and shapeshifter Kiyo are the greatest help but the demons Eugenie controls also give invaluable assistance and boy are the demons sarcastically funny. They are not happy with Eugenie's control of them and aren't shy about telling her. Dorian taunts her sexually and promises so much but Eugenie hates all things Otherworldly and tries to resist his pull. However it's lust at first sight with foxy Kiyo. Reminded me a little of Anita Blake in the beginning when sex with shifters was new and she rapidly acquired boyfriends. I surely hope that the Dark Swan series doesn't head in that direction. One Anita is enough.
I have mixed feelings about this book. It was entertaining enough to finish, but I couldn't really connect with the characters. Eugenie Markham is a shaman whose main job is exorcising and killing demons and all sorts of Otherworldly creatures. But suddenly she finds herself a target for all sorts of supernaturals, and to her dismay discovers the secret her mother kept from her - that her father was the legendary Storm King, which makes her half-faerie (or gentry as is called in this book). Not only that, there is a prophecy that the son of the Storm King's daughter will conquer the human world - making her the target of every power-hungry gentry who wants to father her child. Not only does Eugenie have to fight them off, she must also find a way to control her newly awakened power so she doesn't inadvertently destroy everything around her.
Interesting premise, but the book could not completely hold my attention somehow, and it was a struggle to finish it. Perhaps it was just that, being the first in a series, the setup and exposition were a little tedious. However, the toward the end it flowed much better and my interest was revived enough for me to want to read the second book. We'll see how it goes from there.
Interesting premise, but the book could not completely hold my attention somehow, and it was a struggle to finish it. Perhaps it was just that, being the first in a series, the setup and exposition were a little tedious. However, the toward the end it flowed much better and my interest was revived enough for me to want to read the second book. We'll see how it goes from there.
Well written, fast paced book. Excellent charaterizations and world building. I'm looking forward to book two!
OK, maybe I'm just tired of urban fantasy, but this book was difficult for me to even want to turn to the next page. I just wanted the book to end. I can't even explain what turned me off. Maybe I just didn't like the main character, or any of the characters. I bought this book and wish I didn't. Patricia Briggs is so much more my style of authors, and this book Storm Born has me totally confused and let down.
This was a spicy blend of fantasy (between the human realm and the faery realm) and also had some hot scenes reminiscent of romance. A good book. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.
Paranormal/Fanstasy tale by Richelle Mead. Eugenie was trained by her stepfather to be a powerful Shaman. She makes her living banishing otherworldly creatures, fey, demons and spirits who cause trouble on earth. But things are changing. The fey start coming for her, fast and furious. Those that don't try to kill her, want to get her pregnant. And, somehow, they know her real name. Eugenie takes a dangerous assignment in the Otherworld, where all the pieces of her own personal puzzle fall into place, and she learns where her own power comes from. Eugenie's life will never be the same. I enjoyed this book, and am looking forward to the next in the series.
This book is awesome. There is love,sex,lust and lots of action. Richelle Mead is a fantastic author. I love all of her books,.
4 1/2 stars
I read the whole series and LOVED them all!
Interesting book, kept my interest through to the last. Eugenie didn't want anything to do with the Otherworld, but she kept getting sucked back into it. Interesting to me that each world did not see the other world as quite 'human' although the only difference was that magic reigned in one world and technology in the other. In fact, many of the Otherworld people had little or no magic. The only way you could tell the difference was by their inability to touch iron without discomfort. I'll be reading the 2nd book soon.
