Lee Welch - Seducing the Sorcerer

Homeless and jobless, Fenn Todd has nearly run out of hope. All he has left is his longing for horses and the strength of his own two hands. But when he’s cheated into accepting a very ugly sackcloth horse, he’s catapulted into a world of magic, politics and desire.
Fenn’s invited to stay at the black tower, home of the most terrifying man in the realm: Morgrim, the court sorcerer. Morgrim has a reputation as a scheming villain, but he seems surprisingly charming—and sexy—and Fenn falls hard for him.
However, nothing is as it seems and everyone at the tower is lying about something. Beset by evil hexes, violent political intrigue and a horse that eats eiderdowns, Fenn must make the hardest choices of his life.
Can a plain man like Fenn ever find true love with a scheming sorcerer?

Comment: I liked another book written by this author and upon seeing positive reviews about this one, although I wasn't even aware of it until then, I decided to get it and try it too, hoping it would be a story mixing romance and fantasy, like the first one did.

In fact, in this book we meet Fenn Todd, a forty something man who is down on his luck, and in an attempt to get some money, he recklessly accepts the offer for a job and is even more surprised when the employer says he will give him a horse instead. Having been a groom in his youth and loving horses, the offer does seem too good to be true, but Fenn goes along with it. Of course, the offer was just to humiliate him, for the horse is only a doll with the shape of a horse. Fenn is practically forced to leave with it and eventually stops and hides with it, resting for the night. In his sleep he dreams of horses and the good memories from his past, and in the morning no one is more surprised when the "horse" comes to life in his animated shape and starts following him around. Somehow, he finds himself riding the horse, and it takes flight, taking him to the tower where resides the greatest magician of the realm. Fenn is scared but he thinks if there's a person who can help is Morgrim, the sorcerer... but as Fenn spends more time at the tower, the more at home he feels too...

I don't think it's necessary to keep summarizing the plot because any romance reader sees where this is going, isn't it? Fenn and Morgrim start quite cautions towards one another but as time goes by and the more they interact, the more they realize there's something between them. The romance isn't insta-love in the sense they jump each other right away, the author has allowed some tension to build and an emotional bond to be established before they do get intimate.

I should say this was my favorite part of the novel, how sweet the romance is and how romantically it develops because both protagonists are wary, uncertain of their own worth at times and of course I felt I had to root for them. The romance part was pretty much perfect until a certain point, as a matter of fact, at least when it came to how their personalities were presented, how they did small things for one another without expectations and there were many scenes where we could see they would be a good couple when they admitted their feelings.

Sadly for me, the last section of the story, romance-wise, was a let down. I suppose I can see why the dynamics changed, to suit what was going on with the story (as a sort of counter balance perhaps), but personally I don't enjoy stories with the new dynamic the author added to their relationship and although recognizing it can be a matter of writing, this wasn't a case where I felt my impression was changed for the better.

The world building is also well done, this is a fantasy world where magic exists and Fenn sees himself in the middle of that and also of some politics, a minor part of the story which, in my opinion, was also dealt swiftly at the end, which means the big focus is character driven. Still, as the story develops, we are told many things about the world, about the way things work and the author's imagination is clear and vibrant, I kept expecting something new to happen or to be shared by the characters.

The plot offers some surprises close to the end and one of them was a good one, which i didn't see coming. I kind of wish, though, that more of this would have had a better progress instead of the focus on the silliness of the main characters new dynamics, for it felt the end was somewhat rushed, in comparison with the amount of attention given to it throughout the novel. I feel conflicted for I feel some elements were enough to give us an idea, whereas others weren't expanded as well as they could have.

Nevertheless, I prefer to think about the sweet moments here and there and that is why my grade is more positive than what would be if I were to focus on what I liked less.

Grade: 7/10

Lee Welch - Salt Magic, Skin Magic

Lord Thornby has been trapped on his father’s isolated Yorkshire estate for a year. There are no bars or chains; he simply can’t leave. His sanity is starting to fray. When industrial magician John Blake arrives to investigate a case of witchcraft, he finds the peculiar, arrogant Thornby as alarming as he is attractive. John soon finds himself caught up in a dark fairytale, where all the rules of magic—and love—are changed.
To set Thornby free, both men must face life-changing truths—and John must accept that the brave, witty man who’s winning his heart may also be about to break it. Can they escape a web of magic that’s as perilous as love?

Comment: I got interested in this book after it was chosen to be part of the "best of" lists of 2018 of some readers whose opinion I tend to share. Most opinions are so positive that I felt like it would be something I'd like to read as well.

In this story we meet Soren, lord Thornby, a young man who has had a very unburdened life despite the death of his other at a young age and the seemingly indifference of his father. Things change one day when his father forces him to go to their estate so he can think about marriage but when Thorny decides to leave, he physically can't and it does look like something out of the ordinary is happening.

After more than a year a prisoner of his father's estate, Soren finally has hope because his stepmother has invited a magician to help her and maybe he can help Soren too.

The problem is that the more this magician, John Blake, tries to find magical evidence of why things are so weird in the isolated estate, the less he understands. Then, he also has to consider his attraction to Soren and how that will affect them as a couple after the secret of Soren's family is finally out...

It's true this was a very good story and I must say closer to the end it got to be quite emotional. I wouldn't say the end was as wonderful as it could but I respect the fact the author didn't create a conclusion to this as magical as the story's content, which might be unbalanced.

However, the story itself is very rich in details and amazing scenes, some of them also a little creepy at times, which means this was well thought from the start.

I was quite amazed by this story and the sort of details the author has included. Many have raved about the fact this is the author's first  published work and the truth is that this did sound well accomplished. It's also known that the edition was done by people who have the ability an the talent to but the story itself has all merits as well.

The use of magic as the paranormal element was well done and was the fact the characters had more to them than what would be obvious.

The fact Soren can't leave the estate was quite intriguing. I was quite curious to see why and the explanation is obvious after a certain detail is hinted at. The magical elements related tho this felt too much at times but when the plot gets close to the end and surprises are finally revealed, many of the other little things make all sense at last. 

I think the atmosphere and the secrecy involved made the story have a creepy sense here and there. Some passages were very suggestive and not in a "magic is great" kind of way. I must say the writing and descriptions were well accomplished.

Soren is a good character and I was always interested in him and his despair to leave, to gain freedom - what a broad meaning this ended up having! - but the fact he and John started to have feelings for one another also made things complicated. The end was more emotional for this, he conflict of what it is to have the chance to be free and to know someone cares about him but can't follow.

I suppose that one element that could have been better done was the romance. They shared good scenes together but I think the romantic connection could have been done more obviously. Things felt a bit too quick between them, the emotions I mean. It was a given they were physically attracted but the depth of feelings was done in a fast manner that despite the final part where it was more than clear they were in love didn't stop me from thinking that this element through the story wasn't as good.

John Blake is a fascinating character too, I loved the fact he was a simple man, not flashy nor over confident but he wanted to help and be kind to those he felt needed his help even without asking.

I really felt for him at the end, when he had so many doubts n what to do and what to feel when he believed a certain situation to be final. I think this is where the author did her best, the final pages were quite a punch in what they represented and I was certainly rooting for the characters to find common ground and an HEA.

Thinking about this book as a whole, the story was very good and the execution too. There were some not so good details and speculating a little bit, perhaps the magical content/world could have broken some rules we usually expect to be met in the genre. I don't have the talent to re-write the story but I'd have chosen other elements to explore and maybe that could have allowed some little situations to gain more importance in the bigger scheme of things, like John's type of magic and how he and Soren found a way to be together.

This was a good story, I liked the small details on how magic was such an important part of the plot and the motivation for the main couple to act and react.

The secondary characters were also done in a good enough way that they didn't feel superfluous nor did they "steal" the attention from the protagonists and their tasks.

I think I'll be interested in reading more by this author, for certain.

Grade: 8/10