The Mage's Daughter

Lynn Kurland

Jan 2008 · A Novel of the Nine Kingdoms · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

Lynn Kurland’s trilogy of love, intrigue, and fantastic destiny continues as a female mercenary fights for her life, her future, and the one man who can save her…

Darkness in the kingdom…

Neroche is under assault by a magic that has stripped its king of his powers and unleashed nightmarish creatures in a war of evil in which Morgan of Melksham is fighting for her life. Recovering from a near-fatal attack, Morgan realizes that she must decide between two fates: that of being a simple shieldmaiden or accepting her heritage as an elven princess. If only she could ignore that she was the daughter of the perilous black mage of Ceangail…

Magic in the blood…

Duty bound to aid his king, Miach of Neroche is torn between what his responsibilities demand and what his heart desires. He is willing to risk his life to rescue Morgan from the darkness that haunts her, but he must do so at the peril of his realm. Forced to choose between love and the burden of his mantle, Miach sets out on his most deadly quest ever.

Ratings and reviews

In the first book I was truly captivated by the story Kurland had set in motion. I loved the clever progression in Miach and Morgan's relationship. However, in book two (the Mage's Daughter), once they were officially going to pursue their love, there was a steady, and somewhat irritating, decline in the quality of the plot. Don't get me wrong, I love a good romance. But, the constant PDA was almost too much to bear. Sure, I found their affections sweet, and I was relieved when Morgan finally realized Miach wasn't as wimpy as he had led her to believe. But, after a while, the constant weepiness on Morgan's part, and Miach's sudden need to keep giving her his coat, again, and again, and again, got more than a little obnoxious. Suddenly, the main plot became the background story, and the rest of it was devoted to Miach's and Morgan's adoration for each other. Soon, around the middle of the book, it became repetitive, and I could tell exactly what was going to happen in a scene before it did. Morgan would steel herself to learn something about her past, she'd see it and weep, Miach would try to comfort her by giving her his coat and letting her drip snot all over his tunic, then, Morgan would insist on running aimlessly in a direction to get her mind off things. After this, they'd have some nice thoughts about each other, they'd kiss tenderly, they'd walk back to wherever it is they ran from, and then they'd repeat the process. This happened about five times. Luckily, the story picked up in the later parts of the book, and I was contented with a dramatic ending, promising an adventure to come. At first, I understood Morgan's behavior. After all, she'd nearly died, found out her dead family was somehow involved in a dark conspiracy, and had to cope with her new found powers, all the while becoming more committed to her boyfriend, whom she refuses to say "I love you" to. Unfortunately, I think Kurland spent a bit too much time describing Morgan's conflictions on whether or not she should rest on Miach's lap, or his knees. Hopefully, in the next book, Morgan won't be quite so wobbly, and the PDA will slow down a bit. Here's hoping!

A good continuation of the Nine Kingdoms novels. I was a bit taken aback that Morgan was portrayed as being much more....feminine and morose then the first book, but one would suppose she would be after nearly dying and finding out who she really was. Very good book!

About the author

Lynn Kurland is the USA Today bestselling author of Stardust of Yesterday, A Dance Through Time, This Is All I Ask, The Very Thought of You, Another Chance to Dream, The More I See You, and If I Had You. She is also a contributor to The Christmas Cat, Christmas Spirits, Veils of Time, Opposites Attract, and A Knight’s Vow anthologies. A full-time writer, she lives in the Pacific Northwest.