The Sentinel Mage (The Cursed Kingdoms, #1)

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The Sentinel Mage (The Cursed Kingdoms #1)

3.71 of 5 stars 3.71 · rating details · 280 ratings · 36 reviews

Her magic may be the only thing that can save a prince—and the Seven Kingdoms.

In a distant corner of the Seven Kingdoms, an ancient curse festers and grows, consuming everything in its path. Only one man can break it: Harkeld of Osgaard, a prince with mage’s blood in his veins. But Prince Harkeld has a bounty on his head—and assassins at his heels.

Innis is a gifted shapesh...more

Mass Market Paperback, 448 pages

Published January 25th 2011 by Solaris (first published January 1st 2011)

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Jan 25, 2011 Liviu rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011_release_read, review_fbc, genre-fantasy, read_2011

A huge high expectations book for me and the first book i got in 2011 I read on receive - The Laurentine Spy was such a big personal favorite - The Sentinel Mage was disappointing in content though i still enjoyed the author style and the pages turned by themselves; it is basically 90% a novelization of a standard chase game, where the heroes have to achieve a goal and assorted baddies try to stop them; the characters are ok so far and there is potential there, but the novel has almost zero dept...more

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Apr 22, 2012 Colleen rated it 4 of 5 stars

The Sentinel Mage is the story of a young adult prince who has mage blood defying his father to journey with a group of the hated witches to break a curse that was three hundred years in the making. It is also the story of a young witch (a mage, but that's not how the prince sees it) trying her best to be someone who is older, more mature, and more competent than she is as herself. A secondary plot follows the prince's half-sister and her servants through treachery at home. A third plot follows...more

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Feb 12, 2012 Lucinda rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have just finished reading the new trilogy (book 1) by Emily Gee and i am desperate to read the next installment! This novel was fantastic and really exceeded my expectations as being 'new' i had not herd much about it or the author. I loved the charicters and i also loved reading about shapeshifting and found this element really facinating and truely unique as i have not found many good fantasy authors who have covered this topic so well. The royal court is just as brutal, pomp and ceremony a...more

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Aug 22, 2011 Nicholas rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, reviewed

This was my first foray into the works of Emily Gee, and I have to say that it has encouraged me to add her to the list of authors whose writing I enjoy. The story is not hugely original: ancient curse, chosen but reluctant saviour who embarks on the quest to save the world only after suffering a terrible loss, magic powers passed down by blood, court intrigues, (so far) one sided romantic attractions, these have all been staples of the fantasy genre since its invention. The most unusual factor...more This was my first foray into the works of Emily Gee, and I have to say that it has encouraged me to add her to the list of authors whose writing I enjoy. The story is not hugely original: ancient curse, chosen but reluctant saviour who embarks on the quest to save the world only after suffering a terrible loss, magic powers passed down by blood, court intrigues, (so far) one sided romantic attractions, these have all been staples of the fantasy genre since its invention. The most unusual factor in the book's basic premise is the fact that the heroine, who even very early on in this book is being clearly set up as a future love interest for the reluctant saviour hero, spends a fare amount of the book using her powers to masquerade as a man (feminists of the world would no doubt leap on this fact and decry the book as promoting masculine dominion over downtrodden women everywhere, the LGBT community, on the other hand, may offer a more positive spin). Nevertheless that does not detract from the fact that this is a good story. The world and characters are well realised, and through the course of the book given a reasonable sense of history through stories and legends told by the characters as well as anecdotes about where they come from, people they've known and so on. That is not to say, however, that Gee spends pages and pages developing her world with long sections of exposition, almost every detail is related in some way to the main plot, or its relation is justified by the situation. The plot itself is diverse and reasonably well balanced between action, intrigue, romance and the inevitable travelling scenes that have to happen when your characters' primary method of getting around in the world is either on foot or by horse (although Gee does well to ensure that this last element does not get too dull by using such scenes as opportunities to develop her characters and their relationships with one another). Personally I look forward to the next installment in this trilogy, and I recommend this part to anyone that likes the works of J. R. R. Tolkien, Gail Z. and George R. R. Martin, Robert Jordan or Terry Goodkind. While not quite in the same vein, it is similar enough to be enjoyable.(less)

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Jan 20, 2011 Amanda rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: review-copy, fantasy, series

An ancient curse springs into life, and the only means of stopping it is using the mixed blood of a prince of Osgaard and a mage - Prince Harkeld. The Sentinel mages come to find Harkeld, but discover that he has a learned hatred of magic and distrusts those who seek only to help him. So Innis, the most gifted mage and shapeshifter, is forced to do the forbidden and take the shape of a man so that she is able to protect Harkeld, in order that he can fulfil his destiny.

I so wanted to like this bo...more An ancient curse springs into life, and the only means of stopping it is using the mixed blood of a prince of Osgaard and a mage - Prince Harkeld. The Sentinel mages come to find Harkeld, but discover that he has a learned hatred of magic and distrusts those who seek only to help him. So Innis, the most gifted mage and shapeshifter, is forced to do the forbidden and take the shape of a man so that she is able to protect Harkeld, in order that he can fulfil his destiny.

I so wanted to like this book, I really did. I thought the premise sounded winning, and enjoyed the idea of shapeshifters in a proper fantasy novel (rather than just urban fantasy), but it didn't work for me at all.

This was despite Gee's very accomplished writing. Her prose is smooth and very readable, and broken into little bite-sized chapters that keep the pages turning. Considering that it is just over five hundred pages, I shot through it in the matter of a day or so and it is testimony to Gee's prose that I did so. I love the idea of what she would be capable of with an exciting and unique plot; I genuinely think she would step to the fore as one of the premier female fantasists were that the case.

As it is, Gee saddled herself with a plot that is remarkably high on predictability. Harkeld has to destroy three anchor stones, and there are three novels in the trilogy - I honestly don't think it will surprise anyone that one goes this book, and I'm betting the second will go at the end of the second book. In the third novel of the trilogy I'm anticipating a little tension/race against time/re-emerge of the mage who first cast the curse to shed a minute amount of doubt over the success of the mission. Probably someone will die in that final showdown - maybe in self-sacrifice - and, at the moment, Petrus is looking prime for that role considering his doomed love for Innis who, predictably again, is starting to fall for Harkeld. At the start of the novel Harkeld hates all mages, but is gradually coming around to them - he and Innis will have the start of a romance, then he will realise that Innis has been lying about shifting into a man, and they will have a big falling out. He or she will depart the group at this point. *sighs* I wish it wasn't as predictable as this - none of this first novel in the Cursed Kingdoms presented me with any surprise whatsoever.

I felt that Gee really missed a trick in not emphasising the "woman shifting into a man" element of the plot. Truly, this could have made the novel stand out amongst other fantasy releases this year. There could have been humour, and near misses, and a real sense of the differences between men and women. As it was, the mages discussed how difficult it would be for Innis to truly take on the role of Justen, and then it proved all too easy. Innis fooled the Prince with ease. She became a man with ease, with all those different mannerisms, and different ways of communicating. I can't imagine any woman being able to mimick a man effectively, and it would have been nice to see a hint of distrust from Harkeld in this new armsman of his. *sighs*

Harkeld must be really DAMN stupid as well! The mages manage to fool him with constant switches as to who apes Justen, so that Innis can take some time in her female shape (apparently it is dangerous to stay in one shape for a while - but we never see any hint of this danger; no near misses or anything). All they do is keep going behind rocks and swapping over - surely even the most dense person must realise that different people came back from behind the rock? *sighs*

Although, to be fair, Harkeld could be forgiven for not realising since the characters are pretty much cardboard cut-outs of fantasy characters. The only facet of Harkeld's personality I saw was his hatred of mages and unwanted attraction to Innis. Innis is shy and bites her lip. Petrus is probably the most interesting of all, and he still falls extremely short of genuine characterisation.

As I've hinted, one of the real weaknesses of the novel is that Gee spends a lot of time telling us about problems and issues, but then not showing us how these affect the plot and character. I would have liked to see more practical demonstrations of HOW it is dangerous to stay in one form for too long, for instance.

Honestly, I was so disappointed. Like I said, I REALLY wanted to like this book. The plus side is that I liked Gee's style of writing enough to pick up something else by her, but I don't need to read the other two books in the Cursed Kingdom trilogy to know how this story is going to end. Unless you are after tepid and predictable fantasy, I would give this one a miss. (less)

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Jan 24, 2011 Stefan rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, www-fantasyliterature-com-review

As The Sentinel Mage by Emily Gee begins, a curse is sweeping across the Seven Kingdoms, starting in the east and slowly trickling westwards across the land. Anyone who drinks curse-tainted water becomes a mindless, bloodthirsty monster, attacking friends and family alike. There’s only one way to stop the curse: a royal who is also descended from witches must touch and spill some blood on three stones spread throughout the land. Unfortunately, witches are considered monsters by most of the Seven...more As The Sentinel Mage by Emily Gee begins, a curse is sweeping across the Seven Kingdoms, starting in the east and slowly trickling westwards across the land. Anyone who drinks curse-tainted water becomes a mindless, bloodthirsty monster, attacking friends and family alike. There’s only one way to stop the curse: a royal who is also descended from witches must touch and spill some blood on three stones spread throughout the land. Unfortunately, witches are considered monsters by most of the Seven Kingdoms: victims of an unfounded prejudice that thinks them guilty of a list of unlikely crimes, including blood sacrifice and bestiality. Because of this, it comes as a surprise when a diplomatic delegation of witches arrives at the royal court of King Esger, announcing that one of Esger’s sons, Prince Harkeld, has the blood of witches in his veins. Harkeld is forced to flee the court with the witches, pursued by his father’s soldiers, because Esger wants to take advantage of the devastation caused by the curse and invade a neighboring kingdom... and his own son is the only thing that could save the Kingdoms but hamper his father’s imperialistic plans.

From this basic premise, Emily Gee spins out three main narrative threads. The main one follows Prince Harkeld as he flees his father’s kingdom, pursued by soldiers and protected by a band of mages. Because he is repulsed by anything witch-related, the mages are forced to take turns posing as Justen, a common armsman who can stay at Harkeld’s side, despite the taboo against shape-changing into a different human form. Innis is one of the strongest mages, so she spends most of the time as Justen, but as she is female and forced to remain close to the prince in her male form, some predictable tensions ensue. A second story thread follows Brigitta, Harkeld’s younger sister, who is about to be married off to the much older Duke Rikard, commander of King Esger’s army. Brigitta’s maid Yasma and her trusty armsman Karel are both bondservants, forced to serve the royals so their own families can be free, but they are loyal to their princess because of her innate kindness. The third and final narrative follows Yaumé, a young farmboy whose family members become some of the curse’s first victims. He flees his home and tries to survive as he runs for safety. While this is initially a minor story-line, there are indications towards the end of The Sentinel Mage that Yaumé will become more important in future volumes of the BROKEN KINGDOMS trilogy.

The Sentinel Mage, about 500 pages long, consists of 70 short chapters, so the book reads quickly, and because Emily Gee knows how to tell a story, it reads smoothly too. The pages practically turn themselves, as they say. Unfortunately that’s about the only positive aspect of the book, because from the summary above you can probably tell that the story is so unoriginal and predictable that anyone who reads enough fantasy will probably have encountered at least one or two of its elements before. A prince with forbidden magic in his blood; a princess forced to marry an older noble; a young farmboy forced to flee his home... It almost feels like painting-by-numbers fantasy, which is unfortunate because Emily Gee's story-telling skills are great and could have been applied to a much more interesting tale.

Another issue is the overly repetitive emphasis on certain story elements. Early on in the book, you’ll all too frequently find Harkeld thinking about the mages who save him as monsters. It happens almost every other page for a while, setting up the tension between his prejudices and his latent magical powers in such a grating way that the eventual (and predictable) revelation almost comes as a relief. Later on, Brigitta’s armsman Karel mourns the fate of his princess almost every time he’s on scene, which almost always includes a reference to Duke Rikard “rutting” or “tupping” her against her will. Also, Karel being a relative outsider means he gets mocked and taunted by his colleagues — seemingly almost every time he is in their company. Some of these things could have been mentioned just once or twice, not over and over.

Admittedly, there are some great scenes and clever turns in the novel. The battle scenes involving the shape-shifting mages are exciting — in fact, most of Harkeld’s story line is one big chase scene, so if the issues mentioned above don’t distract you, this could still be a captivating read for you. Also fun: as the mages take turns playing Harkeld’s armsman Justen, they educate the prince in the ways of magic and the nature of the curse by having Justen, feigning ignorance, pose leading questions to the others, which is a neat way of handling an info dump. Unfortunately the entire ruse of having a gender-bending mage-in-disguise who can remain close to the prince is a bit overplayed throughout the book, but the one thing I’m curious about in future volumes of the Cursed Kingdoms is exactly how extreme the prince’s reaction will be once he finds out about this trickery.

If you’re in the mood for a light, fun fantasy novel and don’t mind some predictability and lack of originality, The Sentinel Mage by Emily Gee might be worth a try. Unfortunately, even though light popcorn fantasy can be fun at times, this popcorn is just a bit too bland and stale to be enjoyable.

(This review was also published at www.fantasyliterature.com on 1/24/2011.)(less)

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Apr 13, 2013 K. May rated it 2 of 5 stars

Not what I expected, and not in a good way either.

I'm starting to sense a pattern amongst Emily Gee's novels; although the story lines and the worlds differ, the characters are all quite similar in each novel. They don't seem to have their own distinct personally, which really grates on me.

I also hoped to be captivated, but was left bored and wanting to finish quickly. Post page 400, I'll admit that I started to skim read just to get through the pages and pages and pages and pages of repetitio...more

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Jun 12, 2011 Jackie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, books-i-own

In a distant corner of the Seven Kingdoms, an ancient curse festers and grows, consuming everything in its path. Only one man can break it: Harkeld of Osgaard, a prince with mage's blood in his veins. But Prince Harkeld has a bounty on his head - and assassins at his heels. Innis is a gifted shapeshifter. Now she must do the forbidden: become a man. She must stand at Prince Harkeld's side as his armsman, protecting and deceiving him. But the deserts of Masse are more dangerous than the assassins...more In a distant corner of the Seven Kingdoms, an ancient curse festers and grows, consuming everything in its path. Only one man can break it: Harkeld of Osgaard, a prince with mage's blood in his veins. But Prince Harkeld has a bounty on his head - and assassins at his heels. Innis is a gifted shapeshifter. Now she must do the forbidden: become a man. She must stand at Prince Harkeld's side as his armsman, protecting and deceiving him. But the deserts of Masse are more dangerous than the assassins hunting the prince. The curse has woken deadly creatures, and the magic Prince Harkeld loathes may be the only thing standing between him and death.

On the surface it would seem to be a standard 'hero plus sidekick save the world' story. But it is much more than that. For a start there are 3 strands to this story and all of them have good sympathetic characters that have room to grow and expand.
The first one we are introduced to is an 8 year old survivor of a curse that causes people to kill and drink the blood of anyone they encounter (NOT a vampire). Jaume leaves home always running to keep ahead of the curse that is sweeping through the land, and although he doesn't figure in this book a great deal, I'm sure he will in the next volume.
The second sub story is told from the POV of a soldier in love with the princess he is tasked to guard. Karel is a multidimensional character and I look forward to seeing how he develops into a more visible character. The princess could turn out to be 'kick-ass' as well.
Finally the main hero, Prince Harkeld is the result of years of selected breeding to produce an antidote to the previously mentioned curse(shades of the Bene Gesserit !). He has both royal and mage blood. But the problem is that in this world people who possess mage powers are both feared and hated, and Harkeld struggles to come to terms with his new found abilities.
The power possessed by the title character Innis include both shape shifting and healing attributes and for reasons that become clear fairly early in the book she spends most of her time as a man and acting as a personal bodyguard to the prince.
I think I would have liked a little more explanation of how Innis copes with becoming a man, she seems to deal with it rather well, coping easily with both anatomical and personality differences. But this is a very small quibble and I am looking forward to the next installment very much.(less)

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May 29, 2011 Clare K. R. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, fantasy, library, 2011-pubbed

This book started out kind of slowly, but picked up speed or at least interest as it went. Perhaps a few too many POV characters, but I was drawn along with the three main threads: Prince Harkeld trying to destroy the curse, Jaumé trying to escape it, and Princess Brigitta dealing with her family. I'm utterly thrilled that assassins are (view spoiler)...more

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Nov 08, 2011 Tal rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: library-book, sf-fantasy

Her magic may be the only thing that can save a prince—and the Seven Kingdoms. In a distant corner of the Seven Kingdoms, an ancient curse festers and grows, consuming everything in its path. Only one man can break it: Harkeld of Osgaard, a prince with mage’s blood in his veins. But Prince Harkeld has a bounty on his head—and assassins at his heels. Innis is a gifted shapeshifter. Now she must do the forbidden: become a man. She must stand at Prince Harkeld’s side as his armsman, protecting and...more

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May 05, 2011 Katie rated it 3 of 5 stars

I have been having a hard time finding good fantasy lately. This was a random purchase at the book store but I enjoyed it. The characters are dynamic and multi-faceted. The curse is well developed and the various cultural groups of the world are well conceived. The narrative dragged a bit in some areas, but for the most part kept me reading. The primary weakness of the book are the ill-contrived sexual encounters. They don't add to the plot, the characters or the conflict. Whether real or dream-...more

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Aug 19, 2012 Jade rated it 4 of 5 stars

I quite liked this book. It is what I would call a light fantasy compared to an epic one. The writing flowed really smoothly and I found that I read it quite easily in a day. Looking forward to the next two instalments as the world building has some interesting characteristics that I would like to keep reading about. The only disappointing thing I found was that the main character Harkeld hasn't grown on me - I found his growing fear and hatred towards mages/witches a stumbling block considering...more

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Jan 22, 2011 Ranting Dragon rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: stephan

Emily Gee’s The Sentinel Mage was prominently featured on our list of anticipated novels for January. It is the first volume in her new The Cursed Kingdoms Trilogy.

An ancient curse
In Girond, a small town in the Eastern-most part of The Seven Kingdoms, an ancient curse turns everyone into a killer. Only an eight-year-old boy, Jaumé, escapes the curse, traveling westward on foot. On the other side of the continent, a group of mages confront the King of Osgaard to tell him that only his son, Prince...more

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Oct 09, 2011 Lisa rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011

(originally reviewed on starmetal oak book blog)

When I saw this book months ago, I was really excited and intrigued by the premise. So much so that I requested a review copy and was kindly sent one by the publisher. Unfortunately, the book did not live up to my expectations, however, I do believe I have gained an interest in Emily Gee as an author.

One of the reasons I had trouble with the book is that it is very long while not having much in the way of action. There's a lot of traveling and rep...more (originally reviewed on starmetal oak book blog)

When I saw this book months ago, I was really excited and intrigued by the premise. So much so that I requested a review copy and was kindly sent one by the publisher. Unfortunately, the book did not live up to my expectations, however, I do believe I have gained an interest in Emily Gee as an author.

One of the reasons I had trouble with the book is that it is very long while not having much in the way of action. There's a lot of traveling and repetition in actions by the characters, such as the shapeshifters changing back and forth as the armsman. You see, the Prince loathes mages and ironically must be protected by them. Instead of the mages forcing him to get over his prejudice, they decide to break one of their laws and take the shape of a man. One of the mages charged with this task is Innis because she can stay shifted for long periods of time. On the one hand this seems interesting, but on the other, why? Why go through all that trouble? I just wanted someone to say to the Prince, "get over it!"

I also had problems with the magic. I like to have a lot of magic but only if I can believe it. In this story, mages have special abilities usually ranging from shapeshifting to healing to fire spells. I found that the magic was interesting but I couldn't grasp the cost. Mages are constantly shapeshifting to animals without any apparent harsh effects. Also, people will get seriously injured and a mage will come along and cure them fully. I started to lose the sense of danger quite easily.

Another reason I had trouble is that the story itself lacks the spark I like in my epic fantasy. That spark could have been the conflict of Innis shifting into a man and then falling for the Prince and having to explain everything, but I just didn't get into it as I would have liked. What didn't help was that the prince wasn't very likable. For hundreds of pages he would look at a mage in disgust or perform another childish act of hatred. Innis was more likable but I often found myself frustrated over her passive and naive nature.

On the other hand, the thing I enjoyed most about this book was Gee's writing. It's very direct and concise but also satisfying. I found myself able to consume so much of it in a short period of time. It has an immediacy that encourages you to go forward, even if the story itself isn't doing it for you.

Overall, I would only recommend this book to someone who is particularly interested in this premise. The Sentinel Mage is part one of a planned trilogy.

A review copy was provided by Solaris.(less)

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Jul 23, 2011 Ruth rated it 2 of 5 stars

"c2011. So, I fell for the synopsis again...and forgot that Ms Gee is all for the romance and light on the fantasy. This book was a lot better than the Laurentine Spy which was absolutely awful. Still I do not think that I will be looking out for any in The Cursed Kingdom series."

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Mar 20, 2013 Niffer rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: sf-fantasy

I very much enjoyed this book. The characters were well developed, the fantasy world was unique but not so complicated that you didn't understand what was going on, there's romantic/sexual tension that is well written and doesn't interrupt the storyline. I'm looking forward to the sequels.

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Oct 30, 2011 Melanie rated it 5 of 5 stars

I really liked this book. It reminded me a bit of Tigana (my fav fantasty novel). The environment was not as rich as one of Kay's books but the multi-character plotlines worked which is very much like Kay.

Really looking forward to book 2....now just need to find out when

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Apr 26, 2013 Jud rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, fiction

This is the first fantasy novel written by a NZer that I've read. Not bad. I kept turning the pages because of the refreshingly brief chapters. However, it doesn't leave me wanting desperately to read books two and three of the series. I can probably predict what happens.

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Mar 18, 2013 Venus Smurf rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-to-buy-right-now, read-me-read-me-now

I LOVED this book. I admit that I picked it up only because it came on my Barnes and Noble's "you read this, so read this" list, but I'm so glad I did. The book was so very creative, and interesting, and I honestly enjoyed the fact that even though the main male character started off as a shmuck and didn't really leave shmuck land entirely at the end, there was massive improvement (and plenty of room for a sequel). It was fast-paced and funny, and I'm seriously looking forward to the next book i...more

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Mar 16, 2011 Sara rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really liked this book, the style of writing is easy to get into but some aspects of the story are predictable.
All in all I found this to be a good fantasy story that is enjoyable and entertaining.

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Mar 23, 2012 Rebecka rated it 2 of 5 stars

Moves at a plodding pace, not much of a resolution at the end. Weak character development and underdeveloped side plots make for an unsatisfying read. Not a great stand alone book. Too obviously written to sell a second book.

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Sep 18, 2011 Helen rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, romance

This spoke to me as an under-performing book. I really liked bits of it, but it just didn't grab me. I probably would have finished it even if it wasn't a one afternoon read. Standard fantasy quest whilst being chased plot. Disappointing :S

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Feb 23, 2011 Misti rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was pretty much a typical fantasy novel: 3 different story lines to follow, a group of people on a journey to stop the evil, etc. But sometimes that's exactly what I want to read.

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May 03, 2013 Mary Jones rated it 5 of 5 stars

A great read, and I'm looking forward to the next one in the trilogy.

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Jul 24, 2012 Rayna rated it 4 of 5 stars

Really enjoyed this book - can't wait to read the others in the series!

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Jun 12, 2011 Annekem rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved it, could not put it down. Cannot wait for the second book.

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Jan 06, 2013 Helen rated it 3 of 5 stars

I have mixed feelings about this book. The start of it was excellent and I got pulled into the story really quickly, but somewhere in the middle it started to lose me. I found the ending rushed and pretty ordinary. Not what I was expecting from Emily Gee.
It is clearly the start of the series but I always prefer it if each book makes at least some sense on its own, and unfortunately this one doesn't. Having said that I will end up reading the rest of the series as the characters Gee makes are ve...more

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Aug 17, 2011 Haley rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites, action-romance, back-when

I think...I can't wait for the next installment.

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Aug 21, 2011 Eithne Ni Anluain rated it 5 of 5 stars

One of the best new Fantasy books released this season. Can't wait on the next part!

E

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Sep 16, 2011 Gavin Gates rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Excellent start to a new trilogy, fast paced easy read from the opening page onwards, lovely style of writing, brilliant characters, can't wait for the rest of them

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