Chanting the Storm

Chanting Trilogy #3

by Marylyle Rogers

The setting sun turned Anya's hair into a golden aura as she secretly communed with the woodland spirits. She beseeched them to hasten the arrival of Evain, the handsome Druid sorcerer she had adored since her earliest childhood days. Yet a match with her, a maid born of a Saxon father and linked to the new ways, was impossible, even though Evain seemed to look upon her bewitching beauty with a lover's desire.

Honor-bound not to take Anya in passion, Evain had avoided his feelings and Throckenholt Keep until he heard her family's plaa to use his powers to find a missing warrior. He never suspected Anya's desperate plan -- to sneak away and join his perilous rescue mission. But as they came together in the lush woodlands, the temptation of sweet innocence and forbidden desire could not be denied. Warmed by fire-lit kisses, a force stronger than their evil foes burst into light ... and against a corrupt and deadly intrigue, the vibrancy of love was their only hope, born of a woman's heart and a man's soul joined in...

Genres: Romance, Historical

336 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1994

Reviews

[Adriana · Rating 1 out of 5]

Chanting the Storm by Marylyle Rogers

The description of the book I am listing below is from the back jacket of the book. I'm adding it because I believe the one on the Goodreads page does not depict this story.

The setting sun turned Anya's hair into a golden aura as she secretly communed with the woodland spirits. She beseeched them to hasten the arrival of Evain, the handsome Druid sorcerer she had adored since her earliest childhood days. Yet a match with her, a maid born of a Saxon father and linked to the new ways, was impossible, even though Evain seemed to look upon her bewitching beauty with a lover's desire.

Honor-bound not to take Anya in passion, Evain had avoided his feelings and Throckenholt Keep until he heard her family's plea to use his powers to find a missing warrior. He never suspected Anya's desperate plan—to sneak away and join his perilous rescue mission. But as they came together in the lush woodlands, the temptation of sweet innocence and forbidden desire could not be denied. Warmed by fire-lit kisses, a force stronger than their evil foes burst into light ... and against a corrupt and deadly intrigue, the vibrancy of love was their only hope, born of a woman's heart and a man's soul joined in...

[MC · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad for a mythical romance adventure; some of it felt like I was thrown into the middle of a story (as in I wondered if there was a prequel to this one), just because of the history that the characters kept referring to, or perhaps it was in the way they did. I could have used a little more buildup to the male lead's realization that his love was not in fact forbidden (kdramas will forever have me spoiled on this). I was also honestly expecting some sort of hint at the very end that the *spoiler alert* one time the female & male leads "gave in" to their desires would result in a baby!

I did find this author's take on Druids quite intriguing - that the woman raised Christian would see the use of natural powers as simply an extension of the Christian God's trust in humanity, as well as what druidic powers would look like when used, or what rules were in place for druids. (The author does include an introduction stating there is much lost to time about the Druids, so modern humans have a lot of license to interpret how the Druids operated.)

I also liked the vernacular and phrasing the author used - it felt fitting to the epic tale, like how one would expect a story like this to sound (think LOTR/other high fantasy).

Not the best story, but interesting enough to keep my attention. Might read other books by this author.



PLOT

Anya is half-Druid, and according to the dwindling Druid beliefs, only those of pure blood can wield the forces of nature and be tutored in this secret knowledge. Yet she has loved her "foster brother" Evain since before she could walk or talk - how unfair that Evain's Druidic duties to pass on pure Druid blood would prevent them from being together.

Now that Anya is no longer a child, she decides to sneak away from home to follow Evain and possibly help him in his current quest: to rescue her brother-in-law from the scheming Bishop Wilfrid, who wants nothing more than to wipe out the remaining Druids from the land (ancient Britain). Will Evain take her home immediately, or will the desperate need to finish his mission force him to keep Anya far too close, a temptation she too eagerly wishes to be? What happens when Anya discovers she actually CAN influence nature in the way a full-blooded Druid can? Will they be able to save Throckenholt Keep?