Review: House of the Four Winds by Mercedes Lackey & James Mallory

October 31, 2014 4.5 stars, Book Review 10 ★★★★½

Review: House of the Four Winds by Mercedes Lackey & James MalloryHouse of the Four Winds by James Mallory, Mercedes Lackey
Series: One Dozen Daughters #1
Published by Tor Books on August 5, 2014
Genres: Adult SFF, Fantasy, Romance
Pages: 304
Format: Hardcover
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
My Reviews in this series: The House of the Four Winds

*This book was provided by the Publisher for review. No compensation was provided and all opinions are strictly my own.

The tiny nation of Swansgaard is a lovely place with abundant natural resources, including the royal family, which has been blessed with twelve daughters and a son. As this boisterous baker's dozen approaches adulthood, the king and queen lovingly tell their daughters, "You must make your own fortune, for we cannot enrich you without impoverishing our people or leaving our lands defenceless, and that we will not do."

Happily, the princesses of Swansgaard are eager to meet this challenge, for they yearn for adventures both near and far from home.

Clarice, an expert swordswoman, is the first to depart. Disguising herself as Clarence, she signs on for a voyage to the New World. The captain is vile and blackhearted, and the crew soon mutinies. Clarice becomes first mate - and finds her heart captured by the new captain, Dominick, who is, to his own surprise, increasingly attracted to Clarence.

Now outlaws, Dominick and his crew turn to piracy - though their hearts are not entirely in it. They soon run afoul of the Pirate Council, who orders them to retrieve the Heart of Light. All who have searched for this great treasure have vanished, with neither ships nor crews ever seen again and no sign of their fates ever discovered.

But none before have carried with them the sorceress Shamal, who stakes a claim of her own on Dominick's heart.
four-half-stars

I am a huge fan of Mercedes Lackey’s style of writing. Non-pretentious, generally happy with well thought out plot lines fantasy. House of the Four Winds delivers on every mark!

House of the Four Winds is a new series, set in an alternate earth where magic (called Thurmautagy) exists. Our heroine is one of 12 princesses from a small royal duchy called Swansgaarde. Her name is Clarice. With the birth of an prince and heir, Clarice and her sisters must find a way to make it themselves in the world to avoid beggaring their Duchy with the cost of 12 dowries. As each girl comes of age, she will set off on her own to follow her dreams.

BEWARE POSSIBLE SPOILERS beyond this point as I’m summing things up! – So if you want to read the summary go ahead but be warned – Yarrrr

View Spoiler »

End Spoilers

Overall, this book was wonderful! I love a novel that has enough story and interest to keep me occupied without going into exhaustive detail. A map would have been nice, but I think it is set on Earth with everything having similar sounding names. The promise of 11 (possibly 12) more books makes me light headed with joy! House of the Four Winds reads like a YA Romance to me, as there is no hanky panky and the plot is solid and well explained. If each princess and the prince gets a novel with cameos from characters in previous novels gushing about how wonderfully happy they are… there you go. Romance series.  I would recommend this to all female friends, family members and teenage girls who are looking for a little adventure, a little fantasy and a little love. A winning combo to me, and I am looking forward to more!

Maggie

Maggie

When not taking care of my two children, husband and mini doxy, rushing here and there on the go, I can always be found reading. Fantasy of course being my favorite genre, but not the only I'll read. Oh yes, and I throw bad books.
Maggie

Latest posts by Maggie (see all)

Related Posts

10 Responses to “Review: House of the Four Winds by Mercedes Lackey & James Mallory”

  1. Nathan (@reviewbarn)

    Not sure what to make of this. I am not a huge fan of Romance though I have read some good examples of it in fantasy. Worse, I have a copy sitting on the shelf. Had no interest in picking it up but can’t bring myself to get rid of it.
    Nathan (@reviewbarn) recently posted…The Requisite Halloween PostMy Profile

  4. Dragana

    I love how this book sounds. I am now so sorry I didn’t request an eARC when it was available on NetGalley. But when I am looking forward for a romance fantasy I might buy it. And it sounds like a nice way to introduce myself to Mercedes Lackey’s writing.
    Great review.
    Dragana recently posted…Monthly Rewind – October 2014My Profile

  5. lynnsbooks

    This was like a no-brainer – nice and easy with fun and adventure. I enjoyed it for what it was and will definitely read more. I think you hit the nail on the head with this review.
    Lynn 😀
    lynnsbooks recently posted…Fan Art Foxes..My Profile