Review: Tiger Eye by Marjorie M. Liu
First of all, before I get to the review, I'd just like to point out that I am rocking the ebooks now that I have my own personal handheld ebook reader. This little gadget is seriously of the awesome and puts my commuting CD to shame.
Anyway, now that I've squeed enough about my new toy, let's go on with the review.
Title: Tiger Eye
Author: Marjorie Liu
Genre: Paranormal romance/urban fantasy
Grade: B+
Reason for Reading: Ms. Liu comes very highly recommended by some people I trust, including my mom. (Of course, I think Mom has bad taste in books most of the time, but we'll pretend my memory is selective in this instance.)
Synopsis: When a young psychic acquires a riddle box in Beijing, she learns she can free the
shapeshifter imprisoned inside, and that he is the beginning of an adventure--and
a love--of a lifetime.
Summary: Dela is in Beijing having a bit of a vacation when she meets an old woman in the dirt market who sells her a box. Intrigued, Dela buys it, and upon opening the box she summons Hari, a strong, proud warrior who has been living under a curse for the past few centuries. It soon becomes obvious to Dela and Hari that lots of people want her dead, and will stop at nothing to destroy her and the box.
My Thoughts: I should have loved this book, and I definitely think that other people will, too. If I'd had time to read it in one sitting, it would have probably been an automatic keeper.
As always with me, I love strong heroines, and Dela is definitely that. She is both fierce and tender, and I definitely understood why Hari would be attracted to her. I love that she is tempted to use her power over Hari, but never succumbs, and I love that she refuses to simply become his little woman.
Hari was interesting, too. He's understandably bitter about having to hang out in a box doing whatever people tell him to do, and he thinks Dela will be like all the others. But when he sees that she finds the idea of keeping him as a slave horrifying, he slowly warms up to her. There is a bit of instant lust going on between the two of them, but I liked that Liu let them become friends first. And I even wasn't bothered by the fact that they were thinking "Mate. Mate. Mine." after knowing each other only a week, because that week was definitely action-packed.
Speaking of the action, this book is flawless with integrating the romance with the fantasy. Liu doesn't info dump, her sequel baits serve the plot, and the world she creates is compelling. It's obvious she's thought about this place she's chosen for her characters a great deal.
I think some readers might consider the romance aspect of the book not as well-thought-out as the fantasy aspect. There was pretty much no conflict between Dela and Hari after the halfway point of the book, but since the rest of the plot was engrossing, I actually didn't care, and it worked for me.
All in all, I liked this book a lot and will definitely continue the series. I wish I could say that I loved it, but there was that certain je ne sais quois missing that would make it an A grade. Still, it's a strong B+ and so highly recommended.
Anyway, now that I've squeed enough about my new toy, let's go on with the review.
Title: Tiger Eye
Author: Marjorie Liu
Genre: Paranormal romance/urban fantasy
Grade: B+
Reason for Reading: Ms. Liu comes very highly recommended by some people I trust, including my mom. (Of course, I think Mom has bad taste in books most of the time, but we'll pretend my memory is selective in this instance.)
Synopsis: When a young psychic acquires a riddle box in Beijing, she learns she can free the
shapeshifter imprisoned inside, and that he is the beginning of an adventure--and
a love--of a lifetime.
Summary: Dela is in Beijing having a bit of a vacation when she meets an old woman in the dirt market who sells her a box. Intrigued, Dela buys it, and upon opening the box she summons Hari, a strong, proud warrior who has been living under a curse for the past few centuries. It soon becomes obvious to Dela and Hari that lots of people want her dead, and will stop at nothing to destroy her and the box.
My Thoughts: I should have loved this book, and I definitely think that other people will, too. If I'd had time to read it in one sitting, it would have probably been an automatic keeper.
As always with me, I love strong heroines, and Dela is definitely that. She is both fierce and tender, and I definitely understood why Hari would be attracted to her. I love that she is tempted to use her power over Hari, but never succumbs, and I love that she refuses to simply become his little woman.
Hari was interesting, too. He's understandably bitter about having to hang out in a box doing whatever people tell him to do, and he thinks Dela will be like all the others. But when he sees that she finds the idea of keeping him as a slave horrifying, he slowly warms up to her. There is a bit of instant lust going on between the two of them, but I liked that Liu let them become friends first. And I even wasn't bothered by the fact that they were thinking "Mate. Mate. Mine." after knowing each other only a week, because that week was definitely action-packed.
Speaking of the action, this book is flawless with integrating the romance with the fantasy. Liu doesn't info dump, her sequel baits serve the plot, and the world she creates is compelling. It's obvious she's thought about this place she's chosen for her characters a great deal.
I think some readers might consider the romance aspect of the book not as well-thought-out as the fantasy aspect. There was pretty much no conflict between Dela and Hari after the halfway point of the book, but since the rest of the plot was engrossing, I actually didn't care, and it worked for me.
All in all, I liked this book a lot and will definitely continue the series. I wish I could say that I loved it, but there was that certain je ne sais quois missing that would make it an A grade. Still, it's a strong B+ and so highly recommended.