Review: Shadowlander by Theresa Meyers

Review:
Cate O'Connell and her three sisters have lived by these three simple rules:

O'Connell Family Rule #1: Don't let the Fae know you see them.
O'Connell Family Rule #2: Don't talk to the Fae.
O'Connell Family Rule #3: Never, ever follow them.

As a seer, one of the few humans with the ability to see the Fae, Cate has trained herself well to mask her reactions to the creatures as they interfere in the daily life of humanity. There may be a tiny ferret looking Fae taking a dip in her iced tea, a toad like Fae digging into the dessert cart or a very sexy Fae male named Rook following her every move that sets her heart racing. All must be ignored so that they remain unaware of her ability. For as long as Cate can remember, her Grandmother has warned her of the danger the Fae pose to her and her sisters.

Cate can no longer afford to hide her gift when her friend Maya is kidnapped by the Fae. Her only hope to get Maya back may be trusting Rook and venturing into the world from which she tried to stay hidden for so long.

Rook is shocked when he realizes Cate can see him. He is even more shocked to discover that she is a Seer. Cate can be used to open the gates between the Fae worlds and help his people win the war against his rivals then eventually help them control the human realm. Rook has been enchanted by Cate for years and is torn between duty to his people as High Court Advisor to his father The Shadow King and to his attraction to Cate.

If Rook hands her over to the court, Cate will be revered and honored by his people as a rare Seer among their ranks but she will also belong to the king and serve as his consort. Rook isn't sure he will be able to let her go so he agrees to help her find her friend in the hopes that Cate will choose to bond with him of her free will and stay in the Shadowland with him.

Shadowlander is a novella that moves at warp speed. On the downside, the relationship and conclusion all come on pretty fast (the book was just over 100 pages on my iPad - 540KB). On the positive side, Meyers has kept her story lean with only essential information with little filler. She has managed to create a fairly complex world, characters, and plot in a very short time frame. I'm not a fan of insta-love but I was able to let my logic take a time out for this one to believe in Cate and Rook. The way he admires and respects her overcame any reservations I may have had. He's alpha for sure but not an ass. He wants her to choose him, not dominate her. I really loved the variety of creatures from the Fae world, especially the giant Black Panthers.

One minor peeve I had was Cate's friend Maya. What a self absorbed jerk. I never understood why they were good friends. I'm not sure I would have been as good as Cate, sacrificing myself to go save her but I guess it gets the story rolling so it's ok.

There was plenty of action and sexy times with a nice set up for the new Shadowlander series. I'm assuming that the future books will be focused on each sister's HEA. We didn't get much of an introduction to them and I'm sad to think we might not get to see more of Cate and Rook. I really enjoyed reading about them.

Rating: 3 out of 4 - Novella's are becoming my favorite "in-between" books to read. They're inexpensive and the ones I've read recently have been lots of fun with excellent plot development with a conclusion, all in under 1-2 hours. Can't beat that! Shadowlander definitely falls into this category. If you're looking for something quick, a palate cleanser, give this one a try.

Connect with Theresa: Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | website | or blogging with the other Lolitas of Steamed

Buy the book! Amazon .99 | Barnes and Noble

Publisher: Entangled Publishing | Author page and Shadowlander excerpt

Source: Entangled Publishing via Netgalley