Review by Booklist Review
About a century after devastating plagues and the War between Good and Evil, Earth is in another ice age. Demons and seraphs fight unendingly, as do humans. A host of other unworldly creatures, most with an appetite for humans, add to the general danger. Certain humans are neomages, with the power to use leftover creation energy; kept in luxurious prisons, they use their powers only for the seraphic government. Neomage Thorn St. Croix had to escape or go mad. Hiding among ordinary humans, she even married. When an attractive policeman appears at her door and tells her she is suspected of abducting her former husband, Thorn has to use her powers to hunt for him, too. Of course, any official who watches her long enough will figure out what she is, which means madness or death for her. Hunter's very professionally executed, tasty blend of dark fantasy, mystery, and romance should please fans of all three genres. --Frieda Murray Copyright 2006 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Thorn St. Croix, a stone mage, lives secretly among humans in this entertaining if flawed postapocalyptic fantasy, the first in a new series from the pseudonymous Hunter. Even Thorn's friends, with whom she crafts jewelry, don't know she's a member of the new race that emerged in the catastrophe brought by winged "seraphs" a century earlier. When her ex-husband disappears, Thorn must use her only partially trained mage powers against the forces of Darkness. Outstanding supporting characters help compensate for a milieu with jarring inconsistencies (sugar is rare, but coffee and aspirin are common; no new computers have been built since most of humanity was wiped out, but the Internet is still an active source of commerce). The author's efforts to sex up the action with the concept of "mage-heat"-mages are uncontrollably lusty around seraphs-become tiresome, but the strong, cliffhanger of an ending bodes well for future adventures. (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
The apocalypse has come and gone, and now seraphs and demons rule the world, waging war on an Earth plunged into an ice age. Only a few gifted humans, such as Thorn St. Croix, live as fugitives among normal humans. When Thorn's ex-husband is kidnapped, Thorn is accused of the crime, and she is forced to use her magic to find him at the risk of her own life and freedom. Hunter's distinctive future vision offers a fresh though dark glimpse into a newly made postapocalyptic world. Bold and imaginative in approach, with appealing characters and a suspense-filled story, this belongs in most fantasy collections. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A hundred years after near-biblical plagues wiped out most densely populated areas, angel-like seraphs are at odds with the Dark Powers that live deep underground in a world covered with ice. Thorn St. Croix is a neomage, able to channel energy into spells. She makes a living polishing and carving trinkets that she infuses with harmless bits of positive magic, living in fear of being discovered and put to death by those who don't take kindly to her talents and background. But the town where she lives has some sinister secrets. Thorn's ex-husband, Lucas Stanhope, is kidnapped by the Dark Powers residing nearby. The blood of his grandfather was used to defeat them in their last battle against the seraphs, and by kidnapping Lucas they hope to acquire the power to start taking over the town. In order to save everyone, Thorn has to risk revealing her true self to her friends, as well as to the very alluring Thaddeus Bartholomew, who has shown up to investigate the kidnapping. The conclusion hints that Thorn is tied into the ongoing seraph/Dark Power conflict, but can't remember why, leaving the option of more books on the table. With so many fantasies featuring heroes who spring from nowhere and are either virtually or literally orphans, it's a pleasure to read this engaging tale about characters connected by strong bonds of friendship and family. Mixes romance, high fantasy, apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic adventure to good effect. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
