Great trifle, fluffy and entertaining. The magical setting is wonderful, especially the dragonette.

Felicity Seymour should have inherited vast magical powers but instead she has virtually no magic and ignored even in her own home.

Sir Terence Blackwell has a mission from the king and something's not quite right with Felicity, traces of dark magic surround her.

He falls in love with her, gifts her with a magical dragonette, and does a first-class rescue in the style of fairytale princes.

The mystery is unwound and no one is quite what they appeared.

The world-building is fantastic, where the degree of magical powers determines one's noble rank, where illusion is thick on the ground. ( )

Reading the synopsis above, what on earth is a duchy??

I generally don't read paranormal romance like this, but it was sent through a book club I'm in (her premier into Dorchester). Although it was a bit heavy on the fantasy I was able to enjoy the book for what it's worth; the characters were easy to get into and the writing style was descriptive and smooth. Scenes ran together quickly, not lagging to allow dull moments, while there was plenty of tension (particularly on Blackwell's side) to keep suspense in the air at all times.

I had begun to suspect one of the culprits before the hero seemed to, and am a bit surprised he didn't catch on earlier. The side sub-plot of Cousin Ralph dished out a surprisingly juicy tidbit, and the story began with a dreadfully tense moment where she was revealed as being powerful. I literally bit my lip through the entire scene, practically feeling her humiliation. I found the heroine's preoccupation with Blackwell's sisters a little too much on the melodramatic side, but hey, whatever floats the characters boat. The ending where she shows a new talent toward her mate was also almost too convenient and slightly cheesy, but in another way warm and the only way it could be. (I don't almost make sense here, folks.) I haven't read Kennedy before, but the woman has a wonderful way with words that manages to convey emotion admirably.

The world is much different than others typically penned; titles are granted not on money and esteem and family name, but on the amount of magic descendants prove. There are relics to be used for dark magic, which the court cannot defend themselves against, and these relics are why I think this is borderline fantasy. I never would have envisioned a seductive lion, but Blackwell is done in a way to where it works. I'm more of a vamp gal than a shifter fan, but nevertheless it was still a rewarding reading experience.

This Victorian-type fairy tale is laden with beautiful settings, an almost mystical enemy (have to love the plants), funny sidekicks, and a blissfully happy ending. I especially enjoyed how Blackwell threw everything out the window eventually, even deciding that if the magic were being used by Felicity for evil purposes, that he would still love her. There's enough of a mystery present to keep the reader wondering about various aspects and in the dark to the true intent of many; in the end it all wraps together and leaves no loose weavings that would ultimately unravel this wondrous tale.

If you are into paranormal romance with a bite of fantasy, this is sure to please. At 292 pages, it's a shorter novel, and with Kennedy's writing style, it goes even quicker.


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The heroine feels like such a disappointment to her family when it becomes clear that not only is she not beautiful but she ingerited nothing of her parents magic abilities. As such, she's stripped of her title and without the good charitfy of her aunt and uncle she was be out in the streets. Then she catches the eye of a baronet- a lion shifter. She's astonished that not only can he see her, he also makes his intentions to court her none. The hero is on the hunt for a relic and when he smells the evil magic on the timid but stunning young woman, he's intiqued. He lies to himself about only courting her to get close to the artifcat when in fact he's deeply attracted to her. His lion is crying mate and he knows that every second he spends in her company makes it harder and harder to keep himself from falling in love with her. This was a great story. The heroine has had a 'don't notice me' spell put on her as a child but doesn't know it. All her life she's felts inadequate and rather useless. She's lost her partners, her title and everything that makes one relevant in the world. But the hero makes her feel special. His kind aren't welcome in society because of the fact that they aren't affected by the magic that rules their world. As such, he's an outcast and considered nothing more than an animal. But she's enraptured by him. Not only does he pay her attention, but he's protective and kind and everything she wants in a man. With her low self-esteem, she's hesitant to truly belief one such as him would want a magic less, destitute spinster but her heart yearns for him. The hero feels extremely guilty over the fact the he started out their courtship as a lie but he's more angry at himself because it's soon becomes apparent he's falling in love with her. Honestly it wasn't much of a leap for the reader to see through him. I thought the aunt and uncle were extremely creepy from the jump so it came as no surprise when their true motives came to light. I liken the fact that the cousin-once painted the villain- actually turned out to be a decent enough guy. This was a lovely story set in a very magical and unique setting. I loved the tale of the lion man and his timid innocent lady. ( )

I found this book to be adorable, it was just so cute and fun. Not to mention that I liked the society that in this alternate England.

Magic is still around and English society is infused by it. The Royals have the most powers and then the Dukes and so forth. If you are without then you are stripped of titles and lands. Magic rules and different titles have different magic. I really liked what she created and it was interesting.

Our heroine is truly naive, but that is the only way she could be. No one ever notices Felicity and she believes she is a grey little mouse. But there lives a fighter in her that wants to peak her head out. She was sweet and innocent.

While the hero Terrance is something else entirely. There is one class of nobility that has no magic and that magic can't touch and that are the shapeshifters. But the Royals use them as spies since they can sense relic magic. And Terrance, well I wanted to be angry at him for using sweet Felicity, but at the same time he was falling for her so I forgave him. His beast knew better than he did.

A relic of evil magic must be found, a couple fall helplessly in love and all is not well in the country of England.

Conclusion:
Such a sweet story that I devoured in a day. Easy to read, easy to fall in love with
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An average but enjoyable historical paranormal romance where your level of magic is tied to your title and any accompanying lands. If you're heirs are weaker than you, they're demoted upon the outcome of the "testing" when someone is about to inherit but if there's no more magic left in your bloodline, say goodbye to your wealth and hello to destitution. This is what happens to poor naive Felicity after her parents die, leaving her with her less than understanding aunt, uncle and cousin.

However, if you happen to be a shapeshifter of any kind, you're at the bottom of the social ladder despite being held in high esteem by the royal family, probably due to that pesky little fact: shapeshifters are immune to magic.

People hate what they fear, and they fear these uncontrollable "beasts". Feeling powerless against these weres has led them to being treated as outcasts, the lowest of the low. Baronet Terrence Blackwell is the most honoured shifter in England being the Prince's top spy and relic hunter yet he is outwardly mocked despite his fierce shifter shape as a lion, which manages to scare most into submission.

When he smells relic magic on Felicity during her disastrous testing he assumes she can lead him to one of these mythical relics, which in the wrong hands can do serious damage like that done to his now dead brother. He'll do anything to find that relic. Anything. Even marry a desperate but seemingly innocent woman. But is he really courting her just to find the relic or are his beastly desires to mate with this woman commanding his actions. And is she really so innocent? ( )