When it comes to fantasy and romance, I obsessively read an entire series from start to finish especially when the first book was as good as Star of the Morning (the first in this trilogy), but in this case I wish i hadn't bothered. Morgan begins the series as capable, funny and riddled with familiar doubts and neurosis. She is incredibly likable and you are rooting for her and Miach, who is also wonderful in the first book, to get together and they do. Unfortunately what comes next devolves from boring (The Mage's Daughter) to infuriating in Princess of the Sword. The great thing about fantasy/sci-fi/paranormal romance is that the female characters are usually physically and emotionally powerful. They have incredible amounts of agency, often saving the hero or at least kicking some ass. Morgan begins that way and understandably has some doubts when she finds out who she really is but by the third book the girl should have figured it out! She can't come to terms with her own magic, is incapable of defending herself against mages (physically or magically) and doesn't face any of her fears, even during the final confrontation at the well. By the end of the book, men are always helping, protecting or saving her. Essentially, Morgan devolves. This character should be able to master her magic the same way she did sword fighting - which incidentally would have made the battle strategy spell thing make a whole lot more sense. If she has so much courage and is strong enough to bear Weger's mark (which is repeated nauseatingly often) then the woman should be able to face her fear of magic and master it, not just do the bare minimum. Just as Morgan loses all of her positive traits, so does Miach. He says that he respects Morgan, but he keeps trying to "protect" her despite the fact that she saved his ass multiple times in the first book of the series. Honestly, was there ever a more pompous and misogynistic character than Miach in this last book? If he called her courageous and then tried to protect her one more time i was going to scream. Their lack of understanding and, frankly, respect make the romantic scenes seem shallow. In the end, I wanted her to leave him just for the satisfaction of seeing her making a choice about her life. The only redeeming thing about this final book was the secondary characters. Thank god for elves, dwarves and magicians. This book cemented my love for Miach, the archmage of Neroche, and he joins a select group of favorite book heroes. And the really beautiful part of it is that my admiration for him grew steadily throughout the three books with the story of Miach and Morgan. I learned more and more about the depth of his character as the two of them found themselves in one impossible situation after another. Miach is not like so many book characters, a wild or bad guy who is really good underneath - he is good from the beginning. It is his power and determination that becomes more and more apparent as he fights, and at times struggles, to keep his brother's kingdom safe from the evil that is literally oozing into it. He finds himself in a situation where he has at times to choose between the woman he has fallen in love with and his duty to the kingdom. He also finds out how often these duties overlap and one is dependent on the other.The story of the evil mage and the background story is itself intriguing, and I love a story with side characters that you also learn to love ...or hate. It is of course a story of good vs evil set in a fantasy land of nine kingdoms.I laughed and I cried during this book, and I also sat in my chair very very tense during swordfights and all the magic being thrown around by mage's at the highest level. I kind of chuckled at the school of wizardry and the time spent there. A bit Harry Potterish because of the name, but not like Hogswart at all. Much creepier and no children around! Morgan is a heroine who plunges into danger, but she is also one who is very prepared to face it. When she is told that she and Miach must stay together to fight this evil, she does everything in her power to make that happen even thought she has to fight his desire to keep her safe and leave her behind. Just a really fun three books and I am totally hooked. I know there are three more and that they feature different characters although Miach and Morgan are there, so I am anxious to read them and already have them sitting here. One of my favorite fantasy series ever. Thanks Selena for the recommendation!
