Guardian Of Honor

Rating:
Summary: Awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: Alexa Fitzwalter is pulled from our world to Lladrana through a gate. The Sword and Shield Marshalls of Lladrana are seeking a hero to save their world. Only at certain times can help be summoned. As soon as she arrives Alexa is subjected to several tests. Unable to speak the language she doesn't understand what is going on at first. Nevertheless she passes the tests and with courage confronts those who have kidnapped her. However, she is very cautious in trusting these people.

The Marshalls have their own agenda but Alexa is stronger than they know or expect. It takes her a little while to figure out what is going on. The amount of power a person has is reflected in the amount of silver in his black hair.

Bastian is a black and white, he has no silver in his hair, only white and black. They are considered flawed because they cannot control their power. Alexa meets Bastian the son of her most vocal opponent, while she is in disguise. During a volitile encounter with him she corrects his flaw.

Now with her power and his they must somehow work with the Marshalls to reset the guardian boundary between Lladrana and the monsters outside it. Neither of them are able to fully trust the Marshalls. And even if they are bonded they have trouble trusting each other.

At the end we find more heros are to be summoned. I look forward to the next book. Just as wonderful as her Celta series.

Rating:
Summary: A Creative Masterpiece
Review: Guardian of Honor is a creative masterpiece of fantasy and worldbuilding. With this story, Robin D. Owens has achieved a new level in her craft. The tale is fast-paced, woven with elements of magic and romance. Every chapter is filled with new situations, new characters, new monsters, and new forms of magic as Alexa must adapt quickly from her life as a lawyer in Denver to being a powerful champion in a world where magic is an everyday part of life. Definitely a feel-good book that I will enjoy returning to and reading again and again.

Rating:
Summary: wonderful new series from a writer with "Heart"
Review: Lladrana is in a desperate situation and they need help or their world could perish. But the help they seek is not for the asking, they must "summon" their warriors, their marshalls. They are bound by magic, yet within the universe where they live the magic is waning, so they cannot fight the terrible monsters waiting to invade their beautiful kingdom. The Marshalls of Lladrana are bound to follow their ancient traditions to fight in the only way they can...summon the warrior from a distant land, one who leaves behind the desire for their own world, one who will pick up the sword. Or else Lladrana is doomed.

Alexa Fitzwalter is an everyday lawyer on unmagical earth. She's on an errand in the mountains of Colorado that has her doubting her sanity - she's following a song. Her life is at a point where she's not happy. She's filled with remorse over the death of her close friend, and worse, she is hearing things no one else does, such as chants and a gong. Only, this isn't the Gong Show. She's not expecting to be "summoned". To Alexa a summons is a legal paper served, telling you need to show up in court. This summons as is far from that as...well Alexa is in for a BIG shock. Alexa's journey starts with the words, "Help us. Come to us. We need you here as no one there ever will." Unable to resist the lure, she follows the summoning, dropping into Lladrana almost Alice-through-the-rabbit's-hole, into a realm of monsters, of guardians losing their power, and a whole world that will depend upon her to save them. She lands - literally in this foreign realm, no by your leave, no welcome wagon, no take me to your leader. And that is just the beginning.

She little understands the intricacies of this unusual land, cannot understand the language. Yet, armed with only her wits, the help of a mystical companion and the sexy chevalier Bastien, Alex must assume her new role as one of the Marshalls of Lladrana. Alexa must discover skills from within herself she had no idea existed in order to battle the encroaching menace. Then she will have to face the ultimate decision, return to her world or stay with Bastien in this new land where she is needed.

Once again, Robin D. Owens gives us an alternative world, as richly defined as few futuristic/paranormal writers can deliver. In this one, instead of the Heartmates and kitty Fams of Celta, we have the first of three ordinary women, who are summoned to save Lladrana and learn they have the power within them to make a difference, to be more than they thought they could be. Owens has always impressed me with her magical ability to create a paranormal realm, people it with interesting characters that you care about and within a highly developed alternative universe. You just don't read about her 'worlds', you enter them. I especially compliment Owens on her deft use of Multi-POV (Point of View) that permits the readers the fullest enjoyment of knowing all the characters and their emotions. It's the difference between a paint-by-numbers landscape and the sheer brilliance of a Turner watercolor.

In a time when the market is screaming for new directions within the Romance Genre, looking for stories with more substance, this is just what you need. Futuristic/Fantasy with heart, soul and endless adventure. On occasion, I see comments on this style of book as not an "easy" read. Maybe. It depends upon the commitment of the reader. Frankly, I think it's so much more - it a worthwhile read, that delivers on all levels that take you away to a magic world where all things are possible, even within yourself. 'Guardian" is the first of three "Summoning Books". Based on this tale, I eagerly await the next two.

Rating:
Summary: Great fantasy
Review: On the world of Amee in the land of Lladrana, a magical force warded the realm so that monsters would not be able to enter. Now parts of the fence are dying, leaving gaps in the protective shield; monsters are entering and the powerful group of mages, the Marshals, fights them. They don't know how to make the dead fence posts come back to life so they summon an Exotique (a person from Earth) who will have the power to rebuild the fence.

Alexa Fitzwater, a woman without friends, steps through the magical arch and into Lladrana where she is immediately tested by the Marshals to see if she has the power they need. She meets their requirements and because she needs to be wanted, allows them to train her in magic so she can battle the monsters and fix the fence. She becomes involved with the Chevalier Bastien who wants her to stay with him. He becomes a Marshal something he swore he would never to so he could become a shield to Alexa's sword. The upcoming battle will decide the future of the realm and where Alexa considers home.

Robin D Owens has written a fantastic fantasy that makes the realm of Lladrana come alive in the reader's mind because the author deeply describes the locale so well. Alexa has spent her life in foster homes and her only friend died in a car accident, leaving her yearning to find a place to belong. The people of Lladrana need her and her lover wants to bond with her so she can never leave him. GUARDIAN OF HONOR is a spellbinding romantic fantasy.

Harriet Klausner