Shannon C.’s review of Seduced by Magic (Magical Seduction, Book 1) by Stephanie Julian
Fantasy erotic romance eBook released by Ellora’s Cave 5 Mar 08
When Stephanie Julian e-mailed us requesting that someone review something of hers, I gladly agreed to do so, since her premise looked interesting. Unfortunately, while there were quite a lot of things I liked about the book I read, I’m not sure I can recommend it with the heartiness that Ms. Julian would no doubt prefer.
Scarletta has reasons to be suspicious of Justin. She thinks he intends to capture fairies and study them scientifically, and she’s determined to kill him before he gets the chance. But when she sneaks into his home, she realizes he’s hot, and random sexoring commences. But there are some people far more dangerous to Scarletta and her people than Justin, so the two end up running from them and Justin learns far more than he bargained for about his own life.
One of the things I really liked about this story was that aside from the random sexoring that Scarletta indulges in, I found her a competent heroine. She knew exactly what she was doing most of the time, and I could believe that she was usually good at her job. She’s not excessively TSTL, which is nicely refreshing. I also loved that Justin was allowed to be something of a geek, because, well, I think that’s hot. I even liked the romance, though I think I would have liked it better if it hadn’t been so rushed.
What I didn’t like very much, and what brings the grade down considerably, was the world-building. There’s something to be said for having the fairies have their own unique names for each other and for humans, as it lends a certain verisimilitude to the story, but it was something I actually grew rather annoyed by. I never did figure all the Italian words out, and every time I encountered one, I was thrown out of the book.
The plot suffers quite a bit, too, as the characters easily circumvent any conflict that is thrown their way. I didn’t feel any tension from the plot, and when Justin has his big reveal of magical powers, I actually rolled my eyes, because of course it turns out he is way more powerful than Scarletta. I mean, he is the man after all.
I did like the hero and heroine, and the secondary characters were interesting enough that I could see some of them carrying their own stories quite well, but I’m not sure this is a series I’m going to follow. There isn’t enough here to let me recommend it particularly highly.
Grade: C-
Summary:
Justin Johannson knows there are mythical creatures living among us. After all, he has been trying to prove their existence for ten years. Research gets a whole lot more interesting when he finds a winged woman in his bed and his sexual fantasies come to life.Etruscan folletta Scarlata is convinced Justin is in league with an evil businessman bent on capturing her for scientific study, which is so not going to happen. She decides that Justin needs to be taught a lesson to leave her and the rest of the mythical creatures in peace — but before, she might just have a little fun of her own.
The beautiful folletta never expected to fall for a human and Justin is about to discover that true magic really does exist in the world. And in him.
Read an excerpt.
Other books in the series:
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