"Touch of Power" by Maria V. Snyder

I hadn't read any of Maria V. Snyder's books prior to this one, but if they're all as captivating and hypnotizing as Touch of Power, then I'm definitely going to fix this mistake.

That is to say, I LOVED THIS BOOK!

It was the type of high fantasy that gives you wings and makes you fly. Kind of like Red Bull.

The story was written, clearly, by a talented author. A pro no less. I enjoyed the storytelling style very much. It was fluid and just perfect for a picky reader like me. The story itself was enchanting. Nothing was missing or misplaced, which means that the author spent a whole lot of time planning things to be just right. Also, something that I appreciated, was that Ms. Snyder didn't hesitate to injure or hurt or even sacrifice her characters for the sake of the story. This made it all sound so realistic, it felt like I was living alongside the characters.

The romance that developed was truly beautiful and most important - there was no instant love. It all happened over time, as the characters got to know each other. Which gets me to the characters themselves.

Usually, after I finish reading a book, I tend to forget the characters' names. I mean, it's only natural with all those books and chars out there. But these guys just stuck with me. I remember all their names, which is a compliment of itself!

-Avry, with her obsolete feelings of right and wrong; her passion to help even if that meant putting herself in danger; her quick wit and compassionate heart;

-Kerrick, with his determination to do what he thought was right without considering or caring about the feelings of others; his mega heart that can open up just when the right moment strikes;

-Belen, or Papa Bear, with his sheer strength, meek heart and wide grin

-the monkeys, Loren and Quinn, who always got in and out of trouble; who were quick and quiet, lethal and loyal;

-Flea, who was trusting and sometimes too naive for his own good, but I liked him nonetheless;

-even Tohon, the evil self-obsessed dude, who in his twisted mind thought was doing the world a favor. It's not always that the evil genius manages to crawl into my heart, but Tohon did, and I can say that I'm impressed!

I loved them all, which is why I couldn't wait any longer but went on ahead and read the next book in the series: Scent of Magic.

The Healer series, or Avry of Kazan as it's starting to get popular as, is one truly amazing series. It's full of action, love, friendship, sacrifice and quests. I'm positive that anyone would fall in love with it as much as I did!

Well, as you have probably guessed, my rating is