I received this book for free from my own shelves in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: my own shelves
Moon Shimmers
by
Yasmine Galenorn
paranormal fantasy in a Kindle edition that was published by Nightqueen Enterprises LLC on April 28, 2017 and has 342 pages.
Explore it on Goodreads
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Hexed, Witchling, Changeling, Never After, Darkling, Demon Mistress, Dragon Wytch, Bone Magic, Night Huntress, Harvest Hunting, Blood Wyne, Courting Darkness, Shaded Vision, Shadow Rising, Haunted Moon, Night Myst, Night Veil, Night Seeker, Autumn Whispers, Night Vision, Night’s End, Priestess Dreaming, Panther Prowling, "Flight From Hell", Flight From Death, Souljacker, Legend of the Jade Dragon, Darkness Raging, Fury Rising, Murder Under a Mystic Moon, Ghost of a Chance, Once Upon A Curse, A Harvest of Bones, One Hex of a Wedding, Starlight Hollow
Nineteenth in the Otherworld / Sisters of the Moon paranormal fantasy series set in Seattle and revolving around three half-human, half-fae sisters fighting a supernatural war. It’s June and the focus is on Camille seeking the Kerastaar Diamond.
My Take
I can’t believe it’s taken nineteen stories before Camille gives up fighting in her stilettos. I gotta confess I’ve always been impressed that she could walk in them, let alone fight in them.
There have been plenty of character arcs for the core characters as they pursue the series arc of finding the spirit seals and conquering Shadow Wing. Yeah, yeah, those stilettos do define Camille.
It’s all told from Camille’s perspective in first person protagonist point-of-view, showing us the emotional turmoil she experiences in the life path she’s following. How she resolves her concerns and the encounters she has with other characters.
There’s plenty of drama what with hunting down and recovering the last spirit seal, negotiating with the reluctant dragons, keeping Seattle safe from rampaging Fae, the truth of the Great Divide and what reversing it could mean for Earthside, and more.
Ooh, I like this:
”Learning is good, but what you do with it is even more important.”
It’s so cute how Delilah gets caught up in catnip.
Hmm, something to think about:
”. . . constraints provide only limitations. Expand the definition, and you expand the potential.”
Most of the story recaps what’s been going on along with Camille’s worries.
The Story
To be crowned, Camille must venture back to Otherworld and confront the Guardian who is guarded by the deadly Tygerian monks in order to retrieve the Kerastaar Diamond and take control of the Kerastaar Knights.
If she fails, the chance to stop Shadow Wing will fade with her. If she succeeds, her life will forever change.
The Characters
The D’Artigo sisters are half-human, half-Fae operatives for the Otherworld Intelligence Agency (OIA). Camille Sepharial, a Moon Witch and High Priestess of the Dark Moon married to three gorgeous husbands — Smokey, a.k.a. Iampaatar, a dragon shifter, Morio, a youkai kitsune and Camille’s Priest-Consort, and Trillian, a Svartan —, is about to ascend to the throne of Dusk and Twilight. Delilah, a two-faced werecat and a Death Maiden who serves the Autumn Lord, is engaged to Shade, a half-shadow dragon / half-Stradolan who lost these powers and an avatar of the Autumn Lord. Menolly, a jian-tu (an elite athlete), is a vampire married to Nerissa, a werepuma, and Roman, the vampire prince of the Vampire Nation. So far, the sisters and their friends have lived together in an old three-story Victorian on almost ten acres of land. Lysanthra is Delilah’s blade.
Other friends who live there include Vanzir, a dream-chaser demon, who can drain energy; he’s also the father of Aeval’s child. Rozurial “Roz” is an incubus and a walking armory. Maggie is the baby calico woodland gargoyle they rescued in Witchling, 1. Iris, a talon-haltija (a Finnish house sprite), and Bruce, a.k.a. Lord Bruce Golden Eagle O’Shea, a leprechaun, have eight-month old twins (Shaded Vision, 11, and Priestess Dreaming, 16). The Duchess is Bruce’s mother. Hanna is the D’Artigo housekeeper (Hexed: “Ice Shards”, 9.5). The Wayfarer is the fae pub the sisters own and Mennolly manages. Digger and Derrick, a werebadger, are employees. The Indigo Crescent is the bookstore managed by Camille. Four kittens will join the household. Misty is Camille’s gray cat spirit (Priestess Dreaming).
Vishana is Smoky’s mother. Maria D’Artigo, a human and their mother who had died in a fall, had married Sephreh ob Tanu, a soldier Fae (Autumn Whispers, 14).
FH-CSI, a.k.a. the Faerie-Human Crime Scene Investigation, is . . .
. . . a city organization that handles supernatural issues. Detective Chase Johnson is in charge. He’d always thought he was human. He’s paired up with Sharah. Yugi, a Swedish empath, is Chase’s second-in-command. Marquette is an elf. Fry and Brooks are humans. Mallen is the head of the medic unit.
Talamh Lonrach Oll is . . .
. . . the Fae reservation outside Seattle where Titania, the Queen of Light and Morning, and the pregnant Aeval, the Queen of Shadow and Night rule. Where Camille will be crowned the Queen of Dusk and Twilight over the Sovereign Fae Nation. The former queen had been Morgaine. Bran, Raven Mother’s son, is their general. The Barrows are three “palaces”, one for each queen. Myrddin is the Merlin and High Priest of the Moon Mother (Priestess Dreaming).
The All Worlds Church organized the All Worlds United in Peace organization to counter the hate groups and includes churches, temples, mosques, pro-environment, and pro-unification groups. Neely is part of this group. Carter is a helpful half-demon and half-Titan (through his father Hyperion) researcher. Fresia is a Water Witch and a priestess of the goddess Yemaya. She runs Marsh Briar Fortunes, a magic shop. Erin is Menolly’s vampire child. Tanne Baum is a spell-singing Fae friend from the Hunter’s Glen Clan of demon hunters (Priestess Dreaming). Shimmer is a blue water dragon shifter employed by Alex, a vampire who owns the Fly by Night Investigation Agency.
Brandon Rigal is a big-shot lawyer who defends hate groups like Freedom’s Angels and Guardian Watchdogs. Brotherhood of the Earth-Born is another hate group. Steven Trentallon is a star reporter for the Seattle Tattler.
The Fae world is . . .
. . . Otherworld, properly known as Y’Eírialiastar. Ivana Krask, a.k.a. the Maiden of Karask, is an Elder Fae who feeds off the energies of ghosts. More Elder Fae are Yannie Fin Diver (Courting Darkness, 10), Jenny Greenteeth, the Black Annis, and Bog-Mother. Grandmother Coyote is one of the Hags of Fate, the female equivalent of the Harvestmen, who have more power than the gods. Pentangle is the Mother of Magic, a Hag of Fate. The Raven Mother is an Elemental Lady, a trickster at odds with the Moon Mother. Thistlewyd Deep, darker than even Darkynwyrd, belongs to her. Annabelle is the name Camille gives to her Nebulveori mountain horse. The Black Unicorn, a.k.a. the Black Beast of the Dahns Unicorns (Dragon Wytch, 4) had been Bran’s father and the Raven Mother’s consort. Eriskel is a jindasel, an avatar of the unicorn horn. Mistletoe is a pixie attendant to Feddrah-Dahns, the Prince of the Dahnsburg Unicorns. Iyonah is a sorceress, who supposedly came from Kyradream. Glydyn is the city of the Goldunsun Fae.
Derisa is the High Priestess of the Full Moon of the Moon Mother in Otherworld. Lyrical is an angry elder of the Coterie of the Moon Mother. Trytian and his father are daemons battling Shadow Wing and allies with the D’Artigos.
Elqaneve is . . .
. . . a city in the Elfin lands of Otherworld. The Whispering Mirror is a communications device between Earthside and Elqaneve and primarily used by Trenyth, an advisor to the Elfin throne. Sharah is the Elfin Queen who succeeded Asteria. Eight-month old Astrid is her and Chase’s daughter. I think the Y’Elestrial Intelligence Agency is part of or is OIA.
The Dragon Reaches is . . .
. . . obviously, the land of dragons ruled by the Council of Elders. Hyto had been Smoky’s evil father (Courting Darkness).
Shadow Wing the Unraveller is . . .
. . . a demon lord and leader of the Sub-Realms who wants to take over Earthside. Telazhar had been a necromancer training demons for Shadow Wing. Yerghan the Blade is a leader of soldiers and a villain used to threaten children.
Chimaras is the Lord of the Sun and enemy to the Moon Mother. Other powerful beings include the Lord of the Depths, a merman; the Lord of the Winds; the Lady of the Land, a dryad; and, the Mistress of Flames. There are also the goddesses Lady Undutar and Lady Bast. Beira is the Mistress of Winter and mother of the Bean Nighe. Yvaar is an ancient and powerful wyrm (Priestess Dreaming).
The Spirit Seal was . . .
. . . created during the Great Divide when ancient Fae Lords separated Otherworld, Earthside, and the Subterranean Realms into three parallel worlds. The intention was to keep the worlds from recombining, although portals did form. The seal was then broken into nine pieces and each piece was given to a guardian, one of whom is K’thbar the Unyielding, a Primordial Fae. The Maharata-Vashi and the Maharata-Verdi are scrolls intended as a backup plan.
The Keraastar Knights are the guardians of the portals, fated to battle Shadow Wing. They include Venus the Moon Child of the Rainier Puma Pride, a shaman; Luke; and, Luke’s sister, Amber. Tam Lin and Benjamin, Kerastaar Knights, had died because of the spirit seals.
The Keraastar Diamond is guarded by the deadly Tygerian monks for whom Keth is the Speaker. The Order of the Crystal Dagger is a secret society. The Akashic Library is full of scrolls where Sesarati is the Keeper of Lore and a Hag of Fate.
It’s interesting that so many stories make reference to the Fremont Troll — it’s big enough to hold an actual Volkswagen in its hand! — and it was created by the Jersey Devils. Dredge is the evil vampire who tortured, then turned Menolly (Darkling, 3). A vroll is a vapor troll, a type of wight. Bad Ass Luke had been a lesser demon (Witchling, 1). The Nectar of Life can expand a half-fae’s life to almost that of a full-blood Fae. I think Litha is a holiday. Shamas had been a D’Artigo cousin (Priestess Dreaming). Lethesanar had been a hated Fae queen. Tanaquar had been her sister. The Ionyc Sea, an alternate plane that allows Smoky and Shade to move instantly from one place to another, is composed of currents of energy that separate the Ionyc Lands, which are a mix of the etheric, astral, and spiritual realms.
The Cover and Title
The cover is purples and black with a blue-purple sky and a towering spire on the left. Crisscrossing pink lines trail to surround Camille’s face on the left. A wide deep gray border is at top and bottom. At the top is the author’s name in white with an info blurb (in white) between first and last names. At the bottom, at Camille’s shoulder, is the title in a deep turquoise with the series info between the words. Below this is a testimonial in the same turquoise with the publisher’s logo in white to the left.
I can only guess at the title being inclusive about Shimmer’s help with the Moon Mother’s priestess’ quest in Moon Shimmers.
