Spirit of the Wood (Green Rider #7.5) by Kristen Britain

  

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Category: Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Content: Clean

 

After years of leading the battle against the vicious Darrow Raiders, Lieutenant-Rider Laren Mapstone has built a fortress around herself to conceal her emotions and the deep scars she carries. When she is made mentor to Tavin Bankside, a Green Rider trainee on his first message errand, her cold and brooding exterior quickly earns her the moniker the “Ice Lady.”Only after Laren is severely wounded in an attack on the North Road by a gang of bandits—including some former Darrow Raiders with vengeance on their minds—do the fortress walls fall. Even as they seek refuge from danger in a Rider waystation, Tavin’s natural empathic gift leaves him vulnerable to the assault of the lieutenant’s emotions. Tavin must save Lieutenant Mapstone’s life and master his empathic gift before it destroys them both.However, an ancient power lurks deep within the Green Cloak, and its aid or hindrance could mean survival for the Riders or the downfall of Sacoridia and all the free lands.

 

This is a prequel story for the character Laren Mapstone from the Green Rider series, and I enjoyed it very much. It ended up being from the perspective of another character, Tavin Bankside, something I wasn't expecting, but I liked his point of view and his character. Laren can be abrasive at times, but I feel like we got to know her a little better and what makes her who she is. It was nice to see the mutual respect grow between these two characters, and how they were able to help each other. 

I think my favorite character had to be the hermit. He reminded me enough of Radagast from Lord of the Rings, that I wondered if his character was inspired by him. The addition of the delightful woodland animals, namely the squirrels, was also a highlight of the book for me. This is an aspect of Kristen Britain's writing that I really enjoy and it felt similar to the parts with Miss Bunch and Miss Bay in the Green Rider books. I also loved the drawings the author included in the book depicting several of the scenes. Overall, this was an enjoyable read that has made me eager for the next full length novel in the series. 

The only negative thing I have to say about this book is that I wish it was the same height as The Dream Gatherer, the book of short stories set in the world. It would have put the extra books in the series the same size and it would have looked nicer on my bookshelf than to have them two different heights. I guess I'm nit-picking, but to a book collector, it does matter how things look on the shelf.

Thanks to NetGalley and Daw for providing me with an ARC and a beautiful hardcover copy of this book.