Darkspire Reaches is about an orphaned young girl named Raven who has spent most of her life in service to the woman who saved her from death, Margie. In her world, the different cultures--chief among them the Angressi and the First Born--vie constantly, suspicious of each other and forever on the brink of war. The Angressi are light-haired and light-skinned and have no magic. The First Born are dark-haired forest dwellers and not only have magic, they have a relationship with the dangerous Drakken, men who who command dragons, or wyverns.Raven's colouring betrays her as First Born, and when the book begins, she's spent most of her life enduring the lowest rung of society and the petty insults of her Angressi neighbours. All that changes as Margie begins to age, gradually growing senile and more and more attached to her past. That mental shift betrays Margie's secret--she is high-born Angressi. And when she decides to reclaim her past riches by blackmailing the Angressi Emperor, Raven's life takes a terrifying and unexpected turn. She discovers she has magic of her own, and a rescue by wyvern takes her to the dark tunnels of the mountain fortress known as Darkspire Reaches, and the Drakken who lives there, the mysterious and dangerous Connor.The book is not a romance, but Lesley does a fine job of balancing the romantic elements and tension with an intriguing world. Better yet, she can really tell a story.You spend a great deal of this book worried for Raven. She is a sweet person, completely out of her depth once Margie drags her into court intrigue. But she's not weak. Even without knowledge of her magic, Raven makes a decision to stand by her adopted mother, despite the fact that this will most likely get her killed. She's braver than she thinks, and more powerful than she knows.She most certainly deserves Connor, a character than gives life to the phrase tall, dark and handsome. The romantic pull between them is amazing, but Connor begins the relationship with Raven in the worst way possible, and has to spend most of the book paying for that decision.My only complaints are that--one--Raven spends a bit too much time reverting to the same behaviour when faced with uncomfortable truths. She cuts and runs. But is that really surprising given her upbringing, which was entirely about her not challenging her betters and knowing her place? Characterization of a few lesser characters could have been done a bit more subtly (Imelda), but then you have secondary characters like Merrill, a man who could have definitely given Connor a run for his money in my mind.Two--the book ended a bit abruptly. By that I mean, I was just breathing a sign of relief when I came upon the last page. I definitely wanted more of this book and I wouldn't mind a second to see where everyone ends up. This novel was great. It kept me enthralled throughout. Not once did I feel the need to put it down to go do something else. I loved Raven and how despite the fact that everyone used her in one way or another, she still was able to move past that and show compassion and love for them. Situations were described in a way that was not overly stressful. The young female tendency to stress about every little thing was thankfully missing from this novel. I found it a comforting and engrossing read that, if there were novels that followed I would definitely continue to read
What do You think about Darkspire Reaches (2013)?
A delightful and original romantic fantasy. I thoroughly enjoyed the read.
—Aklomkaew
Pretty standard fantasy book but I still enjoyed it. Give it a shot.
—Thomas
Read10/18/13 - a different twist on fantasy fiction.
—leanne
