I've read other people's reviews and have to say that while I haven't read any of the other two books in the Maiden Trilogy, I absolutely LOVED this one. This is the first Susan King book I read, but I read the Spanish version since I came across that one first, so I cannot answer for differences with the original one.Still, I found "The Sword Maiden" an entertaining read if you don't take it too seriously. If you're bored at home and want to read a quick but still somewhat exciting book, this is for you.POSITIVE POINTS:· BEGINNING. I often have to force myself to read the first chapters of books, since I get bored (yes, THAT quickly!) and abandon a book before even giving it a shot. Well, there's no chance of that happening with this one. The novel goes straight to the point and avoid unnecessary descriptions, its quite quick paced.· PERSPECTIVES. The novel fluctuates between Eva and Lachlann's (the main characters) POV, so it's a nice way to see where they both stand and how they feel about situations.· DIALOGS. There are A LOT of them, as well as a lot of of romantic scenes and tension, for those too anxious (Note: If you are among those -as I am- who can't help but sometimes turn some or lots of pages to see if there's any exciting romantic scene between characters, this is also your book cause that's almost never gonna happen to you).· CHARACTERS & LOVE STORY. Eva and Lachlann are likeable, and deep for the novel. I've seen longer and much more complex novels which you finish and realize you didn't really get to know the characters. The love story is also deep, funny, sweet, and quite realistic (Well, if we consider is a fantasy book with myths, legends, fairy lore and magic swords)NEGATIVE POINTS:· ENDING. It is very predictable and sort of lame, as if they ran out of paper and decided to wrap things up quickly. But as I said, if you don't take it too seriously then you'll still finish the book feeling good about it nonetheless. That's the only reason I didn't choose 5 stars instead.· ACTION. If you are looking for an action-packed novel. This is not for you, either. There are not many thrilling scenes, and the ones that do exist often digress into another romantic one. That's for you to evaluate according to what you like. I didn't mind that.· BLACKSMITH STUFF. Whatever description I was glad not having at the beginning, well, it's here. There are a lot of details about sword-making and Lachlann working. That was not a major issue for me, but still, since I noticed that many people didn't like this, I have to admit that these descriptions do exist and get a bit boring sometimes.All in all, I loved it. But again, bear in mind is a short book intended to make you have a good time.
