Stone Guardian by Danielle Monsch

Grade: B
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Paranormal, gargoyle
Series: Entwined Realms #1

Reviewed by Anne

256 pages

 

Twenty-six years ago The Great Collision happened, uniting our human world with the magical realm.  Now zombies, vampires, orcs, trolls, and gargoyles aren't just creatures of myth.  They're real and part of the world we know.

 

Larissa lives within a protected city and has no contact and very little knowledge of these creatures until the day she's attacked by zombies and saved by a gargoyle, Terak.  But Terak isn't the only one watching her, and the zombies aren't the only ones attacking. 

 

What a great book!  Larissa wasn't a warrior, but she was smart and practical.  She accepted and asked for protection.  She trusted her gut feelings and that was all so refreshing to read.  Terak was really interesting -- I enjoyed this new take on gargoyles.  

 

Even more than I enjoyed Larissa and Terak, the secondary characters really shine in this story!  Fallon and Laire are two hilarious women - warrior and mage and they are part of a team of fighters that is mostly women!  The women are respected by the males they work with and they are more then just beings to have sex with or sequel bait. They are fierce and it was so awesome to read characters like this!   

 

The "why" of Larissa being targeted was a big mystery that I didn't figure out until it was revealed, but it totally made sense.  That's some nice writing!

 

I did have some little complaints.  There were times when Larissa and Terak seemed to know things about each other that they hadn't had time to learn.  There was a time or two when someone acted out of character.  Overall, though, the good far outweighed the bad.  Monsch writes great characters and an interesting world!  I really look forward to reading more!