A review by lolasreviews
The Lion Mistress: Book 1 by R.A. Steffan
3.0
After I finished the Horse Mistress books I couldn't wait to continue this series with the Lion Mistress books. And I loved being able to return to this world again. My expectations were quite high and sadly this book ended up being a bit mixed for me. There were parts I really enjoyed and parts I struggled with a bit. It's more of a 3.5 star rating, but didn't quite feel like a 4 star
While the Lion Mistress follows a different set of main characters than the ones in the first four I still think it would work best to start there, but for those who prefer to start here that definitely works too, you just miss a bit of backstory of the side characters. And for me seeing the characters I had grown to know from the first four books again in this book was so fun.
The Lion Mistress Book 1 follows the story of Kathrael. She was a slave and then a prostitute. Then she got burned and now she has no way to make a living. She has lost everyone close and dear to her and the only drive left is to get to the north and kill the wolf patron who ruined her life. It's told mostly from her point of view, but there are also some chapters from Favian and Ithric's point of views too.
I admit that I found Kathrael hard to like at first. Her only drive seems to be revenge and she is quite hardened because of the life she had. I felt sorry for her with how she had lived, lost and also how she thought of sex. I found it hard to really care for her, but I did like seeing how character development over the course of the book. It really feel like the first step to a better life for her. And by the end I did find myself warming up to her slowly.
I did like Favian right away. We already have seen a lot of Favian in the horse mistress books and he was one of my favorite side characters there. I also liked seeing how he grew closer to Kathrael and cared for her and helped her recover. I had more trouble with his relationship with Ithric as he seemed almost hostile when he talked about him, but his actions spoke of a deep bond. A bond that was formed before this book. Which is when I regret not starting with the prequel as I think that would've given me a better insight in their relationship.
Favian and Ithric's romance is almost combustible. They love each other, but also seem quite argumentative with each other. Eventually they get to the heart of the matter and I found I understood both of their points. I just didn't care for the way they acted at first and was happier when they made up, which isn't till the end of the book tough. Ithric and Kathrael have a bit of a bond too, but not as deep yet, but I think that will develop in the next book. I am curious to see their relationship progress as toward the end it's still very much in the beginning stages.
I am not quite sure what it is, but something about this book failed to fully pull me in. I loved being back in this world and there is some great character focus and interactions. The story felt like it moved a bit slowly at times and lacked direction, but I still enjoyed myself while reading. It just lacked that feel that I wanted to keep reading and was immersed in the story that the horse mistress books had.
I was happy to return to this world and see glimpses of how the character we followed in the horse mistress book were doing now. It's also great to see how the world has changed in the meantime. How some parts are more stable and more unrest in other parts. I am quite curious to see how this will develop in future books. This book also expands on the world building with Kathrael's spirit gift and some twins she meet who have an unusual gift too.
To summarize: I was happy to return to the world of Eburos and this time follow a new set of characters. Kathrael is the main character of this one, with some chapters from Favian and Ithric's point of view. I had a bit of a hard time warming up to Kathrael, she has had a hard life and is a bit better and revengeful when the book starts. I felt sorry for her, but didn't quite like her at first. I like seeing her character development over the course of the series and I began to like parts of her characters. I was happy to see Favian again, although I felt like I missed part of his background with Ithric as I didn't start with the prequel first. I also didn't care for their attitude at first were he acted like Ithric didn't matter to him and I was happy once they talked things through and resolved it. The romance between Favian and Thric is already more established and in this book Kathrael joins their relationship in a way as well, but it's still very much in the beginning stages. All in all it was a good start of the series and while it didn't pull me in as much as the Horse mistress books, it has a lot of potential and I am excited to see where the story goes next.
While the Lion Mistress follows a different set of main characters than the ones in the first four I still think it would work best to start there, but for those who prefer to start here that definitely works too, you just miss a bit of backstory of the side characters. And for me seeing the characters I had grown to know from the first four books again in this book was so fun.
The Lion Mistress Book 1 follows the story of Kathrael. She was a slave and then a prostitute. Then she got burned and now she has no way to make a living. She has lost everyone close and dear to her and the only drive left is to get to the north and kill the wolf patron who ruined her life. It's told mostly from her point of view, but there are also some chapters from Favian and Ithric's point of views too.
I admit that I found Kathrael hard to like at first. Her only drive seems to be revenge and she is quite hardened because of the life she had. I felt sorry for her with how she had lived, lost and also how she thought of sex. I found it hard to really care for her, but I did like seeing how character development over the course of the book. It really feel like the first step to a better life for her. And by the end I did find myself warming up to her slowly.
I did like Favian right away. We already have seen a lot of Favian in the horse mistress books and he was one of my favorite side characters there. I also liked seeing how he grew closer to Kathrael and cared for her and helped her recover. I had more trouble with his relationship with Ithric as he seemed almost hostile when he talked about him, but his actions spoke of a deep bond. A bond that was formed before this book. Which is when I regret not starting with the prequel as I think that would've given me a better insight in their relationship.
Favian and Ithric's romance is almost combustible. They love each other, but also seem quite argumentative with each other. Eventually they get to the heart of the matter and I found I understood both of their points. I just didn't care for the way they acted at first and was happier when they made up, which isn't till the end of the book tough. Ithric and Kathrael have a bit of a bond too, but not as deep yet, but I think that will develop in the next book. I am curious to see their relationship progress as toward the end it's still very much in the beginning stages.
I am not quite sure what it is, but something about this book failed to fully pull me in. I loved being back in this world and there is some great character focus and interactions. The story felt like it moved a bit slowly at times and lacked direction, but I still enjoyed myself while reading. It just lacked that feel that I wanted to keep reading and was immersed in the story that the horse mistress books had.
I was happy to return to this world and see glimpses of how the character we followed in the horse mistress book were doing now. It's also great to see how the world has changed in the meantime. How some parts are more stable and more unrest in other parts. I am quite curious to see how this will develop in future books. This book also expands on the world building with Kathrael's spirit gift and some twins she meet who have an unusual gift too.
To summarize: I was happy to return to the world of Eburos and this time follow a new set of characters. Kathrael is the main character of this one, with some chapters from Favian and Ithric's point of view. I had a bit of a hard time warming up to Kathrael, she has had a hard life and is a bit better and revengeful when the book starts. I felt sorry for her, but didn't quite like her at first. I like seeing her character development over the course of the series and I began to like parts of her characters. I was happy to see Favian again, although I felt like I missed part of his background with Ithric as I didn't start with the prequel first. I also didn't care for their attitude at first were he acted like Ithric didn't matter to him and I was happy once they talked things through and resolved it. The romance between Favian and Thric is already more established and in this book Kathrael joins their relationship in a way as well, but it's still very much in the beginning stages. All in all it was a good start of the series and while it didn't pull me in as much as the Horse mistress books, it has a lot of potential and I am excited to see where the story goes next.