Book Review: Guardians of Stone by Anita Clenney (The Relic Seekers #1)

Book reviews

5 Dec

Guardians of Stone by Anita Clenney (The Relic Seekers #1)ebookReview copy provided by authorMontlake Romance, 4 December 2012 Synopsis-Kendall Morgan is a human bloodhound. Spending her childhood hunting relics with her ambitious archeologist father, she knew the two of them shared a sixth sense for the history and location of objects—sometimes even people. What she didn’t know was that their paranormal gift could ultimately be their undoing.After the tragic plane crash that killed her father as well as her childhood best friend, Kendall dedicated her life to finding and protecting relics. When mysterious, sexy billionaire Nathan Larraby hires her for his latest expedition—the search for four powerful relics —she’s thrown into a world of high-octane danger. He sends brooding mercenary Jake Stone to watch Kendall’s back, but he may have created danger of a different kind.As the team chases down clues, a man called the Reaper makes a play for the artifacts and will stop at nothing to put them to his own sinister use. What’s worse is that Nathan hasn’t told the whole story, and the dark secrets he’s keeping could cost them the mission…and their lives. Review- Guardians of Stone is the first novel in Anita Clenney’s, Relic Seekers series. I am a big fan of Clenney’s highlander series as she writes about strong, feisty women who attract burly men with a soft side. When the author enquired if I would be interested in reviewing her new series I jumped at the opportunity and read it right away.Kendall Morgan has the ability to find things; she has a sixth sense for tracking down relics and is enlisted to Nathan Larraby’s relic seeking business. She is assigned the task of locating an artefact alongside Jake Stone who has previously worked in the Middle East and also has a good track record for finding things that are hidden.Kendall is fairly stubborn and has her own ideas about how she will find the relic, while Jake on the surface is brooding and overprotective, he also has a vulnerable side. Thrown together on assignment in Italy they share a room together and soon a bed (for purely practical reasons) and can’t deny their instant attraction. Kendall isn’t keen to get involved with a colleague and Jake isn’t really thinking past his physical needs. Sharing stressful, near-death situations brings them closer and their initial chemistry is supported by an underlying emotional connection. From chasing ghosts to haunted castles, there’s plenty of action and suspense in this story.What I found interesting about Guardians of Stone that I didn’t experience with Clenney’s former books, is a stronger connection with the male protagonist than the female. For me, I really wanted to like Kendall but I just didn’t get a real sense of who she was. She wasn’t the feisty woman Clenney usually writes about and for a major part of the book I felt she was quite passive. Jake on the other hand has his flaws exposed and quite a lot of space in the story is dedicated to his viewpoint. I felt like I ‘got’ him and I really quite liked him as the hero of the story.There were also aspects of the romantic plot that I found frustrating, it seemed like just as things heated up, someone turned up and interrupted them. When it happened the first or second time it certainly amped up the tension, but after that it felt like an obvious barrier in their relationship progressing. I do understand that this is a series (unlike the highlander books which examine a new couple in each book) so the romance can’t be resolved in the first book, but I’d have liked it to be a bit more natural.A theme that I do love in Clenney’s stories is the history and mystery that intertwines throughout each book. Guardians of Stone is certainly a promising start to a new series and I do look forward to reading more about Kendall, Jake and also the added dynamic of Nathan. I also highly recommend checking out Clenney’s highlander series which mixes modern day with highlander clan history.