Book Review: Tiger’s Voyage

Tiger’s Voyage
By Colleen Houck
Published November 1, 2011
Sterling Publishing
Hardcover
Author’s Website

In the third installment of the Tiger series, Kelsey Hayes pushes through the pain of lost love and strengthens her friendship with Kishan. Despite his strong feelings for her, Kishan has agreed to be her ally in helping her reunite with the man she still loves. Together, they seek to help Ren regain his memory and begin the search for the third magical gift—an object of power that will help break the curse that causes them to live part of their lives as tigers.

They board a luxury yacht and seek Durga’s aid once again, who supplies them with her golden weapons. With Nilima, Mr. Kadam, Ren, and Kishan at her side, she soon learns that the task ahead will be even more difficult than the others. Confronting a dark magician, multiple dragons, and terrifying denizens of the deep seems easy when compared to facing the daunting task of stitching up her heart. Just when she thinks she’s ready to set her feet on a new path, she is yanked back with a jolt to the one she’s determined to leave behind.

The jarring tug-of-war that ensues for Kelsey’s heart leaves her anxious and confused. Combined with the stress of almost being killed every other day, it would appear that saving the tigers is almost more than she can handle. Still, she presses on, knowing that a choice is looming on the horizon. One she cannot put off making for long.

THE REVIEW:

It’s no secret among my reading circles that the Tiger’s Curse series is one of my favorite series. The third book in the series (out of a planned 5), Tiger’s Voyage, did not disappoint.

Plot: 10
Well, we have our tiger princes, one ghastly villain, a curse and now you say dragons? Yes, there is a whole lot of adventure going on here. For fans of adventure, drama and plenty of romance, this installment of the series will be right up your alley. Now, if you can’t stand teenage angst involving love triangles and one fairly torn up female lead, knock off a few points, because there is plenty of that to be had here.

Characters: 10
I can safely say that Colleen may very well have created the most astute, yet ignorantly hardheaded female lead in the history of the written word. It’s been seen in previous volumes, but is never more obvious than in this installment. The girl knows what we know, but she is very set in her ways. She is… so… DARN… hardheaded!!!  All that aside, I can’t help but love the girl. Maybe it’s true, maybe she really *does* have the power to draw people to her. I know I certainly haven’t felt so emotionally involved in a character’s fate as I do Kelsey’s…

Setting: 10
One thing I love about the Tiger series is that, while the story takes place in real locations like Oregon and India, there is a fantastic world sewn right into the very folds of our reality. Who knew that dragons lived among us, unseen to the human eye? Who knew what terrifying creatures shared our lands?

Pacing:  8
Dealing with the conflicts already at hand at the start of the book, Colleen works past those slowly but thoroughly like a flower bud slowly coming into bloom one petal at a time (see this book even makes me poetic now…) This is not a knock on the pacing, since in this volume Colleen is at her very best! She masterfully balances the romance with the action, often times blending the two in order to move the story along. I couldn’t put the book down.

Style: 10
Colleen has a very descriptive writing style. Some people may be deterred by the occasional pauses in story development for area/food/historical descriptions. But I, for one, am an glutton for information and I find that Colleen’s pauses in the story to talk about more detailed information to be the result of good research. The information provided also helps to pull you even more into this world that she has created.

Also, if you thought that the kappas from book one were creepy, or the metal birds from book two were just plain terrifying, trust me, you ain’t seen NOTHING yet! (Thanks, Colleen, for making many of my already existing fears even worse! Much appreciated!) 😉 Once the action starts in this book it WILL NOT let you go until the very last page. Yup, there are ENDLESS challenges to be had on the high seas… More than Shangri-la and Kishkinda combined.

Bravo, Colleen! I can’t wait for Destiny to be released now, and see how you could possibly top the most outstanding Tiger’s Voyage.

Grade: 98