Lisa Shearin – Armed & Magical

The second book in the Raine Benares series, published April 29, 2008
Genre: fantasy
Cover: good



My name is Raine Benares. Until last week, I was a seeker – a finder of things lost and people missing. Now, I’m psychic roommates with the Saghred, an ancient stone with cataclysmic powers. Just me, the stone, and all the souls it’s ingested over the centuries. Crowded doesn’t even begin to describe it.
All Raine wants is her life back – which means getting rid of the stone and the power it possesses. To sort things out, she heads for the Isle of Mid, home to the most prestigious sorcery school, as well as the Conclave, the governing body for all magic users. It’s also home to power-grubbing mages who want Raine dead and Goblins who see her as a thief. As if that’s not enough, Mid’s best student spellsingers are disappearing left and right, and Raine’s expected to find them.
Lives are at stake, goblins are threatening to sue, mages are getting greedier, and the stone’s power is getting stronger by the hour. This could get ugly.


This book continues right after the end of book 1. Raine Benares, her cousin Phaelan and their young friend and powerful spellsinger Piaras have come to the Isle of Mid under escort of Mychael Eiliesor, the Paladin and Commander of the Guardians of the Conclave of Sorcerers. Raine needs help to get rid of her connection to the Saghred, and there are no more powerful magicians than in Mid, where the University is. Piaras hopes to study under Maestro Ronan Cayle, who is the best spellsinger-teacher.
Mychael has promised to keep Raine safe and to get her the help she needs, but after all, he needs to listen to his boss, Archmagus Justinius Valerian. And the Archmagus needs the consent of the Seat of Twelve. And there is some heavy opposition against Raine, which only gets heavier when both the Elves and the Khrynsani Kobolds ask for her surrender. Of course, they all want to control the Saghred through her, but the Khrynsani also want their head shaman back, who was sucked into the Saghred when he tried to sacrifice Raine instead.

Raine’s first day on the Island ends in disaster when she recognizes Banan Ryce, commander of the Nightshades, an assassin guild of Elves, tries to kill both the Archmagus and the Paladin. Raine uses her augmented magic to prevent it from happening, but that was exactly what Banan Ryce wanted. And he gets away with a pretty blond young spell singer, using mirror magic. Raine needs to find her, before the worst happens to the girl, and the City’s Guard accepts her offer of help. But it is of no use, the girl is too terrified to show her anything, only that she is not alone in her cell.


A very action filled book, and I enjoyed every page of it. Raine tries to find and save the abducted spell singers, while all the bad guys are after her and Piaras, as he is so very powerful. Evil people deal in abducted spellsingers, so he is a hot commodity. Mychael and Phaelan try to keep Raine safe, with Phaelan being the more successful of the two. And then there is Tam, who is suddenly using the darkest of magics, and whose kiss is more magical than any Raine has felt before. But the Saghred is drawn to the use of dark magic, so being together is really not smart.

I really love Raine, she will do whatever it takes to safe her friends, and keep them safe, no matter the costs to herself. Men want to fight for her, but she can handle it all perfectly well herself. She can fight, and thanks to the Saghred, her magic is no longer moderate, it has broken the charts. Learning more about herself, her father, and especially the Saghred is important. Especially as the first Kobold who ever wielded it, is not dead yet, and after her and her friends too …

Lots of danger, lots of action, and only a little time for fun and relaxation, but I do look forward to book three already. When Phaelan’s father will come to Mid and help them make sure the magicians will do whatever they can to help Raine break her connection to the Saghred without killing her. If Phaelan has a bad reputation, they fear his father … And yes, there is still that hint of romance, and no idea who the lucky man will be. Tam or Mychael.

I enjoy Lisa Shearin’s writing style, her sense of humor, her characters and her unique world building and look on magic.

9 stars.

© 2014 Reviews by Aurian