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Book Review of Magic Lost, Trouble Found (Raine Benares, Bk 1)

Magic Lost, Trouble Found (Raine Benares, Bk 1)
jai avatar reviewed on + 310 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 8


I think that if you've read a lot of fantasy and expect a third person narrator and more formal speech, then this may not be the book for you, but I personally found it a refreshing change.

The book is told from the first person point of view, but unlike a lot of urban fantasies where the heroine is often alone, Raine is usually surrounded by her friends and family as she tries to work out her problems. I liked the cast of characters and there was interesting development in the character of Piaras, a promising young spellsinger she knows.

The other thing I liked was a different spin on goblins. While we always hear about tall, pale elves like Legolas (and we have those here), the goblins here are tall, grey-blue, with angular faces, sensitivity to light, and fangs. Raine's two love interests are an elf and a goblin. Usually I can guess in the beginning of the book who the heroine ends up with, but I found myself liking both of them. Mychael Eiliesor seems like the good guy with lots of power, and Tamnais Nathrach seemed like the scoundrel (also with lots of power) who could be good. And they were friends with each other for once. The romance was very light and flirty in this book, so I don't know if anything serious is going to happen. Anyway, we'll see. I just hope the love triangle doesn't go on too long, that can be annoying in a series.