Customer Reviews
Romantic Fantasy has never been so exhilarating to read...or so addictive! - By: Leontine @, 13 Oct 2008 
In part one: Lord of the Fading Lands, a woodcarver's daughter called Rain Tairen Soul from the sky & a courtship begun.
In part two: Lady Of Light And Shadow, the courtship continues as a fierce battle knocks on Celierian doors & secrets reveal themselves.
Nowin part three, King Of Sword And Sky, Rain takes his Shei'tani to his homeland where new challenges lie for Ellysetta. Enter a new world where Fey gather to meet the Shei'tani of a Tairen Soul, a Tairen pride that roars their welcome & the battle that becomes more violent & more grim with each passing day.
Like a bard of old times C.L. Wilson has once again raised her voice to tell another storyin her Tairen Soul series & one thing's for sure, many will gather to hear it! As I started to read the first page of KING OF SWORD AND SKY I was walking back into the vibrant world of the Fading Lands & met the characters that I came to treasurein Lord Of The Fading Lands & Lady Of Light And Shadow.
It didn't take much for me to be completely absorbedin this tale as it takes off right where Lady Of Light And Shadow had left me. On a fivefold weave & on Tairen back I was led deeper into a world that took my breath away. The almost lyric prose of C.L. Wilson combined with a highly imaginative writing skill made me wanderin a deserted Elven town, visit the Fey' Bahren & wasin awe of the Hall of Scrolls. Though the author takes time to make the reader see all the splendor of her world it is the plot & a plethora of memorable characters that never lets your attention falter & only makes you wish for more. Four hundred & sixty-seven pages & they go byin the blink of an eye.
Of course Rain vel 'En Daris & Ellysetta Baristani are the main couple & their true mate bond that needs to gainin strength. Doubts & concerns are their ever present companions but they also get to feel beauty, share each other's joy & wonder. Their bond & feelings just echoedin my heart as I read the pages, hoping for all the good things but knowing a bond is not just forgedin good times. It isin the troubled times that the trials will test the bond's strength. It also makes the love shine stronger & the magic of the true bond brighter. I don't know if I can capture the words to describe this soaring romance that makes my heart response with all my emotions. There are moments that gave me goose bumps from what I "saw"in my mind's eye, filled my eyes with tears & made my heart leapin joy. The author has a gift to evoke it all with the reader & she will make you care for each Fey & Tairen.
The Fey warriors are a sight to behold & the Tairen pride is impressivein their loyalty & playfulness. Belliard, Gaelen, Kiel & Kieran are all present but I also got to meet new Fey & Tajik vel Sibboreh is one that will demand your attention with his gruff but loyal attitude. The diversityin their natures & magic is what made me want to get to know all of them & makes me understand Elly all the morein her decisions. But if there is one character that had me from the first moment I met her it is Steli. She is Tairen & considers herself to be the first blade, the fiercest defender of the pride. She is loyal, knows no shame & will bleed for youin protection. Her very nature just brings a bright smile to my face & this tale became that much richer with herin it!
KING OF SWORD AND SKY enters the next stage of the story & it will affect many characters, will become more dire & sacrifices must be made! The good versus evil element is superbly executed by C.L. Wilson & drives me to keep turning the pages, no matter what hour, what needs to be done or who's calling. With every bookin her Tairen Soul series she delivers a tale of otherworldly proportions & is a symphony of exquisite writing. It combines a rich & dazzling cast of characters, who are led by a dynamic pair that scorches the pages with their profound love & is framed by a plot that keeps you firmly set is this world. Submergedin this tale,in this world, the sum of its parts leads to awe inspiring romance, a page devouring battle & the image of Fey warriors that shout: `Mei'felani. Bei'santi. Nehtah, bas desrali. Live well, love deep. Tomorrow, we die.' burnedin the mind's eye!
I cannot praise this series high enough for it is the perfect balance of fantasy & romance! In the end C.L. Wilson masterfully leads the reader to yet another action driven ending that makes you feel sad to leave the Fading Lands & count the day's until Queen Of Song And Soul is released.
Romantic Fantasy has never been so exhilarating to read...or so addictive!
reviewed by Leontine
Courtesy of Realms On Our Bookshelves
Stunning - By: Elizabeth, 13 Oct 2008 KING OF SOUL AND SKY is the third installment of C. L. Wilson's Tairen Soul series, with the final installment due outin June 2009. If you haven't yet started this series, you really must go back to LORD OF THE FADING LANDS & start there...I promise it won't disappoint!
First of all, if anyone out there is unsure as to if they should continue or even start this series, all I'm going to say is visit C. L. Wilson's website, read the extracts & let the beautiful writing & exquisite storyline speak for itself...
KING picks up where LADY left off; with Ellie & Rain making their way to the Fading Lands, where Ellie will have to try & figure out what is killing the Tairen kitlings, discover the true extent to her own powers & where they come from, & last but not least complete her soul bond with Rain, who will succumb to madness if she does not. Needless to say, there is a lot happeningin this book, & is the longest one yet of the series-I for one am not complaining! Wilson really has a way with words, making her characters seem very realistic, so much so that you will fallin love not just with the self-doubting Hero that is Rain, but the minor characters as well! This series has been a joy to read, &in KING we get a look at the Fading Lands & the Fey, & an even closer look at the horrific schemes & clever plotting of the 'baddies', who will actually send a shiver down your spine...just as the characters, landscape, relationship stories & love scenes are described with wonderful skill & detail, so it is also true for the darker aspects to the book. You learn more about Ellie's parents & the full extent of the horrors & tortures they have been put through for 1000 years...I can only hope there is some sort of happy ending for them!
KING sees Ellie grow & develop even more as a character, & as a consequence so does her relationship with Rain deepen & mature. Her life is not all fun & games once she is behind the Mists however, & we see her cope with more trialsin the Fey lands.
KING definitely cannot stand alone, & I would really recommend that you catch up on LORD & LADY before you start off, because Wilson starts off with a page-turning pace & maintains it throughout. There is a certain amount of closure at the end of the novel however, so do no fear that you will be left completely hanging! I for one cannot wait for the release of QUEEN :)
I would recommend this series for fantasy, romance, & paranormal fans. Truly worth a go, & would be a good series to start with if you are new to fantasy scene!
C.L. Wilson does it again!!!! - By: Lisa Hamilton, 09 Oct 2008 King of Sword & Sky continues straight after the previous book & what an engaging read it is. If you liked the previous two booksin the series this story will not disappoint.
Ellie is still learning the arts of magic & trying to come to grips with the vast power that she has inherited. The shock of losing her mother & leaving her father & sistersin Telon are weighing heavily on her shoulders. After travelling from Celieria city to the outskirts of the Fading Lands Ellie & Rain's first trial is to go through the faering mists. Which proves to be just as hard as they both thought it would be. There she'tanista bond is still not complete & the Eld,in secret are mustering there troups for an invasion. The Tairen cubs are dyingin there eggs & it is up to Ellie to find the answer. The High Mage of Eld is a vile person & the lengths he goes to to achieve victory are shocking & extreme. I found the introduction of the Tarien to be wonderous.
If you like paranormal romance & romantic sagas & have not read this wonderful series by C.L. Wilson I would suggest you buy it.
Patience is rewarded!!! - By: Mrs. Jennifer A. Mander, 07 Oct 2008 As noted, I had to be particularly patient whilst waiting for book no. 3 to reach me. I kept nos. 1 & 2 handy to refresh my memory, & no. 3 is well worth the wait. As the previous reviewer notes, Ellie does sometimes leap before she looks, but with the very best of intentions. The "baddie" is a thoroughly nasty piece of work, but I found myself morbidly fascinated by all his (quite repulsivein parts)deeds of wickedness. However, I'm sure Rain & Ellie & assorted supporting players will overcome his horribleness. Got to go - few more chapters to read - I would recommend this wholeheartedly to anyone who loves fantasy, romance, ghoulishness, & acts of derring-do. FABULOUS!!!!!
Third in Tairen Soul series - By: Helen Hancox, 01 Oct 2008 
C L Wilson's first two booksin this series, 'Lord of the Fading Lands' & 'Lady of Light & Shadow' were an astonishing debut pair of novels that introduced us to the world of Rain Tairen Soul, a shapechanging powerful fey King & his truemate, apparently ordinary Ellysetta Baristani. But there was far more to Ellysetta than met the eye & the first two novels showed how her powers were gradually revealed & how she began to understand her position as truemate to Rain.
The third book, 'King of Sword & Sky', continues the story directly after the end of the previous book. After the shock of Elly's mother's death, she & Rain, their bodyguards & the remaining members of her family set off for the Fading Lands. However this isn't going to be happy ever after, there are many problems within the lands of the Fey as their lands become barren, their women no longer have children & the Tairen, the great cat-like flying beasts, also seem to be sickening. Can Elly's arrival change things, or will the dark forces that are buried deep inside her cause problems? Can Rain continue to be king or will his association with Elly mean that he is placed under suspicion? Can Elly come to terms with her powers & will she understand from where they spring?
I read this book almost a year after reading the previous two & it took me some time to get up to speed with the story, events, characters & - particularly - terminology. This would be a very difficult book to understand if you hadn't read the previous books & it makes few concessions to a reader with a rusty memory. The author piles on more & more terminology & phrasesin Feyan, a foreign language that appears to be liberally sprinkled with apostrophes. I found the first half of the book particularly heavy going & it seemed to take a long time to get round to any action. Elly is still a rather difficult character, one who leaps before she looks & who tends to do her own thing, albeit with usually the best of motivations. There were some slightly disturbing scenesin which the evil High Mage played a part & there was more focus on sex thanin the previous book.
Despite some of these criticisms this was still a very good book. C L Wilson's imagination is impressive, her list of characters interesting & varied & her worldbuilding congruent. Those who enjoyed the previous books will enjoy the continuation of the story - as long as they can remember the people, events & Feyan phrases from the previous two books!
Originally published for Curled Up With A Good Book © Helen Hancox 2008
