Review of The Unfinished Song: Initiate by Tara Maya

Initiate by Tara Maya

Unfinished Song book 1

Misque Press – December 22, 2010

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http://taramayastales.blogspot.com/

Source: The author

From Goodreads: The initiation ceremony is the gateway to ultimate power...or death. A DETERMINED GIRL Dindi can't do anything right, maybe because she spends more time dancing with pixies than doing her chores. Her clan hopes to marry her off and settle her down, but she dreams of becoming a Tavaedi, one of the powerful warrior-dancers whose secret magics are revealed only to those who pass a mysterious Test during the Initiation ceremony. The problem? No-one in Dindi's clan has ever passed the Test. Her grandmother died trying. But Dindi has a plan... AN EXILED WARRIOR Kavio is the most powerful warrior-dancer in Faearth, but when he is exiled from the tribehold for a crime he didn't commit, he decides to shed his old life. If roving cannibals and hexers don't kill him first, this is his chance to escape the shadow of his father's wars and his mother's curse. But when he rescues a young Initiate girl, he finds himself drawn into as deadly a plot as any he left behind. He must decide whether to walk away or fight for her... assuming she would even accept the help of an exile.

                

First I want to apologize to Tara, I can’t even say how long it’s been since she originally gave this to me for review. But it got lost in the shuffle and, although it’s a lousy excuse, I didn’t find it until recently.  I can’t apologize enough. But I can say that this is a surprising series. It sounded interesting and peaked my interest enough to accept an offer to review. But I wasn’t completely sold on the idea.

                But now, I am completely hooked. I wasn’t exactly sure where the story was going to go, but (because of the ending) I can say that I am along for the ride. This is the first in the series and I have to say that I am not a fan of books that don’t really end, but I am not going to stop reading for just that reason. It’s the worst cliffhanger in the world, because it stops right when it seems to be coming together.  I like the way that Dindi’s character is developed and how I can imagine her in my head.  I love it when it is easy to envision a character, and when the character reads well.

                I think it is only fair that I share that I am sort of a fickle readers, especially with series, most especially with series that depend on the previous book to understand what’s going on with the present book.  I really wanted to dive right into the next book, but was not able to.  So I will either have to re-read  Initiate or pray that book two makes sense despite the fact that Initiate is not fresh on my mind.  But if Ms. Maya does what she did in book 1 (or as some others do and improve with the next one) I know that I won’t be disappointed.  And if you haven’t started this series, what are you waiting for?  Go get it! Really, do you need an incentive? It’s currently free on Amazon, click here. 

I definitely liked this, and think you will too!

Always Shine,

Starr K