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From the New York Times bestselling coauthors, a charming romantic fantasyMercedes Lackey is the New York Times bestselling author of the Valdemar series and romantic fantasies like Beauty and the Werewolf and The Fairy Godmother. Now these New York Times and USA Today bestselling collaborators bring romance to the fore with The House of the Four Winds.The rulers of tiny, impoverished Swansgaard have twelve daughters and one son. While the prince’s future is assured, his twelve sisters must find their own fortunes.Disguising herself as Clarence, Princess Clarice intends to sail to the New World. When the crew rebels, Clarice/Clarence, an expert with rapier and dagger, sides with the handsome navigator, Dominick, and kills the cruel captain.Dominick leads the now-outlawed crew in search of treasure in the secret pirate haven known as The House of the Four Winds. They encounter the sorceress Shamal, who claims Dominick for her own―but Clarice has fallen hard for Dominick and won’t give him up without a fight.Full of swashbuckling adventure, buoyant magic, and irrepressible charm, The House of the Four Winds is a lighthearted fantasy romp by a pair of bestselling writers.
Series: One Dozen Daughters (Book 1)
Audio CD: 9 pages
Publisher: Brilliance Audio; Unabridged edition (August 5, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1491502029
ISBN-13: 978-1491502020
Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.8 x 5.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (113 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #5,478,293 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #33 in Books > Books on CD > Authors, A-Z > ( L ) > Lackey, Mercedes #4363 in Books > Books on CD > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy #17690 in Books > Books on CD > Literature & Fiction > Unabridged
I was so excited to start THE HOUSE OF THE FOUR WINDS. THE FIRE ROSE by Mercedes Lackey is one of my “comfort books,” a book I can read over and over, one that I love. So I was hoping to find another favorite in THE HOUSE OF THE FOUR WINDS. Unfortunately, this book won’t be joining my favorites list.The book got off to a rocky start. I was almost ready to put it down after the first couple of chapters because I got tired of trying to remember all the oddly named countries. There’s Waulosiene, Lochrin, Albion, Cisleithanian, Ifrane, etc. None of them are actually important, but I didn’t know that at first, and I was trying to figure out what real countries the fictional ones were modeled on. There’s a real lack of worldbuilding in THE HOUSE OF THE FOUR WINDS, which is a pity.Moving on … after Clarice finds transport to the New World, the book slows down. I had no idea where the book was heading, and I again wanted to put it down. The one good thing about this part is that the authors build a strong friendship between Clarice and Dominick, although Dominick doesn’t know that Clarice is actually a female. He thinks she’s Clarence Swann.The main villain, Shamal, shows up way too late in THE HOUSE OF THE FOUR WINDS. The conflict/problems she creates are resolved way too easily. I was rather disappointed in how that whole thread wrapped up. “Disappointed” describes my feelings as a whole for the book. It wasn’t the fun, swashbuckling adventure the summary promised me.The writing was almost bad fanfic quality. There was an abundance of adverbs. Clarice and Dominick were always saying something “carefully” or “lightly” or “charmingly.” And so on. When there’s a lot of that, I can’t help but notice and it pulls me out of the story.
The first time I had a look at the cover of Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory’s The House of the Four Winds, I thought it wasn’t my sort of book. I mean, I read seafaring and swashbuckling tales with relish in my younger years, but it’s not my usual cup of tea these days. Then the kind folks at Tor sent over a note about its release, and I always try to give my email an honest read before answering it, so I did more than skim the description. Lo and behold, this was a fantasy (I should have known – Lackey and all!), with a cross-dressing princess of a heroine, and the blurb promised ROMANCE. Well, who was I to say no to that?! It sounded like good fun.Clarice is the oldest of an enormous brood of daughters (and one son) born to the ruler of a tiny principality in the mountains. Her parents can’t afford dowries for their daughters without beggaring their kingdom, so each daughter is expected to go off and seek her fortune. Clarice is determined to ply her trade as a swordsmaster, but she must earn a reputation first, and that requires travel. Disguising herself as “Clarence Swann,” she takes passage on a merchant vessel bound for the New World, and quickly becomes fast friends with the ship’s navigator, Dominick. When sinister events and adventures threaten her life, Clarice/Clarence must use all of her resources (and rely on her heart) to come through the storm.The first thing you should know about The House of the Four Winds is that my first judgment after a 5-second perusal of the cover art did not fail me. It’s 90% about life on a boat filled with men, plus some violence. The other 10% of the book is split between Clarice’s (somewhat boring) backstory and a magical mystery at the very end of the book.
Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory introduce us to a new universe and storyline, that of the "One Dozen Daughters" series. The rulers of tiny country of Swansgaard have twelve daughters and one son. While the prince’s future is assured, his twelve sisters must find their own fortunes, so it is decided that they will go out to make their own fortunes after their 18th Birthday. As each daughter has been encouraged to learn a trade growing up and also to be self-sufficient if needed, this is not as much of a burden as it would be to a standard princess.The House of the Four Winds begins the adventures of the Swansgaard Princesses. Clarice, the oldest daughter, has studied the Sword, and wishes to open a school to teach others. But in order for anyone to trust themselves or their children to her as a Swordsmistress, she must first go out and find adventure and experience. Using a special corset to bind her figure down and dressing as a man, she sets sail for adventure. Her voyage is soon filled with mutiny, pirates, and treasure... who can ask for a better adventure?!Not the "Elemental Masters" Series or the "Five Hundred Kingdoms" Series, this new series is the love child of the two series, gaining the best of both elements. With magic viewed as a science and the characters as princesses who have all learned different trades, we know that we'll see adventure, laughter, mystery and sometimes horror, and love, platonic or romantic. "One Dozen Daughters" is a fresh new look at what a princess without a dowry would have to do to make her own way in the world, and with the encouragement of her family.
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