Review – Wildwood Larkwing (Silver and Orchids, Book 3) by Shari L. Tapscott (4/5 stars)
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 366 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
Release Date: August 27, 2017
ISBN-13: 978-1974290963
Stand Alone or Series: 3rd book in the Silver and Orchids series
Source: Kindle Unlimited
Rating: 4/5 stars
“After living her entire life on the outside looking in, Lucia has finally ventured into the world of Kalae’s nobility. Now infamous for slaying several sirens in their forbidden waters, she is the king’s new pet, the courtiers’ favorite conversation topic, and the queen’s least favorite former chicken maid.
As if navigating this new world were not enough, a shadow has fallen over Kalae’s most beautiful royal city. Crime runs rampant in Teirn, alchemy supply shoppes are pillaged in the dead of night, and rumors of illicit underground masquerades abound.
On top of all that, Lucia has her own problem in the form of the pirate who stole a piece of her heart. Still-healing Avery is not content with a sliver of Lucia’s affection, not after what transpired between them on the mystery-enshrouded whirlpool island. But with a dark man stalking the adventuress, and a simple job spiraling her and Sebastian into the depths of Kalae’s criminal underworld, Lucia’s not sure if she’ll live long enough to give the captain a real chance.”
This is the third book in the Silver and Orchids series. I didn’t enjoy quite as much as the last book. There was a lot less adventuring and more court politics.
Lucia is being honored by the King for her actions in “Greybrow Serpent”. She feels very out of place among all the nobility and royalty. She is also starting to realize how important Avery is in the kingdom and is concerned that what happened between her and Sebastian will repeat with Avery. Meanwhile, alchemy shops are being attacked and someone is following Lucia…not to mention how restless the goblins are…
This book was a lot more focused on Lucia and her time at court. Lots of politics and time spent with Lucia dealing with her relationships with both Sebastian and Avery. There are some interesting parts with the alchemists shops and with the goblins, but the bulk of this was dealt with fairly briefly and towards the end of the book.
I still enjoyed the characters and this fantasy world. I do wish there had been a bit more action and adventure. I just felt like this story wasn’t put together quite as well as the previous two books.
Overall this was still a fun read but not my favorite in the series. I would have liked to see more action and adventure and less time at court. I still plan on reading “Lily of the Desert” to see how things wrap up. I would recommend this series to those who enjoy lighthearted and action-packed adventure fantasy with some romance.
