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Gryphon's Quest
By Candace Sams
Reviewed by Annette Gisby, author of Silent Screams
Gryphon O' Connor is a Druid Warrior, charged with the protection of his people. His people include fairies, elves and other so called mythical creatures that humankind have long ago stopped believing in. He is also the only one of his kind, a man able to shape shift into another being, destined to be alone. When the Sorceress of the Ancients sends him on a quest to New York to bring back stolen Irish artifacts, he hadn't bargained on meeting and falling for feisty young woman Heather Green. Heather works in the acquisitions department in the museum where the artifacts were sent.
She can hardly believe that she has finally met someone who lives up to her ideal fantasy, a tall, dark and handsome stranger reminiscent of all those Celtic heroes she'd read about and who she thought didn't exist. Heather is determined to help recover the stolen property, no matter how much Gryphon insists otherwise.
The stolen artifacts include a set of three rune stones, which when translated will allow the speaker to shapeshift into something resembling their inner soul. Unfortunately the stones have been used by someone with a dark soul and now a monstrous killer is on the streets, determined to make Heather it's next victim…
This is a well plotted story of romance and adventure, with a murder mystery thrown in for good measure, although I think the killer was revealed a little too early. The main plot seems to be how two people so different as Heather and Gryphon can get together, when there are so many obstacles in the way, not the least of which is the fact that anyone who reveals to Outsiders (which is what Heather is, after all), about their existence is condemned to death, and so is the Outsider they told.
I think more could have been made of this, why was there such a rule? Surely not all Outsiders were not as terrible as they were making out, and they do come to this conclusion in the end. Because there are so few of the magical beings left, they know they will die out unless they can introduce new blood into the gene pool.
The love scenes between Gryphon and Heather were deftly handled, erotic without crossing that line into more heavy territory. It was heartbreaking watching the way Gryphon was treated by the others because he was different, he was even more of an outsider than the Outsiders. And what became of Heather once she found out Gryphon's secret? Well, you'll just have to read and find out!
A great read.