Mage Heart by Jane Routley

I honestly don't know how I managed to get so engrossed in this fantasy novel. Dion is so annoyingly naive and brainwashed. And she really easily soaks up what others tell her. The basic plot of this book is that Dion, the only female mage in the land, is hired by the local Duke to protect his courtesan, who is under threat from her former lover (a great, foreign mage).

Dion is a conservatively-raised, sheltered young woman and so the subplot is that this assignment allows her the freedom for the first time in her life to question her deep-seated religious and social beliefs, as well as explore sexuality. Apparently she was taught some cockamamie notion that has to do with virginity being powerful (ridiculous because in this world you don't get a magical boost from being a virgin), and she thinks the ideas of attraction and sex are disgusting.

I would say hijinks ensue, but it's not really that sort of book. There's definitely nothing light in this novel. It's more serious in tone, exploring repressed sexuality and the destructive power of blind faith/religious fanaticism.

This was definitely an interesting read. I did get sucked in somehow. However, I really found most of the characters annoying. Maybe I just wanted to see what the conclusion would be. It was mildly interesting, but fairly predictable. I don't know…On the whole, I'm just very confused about how I feel about this one.

~6/10~