Review: Guardian of the Moon Pendant by Laura J. Williams (and GIVEAWAY)

Guardian of the Moon Pendant (Highland Secrets) by Laura J. Williams

Published: July 25, 2012

Publisher: self published

Pages: 354

Received: for review and blog tour

Buy Now: Amazon

The MacAlpin women are of a fierce clan, born from a rare bloodline that harbors a dark and powerful secret – a mystical heirloom called the Moon Pendant. It is the key to controlling the MääGord standing stones, a magical Portal into the Otherworld, the realm of the Fae.

Anabel and Izzy MacAlpin are two sisters, polar opposites, living separate lives.

Anabel’s life is going precisely according to her plan, a ring on her finger from her steady beau, Edgar, and medical school in the fall.

Izzy’s life is filled with scars and wounds from her past. Dubbed the “spare child” by her family and treated poorly, she rebelled, and now lives life by her own rules.

These two sisters’ worlds are about to explode when one of them must go to Scotland and fulfill her duty as the Guardian of the Moon Pendant, by recharging this magical heirloom with four elementals, air, earth, water, and fire, and then finally close the Portal.

There’s only one problem…

The Baobhan Sith – a vampiric faery who lures men in with her hypnotic voice, feeding on their blood or transforming them into Màrmann, her zombie-like warriors who do her bidding – desires the Moon Pendant to take control over the Portal, opening a gateway into the realm of man, helping her to seek revenge on the MacAlpin clan, and to quench her eternal thirst for human blood.

Anabel finds herself torn between a sinfully handsome Scottish warrior, Blane and her fiancée, Edgar. Izzy finds herself, angered by her sister’s lack of faith in her.

Both sisters are forced to help one another, but may end up killing each other in the end. Surrounded by an array of good and evil Scottish Fae like a vampiric faery, the Baobhan Sith, zombie-warriors, the Ankou, Dryads, the Fachan, the Ghillie Dhu, Heather Pixies, Leigheas, the Nuckelavee, the Bloody Baron a Red Cap, Stone Faeries, Trows, and Will-o’-the-wisps.

Will these two sisters put aside their differences before the final task to charge the Moon Pendant and close the Portal or will the Baobhan Sith, the vampiric faery, be successful and open the Portal into the Otherworld?

The cover and synopsis of Guardian of the Moon Pendant sold me on this book from the start, but wait until you actually dive into it, you will be blown away. If you think this will be like all of the other faery magic books out there, then you are in for a great big surprise. It's completely original and I've read nothing like it yet. Between the sibling rivalry issues,the sexy Scottish men and all of the challenges the group face among the fae, you will not be disappointed. 

One big part of the story is the sibling rivalry between Anabel and Izzy and to say they dislike each other is an understatement. They full on hate each other at one point. Anabel is the perfect child with aspirations to be a doctor and lead the perfect life, with the perfect husband and career. Izzy is the wild child who will do everything in her power to be the opposite of her sister. Of the two girls, I actually really loved Izzy's character the most and only because of her snarky comments and how she grows through the book. Anabel does her fair sharing of growing as a character too, but I just had a soft spot for Izzy and her rebellious ways.

The other wonderful aspect of this story was learning about all of the different fae. There are tons of them in this book and many I did not know much about. Ms. Williams does a great job of explaining the types of fae in the book without an overload of information. Learning about the fae and how to complete certain challenges Anabel faces was actually exciting and interesting. I loved the part with the Bloody Baron and the vampiric faery added tons of drama with her zombie-warriors. There were some seriously creepy scenes with those zombie men and they give me chills just thinking of their soulless eyes. 

Can Anabel and Izzy work together to defeat the Baobhan Sith and her zombie henchmen? Will Anabel's wish for a perfect life be ruined for good? You need to read this amazing adventure to find out. It's filled with action, forgiveness, redemption and sexy Scots, what more could you ask for?

CHECK OUT THIS EXCITING GIVEAWAY!
5 SIGNED copies of Guardian of the Moon Pendant

US ONLY! Open TOUR WIDE!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the author:

Laura J. Williams is a hopeless and lost cause, tucked away in her dark sleeping chamber, in her gloomy abyss of a writing cave, separated from the realm of man, chomping on chicken legs and quenching her thirst with large glasses of red wine. She is consoled daily by her rescued cat, baby-kitty, who only gives her love when she wants to.

Aye, it is a sad life she lives… But, God danced the day Laura was born, the angels rejoiced, and the demons trembled. She’s just another day-dreamer with a story to tell, doing her best to kick arse. She hides behind a shroud of anonymity, creating a world of lost mythical creatures, breathing life into them, and praying that someone will take pleasure in her work. She is the warrior of the heroine, the sorceress of words, yielder of magic, teller of dark secrets, and the jester of tantalizing tales.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Facebook