The Spellmonger's Honeymoon: A Spellmonger Novella cover art

The Spellmonger's Honeymoon: A Spellmonger Novella

Spellmonger, Book 2.5

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About this listen

It was a simple rhyme, a honeymoon folk blessing from the Riverlands, Minalan's home.

Seven bottles of mead to share.
For seven nights or more.
Each cup a toast, each sip a wish.
To bind their lives forevermore:
A bottle first for happiness, a bottle then for health.
A bottle for togetherness, a bottle next for wealth.
A bottle sipped for harmony, the equilibrium of desire.
A bottle savored for purest lust, which brings the marriage fire!

A bottle last for love to endure as long as life shall last,
saved for they who toast their love when five full years have passed!

But those seven bottles of mead were more than just a folk blessing. As Lord Minalan the Spellmonger began his honeymoon on a decadent river barge with his very pregnant bride, he had no idea that the occasion would have anything more complicated than eating, drinking, and making love on the agenda. But a frantic message from one of the Tree Folk indicating he and Alya may be in danger compels him to skip the lazy repose and travel to a far away ruin to speak with a possibly crazy Alka Alon mage - Lilastien, the Sorceress of Sartha Wood. After river pirates, trolls, and the sheer difficulty of adjusting to married life, the answers to the questions he has for her may be more than he, his wife, and his marriage can handle.

Come sail down the languid Burine river with the Spellmonger, and see how seven bottles of mead and a pregnant bride can turn a holiday jaunt into a potential interspecies disaster!

Note: This novella fits chronologically just before the events of Magelord, book three.

©2019 Terry Mancour (P)2019 Podium Audio
Action & Adventure Epic Epic Fantasy Fantasy Marriage Fiction Magic Users Magic Wizardry Pregnancy
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This book fits between 'Warmage' and 'Magelord' but is neither dependent on Book 2 nor a necessary read for Book 3. In that respect, it's a true standalone. Some Spellmonger fans find it a nice "refresher" after reading later entries - after reading Book 7, for example.. and that may be the best way to read it.. but reading it third makes sense, too. The events in 'The Spellmonger's Honeymoon' are really intended to enrich the understanding of Minalin the Spellmonger and his new bride - the impregnated peasant wench Alya. If you are a fan of Terry Mancour's Callidore setting, the novella also provides an interesting perspective on life in the Riverlands, explores conflicts among the Alon, includes a discussion of the Humani divine pantheon, and offers some character development - but adds little in plot progression for the overall story arc. In Essence: enjoy it.. or don't.

John Lee again impresses and the production value from Podium Audio is excellent. I did find that speeding playback to 1.15X is needed to make up for the reader's odd lilting cadence, but Lee's tone/timbre/diction/voice-acting are commendable.. and audio quality is notable.

The best way to take this 6/10 novella is as an optional "gift". You can feel comfortable skipping it, but if you enjoy the Spellmonger universe, this book is likely worth the $3.69 CDN they're charging for it. I won't personally be continuing beyond this book [the plot structure is improved and the sex scenes fit better, but Mancour is still a pedestrian author (populating your short story with characters named Alya, Ithalia, and Pahlia is sort of mindblowing, honestly)] - but enraptured fans of the 'Spellmonger'/'Spellmonger's Cadet' series are certainly welcome to do so. As to this entry.. take it or leave it.

"Chronologically" Book 2.5

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