Dance of the Gods - Nora Roberts

Dance of the Gods
Book Two of The Circle Trilogy
Nora Roberts
Jove

Paranormal/Vampire

NOTE: If you have not read the first installment, MORRIGAN’S CROSS, this review contains significant plot spoilers.

When we last left 12th century sorcerer Hoyt MacCionaoith, he had rounded up the individuals needed to complete The Circle. The warrior goddess Morrigan tasked Hoyt and the others with an epic battle against the evil Lilith and her demon fighters. Now ensconced in Hoyt’s ancestral home, the group begins to prepare in earnest for the fight to come. But preparations are often interrupted by internal conflicts; sporadic smaller attacks by Lilith’s minions, and a developing romance.

The group includes a demon-hunter, Blair, who is a thoroughly modern and kick-ass woman. There will be inevitable and tedious comparisons to Buffy, but the author manages to put an interesting spin on things to keep it fresh. The final battle, which will take place in a magical realm the gods control, will begin in only a few days’ time. Lilith and her minions conspire to keep The Circle off balance by continuing to attack and by taking hostages. And, in that new realm a new queen will be revealed and the group will have to prepare the local populace for the battle while continuing to protect themselves and The Circle.

Fans of Nora Roberts who are looking for a nice, sweet romance should look elsewhere. This is paranormal fantasy, it’s dark and contains violence and magic and gore, and the author does it quite well. As in the first book, there is a romance, and this time it’s more organic. In fact, this second installment outshines the first one a bit. To her great credit, Roberts manages to give each of the many players a distinct personality that fuels their actions, making everything that much more believable. I’m anxious to get to the third and final book.

Rating: 8 ½
October 2006
ISBN# 0-515-14166-6 (paperback)