Philip's Watcher - Dianne Hartsock 2 - 2 1/2 Hearts

First published at MM Good Book Reviews

http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com/2012/09/19/philips-watcher-by-dianne-hartsock/


Adrian was made a Watcher to watch over Philip, the Heir to the Agenor family. Philip’s family has fought against the Dark forces, but their losses are piling up with the loss of Philip’s father. Adrian is betrayed by the one he loved many years ago and he has to give his all to ensure that his beloved Philip survives.

This is one of those books that has huge potential, but fails in the world building and background story. Adrian is Philip’s Watcher. He has to help protect Philip’s family in their fight against the Dark forces, but when an unexpected attack comes from one who he thought was an ally and a lover from his past, he feels that he has failed in his duty to his beloved Philip.

I was intrigued by this story at first and thought that I was in for a treat, but I was disappointed by the way the story started to go into Adrian’s remembrances of the past and also of the imagines implanted by Jaimin (Adrian’s lost lover and Philip’s enemy). There was no real relationship building between Philip and Adrian, other than Philip talking to Adrian in his stone form, and Adrian watching over Philip from afar. We see more of Adrian and Jaimin’s relationship than was needed.

As I said there isn’t much world building, we are thrown in the deep end and have no real clue why good and bad are really fighting, just vague references, and we get a vague sense that Adrian was transformed into a watcher somehow. There are some very erotic moments in a dreamlike quality but they aren’t between our heroes, and those moments seem to pop up for no reason at all.

I admit that there was a lot of potential for this book, but it needed a lot more detail and world building to carry it off. I found myself wondering if I hadn’t got the blurb wrong a couple of times and it was really about Adrian and Jaimin and forgiving love etc. But, no. It was about Adrian and Philip. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel any connection between them, except for when they did the spiritual thing and then I felt the connection.

So, I will recommend this if you like gargoyles, fantasy, hot erotic sex, magic and a happy ending.