Kindle Edition Amazon Category:  Fantasy Publisher: ImaJinn Books ISBN-10:  1933417218 Pages: 240 Copyright: February 28, 2009 ISBN-13: 9781933417219 To rescue a young girl and save a world, a man of peace and a warrior woman must join forces in battling harsh mountain terrain and outlaws, but can they conquer the obstacles that stand between them on their path to love. Laila DiSanti trusts no one. Betrayed by her father's ambition and greed, she lost her family, her home, and her lover. Forced into exile in the lawless mountains surrounding Dramon, she eases her guilt by using her skill with sword and knife to hunt down outlaws and slavers and rescue the innocents they prey upon. Pace Alastar is devoted to two things-his daughter, and the welfare of his home, the legendary hidden valley of Andacor. His world was upended when a ground quake damaged the crystals that protect Andacor and grant its citizens near immortality. Unless the crystals are restored to power, Andacor and its inhabitants will die. Only Pace's daughter can save them, and she is lost in the outside world. To rescue a young girl and save a world, Pace and Laila join forces in battling outlaws and the harsh mountain terrain, but can they conquer the insurmountable obstacles that mean Pace's certain death? Excerpt “Kill the witch!” “Burn her!” Dressed in a once white, tattered shirt and dirty water worm hide trousers, the object of the crowd’s animosity stood motionless on a dais. Tall and slim, with close-cropped hair, the woman stared over the heads of the angry mob without any outward reaction to the hatred directed toward her. Standing at the edge of the crowd, Pace Alastar reached out mentally to the woman. To open his mind amidst this turmoil was a dangerous move. If not careful he could easily be buried beneath the negative emotions swirling around him. There was no choice. He had to know if she was the person he sought. Like the hail of stones that precede an avalanche—hatred, anger, pain and rage battered his ka. Two hundred annum of peaceful existence hadn’t prepared him for the onslaught. The angry grumbles of the crowd grew. Though a few guards at the foot of the stairs struggled to restrain them, soon the mob’s rage would propel them forward and the woman would die. Whatever her crimes against these people, he couldn’t allow that to happen. He needed her help. Andacor needed her. Without her, the last capable Crystal Singer—his daughter—would never be found and Andacor would be doomed.

Delightful updating of Shangri-La
Exiled from Dramon due to her father's avaricious attempts to steal the throne, Laila DiSanti lives alone in the mountains distrusting everyone and killing slave raiders and bandits while rescuing good people who find themselves in trouble. She sells her services, but no one wants to buy them more than Pace Alastar, who lives in the magically hidden Andacor Valley where the residents are immortal due to crystals; they pay the price of no emotions or desires

When they meet, she believes his valley is a myth; he explains about the earthquake that led to the breaking of some of the crystals. However, the remaining crystals are failing and consequently the people are dying. Their only hope of surviving is with his daughter Aria who can return the crystals back to health, but left the valley when her mother decided to leave because immortality without feelings is like death. Laila agrees to help him find Aria. On their quest, they meet dangerous foes including the mountains, but it is the attraction between them that is most lethal; as he begins to learn what immortality's true price is, but to pay the fee of love means leaving his beloved as a widow.

Elysa Hendricks's delightful updating of Shangri-La is a beautiful adult fairy tale filled with romance, danger from various sentient species, other obstacles, and a quest filled with spins and detours. Part of the tension comes from the romance as viewers of the final scenes of the classic Capra film The Lost Horizon will wonder if that is how this couple's relationship will end. Filled with varying cultures, the return to the Hendricks Moon realm of crystals (see CRYSTAL MOON and SHADOW MOON) is a winner.

Harriet Klausner