So I Married a Sorcerer (Embraced, #2)

by Kerrelyn Sparks

Growing up on the Isle of Moon, Brigitta knows nothing of her past, except that she is Embraced: bom with powers that forced her into hiding. Everything changes when she learns she's a princess, hidden away from her villainous half-brother who now rules the kingdom. But he knows about Brigitta, and he'll do anything to get her back. Unless a certain roguish pirate has anything to say about it...Rupert is both an infamous pirate and a sorcerer with the power to harness the wind. He's been waiting nineteen years for revenge - and he needs Brigitta to get it. What begins as a kidnapping of the fiery beauty turns into a fierce attraction. But can he win the captive princess's heart? New York Times bestselling author Kerrelyn Sparks will sweep readers away to a fantastical world where magic, romance and royal intrigue collide.

• ISBN10: 1250108233
• ISBN13: 9781250108234
• Publish Date: 29 August 2017
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 30 January 2024
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: St Martin's Press
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 448
• Language: English

Reviews

[thebookdisciple]

So I Married a Sorcerer is book 2 in the Embraced series and gives us the story of Brigitta and Rupert, both Embraced and both having hidden away for fear of what would happen to them should their true identity be known. Brigitta can sense peoples secrets by simply touching them. Rupert controls the wind. Both come from a prestigious background but the feuding amongst their families drove them both into hiding. Now Rupert is the Pirate Rupert (at one point he even says 'As you wish'!) and Brigitta is leaving the Isle of the Moon to visit Luciana and Leofric (from book 1) when their paths cross again, and this time, Rupert is determined to get revenge.

Brigitta finds out about her past rather abruptly when it comes sailing up to them! Turns out she is a princess and her brother wants her back (most likely to sell her off in marriage because he is obviously not a good dude). Rupert kidnaps her first because he wants revenge on Brigitta's brother. Brigitta is brave and intelligent which I always love in heroines. But, she is vulnerable and a bit naive too, which I enjoyed.

Rupert is (much like Wesley) a pirate with a bit of honor. He only steals from those who deserve to have their gold taken. His plan to use Brigitta to get back at her family is pretty dastardly; he waffles between his memories of the horrific childhood he had because of Brigitta's family and the feelings he has towards Brigitta.

Once the mystery of their identities is exposed to each other, the plot had me experiencing real worry over fictional characters. I was legit scared for Brigitta and Rupert to go back to Turin and try to take on her brother. Let me say it again: I was frightened for FICTIONAL characters. If that isn't good writing, I don't know what is.

Sister Fallyn provides a bit of comic relief at times because she is SO over dramatic! The Embraced series has so many interconnected characters that the plot moves along quickly and you are sucked in right away! Sparks' words really flow beautifully and I am thrilled to have discovered this delightful series!

 

• POV: 3rd


• Tears: Ok, so I totally teared up when Granny was telling the story about her husband....


• Trope: supernatural, secret identities


• Triggers: none


• Series/Standalone: Could you read it as a stand alone? Sure, but book 1 is great and it helps you understand the world Sparks has created so my advice is read it in order!


• Cliffhanger: no


• HEA: yes

The Princess Bride by William Goldman, Dark Lover by JR Ward, My Commander by Alanea Alder...then you will probably like So I Married a Sorcerer!

 

So I Married a Sorcerer

See full review on The Book Disciple

[stacey_is_sassy]

***IT'S ALIVE!!***

A mask won't hide his secrets

First off, I really enjoyed So I Married a Sorcerer. Now, while I really enjoyed it, I think the title is a wee bit misleading. Married? Bloody hell!! I don’t know about you, but when I see Married in the title, I automatically think that the couple is married throughout most of the book. Maybe, deep down, I’m also wishing and hoping that it’s going to be a story where the couple connects early and fight the evil forces as a team. In reality, So I Married a Sorcerer is a slow burn of epic proportions. They’re on opposites sides at first, then they struggle to trust each other and then they have conflict. Look, I’m not overly disappointed, as like I said, I enjoyed it. I’m just a wee bit disappointed because I didn’t get what I expected.

We start the story with Brigitta and her sisters on board a ship heading to their other sister Queen Luciana, who is about to give birth. They are not sisters by blood but they are connected because they are all Embraced. By being Embraced you hold special abilities. Unfortunately, even though it’s a gift you have from birth, it is seen as wrong. Most Embraced have to hide their abilities or they will be hunted down and killed for it.

The Embraced series sees each of the ladies heading out into the world and finding their fate. It seems fate has been at play for a wee while. Brigitta knows that her fate is coming and she’s had a few hints on what is coming to her and for her. She never guessed that her fate would lie with a pirate and that all along she was the lost princess of Tourin.

Rupert, the pirate, has revenge on his mind and will stop at nothing to obtain it. When Princess Brigitta sails into his life, it seems like all his plans will come to fruition. What he wasn’t planning on, was being swept off his feet. See, Rupert plays the pirate in disguise by wearing a mask. If anyone was to find out who he really is, revenge would have to take a backseat because his life would be in jeopardy.

Rupert’s got more secrets under his mask than Brigitta could ever guess and she’s determined to work them all out. See, Brigitta’s Embraced gift is the ability to determine if a person is keeping secrets and also being able to “see” where lost items are. One of the secrets she unearths is that they are connected…maybe Rupert's the man she’s fated to marry.

I enjoyed So I Married a Sorcerer. The characters were interesting and the world building original and easy to follow. The action and adventure portions kept my heart pumping and I loved when we get to see the Embraced use their powers. We get to meet up with characters from How To Tame a Beast in Seven Days. Brody, the shape-shifter, and the Nuns who protected the girls while they were growing up are back. We also get to meet some very interesting new characters, especially the army dude who lives with the dragons (sorry, can’t remember his name). I have a feeling I’ll get to know his name very, very soon.

I really do love this series. While, So I Married a Sorcerer wasn’t exactly what I expected, it was still pretty awesome. I am a big fan of paranormal romance with bossy alpha heroes and their women, who won’t sit back and be saved (like their told). I will definitely be going on in the series, and recommend other readers to give it a try. Best to start at the very beginning…a very good place to start.

Stacey is Sassy, received a complimentary copy of this story. The copy provided is not the final copy and may be subject to edits and changes.

[EBookObsessed]

Such wonderful world-building by Kerrelyn Sparks. She obviously had a great time creating these new characters.

In the second in her new Embraced series, we can really start to see how much fun Kerrelyn had stetching her imagination. Her complaint about her Love at Stake series was that all the vampires had the same abilities so in this series we can see all the different personalities and abilities being introduced. And not just the protagonists. Some of the antagonists are over the top. You just love to hate them.

In this story, we focus on Brigitta who can learn someone’s secrets by touching them. I will say, we have much more of Brigitta’s power at the beginning of the story and not so much at the end. I am not certain if it just stopped being a necessary plot point or simply as we learned all of Rupert’s secrets, there were no more to ferret out by Brigitta’s special ability. But Brigitta, even without special powers, is quite fiesty and will do anything she must to protect those she loves, even risk herself and her happiness.

Brigitta is the Princess of Tourin. I would say missing, but her father tossed her on that Isle of the Moon with the nuns to forgot about her. It is long after her father’s death, that her brother (now the king) tries to reclaim his sister Brigitta, who was on her way to visit her sister-of-the-heart, Luciana, who was about to give birth.

Like Brigitta, Rupert, the pirate, is Embraced. His ability is to control the wind which is an absolutely perfect ability for a pirate to have. Not only can he give his ships speed to overtake or outrun the other ships, but he can blow away the royal navy whenever they try to catch him. But Rupert is only a pirate against the navy of King Gunther of Tourin. He doesn’t attack or steal from any of the other Kingdoms. In fact, when Brigitta indicates that Luciana, now the Queen of Eberon, would pay a hefty ransom, he refuses since he doesn’t want Eberoni gold. He wants to break the bank of Tourin.

The reason behind his hate for King Gunther is complex and justified (you’ll have to read for yourself), but once Rupert learns the real reason why Gunther wants to reunite with his long lost sister, which is quite horrifying, Rupert has to decide if his personal vendetta is worth turning sweet Brigitta over to a monster.

As I said, Kerrelyn Sparks goes crazy with creating new characters and just has fun with it. Gunther is a pretty over the top, demented bad guy, and of course, he uses gold in all of his decorating, and he surrounds himself with minions who enjoy being as evil as he is. We get a quick look at the neighboring kingdom where dragons live (maybe dragon shifters but so far the dragons and the people seem to be separate).

It is just a fun, clever fantasy series rife with Sparks’s expected humor.