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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Enchanting Review: Keeper of Light and Dust, April 23, 2009
THE KEEPER OF LIGHT AND DUST
NATASHA MOSTERT
Paranormal Thriller
Dutton Adult
Sensuality Level: Medium
ISBN# 978-0525951001
400 Pages
$25.95
Hardcover - Available April 2009
Rating: 4.5 Enchantments
I can safely say THE KEEPER OF LIGHT AND DUST is like nothing I've read before. Ms. Mostert takes the reader deep into the unusual world of Mia Lockheart, a tattoo artist, part time trainer and a keeper. The last is hidden from most of the world, private, yet she's marked by the beautiful tattoo that covers the entire left side of her torso. The tattoo is something only keepers can wear. As a keeper, it is her duty to keep her fighters safe from harm. A practice that none of them fully understand, they bare the keeper's mark on their body, identifying them as protected.
Nick Duffy has been in love with Mia since they were children. Only recently has he returned to their London neighborhood to find nothing much has changed - Mia still trains at Scorpio, and Nick is still in love with her. With a championship match ahead of him, he hopes that he can finally succeed in the fighting world, and find the courage to tell Mia just how he feels about her.
Mia's kept her keeper side hidden, even from her lifelong friend Nick. With one of her fighters soon to fight, she's about to step out in a ritual as old as time and protect him from harm. But suddenly fighters are dying. One of them was one of Mia's former protected, Valentine. Mia can't believe a sudden heart attack would take one of her fighters. Even Nick can't understand how a fighter as healthy as Valentine died and starts to look into his death. The appearance online and in the real world of someone who calls himself `Dragonfly' not only puts Nick in danger, but Mia as well. The Dragonfly is after her secrets and her power, and will stop at nothing to possess it. Just what is he really and how is he going about taking out the fighters?
Ms. Mostert does a wonderful job weaving together the paranormal, the fighters and the unfolding attraction between Nick and Mia. Long after finishing THE KEEPER OF LIGHT AND DUST, the book stays with you and things you may not have gotten during the first read start to make sense. THE KEEPER OF LIGHT AND DUST is a story that pulls the reader deep into this unique world, bringing them into the fighting realm, training alongside Nick and Mia, and waiting desperately for the truth about the Dragonfly to be uncovered before its too late and another fighter--or Mia--loses her life to the man.
The author holds graduate degrees in lexicography and applied linguistics, and is the author of SEASON OF THE WITCH, a lushly-written, beautiful novel. Ms. Mostert is an author to watch!
Lisa
Enchanting Reviews
March 2009
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Lovers and Warriors, October 23, 2009
I did not want to put down Keeper of Light and Dust, and I did not want it to end. Well-written - British writers usually have a good command of Queen's English and irony - masterful, here is a story about one man's hunt for eternal life crossed with the lives of professional fighters, plus the presence of a young woman who is a hereditary Keeper: one with the esoteric power to safeguard the warriors under her protection.
The man whose avatar goes by the name of Dragonfly has used many names as he travels and befriends pugilists, each of whom dies mysteriously several days after a major fight. To keep himself young and powerful, Dragonfly steals their energy, their heart, their chi, using techniques developed centuries ago by a Chinese physician, Zhang Sanfeng.
Nick is a 30 year old kickboxer training for a fight, when he isn't running his popular network site with the assistance of a young techno-wizard named Flash. He is also trying to transition from the friend category to lover with Mia. Mia owns a small tattoo studio in London, in the neighborhood where she and Nick grew up as childhood pals. They both train at Scorpio's, he with the hard-hitting grunts, she with the vogues, attaining perfection of form with the katas of martial arts. A triangle forms with the arrival of the enigmatic Ash. During the day Ash helps Nick get into the best fighting shape of his life; at night he is getting an elaborate tattoo and making seductive moves on an intrigued Mia.
This is one of those books in which a heroine who is presented with a choice between the best friend as potential lover and an alluring, dangerous, worldly paramour. Interestingly enough, Mia makes a dual choice on different levels, rather like the protagonist in The Blue Sword, by Robin McKinley. There's this life, and then there is the life to come.
If you already know something about Chinese medicine, martial arts, and quantum physics, you will recognize some of the territory; if you don't, you will get quite an education embedded in engrossing story-telling. Strongly recommended.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Book Review: Keeper of Light & Dust, June 27, 2009
The Review
Last year, a friend gave me a copy of Season of the Witch. It was one of the very first books that I read and reviewed on A Novel Menagerie. Naturally, I was excited to read Natasha Mostert's next novel, the KEEPER of LIGHT and DUST. As today is its official release day, I'm pleased to be able to provide my review on this book.
I enjoyed Keeper's mythical flavor and dangerous plot. I would best compare this type of book to The Gargoyle or the DarkFever series. This story is set in South England and tells the story of our heroine, Mia a "Keeper" of the martial artists she surrounds herself within the dojo. Mia is a "Keeper" like her mother and grandmother before her as well as a tattoo artist and a martial artist. Of the fighters she is tied to, the one closest to her heart is Nick, a fighter that she has known since she was a girl. They maintain a close bond of friendship, but it becomes clear to the reader that Nick and Mia should take their relationship to the next level. Mysteriously, two of Mia's fighters under her "Keep" die days after their fights in the ring. Yet, there is no link between their death and any injuries sustained during the fights.
As the story unfolds, the reader is introduced to Adrian "Ash" Ashton, a martial artist with a past as intriguing as his present. Ash befriends Nick and becomes his sparring partner. Through Nick, Mia is introduced to Ash. Although Mia is not one to mix romantic feelings with the fighters, she is inexplicably drawn to Ash. He hires her to tattoo his body with a series of Chinese symbols on his body symbolizing his spirit and his chi. Despite being drawn to him, Mia recognizes that there is something there to be feared, as well.
As a Keeper, Mia prepares for each of her fighter's fights by conducting an conducting a protection exercise during an "out of body" experience in her sleep. It is in one of these travels that she encounters a force that is after the chi of her fighters. This force is willing to fight her for their lives. This force also materializes in the real world and communicates danger to Mia while her fighter is in the ring. Suspicion arises about who is involved in this Mia and Nick eventually forge together to discover what and who this life-sucking force is and ensure the safety of the fighters within Mia's keep.
The KEEPER of LIGHT and DUST definitely had a different "feel" from Season of the Witch. This book did take me a bit longer to understand the characters, their relationships, and the dynamics associated with the martial arts aspect of this story. But, Mostert has a polished and unique way of drawing the reader to the heart of her characters and I was most assuredly connected by mid-book.
On Sher's "Out of Ten Scale:"
This book has both light and dark and gives you some concepts to consider. It's a fantasy book that allowed me to insert myself into Mia's role and desire to be that strong Keeper for those I love. For the genre Fiction:Fantasy, I award this book an 8 out of 10.
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