Bethany Aodhan’s life is not exactly how she would wish it to be. Given no choice but to become the relic hunter for the Fae Council, a punishment for a minor crime against a cousin, and having inherited some of her late mother’s abilities. Add the surprise of finding out her father was a minor god of storms, and she is stuck where she is. But when the SHIELD OF FIRE is on her agenda, along with some powerful rubies and a Fae who seems bent on revenge, Beth will be lucky to live until the next assignment.
SHIELD OF FIRE is the fourth of author Keri Arthur’s Relic Hunter series and follows exactly where the third – RING OF RUIN – ends. Bethany, part pixie with a father who was a god – leads an interesting life. Some of the people in her life are her brother, Lugh an antiquarian for the National Fae Museum; Eljin Lavigne his assistant who might be a romantic partner eventually; her best friend, Darby (happily spending time with Lugh after so many years of him fighting the attraction); her highborn elf lover – Cynwrig Lutair and Sgott Bruhn, a bear shifter and head of the IIT (Interspecies Investigation Team) and sort of a step-father as he was her mother’s lover for over 60 years. These colorful characters are just a few that make up the SHIELD OF FIRE. Others give answers and more questions as the story rolls along while they search for the shield and the rubies and find out who is so bent on such explosive acts of revenge.
Bethany might be duty bound but she isn’t going to take nonsense from those she has to work for and with even her new liaison between her and the council, Mathi Dhar-Val. He is also a former lover who stepped over a line she had drawn.
During the fast-paced pages of SHIELD OF FIRE, Bethany experiences a couple of explosions while trying to find the artifacts for the council. Someone from her past is set on revenge, and he claims she is part of it. The problem is that she has no memory of him or why he is so set on destruction.
If you want the enjoyment of a fast-paced, enjoyable read with elves, pixies, shifters, an ancient deities whose artifacts are filled with magic and danger, and a pixie-style steaming romance, then get your hands on SHIELD OF FIRE and enjoy.
Resident Relic Hunter for Deva’s Fae Council is a title Bethany Aodhán never wanted, but it isn’t like she has a choice. And in truth, the appointment might just aid her quest to find her mother’s murderers—because at least one of those responsible is a member of the council, and getting access to their records could give her the connection and their identity.
But before she can be given her first task or even start her behind-the-scenes hunt, a building belonging to Cynwrig Lùtair—the highborn dark elf who is not only her council liaison but lover—is set alight, and they barely escape with their lives.
It quickly becomes clear that the cause of the fire was a relic belonging to the god of smiths and fire, capable of destroying anything made within a forge, old or new. And the man wielding it is an elf who stirs uneasy echoes of past darkness within Bethany.
As the attacks intensify and draw ever closer to home, it’s increasingly evident that not only do the keys to finding the culprits lie in the past Bethany can’t remember, but he’s someone who knew her very well indeed.
Someone who has no qualms about doing whatever it takes to get what he wants from her.