On the island Balthain, the mercenary, waits anxiously. After the island visit he fears he will be asked to return to Elahandara to liberate the abused, tortured prisoners that were taken during the recent uprising. But Balthain has vowed never to return to the rat-infested tunnels that hold the entrance to the underground dungeons. For Balthain has earned his freedom and has no wish to ever experience the dank passages that crawl with unspeakable poisonous shapes and fetid air again.

But Balthain is haunted in his dreams by a woman unlike any he has ever known. He thinks she is a succubus from the dead, come back to suck the life out of him through erotic intense sexual encounters, but is she more? She beckons him to come to her aide and lures him with promises to be his prize if he frees her. But her prison proves to be Elahandara and Balthain balks at the reentrance to a dark world he never wants to set foot in again.

But he may not have the worry as the Tribunal of Tir na nOg prove unforgiving of past indiscretions and demand a death sentence of one held dear to the Lady Tranorva. Thus begins Book One in the Song of the Bear series.

At first glance A Mercenary's Prize looks to be a light read with fun imaginative characters. But after a few chapters it becomes apparent Shelby Morgen has put great thought into this ethereal world of fairies and orcs, women warriors and their undying passion for their mates. By the time you are half-through the book its too late and you realize you are hooked and must have the next book and the next. A Mercenary's Prize is not the starting place for this epic adventure; however there is enough back-story to get the gist and understand the plot. A caution is merited though as the story is not tied up in a neat bow and it is necessary for the reader to continue on to the subsequent books to achieve any closure to the characters and their quests. At times the multitude of names makes it necessary to glance back to refresh the memory but once the characters are imprinted in the mind, the book moves at a fast pace till the last page, leaving the reader wanting more.

Overall rating:
Sensuality rating: Explicit

Reviewer: Torie West
July 14, 2003