Touch of Power (The Healer Series Book 1)

The book starts with immediate action (my kind of beginning). It begins with Avry healing a little girl (with her special healer abilities), and knowing immediately that she must run away. In her world, there aren't many healers left. They've all been rounded up and killed for their supposed reluctance to heal plague victims. What the populace doesn't know is that healers couldn't help plague victims without dying themselves. One letter was misinterpreted and the whole world thinks healers banned together and just decided not save plague victims. People always need someone to blame.The mother of the saved little girl catches on to what happened and helps to turn Avry in. Avry has been running for years, always having to leave town when she slips and saves someone (usually a child). Parents of these children are never as grateful as they should be. But more than the town's government (which will be rewarded in gold for the capture of a healer), others take notice of Avry's arrest. And soon everything is reversed. Avry turns from running away, hoping no one will notice her abilities, to running away from people who want to use her for her abilities.She might be the last healer alive, and all the major kingdoms are soon to be at war for dominance of the post-plague world. They could all use Avry's help. She's resuced from her prison cell by a group of men (she soon starts to call monkeys), who want her to heal someone for them. She agrees, but soon learns they want her to heal a royal who has the plague. She doesn't say what that healing will do to her, but refuses to heal the royal because of his involvement in the destruction of all healers.She goes along with the men any way, partially because when she tries to escape, Kerrick and his earth magic and can track her down faster than she can get away. She also kind of loves the guys. She teaches them about finding plants for medicine, about cooking with spices, and even how to juggle. They in turn teach her to throw knives and how to walk quietly in the forrest. There's a lot of hiding, fighting, healing, and laughter on this journey. Avry saves their lives and they save hers. And they all try to persuade her to save the king.It becomes almost painfully apparent to readers how much Avry and Kerrick love each other, though they are both so stubborn that nothing happens till the end. And that's the best romance, the kind that builds and begins with friendship. Though, technically theirs started with hatred. There's hidden archives, underground prison cells, plenty of magic, zombies, economic downfall, family hardships, society dinners, man-eating flowers, plotting royals, and the only awesome fantasy element that was missing I think was dragons (and elves).I loved Avry. She was just enough martyr, and just enough selfish to be truly believable. Her weakness was children because of the little sister she left behind to become a healer. She had to make a lot of decisions about who was worth saving (and running for), and who was worth giving up her life for. And the healing was awesome! She would take whatever anyone was suffering from and transfer it to herself. She would then take half as long to heal as the original person would have. And I like that it wasn't all magic. During one of her captures, she takes charge of the enemy's infirmary, and it's clear that a lot of her training was also in plants, medicines, and hygiene. It's not just about magic and the power of her touch.Though, I wish I got more description for the magic part. It was always very brief, sometimes too brief. When she heals a friend toward the end, she just touches him for a second and that's it...I feel like that was almost too easy and anti-climatic. I want to know what it feels like to heal someone like that. I see how Avry suffers every time she heals someone, but I'm more interested in the healing itself. I also wish I got to know some of the monkeys better. I got to know about two of them, but the others were sort of just names, and I wanted more character development for them.I loved the politics, all the double-crossing, the strategy, etc. And I really love the death lilies and learning about the plague that killed so many people. I found the story very believable. A sequel is in the works and I'm glad because I want to learn more about the plague, about what happened to Avry at the end, about the death lilies, and about the future of Avry's people (aka: who will win this war?).

So, I am a lover of fantasy. I am also a lover of romance. And, I happen to very much enjoy this author. I love it when worlds and rules are created, and I love when you spend a decent chunk of time identifying with the struggle of the MC and learning about them. I love it when romance takes a while to build, and can be seen throughout the pages as they go on. After reading some rather critical reviews, I decided I should add my own two cents, even if no one may read it.1) If you have never read a book by this author, be aware that you probably will not see any "romantic" action until the near end of the novel and that any XXX scene will most likely go by in three sentences and you most likely won't realize what just happened till you think about it. So if you are gunning for some stolen kisses here and there, you're better off picking up a different series or just waiting for the next book because once they are together and actually together, then you will get your romantic moments. Otherwise you'll need to be satisfied with catching minor details here and there about jealousy, or stolen smiles, and changes of heart.2) If you do not like fantasy, you probably will not like this book.3) Her books tend to be a bit of "slow cookers." If you want your action and you want it now, head for a different series.4) If you are not a fan of having to learn about a new world and how it operates, then you will not enjoy the book.Otherwise:This first book was great. I personally found it difficult to put down. It was different from her Study series which made me happy, but still familiar at the same time. The character is very different from Yelena but like Yelena, she has a situation that requires being overcome and the solution is not an easy one. The love interest is slightly jerky, but we love him for it. Kind of like Valek, but this one isn't an assassin or a poison master. He has a trick of his own though.Is it worth paying for? I think so. It's the kind of book I can go back to and read again and again finding something new or catching a hint I missed the first time around without it becoming dull. The first book is not necessarily about romance, and I'm okay with that, because I was able to invest myself with the characters. In these kinds of times, there really isn't much time for some good old fashioned snogging in a corner. However, even with my three sentences of muted passion, I was very much satisfied because she writes it in a way that you can understand it's more emotional than physical, and any more descriptions could ruin the beautiful simplicity of it.All that said, to me at least, this series is not as gripping as her Study Series. When I read Poison Study, I went on a rampage trying to get the second and third book. It helped that I got into it after the third book was released. With this series, the pull to get to the second book was there, but I'm not going to lie, I didn't buy it, nor have I bought the third book. I haven't picked up this book since I read it, though I have designs to reread it once the second and third book arrive on my doorstep. I have definitely found other series that I have become addicted to and have the "need-to-know" virus from, but this one is mellow in comparison.So I give this book 4 stars. It's a good read. It's descriptive in terms of the world and the characters. It's got snatches of romance. It's unique in it's plot. But If you can't grip me enough that I pre-order the second and third book, then I can't give you 5 stars. Instead I decided I could wait till 2 and 3 came out before I continued with this trilogy. It's been six months since the third book came out. Even with work and school, I can still finish a 500 page book in two days if I put my mind to it, so there is a missing element here that makes me unable to call this book a gem for your library.But once again, I'd recommend you read it. It's not bad. It's not a waste of your time. This review is probably confusing but sometimes it's hard to convey why a book is good to others and where and how it is lacking.This book isn't perfect. Anyone in search of hardcore romance, will probably not enjoy this book. If you love fantasy, this book is unique, even when it brings in an old concept. Don't ignore the critical reviews, but don't be fooled by glowing ones either.

Snyder does such a good job of this. I’ve lost count of the times I’ve read this over the years. The story, the character development, the concept are all excellent.Main character- on point. Clever, funny, resourceful, smart with a great POV.Friends - diverse, supportive, fun.Villain - brilliant! Sexy and sickening. You’ll get it.Love interest - ick.. His actions make him rather undesirable in my opinion. He could have been such a better man so easily.Great thing about those other characters? They don’t carry this story. Avry is a strong, powerful woman and the plot supports her and the magic Snyder has built. I love fantasy, and it’s so cool to have a great book with a killer female protagonist. I find it empowering, and I want more books like this.That being said, I would not recommend the rest of the series, it’s a big let down. I find i can treat this like a stand alone and just use my imagination to fill in the rest, much more satisfying.Please do yourself a favour and read this book though.

I love this storyline, it's so full of unique things. The setting sounds beautiful, the lore is written in great detail. The characters are diverse and interesting, I absolutely love Avery. She's everything a healer should be, and a morally good person. Merrick at first seemed grumpy and slightly hostile, but he shows a more compassionate softer side throughout the story. And Flea, omg I love the little guy. Such a great character, I'm probably the only person who even loves Tohon. I can't recommend this series enough, it's a fantastic series.

I don't like to be harsh. I have read this author's "Chronicles of Ixia" series and although again I felt it oddly written, the grammar didn't seem as annoying.Maria V Snyder has created a fantasy world, roughly akin to medieval Earth in terms of technology. There is a badly explained magical system, with no clear information given as to why various types of mages exist or how they use, or have magic and why they are a certain type of mage.As is often the case in fantasy, we go on a journey. This journey takes us through some of the 15 kingdoms. All used to live in relative harmony until the population was overwhelmed by a plague. Our Heroine is a healer, not fully trained as her Tutor died in the plague healing a victim. Healers take an injured persons illness, broken legs and punctured lungs, into themselves via touch. The healer then has to deal with the pain, the breaks the lacerations but heals more quickly than non-healers. Obviously this means one healer can basically heal one very injured person at a time. The story is told mainly in the first person and these parts seem to me to read like a long diary entry. Little character development or description and the language at time is more 21st century American than Fantasy Strange-world medieval. e.g. children are "kids", our heroine "Brainstorms some ideas".Having selflessly contracted the plague herself by touching and removing it from a Prince, the only person in the world who didn't know this would be fatal to a healer is Kerrick, another main driver of the early plot. This despite the fact that we the reader know its common knowledge that the healers who have done this have all died horribly from it. Kerrick would have known, I don't care that the plot needed him to be the only adult to have missed this.Another grating part of the book is that our now captive healer infected with this killer plague, but continues to heal severely wounded troops, taking into herself their ruptured spleens and fractured bones, add the plague and you get a sense that she's unlikely to be moving about, helping "Kids" escape from the bad guy and rescuing the good guy. I found that having set the rules in her book Maria just kept breaking them. Some writers over describe, wanting you to know everything, like Christopher Paolini in his Aragon books, but then there are others like Brandon Sanderson or Joe Abercrombie who use words sparingly but describe much. Maria V Snider has developed her own style, she uses few words to race through an event, but tells you very little.You may have guessed by now, I was not a fan of her style, however 2 stars because the idea and the plot in general were engaging.Having just finished and reviewed several books which I scored 5/5, maybe that is reflecting on this book unfairly. It's a quick and easy read. Will I read the rest of the series? No!

Title: Touch of PowerSeries: Avry of Kazan (#1)Author: Maria V SnyderFrom: AmazonGenre: FantasyRelease Date: 20th December 2011Challenges: 2016 Read the Books You BuyLinks: Goodreads - AmazonSynopsis (from Goodreads): Laying hands upon the injured and dying, Avry of Kazan assumes their wounds and diseases into herself. But rather than being honoured for her skills, she is hunted. Healers like Avry are accused of spreading the plague that has decimated the Territories, leaving the survivors in a state of chaos. Stressed and tired from hiding, Avry is abducted by a band of rogues who, shockingly, value her gift above the golden bounty offered for her capture. Their leader an enigmatic captor-protector with powers of his own is unequivocal in his demands: Avry must heal a plague-stricken prince, the leader of a campaign against her people. As they traverse the daunting Nine Mountains, beset by mercenaries and magical dangers, Avry must decide who is worth healing and what is worth dying for.Having read and enjoyed the first three books in Snyders Chronicles of Ixia series (along with the short stories!) I didn't quite feel that I'd had my fix yet, and I am definitely in a fantasy mood at the moment, so I dived into this one, and honestly I think its even better than the Study books!I loved Avry, she'd survived on her own for years and just because she'd found people she could let know who she really was, she didn't let anything slip. She worked at surviving still, and even though you could read her beginning to trust the people around her, and grow attached to them, she was still strong and independent.The growing relationships between Avry and the various memebers of the group she was travelling with were a really strong part of the story to me. She built friendships with Loren, Quain, Flea and Belen, while her relationship with Kerrick was so complicated it just can't be summed up in words (but I would say that the events at the end of the book were perfect for these two).I liked that things weren't quite black and white for Avry and the rest of the world either. A plague had decemated the population and law and order were definitely a thing of the past. She was asked to heal someone who she had heard had done terrible things, and some of the central conversations were based on Kerrick and the others trying to change her mind. It was complex and made the characters themselves more complex as a result.The other thing that I really liked was that the main character actually got to know the main antagonist (who I suspect will play a future role too) better than just as an adversary. Avry spent time with the main bad guy and it made his actions seem that bit more chilling.I loved this book, and book 2 is already on my kindle so it shouldn't be long until I dig into that one! Or at least I hope not!

4 stars - I really liked thisI wasn't really expecting anything much from this, so was pleased to find I really enjoyed it. I did have a few issues, such as early on I felt the dialogue was sometimes a bit simplistic and predictable, but as it went on I found the characters likeable, especially all the secondary characters along the way, and the plot was pretty interesting. Kerrick was a real arse near the beginning with what he did to Avry and it took me quite a long time to forgive that, but his magic was a bit different so interested me, and he grew on me. The romance in this is pretty non-existent until the very end, but it is at least realistic in this was due to the circumstances and it also allowed for a real relationship to develop between characters during the course of the book.The majority of the story was travelling, hiding and fighting and it really was a loooong journey...although it was pretty well paced with quite a bit of action along the way, until Avry was at Tohon's castle around 75% in and then it slowed a bit until picking up again towards the end. I did think the very end was really abrupt too, so was a bit disappointed in how it finished up.Snyder created an interesting world and magic system, which I would like to know more about as it seemed there was a huge amount more to it that we just touched the surface of in this book...something that I wanted to understand more was Avry's communication with the Lilys...I think the next one picks up the story after the ending, so I will definitely read the next one. Although the main elements of their 'quest' were finished up in this one, lots of loose ends were left to carry in in the second in the series.