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The Barbarian Prince

by Katrina Michaels

September 6th, 2006

The four Qurilixian Princes have no problem with commitment. In one night, using the power they were born with, they will meet and choose their life mate in a simplistic ceremony involving the removing of masks and the crushing of crystals. With very few words spoken and the shortest, most bizarre courtship in history, they will bond to their women forever. And once bonded, these men don’t let go…

 

Breaking up was never so hard.

Going undercover at Galaxy Brides as one of the prospective mates to these Viking-like barbarians, Morrigan has no intention of getting chosen to stay. But when Ualan of the Draig picks her to be his wife with the aid of his mystically glowing crystals, it is all she can do to say no.

Waking up from a drug-induced night of torturous and unfulfilling pleasures, Morrigan discovers her spaceship has left without her and Ualan is claiming she is his wife. It’s not exactly the story this reporter had in mind. And to make matters worse, Ualan refuses to take no for an answer.

 

Being cursed by the Gods was never so frustrating

Prince Ualan is like all others of his race on the male dominated planet Qurilixen. He is raised to trust the mystic powers around him and when it comes time to marry he is ready to follow those powers to choose his life mate. When the stubborn, yet achingly beautiful, Morrigan refuses to accept their shared fate and his supreme authority over her, it is all he can do not to break her lovely neck

 

She Says…

Now that I’ve read all four books in the Dragon Lord series, I’m glad I read them in reverse order. The Barbarian Prince: Book One was a much better read than Pillow’s last novel: The Warrior Prince, but why this is so I have no idea. Much like Hollywood I’d imagine, some sequels work brilliantly while others lack substance. Thankfully this was not the case in the Dragon Lord Series although I felt at times it was a hit and miss affair.

Pillow’s unique Galaxy Bride premise remains faithful to the series, and once more we find ourselves on the beautiful planet Quirilixen, where seven foot plus Viking-like males undertake centuries old tradition of selecting their life mates. Non-verbal courtships, shape-shifting warrior Lords, sensual awakenings and stubborn princess brides makes for good reading, but a word of warning: The Barbarian Prince contains high voltage erotica, sexuality explicit language and open adult concepts.

Of the four books, Ualan and Morrigan’s story was significantly more developed than Pillow’s later Dragon Lord novels, and for that this reviewer thanks her. The storyline was adequately fleshed out with plausible emotional and physical conflicts, and the central characters displayed multifaceted characterisation which made connecting, and sympathising with their situation considerably easier.

The rapid head hopping between the hero and heroine is, I believe, an earmark of Pillow’s unique writing style, so too the frustratingly apparent Don’t Tell: Show theory but given that I’d read her three later novels I was prepared for the mental zig ~ zag. Our hero, Ualan, seven foot plus of Viking-like dominate Male was a really likable character, with his gentle charm, steely determination, masculine appeal and gorgeous sensuality. But he wasn’t my favorite: that award is still held firmly in Olek’s hand.

The heroine, Morrigan, was nicely developed, as much as Pillow’s allows development of her central characters, and I found her “sense” and determination wonderfully endearing and the veritable lack of “shew-like” behaviour an added bonus. Overall The Barbarian Prince was an enjoyable read, although the absence of plausible secondary conflict between our budding lovers was a disappointment yet again.

On the whole, if you like your Heroes larger than life, with wicked charm and over-confident sexuality, then check out Pillow’s Dragon Lord series but be warned: the rapid head hopping and absence of evolving emotional conflict isn’t for everyone.