Genre: Fantasy, Historical, Romance, Reincarnation
LGBTQ+ Category: Gay
Reviewer: Maryann
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About The Book
Callum Gething meets the alluring Dominic Fairweather at a card game during a night on the Ton, and agrees to take a strange pottery object to stand-in for his winnings. But a spell from thousands of years ago is going to change everything Dominic and Callum thought about themselves, and who they were in Ancient Egypt when their souls were first bound together.
The Eternal Spell is the first in a shared world of The Pharaoh’s Promise. An ancient spell designed to keep loved ones together in the afterlife is locked away, but when freed the spell casts its influence through the centuries weaving love along its path.
The Review
Callum Gething professed to having a bad knee when he got too close to the dance floor. He was told by his father that he needed to be seen in the right social circles of London, especially those that graced the Ton, in order to keep up the family reputation and find a matrimonial match. But Callum didn’t feel much pressure to get married, as his brother had already provided an heir to keep the family name going. Even so, he still enjoyed his nights out, drinking the best wine and sampling foods at Wexford Place with the Duke of Richmond. He had the need for other entertainment as well, and searched out the Wexford Place card tables. He was not a rich man per se – he earned a yearly allowance and wages from his father’s family business.
He does well at the card table, but then some new players enter the game. A young man who seats himself at the table looks familiar. It turns out to be Dominic Fairweather, son of the Duke of Richmond, well known about the Ton. Callum has only seen him a few times before, when they attended some of the same social events.
Dominic fares poorly at cards and now has a debt to pay to Callum. Not having the money on hand, he offers Callum an IOU, and an old stone carved as a human figure with odd markings as collatteral. He explains that it’s an ushabit – an Ancient Egyptian burial token – recently discovered in the tomb of the Pharaoh. Handling the ushabit, Callum suddenly feels strange, and the last person’s face he sees is Dominic.
Dominic returns home, but in a foul mood. He is still angry at the cheating Henry Wellin. Along with other bad decisions, he should have returned earlier and not bet at the card table. The only plus side is that he got to meet the attractive Callum, and will need to pay his debt and recover the ushabit.
Dominic is awoken by a strange dream about Baniti, a priest and Osahar, a scribe. Baniti wanted a spell that would take both of them into the afterlife using the ushabit. Unbeknownst, to either of them, Callum had a similar dream.
A letter arrives from Dominic, and Callum prepares for his guest, but he doubts that Dominic will attend himself. Callum is very enamored with Dominic and wants to know him better. When Dominic arrives in person, he and Callum discuss the dreams they had, and the connection he makes to Dominic being Baniti. When he hands the ancient carving to Callum, something strange takes place.
What are these dreams set in Egypt, and how will they effect Dominic and Callum? What mystery lies within the ancient carving?
I’ve read many books by Rebecca Cohen, and this one was very different from her previous work. Like all her novels, this one is well written, and the world and character building are perfect. Cohen does a wonderful job addressing the similarities and differences between Baniti and Dominic and Osahar and Callum.
I highly recommend The Eternal Spell, part of the shared world “The Pharaoh’s Promise” series. I always love Cohen’s novels, and this one is no exception, a magical spell filled with love, romance, and some great steamy moments. Outstanding.
The Reviewer
Hi, I’m Maryann, I started life in New York, moved to New Hampshire and in 1965 uprooted again to Sacramento, California. Once I retired I moved to West Palm Beach, Florida in 2011 and just moved back to Sacramento in March of 2018. My son, his wife and step-daughter flew out to Florida and we road tripped back so they got to see sights they have never seen. New Orleans and the Grand Canyon were the highlights. Now I am back on the west coast again to stay! From a young age Ialways liked to read.
I remember going to the library and reading the “Doctor Dolittle” books by Hugh Lofting. Much later on became a big fan of the classics, Edgar Alan Poe, Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker and as time went by Agatha Christie, Ray Bradbury and Stephen Kingand many other authors.
My first M/M shifter book I read was written by Jan Irving the “Uncommon Cowboys” series from 2012. She was the first author I ever contacted and sent an email to letting her know how much I liked this series. Sometime along the way I read “Zero to the Bone”by Jane Seville, I think just about everyone has read this book!
As it stands right now I’m really into mysteries, grit, gore and “triggers” don’t bother me. But if a blurb piques my interest I will read the book.
My kindle collection eclectic and over three thousand books and my Audible collection is slowly growing. I have both the kindle and audible apps on my ipod, ipads, and MAC. So there is never an excuse not to be listening or reading.
I joined Goodreads around 2012 and started posting reviews. One day a wonderful lady, Lisa Horan of The Novel Approach, sent me an email to see if I wanted to join her review group. Joining her site was such an eye opener. I got introduce to so many new authors that write for the LGBTQ genre. Needless to say, it was heart breaking when it ended.
But I found a really great site, QRI and it’s right here in Sacramento. Last year at QSAC I actually got to meet Scott Coatsworth, Amy Lane and Jeff Adams.