Review : Marked by Passion by Kate Perry

Title : Marked by Passion

Author : Kate Perry

Publisher : Forever Publishing

Genre : Paranormal Romance

ISBN : 978-0446541008

Series : Yes, #1 of The Guardians of Destiny

Rating : 2.5

From Author Website :

"Gabrielle Sansouci Chin?"

I froze. In the twelve years I'd been bartending at The Pour House, no one had ever called me anything but Gabe, much less pronounced Sansouci correctly—sahn-soo-si—with a French accent to boot. But what startled me most was the use of Chin, the last name I'd dropped fifteen years ago.

Eyes narrowed, I stopped stocking the refrigerator behind the bar and turned around. A tall hulk of a man stood on the other side of the counter with a package in his hand.
It had to be the contract—I wasn't expecting any other deliveries. My stomach lurched as I stared at the thin box. Probably nerves.

I looked at the guy again. He was more well-groomed than your typical deliveryman. Custom suit and manicured nails. More like Lloyd's of London than FedEx. Weird for a courier. Gallery 415 must employ a higher quality service than most.

His brow furrowed. "Are you Gabrielle Sansouci Chin?"

"Yeah, I'm Gabrielle." How did the gallery know my real last name? I only went by Sansouci, my mother's maiden name. Whatever. As long as they sold my paintings, they could call me whatever they liked—even Chin.

Review :

Gabrielle Sansouci, also known as Gabe to all of her new found friends, has an ancient secret that she is sworn to silence. She is the next heir to a family heirloom that goes back hundreds of years, and she doesn't want it. She can't help it though, because she has been marked since the day she was born, and has been training for this day her whole life. Despite all of this, she is still surprised the day it lands in her lap, and she's plagued with the responsibility of wielding the powers it brings forth to the owner. All she truly wants is to go on with life as being an artist, but life isn't always what you want it to be.

I first ordered this book because I was sent an ARC of the second book to this series, Chosen by Desire. I hate reading a series out of order, and the only way that I could prevent that was to make sure I grabbed all back installments. Luckily, there was only one book to get, so I'm getting caught up pretty quickly.

This book pulled me in from the very start, and it had a very interesting story to tell. I was looking forward to a new spin on the paranormal romance genre, and I got it. Gabe is a very selfish character though, although I guess that's how she would be with the way that she grew up. When you have a destiny that is not what you desire, there is only one thing you can do, and that's fight it. I'm pretty sure I would do the same thing.

I just wish that Gabrielle would have overcome her fears a little sooner in this first installment. Most of this first story wasn't truly about the legend of the scroll, but more about Gabe and her inability to trust, love, and take on a responsibility that was given to her at birth. I think that if Gabe could have gotten over her fears just a little sooner, we would have been able to enjoy this story better. On a side note, I knew from the start who would be the bad guy at the end, and I was not in the least bit surprised by the little twist, because it was just too obvious.

I will say that I did enjoy this story, and I look forward to reading the next installment, Chosen By Desire, later this month. I'm hoping that there will be less information and more action in the next installment. I am excited that it will be featuring Gabe's best friend, Carrie. I'm also excited to learn from author Kate Perry's website, that there will be a third installment to The Guardians of Destiny Series, and it will be called Tempted by Fate, and it will be released in 2010.