The last thing Lev Prakenskii remembered was being lost in the swirling currents of the ocean and getting sucked deeper into the nothingness of a freezing black eddy off the coastal town of Sea Haven. Just as quickly, just a miraculously, he was saved—pulled ashore by a beautiful stranger. But Lev has no memory of who he is—or why he seems to possess the violent instincts of a trained killer. All he knows is that he fears for his life, and for the life of his unexpected savior.Her name is Rikki, a sea~urchin diver in Sea Haven. She has always felt an affinity for the ocean, and for the seductive pull of the tides. And now she feels drawn in the same way to the enigmatic man she rescued. But soon they will be bound by something even stronger, and their tantalizing secrets will engulf them both in a whirlpool of dizzying passion and inescapable danger.
A new Feehan series is almost always a good thing in my book and this one doesn't disappoint. From reading the first book it sounds like this series is going to similar to the Drake Sisters, with Rikki and 4 others (I think) living on a farm in Sea Haven, thus encountering most of the same cast of characters from before. Rikki is a water elemental, but I didn't get enough book time with the rest of the sisters to make an educated guess on what their powers will turn out to be, though it wouldn't surprise me if they were tied to the elements as well.
What stood out the most for me in this particular book were the uniqueness of the two main characters. I think I can safely say that I've never read a romance which starred a heroine who was autistic (high functioning or not). It speaks incredibly well of Feehan's writing ability and sensitivity as a person that she could create a character like Rikki and make her both sympathetic and strong. Lev could have been typical - the bad boy turned good - but there was something about his personality that made him very unique. He did some very bad things (or at least things that weren't very good). In fact we saw him in the last Drake Sisters book and after that I don't think it would have even occurred to me that he would show up as another hero later on. Due to his past Lev remains mostly unapologetic and Rikki's acceptance of who he was, who he wants to be, is a beautiful thing.
I loved this book and I can't wait to get my hands on the next one - highly recommended!
Overall Feeling - Thumbs up.
Series - 1) Water Bound
