Well, not normal for everyone. Larissa Miller may have been born after the Great Collision, but as a history teacher who lives in the human-only city, she has never come into contact with any other race or species, nor has she wanted to. Her life is as ordinary as it gets - that is, until one day she walks out of her apartment and is attacked by a mob of Zombies, only to be saved by a Gargoyle.
Gargoyles trust no one outside their Clan, but due to a cryptic prophecy, Terak, Leader of the Gargoyles, has been watching over the human woman for months. While he can find no reason why the woman has been singled out, something about her stirs every protective instinct within him. When the attack confirms that the threats against her exist and are real, he convinces Larissa that though their races have never been allies, the best chance of discovering why she has been brought into his world is by working together.
In the course of their investigation Terak becomes entranced by his little human. But when he discovers why Necromancers want her and the great reward that awaits him if he betrays her, he must choose between the welfare of his Clan and not only Larissa’s life, but the fate of this New Realm as well.
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After finishing Magic Rises I was still on a bit of an urban fantasy kick so Stone Guardian was a welcome addition to my 'new series' to watch list. Even though Monsch doesn't come out with something shocking or world altering here, she has crafted a very entertaining story with main characters that you care about.
Larissa can't think of any reason why she'd be the target of so many paranormal beings all of a sudden but to Gargoyle Terak it doesn't matter - he's going to protect her no matter what (and not let his feelings get in the way! Argh! Manly!). When circumstances force the two to introduce themselves the result is both logical sparks filled; Larissa doesn't magically acquire fighting skills or the ability to turn people into flowers, she has to lean on Terak for his battle prowess and from that he's able to enjoy the opportunity to be a kinder version of himself. When the two of them finally act on their attraction things heat up very quickly and while the ending is a little obvious (though maybe only to the people like me who've read an overabundance of paranormal romance) it was satisfying and definitely has me interested in finding out what happens next (Larissa has brothers! Shadow-y military type brothers! And bad guys with bad weapons! Count me in :) ).
Overall Feeling - A-
Series - 1) Stone Guardian
*Title requested from NetGalley*
