Review: Tiger's Curse and Tiger's Quest by Colleen Houck

Tiger's Curse

Author: Colleen Houck

Publication: Booksurge (September 22, 2009)

Product Description: Kelsey Hayes was just a freshman in high school when her parents were killed in an automobile accident, sending her into the foster-care system. After graduation, she takes a job at a circus in Oregon to earn money for college. There, she becomes fascinated with the star attraction, a white tiger named Dhiren. When the tiger is sold to the mysterious Mr. Kadam, Kelsey is heartbroken—until Mr. Kadam offers her a job as Dhiren’s traveling companion. Because of her strong affection for the tiger, she agrees . When their truck is hijacked on a dirt road outside of Mumbai, Dhiren leads Kelsey deep into the jungle. There, he reveals his true nature: he is a three-hundred-fifty-year-old Indian prince, cursed by an ancient magician to live out eternity as a tiger. Young-adult readers will be enthralled by this mystical adventure story of a girl who risks her life to save the man she comes to love.

Tiger's Quest

Author: Colleen Houck

Publication: Booksurge (October 4, 2009)

Product Description: When Kelsey Hayes sacrificed her own happiness to give her first love, Ren, a shot at a better life, she struggled to recover from the pain of her loss. The American girl and the handsome Indian prince made an unlikely couple, drawn together when Kelsey helped Ren break a centuries-old curse that doomed him to spend eternity in the guise of a white tiger. Ultimately, Kelsey chose to return to America, leaving Ren behind in India and immersing herself in the life of a typical college freshman. At school, she meets Li, a completely average guy who offers her an ordinary, curse-free life. But just when Kelsey believes she’s ready to move on, her past returns to draw her back into a whirlwind of danger—and love. The sweeping saga of tender romance and suspenseful adventure begun in Tiger’s Curse continues in Tiger’s Quest, the second installment of Colleen Houck’s engrossing young-adult series.

My Thoughts: These were very lengthy but exciting adventures. I enjoyed reading them most of the time. There was a little bit too much description. It sometimes broke the tension in a scene. I sometimes felt that the author was thinking something along the lines of "I did all this research and I'm going to use it". Overall it was an interesting couple of books to read. I liked learning about India. There was a lot of information about Indian mythology and culture. I liked the relationship between Kelsey and Ren in the first book and the relationship of Kelsey and Kishan in the second book. I liked that Kishan grew and got rid of some of the guilt that had been haunting him for hundreds of years. I don't know about forming teams in support of a favorite love interest (i.e. Team Peeta and Team Gale or Team Edward and Team Jacob) but at the end of book 2 I am rooting for Kishan. Ren seems like a man who is so changed as to not be lovable any more. The ending leaves Kelsey in a Bella in New Moon state of depression. The author says she was influenced by Twilight and this is one occasion when I can see some resemblance. I can see fans of Twilight and sequels becoming fans of this series too. Although there is much more magic and much more danger and adventure in these two stories.

I purchase both of these books for my Kindle. The first was on sale for $.99 which, along with the cover, convinced me to give it a try. The second was a more normal $6. 99. The books are available as print books but are rather expensive for what I assume are paperbacks.

Challenges: 2010 YA Reading Challenge, 2010 E-Book Reading Challenge, RYOB Reading Challenge