So far am enjoying this story very much - although I am not fond of the hero. Hoping he grows on one. ( )

A good way to describe The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker is tense. Not in a bad way, but in an anticipatory way. You have the 6 Guards, chosen as children who have waited for their prophesized seventh member for almost two decades, the title character Percy Parker anticipating answers to the questions of who (or what) she is, the Darkness anticipating its return to chaos...and a timeless love waiting to be fulfilled.

No one person in the novel doesn't have something they are waiting for with bated breath. As their lives progress and converge with Miss Percy Parker, the waiting is almost unbearable for some. For others the waiting is an annoying burden to friendships and relationships they want to push farther.

I found myself drawn to Percy almost involuntarily. Raised in a convent all eighteen years of her life, Percy would stand out for that alone, except she also has snow white hair and skin, eyes that glitter like diamonds and the ability to communicate with spirits. Ok, and don’t forget the nightmarish dreams. She couldn't help being different; she stood out no matter where she was or what she was doing. For someone with a shy nature and anxiety over what others are thinking, I can well understand her hesitant approach to life.

The six Guards have a variety of personalities and sometimes they don't work well together. I found myself liking Jane (or rather “Lucretia Marie O’Shannon Connor", an Irish lass given to dramatics and preferring her own company most often) and being greatly irritated by Rebecca. She chastises their leader, Alexei, for being blind to other's thoughts and feelings, but she is guilty of the same! Elijah and Josephine are amusing, while Michael is perhaps the biggest mystery to myself.

Alexei is definitely a stern man with a set ideal of behavior. His approach to his duties as a Guard, to his hunt for Prophecy (used as a noun throughout, for their fabled 7th member) and his leadership are methodical. He is a scientist by nature and would have contentedly remained so if not for the call to duty as a child. I liked best that he didn't attempt to cover up the fact that he was a brusque man with little care for fools.

Watching the romance that the story both hinges on and dances around in a coy fashion kept me very interested. I wanted to see if and when Alexei finally found his Prophecy, if Percy would find answers she sought, if other relationships not settled could be cemented.

I greatly enjoyed this book and look forward to the next of the quartet eagerly! ( )

There were so many different styles in this book; I kept expecting them to crash and burn. I've seen it called gothic, paranormal, romance, mystery, and a ghost story. The wonderful thing is they jelled.

This book pleased me on so many levels. Six children were chosen to be "possessed" by spirits and become The Guard, a group responsible for policing the spirit activity of Victorian London. They're also given a prophecy concerning a seventh member to come, their goddess come again and the woman their leader will love.

Then they grow up and protect the city and settle into their lives. Some pair off. Some live with unrequited love. Some are still waiting for the prophesied woman. Nineteen years later she arrives. Both of her.

Most of The Guard believes Lucy Linden is their seventh, but Professor Alexi Rychmann can't deny the love he has for Miss Percy Parker, nineteen year old student at the academy where he teaches.

The relationship that grows between Alexi and Percy is fascinating. I enjoyed watching them deal with the difficulties of their situation: professor-student, an age difference but not one that is insurmountable or taboo in any way, ghostly forces trying to harm them both, and the identity of the mysterious seventh. And, because this is a romance set in Victorian times, there is a lot of wonderfully written sexual tension.

Things end well, but not before everyone is harmed in some way. This was a very satisfying read. If [a:Leanna Renee Hieber|1651952|Leanna Renee Hieber|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1250826580p2/1651952.jpg] writes more in this world I'll be right there. ( )

Ghastly pale to the point that she's mistaken for on if the spectres she communicates with, the heroine grew up in a sheltered Covent-horribly self conscious and ashamed of her appearance. Now she's traveled to London to study is a prestigious academy hoping to excel with her extensive language abilities. From the very second she saw him, she thought her teacher to be the most visually stunning man she ever laid eyes on. Brooding, dark in every way that she is light, she's terrified of him. When he demands she start accepting one on one private lessons with her mathematics, she's equally excited and gut wrenching nervous. The hero, the leader of a group of 6 tasked with guarding London from viscous spirits has always lived under the Prophecy of a 7th coming amongst their mists and knowing that this woman would be his goddess- the woman he's fated to love. As taboo as student teacher affairs are he's extremely reluctant to even consider that this spectre of a girl could be that goddess but slowly he begins to see the signs. Still, his group- they people he once called his friends- are adamant that another is fated to be the 7th. They poison his mind with doubt and it very nearly costs him everything. Of course, the hero could have prevented all this is he'd only confided in his friends about the true extent of the heroine's abilities. Instead, he keeps them to himself- wanting to be absolutely positive that she is the one. Can I say just how amazing this book was? First off the heroine. She was an outcast from her peers due to what she considered her deformity and she's horribly shy and has desperately low self esteem but despite this she glows with a vitality that you feel coming off the pages. She had such kindness in her soul. There's no possible way you could read about her story and not fall in love with her character. Despite everything she had such courage. Yes she was scatter brained and stuttered and blushed furiously whenever uncomfortable but when the hero was around other woman she demanded he not toy with her. She demanded that she would not allow another female to take him from her without a fight. She stood up for herself when it mattered but only after many many pages of apologises and fumbling over sentences. She apologizes repeatedly for her appearance to anyone who she feels like she's disturbed by it but when the hero demands she no longer hide herself under the scarf you can see her slowly start to gain more and more self confidence. Others even remarked on the fact that she looked like a doll or even at times a beautiful otherworldly angel. It was clear that no matter how hard she tried to go unnoticed she was always command attention whenever she went so why not embrace it? Secondly, the hero was amazing. He was at times cruel with his brutal honesty but even before he began to realize his deeper feelings for the girl-he helped her think more highly of herself. This is because he refused to listen to her melancholy self deprecation or fumbling apologises. Yes, at times I found him to be abrupt and harsh with her but he was also kind. He taught her to dance when he saw her dancing with the ghosts. He slowly began to crave her company as much as she did his though he kept his growing affection quite. There were times when I winced reading about the heroines barely restrained feelings-knowing full well that he wasn't there yet emotionally. Lastly, I loved the side characters. Even though I despised Rebecca and the others because of their selfish and thoughtless disregard for the heroes feelings- they were essential to the story. But my god could I have slapped her in the face. Because of her jilted love, the woman isn't willing to accept that the hero could fall in love with anyone else let alone an 18 year of girl as pale as a ghost. But as I said, it kept a tension laced through the book knowing full well that this other 7th candidate is a fraud and is hardly to the group. Truly amazing book and one that I couldn't put down for an instant. ( )

I have had this book on my to be read list forever, not sure why I never got around to reading it. I bought it for my Kindle when I first got my Kindle (along with a million other books) so it kind of got lost in the shuffle. It was beautifully written, engaging, and romantic. It does have a gothic overtone to it and I ended up absolutely adoring it.

Six kids are given powers and a task, to guard humanity against the ghosts and darkness that haunt it...they are known as The Guard. Their leader is Alexi and he is given power over spiritual blue fire. There is a prophecy that in their hour of need the Guards will gain a seventh member; she will be lost and need protection but will also save humanity.

Many years have passed since the Guard have been given their powers. Miss Percy Parker is excited to arrive at Athens Academy. She was an orphan raised at a nunnery but deeply desired more schooling and a profession. Percy is looking forward to higher education and is determined to be the perfect pupil. Of course all that is put in jeopardy when she meets Professor Alexi; there is something about him Percy finds very distracting and the visions she occasionally has hit her all the more frequently in his presence.

While Percy tries to unravel the secrets of her history and of the effect Alexi has on her; the Guard is desperate to find their seventh as more and more violent hauntings plague London.

I really loved this book, it is beautifully written and blends together a lot of interesting elements of fantasy, history, and mythology. The book is set in Victorian London during the Jack the Ripper crisis. In this alternate London ghosts are real and it is the Guards’ duty to protect humanity from them and make sure the public is fairly ignorant about it all. That is pretty much the world, there isn’t a ton of world building outside of that.

Aside from the historical setting there is also some mythology in here; you should be able to guess how greek mythology ties in with the story given Persephone’s name. This mythology was blended into the historical setting in a creative and well done way.

What really drives the story are the characters. I loved the Guard and how each Guard member represents an aspect of the Goddess who gave them their powers. The lead guard, Alexi, is of course the most interesting and compelling of them all. He has that whole dark, brooding, mysterious and noble persona going on..which I will admit I am a sucker for. He also has a darkly witty sense of humor which I loved.

I also enjoyed Percy as a character; in the beginning of the book she’s comes off as a bit naive and ignorant but she definitely grew more backbone as the story continued. I ended up enjoying watching her grow as she grew more confident and daring. The chemistry between her and Alexi is amazingly well done and very engaging. There are some beautifully written scenes between the two that will take your breath away.

The writing is very lush, descriptive, and flows nicely. It was a book that was enjoyable and easy to read. It’s a good balance of plot, mystery, action, paranormal, and romance. I will admit this is a pretty romance heavy story; there are a few times where the story takes a pause so that Alexi and Percy can have a romantic scene together. However, I never felt like the romance overrode the interesting storyline. The story is fairly predictable but I still really enjoyed the path we took to get to that ending.

Overall this was a beautifully written story that did an excellent job of blending history, mythology, and supernatural elements. The story has a very gothic/Victorian feel to it and I enjoyed it a lot. The characters are really what drive the story and I loved them all. There is quite a bit of romance in here that was incredibly well done; it never took over the story but was definitely a driver. I would recommend this book to those who enjoy historical fantasy with some supernatural elements and romance. ( )