Tiger's Quest by Colleen Houck: Book Review

TIGER’S QUEST by Colleen Houck
Series: The Tiger Saga
Publication Date: June 7th 2011 by Splinter
Rating:

Summary: Back in Oregon, Kelsey tries to pick up the pieces of her life and push aside her feelings for Ren. But danger lurks around the corner, forcing her to return to India where she embarks on a second quest–this time with Ren’s dark, bad-boy brother Kishan, who has also fallen prey to the Tiger’s Curse. Fraught with danger, spellbinding dreams, and choices of the heart, TIGER’S QUEST brings the trio one step closer to breaking the spell that binds them.

Review Overview:

An adventure
This was my second time reading TIGER’S QUEST and I found new details I hadn’t noticed before
A cliff-hanger ending

Spoiler Warning! Don’t read this review if you have not yet read Tiger’s Curse as it may spoil the first book for you.

TIGER’S QUEST is the second installment of Colleen Houck’s Tiger Saga (also known as The Tiger’s Curse Series). This 479 page sequel did not disappoint me: Houck has filled them with magically shocking plot twists.

Booklist offers this praise for TIGER’S CURSE on the back cover:

“Houck’s first novel is part Indiana Jones and part fairy tale…she tells a good story that will keep readers turning pages.”

Well, readers, the same can be said for TIGER’S QUEST. The beginning of the novel details Kelsey’s decision to leave India – and Ren – to move back home and live a somewhat normal life. However, nothing follows Kelsey’s plan to help Mr. Kadam break Ren and Kishan’s curse from a world away because:

Kelsey truly misses Ren and realizes that nothing is the same without him
She accepts and is “tricked” into a string of strange dates
Ren returns to her, determined to seek her forgiveness and to woo her

Just when Kelsey’s biggest problem seems to be what type of cookies to bake Ren, everyone gets wind of Lokesh’s growing power. Kishan, Ren’s “bad-boy brother,” is enlisted to help protect Kelsey. However, these three are ambushed and attacked, leaving only Kelsey and Kishan as survivors. Unfortunately, Ren is kidnapped by Lokesh’s henchmen and is left untraceable.

It is at this point that the adventure begins – determined to save Ren, Kelsey flies back to India with Kishan.There, she spends days and weeks training – both physically and mentally – to follow the prophecy that will break the curse and save her boyfriend. Her limits are pushed and pulled throughout her quest in the forms of:

An impossible conference with the Dalai Lama
A deadly climb up Mount Everest
A discovery of Shangri-La
A barrage of dangerous tests (these terrifying obstacles include birds, gourdes, sirens, bats)

Lastly, Kishan confesses his feelings for Kelsey and struggles to maintain a platonic friendship with her. She, however, both fails and succeeds at fighting him off. I believe the following quote best summarizes this plot line:

“I’m not the kind of man to bottle up my feelings, Kells. I don’t sit up in my room pining away, writing love poems. I’m not a dreamer. I’m a fighter. I’m a man of action, and it will take all of my self-control not to fight fo this. When something needs to be done, I do it. When I feel something, I act on it. I don’t see any reason why Ren deserves to get the girl of his dreams and I don’t. It doesn’t seem fair that this happens to me twice.” – Kishan

TIGER’S QUEST is an adventure/romance/comedy novel about a girl who is determined to save her boyfriend by facing the most impossible trials, while simultaneously protecting his brother. Without giving too much away, I will say that the ending is a cliff-hanger. Houck leaves small hints that foreshadow the outcome of the last chapters; however, I was definitely caught off guard. Thankfully, the third installment of The Tiger Saga is already out!

I recommend TIGER’S QUEST to anyone who has read TIGER’S CURSE or enjoys a thrilling adventure.

About the Author

Colleen Houck is first and foremost a reader. She loves action, adventure, sci-fi, and romance, and her favorite books include a little bit of each. After getting an Associate’s Degree from Rick’s college and transferring to the University of Arizona, she dropped out of school to go on a church mission where she met her husband. Colleen has lived in Arizona, Idaho, Utah, California, and North Carolina and is now permanently settled in Salem, Oregon with her husband and her giant stuffed white tiger.