Adventure waits beyond the loch… Before she became known as the Loch Ness Monster, Nessie was nothing more than a simple kelpie with big dreams.When her chance for adventure comes, she grabs it with both hands, sending her to the depths of the ocean and mountain peaks. Though none of that compares to what awaits her heart when she meets a human who still believes in magic…This story takes … believes in magic…
This story takes place before the Seven Wardens series but can be read as a standalone novella. There is no cliffhanger.
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The Seven Wardens
#1 From the Deeps
#1.5 Through the Storms (optional spin-off)
#2 Into the Mists
#3 Beneath the Earth
#4 Within the Flames
#5 Above the Waves
#6 Under the Ice
#7 Rule the Dark
more
Vanessa who likes to be called Nessie wants adventure. Nessie is a kelpie. She has decided to leave her loch to find the sea kelpies. She wants to learn from them how to shift painlessly. On her way to the sea she meets a human named Jonas. Nessie and Jonas fall in love. They sizzle together. They have some passionate scenes together. Eventually there is a war that you learn about in the epilogue. More details on what happened during this time would have been nice. How did the war start? What happened to Jonas? Why is Nessie alone now? We find out why Nessie decides to give Macey to her sister to raise. This is a good introduction to the seven wardens. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
I really enjoyed Nessie and Jonas. but their story wasn’t told! Most of the book seemed like a set up to their love story, but then it ended without telling the story. From the epilogue, apparently they loved, found the wardens, fought a war, Nessie had a child, and Jonas and everyone else died/was killed. Where is the story? I wanted to read more of the story of Nessie and Jonas, not just about how they met. Sorry, but there just wasn’t enough.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Loved the prequel about Nessie from Loch Ness in Scotland. Her travels and the characters she meets were well done. The storyline answers some questions about the series and has some great folklore included. The first book left me confused, but this is so much better that I can not wait for the next book in the series now.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is a prequel to the Seven Wardens series and tells the story of Nessie. Once I started reading, I had a hard time putting it down. It was a great introduction to the series and gives you some background on what happened for her to become known as the Loch Ness Monster.
She was a young normal kelpie, going off on her first on land adventure in her human form. I enjoyed all the different supernatural/paranormal creature encounters: a ghost, sea kelpies, humans, and possibly a human-kelpie hybrid?
Some of these encounters were dangerous but it seemed the greatest risk to Vanessa is to her heart. The pledge made by Nessie made with the sea kelpies is concerning; I wonder how this will play out in the main series, or if it will.
This book was well written with characters you can get invested in and a plot you want to see to the end.
‘Beyond the Loch’ is Laura Greenwood and Skye MacKinnon’s first book in their “The Seven Wardens” series and it’s so good. This prequel is a complete story about a young kelpie named Vanessa, aka Nessie, who leaves home for dry land in order to experience the world and ultimately finds a way to shift into human form. We see a ghost, sea kelpies, other humans, and even a human-kelpie hybrid …. Maybe. There’s a bit of history represented with the attire and modes of transportation along with a bit of romance which brings me to the one thing I kept wondering about. What about the pledge Nessie made to the sea kelpies and how would these authors tie that into the entire series? And then how would this tie together with Macey’s story? Fear not, our authors have brought it full circle at the end with important information that I’m sure we’ll need when the time comes.
This was a sweet story of Nessie and Jonas beginnings. I wish their was more of their story. Their lives up until the end. It would be really good.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Vanessa, Nessie for short, wants to leave her Loch and travel the world. Being a freshwater Selkie, Nessie also wants to meet the sea Selkies to see if they have a way to shift to human form without all the pain. On the way to the sea, she meets Jason on the train. When she enters the sea, Nessie is taken prisoner for invading and being a spy. When she is given an hour to go to the surface for some sunlight, Nessie is netted like a fish. She sees Jason on the boat before she blacks out. This beginning short story is well thought out and contains romance, a small amount of steam includes the perceived death of Jason, and ends in a cliffhanger. Highly recommended.
Great storyline and character development made this book a hot and enjoyable read! I could not put it down it was that good!
This book is not just a prequel but actually an entire book in and of itself which is great. Nessie that is likeable and you cannot help but sympathise with her need for adventure and exploration. She embarks on a journey that that will keep you entertained the whole way through. The characters are wonderful and engaging. There is romance but that is almost secondary to the real meat of the story which is filled with magic, fantasy and a wonderful world crafted in the brilliant mind of the author.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Laura and Skye have done a wonderful job giving Nessie a personalized existence. Great imagination from two wonderful writers. I would have loved to have heard the brainstorming session that created this series. Brava ladies, kudos.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is Aunt Nessie’s story and how she goes out into the world to find the sea kelpies, on her way there she meets up with Jonas and the story begins. This was a wonderful story with a very surprising twist. I truly enjoyed this book. Easy to read and enjoyable.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is a prequel to the Seven Wardens series. It’s a short but well written that sets the start of the Seven Wardens series and book one which is Nessie’s daughters story. I highly recommend reading this book before starting book one to get a better understanding of Macey’s family history. It’s not necessary to enjoy the Seven Warden’s series but it does give you a little background.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is a prequel to the Seven Wardens series and tells the story of Nessie, well before she became known as the Loch Ness Monster. She was young and just a normal kelpie, going off on her first adventure on land in her human form. She had a few supplies from others who had returned and some human money from her mother. She wanted to travel from their loch, over to the sea and meet some other creatures. She stays the first night at an inn known to her kind, but is told off for her attire, and given more feminine clothing. Nessie is obviously from a period where ladies did not wear pants and weren’t even allowed to show off their ankles! She decides to travel by train the next day, towards the sea and is disturbed in her carriage by a handsome young human. She finds trying to converse with him a little strained to start, as he seems more interested in his paper than her.
Once they become more comfortable with each other, he mentions walking up Ben Nevis when he was younger and him hearing there might be a ghost at the top. He believes in the supernatural, but Nessie has to be very careful not to let him know of her true self. That will only bring more danger if humans found out about all the secret creatures everywhere, on land and sea. He is called Jonas and has a meeting in the city, but agrees to meet her the next day to trek up Ben Nevis. What happens at the top of the mountain causes her to run off, leaving him angry. Their next meeting out at sea does not go much better. Nessie may have had big dreams for freedom and exploration when she first came to land, but her fate is going to be linked to Jonas. She is also closely linked to Macey, who features heavily in the Seven Warden stories. I received a ARC copy of this prequel from BookSprout and I have freely given my own opinion of the book above.
This is a great story! I loved every second of it. I only wish that we could have seen some more adventures that Nessie and Jonas went on. Vanessa aka Nessie is a kelpie who is leaving her loch to go exploring. She is traveling for the first time. She wants to go to the sea and meet the sea kelpie. On the train, she meets Jonas, a human. Jonas has an interest in ghost and the existence of them. They go up a mountain where they meet a ghost. The ghost outs her as a paranormal being. She gets upset and leaves Jonas. Will they be able to find their way back to each other?
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Great adventure
Nessie is off to find adventure and meets lots of interesting characters on her journey. Among them is Jonas a ghost hunter whom she travels with for a time. I was drawn into this story despite it being outside my usual taste. It keeps you reading even when you should go to sleep. If you like fantasy and romance with an adventure thrown in this is a big A plus.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I really liked Nessie, there was something about the way she was so curious but she didn’t feel dumb or even particularly naïve. She felt curious and it was nice to see how well her and Jonas matched each others curiosity and sense of adventure.
I haven’t read the rest of the series but I think this was a pretty good set up. There isn’t really much foreshadowing or explanations of what is going to happen so it doesn’t feel like anything is spoiled and I am interested in reading further.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Our heroine wants a bit of adventure, but you know what they say about being careful what you wish for.
This is book zero of the series, a prequel. It works just fine as a standalone, so it can be enjoyed in any order.
This is a paranormal romance story with a heavy dose of Scottish folklore. The story is well written and easy to read as I would expect. The characters and setting are also well developed and quite intriguing, almost as much fun as the plot itself. I particularly liked the Scottish elements seeded throughout. Speaking of the plot, it is a good one including plenty of action and mystery to keep things interesting. All together, this made for a fantastic read and I look forward to reading more of the series.
Highly recommended.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout for review purposes
loved it !!! this is Nessie story… when she was young…needing answers and meeting a human man. a fast paced action packed story…of love and betrayal.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is the start of the Seven Warden series. If you read the other books and have wondered how it started, then is the book to answer all those questions. It will set you up for the series.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I read this book after all the other book in the Seven Warden books. In doing so it answered a few questions that I had about how things came to be. It was great to know what came before. I will leave it to you if you read it first or last. The whole series was fantastic.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.