Published: July 21st, 2020
Genre: Fantasy | YA | Adventure
AMAZON | GOODREADS
Synopsis: For fans of Sorcery of Thorns and Furyborn comes a thrilling new fantasy about a kingdom ravaged by war, and the princess who might be the key to saving not only those closest to her, but the kingdom itself, if she reveals the very secret that could destroy her.
The kingdom of Hálendi is in trouble. It's losing the war at its borders, and rumors of a new, deadlier threat on the horizon have surfaced. Princess Jennesara knows her skills on the battlefield would make her an asset and wants to help, but her father has other plans.
As the second-born heir to the throne, Jenna lacks the firstborn's--her brother's--magical abilities, so the king promises her hand in marriage to the prince of neighboring Turia in exchange for resources Hálendi needs. Jenna must leave behind everything she has ever known if she is to give her people a chance at peace.
Only, on the journey to reach her betrothed and new home, the royal caravan is ambushed, and Jenna realizes the rumors were wrong--the new threat is worse than anyone imagined. Now Jenna must decide if revealing a dangerous secret is worth the cost before it's too late--for her and for her entire kingdom.
Great for both YA and Middle-Grade readers!
But.....Where to start?
Ah, yes!
Main character-wise, I liked Jenna and found her pretty interesting. I wished there was a bit more in-depth with her though and more we could've seen to her.
The characters were fun and engaging, though I noticed that it was more the side characters in the last half of the novel that were the ones I liked a lot. The ones in the first half I was excited at first because it seemed like they were supposed to be big parts of the plot or to Jenna, but then they ended up only there for a moment and I'm still unclear how important they were.
Plot-wise: the synopsis sounded like a very adventurous and amazing fantasy read. I liked the plot and the story, but it wasn't as surprising or epic as it was made to sound. I was surprised when things went a different way, but not the plot-twisty kind.
Though that didn't change that I liked the uniqueness of the world and idea.
It was an enjoyable read that had even more backstory and plot hinted at in the end, so I feel like it was just setting up for the next book in the series. Which also means there's more to discover which makes me pretty happy as I want to see more of some side characters and hopefully some depth to Jenna that I can love as well.
The world-building and satisfying ending were probably my favorite parts of the book! Despite not loving somethings as much as I would've liked, there were parts that made up for it.
Have a lovely day!!
~Books with Noel
Comments
Post a Comment