"The King's Bastard: King Rolen's King Trilogy, Book 1" by Rowena Cory Daniells

File Size: 886 KB/849 KB
Print Length: 640 pages
Publisher: Rebellion Publishing Limited (July 13, 2010)
Language: English
ASIN: B004SAE54K
ISBN-13: 978-1849971782 (Ebook)
ISBN-13: 978-1907519017 (paperback
Purchase: Kindle, Nook, Paperback, Mass Market Paperback
Website: www.corydaniells.com

This is what fantasy is all about! I was immediately sucked into the world created by Ms. Daniells. I fell in love with the main character, Byren, almost immediately and was rooting for him through the whole book.

I was so sad when the book ended - a cliffhanger that left me literally screaming to know what happened next. I felt the author left off at a bad spot of the plot line - almost in the middle of the climax. I would have preferred, even with things left open, to have it stop at a more quiet part of the story line, rather than the middle of the action. It was simply an abrupt stop.

However, I loved this book. It has a bit of everything in it - politics, magic, love, friendship, treachery, intrigue, adventure - and the list goes on! I couldn't stop turning the pages, wanting to know what happened to the main characters of the story, praying they didn't have one more bad thing happen to them. I highly recommend this book to fantasy readers everywhere -really anyone who loves a great book!




Reviewed by: Anastasia V. Pergakis

A free copy of this book was furnished by the author for review, but providing a copy did not guarantee a review. This information is provided per the regulations of the Federal Trade Commission.

"Warriormage: Riothamus Book 3" by Rosemary Fryth

File Size: 638 KB
Language: English
ASIN: B006NIO6BW
Purchase: Kindle
Website: http://www.rosemaryfryth.com/

This book brings to a conclusion the story of the rise of an unexpected High King in a land that has gone without a leader for generations. As both High King and the only known Warriormage for ages, a heavy weight carries on his shoulders as he leads his men with his warrior bride-to-be at his side into the heart of the lands of the enemy. A lot of the book read very quickly, drawing me in with the battles and losses of characters that I actually found myself starting to care about.

In addition, the book introduces a new hidden land of people and incredible powers are unveiled, which really kept me interested that the world continued to stay fresh and unfold in great details.

Unlike the prior two books, the tension stayed high and it became difficult for most of the book to guess where things would go next. The storyline really felt like after the two prior books it would be hitting its stride, until the climax and resolution came up and - similar to the end of the first book - facts appear from out of the blue that were not previously foreshadowed well that seem to be a convenience. It weakened the end of the story and for me took away the intensity of what seemed to have the potential of being a promising ending.




Reviewed by: Shannon Muir

A free copy of this book was furnished by the author for review, but providing a copy did not guarantee a review. This information is provided per the regulations of the Federal Trade Commission.

"Revolution: Chronicles of Charanthe 2" by Rachel Cotterill

Pages: 404 pages
File Size: 573KB
Language: English
Publisher: Createspace
ASIN: B0064C3AXW
ISBN13: 978-1452848198
Purchase: Kindle, Other E-Readers, Paperback
Website: http://rachelcotterill.com/

In my review of Volume 1 of the CHRONICLES OF CHARANTHE series, I summed up the book as "a well developed start to a series with a lot of potential," but unfortunately the series isn't living up to that potential. This book follows Eleanor, now part of the council, as she acts more in a leadership capacity and becomes involved with Daniel (who joined the council when she did).

Where Eleanor's wishy washiness seemed acceptable as she was finding her own footing and place last volume, it only intensifies to the point where she makes reckless decisions about a number of things, including her attitudes towards pregnancy and motherhood which are key themes in this book. The climax revolves around her needing to rescue one of her own children, which is a tough pill to swallow given Eleanor shows no maternal skills or instinct anywhere in the book; yet this is the same woman who has no problem executing orders to kill the children of other people.

All that said, the politics and world development that surround Charanthe still remain very solid and are a big reason why this story is able to get 3 of 5 stars. I will probably be willing to read Volume 3 only to see if this storyline redeems itself.





Reviewed by: Shannon Muir

"The Jeweler's Apprentice" by E. Kaiser

File Size: 490 KB
Publisher: Hearth Books (December 15, 2011)
Language: English
ASIN: B006MW636A

I enjoyed this story; it definitely was a good start. It was a little hard to keep track of some of the characters, but with Fia (the main character) having so many siblings, that's not surprising. The more I read, the more each person became separate in my mind.

The story opens with a tense scene of Fia following some mysterious shadows through the garden. It hooked me immediately, wanting to discover the mystery along with Fia. More and more twists were revealed throughout the story, keeping me turning the pages and wanting to know how it all fit together.

I was a little disappointed with the ending, as I felt it ended too soon. Even though this is the beginning of a series, I still felt the "cliffhanger" ending was too much. I only feel if I've read half the book and put it down. There wasn't really an "ending"; the story just stopped.

I also wished there was more description to the location when Fia first arrived at her new home in the mountains. It was a new place for her and I felt seeing it for the first time, more detail would have been shown to the reader. Bits and pieces came out of course as the story continued, but initially I would have loved to know Fia's thoughts of her new home from when she first arrived.

The mystery and intrigue built up in this book is enough to make me read more. I want to know how it all ends, how Fia and the other characters continue on their journeys, and who makes it out in the end unscathed - or not. I'm look forward to the next installment of the series.




Reviewed by: Anastasia V. Pergakis

A free copy of this book was furnished by the author for review, but providing a copy did not guarantee a review. This information is provided per the regulations of the Federal Trade Commission.

"The High King: Riothamus Book 2" by Rosemary Fryth
File Size: 621KB
Language: English
ASIN: B006NIO9KU
Purchase: Kindle
Website: http://www.rosemaryfryth.com/

This book picks up right where its predecessor, ARANTUR, leaves off with the finding of a new King for a land that has not had a High King in a very long time. However, this revelation comes in the midst of war on the horizon and the newly found High King must immediately round up his people and ride into battle. Additionally, he has untamed and undiscovered powers which no one knows how to train him about since he is believed to be the last of these abilities.

The travels from area to area recruiting soldiers continues to illustrate the large amount of worldbuilding regarding the land and politics. As in the prior book, the thrust of the text comes in the lead's personal conflict with his duties and abilities versus the opportunity lost to be the ordinary person he was raised as. More interpersonal conflicts do appear in this book than in the prior one, but they are always addressed within pages with the exception of one (but it also has political overtones so in some ways plays more into worldbuilding). Most characters are developed only as much as need be for their roles, save a couple such as the High King and Alissa his love. We also learn that that the overarching title of the books, RIOTHAMUS, is the name that Alissa's people refer to the High King as. Unfortunately, the pacing is very slow and moving from town to town looking for the recruits feels almost methodical, like playing a game of chess.

As I said in my review of Book 1, the multi-faceted nature of the lead character is the only thing that made me want to follow this through to the end. If he were less interesting, I am not sure I would want to complete the series.



Reviewed by: Shannon Muir

A free copy of this book was furnished by the author for review, but providing a copy did not guarantee a review. This information is provided per the regulations of the Federal Trade Commission.

"Rebellion: Chronicles of Charanthe 1" by Rachel Cotterill

Pages: 418 pgs
File Size: 629 KB
Language: English
Publisher: Createspace
ASIN: B0046REJXW
ISBN13: 978-1452846323
Purchase: Kindle, Other E-Readers, Paperback
Website: http://rachelcotterill.com/

REBELLION - the first book in the CHRONICLES OF CHARANTHE series - follows the journey of Eleanor, a young woman raised in a school where children are raised not knowing who their parents, and at the end of training are given assignments as to where they will forge their careers.

Elanor has always dreamed of becoming an assassin, a dream fueled in part by secret training by a mysterious man called Laban, but assassins are supposedly only the job of legends that can only be achieved by refusing the Empire-given assignment and then following trials to reach the Association (the home of the assassins). When Eleanor is told that despite her rebellious ways she's destined for a life as a police officer, she leaves in search of the legendary Association. This gets into a series of misadventures along the way - including working for a band of pirates -
that result in her captivity with a young man named Raf whom she comes to care for, but through his friendship finds the Association where she to the dismay of some becomes its first female assassin candidate. Once she arrives at the Association and meets the young men from some of the other schools, she finds that the challenges are just beginning and the politics are not all that they seem.

The world of Charanthe is developed in great detail, as evidenced by the various lands Eleanor visits before and after she finds the Association. All the characters are developed enough to serve their roles, none are deep or well-rounded but in a story where deception and mislead is key this may be intentional and doesn't feel a problem. At times reading this I felt like I was reading J.K. Rowling's famed series but set in a school for assassins instead. Eleanor may at times seem a bit wishy washy as she displays good skill at using her weapons but less refined social skills, but it must be remembered that most of these characters are still at this moment teenagers with room to grow and develop. I look forward to seeing how this plays out in the second book and if the issues face develop along with the character's social maturity and the secret politics at play. This is a well developed start to a series with a lot of potential.

Reviewed by: Shannon Muir

"First Chosen" by M. Todd Gallowglas