I must say, I hate starting in the middle of a series but I just had to read this book. I’m glad I did. If anyone’s excuse to not read a certain book is “It’s in the middle of the series,” or “I’d have to read all the other books!”-no worries. You don’t have to know anything about the first book to read this one. This book recaps the first one as you read, so you can cut out book one!

Readers, freshen up with some good old medieval! I just love the aspect of kings, queens, gowns, and court. Ninety-nine percent of books now-a-days are set in modern times, and it’s so hard to find a reasonable medieval book. The very few medieval books have a weak heroine that repeatedly trips over her own gown and as you read you think to yourself “Now, if you actually had pants on, we wouldn’t be having this problem!” Not this book. The heroine, even though there were at least five attempts on her life, stays strong and willing to fight. She does do some stupid things, like walking off without her guards, but this queen relies heavily on her wits instead of her looks.

The young love…. Elisa, the queen, is barely old enough to rule. She is seventeen, about the same age as the captain of her Royal guard. These two start off as amazing friends, but you can see their relationship take a turn long before she does. It seems the heroine ‘is blind to the workings of love’, as her maid tells her. I really enjoyed their storyline, even if they were oblivious to each other’s feelings.

Needless to say, I really like this book; but will you? The fantasy is really well thought out. The author created a medieval world that hinges on the edge of reality. All the characters in this book also had unique personalities. You’ll find yourself rooting for certain characters as the book goes on and your feelings about them will jump around till the end of the book. This book was really well written and explains things with explicit detail. I recommend you read this compelling story of war and forbidden relationships.