"It shall be the son, the firstborn in the new monarchy, who shall quiet the fears and unite the nation again."
The infamous prophecy declaring that the firstborn would be a boy is the last thing Sarah wants to deal with. As if being newly engaged isn’t difficult enough, she’s still coming to terms with the fact that the first eighteen years of her life were a farce. The prophecy—the reason she had been secreted away from her family and her royal heritage to begin with—wasn’t supposed to disrupt her life any more than it previously had. But when unexpected events force her to leave her fiancé, Prince Alexander, Sarah must return to her home country of Kyrnidan to face her destiny.
Reunited with her royal family, Sarah is thrust into the political turmoil that surrounds her ancestral home. To make things worse, her arrival has upturned the long-held prophecy.
As the voices of distension mount against her, Sarah turns to her bodyguard, Luther, for protection. But Luther’s protection comes with a price. Propelled into a plot that threatens her life and the welfare of the entire kingdom, Sarah must determine where her love and loyalty truly lie. Torn between two men, she will now have to face her fears and undertake a journey of self-discovery that will change the fate of a nation….
My thoughts: Sarah is in a strange and unique situation. She was spirited away as an infant from her family, home, and kingdom to save her life. A prophecy states that the firstborn son will unite her country. Because of this, one man, her Uncle, swore that if a daughter were the firstborn he would kill her immediately. The reasoning behind all of this is gone over in the first book "Mark of Royalty".
The first book deals with Sarah learning of her birth parents, falling in love with Prince Alex, and greed. I thought after I finished it that it was a good place for an ending. Fortunately the author's had a different viewpoint. The first book is only half of the story.
This book takes a look at the prophecy in greater detail. Sarah is learning to embrace and accept her heritage. Many would like nothing more than put an end to her life and preserve the comfort and familiarity of the prophecy. Treachery and testing loyalty take a prominent theme in this book.
The book has some unexpected surprises and keeps the reader on their "toes". It is a great sequel. While I think it can be read and understood without the first book. I would suggest reading the first book before this one. I'm giving this book 4 stars. I received an electronic copy of the book for review purposes.
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Author's Jennifer K Clark & Stephonie K Williams
Jennifer K. Clark andStephonie K. Williamsare sisters by chance but became friends by choice when a year of rooming together at college taught them how to get along. Now “play”-at-home moms, separated and living in different parts of the country, they stay in touch and support each other in their individual projects.
Jennifer K. Clark lives in the small rural town of Wellington Utah, as much as her husband wishes it was Wellington New Zealand. After years of entertaining her three children with infamous made-up stories, she decided to put her imagination to good use and became an author. She likes to add a touch of romance to her novels along with a healthy dose of adventure. Fueled by Lindt Chocolate Truffles and Sour Patch Kids, she now spends a copious amount of time with the characters in her head. In her spare time she likes to create science experiments with the ingredients in her potions cupboard, debate which Doctor is her favorite (currently the 10th…or maybe the 11th), and—when she has time—watches the A&E version of Pride and Prejudice.
Stephonie K. Williams makes her home in a quaint farming town in eastern Iowa with her husband, three cats, and a budding ninja. Two of her favorite things in Iowa are the fireflies (aka lightning bugs) and cows, especially the calves. Despite having lived there for 15 years she still misses the majesty and tranquility of the mountains of Utah where she grew up. She has a vast collection of fortune cookie fortunes because she has yet to determine if it is unlucky to throw them away. She also loves to quill, the art of rolled paper, not to be confused with quilting.
Stephonie is passionate about education and enjoys visiting schools to teach classes on creative writing. She has written poetry, short stories, and dissertations, although Mark of Royalty was the first of her work that she was brave enough to submit for publication.
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Their writing is superb! I bought the other book after reading it. It is definitely one that could be read many times!
ReplyDeleteI hope to read/review this one as well.!!
Sounds really good!
ReplyDeleteSince I posted my review I could come over here to see what you thought. :) I thought the pacing was better in this sequel, but I kept waiting for Sarah to step into her role as princess and accept her lineage. I think my favorite character was probably Alex. He was fun and dashing, but also level-headed for the most part. I'll definitely be reading the next book from these authors.
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