The Reluctant Queen (Book 2, The Queens of Renthia) --by Sarah Beth Durst

 Fiction / Fantasy

373 pages / 4582 KB

5 Stars

 

I am such a total coward! Really. I started this book and had a horrible feeling one of my favorite characters wasn’t going to make it the end. I even read the end and couldn’t tell. So I called my friend who recommended the books (gave them to me, actually) and said if she didn’t tell me, I’d put them up, unfinished. She told me. I finished the book. And soon hope to read the 3d and last. As I said, I’m a coward. Part of me wants to dive in right now, but part of me wants to hold off so I won’t reach those dreaded last two words, “The End.” I don’t want the series to end, I want to enjoy the world as long as possible.

 

I like how Daleina “grew” as queen, how she tackled the knowledge she would die with no heir. But I love Naelin, a mother of two, a divorcee, a reluctant heir, and the love interest of our favorite Champion. 

 

The romance in the book is nice, and realistic. And not overdone. This is an adventure fantasy, not a romance fantasy. Life is hard on this planet, but really, if you think about it, no harder than on ours, just different horrors we all must deal with. Nature is neither good nor bad, it just is.

 

As I said in my review of Book 1, Queen of Blood, buy all three books at once so you won’t have the frustration of being forced to wait unless you want it. and don’t be turned off by the title.

Queen of Blood: Book One of The Queens of Renthia --by Sara Beth Durst

 Fiction / Fantasy (YA plus)

361 pages / 1334 KB

5 Stars

 

 

Wow! Just wow! This is one of the most intriguing worlds I’ve ever had the pleasure of visiting. It is so obviously not our earth, but is as equally obviously recognized, with just enough tilt to the axis to keep you a tad off balance. What a marvelous read!

 

The spirits and humans live in an uneasy truce, that is now and then broken for a variety of reasons. Both humans and spirits are necessary, and both have established their own niches in the ecosystems. As nature on our earth is neither good nor evil, it just is, so is nature in this series. Balance must be maintained. And that is not always easy.

 

The story is an old one. The current queen is not as good as people think, she’s traitorous and must be deposed, but how? By whom? At what cost? Read the book to find out ;-)

 

I can hardly wait to return in book 2, The Reluctant Queen. Trust me on this, if you like fantasy, buy all three at once so you won’t have to wait between books!