~Waiting on Wednesday~ The Traitor Prince (Ravenspire #3)

                “Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.  Basically books that are not yet out that we are dying to get our hands on.  This week’s pick is:

The Traitor Prince (Ravenspire #3) by C.J. Redwine

Out:  2/13

From Goodreads:

                Javan Najafai, crown prince of Akram, has spent the last ten years at an elite boarding school, far away from his kingdom.  But his eagerly awaited return home is cut short when a mysterious imposter takes his place—and no one believes Javan is the true prince.

                After barely escaping the imposter’s assassins, Javan is thrown into Maqbara, the kingdom’s most dangerous prison.  The only way to gain an audience with the king—and reveal Javan’s identity—is to fight in Maqbara’s yearly tournament.  But winning is much harder than acing competitions at school, and soon Javan finds himself beset not just by the terrifying creatures in the arena, but also a band of prisoners allied against him, and even the warden herself.

                The only person who can help him is Sajda, who has been enslaved by Maqbara’s warden since she was a child, and whose guarded demeanor and powerful right hook keep the prisoners in check.  Working with Sajda might be the only way Javan can escape alive—but she has dangerous secrets.

               

                Together, Javan and Sajda have to outwit the vicious warden, outfight the deadly creatures, and outlast the murderous prisoners intent on killing Javan.  If they fail, they’ll be trapped in Maqbara for good—and the secret Sajda’s been hiding will bury them both.

Why I’m Waiting:

                I’m a love this authors other books and I have enjoyed the other books in the series thus far so this is a no brainer for me to buy!  Plus it has the whole gladiator type vibe which I’m digging while also reminding me of an old episode of Wishbone.

                What are you waiting on?  Tell me below what you think of this title and leave a link to your WoW as well so I can check it out.

~Waiting on Wednesday~ The Wish Granter (Ravenspire #2)

                “Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.  Basically books that are not yet out that we are dying to get our hands on.  This week’s pick is:

The Wish Granter (Ravenspire #2) by C.J. Redwine

Out: 2/14

From Goodreads:

                An epic, romantic, and action-packed fantasy inspired by the tale of Rumpelstiltskin, about a bastard princess who must take on an evil fae to save her brother’s soul, from C.J. Redwine, the New York Times bestselling author of The Shadow Queen.  Perfect for fans of Graceling and the Lunar Chronicles.

                The world has turned upside down for Thad and Ari Glavan, the bastard twins of Súndraille’s king.  Their mother was murdered.  The royal family died mysteriously.  And now Thad sits on the throne of a kingdom whose streets are suddenly overrun with violence he can’t stop. 

                Growing up ignored by the nobility, Ari never wanted to be a proper princess.  And when Thad suddenly starts training Ari to take his place, she realizes that her brother’s ascension to the throne wasn’t fate.  It was the work of a Wish Granter named Alistair Teague who tricked Thad into wishing away both the safety of his people and his soul in exchange for the crown.

                So Ari recruits the help of Thad’s enigmatic new weapons master, Sebastian Vaughn, to teach her how to fight Teague.  With secret ties to Teague’s criminal empire, Sebastian might just hold the key to discovering Alistair’s weaknesses, saving Ari’s brother---and herself.

                But Teague is ruthless and more than ready to destroy anyone who dares stand in his way—and now he has his sights set on the princess.  And if Ari can’t outwit him, she’ll lose Sebastian, her brother…and her soul.           

Why I’m Waiting:

                I really enjoyed The Shadow Queen (review) so I’m excited to see what else this world has to offer.  Plus I never knew much of the Rumpelstiltskin story other than from Once Upon a Time and I really enjoy the character so I’m thrilled to see this idea play out.         

                What are you waiting on?  Tell me below what you think of this title and leave a link to your WoW as well so I can check it out.

The Shadow Queen (Ravenspire #1)

                Hello happy readers!  I hope you all had a great weekend.  I worked this one but I did get some sleep and some OTC stuff and my sinuses are back to their normal irritating levels.  I also had a chance to finish some great books and one I’d like to discuss today is The ShadowQueen by C.J. Redwine the first book in the Ravenspire series.  I previously reviewed the Defiance series (Defiance, Deception, Deliverance) if you'd like to check them out.  Clearly I went in a fan of her writing and ready to see what new fantasy was coming to life. 

Rating:  5 Stars

                For those who don’t know The Shadow Queen is a Snow White retelling of sorts with the evil queen and the innocent princess and rightful heir wanting to take back her crown and save her people.  Lorelai, the princess and fugitive, has one mission:  killing her step mother and evil queen Irina before she completely destroys their land.  They have one thing in common, magic.  Irina has been using her magic for longer than Lorelai has been alive and is known as the most dangerous sorceress any has ever known.  So when a neighboring kingdom Eldr, a land of dragon shifters how cool, find the war in their land with invading ogres has taken a turn they are not equipped to take on, their leader Kol will make a deal with the queen to save his land.  Bring the queen Lorelai’s heart and the ogres will be stopped; the only problem is Lorelai is on her own mission to save her people and not a damsel in distress. 

                First side note that adds to the book love, how pretty it is.  The cover is simple and perfect, even more so as you read, but the naked book…those end pages in the bright red map!  OH I was so excited for them. 

               Now moving on to what is important, what’s inside the lovely book ends.  I was in LOVE with this book from the start.  The Shadow Queen starts off with a bang for sure and in the first 50 pages I was entranced and didn’t want to put it down.  First Irina is evil incarnate and pretty badass, I can admit when someone is a good villain, while I never rooted for her I respected her power and her level of crazy.  Lorelai was just endearing from the start in her Robin Hood type moves to try and help her people and build herself up.  Plus her interactions with Leo and Gabril cemented the familial bond and I just adored them.  And while I’m not personally a fan of feathered creatures in real life, hey fears run deep, still I loved Sasha and the conversations about "gifts" brought me up every time.  Kol was very similar in several ways.  I found him charming in the best of ways not only because of the obvious charm but for his humor and his strength of conviction to what is right and to his people.  No matter how flippant he may seem in the beginning as soon as things get serious he steps up.  And while he may do anything to save his people he still struggles with his decisions and find a way to continue to be honorable. 

               

                The world we are thrown into is one of magic both good and evil and so much more.  I felt like I understood the world, though I still have much more to learn.  This is after all the first book in a new series and the map has lots of other places on it….just saying.  Plus we spent pretty much the whole time in Ravenspire and I look forward to seeing more of Eldr and the other lands.  Some of the magic has yet to be expanded upon but again more books.  The story moved along very quickly and there was a ton of action from chases to fights both normal and magical with never a dull moment.  When you're a fugitive you can't sit still too long!  We also have some romance happening and while this is a surprisingly short book it didn't feel rushed to me, it felt natural given the pacing and events in the book.  Blending foes and friends and finding the right path.

                Basically I loved it and think you should pick it up if you're in the mood for a face paced magical retelling that will keep you hooked from the start.  I can't wait to see where Redwine takes the series next.  I know throughout the book I was constantly trying to figure out what would happen and while some aspects I pegged others came about in such a different want than I expected.  I'd love to hear your thoughts below on the new series in the comments below. 

                Until next time…