I fell completely in love with the characters and world Anna created. Her system of magic feels old and established yet new and incredible at the same time. Her characters are full and wonderfully crafted, and unlike so much of media these days, it kept me on my toes plot-wise. As a fellow writer, I'm pretty good at anticipating where the story will go and what the flow of things will be, but Anna kept surprising me and that kept the story fresh and interesting!
In this gorgeous stand-alone cozy fantasy romance perfect for fans of Margaret Rogerson and Allison Saft, a rebellious witch undertakes a last-ditch quest to restore magic to medieval Wales-as two princes vie for her heart.
Magic is fading from Wales-choked off by King Offa's Dyke, the enemy earthworks that spans the entire border. Even the dragons have disappeared. And now an attack is imminent.
Prince Taliesin would love to watch magic die. Prince Dafydd fears it, and the throne. But when their father promises the crown to whichever son can destroy the dyke and restore magic to Wales, the brothers…
I love the dual POV and the shorter chapters absolutely lulled me into a false sense of security that I could, in fact, read just one more chapter before bed (spoiler alert: I did not read just one more chapter. I read many chapters.)
Bethany's characters feel well fleshed out. Her dual 1st person POV makes it very obvious as to character voice and she's captured them so well. I love the Aladdin retelling; it's one of my favorite stories and she captured the spirit of the story while giving it a fresh spin.
This is also the first book in the Stolen Kingdom series.
How can she protect her kingdom, if she can't protect herself?
Princess Arie never expects to manifest a forbidden Jinni's Gift. When she begins to hear the thoughts of those around her, she hides it to the best of her ability.
But to her dismay, the Gift is growing out of control. When a neighboring king tries to force her hand in marriage and steal her kingdom, discovery becomes imminent. Just one slip could cost her throne. And her life.
A lamp, a heist, and a Jinni hunter's crew of thieves are her only hope for removing this Gift--and she…
Mary has done an incredible job with this story. The magic feels fresh and new, and the twists and turns kept me turning pages late into the night (I definitely pulled a few all nighters, which I felt in the morning but did not regret). This story feels like a sunrise after a long cold night. There is so much hope in it. I can't wait for book two!!
Ever since her parents’ mysterious disappearance from the Offenheimer Farmhold, field-hand Resi Flood has spent years contemplating her escape to the western regions. However, the only escape she’s managed to find is in the quiet moments when she is able to sketch from her stoop after a long day’s work. But when one of her portraits is cleverly passed into the hands of the governor of her region, Resi is recruited to be his new portrait artist, and is thrust into a sinister world of high society. As she engages more intimately with her newfound talents than ever before, she…
It’s been years of sweat, sacrifice, and solitude for Neldyn “Nelly” Hansen. Her whole life has been dedicated to working towards one goal: becoming a professional surfer.
So when her 18th birthday comes and she suddenly turns into a mermaid every time she gets into the ocean, her world comes crashing down.
Before she can even begin to process any of this, she meets her group project partners in history class…a brand new witch and a lifelong psychic-medium. They need her help with a much bigger project: saving their town of Otter Sands, CA.
If Nelly refuses to accept her mermaid heritage and learn to use her magick, none of them will survive to see graduation.
