A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft

 

“Niamh Ó Conchobhair has never let herself long for more. The magic in her blood that lets her stitch emotions and memories into fabric is the same magic that will eventually kill her. Determined to spend the little time she has left guaranteeing a better life for her family, Niamh jumps at the chance to design the wardrobe for a royal wedding in the neighboring kingdom of Avaland.

But Avaland is far from the fairytale that she imagined. While young nobles attend candlelit balls and elegant garden parties, unrest brews amid the working class. The groom himself, Kit Carmine, is prickly, abrasive, and begrudgingly being dragged to the altar as a political pawn. But when Niamh and Kit grow closer, an unlikely friendship blossoms into something more—until an anonymous columnist starts buzzing about their chemistry, promising to leave them alone only if Niamh helps to uncover the royal family’s secrets. The rot at the heart of Avaland runs deep, but exposing it could risk a future she never let herself dream of, and a love she never thought possible.”  - taken from Goodreads.

This book was a Regency-inspired story set in a fantasy world where Niamh is a talented seamstress that can infuse memories and emotions into her creations. Her ability is also the reason that her life will be short-lived as is killing herself the more she uses her powers. Being named as the seamstress for the prince’s upcoming nuptials is an opportunity that her family cannot pass up. What Niamh doesn’t expect is to uncover palace secrets and to fall for the prince himself. Prince Christopher or Kit is infuriating to most everyone and is particularly unhappy to be marrying a woman he has no interest in but to be a good political match. As Niamh works on the wedding wardrobe, her and Kit’s feelings for one another get in the way. Can forbidden love win in the end?

Visit Allison Saft’s website.

Garden of the Cursed by Katy Rose Pool (Garden of the Cursed book 1)

“Since fleeing the gilded halls of Evergarden for the muck-filled canals of the Marshes, Marlow Briggs has made a name for herself as the best godsdamn cursebreaker in Caraza City. But no matter how many cases she solves, she is still haunted by the mystery of her mother’s disappearance.

When Adrius Falcrest, Marlow's old friend and scion of one of Caraza's most affluent spell-making families, asks her to help break a life-threatening curse, Marlow wants nothing to do with the boy who spurned her a year ago. But a new lead in her mother’s case makes Marlow realize that the only way to get the answers she desperately seeks is to help Adrius and return to Evergarden society—even if it means suffering through a fake love affair with him to avoid drawing suspicion from the conniving Five Families.

As the investigation draws Marlow into a web of deadly secrets and powerful enemies, a shocking truth emerges: Adrius’s curse and her mother’s disappearance may just be clues to an even larger mystery, one that could unravel the very foundations of Caraza and magic itself.” - taken from Goodreads.

I loved this book! Marlow is a cursebreaker and when Adrius comes to her for help, she wants nothing to do with the boy who rejected her. She soon realizes that by helping Adrius, she may uncover what happened to her mother. Drawn into the politics of not only the upper crust of Evergarden but the Marshes, Marlow will need to do her best to keep from the same fate as her mother, missing. With the killer ending, readers will be eagerly waiting on the next book. 

The story will continue with book two, Masquerade of the Heart, out June 18, 2024.

Visit Katy Rose Pool’s website.

Midnight Strikes by Zeba Shahnaz

“Seventeen-year-old Anaïs just wants tonight to end. As an outsider at the kingdom’s glittering anniversary ball, she has no desire to rub shoulders with the nation’s most eligible (and pompous) bachelors—especially not the notoriously roguish Prince Leo. But at the stroke of midnight, an explosion rips through the palace, killing everyone in its path. Including her.

The last thing Anaïs sees is fire, smoke, chaos . . . and then she wakes up in her bedroom, hours before the ball. No one else remembers the deadly attack or believes her warnings of disaster.

Not even when it happens again. And again. And again.

If she’s going to escape this nightmarish time loop, Anaïs must take control of her own fate and stop the attack before it happens. But the court's gilded surface belies a rotten core, full of restless nobles grabbing at power, discontented commoners itching for revolution, and even royals who secretly dream of taking the throne. It's up to Anaïs to untangle these knots of deadly deceptions . . . if she can survive past midnight.” - taken from Goodreads.

Anaïs keeps reliving the night of the Anniversary Ball over and over again trying to find a way to stop the destruction that takes place as the bells toll midnight. Never forgetting what had happened the previous nights, Anaïs is able to continually build in the information she has already gathered. As the recurring days go on, will Anaïs be able to discover why the time curse started and how she can hope to stop it, before it's too late. 

Visit Zeba Shahnaz’s website.

The Betrothed by Keira Cass (The Betrothed book 1)

 

When King Jameson declares his love for Lady Hollis Brite, Hollis is shocked—and thrilled. After all, she’s grown up at Keresken Castle, vying for the king’s attention alongside other daughters of the nobility. Capturing his heart is a dream come true.

But Hollis soon realizes that falling in love with a king and being crowned queen may not be the happily ever after she thought it would be. And when she meets a commoner with the mysterious power to see right into her heart, she finds that the future she really wants is one that she never thought to imagine.” - taken from Goodreads.com

I heavily skimmed the entire book in order to finish.

Hollis’ story is expected to be concluded with the publication of book two on May 4, 2021.

Visit Kiera Cass’ website.

Ever the Brave by Erin Summerill (Clash of Kingdoms book 2)

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first book in the series, Ever the Hunted, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

“Ever the Divided. Ever the Feared. Ever the Brave

After saving King Aodren with her newfound Channeler powers, Britta only wants to live a peaceful life in her childhood home. Unfortunately, saving the King has created a tether between them she cannot sever, no matter how much she'd like to, and now he's insisting on making her a noble lady. And there are those who want to use Britta’s power for evil designs. If Britta cannot find a way to harness her new magical ability, her life—as well as her country—may be lost.

The stakes are higher than ever in the sequel to Ever the Hunted, as Britta struggles to protect her kingdom and her heart. - taken from Goodreads.com

In this conclusion to Britta’s story, the action picks up quickly from the first book. The story is told in three different points of view; Britta, Cohen, and Aodren. With the bond broken between her and Cohen, Britta must deal with her new bond to Aodren now that she has saved his life. As the battle for Malam grows, Britta discovers that what she knows about her life isn't the truth. Her world is turned upside down as struggles to learn who she truly is.

Needless to say, the book was an excellent wrap up to Britta’s story. The next book, Once a King,will be out on December 14th, 2018 and will be the third book in the series focusing on Lirra and Aodren.

Visit Erin Summerill’s website.

My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton & Jodi Meadows

“For fans of The Princess Bride comes the comical, fantastical, romantical, (not) entirely true story of Lady Jane Grey.

Lady Jane Grey, sixteen, is about to be married to a total stranger—and caught up in an insidious plot to rob her cousin, King Edward, of his throne. But that’s the least of Jane’s problems. She’s about to become Queen of England.

Like that could go wrong.” - taken from Goodreads.com

“Edward (long live the king) is the King of England. He’s also dying, which is inconvenient, as he’s only sixteen and he’d much rather be planning for his first kiss than considering who will inherit his crown…

Jane (reads too many books) is Edward’s cousin, and far more interested in books than romance. Unfortunately for Jane, Edward has arranged to marry her off to secure the line of succession. And there’s something a little odd about her intended…

Gifford (call him G) is a horse. That is, he’s an Eðian (eth-y-un, for the uninitiated). Every day at dawn he becomes a noble chestnut steed—but then he wakes at dusk with a mouthful of hay. It’s all very undignified.

The plot thickens as Edward, Jane, and G are drawn into a dangerous conspiracy. With the fate of the kingdom at stake, our heroes will have to engage in some conspiring of their own. But can they pull off their plan before it’s off with their heads?” - taken from the front flap

Who was Lady Jane Grey? According to Wikipedia.com,  “Lady Jane Grey (1536/1537 – 12 February 1554), also known as Lady Jane Dudley[3] or the Nine-Day Queen,[4] was an English noblewoman and de facto monarch of England and Ireland from 10 July until 19 July 1553.
The great-granddaughter of Henry VII through his younger daughter Mary, Jane was a first cousin once removed of Edward VI. In May 1553, she was married to Lord Guildford Dudley, a younger son of Edward's chief minister, John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland. When the 15-year-old king lay dying in June 1553, he nominated Jane as successor to the Crown in his will, thus subverting the claims of his half-sisters Mary and Elizabeth under the Third Succession Act. Jane was imprisoned in the Tower of London when the Privy Council decided to change sides and proclaim Mary as queen on 19 July 1553. Jane was convicted of high treason in November 1553, which carried a sentence of death, although her life was initially spared. Wyatt's rebellion of January and February 1554 against Queen Mary I's plans to marry Philip of Spain led to the execution of both Jane and her husband.
Lady Jane Grey had an excellent humanist education and a reputation as one of the most learned young women of her day.[5] A committed Protestant, she was posthumously regarded as not only a political victim but also a martyr.”

In what can be best described as a historical fantasy, our trio of authors have changed history and given a comedic twist to it. The Tudor period of British history is one of my favorites. The story of Lady Jane Grey is quite tragic but the authors have taken great pains to rewrite history. Instead of England being divided between the Protestants and the Catholics due to Henry VIII’s split from the church to divorce his first wife, the English are divided between the Eðians (people who are able to shift into various animal forms) and the Verities (those who cannot). The first half of the book is pretty accurate to history but part two is a big deviation from what we know. To me, this book didn’t disappoint. I loved all of the puns, twists of history, and side references by the authors. A definite read for history or fantasy fans.

Visit the My Lady Jane website.