Who: Cayla Kluver
What: Legacy
When: June 21st, 2011
Where: Harlequin Teen
Where: Harlequin Teen
Why: High Fantasy!
How: Bought
In her seventeenth year, Princess Alera of Hytanica faces one duty: to marry the man who will be king. But her father's choice of suitor fills her with despair.
When the palace guard captures and intruder—a boy her age with steel-blue eyes, hailing from her kingdom's greatest enemy—Alera is alarmed…and intrigued. But she could not have guessed that their clandestine meetings would unveil the dark legacy shadowing both their lands.
In this mystical world of court conspiracies and blood magic, loyalties will be tested. Courage won't be enough. And as the battle begins for everything Alera holds dear, love may be the downfall of a kingdom.
High Fantasy is my favorite type of read, you guys know this, and Legacy was absolutely no exception! Ripe with intrigue, well-rounded characters, and court secrets that'll leave you begging for more. Princess Alera is expected to take the throne as queen soon, with cocky and patronizing Steldor as her best suitor. But the balance of their kingdom starts to shake when they catch a boy named Narian from enemy territory in their grounds, with no one knowing what the hell he's doing there or how he managed to go around unseen. But now that they have the boy, and his loyalties are tested, a war that ended long ago might be coming back to kill them all.
Alera was a headstrong, awesome heroine and just the type of person fit to rule a kingdom! Her kingdom, though, does not consider women fit to rule and so she is forced to bow her head and play the submissive daughter of her father, which irritates her 'till no end. I love how, yes, sometimes she pissed her father off with the things she did, but she wasn't stupid enough to do something that would endanger not only herself, but her entire family. She was careful, and that's what's makes her an excellent princess! The writing is amazing and the book is paced just as a High Fantasy should be, with beautiful descriptions and a good 'ole journey of self-discovery!
Steldor has me confused. In the beginning, I completely hated him. He was pompous, arrogant, and had complete disregard for Alera and what she wanted to do with her life. But towards the end...I got conflicted. He really shows a new side of himself and I can't wait to see it more in Book 2! But then we have Narian, and he is so fantastic. He's sweet and caring, but has such a respect for Alera that really surprised me! He never pushed her, but instead acted like a strong companion and love to her throughout the novel. I can't wait to see more of him!
Finally, something I felt like touching on, her sister? DID NOT LIKE. Seriously, she annoyed the hell out of me! The only downside, and it definitely wasn't enough to affect my life for the book!
Happy Reading!
