Legacy by Cayla Kluver

Legacy by Cayla Kluver

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book is freaking amazing!

I'm surprised... I need an hour to think about this... Be back to review this one soon!

**The Next Day**

Alright, I slept on it. And I still feel like this book is one of the best I've read in a long time. It's a fantasy book with a slightly different world that's similar to how ours was in the medieval/renaissance days. We have a princess that is close to getting married and taking the throne with her future husband. We have said future husband gunning for his bride and the throne. And then we have the mysterious stranger that comes in and so inadvertently changes the plan. Intrigue, fantasy, love triangle galore. I was hooked.

I have to say that the characters, each and every one of them, really made this book for me. I really loved being in Alera's point of view and I really loved her interactions with not just the two boys, but her bodyguards, her sister, her family, and the royal court. Kluver is amazing at character development. She managed to make even the smallest characters stand out without detracting our attention away from the main story. With that said, let me talk about the boys for a second. Narian was pretty amazing. He's the mysterious stranger that walks in and steals Alera's attention away from her duties and I love that he's quiet in all the right ways. He also can fight like nobody's business and I liked how he kept stealing weapons and his attitude towards authority really made him all that much more desirable. However, my personal favorite is Steldor. Alera loathes her future husband and it's not something I can exactly blame her for. He IS an arrogant bastard and he isn't always the nicest he could be. But I've always been a sucker for arrogant bastards and Steldor is no exception. He really does seem to love Alera though and I hope that in Allegiance their relationship grows into something more. Perhaps like in Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side her disgust for him will turn to lust and love. **QUICK SPOILER** I know she's waiting for Narian to come back and "save" her, but now that she's actually married to Steldor at the end, that's pretty much it for me. Once you say those vows you better stick to them. I know she can argue that she was forced into it and such, but she actually was given a choice and she still chose to marry Steldor. Narian had a choice too and he could have come to the wedding or told Alera how he felt at the very least and he didn't. So the only way I can see Alera and Narian together is if Steldor dies somehow in the war. Which I really hope doesn't happen because I love him! **QUICK SPOILER OVER**

Now that my rant on the romance part of the story is over I can also comment on how well done the plot and action was. The story itself came together nicely and I was unable to predict the outcome. I also appreciated that something was happening in every chapter that moved the story forward. There wasn't a lot of action in the book, but many parts of the story had me on the edge of my seat waiting to find out what happened. Since it's in Alera's POV and she is pretty much never allowed to be in such a fray, we don't actually get to witness any real fighting, except for the tournament scene.

I am excited however for Allegiance!!! I saw that on Goodreads it says it comes out this year and I will be first in line for that one, my friends. It's going to be amazing! Team Steldor!




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Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Warning: Mild Spoilers.

This was a pretty extravagant story.

The concept of this fantasy world with the seven kingdoms and people with their graces, or special powers, was different, but not in a bad way. And the characters were very developed and realistic. Seeing as I've been recommended to read this book for over a year, and it took me so long to pluck it from my to-read pile, I understand that I'm very late to the game with this series. While I really liked the story and am looking forward to reading the next installments, I can't say that it was amazing. The story was well written, the characters were each their own, and the ending (while leaving it open-ended) was satisfying. But I'm going to be a little petty about some things...

Katsa kind of annoyed me. I understand some people and their ideals about marriage, but the way she completely freaked out and became an emotional wreck when she found out she was simply falling for Po was a bit irritating. And even then, he goes out and suggests an open-ended relationship (no strings attached comes to mind) and she jumps at it without really thinking about the future. It's a petty thing to mention perhaps, but I kind of saw Katsa as a little selfish in this area. I loved Po, and thought he was great, he really was, but the way Katsa could take on the world, and knew it (even acted like it sometimes) really struck me the wrong way. I hope she'll agree to marry him someday! However, Katsa redeemed herself a little as soon as they found Bitterblue. I absolutely adored that little girl!

All in all, creepy king- check. Kick-ass heroin- check. Swoon-worthy love interest- check. And a whirlwind fantasy/action plot- double check. GRACELING is a very good read.



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