Book Details:
Print Length: 451 pages
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Publication Date: July 2, 2019
Sold by: HarperCollins Publishers
ASIN: B07CRDFG8H
Amazon
About the Book:
Everleigh Blair might be the new gladiator queen of Bellona, but her problems are far from over.
First, Evie has to deal with a court full of arrogant, demanding nobles, all of whom want to get their greedy hands on her crown. As if that wasn’t bad enough, an assassin tries to kill Evie in her own throne room.
Despite the dangers, Evie goes ahead with a scheduled trip to the neighboring kingdom of Andvari in order to secure a desperately needed alliance. But complicating matters is the stubborn Andvarian king, who wants to punish Evie for the deaths of his countrymen during the Seven Spire massacre.
But dark forces are at work inside the Andvarian palace, and Evie soon realizes that no one is safe. Worse, Evie’s immunity to magic starts acting in strange, unexpected ways, which makes her wonder whether she is truly strong enough to be a Winter Queen.
But Evie’s magic, life, and crown aren’t the only things in danger—so is her heart, thanks to Lucas Sullivan, the Andvarian king’s bastard son and Evie’s . . . well, Evie isn’t quite sure what Sullivan is to her.
Only one thing is certain—protecting a prince might be even harder than killing a queen…
My Review:
Protect the Prince is the second action-packed fantasy novel in Jennifer Estep’s Crown of Shards trilogy. The story is filled with magic, deception, death, romance, action, and strategy. Lady Everleigh Winter Blair has ascended to the Bellona throne after dispatching her deceiving and murderous cousin, Vasilia. Evie is now dealing with the court from the opposite side of what she’s used to – as their leader. Every minute that passes has Evie looking over her shoulder for those who want to exploit her, members who want to dethrone her, and assassins who want her dead. Regardless, Evie knows she must build alliances against the King of Morta.
Evie’s first stop in building those alliances is the kingdom of Andvari. She knows the alliance will not be easy, as the king of Andvari’s citizens were caught in Vasilia’s mass murder plot to gain the throne of Bellona. Upon another assassination attempt in Andvari, Evie discovers she may not be the only target, and everyone is in danger. Everyone must be diligent and be completely aware of their surroundings.
I love Evie’s form of magic. She discovers other aspects of her magic in Protect the Prince and she begins wondering if her magic is strong enough to be the Queen of Bellona, a Queen of the Winter Blair lineage. I have complete faith in Evie’s abilities, however. Jennifer Estep has created a very strong character in Evie. She’s had a tragic upbringing but one that allowed her to move through the kingdom and learn both the important aspects and those that were most unsavory. She was able to observe the royals, nobles, and staff, understanding how they worked, what they thought, and how they figured they would get ahead, or try to get ahead.
The romantic elements of the story soften the hard edges of danger, deception, and action. Evie and Sullivan have sort of a love-hate relationship going on and it’s the equivalent of the boy pushing the girl he likes down in the playground. They also realize they can’t move forward with their relationship because of her status and his. Most unfortunately, really, because I absolutely love the both of them together.
There hasn’t yet been a book written by Jennifer Estep that I haven’t like, and I’ve read most of them. Her stories are fascinating, full of action, and engaging. Protect the Prince is a well-written fantasy novel with wonderful characters and detailed world building. The story played out like a movie as I read. The book has a killer cover and intriguing synopsis and I was pulled in from the start.
I was provided an ebook to review. Opinions are my own.
My Rating:
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