Book Review: Oath of Deception (Reign of Secrets #4)

Release Date: June 5, 2018
Author: Jennifer Anne Davis
Publisher: Reign Publishing
Length: 300 pages
Source: Electronic Review Copy from Author

For Savenek, there is no greater honor than protecting Emperion. While other young men his age study a trade, he attends a secret, elite military academy where he has been honed into a lethal asset for his kingdom. He can gather information without detection and kill from the shadows. Savenek’s own father is the schoolmaster, and he forces Savenek to train harder than any other student. As graduation draws near, Savenek eagerly awaits the vows inducting him into the Brotherhood of the Crown.

When a messenger arrives with news of war brewing on the horizon, the Brotherhood is called into action. Eager to prove himself, Savenek goes on his first mission alone. He doesn’t expect to uncover a treacherous plot to destroy Emperion. He doesn’t expect to join forces with someone outside the Brotherhood, let alone a woman. He certainly doesn’t expect to fail.

But then again, his father taught him nothing ever goes as planned.

Political intrigue clashes with romance in this thrilling story that continues the Reign of Secrets saga.

    

Review:

Protagonist: Savenek, has trained since he was seven years old to join The Brotherhood of the Crown, a secret spy network that dedicates themselves to protecting Emperion, no matter what. Ven is set to take his vows and become a full-fledged brother, but first, he is sent on a dangerous mission alone to a neighboring kingdom, or at least alone in the sense that another member of the Brotherhood will not be with him, instead he finds himself in the company of Ari, a whip-smart girl who may just be too much for Ven to handle, and who may be harboring secrets of her own. Together they venture into the neighboring kingdom of Apethaga in order to secure a weapons deal and snoop around for any pertinent information. I love Ven so much, he's a bit of an incorrigible flirt, using his charm to get him out of a few sticky situations, he's confident and while he can slip up from time to time, he's a capable spy and assassin, his development is mostly internal as he needs to learn to work with somebody rather than alone, and he has a hard time getting close to people, which with his line of work makes a lot of sense.

Romance: The romance in this story starts off a bit combative, though nothing close to a hate to love relationship. While Ven has had some experience with women, in fact, he has a kind of, sort of, girlfriend back home, but from the moment he meets Ari, not only does she challenge him, but she's plenty capable at taking care of herself. I really loved the balance between these two characters, how even though they didn't get off on the best foot, they still find a way to work together without either being held back due to the other. I don't know if I can put it in any better terms than that they just fit together. I do wish that Savenek wasn't held back by his feelings for another girl towards the beginning, but I do understand and appreciate why it's there.

World Building: So, I didn't expect to go as far back in time as we do in this installment. I knew that we would skip back quite a bit to learn more about Savenek's life prior to Cage of Darkness, and to see another aspect of the war with Russek, an aspect that I have to say was absolutely fantastic, but I didn't quite account for how early in the timeline it would take place. In this story, we see more kingdoms on the mainland and learn about how some of these kingdoms approached the upcoming war between Russek and Emperion. This story is about our heroes going into a foreign kingdom, where they are almost completely at the mercy of their hosts, and finding the information they need before escaping, which is pretty much easier said than done. The author does a phenomenal job of expanding the story of this series to see the broader scope of this war and see how those on the sidelines reacted to what was brewing. It's almost impossible not to get sucked into this world as nearly every facet of this world is brilliantly detailed,

Predictability: Given that I've read the rest of the Reign of Secrets books, there wasn't all that much about this story that I found unpredictable, at least when it came to larger issues in the story. There were a few moments here and there where I would be surprised by what was going on, and even though I knew more or less how things would turn out, that didn't stop the tension from rising in certain scenes, especially certain scenes toward the end. In the end, I do have to say I was a bit bummed by the fact that there weren't any huge twists, though I'm hoping that with the biggest stuff out of the way things will get a lot more mysterious for the next installment.

Ending: As this story came crashing to a close there were so many intense scenes with barely a breather in between, once the ending starts it really doesn't stop. I freaking loved every minute of this story as it winds to a close and some pretty kick-ass scenes. After all of the excitement is over there is a pretty sizable cooldown period where lingering questions from this story were more or less tied up for now, all leading to yet another cliffhanger from this author, a cliffhanger by the way, that I know more or less how it pans out, yet I'm still chomping at the bit to see what happens next.

Rating:

It's not really much of a surprise that I gave this book 5 stars, I mean it did take a second to adjust to the shift in narrators and the fact that this doesn't start where Book 3 ends, but after that I just got sucked in and could hardly put the book down!

Book Review: Cage of Destiny (Reign of Secrets #3)

Release Date: August 21, 2017
Author: Jennifer Anne Davis
Publisher: Reign Publishing
Length: 272 pages
Source: Review Copy from Author

Destined from birth to be the next empress of Emperion, Allyssa grew up at court weighed down by the expectations of the crown. Kingdom and duty always came first.

Until now.

Having survived the brutal kingdom of Russek, she is given the choice to walk away and live a peaceful, quiet life. But it also means giving up everything she knows and everyone she loves. Before she decides, word reaches her about an assassination attempt. Donning her secret persona—that of a vigilante—she sets out to eliminate her enemy once and for all.

As Allyssa fights the demons of her past to save her future, she realizes she never had a choice. She can either embrace her destiny or be caged by it.

    

Review:

Protagonist: I feel like I say this with all final installments, but Allyssa really has come a long way since the first book in this series. Once a girl caged by her responsibility, she now has the choice to live whatever life she chooses, and because of her character development throughout this series, she has everything she needs to make the choice that works best for her. Once a girl against marriage, especially one forced upon her, she wants to do what is best for her country, even if that's creating a political match. Allyssa still has a great amount of development in this book, she's haunted by the terrors she went through in Russek at the hands of Soma, she's still heartbroken after Odar severed their marriage contract, and she's not entirely sure what her future holds, but she can't rest until Jana is dealt with and the threat on her life no longer hangs over her head. Allyssa's development in this story is fantastic, some things she learns from other, some is learned through experience and growing up. Every step Allyssa takes feels natural and earned. She isn't perfect, but to be a realistic and believable character she shouldn't be.

Romance: I have to tread carefully here. At the end of the previous installment, Odar made the selfish decision to break off his relationship with Allyssa and Kerdan, the crown prince of Russek, had proposed a strategic marriage between the two. Even though I shipped Odar and Allyssa throughout (most) of Cage of Darkness, he definitely made a HUGE mistake and honestly, I wouldn't have minded Allyssa making a strategic match founded in friendship, especially with Kerdan. That's honestly all I can say with specifics, because how the author handles the romance in this story, and Allyssa's decision is phenomenal, but I'm afraid if I talk more specifics I'll ruin it. I'll just say that my heart swelled so many times throughout this book, and what Allyssa chooses in the end made me cry a little bit... a lot.

World Building: Davis is a master at world building, I swear. While we don't get to really see more kingdoms in this world, we do get to see another side to Russek. We get to learn more about their culture and who they are as people, not just the violent and brutal thugs we saw in the previous story. This book also felt like a bit of a love letter to the fans of the True Reign series, I won't quite say why, because of annoying spoilers, but there was something about this story that brought back a sort of nostalgic feeling for the previous series. Obviously, Nathenek's back and as badass and awesome as ever. His relationship with Allyssa is fantastic and how they bond and grow is very reminiscent of his relationship with Rema. Seriously, I'm trying to figure out more to say that won't be spoilery, but you just have to read this book, everything the author does to develop and flesh out this world, even more than it was, is incredible.

Predictability: So, after finishing the previous installment I thought I knew where the story would go next, I thought we'd get a more politically motivated story, but I was dead wrong. Even after reading the synopsis I thought I knew the outcome of mostly everything, and granted there are some things that I was able to predict, some things hinted at in the previous installment and some things that just felt inevitable. That being said though, there were things I was never 100% sure about with this book. In this book, the author seems to have had a lot of fun subverting tropes and kept me guessing. The way everything unfolds is incredible and the twists and turns in this book are mind blowingly amazing.

Ending: This is another section that I need to tread lightly on. The thing is, at the beginning of this book, before the story even starts there's a disclaimer that this is the third book in a series of an undisclosed number of books, which of course made me curious if the author changed her mind and this wasn't the end. As the final climax drew near, everything is fraught with tension, it's clear that something big is on the horizon, and the final climax of this book is everything I wanted and everything I didn't know I needed. The cooldown though, that's where things get tricky. There are definitely some things left unanswered and while I feel comfortable saying that this ends the arc started in Cage of Deceit, as for whether the author will return to this world, well we'll have to wait and see.

Rating:

It should come as no surprise that I think this book is exceptional. Seriously, though this book is EVERYTHING! I mean it, it's a little typical for people to love either the first or especially last, book in a series the most but here it just can't be beaten. I loved every second of it and I'm hoping it doesn't, but this book probably gave me the biggest book hangover ever.

Cage of Darkness (Reign of Secrets #2) by Jennifer Anne Davis (WOW #21)

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that everyone’s excited about!

While traveling to Fren, Allyssa and Odar are hijacked by a ruthless assassin who divulges a stunning secret that changes everything.

Trying to come to terms with this newfound revelation, Allyssa is taken to Russek and delivered into the hands of a malicious and twisted royal family. She finds herself an unwilling pawn in a risky political game that will either end with her death or the annihilation of her beloved kingdom. Unsure of where the lies end and the truth begins, she must survive the brutal family and escape the fortified castle, all the while coming to grips with her feelings for Odar.

In a kingdom filled with darkness, Allyssa enters a game where one wrong move means death, secrets hide around each corner, and it will take every ounce of cunning she has to survive.

Cage of Darkness releases on April 4, 2017, from Reign Publishing

I discovered the Reign of Secrets series nearly a year and a half ago, and entering this world is one of best reading decisions I've made. If you're new to this series and haven't read the True Reign series by the same author I highly recommend starting there, because while I'm sure you'll enjoy the first tale in this series, you'll have a much deeper appreciation for the world and it's characters if you start at the beginning. I'm more than excited to return to this world and continue where we left off. The new covers for this series are unspeakably fantastic and they've only made me more enthusiastic to return. if you haven't read anything by Davis yet I implore you to remedy that immediately, her writing and world building are phenomenal and her characters are so vivid and realistic.

So, what are you waiting for this Wednesday?