4 Stars | Amazon + Goodreads | Fantasy Romance with more Fantasy than Romance
Book Two in the Scarred Earth Saga | Scarred Earth Saga Reading Order Amazon + Goodreads
“Entertaining as Fuck.” <- actual quote. . .
Ummmm, yup. G.A. Aiken who is also known as Shelly Laurenston is a must-read Author and she demonstrates this again and again with each book she produces from that brain of hers. Her humor is next-level and sooooo identifiably Aiken/Laurenston. No one and I mean no one, writes stories at this caliber and with this much bullshitting panache quite like her and in her chosen genres.
A long time ago. . .in 2006 I stumbled across a book and it introduced me to Laurenston and I have not looked back since, if either of her pen names is on the cover, it’s an auto-buy for life.
With book three in the Scarred Earth Saga series releasing and arriving by bookmail, I thought it was time to catch up on what in the hell was happening with some of my new favorite characters. And wowza. Two years have passed since the events of The Blacksmith Queen and things are getting hairy. . .also, can I pause here to say how much I love the world building of the Scarred Earth Saga? There is sooooo much going on and the world building and gods and. . .dragons, top-notch.
If you go into this book expecting immediate romance and fast burn smut, you are looking at the wrong book. This is slow burn, at its best and in my opinion much more fantasy driven and family relationship driven than romance.
I will also quickly mention that if you haven’t read The Blacksmith Queen or even her Dragon Kin series, then I’d suggest shelving this one and going backwards into Aiken’s backlog, I promise, it is sooooooo worth it. The Dragon Kin series is actually one of my absolute favorite series she’s ever written.
I digress. The Princess Knight, this book, it begins with humor on the battlefield and ends with an epic crossover that had me giggling and screaming in joy. Told in soooo many different pov’s but not so many that it makes you want to rot your own brain out. Loaded with humor and sarcasm, family relationships, found family awesomeness, touches of romance, violence (the battlefield kind), and just completely awesome writing.
Gemma was great in book one, in her main show stealing novel she is everything, I love this War Monk that loves her family, is a bit cray cray and all kinds of badass. Being in her head is a fun experience, I couldn’t help but root for her and like her and stay invested in her side of the story. And Quinn, the Amichai, a centaur who can shift to two legs when he wants, is the perfect compliment to Gemma’s crazy. He’s sarcastic and crazy himself, but with Gemma. . .perfection.
The bickering and chemistry between these characters, all of them, is stellar. And I loved the set up for Ainsley’s book, which is next and staring accusingly at me from my bookshelf.
Overall, I liked this book quite a lot, but I’m a diehard romantic at heart and wanted more romance which knocked it down from 5 stars to 4 stars. For others that love their romance to not be a dominating factor, you’re all going to love this one.
“It was a brutal, unfair tactic, but if they were going to win against Beatrix and the son of the Old King, they’d have to stop thinking like fair-minded individuals and start thinking like men.”
