Cindy J. (cindyj) -
In Queen by R.J. Larson, Bel-Tygeon is the god-king of Belaal. He has just returned to sanity after living as a beast in the forest. Serena of Clan Darom and her younger brother Ayden find Bel-Tygeon who only introduces himself as Ty. Ty wants to return to his land and kingdom, but it is too late in the fall to make the trek before winter. Although Ty falls in love with Serena, he doesn't see a future with her because a law of his country has a difficult requirement for his queen which Ty would never ask Serena to endure. Serena has plans of her own to marry a high ranking clansman and become a leader in her clan. She never plans to fall in love with a totally unsuitable person.
While this was not my favorite book, I felt it was unfair to assign a low rating to this book because I believe most of the negative aspects originated with me rather than the book itself. This was book two in a series, and I would have been much better off had I read book one first. The list of characters would have been extremely helpful, but unfortunately it was located at the end of the book rather than the beginning, and I found it when it was a bit late to be of much assistance. Also, the reason for the desire for vengeance among the people of the various lands was something I never quite grasped, but perhaps I just missed it. Fantasy is not a genre I normally read so part of my difficulties could have resulted from that. As for good points of the book, I felt it deserved a high rating because of its high quality writing. It included conflict, suspense, and fast-paced action. The characters faced personal dilemmas and weighed their choices and how each would affect others as well as themselves. Ty's total about-face in beliefs about the Infinite Creator and Who He is was noted throughout the book. He gave continual praise to Him and prayed for direction, protection, and assistance at various times. Araine followed the instructions given by Infinite even when they caused her to tremble in fear. She reminded me of Biblical prophets. This book was not at all boring, and I never felt that it was being repetitious. The product was extremely well crafted. If you enjoy fantasy, this would likely be a wonderful book for you, but I would highly recommend reading book one first. As for me, I might now be persuaded to read book one. Ms. Larson did an awesome job writing this one.
I received a copy of this book through The Book Club Network in exchange for my honest review.
While this was not my favorite book, I felt it was unfair to assign a low rating to this book because I believe most of the negative aspects originated with me rather than the book itself. This was book two in a series, and I would have been much better off had I read book one first. The list of characters would have been extremely helpful, but unfortunately it was located at the end of the book rather than the beginning, and I found it when it was a bit late to be of much assistance. Also, the reason for the desire for vengeance among the people of the various lands was something I never quite grasped, but perhaps I just missed it. Fantasy is not a genre I normally read so part of my difficulties could have resulted from that. As for good points of the book, I felt it deserved a high rating because of its high quality writing. It included conflict, suspense, and fast-paced action. The characters faced personal dilemmas and weighed their choices and how each would affect others as well as themselves. Ty's total about-face in beliefs about the Infinite Creator and Who He is was noted throughout the book. He gave continual praise to Him and prayed for direction, protection, and assistance at various times. Araine followed the instructions given by Infinite even when they caused her to tremble in fear. She reminded me of Biblical prophets. This book was not at all boring, and I never felt that it was being repetitious. The product was extremely well crafted. If you enjoy fantasy, this would likely be a wonderful book for you, but I would highly recommend reading book one first. As for me, I might now be persuaded to read book one. Ms. Larson did an awesome job writing this one.
I received a copy of this book through The Book Club Network in exchange for my honest review.
