The author has created a magical story of tragedy, war, duty, heartbreak, and love. Nae is a princess but unfortunately for her, her father is not an honorable man and makes plans to trade her virginity to an evil leader just to further the size of his own kingdom. The kingdoms in this area have been at war for centuries and even though treaties have been signed, there are still evil leaders with little regard for human life. Nae and Ty both feel their duty to protect their own kingdoms. However, they also know the value of helping out their neighboring areas. Sometimes that involves sacrifice and Ty knows that rescuing and marrying Nae is his duty. The reader knows Ty is instantly attracted to Nae and knows how blessed he is to feel something for her other than his duty to his people. It is honor and duty that Nae and Ty share that eventually leads them to each other. I love how the author tied all these feelings up together to make this a rich, satisfying read. The beginning of the book was a little complex with the explanations of the different kingdoms and how they interact but after that the story moved along quickly. All the characters were interesting enough that the reader will want them as their best friends -- well, except for the bad guys. I really liked how the secondary characters gave the story a little bit of humor and lightness. I really hope we get to read more about some of the secondary characters, especially Nae's brother, Valin, and Ty's cousin, Rone.

Overall rating:
Sensuality rating: Very sensual

Reviewer: Lisa Freeman
June 29, 2009