Thank you Bloomsbury for this book in exchange for an honest review

Synopsis:

One month has passed since Valor broke her twin sister Sasha out of jail. But the girl responsible for her imprisonment, Princess Anastasia, has gone missing, and Valor still longs for justice. So when the queen, desperate to find her daughter, asks Valor and Sasha to track Anastasia down, they don’t hesitate to accept the perilous assignment.

But just as the girls team up with old friends to embark on the search, the queen vanishes without a trace. If Valor can’t restore the rightful ruler, she risks getting sent back to prison . . . and tearing her newly reunited family apart. Relying on her own instincts – and some allies she can’t quite trust – Valor must navigate twisting city streets, bustling docks, and hidden passages to foil Anastasia’ nefarious plot before it’s too late.

Set once again in the icy and dangerous queendom of Demidova, Ruth Lauren sweeps readers on another unforgettable adventure alongside an equally unforgettable heroine.

Review:

Seeker of the Crown, is the second book in a middle-grade fantasy series following Prisoner of Ice & Snow.

I have to admit I didn’t read the first book but I have heard such great things about Prisoner of Ice and Snow that I couldn’t pass up the chance to read this book. I can understand where the hype for the book comes from and while I see so many great reviews for it, I see a lot of adult reviews for it and not a lot of reviews or thoughts from the young generation which this book is produced for. Saying that I didn’t just look on Goodreads, I expanding my search on other sites and well as friend’s kids to see if they knew of heard about this book. Which begs my question at the end of this review. (I promise this is going somewhere)

Our lead hero of this book is Valor who previously helped her sister escape from Damidova prison (first book) and is now engaged to find the missing Princess Anastasia but while engaged on this quest the Queen of Demidova goes missing. Valor, her sister Sasha and a few friends set out on a quest full of mayhem, political power struggles.

While I loved the dominance of the female characters throughout this book which a strong message to send out to young children, that as woman and girls we don’t need no man! I felt that this didn’t leave me with a strong connection to the characters, which could because I failed to read the first one but I didn’t need more development and descriptions of the characters as the strong progressed, to try and imagine them while I read wasn’t an easy task. I also felt like there was a great deal of characters for the storyline. The characters were unique and skilled in their own way to fit the story but I felt as though this would have made an epic adult fantasy tale with the twists and turns and all the layers of the plot rather than a middle grade read. This book really did have the basis of an adult book rather than a middle grade.

I thought Valor was epic, strong, and smart and brimmed with determination which is fantastic to see. I thought she was a perfect main character, with a good heart that would jump at the chance to save her friends and family which is admirable and endearing.

This fast paced read is something that I believe a lot of adults wouldn’t mind getting their hands on as well as the younger generation. There was action on every single page and never a dull moment.

My favourite part about this book was actually the writing itself, like I said earlier Lauren would have the brilliance for an adult fantasy if she hasn’t if she hasn’t already.

Rating 4/5

ISBN:  9781408884560

Publisher: Bloomsbury