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emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
i’ve been having issues with makeda as a main character. but also while alyssa cole is having fun creating her royals series, i just don’t think i vibe with her writing.
I was so excited about this one because I love Alyssa Cole and it's f/f but... this was meh. I can't even really put a finger on why. I liked the characters and the plot and I especially liked the side characters, but there was just something missing for me. Maybe it was the fact that the relationship didn't really start until a lot further into the book but I'm not sure. I wish I had better thoughts to give you but please accept these messy sentences as my contribution to this book's goodreads page.
Another great addition to the Runaway Royals series, this book has a nice twist ending that falls in line with both characters.
Makeda Hicks's life isn't going exactly the way she had planned. She's a helper, always wanting the best for other people and working to make their lives easier. However, that has made her something of a doormat. And that is coming back to bite her. Her girlfriend is now and ex because Makeda helped her a little too much. Makeda is out of a job because she wasn't able to stand up for herself and prove that she deserved a promotion so, while a coworker got the job, Makeda got the boot. Now, an old story of her grandmother's is coming back once again, the fiction that Makeda's mother was conceived with the king of Ibarania. That story is what caused Makeda's mother to live in a fairy tale all of Makeda's life.
Beznari Chetchevaliere just wants to prove that her grandmother didn't kill the old queen and that means finding the lost heir of Ibarania. Makeda seems like a good fit since she is in a picture (sent by her grandmother) wearing a ring that looks like it could have come from the kingdom.
The two are immediately attracted to each other but are diametrically opposed to what the end of the heir search should look like.
Makeda Hicks's life isn't going exactly the way she had planned. She's a helper, always wanting the best for other people and working to make their lives easier. However, that has made her something of a doormat. And that is coming back to bite her. Her girlfriend is now and ex because Makeda helped her a little too much. Makeda is out of a job because she wasn't able to stand up for herself and prove that she deserved a promotion so, while a coworker got the job, Makeda got the boot. Now, an old story of her grandmother's is coming back once again, the fiction that Makeda's mother was conceived with the king of Ibarania. That story is what caused Makeda's mother to live in a fairy tale all of Makeda's life.
Beznari Chetchevaliere just wants to prove that her grandmother didn't kill the old queen and that means finding the lost heir of Ibarania. Makeda seems like a good fit since she is in a picture (sent by her grandmother) wearing a ring that looks like it could have come from the kingdom.
The two are immediately attracted to each other but are diametrically opposed to what the end of the heir search should look like.
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thanks to Edelweiss for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
3.5 stars
I'd been looking forward to this for ages because it's sapphic, it's an Anastasia retelling, and it's Alyssa Cole. And while I enjoyed the romance and high seas elements of the story (switching between my e-arc and the audiobook was fun too), I felt there was something missing from this? It could be that I (personally) found the ending just a touch too abrupt (though I did love the twist) because we spent a lot of the book building to a big reveal and then it was over within a chapter.
On the whole though this was a lot of fun. Makeda is confident, loyal, and helpful to a fault and I really liked her relationship with her grandma. Beznaria is serious and to-the-point, but has a hidden fun sense of humour that comes out in some of the best moments in the story.
When the two team up to sail to Ibarania (I missed the explanation for this in the audiobook so it felt a little unnecessary? But I do love a high-seas adventure, so I can suspend my disbelief for it), they begin to realise that they're attracted to each other, and romance blossoms from there.
Definitely an entertaining book to pick up if you're looking for an adult sapphic romance or if you want to try and Anastasia retelling.
Content warnings for parental abandonment, addiction, gambling.
3.5 stars
I'd been looking forward to this for ages because it's sapphic, it's an Anastasia retelling, and it's Alyssa Cole. And while I enjoyed the romance and high seas elements of the story (switching between my e-arc and the audiobook was fun too), I felt there was something missing from this? It could be that I (personally) found the ending just a touch too abrupt (though I did love the twist) because we spent a lot of the book building to a big reveal and then it was over within a chapter.
On the whole though this was a lot of fun. Makeda is confident, loyal, and helpful to a fault and I really liked her relationship with her grandma. Beznaria is serious and to-the-point, but has a hidden fun sense of humour that comes out in some of the best moments in the story.
When the two team up to sail to Ibarania (I missed the explanation for this in the audiobook so it felt a little unnecessary? But I do love a high-seas adventure, so I can suspend my disbelief for it), they begin to realise that they're attracted to each other, and romance blossoms from there.
Definitely an entertaining book to pick up if you're looking for an adult sapphic romance or if you want to try and Anastasia retelling.
Content warnings for parental abandonment, addiction, gambling.
Not my favorite Cole romance, but still a sparkling fun novel with lots of rich characters and interesting development of a love - definitely a sloowwwww burn as noted in other reviews. The twist at the end is fun, but the plotting felt a bit off - there's a LOT of time spent on a boat and then the end happens in about 25 pages (I kept looking like when will they get where they are going and counting pages). Still, love Cole's continued commitment to levels of diversity in romance and here for more.
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
Bez is on a quest to regain her family's honor by discovering the long lost princess of Ibarania. Makeda is recently broken up with her girlfriend and fired from her job. Their circumstances crash into each other when Bez follows up on a claim that Makeda might be said long lost princess, but there's one problem: Makeda doesn't want it to be true.
Bez and Makeda are each such unique characters with complicated and unusual circumstances. They are quirky and hard to love yet so loveable. I appreciate them working through their problems on their own and together. They are both such sweethearts, too. The long boat ride was a fun scenario to watch play out.
The downsides of the reading experience for me were the enemies to lovers trope and the repetitive nature of their problems. I definitely had moments of wanting to shake them for their poor communication! Why are you believing they feel one thing without asking them about it? Why?
Bez and Makeda are each such unique characters with complicated and unusual circumstances. They are quirky and hard to love yet so loveable. I appreciate them working through their problems on their own and together. They are both such sweethearts, too. The long boat ride was a fun scenario to watch play out.
The downsides of the reading experience for me were the enemies to lovers trope and the repetitive nature of their problems. I definitely had moments of wanting to shake them for their poor communication! Why are you believing they feel one thing without asking them about it? Why?