Before we dive in to the review on the book, here is a reminder of how I rate what I read (these will be on a scale of 1-10, 1 being low, 10 being high):

• Plot Structure: How well the story was put together.
• Character Development: Level of growth a character achieves and how well the author makes them feel “real.”
• Language: Level of swearing, innuendos, verbal abuse, and other triggers.
• Violence: Level of fight scenes and gore.
• Sexual Content: Level of physical intimacy.

Here are the star ratings and what they mean:

MUST READ!

LOVED IT!

WORTH READING

Anything less than three stars will not be posted as I don’t want to waste your time or mine.

If you would like an editorial review for your own book with content ratings, you can contact me directly, or request me as your reviewer on Reedsy Discovery.

Disclaimer: The more I write, the harder I critique books on plot structure and how the various elements work together. Thus my reviews reflect this. However, if you see a book appear on the blog, it’s because I enjoyed reading and thought you, as a fellow book lover, would enjoy it as well. As always, reading is subjective and what resonates with me may not resonate with you. And that’s OK! We’re in this to discover new books that are family appropriate and worth taking the time to read.

Book Description:

Perfect for fans of the Selection series by Kiera Cass. Be swept into a world of political intrigue, forbidden love, and royal romance.

He’s promised to another. She’s promised to forget him.

Eighteen-year-old Renna Degray is hopeful about love and her future after a chance encounter with a handsome stranger. Until she discovers who the mysterious man is—the Prince of Albion, betrothed to Renna’s stepsister. Now Renna must try to keep her feelings for the prince in check. But he’s not making it easy. The prince is charming, funny, and impossible not to fall for. 

Trev has no room for mistakes. He must marry the princess of New Hope and secure the marriage alliance along with his future as king. The safety of his kingdom depends on it. Duty and honor never bothered Trev before, but love has a way of changing everything.

In this post-Desolation world, the Council of Essentials controls everything, including the prince. Is love more than a negotiation?

Is love essential?

My Review:

Renna Degray is a quirky girl with a rebellious streak that makes her a fun character to follow. She loves to play tricks, and walk her own path, which doesn’t always jive well with her mother, the queen of New Hope.

Her chance encounter with a handsome stranger, who unsurprisingly turns out to be the prince of our story, is full of playful mischief as Renna pretends to be drowning and Trev heroically rescues her.

This moment at the pond is what first makes the reader intrigued in the story. They part with an almost kiss that leave the reader hanging for the emotional resolution of that moment, which we don’t get until much later.

As their budding romance continues, Renna and Trev meet at the pond again, but this time, things get a little steamier as they pair almost kiss again after a swim in their underwear. This encounter left me wondering how far things would go in this novel and whether I would end up shutting it off.

Luckily the pair get caught before things get too carried away, and romantic encounters remain fairly level-headed as we progress through the book.

The romance morphs into a quasi love triangle as Trev has an arranged marriage with Renna’s step-sister Seran. (This is one of the few cases where the step-sister is actually a kind human being.)

We see Trev and Renna fall more in love, which thankfully takes more than a week, and when they decide to forgo tradition, and allow themselves to love the person they want.

This novel was a fun, but predictable read. The setting is the United States after a massive world war that has reshaped the government system into several medieval style monarchies. We have warring kingdoms with corrupt leaders trying to secure the class system, all while enjoying thirty-year terms in their government office.

Without giving spoilers, I felt like the ending was a cop-out on how Renna and Trev finally get together. While there was external conflict, the internal conflict felt weak, and did not resonate with me as a reader. We like Seran, and want her to find her own happiness, but it was not in the way we might expect.

Plus, the fallout from the climatic event drags out far longer than I felt it should.

How I rated this book:

Structure: 7/10; There were a few things that prevented a high score here. One was how long the ending dragged on. The second was how the love triangle was resolved. Renna and Trev went from crushing on each other to in love and wanting to marry much faster than I thought it should. However, if you read a lot of romance books, you likely won’t have a problem with that aspect.

Language: 2/10; There are no real language triggers here, though we do get intense arguments and political maneuvering.

Violence: 3/10; While there are incidents that happen throughout the book, nothing is very graphic. Usually when something traumatic happens, we are given only a highlight view and don’t get into any gory details.

Sexual Content: 3/10; The scene at the pond and the scene where Trev and Renna finally kiss are the most tense emotionally. However, nothing gets above a passionate kiss.

Conclusion:

This is an enjoyable YA dystopian romance stand-alone that is great for audiences 16+.