Queen In Exile

Queen In Exile
Donna Hatch
Romance Fantasy

Rumors of war hang over Princess Jeniah's peaceful country of Arden, a land that shuns both magic and warfare. Following a lifelong dream, Jeniah forms a telepathic bond with a revered creature called a chayim, who is prophesied to save her kingdom. But when a Daborian knight comes upon Jeniah with her chayim, he sees only a vicious monster about to devour a maiden, and he slays the beast. Devastated by the loss of her chayim, and fearing that her own magic is evil, Jeniah doubts her destiny. When an enemy invades Arden City, they slaughter the people, storm the castle, and execute the entire royal family except the princess. Rescued by the knight who slew her chayim, Jeniah is now heir to the throne of Arden and the only hope for freeing her people from tyranny. On the run and hunted by enemy soldiers, Jeniah must place her life and the fate of her kingdom in the hands of this trained killer. Torn between embracing her destiny as queen of Arden, and her love for a mere knight, she must ultimately rely on her magic to save herself and her people from death and tyranny.    (click title to read more)

HOW I FELT:
I honestly didn't know whether I would like this book when I first began reading it. It started off well and I liked the potential I saw between Jeniah and Kai. I'm a sucker for the protective knight type and was in heaven as I read about him fighting to defend Arden and his finding Jeniah, fighting his way with her to safety. He is tired, wounded pretty badly and has put her life before his own so when I read about her not "knowing" whether she could trust a "trained killer", a man who could kill hundreds of people for a profession, it REALLY annoyed me to the point where I put the book down. I can understand fear. Jeniah had just witnessed the brutal, senseless massacre of her family and people, but really? The man is lying in a cave, fevered, not sure whether he will survive because of her and she couldn't muster even a little gratitude? My thinking is Kai came to train HER people and prepare them for war. He didn't have to fight because it wasn't his kingdom but he stayed, protected HER at great risk to his own. Did she think that she could have been saved by anyone but a warrior? It just grated a little but I kept reading and was grateful to see that Jeniah didn't hold onto that attitude and came to later appreciate the protection Kai's training enabled him to offer. Once that was over, I really enjoyed the book. I loved Kai and the honor he managed his life with. I could understand his reluctance to open his heart again and loved the concept of a warrior who could be vulnerable. The author made him very human, showing that he had many different layers to him and it helped make him believable as a hero. He was the star of the book in my mind although it was Jeniah that seemed to be the focus. Jeniah did redeem herself, developing substance, becoming a strong leader due to having to grow up over night. They made a wonderful couple, one that led you to believe truly belonged with each other. The end scenes gave me goosebumps and was by far the better part of the book. I liked this book alot and I'm glad I kept reading.

Ratings: 4 stars and 2 hearts