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The Narrow Gate #3
The Ancient Heir
Everything she thought she knew is ashes—her home, her crown, her future. Only one thing remains for Emilia. She must find the truth of the Narrow Gate and the Ancient One’s power before the Emperor does. The future of the Insurgos depends on it.
A forgotten kingdom and bloodline stands in her way, and Felix holds the key to unlocking it. But opening this door will divide the loyalties of those she came to save.
With the weight of a prophecy and the expectations of an exiled people on her shoulders, Emilia must lead those loyal to her into the heart of the fire. To save her people, to redeem her past, will take every bit of faith she can muster. But that faith may require the ultimate sacrifice…and it may not be her own.
A forgotten kingdom and bloodline stands in her way, and Felix holds the key to unlocking it. But opening this door will divide the loyalties of those she came to save.
With the weight of a prophecy and the expectations of an exiled people on her shoulders, Emilia must lead those loyal to her into the heart of the fire. To save her people, to redeem her past, will take every bit of faith she can muster. But that faith may require the ultimate sacrifice…and it may not be her own.
450 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 1, 2024
1 person is currently reading
13 people want to read
About the author
Amory Cannon
9 books20 followersAmory Cannon is an author of Young Adult and low spice romantasy novels. Her favorite things include autumn (anything pumpkin spice), Harry Potter (proud Ravenclaw), and Sherlock Holmes. She published her first book under the name Amryn Cross while working as a forensic scientist. Her non-writing time is filled with running, crafting, and snuggling her two dogs–Luna and Argo. She currently resides in Tennessee.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 29, 2024
I cannot even begin to describe how much this book pulled at my heartstrings.
If you read one series this year, let it be this one!!
The dynamic between Emilia and Felix was *chefs kiss*, their love, adoration, and desire was such a deep and pure emotion that had me tearing up. The allegory of this story and its description on the on going persecution of Christians was so wonderfully written. The emotion Emilia had toward trusting God but having a very real fear while doing it is such a testimony in itself.
I laughed, I cried, and I can’t speak more highly of a series than this one!
Note: no spice, some kissing, no language, mild non descriptive gore and fighting
Thank you to the author for allowing me a ARC for review. All thought and opinions are my own
If you read one series this year, let it be this one!!
The dynamic between Emilia and Felix was *chefs kiss*, their love, adoration, and desire was such a deep and pure emotion that had me tearing up. The allegory of this story and its description on the on going persecution of Christians was so wonderfully written. The emotion Emilia had toward trusting God but having a very real fear while doing it is such a testimony in itself.
I laughed, I cried, and I can’t speak more highly of a series than this one!
Note: no spice, some kissing, no language, mild non descriptive gore and fighting
Thank you to the author for allowing me a ARC for review. All thought and opinions are my own
March 28, 2024
5 stars!!
This book! What can I say except that it was phenomenal. I devoured this entire series, and this final installment in the tripling did not disappoint.
It was full of courage, romance, and on the edge of your seat, nail biting action!
It was sad to see this series come to end, but I’m so glad I got to experience it all.
Thank you to the author for letting me read this in advance, and letting me be a part of this world.
*** I received an advance reader copy (ARC) of this book for an honest review! All comments and opinions are my own.
This book! What can I say except that it was phenomenal. I devoured this entire series, and this final installment in the tripling did not disappoint.
It was full of courage, romance, and on the edge of your seat, nail biting action!
It was sad to see this series come to end, but I’m so glad I got to experience it all.
Thank you to the author for letting me read this in advance, and letting me be a part of this world.
*** I received an advance reader copy (ARC) of this book for an honest review! All comments and opinions are my own.
March 11, 2024
This is the Third novel in the series Narrow Gate. This novel is slightly longer than the previous two. There were times that I believed that I could estimate the plot and I was very wrong. I would have not been able to guess the twists of the plot. The previous novels were excellent but this one surpassed them. The book did have details of many Bible stories entailed into one but it was a story all in of its own. The author took artistic liberties with the story while staying true to the character of God seen throughout Bible. The main characters in the story line had a great deal of development and I enjoyed to see their changes and struggles. The story remained clean and romantic, however the kisses were more detailed in this novel (The kisses were still clean and were not written in a way that was lustful). I would rate them a 2/5 on a spice scale. I will be reading these novels again and will be passing them to my oldest daughter to read.
May 5, 2024
– I marked some sentences and quotes as spoilers, but they are in my opinion very minor ones. –
I just finished this book and - WOW! It even surpassed my expectations based on book 1 and 2, which I already loved so much and would have both given far more than 5 stars if I could.
We all know that feeling of a book we are totally emerged and invested in only to give us a heartbreaking ending. So with all the dreams/nightmares Emilia has and all the doom hanging over our heroes heads I had a lot of mixed feelings about finishing the last book, dreading an ending that would leave me empty. But I can 100% say I loved the ending, it didn’t leave me devastated even though the book sure made me cry.
After Emilia fled Aurora in book 1 she left Borealis too at the end of book two, the kingdom where she grew up, where she lost her mother and where she was supposed to become queen.
In my review for book 2 I wrote that one of the last situations didn’t seem completely authentic to me and I stand by that, because I’m pretty sure at least a levelheaded commander like Felix and a cynical, mistrusting rebel like Alara wouldn’t have fallen for Cyrus’s peace offer, even if Emilia and Ronan sure wanted to believe it’s true. But I get that plot wise this horrible massacre had to take place for all four (or five, because they took Antioch with them) to leave for Solitarius where they know Cyrus will go next and where they hope to find the Gate of Life.
This book really had everything - danger, mysteries, adventure, battle, friendship, romance, faith.
There is so much going on on this trip to Solitarius. Whereas the most part of book 1 and 2 takes place in one location (Aurora/Borealis) there are a lot of different settings and surroundings in this book with changing characters for nearly every new place. New dangers, new friends, new enemies, new interpretations for the prophecies surrounding the Ancient Heir, the Princess that was Promised and the ultimate sacrifice kept me on edge and Emilia and her companions don’t even have a second to rest before they are thrown into the next situation.
I guess I have gushed over Felix quite a lot in my previous reviews and also described Emilia’s complicated character and her spiritual growth, so I rather want to say a bit about other side characters.
Like I said in my review for book 1 - I hate love triangles and I actually had hoped this topic would have been resolved after book 1, but it resurfaces in book 2 and I hated how Ronan was somehow the consolation prize and I wasn’t too happy about how Emilia handled the situation. I loved Ronan in this book. I always liked him, empathized with him. But he evolved so much in book 3 and I loved that the author didn’t leave him behind, but instead explored his redemption arc and his strong friendship with Felix. They had such a strong bond and after it was cold and strained after the events of the previous books, I enjoyed seeing them as “brothers” again, always having each other’s back, understanding each other in a way like no one else really could.
Alara was a really great addition to the characters in the last book and she remained the one who made me laugh the most with her sarcastic and snappy responses. I would love to read more about her obviously troubled past and her complex character. She also added to the story by being the only one on Emilia’s side who told her very harshly what she thought and Emilia definitely needed it sometimes.
Of course I have to mention Hannah again and how much I want to read her story. I was sad that Emilia left her behind in Borealis, but she is not a fighter like Emilia and Alara. She is despite all the hardships in her past a gentle soul, loving, caring, kind and even surpassing Felix in her patience.
The faith messages stay strong as ever and Emilia has some struggles with her faith, not seeing the path she expected, but ultimately always remaining loyal to her God.
There are also so many Bible stories woven into the story, so many lessons learned for the believers in this book that we read about in our Scriptures. And like when we read about Israel, there is always a lesson to apply to our own life as believers. This is not just history, not just a story.
And it didn’t feel forced or anything. It’s definitely a whole new story. Maybe it’s sort of comparable with similarities between the lives of different people from the Bible. They all have their own story, but we see patterns and foreshadows.
I loved every detail I recognized from stories I read about so many times and they reminded me of the lessons that God wants me to learn.
I could add so many more quotes because it feels like I marked half the book, but I think you should just read the book!
I’m sad to say goodbye to the characters, but I seriously ended the book feeling somehow light and happy and I am thrilled to have learned Amory has planned at least two companion novels - Yay! Seriously can’t wait for them!
This trilogy is definitely my favorite read of the year so far. 1000% recommend it!
* Thank you to the author for letting me read an advanced copy of this book. I leave this review voluntarily and the expressed opinions are my own.
I just finished this book and - WOW! It even surpassed my expectations based on book 1 and 2, which I already loved so much and would have both given far more than 5 stars if I could.
We all know that feeling of a book we are totally emerged and invested in only to give us a heartbreaking ending. So with all the dreams/nightmares Emilia has and all the doom hanging over our heroes heads I had a lot of mixed feelings about finishing the last book, dreading an ending that would leave me empty. But I can 100% say I loved the ending, it didn’t leave me devastated even though the book sure made me cry.
After Emilia fled Aurora in book 1 she left Borealis too at the end of book two, the kingdom where she grew up, where she lost her mother and where she was supposed to become queen.
In my review for book 2 I wrote that one of the last situations didn’t seem completely authentic to me and I stand by that, because I’m pretty sure at least a levelheaded commander like Felix and a cynical, mistrusting rebel like Alara wouldn’t have fallen for Cyrus’s peace offer, even if Emilia and Ronan sure wanted to believe it’s true. But I get that plot wise this horrible massacre had to take place for all four (or five, because they took Antioch with them) to leave for Solitarius where they know Cyrus will go next and where they hope to find the Gate of Life.
This book really had everything - danger, mysteries, adventure, battle, friendship, romance, faith.
There is so much going on on this trip to Solitarius. Whereas the most part of book 1 and 2 takes place in one location (Aurora/Borealis) there are a lot of different settings and surroundings in this book with changing characters for nearly every new place. New dangers, new friends, new enemies, new interpretations for the prophecies surrounding the Ancient Heir, the Princess that was Promised and the ultimate sacrifice kept me on edge and Emilia and her companions don’t even have a second to rest before they are thrown into the next situation.
I guess I have gushed over Felix quite a lot in my previous reviews and also described Emilia’s complicated character and her spiritual growth, so I rather want to say a bit about other side characters.
Like I said in my review for book 1 - I hate love triangles and I actually had hoped this topic would have been resolved after book 1, but it resurfaces in book 2 and I hated how Ronan was somehow the consolation prize and I wasn’t too happy about how Emilia handled the situation. I loved Ronan in this book. I always liked him, empathized with him. But he evolved so much in book 3 and I loved that the author didn’t leave him behind, but instead explored his redemption arc and his strong friendship with Felix. They had such a strong bond and after it was cold and strained after the events of the previous books, I enjoyed seeing them as “brothers” again, always having each other’s back, understanding each other in a way like no one else really could.
Alara was a really great addition to the characters in the last book and she remained the one who made me laugh the most with her sarcastic and snappy responses. I would love to read more about her obviously troubled past and her complex character. She also added to the story by being the only one on Emilia’s side who told her very harshly what she thought and Emilia definitely needed it sometimes.
Of course I have to mention Hannah again and how much I want to read her story. I was sad that Emilia left her behind in Borealis, but she is not a fighter like Emilia and Alara. She is despite all the hardships in her past a gentle soul, loving, caring, kind and even surpassing Felix in her patience.
The faith messages stay strong as ever and Emilia has some struggles with her faith, not seeing the path she expected, but ultimately always remaining loyal to her God.
“But our God does not. He became the sacrifice according to our scriptures. He conquered death and bridged the chasm between us and His holiness. It is because of that sacrifice that we can freely pray to Him.”
“I have to ground myself in something, and prayer and God are apparently a useless option.”
“Oh God, forgive me for the times I doubted, for the times I questioned You. Keep my eyes on You instead of the waves. Your plan is all that matters.”
There are also so many Bible stories woven into the story, so many lessons learned for the believers in this book that we read about in our Scriptures. And like when we read about Israel, there is always a lesson to apply to our own life as believers. This is not just history, not just a story.
And it didn’t feel forced or anything. It’s definitely a whole new story. Maybe it’s sort of comparable with similarities between the lives of different people from the Bible. They all have their own story, but we see patterns and foreshadows.
I loved every detail I recognized from stories I read about so many times and they reminded me of the lessons that God wants me to learn.
“Felix does give me that, but that’s because he also believes in God. We would not be capable of loving each other the way we do without being shown such an example. And we do it imperfectly, but God does not.”
“And I know He is what I have come here for. Nothing else matters. Not Felix, not Ronan, not Cyrus’s army. Nothing matters but this flame, this fire, and this voice.”
I could add so many more quotes because it feels like I marked half the book, but I think you should just read the book!
I’m sad to say goodbye to the characters, but I seriously ended the book feeling somehow light and happy and I am thrilled to have learned Amory has planned at least two companion novels - Yay! Seriously can’t wait for them!
This trilogy is definitely my favorite read of the year so far. 1000% recommend it!
* Thank you to the author for letting me read an advanced copy of this book. I leave this review voluntarily and the expressed opinions are my own.
March 26, 2024
The 3rd book in this incredible series, it was the perfect bow on this beautiful story and the journey of these characters I've grown to love. I loved the new bonds and relationships that formed and grew, as well as old ones that became stronger. The character development was wonderful. The snippits of scripture and truth of God throughout were beautiful and well placed, and often great reminders for me right when I needed them. Amory's writing is absolutely lovely and I was sad to say goodbye to Felix, Emilia, Ronan, and Alara.
April 19, 2024
Can I just say that the dedication alone speaks to me?
"To the girl who has walked through the fire and discovered the beauty in the ashes."
I literally have the verse as my email signature.
Know what else I literally had in the reading of this book? Chills. Tears. Several times for each.
The one thing I had an issue with is the wedding ceremony that they decided was just between them and God. I didn't read the first two books (though I had no problem knowing what was going on), so maybe that's how wedding ceremonies were there. But that did give me pause.
"To the girl who has walked through the fire and discovered the beauty in the ashes."
I literally have the verse as my email signature.
Know what else I literally had in the reading of this book? Chills. Tears. Several times for each.
The one thing I had an issue with is the wedding ceremony that they decided was just between them and God. I didn't read the first two books (though I had no problem knowing what was going on), so maybe that's how wedding ceremonies were there. But that did give me pause.
April 12, 2024
This is a beautiful love story, not just for the romantic arc, but also for Emilia's growing love for God and love for herself. It's a story of loss and hurt and hope. It's the story I've been waiting for through this series. It is a rollercoaster of emotions. It is truly a telling of "rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep."
I'll be honest, I wasn't hooked from the beginning. Some of the subplots in the book seem like incomplete ideas because there's so many of them. It was hard to get a clear picture of the central story. There was a turning point though where the Gate became the clear center and the book thrived from there. It was a great wrap up to the story. Relationships were completed, characters were developed, and there was a clear endpoint to the plot. Overall, I enjoyed this book the most out of the three.
I'll be honest, I wasn't hooked from the beginning. Some of the subplots in the book seem like incomplete ideas because there's so many of them. It was hard to get a clear picture of the central story. There was a turning point though where the Gate became the clear center and the book thrived from there. It was a great wrap up to the story. Relationships were completed, characters were developed, and there was a clear endpoint to the plot. Overall, I enjoyed this book the most out of the three.
April 26, 2024
Unbelievably Awesome!
I love how the ending builds up to such incredible faith and honor to God and to each other. This book and truly increased my faith and for our King of Kings. I recommend this series to EVERYONE! God Bless you richly Miss Amory. Continue with more of this.
I love how the ending builds up to such incredible faith and honor to God and to each other. This book and truly increased my faith and for our King of Kings. I recommend this series to EVERYONE! God Bless you richly Miss Amory. Continue with more of this.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews