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Princess Haven was never meant to be Queen.
Her immortality has saved her time and time again, but when the last of her royal family dies at her feet, she is next in line to rule a nation on the brink of war. With no formal training on how to be Queen, Haven must rise to the occasion with the help of her best friends, and personal guard, or risk losing everyone she has ever loved.
With war to the west, and no escape to the east, the evil tyrant Kadia sets her sights on the six kingdoms. Haven's neighbors are quick to fall under the swords of Kadia's shadow soldiers, leaving a sea of bodies and a clear path to Haven's only home. Haven must make a choice; take her people and flee to the foreign Republic across the sea or lead a last stand against a powerful dictator.
Princess Haven was never meant to be Queen.
Her immortality has saved her time and time again, but when the last of her royal family dies at her feet, she is next in line to rule a nation on the brink of war. With no formal training on how to be Queen, Haven must rise to the occasion with the help of her best friends, and personal guard, or risk losing everyone she has ever loved.
With war to the west, and no escape to the east, the evil tyrant Kadia sets her sights on the six kingdoms. Haven's neighbors are quick to fall under the swords of Kadia's shadow soldiers, leaving a sea of bodies and a clear path to Haven's only home. Haven must make a choice; take her people and flee to the foreign Republic across the sea or lead a last stand against a powerful dictator.
322 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 11, 2016
121 people are currently reading
763 people want to read
About the author
Katherine Bogle
47 books170 followersKatherine Bogle is the USA Today bestselling author of Queen of Thieves, Her Wolf, I am Alpha and the international bestselling Dominion Rising series.
She first found success with her debut novel, Haven, which came second in the World’s Best Story contest 2015. Since then, she has gone on to release 20+ books with one core theme: kick-butt heroines. Though her series may span genres—from fantasy to steampunk to science fiction—she will always write about strong women overcoming the odds.
Join her newsletter for info on upcoming releases, free stuff and more:
https://katherine-bogle.kit.com/8b426...
Her website:
https://linktr.ee/katherinebogle
NOW AVAILABLE:
Haven (Chronicles of Warshard #1)
Savages (Chronicles of Warshard #2)
Ashen (Chronicles of Warshard #3)
Fyre: A Chronicles of Warshard short story collection
The Blood Amulet: A Chronicles of Warshard Short Story
The Aldar Dominion (Dominion Rising #1)
The Zahkx Alliance (Dominion Rising #2)
The Darri Commission (Dominion Rising #3)
The Stowaway Experiment: A Dominion Rising Short Story
The Smugglers Legion: A Dominion Rising Short Story
Queen of Thieves (Clockwork Thief #1)
Daughter of Chaos (Clockwork Thief #2)
King of Empires (Clockwork Thief #3)
Empress of Annihilation (Clockwork Thief #4)
Harbinger of War (Clockwork Thief #5)
Goddess of Death (Clockwork Thief #6)
Her Wolf (Silver Shifter #1)
Her Dragon (Silver Shifter #2)
Her Bear (Silver Shifter #3)
Her Panther (Silver Shifter #4)
Demon's Game (A Soul Collectors Prequel)
Reaper's Fire (Soul Collectors #1)
Reaper's Fate (Soul Collectors #2)
Cruel Monsters (Standalone)
I am Alpha (Rise of the Beast Queen #1)
They Call me Beast (Rise of the Beast Queen #2)
Shifter's Promise (Standalone)
COMING SOON:
Bow to your Queen (Rise of the Beast Queen #3)
She first found success with her debut novel, Haven, which came second in the World’s Best Story contest 2015. Since then, she has gone on to release 20+ books with one core theme: kick-butt heroines. Though her series may span genres—from fantasy to steampunk to science fiction—she will always write about strong women overcoming the odds.
Join her newsletter for info on upcoming releases, free stuff and more:
https://katherine-bogle.kit.com/8b426...
Her website:
https://linktr.ee/katherinebogle
NOW AVAILABLE:
Haven (Chronicles of Warshard #1)
Savages (Chronicles of Warshard #2)
Ashen (Chronicles of Warshard #3)
Fyre: A Chronicles of Warshard short story collection
The Blood Amulet: A Chronicles of Warshard Short Story
The Aldar Dominion (Dominion Rising #1)
The Zahkx Alliance (Dominion Rising #2)
The Darri Commission (Dominion Rising #3)
The Stowaway Experiment: A Dominion Rising Short Story
The Smugglers Legion: A Dominion Rising Short Story
Queen of Thieves (Clockwork Thief #1)
Daughter of Chaos (Clockwork Thief #2)
King of Empires (Clockwork Thief #3)
Empress of Annihilation (Clockwork Thief #4)
Harbinger of War (Clockwork Thief #5)
Goddess of Death (Clockwork Thief #6)
Her Wolf (Silver Shifter #1)
Her Dragon (Silver Shifter #2)
Her Bear (Silver Shifter #3)
Her Panther (Silver Shifter #4)
Demon's Game (A Soul Collectors Prequel)
Reaper's Fire (Soul Collectors #1)
Reaper's Fate (Soul Collectors #2)
Cruel Monsters (Standalone)
I am Alpha (Rise of the Beast Queen #1)
They Call me Beast (Rise of the Beast Queen #2)
Shifter's Promise (Standalone)
COMING SOON:
Bow to your Queen (Rise of the Beast Queen #3)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 98 reviews
December 17, 2020
After shelving this one for months, I finally got some time to finish reading this book.
Haven is a place of safety, a refuge. Like the meaning, Haven is a queen that helping someone or saving someone is her prime priority. That's why she is loved by everyone. A royal with a heart.
Kadia, is an English name meaning rhyming or pure. But the name is just its name no connection with the character, hehe!!!
I like the historical effect of the story, the buildings, the high ceilings, the vast gardens, etc. Imagining it in movies, a superb high fantasy. But the only thing I can't fathom is when they are in the tunnel where do they get their food given that they are weeks in there and before entering they throw almost everything in order to be safe???
Anyway, my mind is asking to many questions, like how Haven is immortal and her siblings is not and where Kadia get its powers... (Ok I get it. It's X men in a royal world).
Overall, I like the pacing, the world, the adventure, the romance, the third wheel aka Emeril (if he has powers he will be a great antagonist), the bodyguards and the adviser Toma, the strategies and plans of attack, and the vast variety questions I keep on asking as I read the novel (some are answered and some are hanging in the wall), and of course Aura the "savage girl".
This one is a great adventure. Maybe Haven don't want to be a queen, but she knows she can't be killed. Why trouble oneself going somewhere, to a tunnel unknown, convince a republic to help save their kingdoms, if she just can knockout the door and raze the palace, just maybe there is no story to tell. (question, answered). 😀😀😉
Haven is a place of safety, a refuge. Like the meaning, Haven is a queen that helping someone or saving someone is her prime priority. That's why she is loved by everyone. A royal with a heart.
Kadia, is an English name meaning rhyming or pure. But the name is just its name no connection with the character, hehe!!!
I like the historical effect of the story, the buildings, the high ceilings, the vast gardens, etc. Imagining it in movies, a superb high fantasy. But the only thing I can't fathom is when they are in the tunnel where do they get their food given that they are weeks in there and before entering they throw almost everything in order to be safe???
Anyway, my mind is asking to many questions, like how Haven is immortal and her siblings is not and where Kadia get its powers... (Ok I get it. It's X men in a royal world).
Overall, I like the pacing, the world, the adventure, the romance, the third wheel aka Emeril (if he has powers he will be a great antagonist), the bodyguards and the adviser Toma, the strategies and plans of attack, and the vast variety questions I keep on asking as I read the novel (some are answered and some are hanging in the wall), and of course Aura the "savage girl".
This one is a great adventure. Maybe Haven don't want to be a queen, but she knows she can't be killed. Why trouble oneself going somewhere, to a tunnel unknown, convince a republic to help save their kingdoms, if she just can knockout the door and raze the palace, just maybe there is no story to tell. (question, answered). 😀😀😉
February 27, 2017
Actual rating 3.5 stars.
I received a copy in exchange for an honest review from Netgalley. Thank you to the author, Katherine Bogle, and the publisher, Friesen Press, for this opportunity.
In the first two percent of the book the reader finds that the King and Queen of the fantastical six kingdoms have been brutally slain and their sole heir, Haven, is unprepared yet determined to reign in their stead. The new, grieving Queen has no fear of a repeat assassination as she is inexplicably immortal. This makes her the new target of Queen Kadia, who is set on ruling all of the six kingdoms and adding Haven, and her peculiar powers, to her army.
The fast pace and action-dominated plot is something that marks this as different to many other fantasy books I have read, and wasn't something I was entirely prepared for. Of course the truncated length of this should have been a major clue, but I was expecting a simpler plot rather than a lack of the heavy description that classifies this genre.
On one hand it was refreshing to find something other than the expected, but on the other I struggled to properly visualize the world because of it. This lack lead to a severing of empathy with the characters, which was heightened by the continual bombardment of high action and intensity: before I got to know any of the characters or acquaint myself with the world, a new plot twist or battle scene was occurring.
This felt, on times, more like a series of scenes that lacked a foundation or running commentary to link them all together. Whilst I did enjoy reading each separate event, the whole thing didn't feel properly gelled together, for me.
I received a copy in exchange for an honest review from Netgalley. Thank you to the author, Katherine Bogle, and the publisher, Friesen Press, for this opportunity.
In the first two percent of the book the reader finds that the King and Queen of the fantastical six kingdoms have been brutally slain and their sole heir, Haven, is unprepared yet determined to reign in their stead. The new, grieving Queen has no fear of a repeat assassination as she is inexplicably immortal. This makes her the new target of Queen Kadia, who is set on ruling all of the six kingdoms and adding Haven, and her peculiar powers, to her army.
The fast pace and action-dominated plot is something that marks this as different to many other fantasy books I have read, and wasn't something I was entirely prepared for. Of course the truncated length of this should have been a major clue, but I was expecting a simpler plot rather than a lack of the heavy description that classifies this genre.
On one hand it was refreshing to find something other than the expected, but on the other I struggled to properly visualize the world because of it. This lack lead to a severing of empathy with the characters, which was heightened by the continual bombardment of high action and intensity: before I got to know any of the characters or acquaint myself with the world, a new plot twist or battle scene was occurring.
This felt, on times, more like a series of scenes that lacked a foundation or running commentary to link them all together. Whilst I did enjoy reading each separate event, the whole thing didn't feel properly gelled together, for me.
September 2, 2016
For some reason when I started reading this book, I went into it with pretty low expectations. I wanted to read a book about royalty, about war and also enjoy the fantasy elements to it as well. I thought it was going to be a pretty decent read and I was ready for it to be okay… but it turned out to be so good that it only took me two days to read this novel from start to finish.
I think what I liked most about this one was that the main character is the queen, Haven, but she is such a likeable one. She’s basically a normal nineteen year old girl who is not ready to yet be queen, who has had some awful things happen to her family, but still wants to try ad be good and gracious as much as possible. The difficulty with that last promise there, is maintaining that level of kindness when there is a war waging.
Haven goes through an awful lot. Some nice things, some not so nice things. She also has this power of immortality. And even though we never quite get to know where it comes from, we do get to see how it works. This immortality she changes her opinion on a lot throughout the novel, and it’s a pretty big part of her, so it was interesting to watch the storyline involving that develop.
Being a young queen, there is a lot of pushing from her fellow friends in terms of finding a suitor. Haven’s fairly independent, so the pushing was never too intense. But there is quite a bit of romance in here. It never takes up the main storyline of the novel and I’m glad for that. It wasn’t a smooth and easy love, but that was well developed and well done. I liked it.
I also really liked the action and the build up to it. There’s quite a bit of sword fighting and some other dangerous creatures they have to fight. The war element is done incredibly well too, so I was so satisfied reading about all of this.
The secondary characters were well developed. I couldn’t have asked for any more from them and I really enjoyed getting to know all those characters a lot. I also really loved the villain. She was off her head crazy, but it made a lot of sense. The novel hints as to how Queen Kadia got that way and I’m sure we are going to find out in some sequels, but I also really just loved how much we got to see her. Especially as she has some particular interest in Haven.
The scenery was done incredibly well too and lastly… I thought that the messages and meanings in the novel were brilliant too. I liked the morals about feminism, independence and responsibility that I felt came through. Can’t recommend this one enough and when will I get my hands on the sequel?
Gif Summary:
This review and others can be found at Olivia's Catastrophe: http://olivia-savannah.blogspot.nl/20...
I think what I liked most about this one was that the main character is the queen, Haven, but she is such a likeable one. She’s basically a normal nineteen year old girl who is not ready to yet be queen, who has had some awful things happen to her family, but still wants to try ad be good and gracious as much as possible. The difficulty with that last promise there, is maintaining that level of kindness when there is a war waging.
Haven goes through an awful lot. Some nice things, some not so nice things. She also has this power of immortality. And even though we never quite get to know where it comes from, we do get to see how it works. This immortality she changes her opinion on a lot throughout the novel, and it’s a pretty big part of her, so it was interesting to watch the storyline involving that develop.
Being a young queen, there is a lot of pushing from her fellow friends in terms of finding a suitor. Haven’s fairly independent, so the pushing was never too intense. But there is quite a bit of romance in here. It never takes up the main storyline of the novel and I’m glad for that. It wasn’t a smooth and easy love, but that was well developed and well done. I liked it.
I also really liked the action and the build up to it. There’s quite a bit of sword fighting and some other dangerous creatures they have to fight. The war element is done incredibly well too, so I was so satisfied reading about all of this.
The secondary characters were well developed. I couldn’t have asked for any more from them and I really enjoyed getting to know all those characters a lot. I also really loved the villain. She was off her head crazy, but it made a lot of sense. The novel hints as to how Queen Kadia got that way and I’m sure we are going to find out in some sequels, but I also really just loved how much we got to see her. Especially as she has some particular interest in Haven.
The scenery was done incredibly well too and lastly… I thought that the messages and meanings in the novel were brilliant too. I liked the morals about feminism, independence and responsibility that I felt came through. Can’t recommend this one enough and when will I get my hands on the sequel?
Gif Summary:
This review and others can be found at Olivia's Catastrophe: http://olivia-savannah.blogspot.nl/20...
March 29, 2017
*I RECEIVED A FREE COPY FROM NETGALLEY IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW*
Wow wow wow!!!!!!!!!
This book was so plot focused on war and its alliances! Loved it! It's a total immersion into a YA world with six kingdoms on the brink of war with an evil queen that's been attacking the kingdoms. You've got secret council meetings between the monarchs so they can plan out how to help each other. A swoony love interest, a gentle queen and her three badass guards!
Kadia-the tyrant- was CREEPY AS HELL. I was literally cringing every single time she appeared in the book! She was a formidable villain but she was without a doubt absolutely batshit crazy. A total psychopath who was obsessed with how Haven and her curse "worked" so she really wanted to...experiment. The things she made Haven go through omigod it was HORRIBLE. It was pretty brutal stuff but still, wow, Kadia was such a good character!
Haven was such a compassionate character and she was so dedicated to people. She really broke apart from the usual warrior female characters that have literally been overtaking YA books lately. But she was a warrior through her intellect and the way she always put her people first. I was really picturing her as Adelaide Kane from Reign!
There was also a lot of conflict in Haven's character. She can never die from diseases/wounds until old age came for her and she saw it as a curse. So she kind of shields herself from the possibilities of love because she didn't ever want her children or descendants to be in the same position as she was-left completely alone without the escape of death until she became old. Even though it was a curse she was grateful at times because her country needed someone with her immunity in these harsh times. She really developed in the sense that she stopped trying to close herself off from others and learns to live and not just survive.
I wish we would have had some more information on how she had this curse and i also thought the romance went a little too fast! I loved both characters (I'm not gonna say who the love interest is) but i think it developed a little too fast and i would have liked to see more of them together.
And while it's true that Haven wasn't physically a warrior, the author balances that out with her three personal guards who are all women and her best friends! Also kudos for mixed characters we have a homosexual couple!
This book can absolutely be read as a standalone! But we were introduced to the Seaburn kingdom in this book. And this kingdom kidnaps children from all over the kingdoms and puts them in awful harsh training academies so they can become full fledged warriors. We met Nina towards the end and her father Drakkone who are part of the Seaburn empire-and the second book in this series will be about Drakkone and a girl named Breen who i think was Nina's mother! So i'm really looking forward to reading more about Seaburn and the horrible academy!
Katherine Bogle did an amazing job at world building and creating strong and passionate characters! It was so good to finally read a high fantasy YA standalone!!! Thank god i have an ARC of book 2 so i can dive right in!
Wow wow wow!!!!!!!!!
This book was so plot focused on war and its alliances! Loved it! It's a total immersion into a YA world with six kingdoms on the brink of war with an evil queen that's been attacking the kingdoms. You've got secret council meetings between the monarchs so they can plan out how to help each other. A swoony love interest, a gentle queen and her three badass guards!
Kadia-the tyrant- was CREEPY AS HELL. I was literally cringing every single time she appeared in the book! She was a formidable villain but she was without a doubt absolutely batshit crazy. A total psychopath who was obsessed with how Haven and her curse "worked" so she really wanted to...experiment. The things she made Haven go through omigod it was HORRIBLE. It was pretty brutal stuff but still, wow, Kadia was such a good character!
Haven was such a compassionate character and she was so dedicated to people. She really broke apart from the usual warrior female characters that have literally been overtaking YA books lately. But she was a warrior through her intellect and the way she always put her people first. I was really picturing her as Adelaide Kane from Reign!
There was also a lot of conflict in Haven's character. She can never die from diseases/wounds until old age came for her and she saw it as a curse. So she kind of shields herself from the possibilities of love because she didn't ever want her children or descendants to be in the same position as she was-left completely alone without the escape of death until she became old. Even though it was a curse she was grateful at times because her country needed someone with her immunity in these harsh times. She really developed in the sense that she stopped trying to close herself off from others and learns to live and not just survive.
I wish we would have had some more information on how she had this curse and i also thought the romance went a little too fast! I loved both characters (I'm not gonna say who the love interest is) but i think it developed a little too fast and i would have liked to see more of them together.
And while it's true that Haven wasn't physically a warrior, the author balances that out with her three personal guards who are all women and her best friends! Also kudos for mixed characters we have a homosexual couple!
This book can absolutely be read as a standalone! But we were introduced to the Seaburn kingdom in this book. And this kingdom kidnaps children from all over the kingdoms and puts them in awful harsh training academies so they can become full fledged warriors. We met Nina towards the end and her father Drakkone who are part of the Seaburn empire-and the second book in this series will be about Drakkone and a girl named Breen who i think was Nina's mother! So i'm really looking forward to reading more about Seaburn and the horrible academy!
Katherine Bogle did an amazing job at world building and creating strong and passionate characters! It was so good to finally read a high fantasy YA standalone!!! Thank god i have an ARC of book 2 so i can dive right in!
August 31, 2016
After the death of her family, Haven has no choice but to be coronated as queen. It doesn’t help that she has the ability to regenerate which keeps her from being killed. Her people want to make sure that they will have a queen for quite a while, especially when Queen Kadia of Dagen has decided to go to war with everyone. Kadia has created an army of shadows to destroy everything in her path to ruling everything. And with the other rulers either having to fight, flee or die it is up to Haven to step up as queen and decide how to rule her kingdom best, even if it is against everything that is recommended to her.
I really like Haven. She was never meant to be queen, never been taught or trained, and very unsure of herself. At first she relies heavily on those around her and is very unsure of how to proceed. But the more she goes through the tougher she becomes and rises to the role of queen.
This is a great story and one that has the feel of an epic fantasy. There are some rough spots but that is expected from a first in a series. I would have liked to learn more about the other kingdoms but I have a feeling they will be explored more in future books. I will definitely be adding this series to my list.
I received Haven for free from iRead Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.
I really like Haven. She was never meant to be queen, never been taught or trained, and very unsure of herself. At first she relies heavily on those around her and is very unsure of how to proceed. But the more she goes through the tougher she becomes and rises to the role of queen.
This is a great story and one that has the feel of an epic fantasy. There are some rough spots but that is expected from a first in a series. I would have liked to learn more about the other kingdoms but I have a feeling they will be explored more in future books. I will definitely be adding this series to my list.
I received Haven for free from iRead Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.
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February 26, 2017
I received this book through Rachel E. Carter as a read and review opportunity by the author Katherine Bogle. I’m thanking Rachel E. Carter and Katherine Bogle for giving me this opportunity and providing me with the copy of this book.
I read this book because of a read & review opportunity through Rachel E. Carters Reader Group on Goodreads. I thought it would be a nice book because of the blurb provided on Goodreads. My choice to read this book was because I thought it would be outside of my comfort zone and something new.
I was right, this was something new. But something new, doesn't always mean something bad. I liked this story =] I don't read much royalty stories that are more realistic, most are set in a true fantasy world. As I progressed in the story I noticed this wasn't a completely realistic setting as well. I thought it was funny and cute to read about tigers and they've never heard of it and described it more monster like than we do. I can imagine you would think of a tiger a bit like a monster if you don't know what it is.
The story build up was done real good. You get to know the characters as you progress in the book, how the kingdoms works and what the big issue is in these kingdoms. The story leads you to the war and how that will play out. It wasn't anti-climaxing, but done really well. The tension build-ups in this story have a main goal and some side-goals with their own climaxes. I like this way of writing. It gives you something to look forward to as for the main climax in the story, but it gives you mini climaxes throughout the story. In this way it keeps you wanting more throughout the book.
I love how the characters develop throughout the story. Haven grows the most I believe and that's a good thing. She's the main character and needs the most development. The events in this book made her grow into the queen she needs to be and that's nice to read =] But Haven is not the only character with development in this book. Some other characters show nice development throughout the story. This story was built on the character development, it really couldn't be this good without the growth in characters.
So all in all, I really liked this story. It is not one of my all time favourites, but it was really good nonetheless. I gave it four quills because it was written really well and it's a story worth reading!!
If you like fantasy, war elements, a dash of romance, great characters and a good bit of royalty, then you need to read this book =]
|Blog|Twitter|Facebook|Bloglovin’|Instagram|Tumblr|Google+|Pinterest|Niume|
“May your sword guide you and your shield always protect you.”
I read this book because of a read & review opportunity through Rachel E. Carters Reader Group on Goodreads. I thought it would be a nice book because of the blurb provided on Goodreads. My choice to read this book was because I thought it would be outside of my comfort zone and something new.
I was right, this was something new. But something new, doesn't always mean something bad. I liked this story =] I don't read much royalty stories that are more realistic, most are set in a true fantasy world. As I progressed in the story I noticed this wasn't a completely realistic setting as well. I thought it was funny and cute to read about tigers and they've never heard of it and described it more monster like than we do. I can imagine you would think of a tiger a bit like a monster if you don't know what it is.
The story build up was done real good. You get to know the characters as you progress in the book, how the kingdoms works and what the big issue is in these kingdoms. The story leads you to the war and how that will play out. It wasn't anti-climaxing, but done really well. The tension build-ups in this story have a main goal and some side-goals with their own climaxes. I like this way of writing. It gives you something to look forward to as for the main climax in the story, but it gives you mini climaxes throughout the story. In this way it keeps you wanting more throughout the book.
I love how the characters develop throughout the story. Haven grows the most I believe and that's a good thing. She's the main character and needs the most development. The events in this book made her grow into the queen she needs to be and that's nice to read =] But Haven is not the only character with development in this book. Some other characters show nice development throughout the story. This story was built on the character development, it really couldn't be this good without the growth in characters.
So all in all, I really liked this story. It is not one of my all time favourites, but it was really good nonetheless. I gave it four quills because it was written really well and it's a story worth reading!!
If you like fantasy, war elements, a dash of romance, great characters and a good bit of royalty, then you need to read this book =]
|Blog|Twitter|Facebook|Bloglovin’|Instagram|Tumblr|Google+|Pinterest|Niume|
August 3, 2016
**I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review**
Haven is the new queen of Rythern. She has a supernatural and useful power she seems to despise at the beginning of the book but she learns to appreciate it. Haven is overprotective, she thinks too much about her friends and her people and really wants to be a good queen...
Yes she is immortal and cannot die, but some of her actions were reckless and had me screaming to her ''Stop risking your life''
Warshard has six kingdoms and war is imminent. The evil queen of Dagan, Kadia, is apparently a stunning and crazy bitch/witch who wants to dominate the world. No one knows where she came from, she probably escaped a fantastic psychiatric ward but we don't know... She is sending her evil army to destroy the five other kingdoms.
Speaking of the kingdoms, it was a nice addition to the story. I was delighted to meet the other kings and prince, especially the hot king from Wakefin, Lord Corrin...
I also enjoyed the friendship between Haven and the little Mira. Her guards/friends were cool, but I didn't like how they coddle her (yes Blythe I'm talking about you :P ) I understand they wanted to protect their queen but sometimes, it was like they treated her like a kid. Example, when Haven wanted to know more about Seaburn and its army, they urged her to stop because they didn't want her to hear the horror. Haven is now a queen and she needs to know the history.
Speaking of the history, I wanted to learn more about Warshard and how Haven got her supernatural power.
+++ What I like +++
Lord Corrin: This book was all about war and Corrin literally gave me a break from the atrocities. It was nice to witness his relationship with Haven
Mira: Her brief appearance brought a lot of emotions.
Kadia: Deranged queen. She know how to bring the drama!
---What I dislike ---
Haven: The protagonist. Like I said earlier she was extremely protective. Of her friends, of her people, even of that little girl she met in Seaburn. I understand her kindness but sometimes you have to think about you... Also, after the big twist in the book, when she came back, she became annoying. Again, I understand. She really suffered and I feel for her, but your friends are here to help. The friends you wanted to protect, to die for, they are here for you. Don't be so cold to them...
The guards/friends: They treated her like a child sometimes.
It was my first book of this genre (fantasy). I have already read a vampire book but this one was quite different and I liked it. The story was slow at the beginning and it took me more time to get into it but after the 1st Royals meeting the story became interesting because I knew what to expect: war!
3.5 stars for the story and 0.5 star for Corrin = 4 stars!
Haven is the new queen of Rythern. She has a supernatural and useful power she seems to despise at the beginning of the book but she learns to appreciate it. Haven is overprotective, she thinks too much about her friends and her people and really wants to be a good queen...
Yes she is immortal and cannot die, but some of her actions were reckless and had me screaming to her ''Stop risking your life''
Warshard has six kingdoms and war is imminent. The evil queen of Dagan, Kadia, is apparently a stunning and crazy bitch/witch who wants to dominate the world. No one knows where she came from, she probably escaped a fantastic psychiatric ward but we don't know... She is sending her evil army to destroy the five other kingdoms.
Speaking of the kingdoms, it was a nice addition to the story. I was delighted to meet the other kings and prince, especially the hot king from Wakefin, Lord Corrin...
I also enjoyed the friendship between Haven and the little Mira. Her guards/friends were cool, but I didn't like how they coddle her (yes Blythe I'm talking about you :P ) I understand they wanted to protect their queen but sometimes, it was like they treated her like a kid. Example, when Haven wanted to know more about Seaburn and its army, they urged her to stop because they didn't want her to hear the horror. Haven is now a queen and she needs to know the history.
Speaking of the history, I wanted to learn more about Warshard and how Haven got her supernatural power.
+++ What I like +++
Lord Corrin: This book was all about war and Corrin literally gave me a break from the atrocities. It was nice to witness his relationship with Haven
Mira: Her brief appearance brought a lot of emotions.
Kadia: Deranged queen. She know how to bring the drama!
---What I dislike ---
Haven: The protagonist. Like I said earlier she was extremely protective. Of her friends, of her people, even of that little girl she met in Seaburn. I understand her kindness but sometimes you have to think about you... Also, after the big twist in the book, when she came back, she became annoying. Again, I understand. She really suffered and I feel for her, but your friends are here to help. The friends you wanted to protect, to die for, they are here for you. Don't be so cold to them...
The guards/friends: They treated her like a child sometimes.
It was my first book of this genre (fantasy). I have already read a vampire book but this one was quite different and I liked it. The story was slow at the beginning and it took me more time to get into it but after the 1st Royals meeting the story became interesting because I knew what to expect: war!
3.5 stars for the story and 0.5 star for Corrin = 4 stars!
June 4, 2017
*I received an ecopy of this book from NetGalley. This has not influenced my review.*
Review originally posted at Simply Adrift.
"Raising her gaze from the sight of her own blood, she caught her own amber gaze in the vanity mirror, 'Is this what it's like to be Queen?'"
Haven
Haven reminded me a lot of The Queen of the Tearling . Why? I honestly think it was because I felt the same sort of feeling and atmosphere, and I thoroughly enjoyed most of this book. I couldn't put it down, just like I couldn't put the above down.
Haven is a story about a princess that was never meant to be queen but has it thrust upon her when her whole family is killed in an act during war. Haven was no ordinary woman, she had this unusualcurse gift of immortality. She could not die. I thought this was a cool twist, it certainly added a bit of suspense as Haven threw herself into fighting with no thought to herself because she knew she could not die.
The very first chapter Haven is at her coronation, as soon as she is crowned an assassin shoots her through the heart with an arrow. She wakes up a minute later feeling fine. Haven's immortality is never really explained during the book, Haven simply does not know where she gets this ability from and no one else has the ability like her. I was a little confused on the rules of this ability: Did Haven ever age? It was suggested she wouldn't but I was unsure. If she did not age, at what age would her body stop aging? Was it simply she would age a lot slower than everyone else? Or maybe she would age but she would just never die. Clearly Haven wouldn't know because she is the only one in the world with this ability, but I wanted to know these answers to get a clear image of her future. Would she rule Rythern forever?
Haven was a fun character to read. She was very polite and proper to begin with, but as she learned how to handle each disaster thrown her way she became more and more fierce. She became a strong queen that wanted to fight for her people and fight for what was right. These qualities shined many times throughout this book. It was fun seeing Haven grow into such a strong woman.
Story
"She was not meant to be Queen."
The beginning of this book starts off slow with Haven acclimating to her new life as queen. This involved a lot of paperwork and not a lot of fun. This does not mean things did not happen however, there was a war happening within the 6 Kingdoms of Warshard. The Mad Queen of Dagan is slowly taking over the Kingdom's one Kingdom at a time. How? No one quite knows. There are whispers of soldiers that appear from the shadows then vanish after the fight.
The Kings of the 6 Kingdoms meet secretly in a cave well hidden, every so often and always in the middle of the night. At these meetings each King explains their Kingdom's situation in the war, and all heads come together to help solve the problems. While these meetings were interesting to read, I was very confused as to how each King made it to these meetings. Are Kingdom's not so far apart it would take weeks to get from one castle to the other? Yet here all the King's meet to discuss and come up with a war strategy every few weeks. How long did it take each King to travel to this cave? Haven usually left in the middle of the night and made it there in no time, so was the cave in Rythern? It was all a bit confusing to me. At one point Haven travels to Salander, the Kingdom closest to hers, and it takes her one and a half days at speed without breaks. Although it is mentioned usually it would take two and a half days.
Pacing
Once the war ramps up the story really starts to get interesting and fun. Haven is a bit of a boring character until this turning point. I was bored by her day to day activities, the story takes a good 35% to really start going. But as things start moving along I found myself glued to this book. I became invested in Haven and her Kingdom's people. Was she going to be able keep them all alive? Would the other Kingdoms survive?
I found it very hard to put Haven down after this point. Haven became fiery and passionate, she was no longer this sweet little girl. Well she was still sweet but she was no longer just a princess, she was a Queen. She put her people first, she genuinely intended on making sure everyone survived or as many people as she could look after. Since she could not die she would throw herself in front of swords for these people, those scenes were exciting. There was a lot of fighting and this really made the story interesting, even though you knew Haven could not die, you still worried about the other characters in this book.
"The clang of swords and shing of metal grew hollow. Haven could see the fight for what it was now: futile." ... "Darkness crept across her vision. "Run," she murmured. It was the last thing she said before she blacked out."
The Women
The theme for Haven was strong, independent women.
The Mad Queen. The Immortal Queen. The Guard Ladies. All women. All bad-ass. All incredibly intelligent, resilient, brave, and strong.
I loved this aspect. These women literally did not need a man to protect them or to conquer for them. They went out and did that themselves, albeit in different ways. The Mad Queen takes over a Kingdom, then one by one takes over them all. How freaking amazing is that? I mean also super twisted and evil buuuut, you know. The Immortal Queen is determined on keeping as many people alive and winning this war. The guard ladies protect and serve their Lady Queen and would never let someone get in the way of that. All strong women.
The Kings in this book were all stubborn and brash. Their Kingdoms fell one by one, as they fled further away from their homeland, only Haven was prepared enough to give up everything so she could keep everyone else she cared about alive. Most of the males in this story were no match for their female counterparts, yet they respected the women, they respected Haven as Queen and listened to her ideas seriously.
That was refreshing. King's listening to a new, young, less experienced Queen? Yes, yes, and yes.
Romance
I love a good story that doesn't need romance. Haven is full of war, strategy and politics. So you would think their is no place for romance here. And you're right, there is no 'romance' per se. There is no 'wooing', there is no 'courting', Haven does not swoon after a man, and nor is she looking for one. But love does seep its way into the story; you don't expect it, you don't see it coming, it's suddenly there. Romance is not the objective of this story, but it sure does make it more enticing. Oh but how I enjoyed that.
The story got exciting when the romance was factored into the story, I was suddenly even more interested to see where this lead Haven.
"Corrin looked at her in a way she wasn't familiar with. His eyes smouldered in the light of the fire, flickering flames reflecting across his irises. Everything about him was unfamiliar, and though she didn't sense anything dangerous about him, she couldn't help be wary."
Overall
Haven is a spectacular novel with bad-ass women winning the world, political intrigue, and a bit of romance to tie it all up.
If you love reading independent women, Kingdom's fighting for their lives, and a bit of a magic I highly recommend this.
This review was originally posted on Simply Adrift
Review originally posted at Simply Adrift.
"Raising her gaze from the sight of her own blood, she caught her own amber gaze in the vanity mirror, 'Is this what it's like to be Queen?'"
Haven
Haven reminded me a lot of The Queen of the Tearling . Why? I honestly think it was because I felt the same sort of feeling and atmosphere, and I thoroughly enjoyed most of this book. I couldn't put it down, just like I couldn't put the above down.
Haven is a story about a princess that was never meant to be queen but has it thrust upon her when her whole family is killed in an act during war. Haven was no ordinary woman, she had this unusual
The very first chapter Haven is at her coronation, as soon as she is crowned an assassin shoots her through the heart with an arrow. She wakes up a minute later feeling fine. Haven's immortality is never really explained during the book, Haven simply does not know where she gets this ability from and no one else has the ability like her. I was a little confused on the rules of this ability: Did Haven ever age? It was suggested she wouldn't but I was unsure. If she did not age, at what age would her body stop aging? Was it simply she would age a lot slower than everyone else? Or maybe she would age but she would just never die. Clearly Haven wouldn't know because she is the only one in the world with this ability, but I wanted to know these answers to get a clear image of her future. Would she rule Rythern forever?
Haven was a fun character to read. She was very polite and proper to begin with, but as she learned how to handle each disaster thrown her way she became more and more fierce. She became a strong queen that wanted to fight for her people and fight for what was right. These qualities shined many times throughout this book. It was fun seeing Haven grow into such a strong woman.
Story
"She was not meant to be Queen."
The beginning of this book starts off slow with Haven acclimating to her new life as queen. This involved a lot of paperwork and not a lot of fun. This does not mean things did not happen however, there was a war happening within the 6 Kingdoms of Warshard. The Mad Queen of Dagan is slowly taking over the Kingdom's one Kingdom at a time. How? No one quite knows. There are whispers of soldiers that appear from the shadows then vanish after the fight.
The Kings of the 6 Kingdoms meet secretly in a cave well hidden, every so often and always in the middle of the night. At these meetings each King explains their Kingdom's situation in the war, and all heads come together to help solve the problems. While these meetings were interesting to read, I was very confused as to how each King made it to these meetings. Are Kingdom's not so far apart it would take weeks to get from one castle to the other? Yet here all the King's meet to discuss and come up with a war strategy every few weeks. How long did it take each King to travel to this cave? Haven usually left in the middle of the night and made it there in no time, so was the cave in Rythern? It was all a bit confusing to me. At one point Haven travels to Salander, the Kingdom closest to hers, and it takes her one and a half days at speed without breaks. Although it is mentioned usually it would take two and a half days.
Pacing
Once the war ramps up the story really starts to get interesting and fun. Haven is a bit of a boring character until this turning point. I was bored by her day to day activities, the story takes a good 35% to really start going. But as things start moving along I found myself glued to this book. I became invested in Haven and her Kingdom's people. Was she going to be able keep them all alive? Would the other Kingdoms survive?
I found it very hard to put Haven down after this point. Haven became fiery and passionate, she was no longer this sweet little girl. Well she was still sweet but she was no longer just a princess, she was a Queen. She put her people first, she genuinely intended on making sure everyone survived or as many people as she could look after. Since she could not die she would throw herself in front of swords for these people, those scenes were exciting. There was a lot of fighting and this really made the story interesting, even though you knew Haven could not die, you still worried about the other characters in this book.
"The clang of swords and shing of metal grew hollow. Haven could see the fight for what it was now: futile." ... "Darkness crept across her vision. "Run," she murmured. It was the last thing she said before she blacked out."
The Women
The theme for Haven was strong, independent women.
The Mad Queen. The Immortal Queen. The Guard Ladies. All women. All bad-ass. All incredibly intelligent, resilient, brave, and strong.
I loved this aspect. These women literally did not need a man to protect them or to conquer for them. They went out and did that themselves, albeit in different ways. The Mad Queen takes over a Kingdom, then one by one takes over them all. How freaking amazing is that? I mean also super twisted and evil buuuut, you know. The Immortal Queen is determined on keeping as many people alive and winning this war. The guard ladies protect and serve their Lady Queen and would never let someone get in the way of that. All strong women.
The Kings in this book were all stubborn and brash. Their Kingdoms fell one by one, as they fled further away from their homeland, only Haven was prepared enough to give up everything so she could keep everyone else she cared about alive. Most of the males in this story were no match for their female counterparts, yet they respected the women, they respected Haven as Queen and listened to her ideas seriously.
That was refreshing. King's listening to a new, young, less experienced Queen? Yes, yes, and yes.
Romance
I love a good story that doesn't need romance. Haven is full of war, strategy and politics. So you would think their is no place for romance here. And you're right, there is no 'romance' per se. There is no 'wooing', there is no 'courting', Haven does not swoon after a man, and nor is she looking for one. But love does seep its way into the story; you don't expect it, you don't see it coming, it's suddenly there. Romance is not the objective of this story, but it sure does make it more enticing. Oh but how I enjoyed that.
The story got exciting when the romance was factored into the story, I was suddenly even more interested to see where this lead Haven.
"Corrin looked at her in a way she wasn't familiar with. His eyes smouldered in the light of the fire, flickering flames reflecting across his irises. Everything about him was unfamiliar, and though she didn't sense anything dangerous about him, she couldn't help be wary."
Overall
Haven is a spectacular novel with bad-ass women winning the world, political intrigue, and a bit of romance to tie it all up.
If you love reading independent women, Kingdom's fighting for their lives, and a bit of a magic I highly recommend this.
This review was originally posted on Simply Adrift
September 2, 2016
I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
I love strong female protagonists and this book has it in spades. The story revolves around Haven who unexpectedly becomes the Queen of her people. The book is full of war tactics and politics but it's not too heavy to detract from the enjoyment.
Haven is a very strong heroine. She goes through so much physical and emotional pain inspite of which she is kind and protective of her people who are in turn protective of their Queen. This shows the loyalty of everyone. This is one of the themes wrapped up in the layers of the tale. There are so many thematic layers to the story that it was a great read! I was able to follow Haven's story of courage and strong will to do anything for her people's good.
The author has given a very strong character for Haven such that she can do no wrong in the eyes of the beholder. I loved her independence, her will-power and her gentle disposition. Her relationships with her guards-friends, Mira, Emeril and Corrin are all special and add complexity to her story. Because this is primarily Haven's story. Emeril and Corrin were given adequate attention but they felt lacking, as lacking with the supporting cast. Though the side characters were good at adding to the details of the story, they were blurred in their definitions. And I generally love to know more about the side characters.
The writing was very descriptive and the imagery was perfectly conveyed to the readers. The pace was very slow at the beginning but halfway through it picked up and stayed that way till the end. Though it was slow, the reading wasn't tedious at all. It helped to fill in the details of the world around Haven. The only regret was that the other kingdoms weren't highlighted much in the book. I hope the following books in the series would expand on them.
The romantic aspect was perfectly planned and I rooted for the wrong person at the beginning. This is a perfect example of appearances causing deception. As the story progressed I was able to see who makes for the better hero. The ending was kind of rushed in my opinion. But this has made me wonder about the sequel.
All in all, it was a very fast read inspite of slow pace with plenty of adventure and action. The fighting was invigorating and fun to read through. I look forward to the series and hope that the whole world and other kingdoms are given more time in the limelight.
My rating : 3.5/5
I love strong female protagonists and this book has it in spades. The story revolves around Haven who unexpectedly becomes the Queen of her people. The book is full of war tactics and politics but it's not too heavy to detract from the enjoyment.
Haven is a very strong heroine. She goes through so much physical and emotional pain inspite of which she is kind and protective of her people who are in turn protective of their Queen. This shows the loyalty of everyone. This is one of the themes wrapped up in the layers of the tale. There are so many thematic layers to the story that it was a great read! I was able to follow Haven's story of courage and strong will to do anything for her people's good.
The author has given a very strong character for Haven such that she can do no wrong in the eyes of the beholder. I loved her independence, her will-power and her gentle disposition. Her relationships with her guards-friends, Mira, Emeril and Corrin are all special and add complexity to her story. Because this is primarily Haven's story. Emeril and Corrin were given adequate attention but they felt lacking, as lacking with the supporting cast. Though the side characters were good at adding to the details of the story, they were blurred in their definitions. And I generally love to know more about the side characters.
The writing was very descriptive and the imagery was perfectly conveyed to the readers. The pace was very slow at the beginning but halfway through it picked up and stayed that way till the end. Though it was slow, the reading wasn't tedious at all. It helped to fill in the details of the world around Haven. The only regret was that the other kingdoms weren't highlighted much in the book. I hope the following books in the series would expand on them.
The romantic aspect was perfectly planned and I rooted for the wrong person at the beginning. This is a perfect example of appearances causing deception. As the story progressed I was able to see who makes for the better hero. The ending was kind of rushed in my opinion. But this has made me wonder about the sequel.
All in all, it was a very fast read inspite of slow pace with plenty of adventure and action. The fighting was invigorating and fun to read through. I look forward to the series and hope that the whole world and other kingdoms are given more time in the limelight.
My rating : 3.5/5
August 23, 2016
Haven
Chronicles of Warshard #1
By Katherine Bogle
War has come to the Six Kingdoms of Warshard and the Kingdom of Rythern is the latest victim of Queen Kadia's insanity. With the murder of her parents and her brothers Haven Fyre is now queen of Rythern, a role she was never suppose to hold. But her people need a queen, and in Haven they will have one that cannot be killed.
Going to war against Kadia seems suicide with the kingdoms various armies having suffered losses to her shadow soldiers. With this seeming impossibility the Royals are faced with an impossible decision - fight, flee, or do nothing.
Does Haven commit her remaining soldiers to aid King Corrin in his plan to retake his fallen capital? Or are her troops needed first and foremost in defense of Rythern? Or does she offer Rythern as a place of sanctuary for those who are fleeing Kadia's aggression? Relying on the advise of her closest friends and her desire to protect her people, Haven makes a decision that will forever change her life and the future of the Six Kingdoms.
Haven is a book that takes the reader on a journey - a journey of emotion, of loss, of friendship, of betrayal, and of promise. And this is a journey of growth as Haven becomes the queen she never expected to be by facing her fears and learning to live life.
This is the first (per the title) in a series and I for one am looking forward to additional books in this series. Though the book is complete in the story it is telling there is most definitely plenty of material from which more could come. The writing style of Katherine Bogle is steady and flowing. There are periods of endless action mixed with those of waiting which is true to what one would experience in one's own life if one were in a similar situation.
This book is definitely aimed at older teens and adults due to the subject matter of a few scenes - this book after all deals with war and the violence that comes with such a state of affairs. Overall I highly recommend this book and this author's work.
I was provided a copy of this book through iRead Book Tours in exchange for my honest review.
Chronicles of Warshard #1
By Katherine Bogle
War has come to the Six Kingdoms of Warshard and the Kingdom of Rythern is the latest victim of Queen Kadia's insanity. With the murder of her parents and her brothers Haven Fyre is now queen of Rythern, a role she was never suppose to hold. But her people need a queen, and in Haven they will have one that cannot be killed.
Going to war against Kadia seems suicide with the kingdoms various armies having suffered losses to her shadow soldiers. With this seeming impossibility the Royals are faced with an impossible decision - fight, flee, or do nothing.
Does Haven commit her remaining soldiers to aid King Corrin in his plan to retake his fallen capital? Or are her troops needed first and foremost in defense of Rythern? Or does she offer Rythern as a place of sanctuary for those who are fleeing Kadia's aggression? Relying on the advise of her closest friends and her desire to protect her people, Haven makes a decision that will forever change her life and the future of the Six Kingdoms.
Haven is a book that takes the reader on a journey - a journey of emotion, of loss, of friendship, of betrayal, and of promise. And this is a journey of growth as Haven becomes the queen she never expected to be by facing her fears and learning to live life.
This is the first (per the title) in a series and I for one am looking forward to additional books in this series. Though the book is complete in the story it is telling there is most definitely plenty of material from which more could come. The writing style of Katherine Bogle is steady and flowing. There are periods of endless action mixed with those of waiting which is true to what one would experience in one's own life if one were in a similar situation.
This book is definitely aimed at older teens and adults due to the subject matter of a few scenes - this book after all deals with war and the violence that comes with such a state of affairs. Overall I highly recommend this book and this author's work.
I was provided a copy of this book through iRead Book Tours in exchange for my honest review.
August 27, 2016
This book introduces you to princess Haven; when her parents and brothers are killed, the immortal young woman needs to deal with war and an evil adversary.
With Haven, Katherine Bogle has created a fairytale-like fantasy story with more than a hint of romance and dark magic. It is a quite enjoyable and intriguing read; it felt like listening to a fairytale. Katherine Bogle paints a clear picture of Haven’s mind while the story evolves. Haven's character develops nicely, growing with her tasks and/or obstacles - thus changing from being irritating to appreciated. The characters are of sufficient depth when required. I loved the wordplay regarding one of her female guards: Lareina (Spanish: La Reina = The Queen). The story is nicely woven and has a good flow. I am looking forward to the second book in the series.
This is a book for you if you like fantasy, fairytales, and stubborn protagonists.
Recommended.
With Haven, Katherine Bogle has created a fairytale-like fantasy story with more than a hint of romance and dark magic. It is a quite enjoyable and intriguing read; it felt like listening to a fairytale. Katherine Bogle paints a clear picture of Haven’s mind while the story evolves. Haven's character develops nicely, growing with her tasks and/or obstacles - thus changing from being irritating to appreciated. The characters are of sufficient depth when required. I loved the wordplay regarding one of her female guards: Lareina (Spanish: La Reina = The Queen). The story is nicely woven and has a good flow. I am looking forward to the second book in the series.
This is a book for you if you like fantasy, fairytales, and stubborn protagonists.
Recommended.
August 26, 2016
In the first installment of Katherine Bogle’s Chronicles of Warshard series, which she dedicates to Shelyse, her “Lareina,” the eponymous princess, Haven, ascends to the throne while her country is on the brink of war. A despot named Kadia yearns to conquer Haven’s homeland and its neighbors, with Haven having the choice of whether to face the tyrant or flee across the sea. Even early on, Haven finds that being a Queen is not all it’s cracked up to be, what with the amount of paperwork coming with the occupation. She ultimately learns swordsmanship in her quest to stay alive, with the novel ending with hope and room for sequels. Overall, this is an enjoyable yarn that fans of fantasy young and old will likely devour.
November 25, 2016
I heard so much about this book I had to read it for myself to see what all the buzz was all about.
Political upheaval and transition into power Haven has a lot to deal with. Although some of the background could have used more development and Haven more personality.
I felt like the story and the world was intriguing, there was some intimacy love scenes but they felt a little off and not quite mature the book wasn't quite YA or NA but somewhere between.
Haven has a lot of potential for later installments to improve but it was a decent read.
Political upheaval and transition into power Haven has a lot to deal with. Although some of the background could have used more development and Haven more personality.
I felt like the story and the world was intriguing, there was some intimacy love scenes but they felt a little off and not quite mature the book wasn't quite YA or NA but somewhere between.
Haven has a lot of potential for later installments to improve but it was a decent read.
October 20, 2019
* I received this ebook for free in exchange of a honest review. *
Haven by Katherine Bogle was not to my liking. I found that this book was poorly written and it lacked of development. The characters weren't likable. Therefore , The love story seemed to come out of nowhere. It could have been a great book if they're would have been more descriptions of the world, the characters, everything.
Haven by Katherine Bogle was not to my liking. I found that this book was poorly written and it lacked of development. The characters weren't likable. Therefore , The love story seemed to come out of nowhere. It could have been a great book if they're would have been more descriptions of the world, the characters, everything.
April 3, 2017
I received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.
"They call you the queen who cannot be killed."
Immortality. Tragedy. War. Magic. Strategy. The five elements that make up an interesting coming-to-power tale for a young royal. Haven, the third in line to the throne, never suspected she would be the one to ascend. But when tragedy strikes, and her family is decimated, she is the only left standing to take the throne.
Pitted against an evil rival queen, Haven has one trick up her sleeve: she can't die. Drowning, stabbing, burning, torture---nothing can kill the young queen. Some consider it a privilege, while she sees her ability as a curse.
--------------------------------------------------
There were many ways Haven had contemplated death--until she realized something. The only thing worse than living forever without her family was to leave her people without a Queen, especially in times like these.
Haven is a well written, action-packed, emotionally-charged story. Although elements of its tale are not completely original, they are well done in the way they are rendered. The young queen is immediately faced with grappling with tragedy. After witnessing her mother's brutal end, she is forced to ascend to the throne, and to lead her people if she's ready to do so, or not, to keep the ever-threatening war on her doorsteps at bay.
Along with the tragic end of her family, she is faced with challenging situations of her own. The queen must decide how to manage ever-precarious relations with neighboring nations, (not to mention zealous princes) on top of caring for her own---and herself. She transforms from a girl into a capable queen, not only with craftiness but also with the sword.
I found that Haven was depicted well. At times, her feelings were overly-emphasizes, and I felt that it made her seem too personal and less respectable as a royal. Yes, royalty are allowed to have emotions, I just felt it wasn't entirely realistic how emotional she was, and how and who she shared her emotions with. After an attempted rape, she underwent major emotional trauma, and this area I completely agreed with how her feelings were portrayed.
A love triangle blossomed in the beginning portion of the book, but turned out to be rather unoffensive and unremarkable in the end. With love triangles running rampant in young adult literature, I thought this one was done well and didn't bother me one bit.
Overall, I enjoyed this story, but I wished there was more too the ending. I felt that there was a lot of build up to an OK climax. I think it could have been expounded on further. I won't tell more about it, for fear of giving away too much.
I think for anyone who is a fan of books on royals, this would be one to add to your "to be read" list.
Vulgarity: None to my recollection.
Sexual content: There is an attempted-rape scene.
3.5 stars.
This review can also be viewed on my blog: She's Going Book Crazy
"They call you the queen who cannot be killed."
Immortality. Tragedy. War. Magic. Strategy. The five elements that make up an interesting coming-to-power tale for a young royal. Haven, the third in line to the throne, never suspected she would be the one to ascend. But when tragedy strikes, and her family is decimated, she is the only left standing to take the throne.
Pitted against an evil rival queen, Haven has one trick up her sleeve: she can't die. Drowning, stabbing, burning, torture---nothing can kill the young queen. Some consider it a privilege, while she sees her ability as a curse.
--------------------------------------------------
There were many ways Haven had contemplated death--until she realized something. The only thing worse than living forever without her family was to leave her people without a Queen, especially in times like these.
Haven is a well written, action-packed, emotionally-charged story. Although elements of its tale are not completely original, they are well done in the way they are rendered. The young queen is immediately faced with grappling with tragedy. After witnessing her mother's brutal end, she is forced to ascend to the throne, and to lead her people if she's ready to do so, or not, to keep the ever-threatening war on her doorsteps at bay.
Along with the tragic end of her family, she is faced with challenging situations of her own. The queen must decide how to manage ever-precarious relations with neighboring nations, (not to mention zealous princes) on top of caring for her own---and herself. She transforms from a girl into a capable queen, not only with craftiness but also with the sword.
I found that Haven was depicted well. At times, her feelings were overly-emphasizes, and I felt that it made her seem too personal and less respectable as a royal. Yes, royalty are allowed to have emotions, I just felt it wasn't entirely realistic how emotional she was, and how and who she shared her emotions with. After an attempted rape, she underwent major emotional trauma, and this area I completely agreed with how her feelings were portrayed.
A love triangle blossomed in the beginning portion of the book, but turned out to be rather unoffensive and unremarkable in the end. With love triangles running rampant in young adult literature, I thought this one was done well and didn't bother me one bit.
Overall, I enjoyed this story, but I wished there was more too the ending. I felt that there was a lot of build up to an OK climax. I think it could have been expounded on further. I won't tell more about it, for fear of giving away too much.
I think for anyone who is a fan of books on royals, this would be one to add to your "to be read" list.
Vulgarity: None to my recollection.
Sexual content: There is an attempted-rape scene.
3.5 stars.
This review can also be viewed on my blog: She's Going Book Crazy
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July 7, 2018DNF at 3% and at chapter two because hel-lo, generic-3-star-averagely-written-YA-nobility-queen-fantasy-rebellion story.
November 25, 2016
Haven (Chronicles of Warshard #1) by Katherine Bogle Princess Haven was never meant to be Queen. Her immortality has saved her time and time again, but when the last of her royal family dies at her feet, she is next in line to rule a nation on the brink of war. With no formal training on how to be Queen, Haven must rise to the occasion with the help of her best friends, and personal guard, or risk losing everyone she has ever loved.With war to the West, and no escape to the East, the evil tyrant Kadia sets her sights on the six kingdoms. Haven’s neighbors are quick to fall under the swords of Kadia’s shadow soldiers, leaving a sea of bodies and a clear path to Haven’s only home.As Kadia’s obsession with Haven mounts, little time remains, and Haven must make a choice; join together with her fellow Royals, and test her immortality in a final stand against the evil Queen, or flee across the sea to a foreign republic in hopes of salvation. Both choices have a cost. Both plans could go awry. Haven must decide quickly, or she might be the only one left.
I heard so much about this book I had to read it for myself to see what all the buzz was all about.
Political upheaval and transition into power Haven has a lot to deal with. Although some of the background could have used more development and Haven more personality.
I felt like the story and the world was intriguing, there was some intimacy love scenes but they felt a little off and not quite mature the book wasn't quite YA or NA but somewhere between.
Haven has a lot of potential for later installments to improve but it was a decent read.
Katherine Bogle
Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews received a digital copy. All thoughts, comments and ratings are my own.
Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews received a digital copy in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley.
If any of Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews has been helpful please stop by to like my post or leave a comment to let me know what you think. I love hearing from followers!
Thank you so much for stopping by!
I heard so much about this book I had to read it for myself to see what all the buzz was all about.
Political upheaval and transition into power Haven has a lot to deal with. Although some of the background could have used more development and Haven more personality.
I felt like the story and the world was intriguing, there was some intimacy love scenes but they felt a little off and not quite mature the book wasn't quite YA or NA but somewhere between.
Haven has a lot of potential for later installments to improve but it was a decent read.
Katherine Bogle
Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews received a digital copy. All thoughts, comments and ratings are my own.
Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews received a digital copy in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley.
If any of Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews has been helpful please stop by to like my post or leave a comment to let me know what you think. I love hearing from followers!
Thank you so much for stopping by!
December 22, 2016
3.75
Um, this book was toootally not what I expected, and in a good way. It is so much more, so much darker than the blurb makes it out to be, and for roughly 200 pages that's pretty impressive.
Haven surprised me. She's so likeable, instantly. She becomes Queen suddenly, but she takes responsibility right away, is an honest, good, and caring young woman. I loved seeing her close personal guards being women, and her closest friends too. They help her when she decides to learn how to fight, and this decision changes her life for the course of the book. And it's a really smart decision on her part. Because she's immortal, she can grow old but cannot be killed, and so she believes it's her duty to learn to fight to protect those who can be hurt and die.
The conflict in this book comes on suddenly, at least it seems that way. That is one of the things I would critique about this book – that events happen relatively suddenly, combined with transitions between scenes that are abrupt. The adjective "beautiful" is used too often, most could be taken out completely.
I think where this book lacks is in the villain herself. An evil queen is wiping out each of the kingdoms one by one, intent on ruling the world. She uses dark magic, and obviously Haven's immortality is the work of magic, but otherwise there is no other magic in this world (except for one other character). I would like to know where this magic comes from, whether there's more kinds, etc. Also, WHY was Haven born with immortality, when apparently none of her other family members had it? Never mind exploring that in a sequel, that in particular is something I want to know in book 1.
Nonetheless, this story is about Haven growing into her determination as a Queen who can defend herself and her people. Haven is captured by the evil queen, tortured in a way that leaves mental scars and PTSD. I give props for her reactions after escaping the evil queen. It seemed realistic for the reality of the tortures she experienced (and almost experienced). But with the power of various friends who help her, she overcomes the fear and those experiences strengthen her. There is also a romance, but it is also something that could definitely have had more development, though on the whole it was nice.
Um, this book was toootally not what I expected, and in a good way. It is so much more, so much darker than the blurb makes it out to be, and for roughly 200 pages that's pretty impressive.
Haven surprised me. She's so likeable, instantly. She becomes Queen suddenly, but she takes responsibility right away, is an honest, good, and caring young woman. I loved seeing her close personal guards being women, and her closest friends too. They help her when she decides to learn how to fight, and this decision changes her life for the course of the book. And it's a really smart decision on her part. Because she's immortal, she can grow old but cannot be killed, and so she believes it's her duty to learn to fight to protect those who can be hurt and die.
The conflict in this book comes on suddenly, at least it seems that way. That is one of the things I would critique about this book – that events happen relatively suddenly, combined with transitions between scenes that are abrupt. The adjective "beautiful" is used too often, most could be taken out completely.
I think where this book lacks is in the villain herself. An evil queen is wiping out each of the kingdoms one by one, intent on ruling the world. She uses dark magic, and obviously Haven's immortality is the work of magic, but otherwise there is no other magic in this world (except for one other character). I would like to know where this magic comes from, whether there's more kinds, etc. Also, WHY was Haven born with immortality, when apparently none of her other family members had it? Never mind exploring that in a sequel, that in particular is something I want to know in book 1.
Nonetheless, this story is about Haven growing into her determination as a Queen who can defend herself and her people. Haven is captured by the evil queen, tortured in a way that leaves mental scars and PTSD. I give props for her reactions after escaping the evil queen. It seemed realistic for the reality of the tortures she experienced (and almost experienced). But with the power of various friends who help her, she overcomes the fear and those experiences strengthen her. There is also a romance, but it is also something that could definitely have had more development, though on the whole it was nice.
August 31, 2016
I received a free ecopy of this book for an honest review.
Haven is a princess who suddenly and unexpectedly becomes queen of her kingdom when her parents and two older brothers are killed. Although Haven never expected to be queen, she steps up to the task and is not only good, she is great.
I like Katherine Bogle’s writing style. It flows well and the descriptions are good enough that I could picture people and places. The descriptions aren’t so lengthy, though, that I got bored with them.
The characters are well developed and complex. Haven is immortal so she insists on protecting her people, even her guards, since they can die and she can’t. She has an interesting relationship with Prince Emeril. They have been friends since childhood and she doesn’t want any more than that. She doesn’t want to marry or have children because of her immorality. Or is she possibly going to change her mind for the right man?
Haven is a young adult fantasy that I definitely recommend for young adults as well as adults. I’m looking forward to reading the next book.
Haven is a princess who suddenly and unexpectedly becomes queen of her kingdom when her parents and two older brothers are killed. Although Haven never expected to be queen, she steps up to the task and is not only good, she is great.
I like Katherine Bogle’s writing style. It flows well and the descriptions are good enough that I could picture people and places. The descriptions aren’t so lengthy, though, that I got bored with them.
The characters are well developed and complex. Haven is immortal so she insists on protecting her people, even her guards, since they can die and she can’t. She has an interesting relationship with Prince Emeril. They have been friends since childhood and she doesn’t want any more than that. She doesn’t want to marry or have children because of her immorality. Or is she possibly going to change her mind for the right man?
Haven is a young adult fantasy that I definitely recommend for young adults as well as adults. I’m looking forward to reading the next book.
June 9, 2016
I'm hooked! A great story with amazing characters and lots of action.
I like the way the author tells the entire story; embedding the setting firmly in my mind while spinning the story line in her own unique way. I appreciate that things get a little gritty for the main character, adding realism where you least expect it.
I wonder how long until the 2nd in the series comes out?? ;)
NOTE I received a copy free in exchange for an honest review, and you can bet I'll be telling everyone how great it was.
I like the way the author tells the entire story; embedding the setting firmly in my mind while spinning the story line in her own unique way. I appreciate that things get a little gritty for the main character, adding realism where you least expect it.
I wonder how long until the 2nd in the series comes out?? ;)
NOTE I received a copy free in exchange for an honest review, and you can bet I'll be telling everyone how great it was.
May 22, 2017
[Disclaimer: I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review]
"I'm a fool. An utter fool."
Oh yes, my dear queen Haven, you are a fool indeed. I suppose I'll never understand how that mind of yours works. Do you want some examples to explain why I'm so perplexed about her?
1) She's a princess (now a queen) but she doesn't know totally nothing about her reign. I understand that she wasn't supposed to become queen that soon, but has she lived in a bubble for 19 years of what? She is not even able to tell what the main resources of her reign are!
2) She treats some of her guards as bestfriends and when one of them almost chokes to death another guard after stopping her she just says "It's ok! I know you didn't mean it!"
3) She refuses to send her soldiers in aid of other reigns under attack, but one the one in danger is her friend's one she goes (leaving her kingdom alone obviously) with just 100 soldiers (when armies of thousands were defeated) and even expects to take the city back. I mean... really?
Other two aspects that made this reading so hard are:
1) all dialogues and no descriptions. I'm the first who's not that fan of long, endless descriptions, but at least a minimum of characterization (just eyes and hair don't count) and setting should be present. Instead I was lucky if it was described at least features of the places where the action took place.
2) the absent context. Ok, so there's an "evil queen" with dark magic trying to conquer all reigns. But how did she obtained the throne? How were the different reigns born? Many, too many questions without an answer.
Though the synopsis had caught my attention, at the end I was more than disappointed. Result: another series I will never finish added to the list.
"I'm a fool. An utter fool."
Oh yes, my dear queen Haven, you are a fool indeed. I suppose I'll never understand how that mind of yours works. Do you want some examples to explain why I'm so perplexed about her?
1) She's a princess (now a queen) but she doesn't know totally nothing about her reign. I understand that she wasn't supposed to become queen that soon, but has she lived in a bubble for 19 years of what? She is not even able to tell what the main resources of her reign are!
2) She treats some of her guards as bestfriends and when one of them almost chokes to death another guard after stopping her she just says "It's ok! I know you didn't mean it!"
3) She refuses to send her soldiers in aid of other reigns under attack, but one the one in danger is her friend's one she goes (leaving her kingdom alone obviously) with just 100 soldiers (when armies of thousands were defeated) and even expects to take the city back. I mean... really?
Other two aspects that made this reading so hard are:
1) all dialogues and no descriptions. I'm the first who's not that fan of long, endless descriptions, but at least a minimum of characterization (just eyes and hair don't count) and setting should be present. Instead I was lucky if it was described at least features of the places where the action took place.
2) the absent context. Ok, so there's an "evil queen" with dark magic trying to conquer all reigns. But how did she obtained the throne? How were the different reigns born? Many, too many questions without an answer.
Though the synopsis had caught my attention, at the end I was more than disappointed. Result: another series I will never finish added to the list.
March 7, 2017
I received this free digital book from the author in exchange for my honest review.
Pacing: The pacing of the novel feels fast. Surprise scenes are spread throughout to heighten the sense of urgency and keep the reader engaged. Yet, this notion of pace is quickly revoked whenever the reader encounters a sudden skip in time, often the insertion of a few weeks. While necessary in certain places, such as during skill improvement scenes, other times felt unrealistic and acted as a distraction from the story at hand.
World: The world gives the sense of being historical fiction through the extravagance of the buildings and dress combined with the sword-laden warriors. Yet, beyond that, there is little detail. Brief, commonplace descriptions of scenes are given, but none of them are fleshed out into fully formed images. As a result, the world feels more like a half-formed shadow world with no importance for the characters.
Writing: The writing is clear and precise and to the point. While offering explicit details during conversations to set the tone among the characters, fighting scenes utilize fewer words so as not to bog down the writing. Thus focusing on the action as a whole and its meaning rather than the specifics of the motions. This separation offers emphasis for what details are important in the story.
Non-Spoilered Plot: Being third born, Haven never assumed she’d be Queen. Yet, when the war with Queen Kadia steals those in line ahead of her, she’s thrust into a role she knows nothing about. Even so, she must learn and learn fast for an army plagues the lands to the West and they march with their sights set on Haven’s kingdom. Yet, with her allies falling left and right, Haven must decide whether she can risk standing against the enemy or risk losing her land in an effort to save her people.
Pacing: The pacing of the novel feels fast. Surprise scenes are spread throughout to heighten the sense of urgency and keep the reader engaged. Yet, this notion of pace is quickly revoked whenever the reader encounters a sudden skip in time, often the insertion of a few weeks. While necessary in certain places, such as during skill improvement scenes, other times felt unrealistic and acted as a distraction from the story at hand.
World: The world gives the sense of being historical fiction through the extravagance of the buildings and dress combined with the sword-laden warriors. Yet, beyond that, there is little detail. Brief, commonplace descriptions of scenes are given, but none of them are fleshed out into fully formed images. As a result, the world feels more like a half-formed shadow world with no importance for the characters.
Writing: The writing is clear and precise and to the point. While offering explicit details during conversations to set the tone among the characters, fighting scenes utilize fewer words so as not to bog down the writing. Thus focusing on the action as a whole and its meaning rather than the specifics of the motions. This separation offers emphasis for what details are important in the story.
Non-Spoilered Plot: Being third born, Haven never assumed she’d be Queen. Yet, when the war with Queen Kadia steals those in line ahead of her, she’s thrust into a role she knows nothing about. Even so, she must learn and learn fast for an army plagues the lands to the West and they march with their sights set on Haven’s kingdom. Yet, with her allies falling left and right, Haven must decide whether she can risk standing against the enemy or risk losing her land in an effort to save her people.
February 2, 2017
I VOLUNTARILY REVIEWED A COPY FROM THE "RACHEL E. CARTER YA BOOK CLUB ON GOODREADS.
For the first 50 pages I was curious where this was going, but from there it went down hill.
We learn that Haven is immortal, but she doesn't know why and her parents and her other siblings aren't. In fact, her parents and other siblings are dead. Unfortunately, this fact is mentioned like it is no big deal. We hear about it somewhere in the beginning of the book and that's that. It is thrown in matter-of-factly and I didn't feel Haven's sadness at all.
There is little to no world building in this book, time moves quickly which makes you unaware of how far away the other kingdoms are. In no time the other kingdoms are taken by the evil Queen Kadia and even though there is peace throughout the kingdoms no one seems to want to help one another.
I felt that in this book there was next to no action. There is some but it is so short that I didn't feel the urgency or feared for the safety of the characters, and when someone dies it again feels like no big deal. It could've easily not happened at all.
Kadia should be all evil and she does terrible things, but because these scenes are over in the blink of an eye I couldn't care less about them.
And somewhere in between all this Haven suddenly mentions she has a sister who has disappeared. Where did she come from and why is no one looking for her? Why isn't Haven more worried about her? This whole book was confusing and inconsistent and I couldn't care less about any of the characters.
And because it is a YA novel some romance had to be put in which felt very off.
What I liked was that because Haven knows she is immortal she is willing to fight for her people. She doesn't sit on her throne all day, giving out orders and watch them dying and her kingdom being destroyed. Then there are her guards, which are all female (which I liked) but they are all fussing over Haven being safe, when in fact she cannot die. It annoyed me that Haven had to remind them of this fact every time something happened. Thankfully Haven didn't let herself be pushed aside.
All in all, I'm sorry to say I wouldn't recommend this book.
For the first 50 pages I was curious where this was going, but from there it went down hill.
We learn that Haven is immortal, but she doesn't know why and her parents and her other siblings aren't. In fact, her parents and other siblings are dead. Unfortunately, this fact is mentioned like it is no big deal. We hear about it somewhere in the beginning of the book and that's that. It is thrown in matter-of-factly and I didn't feel Haven's sadness at all.
There is little to no world building in this book, time moves quickly which makes you unaware of how far away the other kingdoms are. In no time the other kingdoms are taken by the evil Queen Kadia and even though there is peace throughout the kingdoms no one seems to want to help one another.
I felt that in this book there was next to no action. There is some but it is so short that I didn't feel the urgency or feared for the safety of the characters, and when someone dies it again feels like no big deal. It could've easily not happened at all.
Kadia should be all evil and she does terrible things, but because these scenes are over in the blink of an eye I couldn't care less about them.
And somewhere in between all this Haven suddenly mentions she has a sister who has disappeared. Where did she come from and why is no one looking for her? Why isn't Haven more worried about her? This whole book was confusing and inconsistent and I couldn't care less about any of the characters.
And because it is a YA novel some romance had to be put in which felt very off.
What I liked was that because Haven knows she is immortal she is willing to fight for her people. She doesn't sit on her throne all day, giving out orders and watch them dying and her kingdom being destroyed. Then there are her guards, which are all female (which I liked) but they are all fussing over Haven being safe, when in fact she cannot die. It annoyed me that Haven had to remind them of this fact every time something happened. Thankfully Haven didn't let herself be pushed aside.
All in all, I'm sorry to say I wouldn't recommend this book.
July 2, 2016
HAVEN IS THE DEBUT NOVEL of author Katherine Bogle, which features orphan immortal Queen Haven fighting the evil witch Queen Kadia. The writing style and sentence structure is clear, and there are a lot of good things going in this novel. The set up at the end leaves the door open for a possible sequel but resolves everything in the first book well.
This is a recommended book for fans of light-hearted YA medieval fantasies. Haven’s court of advisors and personal guards are all loyal and faultless, which is quite a change from the usual scheming mechanics of court. Additionally, the neighboring kingdoms all seem to get along extremely well, as they all are initially quite keen to help support each other without much bargaining. Of course, Queen Kadia is quite a psychopath that they are up against, and she is also one of the most intriguing characters because she is so flawed. She has heard of Haven’s immortality. Excited to discover another special magical being like herself, she makes it her mission to kidnap Haven. Conquering the other kingdoms is almost an afterthought, but one she can easily do, because she possesses the power to summon mindless soldiers of shadow to do her bidding. Toward the end, Kadia hints of others like her and a greater evil, which may open the door for future books.
One of Bogle’s strengths is writing action scenes. During the fights, she painted a clear picture and the action flowed. The plot was a bit slow until the point Haven was captured, but then it just took off. Part of this has to do with the characterization. It was difficult for me to get a sense of the personalities of Haven’s personal guard. I thought it was awesome that they were three women who had been with her since childhood, but it was difficult for me to tell each of them apart. In addition, Haven is extremely good and noble-hearted, spends time with orphans and is generally selfless, which is awesome but also strays into Mary Sue territory. I did like that she had difficulty mastering the sword, and I also like that she didn’t wait around on others but rescued herself!
The writing style is extremely well-developed, but there is the occasional reliance on adverbs to tell us what a character’s personality is like instead of showing us with that character’s actions. For example, we are told that Corrin is “obnoxious” at first and that he is a “womanizer,” but then before that could be developed more and lead to some intriguing tension between Corrin and Haven, he immediately switches to the “good guy” flawless routine a couple paragraphs later. The romance was luckily just a small part of this book.
The kingdoms are interesting, but it was difficult to get a sense of jeopardy at first because we are thrust into a war going on without developing the different cultures in the kingdoms or knowing who Kadia is. However, I really liked how Seaburn was introduced. I immediately had a sense of their kingdom. Lastly, with a power like immortality, Haven feels a little bit nonchalant about it—and I am very curious as to how she came to be that way! Sadly those answers might have to wait until a future book. Katherine Bogle is definitely an author to watch. Recommended for fans of light-hearted fantasy adventures!
Recommended for fans of: Kristin Cashore and Rae Carson
*I exchanged a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
This is a recommended book for fans of light-hearted YA medieval fantasies. Haven’s court of advisors and personal guards are all loyal and faultless, which is quite a change from the usual scheming mechanics of court. Additionally, the neighboring kingdoms all seem to get along extremely well, as they all are initially quite keen to help support each other without much bargaining. Of course, Queen Kadia is quite a psychopath that they are up against, and she is also one of the most intriguing characters because she is so flawed. She has heard of Haven’s immortality. Excited to discover another special magical being like herself, she makes it her mission to kidnap Haven. Conquering the other kingdoms is almost an afterthought, but one she can easily do, because she possesses the power to summon mindless soldiers of shadow to do her bidding. Toward the end, Kadia hints of others like her and a greater evil, which may open the door for future books.
One of Bogle’s strengths is writing action scenes. During the fights, she painted a clear picture and the action flowed. The plot was a bit slow until the point Haven was captured, but then it just took off. Part of this has to do with the characterization. It was difficult for me to get a sense of the personalities of Haven’s personal guard. I thought it was awesome that they were three women who had been with her since childhood, but it was difficult for me to tell each of them apart. In addition, Haven is extremely good and noble-hearted, spends time with orphans and is generally selfless, which is awesome but also strays into Mary Sue territory. I did like that she had difficulty mastering the sword, and I also like that she didn’t wait around on others but rescued herself!
The writing style is extremely well-developed, but there is the occasional reliance on adverbs to tell us what a character’s personality is like instead of showing us with that character’s actions. For example, we are told that Corrin is “obnoxious” at first and that he is a “womanizer,” but then before that could be developed more and lead to some intriguing tension between Corrin and Haven, he immediately switches to the “good guy” flawless routine a couple paragraphs later. The romance was luckily just a small part of this book.
The kingdoms are interesting, but it was difficult to get a sense of jeopardy at first because we are thrust into a war going on without developing the different cultures in the kingdoms or knowing who Kadia is. However, I really liked how Seaburn was introduced. I immediately had a sense of their kingdom. Lastly, with a power like immortality, Haven feels a little bit nonchalant about it—and I am very curious as to how she came to be that way! Sadly those answers might have to wait until a future book. Katherine Bogle is definitely an author to watch. Recommended for fans of light-hearted fantasy adventures!
Recommended for fans of: Kristin Cashore and Rae Carson
*I exchanged a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 31, 2016
For more book reviews, check out the blog at www.RealLifary.com
War is imminent in this fictional land of Warshard, and young Queen Haven of Rythern is still trying to navigate her new role in the kingdom after the tragic deaths of her parents and brothers. Known at the Immortal Queen, Haven is unable to die. She was born with a gift or rather a curse in her eyes that allows her body to heal from any injury, free from sickness, she will never die. With the help and support of the neighboring kingdoms, including the handsome Prince Corrin, known for his flirtatious nature and womanizing ways, the royals have devised a plan to rid the kingdom of the mad Queen Kadia. Kadia proves to be a ruthless warrior, aided by the help of never before seen black magic, she quickly invades and takes the kingdoms nearing Havens land. Left with no options, the kingdoms ban together and attempt escape to the land across the sea, Seaburn, known for it's highly trained and efficient army, in a last ditch attempt to elicit aid to take back their lands and dispose of the evil Queen. During the escape, Haven is kidnapped and tortured, held for weeks on end before escaping and making the treacherous journey to reunite with her people in Seaburn. With renewed strength and resolve, the kingdoms unite to make a last stand against Kadia, freedom or death. Can Haven lead her people to victory against a seemingly impossible foe? Or will Kadia remain victorious once more, taking all that is precious from Haven for good?
What I think I really enjoyed most about this read were the abundance of strong female characters. Not only was Haven pretty bad ass, strong and determined, selfless and heroic, but she was surrounded with equally strong and bad ass female warriors in her personal guard, Lareina, Malka, and Blythe. It was refreshing to read a book where gender roles were not so stereotypical, and some of the lands more talented warriors were women. Kudos for that Katherine! Havens determination and loyalty to her people was something I found endearing and the blooming relationship and love between her and Corrin added another level of drama to the plot. (Corrin reminds me a lot of Finnick Odair in the Hungar Games series, probably why I liked him so much!). Queen Kadia was a perfectly written villain, equal parts insane and evil.
I was left with some questions at the end of the novel and am thinking this may be one of a planned series?! (Please?? Give us more!) Looking forward to reading whatever comes next from Kathrine!
War is imminent in this fictional land of Warshard, and young Queen Haven of Rythern is still trying to navigate her new role in the kingdom after the tragic deaths of her parents and brothers. Known at the Immortal Queen, Haven is unable to die. She was born with a gift or rather a curse in her eyes that allows her body to heal from any injury, free from sickness, she will never die. With the help and support of the neighboring kingdoms, including the handsome Prince Corrin, known for his flirtatious nature and womanizing ways, the royals have devised a plan to rid the kingdom of the mad Queen Kadia. Kadia proves to be a ruthless warrior, aided by the help of never before seen black magic, she quickly invades and takes the kingdoms nearing Havens land. Left with no options, the kingdoms ban together and attempt escape to the land across the sea, Seaburn, known for it's highly trained and efficient army, in a last ditch attempt to elicit aid to take back their lands and dispose of the evil Queen. During the escape, Haven is kidnapped and tortured, held for weeks on end before escaping and making the treacherous journey to reunite with her people in Seaburn. With renewed strength and resolve, the kingdoms unite to make a last stand against Kadia, freedom or death. Can Haven lead her people to victory against a seemingly impossible foe? Or will Kadia remain victorious once more, taking all that is precious from Haven for good?
What I think I really enjoyed most about this read were the abundance of strong female characters. Not only was Haven pretty bad ass, strong and determined, selfless and heroic, but she was surrounded with equally strong and bad ass female warriors in her personal guard, Lareina, Malka, and Blythe. It was refreshing to read a book where gender roles were not so stereotypical, and some of the lands more talented warriors were women. Kudos for that Katherine! Havens determination and loyalty to her people was something I found endearing and the blooming relationship and love between her and Corrin added another level of drama to the plot. (Corrin reminds me a lot of Finnick Odair in the Hungar Games series, probably why I liked him so much!). Queen Kadia was a perfectly written villain, equal parts insane and evil.
I was left with some questions at the end of the novel and am thinking this may be one of a planned series?! (Please?? Give us more!) Looking forward to reading whatever comes next from Kathrine!
September 1, 2016
Review originally posted on Hills of Books
*This review is based on a e-copy of this book, which I was sent by the author, this however hasn't effected my review of the book in any way, and all thoughts are my own.*
This book although took me longer than normal to read - due to real life getting in the way rather than the quality of the book- this book managed to hook me. Within the first chapter we get to see Haven's immorality in action. This is something I was happy to see, because often when someone's 'secret or rare ability' is revealed in the blurb, as a reader I then have to wait half the book for the character to realise that they have this ability, that I have known about from the start - so frustrating. So no frustration for me from that aspect, Haven is the only one with this ability so nobody seems to really understand how it works, so it surprised me how much Haven was willing to use it despite not knowing if it work.
My favourite aspect of this book has to be Haven's character development. We get to see her change so much from the young queen who depended on reassurance from her advisers for decisions, to the strong and determined warrior queen saving lands and freeing people. I specifically liked that although she had the kind but 'warrior heart,' she still had to learn to 'own' her decisions and how to handle a weapon correctly. I also liked some of the slightly more secondary characters, I loved the way that Haven and her body guards interacted as they struggled though the difficulties together.
One of the only reasons which I didn't give this book fives stars was that this book is very war and political heavy for my taste. Now don't read me wrong I love reading about political manoeuvres and battles I just like there to be other things happening as well. This book does have a lovely romance and -for me - I would have loved to read more about the time these two spent interacting.
Overall, this book was full of fast paced, none stop action with just that hint of romance and the beginnings and strengthening of, what I guess will be, life long friendships.
*This review is based on a e-copy of this book, which I was sent by the author, this however hasn't effected my review of the book in any way, and all thoughts are my own.*
This book although took me longer than normal to read - due to real life getting in the way rather than the quality of the book- this book managed to hook me. Within the first chapter we get to see Haven's immorality in action. This is something I was happy to see, because often when someone's 'secret or rare ability' is revealed in the blurb, as a reader I then have to wait half the book for the character to realise that they have this ability, that I have known about from the start - so frustrating. So no frustration for me from that aspect, Haven is the only one with this ability so nobody seems to really understand how it works, so it surprised me how much Haven was willing to use it despite not knowing if it work.
My favourite aspect of this book has to be Haven's character development. We get to see her change so much from the young queen who depended on reassurance from her advisers for decisions, to the strong and determined warrior queen saving lands and freeing people. I specifically liked that although she had the kind but 'warrior heart,' she still had to learn to 'own' her decisions and how to handle a weapon correctly. I also liked some of the slightly more secondary characters, I loved the way that Haven and her body guards interacted as they struggled though the difficulties together.
One of the only reasons which I didn't give this book fives stars was that this book is very war and political heavy for my taste. Now don't read me wrong I love reading about political manoeuvres and battles I just like there to be other things happening as well. This book does have a lovely romance and -for me - I would have loved to read more about the time these two spent interacting.
Overall, this book was full of fast paced, none stop action with just that hint of romance and the beginnings and strengthening of, what I guess will be, life long friendships.
August 30, 2016
Haven was never meant to be queen. Yet, with her curse of immortality and with her family gone, she is forced to take the throne. However, she does not know how to rule. Immediately, when she is on the throne, she finds out the her kingdom is in danger. Soon, she goes to war against an evil queen who is determined to destroy them all. Can Queen Haven defeat the evil queen and save her kingdom?
Queen Haven is an unlikely heroine. She is thrust into a position that she has no training for. She is uncertain in her position as queen. She is often clueless and leans on the advice of others. Yet, she has a good heart. She loves her friends and her kingdom. She is willing to do everything to help others. She gradually begins to have self-confidence and learns to trust herself. While there were some actions that I did not agree with, I find that she did it on good intentions. Nevertheless, I thought that she grew stronger as a queen. Thus, Haven is a character that audiences will root for and will like to see how she grows as a character.
Overall, this story is about love, friendship, responsibility, and self-acceptance. The message of this book is to believe in yourself. I found the book to be very slow. It is not until halfway through the book that it picks up. I think I would have enjoyed this book much better if it was shorter. I also thought that the secondary characters needed to be fleshed out. I would have loved to have known more about the villain, Queen Kadia, as well as other characters, such as her love interest. I also thought that the romance was forced because it was instant-love and needed more time to develop naturally. I also thought the world-building needed a bit more work, for it was not really fleshed out and needed more details about the six kingdoms. As I read it, I was confused about the places. This needs more work for an epic fantasy and in a war story, the places are very important. Haven has elements of action, adventure, political and court intrigue, and romance. I recommend this book for those who enjoy reading about unique heroines, coming-of age stories, and journeys of self-discovery.
(Note: This book was given to me as part of a blog tour in exchange for an honest review.)
Queen Haven is an unlikely heroine. She is thrust into a position that she has no training for. She is uncertain in her position as queen. She is often clueless and leans on the advice of others. Yet, she has a good heart. She loves her friends and her kingdom. She is willing to do everything to help others. She gradually begins to have self-confidence and learns to trust herself. While there were some actions that I did not agree with, I find that she did it on good intentions. Nevertheless, I thought that she grew stronger as a queen. Thus, Haven is a character that audiences will root for and will like to see how she grows as a character.
Overall, this story is about love, friendship, responsibility, and self-acceptance. The message of this book is to believe in yourself. I found the book to be very slow. It is not until halfway through the book that it picks up. I think I would have enjoyed this book much better if it was shorter. I also thought that the secondary characters needed to be fleshed out. I would have loved to have known more about the villain, Queen Kadia, as well as other characters, such as her love interest. I also thought that the romance was forced because it was instant-love and needed more time to develop naturally. I also thought the world-building needed a bit more work, for it was not really fleshed out and needed more details about the six kingdoms. As I read it, I was confused about the places. This needs more work for an epic fantasy and in a war story, the places are very important. Haven has elements of action, adventure, political and court intrigue, and romance. I recommend this book for those who enjoy reading about unique heroines, coming-of age stories, and journeys of self-discovery.
(Note: This book was given to me as part of a blog tour in exchange for an honest review.)
July 16, 2016
An epic fantasy led by a powerful female protagonist, Haven's narrative unfolds in a world where magic is rare and war is brewing. A newly crowned queen & gifted with immortality, Haven is granted ultimate power in her kingdom in the wake of her family's murder. Thrown into the role of Queen, she must rely on her friends, advisors and fellow kings to survive the coming storm and grow confident in her ruling ability.
It is a well-written novel, full of conflict and layered with unexpected themes. At the core is Haven, a protagonist and heroine who is compassionate and insecure. She is a relatable human being whose concern for her subjects' well-being also makes her rather endearing.
Her major arc deals with her conflict with Kadia, a woman who has a perverse fascination with her powers. This leads to rather dark and disturbing turn of events. The events that Haven is forced to contend with are life-altering and character building. Where many authors might fumble with the repercussions of them, Katherine deals with the fallout deftly, elevating the strength of the story in thematic terms.
The secondary characters have interesting stories of their own, and while most aren't as fully developed as I wish they would be, the primary male supporters are given enough depth and room to grow.
The setting descriptions and world-building are intricate, bringing Warshard to life. There is a lot of foundation laid for future installments, promising new lands and characters that will delight as well as the first.
The conclusion of the novel was a little jarring and wrapped up too quickly, but it does not take away from the general enjoyment of the narrative. I look forward to the next one!
Fans of epic fantasy will be drawn into Haven's story, discovering in her a strong female protagonist. Looking for a new world to get lost in, look no further.
It is a well-written novel, full of conflict and layered with unexpected themes. At the core is Haven, a protagonist and heroine who is compassionate and insecure. She is a relatable human being whose concern for her subjects' well-being also makes her rather endearing.
Her major arc deals with her conflict with Kadia, a woman who has a perverse fascination with her powers. This leads to rather dark and disturbing turn of events. The events that Haven is forced to contend with are life-altering and character building. Where many authors might fumble with the repercussions of them, Katherine deals with the fallout deftly, elevating the strength of the story in thematic terms.
The secondary characters have interesting stories of their own, and while most aren't as fully developed as I wish they would be, the primary male supporters are given enough depth and room to grow.
The setting descriptions and world-building are intricate, bringing Warshard to life. There is a lot of foundation laid for future installments, promising new lands and characters that will delight as well as the first.
The conclusion of the novel was a little jarring and wrapped up too quickly, but it does not take away from the general enjoyment of the narrative. I look forward to the next one!
Fans of epic fantasy will be drawn into Haven's story, discovering in her a strong female protagonist. Looking for a new world to get lost in, look no further.
August 16, 2016
(
I received this book free from the author in exchange for my honest review
)
It's been a time since I've read a period fiction piece. I was excited because there be some black magic kicking about and a queen that never dies. I dove into this book expecting excitement, grand battles and blood. I did get some of that, just not right away.
To start this book is just over 200 pages, so a quick read. Normally with these reads, the story picks up fast as there isn't much wiggle room. But Haven, is slow, the build up is slow, and made it boring. To many mundane things, to much info dumping and not enough grit and plot moment. The opening is amazing, well written and captivating. It gets to the point, and right away the queen is placed in a very difficult position.
But after that, it slowed down, sloth slow. There was filler, after filler, oh a letter comes and .. I write back... lalala.... so yeah it didn't get my reader engines going.
Over half way everything picks up with a bang, and I got what I wanted. It just took a bit to get there and in truth, made me not want put this beauty down. But I'm glad I stuck with it. Because this is a short read I won't give anything away. But, I'm definitely going to be reading the next book.
The writing is good, the flow was smooth event he filler flowed and wasn't awkward.
In all I highly recommend this book, as I said, it is slow at the start, but it's worth your wild to get passed that and see this one to the end. You're heart will be pounding, eyes will be glued to the paged and leaving you wanting more.
Happy Reading
-E.A. Walsh
It's been a time since I've read a period fiction piece. I was excited because there be some black magic kicking about and a queen that never dies. I dove into this book expecting excitement, grand battles and blood. I did get some of that, just not right away.
To start this book is just over 200 pages, so a quick read. Normally with these reads, the story picks up fast as there isn't much wiggle room. But Haven, is slow, the build up is slow, and made it boring. To many mundane things, to much info dumping and not enough grit and plot moment. The opening is amazing, well written and captivating. It gets to the point, and right away the queen is placed in a very difficult position.
But after that, it slowed down, sloth slow. There was filler, after filler, oh a letter comes and .. I write back... lalala.... so yeah it didn't get my reader engines going.
Over half way everything picks up with a bang, and I got what I wanted. It just took a bit to get there and in truth, made me not want put this beauty down. But I'm glad I stuck with it. Because this is a short read I won't give anything away. But, I'm definitely going to be reading the next book.
The writing is good, the flow was smooth event he filler flowed and wasn't awkward.
In all I highly recommend this book, as I said, it is slow at the start, but it's worth your wild to get passed that and see this one to the end. You're heart will be pounding, eyes will be glued to the paged and leaving you wanting more.
Happy Reading
-E.A. Walsh
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