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The Courts of Fate and Fear #2
The Courts of Hope and Heartache
For fans of the fantasy romance of Sarah J. Maas and Jennifer L. Armentrout comes the second book in the Courts of Fate and Fear series, filled with tension, passion, and the constant threat of heartbreak.
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Adelyn Valrobar has gone from princess of Lithya to queen of the kingdom she and her beloved, Rohn Anora, have conquered and united. But sitting on the throne and mastering her magic haven’t put an end to Adelyn’s problems—in fact, the tension swirling around the kingdom and the court have continued to grow since their ascension. When Adelyn is nearly assassinated by rebels loyal to Adelyn’s exiled brother and imprisoned father, the fragile peace holding the new kingdom together threatens to snap. And as they face this challenge, passion will spark, but Adelyn and Rohn will also face their true test—whether they can rule together as equals, or if the realities of power will tear them apart.
Adrielle Valrobar has been exiled to Aeyth, joining her brother Haden in the capital Celosia. She is furious at her sister Adelyn for stealing away the throne, and tired of the games that Prince Equen of Aeyth is playing with her. When Equen brings her news that there is a rebel movement planning to attack Sertra and restore Haden and their father to power, Adrielle believes that her luck has turned. But just as she’s preparing to take back her kingdom, a chance meeting with a mysterious boy and Equen’s manipulations force her to reckon with the fact that her father and brother may not be the true heroes of the story—and that everything she’s wanted in life may not be what’s good for her, and Sertra, after all.
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Adelyn Valrobar has gone from princess of Lithya to queen of the kingdom she and her beloved, Rohn Anora, have conquered and united. But sitting on the throne and mastering her magic haven’t put an end to Adelyn’s problems—in fact, the tension swirling around the kingdom and the court have continued to grow since their ascension. When Adelyn is nearly assassinated by rebels loyal to Adelyn’s exiled brother and imprisoned father, the fragile peace holding the new kingdom together threatens to snap. And as they face this challenge, passion will spark, but Adelyn and Rohn will also face their true test—whether they can rule together as equals, or if the realities of power will tear them apart.
Adrielle Valrobar has been exiled to Aeyth, joining her brother Haden in the capital Celosia. She is furious at her sister Adelyn for stealing away the throne, and tired of the games that Prince Equen of Aeyth is playing with her. When Equen brings her news that there is a rebel movement planning to attack Sertra and restore Haden and their father to power, Adrielle believes that her luck has turned. But just as she’s preparing to take back her kingdom, a chance meeting with a mysterious boy and Equen’s manipulations force her to reckon with the fact that her father and brother may not be the true heroes of the story—and that everything she’s wanted in life may not be what’s good for her, and Sertra, after all.
330 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 30, 2022
80 people are currently reading
236 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth S. Trafalgar
4 books53 followersElizabeth S. Trafalgar grew up writing stories—and then never stopped. When she’s not working on her next book, she spends her time reading all the fantasy she can get her hands on, trying new cookie recipes, and catering to the whims of her two enormous cats. She lives on the east coast with her spouse. Follow her on Instagram at @elizabethstrafalgar.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
October 12, 2022
4.5 stars
Finding balance in the kingdom, family, and self.
The Courts of Hope and Heartache by Elizabeth S. Trafalgar is the second in the The Courts of Fate and Fear Series and was nothing short of amazingly intense! I was so excited to see the second novel; this is such a great story! After Adelyn and Rohn take over her kingdom, she and her new king have to reinvent their new kingdom while dealing with those who oppose them. Additionally, Adrielle and Hayden are determined to get their kingdom back. Which side will succeed and will there be anyone who inevitably suffers?
I love that this time, Adrielle has a huge storyline. She was so left out last time, which was needed due to us getting to know Adelyn. She was given space to grow. I also love that everyone was dealing with tough emotions, control, power struggles, and mental health.
Between the lack of a kingdom, trying to get it back, and the gain of a kingdom but don’t know how to run and share it, brought such a great conflict. I like that there is a new normal for everyone and they have to deal with the outcomes of their actions from the previous novel. It’s also interesting that the sisters kind of had a switch in many ways. The one who was powerful with magic, couldn’t use it and the one who had none could access it with ease. Great dynamic!
Finally I enjoyed the combination and continuation of having various types of relationships, LGBT and more. There’s a lot to deal with within the story but it makes complete sense. It’d be weird for them to not deal with their emotions and even experience things like PTSD. Lots of death and fighting had just happened in the previous novel.
The only thing that could be shifted is the repetitive thoughts that the characters have. Another thing is that Adrielle has a lot of self talk happening even though there’s space for her to start interacting with others. It takes too long for her to get out of her head.
I’d highly recommend reading the first book in the series and then diving into this one! If you love fantasy, some romance, royals, adventure and a coming of age story, this is for you!
Previous book: The Courts of Fate and Fear
*This was an honest review for a complimentary copy of The Courts of Hope and Heartache from Elizabeth S. Trafalgar.
Finding balance in the kingdom, family, and self.
The Courts of Hope and Heartache by Elizabeth S. Trafalgar is the second in the The Courts of Fate and Fear Series and was nothing short of amazingly intense! I was so excited to see the second novel; this is such a great story! After Adelyn and Rohn take over her kingdom, she and her new king have to reinvent their new kingdom while dealing with those who oppose them. Additionally, Adrielle and Hayden are determined to get their kingdom back. Which side will succeed and will there be anyone who inevitably suffers?
I love that this time, Adrielle has a huge storyline. She was so left out last time, which was needed due to us getting to know Adelyn. She was given space to grow. I also love that everyone was dealing with tough emotions, control, power struggles, and mental health.
Between the lack of a kingdom, trying to get it back, and the gain of a kingdom but don’t know how to run and share it, brought such a great conflict. I like that there is a new normal for everyone and they have to deal with the outcomes of their actions from the previous novel. It’s also interesting that the sisters kind of had a switch in many ways. The one who was powerful with magic, couldn’t use it and the one who had none could access it with ease. Great dynamic!
Finally I enjoyed the combination and continuation of having various types of relationships, LGBT and more. There’s a lot to deal with within the story but it makes complete sense. It’d be weird for them to not deal with their emotions and even experience things like PTSD. Lots of death and fighting had just happened in the previous novel.
The only thing that could be shifted is the repetitive thoughts that the characters have. Another thing is that Adrielle has a lot of self talk happening even though there’s space for her to start interacting with others. It takes too long for her to get out of her head.
I’d highly recommend reading the first book in the series and then diving into this one! If you love fantasy, some romance, royals, adventure and a coming of age story, this is for you!
Previous book: The Courts of Fate and Fear
*This was an honest review for a complimentary copy of The Courts of Hope and Heartache from Elizabeth S. Trafalgar.
November 16, 2022
The book took turns going from Adelyn's POV and her sister Adrielle. Adrielle's relationship with Serafin moved too quickly and came out of nowhere, I hated it, it seemed so rushed and fake and lacked any substance. Her and Equen had deeper more nuanced onscreen time and interesting interactions but then out of nowhere she was madly in love with this guy who we'd seen her meet at the docks all of 3 times. He sought her out knowing she was a princess and kept his identity hidden from her and let her think he didn't know who she was.
The whole reason why she was drawn to him over Equen was because she thought he didn't know who she was and because of that she felt safer, like he wasn't interested in her for her princess title but for who she was as a person. But then we find out that he knew who she was from their first interaction and instead of feeling BETRAYAL or DISTRUST she............falls deeper in love and knows he's her soulmate by this admission? I hated their relationship and wished she would have ended up with Equen, who we saw have more character depth on the page. Serafin was just some distant royalty who presented himself as a lowly fish merchant and hung out with Adrielle a few times on the boat off screen mostly, like we didn't even get to see their interactions on the boat just told that they spent the day on the boat and he taught her magic and then boom she's in love with him and we're suppose to believe it or even be invested in the guy.
I wish Adrielle's POV would have been left out if this was going to be the outcome. I won't be continuing this series.
The whole reason why she was drawn to him over Equen was because she thought he didn't know who she was and because of that she felt safer, like he wasn't interested in her for her princess title but for who she was as a person. But then we find out that he knew who she was from their first interaction and instead of feeling BETRAYAL or DISTRUST she............falls deeper in love and knows he's her soulmate by this admission? I hated their relationship and wished she would have ended up with Equen, who we saw have more character depth on the page. Serafin was just some distant royalty who presented himself as a lowly fish merchant and hung out with Adrielle a few times on the boat off screen mostly, like we didn't even get to see their interactions on the boat just told that they spent the day on the boat and he taught her magic and then boom she's in love with him and we're suppose to believe it or even be invested in the guy.
I wish Adrielle's POV would have been left out if this was going to be the outcome. I won't be continuing this series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 30, 2022
👑 Fantasy
✏️ 1st Person/Past Tense/Dual POV
⚠️ Mild Spoilers
What a fabulous follow-up to book 1!
THE COURTS OF HOPE AND HEARTACHE picks up where book one left off, with Adelyn in Sertra and Adrielle (and Haden) in Aeyth. Readers are treated to a second POV (Adrielle’s), which definitely enriches the story. It’s not about Adelyn surviving the unknown and mastering her magic anymore. It’s about family, the freedom to choose one’s own path in life, warring loyalties and warring kingdoms, and the question of who should wield power—those who are born into it or those who can wield it justly. In other words, the story runs so much deeper now, with new themes and intrigues being woven into the tapestry of Courts.
Aeyth’s politics begin to emerge with Equen playing a huge role throughout the novel. He’s a very clever man, and I’ll just leave it at that. Honestly, my favorite parts of TCOHAH were when Adrielle and Equen were the only ones on the page, their motivations and emotions laid bare.
Overall, THE COURTS OF HOPE AND HEARTACHE is an incredibly strong follow-up to book 1. So, if you’re a fan of political intrigue, found family, romance, and magic, magic and more magic, then you will love this book!
✏️ 1st Person/Past Tense/Dual POV
⚠️ Mild Spoilers
What a fabulous follow-up to book 1!
THE COURTS OF HOPE AND HEARTACHE picks up where book one left off, with Adelyn in Sertra and Adrielle (and Haden) in Aeyth. Readers are treated to a second POV (Adrielle’s), which definitely enriches the story. It’s not about Adelyn surviving the unknown and mastering her magic anymore. It’s about family, the freedom to choose one’s own path in life, warring loyalties and warring kingdoms, and the question of who should wield power—those who are born into it or those who can wield it justly. In other words, the story runs so much deeper now, with new themes and intrigues being woven into the tapestry of Courts.
Aeyth’s politics begin to emerge with Equen playing a huge role throughout the novel. He’s a very clever man, and I’ll just leave it at that. Honestly, my favorite parts of TCOHAH were when Adrielle and Equen were the only ones on the page, their motivations and emotions laid bare.
Overall, THE COURTS OF HOPE AND HEARTACHE is an incredibly strong follow-up to book 1. So, if you’re a fan of political intrigue, found family, romance, and magic, magic and more magic, then you will love this book!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 21, 2023
Great continuation.
Great continuation. I was guessing, second-guessing, triple guessing people's motives, the whole book. I was tense and flipping pages like it helped the MCs fight! Wonderful emotions pulled out of me by this book. Great character development and relationships. I'm so ready to start book 3.
*This book is rated a mild R. There is no language, but there are mildly explicit spice scenes. There is also violence that contains blood details.
**There is an LGBTQ relationship in this story. Also, a lot of the characters seem to be BI, and it is discussed, thought of, mentioned several times. Do not read this book if you are not okay with this, and then give it a bad review.
Great continuation. I was guessing, second-guessing, triple guessing people's motives, the whole book. I was tense and flipping pages like it helped the MCs fight! Wonderful emotions pulled out of me by this book. Great character development and relationships. I'm so ready to start book 3.
*This book is rated a mild R. There is no language, but there are mildly explicit spice scenes. There is also violence that contains blood details.
**There is an LGBTQ relationship in this story. Also, a lot of the characters seem to be BI, and it is discussed, thought of, mentioned several times. Do not read this book if you are not okay with this, and then give it a bad review.
September 16, 2022
I was completely captured with book one in this series and it's always a little intimidating to jump back in hoping that the next book will be just as good, but my fear was unfounded. The beginning of this book read slower than the first, but by chapter 10 the pace, plot, & character development was exactly where I wanted it. This book ends on what I'd describe as a soft-cliffhanger. It definitely doesn't have a complete resolution, but your favorite character didn't just jump into unknown peril either. I'm eager to see how our main group tackles this next hurtle as it seems like it's going to quite the uphill battle. Definitely recommend 👌
November 5, 2022
I beg of you not to let the "for fans of" deter you, because I can't stand Armentrout or SJM and really like this author a lot. I was right to be hopeful that things pick up with the intrigue, though I would also recommend reading this book immediately after the first as there's no sort of recap in the beginning--it took me a while to get my bearings back. It's just a pleasant read for people who enjoy court novels with magic, honestly. Equen gets his first PoV chapter in this, and I am really hoping he gets more in the next one.
December 7, 2022
Intrigue, in all its definitions, on steroids. The royals are finding that trying to rule each of their kingdoms is harder than they thought, especially when not everyone is content. There is a lot at stake, and a lot of plans that are coming together, and I can’t wait until the next book is released to see if there will be a “Happily Ever-after.”
August 26, 2023
Book one was great. This book seemed to be rushed at least from Adrielle's point of view and her relationship with Seraphin (out of nowhere tbh) and felt general plot had no substance. Felt like filler.
September 19, 2022
review coming soon!
October 4, 2022
A Saga
This being the second book, it surprised me by being even more full of deception,plots & new romance. The plot is full of twists and turns, which I love. Its a gem of a story, when I can't foresee the outcome early.
This being the second book, it surprised me by being even more full of deception,plots & new romance. The plot is full of twists and turns, which I love. Its a gem of a story, when I can't foresee the outcome early.
Read
January 10, 2023DNF
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews