Crown of Secrets

Crown of Secrets is a good book. Well-written and the storyworld is interesting. But the reason why I have given it only 3.5 stars is because there is nothing exactly remarkable about it. Although, I do have a feeling the subsequent books will change that perception because Verene has now unlocked her powers.I do want to highlight that I made a lot of notes in my kindle while reading the book. And some of the observations were as follows:-1. It makes no sense for equally-sized kingdoms to try to conquer the other when both nations are equally matched in power and mages. And it makes even less sense for that war to stretch on for 30 years, wasting resources and manpower.But then again, USA did the same in the Vietnam Wars until the Washington Post released the Pentagon Papers, which highlighted that higher-ups knew they should recall the American troops but their ego wouldn't allow them to admit they made a mistake, and so to cover up, they just kept sending more and more soldiers to a death trap. So I guess, there is real-world precedent in this dumbassery.Nevertheless, for a nation as smart as Ardann, it makes no sense for them to take down the border wall just 20 years after the war ended! Especially when Kallorway's king hasn't made any overt attempts to be peaceful.2. Prince Darius is not a very well-developed character. He just felt very cardboard-y to me with his rigid demeanor and weird mannerisms.He made a few diplomatic mistakes as well.You do not barge into someone's private room without knocking. Especially when you are using a secret tapestry door. It's bad manners.You do not stop dancing midway with the princess of a neighboring country at her goodwill ball just because you feel it was a strategic misstep in front of your country's powerful people. No matter who you might have offended, you have now opened yourself up to potentially offending the foreign princess as well. Not a good move!Also, can we talk about his red flag behaviors?I mean the guy is an obvious control freak. And I was really offended when he told Verene that to mistrust his brother is to mistrust him. As if she does not have the right to her opinions and intelligent observations. In fact, when he pulled away from her in the end because of this, and Verene was beating herself up over it, I really smacked my face. This is how abusive relationships begin. You start second-guessing your intelligence and actions because you want to please the other person.3. I liked the way Verene's character was developed though. And her ability is really cool.Having said that, the only times I got annoyed with her were places where it felt the author was forcing this character to act a certain way just so she can spice up the romance between her and Darius.Other than that, I found Verene really intelligent and creative at solving problems. She also has a lot of patience and foresight. Plus, it was refreshing to see a character whose entire existence was not wrapped around how she felt about the crown prince.All in all, I think 3.5 is not bad for a first book. I hope the remaining books in the series continue building up the momentum.

I love the way the idea and characters are being developed in this first book - can't wait to see what comes in book two and beyond ¬¬

Was really happy to see the email this morning to say my preorder had been completed. Loved the previous books in the series and this was no different. Read already and looking forward to the next.

I wasn't sure at the start that it would engage me, because there seemed to be such a lot of courtier politics and explanations. But it grew on me and had enough action to keep me in the series. Kick ass females, interesting males and magic as well. A curious take on magic where people have to write a spell and then tear the paper... curious. Without spoiling anything, after the series was devoured I still feel a bit confused about 'sealing' a Mage.. Sigh

...if i will finish the whole series. So far i was almost more bored than entertained. I excuse that atm as it being just the start of that spin off and a lot of informations were provided about the series before( i haven't read that one so far). So if the story in the next part will get some swing i can see me enjoying the series, if not it will be my last book...

I like this world and the magic in it, and the first book begins to unravel a mystery that I look forward to discovering more about in the rest of this interesting fantasy series