The Lost City: King's Inheritance by D.L. Colon

 

In the next book in The Lost City Series, Noryad King has returned home after many many years to claim what is rightfully his; his inheritance.  He is the rightful ruler and king of the island he returned to, but first he must train and go through a number of tests to prove his worth and skill.  When he returns he finds that the dead are already coming to him and that there is much to be learned before he can even begin to look for the sword of King Arthur.  No one knows where the sword is besides the one that watches over it and Merlin, the sorcerer.
   Not too long after arriving back at his castle, Coral, the Goddess of Fate, follows him there and stays at the castle as well.  She and Noryad have feelings for each other that keep developing, but she holds secrets that threaten to destroy their relationship.  And once those secrets come out, it also causes a vengeful war for Noryad, who already has one war coming in the near future.  He must be ready for both so he can protect his kingdom and his people.  More than that, he must help protect the world from Raphael and his Destroyers that are coming.  And make no mistake, the devil's son is out for blood.


  I have now read both books in this series and although the first was a pretty good read, this one was absolutely fantastic!  I was really stuck in this book and couldn't get out until I finished it!  It had loads of action and some drama.  It mixed some angels and demons with old tales of King Arthur and Merlin.  While this would normally not be a great combination, D.L. Colon did a very good job mixing it up!  I very much look forward to the next book in his series!



Book Blurb:

The King family was killed on their throne when Raphael attacked the Caribbean, looking for the location of the boy of the prophecy.

During the battle they sent Noryad, their fourth and strongest son, through a portal to the Guild Never Too Late, but not before he watched how his brothers and sister were killed in front of his eyes. As the portal closed he heard Raphael say to him, “I will look for you when you are older. You cannot hide forever.”

Now 24 years old, Noryad is forced to leave the Guild he dedicated his life to because his powers are getting out of control, but his departure happened for another reason too. His parents left him a mission for when his powers got to be too much to deal with.
Go my son. Reclaim what is yours by right. Look for the Sword of Kings, the one our ancestors used during their leadership. Make our army of the dead comeback to life. Make the King of Camelot kneel before you and recognize you as his descendant.
Noryad, left with no other choice but to return to the place that has many dark memories for him, goes through a portal and into the unknown to look for something he’s never heard of.

He must learn to control his powers as he faces something sinister waiting for him in his Kingdom, and the Demon he hates the most.

Will Noryad be able to control his powers, find the sword his parents were talking about and make them proud of him? Or will he be too consumed by his revenge to claim his inheritance and lose all that he holds dear. 

Amazon Buy Link:

http://www.amazon.com/Lost-City-Kings-Inheritance-ebook/dp/B00RY9MOIG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1427830941&sr=8-1&keywords=d.l.+colon

Artemis Rising by Cheri Lasota

   Eva is a 15-year-old girl who has a Catholic father and a pagan mother who worships the goddess Artemis.  Eva's father doesn't know of this, but has heard the rumors among the people in town and is suspicious.  He is a brutal man and won't tolerate them to be anything other than Catholic.  When he does find out, he lashes out at his wife and they leave for a new place.  On the way a dreadful storm wrecks the ship and Eva, who has now taken the name Arethusa after taking her vow to Artemis, is found by a boy that is about her age named Tristao.  When he sees her, he vows to never let anyone hurt her again.  Arethusa had hand and finger marks on her neck suggesting someone had tried to kill her.  At first it was her assumption that it was her father, but the truth is soon revealed that it was another.
   While on board the ship with her parents, there was a young man who Arethusa's mother believed to be her Alpheus.  It was Arethusa's destiny to eventually be with him.  But she isn't so sure he is the one.  The vision she saw was a young man with blue eyes.  Diogo (supposedly Alpheus) has very dark eyes and wants Arethusa, but she is unwilling to give herself to him.  After the wreck, she is taken to an orphanage where she recovers, but cannot speak because of the damage done to her neck.  All the while, Tristao watches over her until Diogo tells everyone her religion.  All of the other children are afraid of her, and Tristao, who she had started having feelings for, suddenly starts avoiding her.  Diogo will stop at nothing to get what he wants, even if it hurts Arethusa in the process.  Because of his now savage nature, she has to wonder how he could possibly be her Alpheus.
   In time Arethusa and Tristao are adopted by the padre's brother.  He took a keen interest in the two after meeting them and felt that this was the path he should take.  The two go to live with him and his sour acting wife for the next few years.  Thankfully it is a reprieve for them both from Diogo.  The Conde Fernando Estrela becomes a second father to Arethusa and a father to Tristao, who takes the name Tristan.  Both of them have now taken names that are ill-fated according to the old legends.  Tristan's is the story of he and Isolde the Fair.  Arethusa's fate is supposed to be with Alpheus.  And unfortunately, Diogo shows back up, determined to make her his wife.  He has even more tricks up his sleeve this time.  It always ends up with Arethusa getting hurt or being in danger from this crazy guy.  She and Tristan can only wonder if this is just their fate, and if they can change it.


   A story based on two old tales, this was a well written piece about two young adults who are convinced that the names they take are the fates that will be for them.  Unfortunately, they fall for each other and start to wonder if there is a way to change fate.  The padre in the story doesn't believe any of the stories and all that about them being fated to such ill endings.  He is pretty much the only one who feels this way during the book.  Even the Conde has his own Tristan and Isolde story that ties very closely to Arethusa.  Much closer than she would ever think to be possible.  He is the man with many answers to her life.  At the same time, only she can make her mind up about her fate.  However, this is a concept that she has a hard time grasping and struggles with it throughout the book.  Tristan is much the same.  Diogo believes himself to be a god now.  That goes to his head and he gets crazy and dangerous.  Some men don't do well when power is given to them.  He is one of these men.  A man of wealth and connections, he has ways of getting what he wants.  All in all, it brings one question to mind:  What is in a name?

The Hunters and the Queen Parts 1 and 2 by Virginia Vayna

Resurgence: The Queen Awakens (Part 1)

   The first book in the series is all about Jolan and her life.  She is a swimmer at the local military academy on a scholarship because her parents don't have much money.  Jolan lives at home with her parents and her older brother who also attends the academy.  While she is the swimmer, he is the brains.  Jolan is a rather humble person and doesn't like to speak ill of others.  She has two very close friends: Astrid and Eshe, and they occasionally go out to the local pub for drinks and hanging out.  Jolan is very beautiful and there are always men attracted to her.  However, she likes to debate and this doesn't always go over well.  Like the night she meets Alastair and Aidan, and unfortunately she also meets Aidan's ex, Alisha, who is basically stalking Aidan and happens to be a very jealous person.  Then Jolan meets Colemund.  He is a prince.  They don't run into each other again for a while, but when they do, their love blooms and Jolan has begun to change physically.  Her eyes are getting lighter, her frame is more slender and muscular, and she just looks different.  Even her older brother has noticed it.  When Colemund asks Jolan to go to Turkey with him, some surprising things come to light about who she truly is and why she is changing.  These changes have put Jolan in danger.

   The book was rather slow for the first half of it.  You get a good look at what Jolan's life is like on a day-to-day basis.  But there are so many mundane details it can be easy to get bogged down.  Some of the details bring out a wonderful picture of Jolan and her loving family.  Other details can be just a bit much.  But enduring is worth it in the book.  The end really starts to bring out the meat of the story.  Jolan's history is very necessary to understand this story, however.  Detail can make or break a story, and the strange thing in this book is that it seems to do a little of both.  At the beginning there is too much detail.  Then when you get closer to the end of the book, details are what make this part of the story so good.  I guess you could say it is balanced in that aspect, but precariously close to being almost too much.


Transcendence: The Allure of the Gypsy (Part 2)


   Jolan is still in Istanbul, Turkey with Colemund and has had her brother, Crispus, and her friend, Eshe, to join her.  They, along with a few others, join her as she once again becomes the long dead Queen Constanjii who was killed some 1700 years before.  The Hunters are now in hot pursuit of Jolan so that they can kill her again.  Because she is gaining power, she is also restoring power to the two other elements on the Earth, as well as taking power from the Hunters.  Hadrian is feeling himself lose power and control and wants it back.  The gypsy neighbor to Jolan and her family is in search of her too.  The gypsy doesn't want to hurt her.  She needs Jolan's help to keep from turning into a full hunter.

   This book leaves off right where the first book stopped so to fully understand book 2 in the series you must read book 1.  However, book 2 is a vast improvement and gets straight to the heart of the story.  You dive straight in and it holds your interest fully.  Of particular interest is who killed Queen Constanjii so long ago, as well as whether the gypsy neighbor to Jolan will be saved or not before turning into a full hunter.  There is a small amount of repetition, but only a little.  Book 2 is about half as long as the first one.  That in now way takes away from the story though.  There is a lot more action and watching Jolan's powers begin to grow.  In fact, it was such an improvement I would give this book a solid 4 stars out of five!