Prophecy's Heir review

Prophecy’s Heirs, the first book in the Arualian Archives series by Emily G. Watson, introduces us to Crown Prince Walter, Princess Airdella, and Princess Amy. Due to turmoil in their country, they are sent to stay with retired knight, Sir Dorrian. Away from a life of luxury and privilege, the teens and younger sister, Amy, begin learning to do things for themselves, including skills used for knights. This leads to a series of adventures and a quest to protect their kingdom from an evil enemy and restore their father’s health.

Watching the kids grow as a tighter family unit as they learn more skills and protect one another is an excellent lesson for the age group intended for this series. As they lean more on one another, they also learn to differentiate between friends and foes along the way. When things fall apart, they each learn the ability to reason as they search for solutions. I also liked the addition of Aaron to the group of youngsters. He is also on a quest and has additional skills to round out the group.

For me, the book had times that I couldn’t put it down, but also chapters where I would lose interest. I am not the target audience, so tweens and teens who love fantasy and exploring new worlds should love the series. It would also be great for homeschoolers or families who enjoy reading books together.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of Prophecy’s Heirs from the author. Opinions are my own.

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The Crescent Stone - Matt Mikalatos

A girl with a deadly lung disease . . .
A boy with a tragic past . . .
A land where the sun never sets but darkness still creeps in . . .

Madeline Oliver has never wanted for anything, but now she would give anything just to breathe. Jason Wu skates through life on jokes, but when a tragedy leaves him guilt-stricken, he promises to tell only the truth, no matter the price. When a mysterious stranger name Hanali appears to Madeline and offers to heal her in exchange for one year of service to his people, Madeline and Jason are swept into a strange land where they don’t know the rules and where their decisions carry consequences that reach farther than they could ever guess.

MY REVIEW: YA Fantasy Fiction has never been a particular favorite of mine, but I have loved other books by Matt Mikalatos so I wanted to give this a chance. I admit it did drag a bit for me at times, but that's not the fault of Mikalatos. In fact, although it took me longer than usual to read "The Crescent Stone," I did want to know how the story was going to turn out. It definitely points in his favor that I had enough interest to keep going forward.

And there were quite a few twists and turns on the journey. Things and people were not always what you thought and there were a few surprises along the way. Most of the characters were very intriguing. I was disappointed not to see some further developed and a few did not interest me as much so I would get a bit bored.

Sometimes there was a touch too much of social justice warrior type conversation, yet I did thoroughly appreciate historical background that is not shared as frequently as when I was in school. More important for me was that the reader is made to realize that things aren't always what they appear and that there may be another side, or even sides, to a story.  Of course, I am several decades beyond the intended audience age... and have less interest in this type of fantasy, so I am not the intended audience. I definitely recommend it for others to try.

 I received a copy of this book for review purposes from Tyndale House Publishers.