Claire M. Banschbach

This is a very competent and stylish fantasy story which will entertain readers of all ages from I'd say fourteen or so and over. The story of a Prince who is kidnapped and sold into slavery, it is the tale of one man's battles to regain his honour, as well as his fallen status. Branded as a slave, name changed to heap further shame upon him, our hero must overcome seemingly insurmountable odds. There are wars to fight along the way, friendships to forge in the most dire of circumstances and allegiances to make, debts to repay. He has to learn who he can trust, in a world where trust is everything.
The story is fast-paced. Perhaps a little too pacey at times as more world building could have been slotted in for my personal taste. However, the editing and writing is of a high standard and the characters are extremely well developed, each having their own personality traits which grab you without you even realising it. I was drawn into the make believe world easily, which is a great credit to the author.
I'm told this is a first novel and as such it is a very encouraging first foray into the world of literature. If M/s Banschbach continues to hone her talents, we are in for some wonderful adventures.… (altro)

Shh, leave me alone. I need to stop sobbing before I can gather my thoughts to review this. It might be awhile.

UPDATE: Okay, I'm *mostly* fine now. ;)

This book. While I do have a few critiques, I REALLY loved this book! Let's start with what I didn't like and get it out of the way.

The writing was a bit all-over. There wasn't really a main storyline, more like a bunch of storylines all spread throughout, some major ones even being wrapped up in the first 30% of the book. While it didn't bother me too much, and I enjoyed each of the storylines, I can see how it would annoy some people.
POV Changes. Okay, I think this was my biggest problem with this book. There were rapid POV changes throughout the entire book, jumping from the main character Corin to the other main character Aiden, then to Kara, to Martin, to Adulwulf, to Ranulf, etc. It made the story rather difficult to follow and left me wondering "Wait, whose head am I in right now?"

What I liked:
I simply ADORE the character of Aiden! Cheeky, cocky, kind, tender-hearted, loyal, he's just the best! I often found myself smiling as I compared him to my brothers.

I also liked the inner-struggles portrayed in this book. That wasn't really something that was touched very deeply in the last book, and I liked the inclusion of more personal struggles, as opposed to the outer struggles, such as war, battles, etc.

I LOVED the shipping that went on in this book! :D So cute! I love how Amaura and Queen Elain kept trying to set Corin up. XD And everybody teasing Aiden about Rona . . . so hilarious and real-life.

I also loved the addition of the character of Gwilym. He is so cute! And after a certain something happens (I won't tell you what) . . . Oh my heart! Claire did a wonderful job portraying him! His actions and speech was so realistic.

Another thing I really liked was the way the violence was portrayed. This book is practically a compilation of numerous battles, and I liked how the author didn't describe the gore in detail. She described just enough so you understood clearly what was happening, but not to much that it was unsettling. Also, I liked the compassion the she gave the characters. Corin and Darrin and Aiden and those people didn't just kill for the fun of it, or out of vengeance and heartlessness. I appreciated how the characters weren't just out for wild, random, merciless slaughter.

One of the things that Claire proverbially nailed was the humor. Oh my word! I was laughing out loud a good portion of the time. It worked really well to combat the seriousness of the rest of the story. I adored the relationships between the men of Corin's warband. The teasing and comradery was so fun! I also loved the running gag between the men about waking Corin up. XD SO SO funny!

MAJOR SPOILER! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK: And Kieren. *sobs* KIEREEEEEEEENNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!! NOOOOOOO! I hated that part. My sister's heart broke for Kara. Now I have to get off this train of thought before I start crying again. ;)

And the ending, wow! Heart-wrenchingly wonderful! I tried vainly to keep my tears in check. It was quite tragic, and very unexpected! I really liked the epilogue, it wrapped each person's storylines up so well, and brought perfect completion to the story. Although, I almost wish the epilogue was left off and there was a third book. I still really want a third book!!!!

And can we just rant about the cover art for a bit here? It is amazing! I love it! It fully portrays the story PERFECTLY! Love it.

Overall, WOW! I loved this book and I think it is something I will come back to again and again.… (altro)