On the day of her Presenting, in front of the entire Byern Court, seventeen-year-old Cyrene Strohm's lifelong plans come to fruition when she's chosen as an Affiliate to the Queen.Or so she thinks. When Cyrene receives a mysterious letter and an unreadable book, she finds nothing is as it seems. Thrust into a world of dangerous political intrigue and deadly magic, Cyrene's position only grows more treacherous when she finds herself drawn to the one man she can never have...
King Edric himself.
Cyrene must decide if love is truly worth the price of freedom. Find out in this first book in USA Today bestselling author K.A. Linde’s new Ascension series.
4 Royal Stars
I have a love/hate relationship with K.A. Linde. I love her, but sometimes her books make me want to pull my hair out. I tend to love her less angsty books, but I’ll be honest, I’m learning to love the angst (a little).
I love YA Fantasy reads. Before I read New Adult, I read primary Young Adult for about two years. I love the innocence of the genre and what kind of world the author can create and take me too. When I found out K.A. Linde wrote in this genre, I was ALL OVER THAT.
Cyrene is the Heroine. She’s strong, resilient and loyal. The story begins with Cyrene on presenting day. She’s interviewed by the King and he decides where she goes. To everyone surprise she is picked as an Affiliate. She will be the Queen’s right hand woman. This job is to not be taken lightly.
The first bit of the book starts off slowly, but Linde does this to paint the picture for you. Like any YA fantasy book, there is a new language to learn. You are sucked into this new world with unique names, customs and cities. I couldn’t get over the names. At times I had to reinvent them in my head (I’m not the best reader) but I appreciate how beautiful and one-of-kind they are.
There is kind of sort of a love triangle, but not really. King Edric and Prince Kael are brothers and **gasp** both fancy Cyrene, how could they not? I actually loved this. Yes, I am anti-love triangles, BUT there’s something about two guys affections towards a girl, it completely works in a YA book. The “romance” isn’t the star of the story, but it’s there. Do not think it’s like the Lux series.
“She has this pull. When I’m with her, the throne slips away, and I’m just a man with a beautiful woman.”
“She didn’t want the King’s attention, the Prince’s infatuation, the Queen’s animosity, or the Consort’s help. She certainly didn’t want to have to think about the murder…”
Cyrene is in the thick of drama. A killer is on the loose and somehow Cyrene is connected to all of it. On top of that, she receives a mysterious book that only she can read. To everyone else the book is blank. I liked the suspenseful part of the read. I liked figuring out what was going on and how it all tied together. At times some parts went over my head. It’s a book you have to sit and pay attention to, but it’s very different and intriguing.
If you like YA books, you will be a fan of The Affiliate. To me, it reads more like a Sarah Maas book. It’s adventurous, suspenseful and has the girl-power quality I crave for in a YA read. The romance is there, but like a typical YA book, it’s on the back burner.
If you are a fan of KA Linde books or just want to try a different genre, I suggest you give The Affiliate a go. It’s a little bit different, but completely wonderful.
An ARC was provided
Record Series
Three Book Series AMAZON
USA Today bestselling author K.A. Linde is the author of The Affiliate, the first book in the Ascension Series. As a military brat, she traveled the world with her family, imaginary friends, and ever-increasing supply of books. She has spent much of her life dreaming up new worlds and characters and forcing them into uncomfortable, usually life-threatening scenarios. After graduating from the University of Georgia with a masters degree in political science, she began spending every waking hour putting those characters onto paper.
When not writing, she spends her time dancing, collecting paperbacks in the hopes of filling a Beauty and the Beast style library one day, traveling to visit her friends who live all over the country, and still reading anything she can get her hands on. She currently resides in North Carolina with her husband and two puppies, Lucy and Riker, where she is hard at work on her next novel.
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love the post today and the cover
ReplyDelete<3 I love the cover too
DeleteGreat post! I can't wait to read this one!
ReplyDeleteIt's great for every YA fan <3
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