Black Friday Book Sale!

 

Hello, friends! I hope y'all had a happy Thanksgiving! In case you're looking for a good book to enjoy while you munch on your leftover turkey and pie, I'm here to tell you that all seven of my books are on sale in ebook form for just $0.99 as part of the Perry Kirkpatrick Black Friday book sale!

This sale runs from Black Friday (today, November 24) through Cyber Monday. In it, you'll find literally hundreds of clean and Christian indie reads from authors like Kendra E. Ardnek, Tara Grayce, H.L. Burke, E.J. Kitchens, Abigail Manning, myself, and many others. The sale includes free and $0.99 ebooks, as well as some special deals on print and audiobooks. I've put links below that will take you straight to my sale listings, but you can also click here to browse the whole sale.

Blood in the Snow

Mechanical Heart

Bastian Dennel, PI:
The Midnight Show
Gilded in Ice
Mask of Scarlet

Through a Shattered Glass

Song of the Selkies

Have you checked out the Black Friday sale yet? Which books in it are you eyeing up? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

WE HAVE STICKERS!

Hey'a everyone! No Friday 5s today because I've been busy with work and getting ready for the tour, but I did want to make sure y'all didn't miss the announcement I made earlier this week, which is that WE HAVE STICKERS!

These stickers portray Alys Gerda and Kai Hatter, the main characters in Through a Shattered Glass, and feature art by the lovely Chloe Grace (@chloegraceartist on Instagram). Want to know how to get one? All you have to do is preorder an ebook of Through a Shattered Glass or order the paperback on release day and submit a proof of purchase by clicking here. I'll send you your stickers after release day, and you can stick them wherever your heart desires. I put mine on my sketchbook with the rest of my character art, and I must say that they look very nice . . .

Supplies are limited, so make sure you submit your preorder soon. Also, I can only provide one set of stickers per person . . . but if you're buying an extra copy as a gift for someone, let me know in the form, and I'll see what I can do.

Preorder TaSG on Amazon || Add to your Goodreads shelf || Request your sticker

By the way, there is still a little bit of time in which to sign up for the Broken Mirrors release tour, so if you're interested, make sure to do that soon! All of the Broken Mirrors authors, myself included, would really appreciate the support.

Ok, I think that about covers it. How excited are you for these stickers? Have you preordered Through a Shattered Glass yet? Please tell me in the comments!

Black Friday Book Sale Alert!

 

Hey'a, everyone! I hope everyone had an excellent Thanksgiving yesterday — or, if you're outside the US of A, an excellent Thursday. I'm just popping in to remind y'all that all five of my published books — Blood in the Snow, Mechanical Heart, The Midnight Show, Gilded in Ice, and Mask of Scarlet — are on sale for $0.99 each as part of the Perry Kirkpatrick Black Friday book sale! This sale runs from Black Friday (today, November 25) through Cyber Monday and includes literal hundreds of clean and Christian indie reads from authors like Kendra E. Ardnek, Jaye L. Knight, Tara Grayce, Jenelle Leanne Schmidt, H.L. Burke, and myself. There's free and $0.99 ebooks, plus some special deals on print and audiobooks. You can click the images below to go straight to my sale listings, or you can browse the whole sale.

 

 

 

 

Through a Shattered Glass is not included in the sale . . . but ARC requests are still open if you're a reviewer eager to give it a read, and we're still looking for people to join in the Broken Mirrors release tour. So if either of those sound appealing, make sure you sign up!

Have you checked out the Black Friday sale yet? Which books in it are you eyeing up? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

Hey'a, everyone! Hope y'all had an excellent Thanksgiving if you celebrated! Of course, it's now Black Friday and the start of the Christmas season — specifically, for purposes of this post, the start of the Christmas gift-shopping and gift-giving season. (Unless, of course, you're the type of person who does all your Christmas shopping way in advance.) Because of that, I thought it would be fun to think about what books I would gift to some of my characters . . . but with a twist: I'm specifically choosing books that are available in the Perry Kirkpatrick Black Friday book sale. This sale runs from Black Friday (today, November 25) through Cyber Monday and includes literal hundreds of clean and Christian indie reads from authors like Kendra E. Ardnek, Jaye L. Knight, H.S.J. Williams, and myself. There's free and $0.99 ebooks, plus some special deals on print and audiobooks. I strongly recommend checking it out; I always end up picking up some good deals for myself . . . and, of course, today, I'm also picking out some books for my own characters. Let's get back to that, shall we?

Books I'd Give My Characters: Black Friday Sale Edition

1. For Princess Grace Chambers (Mechanical Heart): the Elven Alliance books by Tara Grayce. As I've said before, Grace is one of the biggest readers out of any of my characters (at least in my published books) — she enjoys just about anything as long as it's well-written, it has good characters, and she can talk about it when she's done. So, while she'd be happy with pretty much all the books included in the sale, I'm giving her the Elven Alliance series by Tara Grayce. She'd see a lot of herself in Essie, the lead, and would certainly relate to many of the challenges the characters in the novel face. (After all, she's a princess — she's seen equivalents to some of them firsthand.) But, most importantly, Elven Alliance has a very enthusiastic (albeit small) fandom, which Grace would join with utmost pleasure.

2. For Roselle Dennel (Gilded in Ice): Moonscript by H.S.J. Williams. As those who've read Gilded may remember, Roselle loves stories of adventure, danger, magic, and mystery — preferably featuring adventurous-but-relatable leads, strange, faraway, and exotic locations, and plenty of character banter and relationships to get invested in. And if there's a little twist of romance or a dark-and-tortured hero (or dashingly dangerous rogue or swashbuckler), all the better. Moonscript does not check every box in that list . . . but it does check most of them. Roselle would happily spend quite some time exploring this world of elves and humans, and she'd absolutely fangirl over Errance (and Coren) as much as the rest of us do.

3. For Kona Dennel, by way of Roselle (Gilded in Ice): The Dark King's Curse by Wyn Estelle Owens. So, hear me out. Kona is not the type of person who really enjoys reading for the sake of reading. But she, like many people, enjoys being read to — and the only thing Roselle likes better than a good book is sharing that good book. So, The Dark King's Curse technically goes to both of them. Why this book? The storyworld has enough similarities to their own world that it would be almost like historical fiction for them — and both of them would enjoy the family elements of the story. Roselle would be all over Laisren and Siobhra (Laisren is the kind of dramatic she loves, and Siobhra is a cat and therefore wonderful), while Kona . . . Kona probably actually likes Fionn best, with Fiachra a close second. Their enjoyment of the story is not hindered by Bastian wandering in and out of the room, adding commentary, and making offhand predictions (though he's secretly enjoying the book as well).

4. For Zhu Baili (Blood in the Snow): The Worth of a King by Kendra E. Ardnek. Baili's a hard character to pick for; like Kona, she's less inclined to read for pleasure or for the sake of reading — her preferred way to experience a story is in the form of a play. But I think she'd like The Worth of a King. She'd probably relate well to Obsidia and Delaney (and, to a lesser extend, Adrian) and Obsidia's plight, and she'd enjoy the romantic elements of the story. I can even see her reading it together with Xiang as they curl up together for a precious bit of alone time or sharing it with her friends. (Gan enjoys the dramatic flair of the Zovordians; Chouko makes snarky comments every few pages but is secretly just as invested in Obsidia and Adrian's problems as Baili is.)

5. For Azuma (Blood in the Snow): Wrought of Silver and Ravens by E.J. Kitchens. Canonically speaking, Azuma is a poetry-lover first and foremost. But he also enjoys novels on occasion, with a preference for the complex or epic tales. So, I'm giving him Wrought of Silver and Ravens, a high fantasy take on "The Twelve Dancing Princesses." He'd probably see himself in Athdar and his situation (and Athdar's relationship with Thea), he'd like Galen as much as I do, and he'd appreciate the twists and turns of the plot quite a lot.

Have you checked out the Black Friday sale yet? Which books in it are you eyeing up, either for yourself or (in this hypothetical scenario) your own characters? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

Love and Memory Cover Reveal

 

Hello, y'all! I'm here with a cover reveal for Kendra E. Ardnek's next book, Love and Memory! I'm currently alpha-reading this book, and it's pretty awesome . . . and the cover is just as great. Want to see? I thought so. I'll show you in a minute, along with sharing a mini-interview . . . but first, a little about the book.

About Love and Memory

The Rizkaland Legends #3

When a Queen forgets,
Her enemies rejoice in her weakness.
But when the Queen remembers,
They tremble in fear.
When a King loves,
His country rejoices with him.
But when that love is broken.
The land is broken, too.
Can Water and Fire join again?
Can Love and Memory be restored?

They spent years in Rizkaland. They ruled the land, forged friendships, built families, and made it their home. But then it was time to return to Earth, and their former lives just don’t fit anymore. Clara and Andrew struggle to reevaluate their priorities when hundreds of miles separate them. Reuben and Petra are lost as they seek a balance between their old friendship and their Rizkan marriage. And Ashna and Noraeto never planned to return, so what live is there for them on Earth?

When the unthinkable happens and a new enemy arises, they’re all thrown back into Rizkaland, into a young prince’s rise to power and struggle to build alliances for his kingdom. But they no longer belong in their other world, either.

Are good memories too much to bear?

Preorder on Amazon || Add on Goodreads

About Kendra E. Ardnek

Kendra E. Ardnek is the self-proclaimed Arista of Fairy Tales. She lives in the Piney Woods of East Texas with her dragon babies and massive herd of mini-giraffes, and she is still waiting for one of of her fifty nutcrackers to come to life and marry her. When not writing, you can usually find her sitting in a random box, and she's frequently known to act before she thinks.

Find her online at: Website || Blog || Goodreads || Facebook || Twitter || YouTube || Newsletter || Instagram || TikTok || Amazon 

Excited yet? Ok, let's finally show off that gorgeous cover . . .

Mini-interview with Clara, Petra, and Kendra: What's the most important thing we should know about this book/your adventures in it?

 

Clara: This book is cruel and unusual punishment and I'd like to find the person who convinced Kendra to write it and ... I'm not going to finish that statement. Plausible deniability, you know.

 

Petra: I was an idiot and this book is not my finest moment. *sigh* Seriously!

 

Kendra: I apologize in advance?

Sounds about right . . . if you want to get a sneak peek of what they're talking about, you're in luck, because Broken, Part One of Love and Memory, is currently available for FREE on Amazon! So definitely go check that out.

 And if that's not enough books for you . . . As part of Perry Kirkpatrick’s Black Friday Sale, Kendra is offering book one, Water Princess, Fire Prince as a FREE ebook on Amazon, and book 2, Lady Dragon, Tela Du, is just 99 cents! (There are also quite a few OTHER awesome books available in that sale, including some of my favorite Arista Challenge releases, and, y'know, my books, so don't miss this opportunity.)

Are you excited for Love and Memory? Have you gotten any good books this Black Friday? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

Who Wants to See Mechanical Heart's Cover?

Hey'a, everyone! Last night, over on Facebook, we had the cover reveal for the Golden Braids group release, this year's Arista Challenge group release. It was a great time, but since I know not everyone could make it out there, I'm sharing the shinies here too.

And, yes, if you were wondering, this means that I am officially publishing Mechanical Heart with the Arista Challenge this summer. I mean, I was going to publish it sometime soon no matter what happened; I've put in too much work not to. But I'm excited to be joining Kendra's group again. The group release will run from August 5th to August 9th, and Mechanical Heart specifically releases on August 7th.

Ok, enough of me trying to increase the suspense. Let's see the shiny!

Can you save someone who doesn’t know if she’s alive?

Breen lives locked away, separated from the world by the walls of her clock tower and the machine of gems, gears, and magic that replaces her heart. That is, until an unexpected visitor appears in her tower, offering a dangerous gift: freedom. His promises awaken hope for a life unbound by the tower walls — but she knows that if he learns about her heart, it’s only a matter of time before he turns on her.

Josiah is powerless. Though he’s the crown prince of the mighty Chanian empire, he feels stifled by his inability to protect his people from the schemes of corrupt nobles. When he discovers a girl trapped in a locked clock tower, he thinks he’s finally found a problem he can solve . . . but more than just walls keep her captive.

From the royal palace to the streets of Rivenford to the tops of clock towers, secrets hide around every corner in this steampunk retelling of Rapunzel. Breen and Josiah hold the keys to each other's struggles — if they can break down the barriers that divide them.

Preorder on Amazon || Add on Goodreads

As those of you who've been reading my blog for a while might know, this is a story that's been in the works for a while. I mean, obviously I've been rewriting and editing like mad over the course of the last year, trying to weave all the plot threads and characters and details into their proper form. But I first drafted this back in summer of 2016 — and I came up with the earliest version of the story all the way back in 2014! It's not the earliest story that I eventually want to share, but it's definitely a good bit older than Blood in the Snow. And now I finally get to share it with you. I'm so excited!

Oh, and while I have you here, can I just say how much I love my cover? Savannah Jezowski of Dragonpen Press/Dragonpen Designs created it for me, and I think she did an amazing job. No lie; she emailed me the very first iteration and I did a legit happy dance. I was that excited — and it just got better from there. If you're also looking for a cover, I absolutely recommend her services. She's a storming magician, and I say this as someone who knows how to use Photoshop fairly well herself.

Ok, I'm done. Go preorder Mechanical Heart, if you don't mind. Or at least add it to your Goodreads shelves. Thanks muchly. And while you're at it, go check out the other Golden Braids books: Hair We Go Again, Rebekah's Refuge, Molly Storm, and The Dragon's Flower.
Have a lovely day!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Magic Mirrors Release: Blood in the Snow — Meet the Characters!

Today's the day, y'all! Blood in the Snow is out, and I honestly couldn't be more excited! (Or stressed. But I'm always stressed on Fridays, at least until 2-ish, so that's ok.) To everyone who was asking about the paperback: I'm incredibly sorry, but between schoolwork and some pretty extreme difficulties with formatting, I need to delay the paperback release. Everything is almost ready, but right now, everything in my life seems to be taking longer than I expect it to. Again, I'm immensely sorry and will let you all know as soon as the book is out.

In the meantime, the Kindle edition is all set, and everyone who preordered it should be recieving it soon! Or, if you don't want to wait for the paperback, you can buy the Kindle edition and have instant gratification. To that end, have some links, which will both let you get to my book and let you follow me on all the sites.

Find my book on: Amazon || Goodreads
Follow me! Author Site || Dreams and Dragons || Light and Shadows || Facebook || Goodreads || Amazon

Anyway. My favorite part of writing books is generally creating the characters, and that's true for Blood in the Snow as well. So, today, I thought I'd introduce you to some of the main cast of the book. As a bonus, I have character art (!!!) by two lovely artists: Melanie Morgan and Shelby Ahlborg. Honestly, I'm as happy about the art as I am about the book. So, let's get going!

From the Kingdom of Seven Rivers

Artist credit: Melanie Morgan

Princess Zhu Baili

Long ago, the prophecy was given: the fairest of all would unite divided lands and bring peace to the people. For years, people looked anxiously and consulted the fabled Dragonglass for the one who would fulfill that prophecy. And then Baili was born. As the firstborn princess of the Kingdom of Seven Rivers, a child of royalty and magic, with a Bloodgift that lets her control wind and water, Baili seemed a fine choice to carry out the prophecy. But though Baili is ready to do what she needs to do, she wonders: is she really the best person for this role?

Artist credit: Melanie Morgan

Empress Zhu Yawen

Once a princess of a small country south of Seven Rivers, Yawen is now empress over all Seven Rivers and its holdings. Both powerful and beautiful, with a potent though mysterious Bloodgift, she was considered a strong candidate for the fulfillment of the prophecy, and she grew up and wed the emperor assuming that she would indeed be the one to carry it out. And then Baili was born. Now she contents herself with running the empire, even as whispers of the people rise against her. 

Artist credit: Melanie Morgan

Dou Lanfen 

The youngest daughter of a very minor noble family, Lanfen has served as an attendant to Princess Baili and other members of the Imperial Family since she was fairly young. This allowed her to grow up in the very center of the riches and intrigue of the Imperial Court. Court life suits her well, perhaps too well . . . but now she's off to another kingdom and another set of intrigues as Baili's chief attendant on the journey to the Kingdom of Three Peaks.

From the Kingdom of Three Peaks

Artist credit: Shelby Ahlborg

 Prince Liu Xiang

As the eldest son and heir of the Emperor of Three Peaks, Xiang is well-known and well-loved throughout his kingdom. However, that's not just because of his position or even his reserved but kind nature. Born with the Bloodgift of healing, Xiang will gladly stop and heal anyone who he finds injured, and he's constantly testing the limits of his gift to figure out just how much he can heal. This desire to help others has endeared him to his people more than any emperor or emperor-heir for several generations.

Artist credit: Shelby Ahlborg

Nakuhara Chouko

 A victim of the Middle Kingdoms' taste for conquest, Chouko was born in the Isles of Rising Fire but now serves the Imperial Family of Three Peaks as a keeper of geese. Life could be worse for her — she has close friends among the other animal keepers, work she honestly enjoys, and food and shelter enough to get by. But she still longs for her childhood home and holds much spite for the empire that tore her from it. Despite her sharp-edged, independent nature, she is much loved by her friend. And she, in turn, is as stubbornly protective of them as she is ready to point out even unpleasant realities.

Artist credit: Shelby Ahlborg

 Ganbaatar

Ganbaatar, or Gan as he's usually called, doesn't speak much about his past except as it becomes necessary. A prisoner of battle between the Riders of the Endless Plains and the Kingdom of Three Peaks, he now tends the horses of the Imperial Family. Or, at least, that's all anyone knows he does . . . but one thing's certain: Gan was never one to let anything stop him from doing what needs to be done. Among the animal keepers and other displaced Plainsfolk, he has become an unofficial leader, and all of them know that if they need help, they can turn to Gan and he'll take care of it, no matter how impossible it seems.

What do you think? Are you excited to meet these characters? Let me know in comments! And don't forget to check out the rest of today's blog posts! Also, the giveaway for paperbacks of five of the Magic Mirrors titles is now available in the tour master post, so make sure you check that out!

Thanks for reading!

-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Blog Tour Stops: October 26

Knitted By God's Plan: 7 Reasons to Read

Light and Shadows: 5 Reasons to Read

Dreams and Dragons: Mega Spotlight

Heather L.L. FitzGerald: Guest Post - Snow White: A Story of Change

The Language of Writing: Review

Ink Calamities: Review

Jenelle Schmidt: Review

Literature Approved: Review

The Labyrinth: Review

The Page Dreamer: Review

Sparks of Ember: Review

Unicorn Quester: Review

Selina J. Eckert: Interview

Reality Reflected: Interview

Dragonpen Press: Interview

Or find the full list of stops here.

 

The Worth of a Blog Tour: Hero's Perspective: Delaney

Hey'a again, everyone! It's another day of the Worth of a King blog tour! Today, I'm super excited because I got to interview my absolute favorite character from Worth: Delaney! I can't wait to share the interview with you . . . but first, a bit about the book and author.

About Worth of a King

Princess Obsidia’s father was killed the night she was born. Since there was no male heir, the crown went to the man who killed him, by Dialcian law. This never bothered her, growing up, and when it comes time for Obsidia to choose her husband, she chooses Prince Delaney, the son of that man, with little hesitation. Only then does her life start crumbling around her.
Adrian expected to live a normal life, taking his father’s place at the print shop when his father retired. But, on his eighteenth birthday, when the princess’ engagement is announced, his world is ripped out from under him when he learns that his life was a ruse, and he is the twin brother to the princess – and expected to take back his father’s throne.
Delaney knows that his country is hovering on the brink of war – and that his father may harbor murderous intentions towards his intended bride due to her Zovordian blood. He wants nothing more than to protect Obsidia and his people, but as merely prince, he has little power against his father.
The ancient war between the Dragons and the Immortal King and Queen is nearing its climax, and the three are already caught in it.
Read the first chapter here.
Find it on: Amazon || Goodreads

About Kendra E. Ardnek

Kendra E. Ardnek loves fairytales and twisting them in new and exciting ways. She's been or acting them on her dozen plus cousins and siblings for years. "Finish your story, Kendra," is frequently heard at family gatherings. Her sole life goal has always been to grow up and be an author of fantasy and children's tales that glorify God and His Word.

Find her online at: Website || Blog || Goodreads || Facebook || Twitter || Amazon

Interview with Delaney

Hello, Delaney! Welcome to Hero’s Perspective! To begin, can you share a little about who you are, what you do, and maybe a random fact or two?

Hello, I'm the Crown Prince of Dialica, and my job mostly entails minimizing the damage that my father does. Random facts - I'm fascinated by politics, much to the amusement of my sister, Nadilynn, and my future wife, Obsidia. Also, I'm not really a fan of spicy foods.

Neither am I, my friend. Next, can you briefly share your thoughts on the other major characters (including the villain)?

Let's see, there are quite a few major characters in this story, but I shall do my best.

Adrian - a good-hearted fellow, and so much like his sister that I'm surprised that fewer people haven't seen it.

Nadilynn - my sister and far too good and innocent and pure for the life she's been trapped in.

The Immortal King and Queen - an inspiration to us all.

My father - I don't ... I don't even know where to begin with him.

Obsidia - I wish more than anything that she could have had a better life.
 

Ah, yes, Speaking of Obsidia, let's zero in on her for a moment. We know that you grew up together, of course, but did you always get along? If not, when did you become friends? And when did you realize that you cared for her as something more than a friend?

Obsidia isn't someone who you don't get along with. She was always as important to me as my sister, Nadilynn. And yet, I didn't realize just how important she was to me until ... until ... I nearly lost her.

Awwww. Ok, so, who would you say influenced you most when you were growing up? In what way?

The Immortal King and Queen. Especially the King. Amber taught me how to rule, but Granite taught me how to respect the power given to me.

That's marvelous. And I do love the interacts I got to see between you and Granite in Worth. Moving on, momentarily: what was the best part of your adventures in Worth of a King? The hardest part? (I understand that you can’t share spoilers, but whatever you can say...)

The hardest part was every time I failed. The best was when it was all over.

I'm sure. Ok, fun question time! If you could have a day off to do whatever you wanted to do, wherever you wanted to do it (no limits on the where; we’ve got portal technology to make it happen!), what would you do and where would you go?

I ... really don't know. I'm not someone to run from my responsibilities, and I have a lot of responsibilities where I am. I would like to see the world that Amber and Granite came from. It must have been so terrifying to be exposed to so much space. I wonder if they were afraid that they'd fall off their world at every moment. I would be...

I can tell you for a fact that you get used to it. Final question: if you could go back to the start of the story and give yourself one piece of advice, would you? And if so, what would you say?

I ... I would. I'd tell myself to not expect myself to be perfect. To expect myself to make mistakes. But that they won't mean that I can't succeed. That ... we can't succeed. Because I'm not the only one in play.

Good advice for us all to keep in mind. Thanks for answering my questions!

As always, don't forget to check out the rest of the blog posts and comment for a chance to win a special prize! Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Tour Stop: Friday, August 31

Knitted By God’s Plan: Messing with Jack
Reviews:
Lit Aflame
Light and Shadows
Interviews:
Lands Uncharted – Kendra E. Ardnek
Dreams and Dragons – Delaney

Or find the full tour schedule here.

The Worth of a Blog Tour: Book Review

Hey'a, everyone! As promised, I'm here with the blog tour for one of my most anticipated books of the summer: The Worth of a King by Kendra E. Ardnek! I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am that this book is releasing, or how much I love it — well, scratch that; I actually can, and I will in a moment when I review the book. But first, a little about Worth and Kendra.

About Worth of a King

Princess Obsidia’s father was killed the night she was born. Since there was no male heir, the crown went to the man who killed him, by Dialcian law. This never bothered her, growing up, and when it comes time for Obsidia to choose her husband, she chooses Prince Delaney, the son of that man, with little hesitation. Only then does her life start crumbling around her.
Adrian expected to live a normal life, taking his father’s place at the print shop when his father retired. But, on his eighteenth birthday, when the princess’ engagement is announced, his world is ripped out from under him when he learns that his life was a ruse, and he is the twin brother to the princess – and expected to take back his father’s throne.
Delaney knows that his country is hovering on the brink of war – and that his father may harbor murderous intentions towards his intended bride due to her Zovordian blood. He wants nothing more than to protect Obsidia and his people, but as merely prince, he has little power against his father.
The ancient war between the Dragons and the Immortal King and Queen is nearing its climax, and the three are already caught in it.
Read the first chapter here.
Find it on: Amazon || Goodreads

About Kendra E. Ardnek

Kendra E. Ardnek loves fairytales and twisting them in new and exciting ways. She's been or acting them on her dozen plus cousins and siblings for years. "Finish your story, Kendra," is frequently heard at family gatherings. Her sole life goal has always been to grow up and be an author of fantasy and children's tales that glorify God and His Word.

Find her online at: Website || Blog || Goodreads || Facebook || Twitter || Amazon

The Worth of a King Review

THIS BOOK. THIS BOOK, Y'ALL. If you haven't read, or at least bought, The Worth of a King, you need to change that right this minute. Go ahead. You can pick it up on Kindle here. If you really want to the paperback . . . well, you'll have to wait a little for that, but still.

Ok. I should probably try to be serious, 'cause this book is seriously amazing. I didn't really think Kendra would top Lady Dragon, Tela Du anytime soon — eventually, sure, but not with the very next full-length novel she releases. And, ok, to be fair, I'm not sure if Worth absolutely tops LDTD . . . but it comes pretty storming close, let me tell you.

So. What makes this book so awesome? For starters, the characters are wonderful. We've got pre-scale Amber and Granite, who I was definitely most excited for — and they don't disappoint, trust me. It's so nice to see them both happy and working as a team, especially Granite. And, I mean, they're still in love after 2,000-ish years and it's adorable. I love them inordinately much. And Laura's there too, which is fun, though also a little sad — I think this is one of the books where you really see the toll that being the Doorkeeper takes on Laura, and it makes your heart hurt for her. Plus she occasionally drops references to things that happen in the Rizkaland Legends or the time between, which range from squeal-over Easter eggs to storm you, Kendra, why'd you have to remind me of that, that was not ok.

Oh. Speaking of things that aren't ok: that epilogue. I mean, I appreciate the symmetry and artistry and all that, but it makes me sad. You'll understand why when you read the book. Trust me.

Anyway! Back to the characters! Besides old friends, we have new ones, and the best of those is Delaney. Delaney is a wonderful human being. He's not without flaws, but he's still an astonishingly good person. The poor boy has as much stacked against him as Obsidia or Adrian, perhaps even more in some ways, but he still manages to persevere and remain strong and even encourage the others. And he has every opportunity to become a villain or a betrayer, but he doesn't. And he and Obsidia are wonderful together — they balance each other splendidly, and they're just so sweet and lovely.

That's not to say that the characters who aren't Delaney aren't excellent, though. Obsidia and Adrian are both interesting in their own way, and their character development is magnificent. Nadilynn, I didn't expect to like as much as she did. She has hidden depths, that girl. Again, excellent character development. Ossian was a compelling villain — not evil for evil's sake, and quite intelligent in how he goes about his villainy— and I approved of how Kendra ended his story. Actually, I really liked the ending in general. Not saying much because spoilers, but Kendra didn't take the obvious solutions.

The worldbuilding is also excellent. The world itself is another interesting concept: a place where the world is on the inside of a sphere instead of the outside. The different cultures in the world were interesting, though only two were really expanded much. And I quite liked all the different little details Kendra used to flesh out those two cultures. (Super random and small example that I really liked for some reason: she doesn't use the standard names for seasons, months, and so on.) I will admit that certain things seem kind of crazy, but then again, certain things about real-world political systems also sometimes seem kind of crazy.

Plot-wise, the story flows well. It's not a fast-paced or action-packed read by any means, but it doesn't need to be. Between character development and actual plot events, there was plenty of tension to keep me interested and turning the pages. And, as I said before, I think the ending is excellent.

The book does have a couple flaws. Action scenes aren't Kendra's strong point, and it shows. (That said, I can see improvement between this and her previous books.) Wording is occasionally a little odd as well, mostly when characters speak in a way that's more modern than I expect. Still, these are small issues, and I'm more than willing to overlook them.

So, yes. The Worth of a King is an excellent book, and you all need to read it immediately. Or, at least, very soon. Trust me, you won't regret it.

I hope you enjoyed that and that you're excited to read Worth! Don't forget to check out the rest of today's tour stops and comment on them for a chance to win a special prize! Kendra is also hosting a giveaway for a paperback edition of Worth on her blog, so make sure you take a look at that as well! And check this space again on Friday for a special interview with one of my favorite characters!
Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Tour Stop: Wednesday, August 29

Knitted By God’s Plan: A Young Amber and Granite
Reviews:
Dreams and Dragons
Keturah’s Korner
Interviews:
Laterose Doll Clothes and Doll Repair – Kendra E. Ardnek
H.S.J. Williams – Kendra E. Ardnek
Light and Shadows – Amber

Or find the full tour schedule here.