The Queen’s Hidden Legacy (Prequel to the River Kelpies series) by Shonna Slayton

Posted on by lynndellwatson

How do you know who can be trusted?

The Queen has given the fairy Morag a huge job: save her twin babies from the danger arising from the battle with the kelpies. Some of the kingdom believes that the baby prince and princess should be sacrificed to the kelpies so the battle will cease. The Queen is terrified this or something else will happen to her babies. She’s dying from a lung disease and knows she won’t be alive much longer. She’s relying on Morag to get her babies to safety and out of the kingdom. The Queen also wants this task to be done secretly by Morag alone. Morag has an injured wing and knows she can’t accomplish this without help. She’s relying on her instincts to know who she can trust without putting the babies in danger.

Likes/dislikes: I enjoyed this prequel to Rise of the Kelpies. The main character, Morag, and the queen both show great strength and bravery. Shonna Slayton is an author who writes clean reads, which is appreciated.
Mature content: G
Language: G
Violence: PG for kidnapping and danger.
Ethnicity: falls to white.

Rise of the Kelpies by Shonna Slayton

Posted on by lynndellwatson

Fantasy full of mystery!

Set in a fantasy world full of Scottish folklore, the kingdom of Glenmoor is searching for the lost prince and princess. Farrah is part of a group that has safely hidden and helped Tavish so that he can soon take his place as the rightful king but he never makes it; his body is found and rumors abound that a kelpie may have taken his life. Prince Tavish has been hidden for his entire life after he and his sister, the princess, went missing when they were very young. Now, a person claiming to be the lost prince has arrived at the castle and is calling for his sister to also return. Every village sends princess hopefuls to the castle to go through testing. Farrah accompanies a group traveling to the castle to protect those she’s with; her job is to pretend to be the princess and take the danger upon herself therefore protecting the other young women. The trip to the castle is just the beginning of the danger and deceptions are uncovered the further Farrah investigates. A great start to a new series! 4 stars!

Likes/dislikes:
The slow start kept me from getting into the book quickly but it soon picked up and became interesting. I like the author’s writing style and the character development. I enjoyed the mystery.
Mature content: none
Violence: PG for attack from kelpies, not detailed.
Language: G – no swears or f-bombs