Book Review: Rebel Spring by Morgan Rhodes

Rebel Spring
By Morgan Rhodes
Falling Kingdoms #2
Hardcover: 401 pages
Publication Date: December 03, 2013
Publisher: Razorbill
Rated: ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯
4 out of 5 Stars
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Related Reviews:
| Falling Kingdoms (#1) | Gathering Darkness (#3) |
Categories: Fantasy, Magic, Young Adult

The road to power...is paved with blood and magic.

Cleo is now a prisoner in her own palace, forced to be an ambassador for Mytica as the evil King Gaius lies to her people.
Magnus stands to eventually inherit the new kingdom but is still obsessed with his feelings for his adopted sister, Lucia.
Lucia is haunted by the outcome of the breathtaking display of magic that allowed her father to capture the kingdoms.
Jonas watched at the palace gates a troop of rebels behind him, waiting for him to tell them how he plans to overtake King Gaius.

After a bloody siege, Auranos has been defeated, its young queen orphaned and dethroned. The three kingdoms—Auranos, Limeros, and Paelsia—are now unwillingly united as one country called Mytica. But the allure of ancient, dangerous magic beckons still, and with it the chance to rule not just Mytica, but the whole world over....

At the heart of the fray are four brave young people grappling for that magic and the power it promises. For Cleo, the magic would enable her to reclaim her royal seat. In Jonas's hands, it frees his nation, and in Lucia's, it fulfills the ancient prophecy of her destiny. And if the magic were Magnus's, he would finally prove his worth in the eyes of his cruel and scheming father, King Gaius, who rules Mytica with a punishing hand.

When Gaius begins to build a road into the Forbidden Mountains to physically link all of Mytica, he sparks a long-smoking fire in the hearts of the people that will forever change the face of this land. For Gaius's road is paved with blood, and its construction will have cosmic consequences.

Wow. Sometimes, there is truly only one word to describe the feeling of reading a really twisted, powerful story. I found myself falling more and more in love with these heartbreaking characters. Princess Cleo, my respect and awe of her grows with each chapter. Her strength in the face of making her enemy her family. And Magnus. I am so torn on my feelings for him. He absolutely is not his father, yet he wants his love and respect more than an intact conscience. His pain continues to worsen, and I want more than anything for a connection between the wedded prince and princess. I cannot imagine a worse punishment to the King of Blood than for Magnus to fall in love with Princess Cleo and betray him in the end. Alas. I am getting ahead of myself a bit..

This book continues with the same POV as the last one; alternating between the four main characters with a couple additional key characters having the spotlight of their own chapter as well. I have heard a lot of complaint with the way that Miss Rhodes switches point of view constantly, but I found myself easily following along. I do appreciate the fact that she does not write the same event from another's perspective.. ever. Thank you for not subjecting the reader to that sort of monotonous torture!

I have honestly become so engrossed in this twisted, dark, war-torn world, that I can fully envision the King of Blood's demise, and I am extremely looking forward to it finally happening. He is going down..

Please, if you have not picked up the first book in this series, Falling Kingdoms #1, it is so worth the read! Thanks for reading my review folks, and leave me a comment if you want to chat books. My schedule doesn't allow for a whole lot of blogging time, but I do have my moments.. :)

"Without the Kindred in our possession, the magic that existed here a thousand years ago has been fading away little by little. When it's gone, elementia is gone. Not just in the Sanctuary, but in all the world. All life is created from the magic of the elements. And without that magic, there is nothing left. So you see, princess? You are the key to our future- to everyone's future."

"Before, when she'd been able to walk around freely, she could almost fool herself into believing she still had some power. That was such a lie. She had no power here at all. Magnus would dominate her. He would abuse her as his father had today. As the attendants prepared her for her wedding night, the mirror had reflected the faint bruise on her cheekbone where the king had struck her and on her throat where he had come close to strangling her. But Cleo had chosen this. She could have escaped with Jonas, but she'd chosen to stay here. There had to be a reason for that... a higher goal than fleeing with the rebel."

Related Reviews:
| Falling Kingdoms (#1) | Gathering Darkness (#3) |

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