Jennifer Estep's Protect the Prince Book Blast!

Everleigh Blair might be the new gladiator queen of Bellona, but her problems are far from over.

First, Evie has to deal with a court full of arrogant, demanding nobles, all of whom want to get their greedy hands on her crown. As if that wasn’t bad enough, an assassin tries to kill Evie in her own throne room.

Despite the dangers, Evie goes ahead with a scheduled trip to the neighboring kingdom of Andvari in order to secure a desperately needed alliance. But complicating matters is the stubborn Andvarian king, who wants to punish Evie for the deaths of his countrymen during the Seven Spire massacre.

But dark forces are at work inside the Andvarian palace, and Evie soon realizes that no one is safe. Worse, Evie’s immunity to magic starts acting in strange, unexpected ways, which makes her wonder whether she is truly strong enough to be a Winter Queen.

But Evie’s magic, life, and crown aren’t the only things in danger—so is her heart, thanks to Lucas Sullivan, the Andvarian king’s bastard son and Evie’s . . . well, Evie isn’t quite sure what Sullivan is to her.

Only one thing is certain—protecting a prince might be even harder than killing a queen…

My review: As the new gladiator queen of Bellona, Everleigh Blair has to deal with more trouble than she ever wanted. Greedy nobles, assassins, and peace treaties. Evie wonders if she is strong enough to be queen, especially when her magic starts acting strange. Business must continue, though, and she meets with the Andvarian king who demands she marry his son. Except Evie doesn't love the crown prince. Her heart belongs to Lucas Sullivan, the king's bastard son. Yet as she's visiting the rich kingdom, she realizes she's not the only one in danger. Despite her troubles, she must protect the prince from danger that could come from anywhere at any time.

I enjoyed the first book in this series, Kill the Queen, and this second book is even better than the first. Incredible world-building, well-written action, court intrigue, and a slow burning romance. I was swept away in Evie's world where there were so few people she could trust, and she wasn't even sure of her own self. I loved the twists and turns, and the big one at the end, WOW. It was marvelously done.

One of the things I really love about this series is the strong female characters. They're not just calculating ladies sneaking around court. They're warriors, assassins, magiers, and rulers. Evie herself is phenomenal, but I also love Paloma, Xenia, and Gemma. Even with the loathing I have for the villains, the Mortans, their women are impressive as well. Evil, but they kick butt!

Buy Links:

EBOOK

Amazon Kindle: https://amzn.to/2qK9002

Barnes & Noble NOOK: https://tinyurl.com/y9ym5g24

Apple Books: https://tinyurl.com/yd4xuebj

Google Play: https://tinyurl.com/y7qt7d9x

Kobo: https://tinyurl.com/ybbknvm5

AUDIOBOOK

Amazon.com digital audiobook: https://amzn.to/2XaPIPD

Amazon MP3 CD: https://amzn.to/2IBjU2v

Audible: http://tinyurl.com/yym22vl2

Kobo: http://tinyurl.com/y4yjl6yt  

Libro: http://tinyurl.com/y27kre92

PRINT BOOK

Amazon print: https://amzn.to/2PJGlTP

Barnes & Noble print: https://tinyurl.com/y9kutjzu

Books-A-Million: https://tinyurl.com/yarpyycf

IndieBound: https://tinyurl.com/y7def75u

About the Author: Jennifer Estep is a New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author prowling the streets of her imagination in search of her next fantasy idea.

Jennifer writes the Crown of Shards epic fantasy series. Protect the Prince, book #2, will be released on July 2. 

Jennifer is also the author of the Elemental Assassin, Mythos Academy, Bigtime, and Black Blade fantasy series.  

For more information on Jennifer and her books, visit www.jenniferestep.com or follow Jennifer on Facebook, Goodreads, and Twitter. You can also sign up for her newsletter.

Kill The Queen tour - book review and giveaway

The thrilling first novel in the Crown of Shards epic fantasy series combines magic, murder, and adventure when an unlikely member of the royal family suddenly becomes a contender in a clash for the crown . . .

In a realm where one’s magical power determines one’s worth, Lady Everleigh’s lack of obvious ability relegates her to the shadows of the royal court of Bellona, a kingdom steeped in gladiator tradition. Seventeenth in line for the throne, Evie is nothing more than a ceremonial fixture, overlooked and mostly forgotten.

But dark forces are at work inside the palace. When her cousin Vasilia, the crown princess, assassinates her mother the queen and takes the throne by force, Evie is also attacked, along with the rest of the royal family. Luckily for Evie, her secret immunity to magic helps her escape the massacre.

Forced into hiding to survive, she falls in with a gladiator troupe. Though they use their talents to entertain and amuse the masses, the gladiators are actually highly trained warriors skilled in the art of combat, especially Lucas Sullivan, a powerful magier with secrets of his own. Uncertain of her future—or if she even has one—Evie begins training with the troupe until she can decide her next move.

But as the bloodthirsty Vasilia exerts her power, pushing Bellona to the brink of war, Evie’s fate becomes clear: she must become a fearsome gladiator herself . . . and kill the queen.

Release date: October 2nd, 2018

My review: Lady Everleigh Blair is a royal way down the line and is happy not to be in the spotlight. Her "mutt" magic is ridiculed and ignored. When Princess Vasilia viciously assassinates the queen and all others who could inherit the throne, Evie is thought to be dead. Evie's secret immunity to magic helps her survive and she joins a gladiator troupe. There she tries to become a warrior and harness her abilities. Yet while she would prefer to go back to her parents' land and live a quiet, comfortable life, Vasilia is terrorizing the country and prepping for war against an innocent nation. Evie cannot avoid the spotlight any longer. She must challenge Vasilia and kill the queen.

A spectacular start to the dark fantasy romance series, Crown of Shards. I was hooked right away with the first line. A massacre? I have to know what happens! I wasn't disappointed. The world building is phenomenal. We don't get overloaded with long chunks of history or explanations for how things work. The world is unveiled slowly as the story progresses, seeing everything through Evie's eyes. I was fascinated by the magic system and all the possibilities it could hold.

Evie is a strong protagonist. I sympathized with her immediately. Hurt and grief had her wanting to remain unnoticed in the shadows, but necessity brought her out. I loved how she grew, and what steeled her for the immense challenges she had to face. I also loved the great cast of characters, particularly the various powerful women. Gladiators, magiers, masters, and mutts. Paloma and Lady Xenia were my two favorites. As for Sullivan, I melted for him as much as Evie did. Yet I very much liked that the romance didn't overshadow anything.

I cannot wait for more in this series. I highly recommend it to all fantasy fans.

Preorder the book:

Amazon * B&N * Books-a-Million * Google Play * iBooks

Meet the author:

Jennifer Estep is a New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author prowling the streets of her imagination in search of her next fantasy idea.

Jennifer writes the Crown of Shards epic fantasy series. Kill the Queen (book #1) will be released October 2nd.

Jennifer is also the author of the Elemental Assassin, Mythos Academy, Bigtime, and Black Blade fantasy series.

For more information on Jennifer and her books, visit her website or follow her on Facebook, Goodreads, and Twitter. Get updates through her blog and her newsletter.

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Teaser Tuesday with Karma Girl

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Cheesy and over-the-top, but it's so much fun! Karma Girl by Jennifer Estep tickles the comic book geek within me. It's a paranormal romance about superheroes and ubervillains. You'll laugh out loud when you read it.

Here's your teaser:
I also locked and loaded the tranquilizer dart gun I'd purchased a few months ago and tucked it in the back of my jeans. Despite its name, Good Intentions Lane wasn't in the best part of town. (page 63)

Teaser Tuesday with Touch of Frost

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Jennifer Estep is one of my favorite urban fantasy writers. Her Elemental Assassin series is unique and is on my top five favorite urban fantasies list. Touch of Frost is the first book in her YA Mythos Academy series. I've heard great things about it. I've only read the first page so far. Secrets always draw me in!

Here's your teaser:
But I was still cautious, still careful, around other people, just the way that my mom had taught me to be. Despite the fact that part of me really liked my gift and the power it gave me to know other people's secrets. (page 38)