- Title: Allegiance (Harlequin Teen)
- Classification: Young Adult
- Genre: Fantasy
- Format: Paperback, 512 pages
- Publisher: Harlequin; Original edition (February 28, 2012)
- ISBN-10: 0373210434
- ISBN-13: 978-0373210435
- Author's Website: http://caylakluver.com/
Some people aspire to be a ruler, others are natural born leaders. Alera was the latter, born and bred from a line of Kings and Queens. The only thing holding her back from taking the reigns of her kingdom was that her people didn't believe a woman could lead. They were wrong, and she was forced to marry the man who they'd groomed to be the next ruler.
Narian looked to have all the traits associated with the Legend of the Bleeding Moon. The legend claimed a Hytanican boy born under the bleeding moon bearing its mark would be given powers to overthrow the Kingdom. Shortly after his birth he'd been kidnapped and raised by their Cokyrian enemies. Their plan was to use him to overtake the Kingdom. The only thing they hadn't counted on was his love for Alera, Hytanica's soon to be Queen.
Two kingdoms. One war. Who will win? It all will come down to a question of allegiance.
Once again Cayla Kluver created a masterpiece of literature spinning a web of intrigue, war, jealousy, betrayal and vengeance. Alera is strong, stubborn, loyal, and brave. She is also frustrated by the events which she's been forced to partake in all because she is female.
We finally get to see how her marriage to Steldor is progressing, and they are not a happy couple. In 'Legacy' I truly disliked Steldor and was quite upset the King chose him to be Alera's husband and the next King. In this book, I actually started liking him and felt bad for him. Alera was not the only one put in a bad position. If he'd known how reluctant she was to marry him, he might have thought twice about marrying her.
Narian was missing during a good portion of the story and that is the only fault I had with the book, but that could not be helped. He once again found himself in the hands of the Cokyrians. He's put in a tough position at the beginning of the book where he has to decide what role he'll play in the war, and the Cokyrians are not playing fair. Neither choice is ideal and neither choice will gain him favor with Alera.
I love the world Kluver created with it's two decidedly different kingdoms. The characters are easy to associate with and the drama created is first rate. I'm forgoing my romance rating scale with this one because it doesn't really go into that territory. I look forward to reading the next book in the trilogy and hope we'll be seeing more stories coming from Ms. Kluver. She is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. I gave this one 5 out 5 roses. This is definitely looking like a serious series seduction. Can't wait to see what happens next.
Order of Series:
1) Legacy (Harlequin Teen)
2) Allegiance (Harlequin Teen)
3) Sacrifice - Tentative released date is late 2012
