When Robert comes back to the kingdom, he's doing so under false pretenses. The princess's life is in danger, which 3 attempts on her life by poison or "accidental" tears in her horses saddle. Robert has come back to find out who wants to kill the Princess.
Aurelia has no idea about the attempts on her life, but when Robert starts to act suspicious, she knows something is going on. Robert was once a close friend of hers before he moved away with his family. Now, she still wants to view him as a friend even though there's an air of mystery around him.
But Aurelia is no shy princess. She knows her town like the back of her hand and finds out that someone wants her dead. For what reason, she can only guess, but now she wants to find out who would risk killing her.
That's when they devise a plan together. They are going to get the suspect, the attempted killer, out in the open and find out who has hired him to kill Aurelia.
But when the truth finally comes out, it is not what either Aurelia, Robert, or even the King suspect.
Will they be able to find the assassin in time before he kills Aurelia? Or will it be too late? Who is this mysterious killer? Read Aurelia by Anne Osterlund to find out!
My Thoughts/Reflections
I've adored Osterlund's other novels and wanted to complete my reading history with her first two novels. And I gotta say, Osterlund is an author that has surprised me! Not only because I enjoy her novels, but because she has written 3 different settings and types of novels that have nothing related to her other novels.
That is a talent! And she makes each world so real that you would never guess that she has dabbled in contemporary, historical, and science fiction genres!!
Okay, on the the review of this novel.
I really liked Aurelia. She is going to be the ruler of her city one day and is making sure she will be the voice of the people, rather than a rule of a city. She wants to help the people who contribute and keep the city alive instead of punishing them with more taxes, etc.
She also knows what she wants and goes for it, whether it defies her father, the King. She is the only one who gets away with it, though that's not why she goes against her father. She just wants to do the right thing.
I enjoyed that this book wasn't all about the romance between Aurelia and Robert. Yes, there was a small portion, but mainly it was about Aurelia's love for her city and trying to find out who was attempting to kill Aurelia. And the historical aspect was very refreshing for me to read a YA novel in a historical setting.
This is the first of a two part book series, which I just happen to have the second waiting for me to pick it up.
While I did enjoy this novel, I found myself comparing it to the last two of Osterlund's novels that I really loved and found it lacking. However, if I would have read it by publication date, I might have seen that Osterlund's writing has improved throughout the years to make her latest release the best she has written so far.
For anyone who wants a strong female character who is bound to do what is right, with a historical setting, this would be a great novel for you to read!
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