I was really intrigued by this book as I kept seeing it everywhere, so had to give it a read. I really enjoyed it and thought it was a fast and easy read. It was well written and I enjoyed that the chapters switched from Kate’s POV to Corwin’s POV.

I liked the characters and thought the plot/magical world was pretty original. Kate, or Traitor Kate, as she’s called mostly in the beginning is the daughter of the former Royal head of the stables and warhorses. Her father attempted to assassinate the King of Rime and was executed because of it. Kate was sent from Rime to fend for herself and to make sure she kept the secret of her Wilder magic a secret. She meets Prince Corwin again while he is on a tour of the lands – her lost forbidden love and narrowly avoids him finding out the truth about her. If found out, she’d be taken and killed, as Wilder magic is forbidden/unsanctioned. They go on a journey to discover who has created ghastly magical beasts that can roam during the daytime and are killing innocent people. All the while, falling in love with each other all over again.  

I felt like all the characters were well developed, or mostly all. I wanted some more development on Signe and Del, but I’m sure more understanding of them will come along the way. I liked Edwins character and thought he was a good addition for their rivalry, but mostly he really irritated me! I understand where his hatred was coming from – since his mother was killed by a Wilder and his father obviously had been cursed as well. But, his ignorance and stubbornness was very annoying. Pull your head out of your butt and notice that you’re being played! I look forward to their brotherly battle to see who will win the crown in the next story.. And hopefully to see him mature as a character and be on the right side with his brother.

A couple parts of the book seemed unnecessary to me, and others seemed a bit rushed. The part where they went to Del’s family home.. not necessary.. Kate’s initial attempt to fit in at the castle with Corwins help…rushed.. plus her thoughts on actually becoming a part of the Wilder rebellion…rushed! I wanted more time spent on her training the warhorse for Corwin and then even more time spent on her efforts with the Rising and her mental struggle with which side she should be on. The uror part of the story was interesting and I wanted more to come about that – it reminded me of the “Three Dark Crowns” series by Kendare Blake. I wanted more of him learning about the past rulers/trials, plus maybe more interaction with his brother. 

Obviously I want to know what comes next as they just thwarted the evil Nameless One (!!) and I’m waiting for the uror colt to make more of an appearance. Corwin and Kate can have their peace together until I read the next book!