The Traitor's Heir Book Review

About the book:
Like many from his village, young Eamon Goodhand dreamed of joining the Gauntlet, the army of the overlord Eldered. Now he is about to complete his training and swear his loyalty to Eldered and his commanders, the Hands, who uphold Eldered's tight control of the land.

Entering into the service of the Gauntlet, Eamon's gifts, particularly his potent Sight, quickly become valuable to his superiors and he advances to the command rank at a speed that arouses the suspicions of fellow officers.

However, Eldered's bloody rule, and Eamon's personal friendships, start to challenge the young soldier's assumptions about what might be true, and worthy of service. And soon Eamon must conceal a fatal secret: he is sworn to both Eldered and to Hughan, the rightful king of the land. Yet he may not forswear the vows he has uttered in all good faith so however he serves, his name will be traitor.

As tensions and military skirmishes increase, Eamon finds himself trusted by both his masters. How can he possibly maintain his integrity, act justly to his fellow officers of the Gauntlet, and act on behalf of all the warring people of the land?

Third in series, The Broken Blade, is coming soon.

My Thoughts:
Written in a Lord of the Rings style, this first book in the series is a promising beginning. Lush, scenic writing fills the reader's imagination with exciting places, heroes, and villains.

While the scenes and plotting were very good, I did find some of the paragraphs a little long. That's not always a bad thing. Being a fan of classical literature, I'm rather used to such paragraphs, but I can't help wondering if today's young adults will feel the same as I do.
You can tell the author knows her Tolkein and Lewis very well, and I applaud her for being able to bring us a fresh, exciting series we can love in a similar fashion to those other great works.

I am looking forward to reading the next book by Ms. Thayer who reminds us, in a highly enjoyable fashion, what it could mean if we trust and pledge our honor and obedience to the wrong Master - making this series a timeless tale all would do well to heed.
**My thanks to Kregel Publications for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinions. I was not required this review be positive.**

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