The Golden Key Chronicles: Caedmon's Curse by AJ Nuest

Title: Caedmon's Curse
Author: AJ Nuest
Series: The Golden Key Chronicles 03
Read Type: ARC for HarperImpulse
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You can purchase a copy of this instalment of the series from Amazon UK and Amazon US
Alternatively you can purchase the entire Golden Key Chronicles on Amazon UK and Amazon US
You can find out more about the author on her Website, Blog, Facebook, Author Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest

Series Synopsis

The key would unlock his future and the safety of his kingdom, but he never imagined the sorceress would unlock his heart…

Antiques restorer, Rowena Lindstrom, finds herself the owner of an ancestral armoire containing a hidden key and a magic mirror leading to another realm!

But the handsome warrior prince waiting on the other side is truly the final straw. This must be an elaborate joke, right? As she struggles to discover the truth, Rowena learns Prince Caedmon Austiere needs the key to save his kingdom. In the end, she cannot deny him anything. Including her heart.

~~~

Lost in a world she doesn't recognize, Rowena struggles to find her place.

Yet her abilities with a blade and the loyalty of a fierce falcon don't discourage the heated advances of the handsome Prince Caedmon, and the connection between them seems much deeper than her troubled heart can recall.

Book Blurb

For two years Prince Caedmon suffered in the dungeons of Seviere’s keep, leaving him with more than just lash marks lacing his back. He now retains the secret behind the key, and is the only one who understands its grim connection to his beloved Rowena.

Torn between telling her the truth and risking their future, he agrees to join her perilous quest. But their enemies to the north are not the only menace determined to see them fail and, to prove his love, he must conquer the demons of his past.

Author Bio

I am a multi-published, award-winning author who lives in the middle of a cornfield in NW Indiana. My loving husband, two beautiful children and a bevy of spoiled pets have agreed to stay and, in exchange for three rations per day and laundry service, tolerate my lunacy.

While I spend most days happily ensconced in crafting romance across a multitude of genres, an underground coup has been percolating. The dogs just informed me the cat is secretly vying for dictatorship. 



Review

My previous reviews for this series can be seen below:
Rowena's Key
Candra's Freedom


I received a copy of The Golden Key Chronicles from the author in return for an unbiased review. At the author's request I will read and review each novella separately, followed by an overview.


Strong language: Yes
Drugs: No
Violence: Yes
Sexual content: Yes


Caedmon's curse starts two days after the last book ended, with Rowena showing off her survival skills as she seems in her element, finally away from the aristocracy that held her down so long. Soon however we hear the thunder of hooves approaching her secluded hideaway. Why can't they just leave her alone!

Caedmon crashes into the camp, with Rowena already in hiding, and like the typical man makes a mess. But why is he here? That is the real question. He fights her, but also corrects her mistakes, making her a better warrior. Is he here to drag her back to the castle or to free her?

The tenderness shown by Caedmon in these scenes, particularly when he ignored his own desires to make sure Rowena felt safe, above anything else with him were so touching and perfectly aimed. Who could not fall in love with a prince who puts you first and treats you like his queen? Yet Rowena's anger is still palpable, if, I felt, misdirected. It was interesting to see the change in her as she had to reassess everything she had learnt in the last two years of her life in the castle.

Soon however things take a turn for the worse and Rowena finds herself fleeing, this time not from Caedmon, but to save is life. This was action packed and a full on adventure with dangerous martial artist soldiers on her tail, and a forbidden forest of terror to everyone in front, the pages just kept flipping. What she found was astounding, an unforeseen event for me, one I was very happy with.

There was a fantastic mix of tender moments and action mixed into this book, making it a read I couldn't put down. It was non stop and switched effortlessly between the two themes. I loved the ending, a real surprise and left a big cliff hanger.

Bring on the last book... but I don't want this to end!


The 411
 

Without a doubt the strongest of the series to date, I loved reading their adventures, both when they were foiled and when they succeeded. A real all rounder that I feel will appeal to both men and women who enjoy action, adventure, romance or fantasy.

The easiest 5 I've given in a while