Author: M.J. Schiller
Series: Romantic Knights Series 01
Read Type: eARC
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After saving Princess Megan of Bethyea from the hands of an evil ruler, Darius and Orion's lives will never be the same. Through a series of adventures they become close. Facing off against bad guys will do that to you. But in the end, when the mastermind is revealed, will they be able to overcome the evil stacked against them?
Book Blurb
Sir Darius Lee is a Knight of the High Order.
But when Darius discovers a stranger in his room in the middle of the night, and the intruder turns out to be a beautiful woman, he begins to question how he is meant to live his life.
Princess Megan of Bethyea is being held captive.
But when two knights help her to escape and bring her back to her home planet, she finds the home she knew no longer exists.
When The Council of Twelve questions Darius about his relationship with Maggie, she tries to flee from The Academy of the High Order to prevent him from losing his knighthood.
Will Darius and Orion find Maggie before she leaves Albion? And if they do, how can they face the decision of The Council? And what about the feelings Orion has developed for the princess?
Author Bio
Review
Strong language: Some, mild
Drugs: None
Violence: Yes
Sexual content: Yes
I received a free copy of this novel in return for an unbiased review.
Darius, a knight of the High Order, is sharing a suite with his apprentice, Orion, while waiting to speak to the people who kidnapped the princess he is there to free. He’s woken in the middle of the night by a sound, his spidey-senses tingling. He gets up but decides against getting his laser sword and…hang on—laser sword? I don't think we're in Kansas anymore, Toto!
This is a space age novel where chivalrous knights still rescue fair maidens and protect the universe, but it is also a novel looking at societies and how romance can affect a person to the very core.
I liked the tension created by the princess that they were there to rescue being under the very nose of the knight, hiding in his quarters, while she herself was unware of Darius’s intent. A frantic chase ensues when the slightly bumbling Orion crashes into the room, laser sword primed and held aloft as he charges into the fray thinking he is helping. This was a great way to show us some of the abilities of the knights, as well as give us a flyby of the palace and grounds and an overview of the technology present in the story.
In general, I also liked the switching between points of view, largely between the three main characters, because it gave information more quickly than a conversation could. However, at times point of view seemed to change every few paragraphs, which I felt broke the emotional connection to the story. The more we get to know the characters, the more I felt the book was character driven as opposed event driven, which disappointed me when the characters came off underdeveloped.
I enjoyed the plot so if I was reading this as relaxed beach read, I would have been satisfied. However, as a lover of the written word I found the writing was often phrased awkwardly, I would have liked more internal monologue or use of show don’t tell to express how character felt as opposed to it just being stated. For me this did drop my opinion as well as the rating. It's a shame, I felt a brisk brush from an editor to remove these extra phrases and build more three dimensional character backgrounds would have made a great improvement.
The 411
Plotwise this was a fun adventure and romance with the characters often feeling like teenagers in their first serious relationship. However, the writing was mediocre, it felt stunted, and I would like to have seen it cleaned up before editing.
I did enjoy the world and hope the author takes the time to clean up the rest of the series before publication. I would like to see more of this world she has created
For the plot I give a 4
For the writing I give a 3
Overall, for this novella I give a 3.5, rounded to a 3 for reviewing sites.
Thank you for offering your opinion of LEAP INTO THE KNIGHT. I appreciate you taking the time to read and write a thoughtful review. This was the first book I wrote, so going back through it, with the knowledge I have gained over my years of writing, I made a lot of changes to try to address the very issues you discuss here. My books go through edits with two different professional editors, so I thought we had eliminated problems, but I will keep this in mind while editing book two. I've had excellent reviews elsewhere, so perhaps my writing style just didn't suit you. Even so, I will take your words to heart while I continue to work on the series. I always appreciate reviewers offering their honest opinions. It is one of the ways for us to grow as writers.
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