Royal Airs by Sharon Shinn

Title:  Royal Airs

Series:  Elemental Blessings Book #2

Author:  Sharon Shinn

Genre:  Fantasy

Blurb:  Josetta is a princess of one of the Five Families. But she is far from the throne, so she is free to spend her days working in the poorest sections of the city.  Rafe Adova, an outcast since he was born, lives the life of a career gambler in those slums. He has no ambition other than cheating at the card tables—until the night he decides to help a girl named Corene, who looks like she’s stumbled into the wrong bar.  She, too, is a princess—sister to Josetta, who finds her with Rafe. He fascinates her. Josetta has never encountered anyone like him—someone seemingly devoid of elemental blessings.  He is drawn to her, though he thinks they are unlikely to ever meet again—but their connection grows strong when she nurses him back to health after he is assaulted by foreign mercenaries. And when they learn the reason he’s being hunted, they know that the truth about his history could endanger not only their love but also their very lives…

Thoughts:  To be honest, I really wanted to give this one an A rating.  It was very original, very creative, and extremely well written.  It was very lengthy and engaging, and was an interesting mix of genres.  For me it read almost like a historical, only with fantasy and science fiction elements thrown in.  The idea of “blessings” was very original, and definitely lended a little extra something to the reading experience.  At times, it almost seemed too lengthy and drawn out, but then another series of events would occur that would make it all worthwhile.  Too be honest, it was like reading one long mini-series….LOL

The only reason I am giving it a ‘B+’ is the ending.  I’m not going to give the ending away, but I was left feeling a bit dissatisfied.  I really wanted more of a resolution between the characters after investing in over 400+ pages.  It was a bit of a letdown.  Not to mention the fact that it trails off with an obvious build-up for the next book in the series.  Will I read more from this author?  Yes.  This book was too good to pass up, and I want more from this great world Shinn has created.  This was my first experience with her books, so I wasn’t really prepared for the type of ending provided.

My advice – read it, but be prepared for what’s in store at the end.  Otherwise, you’ll be left feeling a little frustrated!

Rate:  B+