Words on The Exiled Queen by Cindy Williams Chima (Seven Realms Series #2)

Fantasy
Jan 16, 2015
2 min read

Faking his own death, Hans "Cuffs" Alister has left his home and travels with Dancer to the famous Oden's Ford, where he cam recieve the best education possible and learn how to deal with his newfound wizard talents. Also on her way to the school is none other than Raisa ana' Marianna, princess of the Grey Wolf line and heir to her mother's throne. Raisa, along with Amon and his cadets, are fleeing power-hungry Bayars that would seek to either kill her or marry her off to one of their own. Taking a false name, she is determined to glean whatever she can from her teachers.

Meanwhile, tensions grow steadily. Raisa's mother is under pressure from both the wizards and the clans, and the two parties' conflicting goals and wishes are driving her into a corner. The civil war in Arden is also mounting, and some of the warring princes are beginning to use sinister tatics to get the upper hand.

At the academy, Cuffs meets Crow, a strange wizard who promises to teach him spells no one lse can. But Cuffs may not be wise to trust Crow, who has his own agenda. On the other hand, Raisa and Amon must accept (Or try to, because, let's face it, those two have it bad.) that what they have cannot continue. When Raisa and Cuffs cross paths (Hans still not knowing who Raisa really is!) they'll have to work together to navigate the politics and dangers of their world, watching as order slowly - but unavoidably - crumbles.

Watching Cuffs try to learn to act like a blueblood was, let's face it, entertaining. And seeing Raisa as his tutor was funny. Even better, Cuffs has no idea who his friend really is. We also meet a Bayar, Fiona. She's Micah's sister, and even though I wouldn't say she's that trustworthy, she doesn't seem to agree with her brother on everything. She has her own agenda.

I have to say, this felt like a step up from the first book. The plot was well developed, and the characters continued to develop and change throughout the story, leading to interesting plot twists. Chima's writing and story keeps the pages turning. This is a great book for fans of fantasy! And, of course, bonus points for no insta-love. The suspense was killing me, and the ending was driving me crazy for more. 4/5 stars! I'll be getting to the third book ASAP.