**This is a sequel in a gorgeous medieval/renaissance YA fantasy duology; POTENTIAL SPOILER WARNING!!** If I could, I would make every star Cartier wove to form the Aviana Constellation in Brienna Allenach’s passion cloak do a dance around Rebecca Ross and her fierce novel, The Queen’s Resistance, the thrilling sequel to her epic YA fantasy debut novel, The Queen’s Rising. Rebecca Ross threads the wounds of a country—a people—so broken from years of torment and violence under the rule of an evil, power hungry king and his family with no right to the Maevan throne and weaves a tale of hope, valor, and revenge of the most heart wrenching kind. The Queen’s Rising duology is unlike any other YA fantasy novel I’ve read and has been a story my heart had no idea it desperately needed to read. In The Queen’s Rising, readers studied alongside Brienna through her journey to master a passion in the magnificent Magnalia House in Valenia. Unable to determine which passion she would be good at, Brienna dabbled in them all: art, dramatics, wit, and music. Then our beloved main character finally chose to study the passion of knowledge under the watchful eye of Master Cartier. On the night of the summer solstice, Brienna doesn’t reach her passion like her other arden-sisters so she is confined to Magnalia House, alone and dejected, with only the strange memories of a great-great-great ancestor long dead to keep her company. When the headmistress at Magnalia House recognizes the amulet Brienna describes from her memories, she connects the image with the stories about the infamous magical Stone of Eventide that disappeared long ago. Brienna holds valuable knowledge of where her ancestor hid the stone which could potentially turn the tides of a rebellion that has been brewing for decades since a Lannon crowned himself as a Maevan king. It is stated on a large stone slab (also mysteriously missing) that only a Kavanaugh woman is allowed to rule Maevana. The Lannon family and their supporters are a nasty bunch of people who have inflicted nothing but pain and cruelty on the Maevan people. So we painted on some imaginary woad war paint and set off with Brienna on an incredible journey of self-discovery, a slow-burn romance, and a crusade to put an end to the Lanonn’s tyrannical reign. She must retrieve both the lawful stone slab and the Stone of Eventide and give both to her friend Isolde Kavanaugh, the rightful queen of Maevana, to successfully win their revolution. The Queen’s Resistance opens with Brienna and Cartier waking into Castle Fionn, Lord MacQuinn’s territory, to a celebratory feast. The lords of three Houses of Maevana (Kavanaugh, MacQuinn, and Morgane) are back in their rightful homes, trying to mend what has been broken. Brienna has chosen her place with her adoptive father Jourdain, also known as Lord MacQuinn, and sets her mind to immersing herself in the MacQuinn customs. She is tasked with writing down her people’s grievances but the MacQuinns are hesitant to accept her since she is the biological daughter of Brian Allenach—their enemy now dead. Told from dual perspectives, Rebecca Ross not only continues Brienna’s story but also introduces Cartier’s point of view as he returns to Castle Brígh to take over his rightful lordship as Aodhan Morgane. The Lannons have been captured and thrown in the dungeons where they await their individual trials. However, not everything is black and white, especially when it comes to Declan Lannon’s children who are also victims of their father's cruelty. Brienna and Cartier along with Queen Isolde must try to unite the Maevan people in love rather than fear, so when Declan Lannon escapes the dungeons and his death sentence, taking his daughter and son hostage, they try to flush out all the Lannon sympathizers to try and find his safe houses, retrieve the children Cartier and Brienna have sworn to protect, and be rid of Declan Lannon once and for all. Nothing goes as planned so brace yourselves for incredible plot twists, tears of the sweetest kind, and anger that will ignite a passion within yourself you didn’t fathom could even happen with fictional characters. It is beautiful and heart wrenching when you read about the grievances of the Maevan people and you will sincerely hope they rebuild and find peace after the horrors they endured. The Queen’s Resistance is a permanent golden ribbon Rebecca Ross wove in the wefts of a MacQuinn tapestry and it has wrapped itself tightly around my heart. You will know what I mean by this when you finish this stunning and beautifully written novel. About the AuthorRebecca Ross was born and raised in Georgia, where she continues to reside with her husband, her lively Australian Shepherd, and her endless piles of books. She loves coffee, the night sky, chalk art, maps, the mountains, and growing wildflowers in her yard. And a good story, of course. She was a girl of words and stars and iron… Visit Rebecca Ross on Instagram (@beccajross) and stay up to date on her third novel, Sisters of Sword and Song, set to release June 23, 2020!!
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