CARA'S TWELVE by Chantel Seabrook

CARA'S TWELVE by Chantel Seabrook

I got hooked on this story almost from the beginning. I love fantasy worlds and characters, but so many books are lacking in the depth of the plot or characters. Not this one. This story is full of emotions, intrigue and adventure. I really enjoyed the concept of the Queen having to choose from 12 consorts. Yummy. Who wouldn't want all that testosterone, masculinity & manliness just hanging around? Of course, not all of the men are whom they appear to be. And that could be Cara's downfall.

I really liked Cara's character. She started as a naive girl from an impoverished province, but because of her bloodline connection to the Goddess Annul, she suddenly becomes the chosen one for Queen. She has not a clue what that entails and she's not even sure she believes in Annul. Now she's stuck with 12 consorts she's not sure what to do with, and, of course, an evil Queen to fight. And evil she is. But she's not the only one in this tale. Chantel does an incredible job depicting her characters.  They are totally believable.  Out of the men Cara has to choose from, my favorite is Tahdaon. I love dark, troubled men, but also men who are loyal and will fight for whom they love. Since this is Book One of a series, I kinda knew which consort Cara would make her king. So, I'm still cheering for my man. I can't wait to read the next book.

My only complaint about this story is the writing. It is well-written, but the writer has a tendency to overuse certain phrases, and they got pretty old after a while. A good editor would solve that problem.

If you love a great fantasy world, with a medieval type setting and lots of drama and adventure, you'll love this book. I give it 5 feathers.