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–Synopsis–

Two Heirs, one quest. . . .

Sarah Lind is far from her Pennsylvanian home, having fallen into the perilous yet magical Six Realms and fallen in with their equally deadly and alluring dragon-shifter prince.

Yet Earth’s secret guardian, the Tree of Ice, has given Sarah a way back: if Sarah finds all six moongates hidden across the Six Realms, the Tree will reveal the seventh moongate to Earth. But as Sarah races against all odds to do so, she risks something even greater than her life—her heart.

Koriben Sunfilled, Heir of Flame, knows his duty: to protect Sarah, the declared Heir of Ice, on their joined quest to redeem the Covenants his people depend on in their existential war against the dark Devourer.

Yet he wrestles with his growing feelings for her and a destiny that could divide them. But if Sarah rejects her birthright, his people could pay the price—starting with his dying father.

The only way for Sarah and Ben to survive and succeed is for them to embrace the connection growing between them. Yet they are in a race against time, because in ten days . . .

. . . the Devourer comes for them all.

–Review–

This sequel once again follows the perspectives of both Sarah and Ben and starts off pretty much exactly where the first book ended with elaborations in the romance, drama and main plot.

A whole lot more lore is divulged in this book as the group is officially beginning the daunting task of finding all the moon gates in order for the final one to Earth to be opened by the Great Trees. I will say, finding the moon gates felt like it was happening much faster than I originally thought. Being that there are at least three more books in the series, I am wondering how much of that is going to involve finding the gates versus what will come after the big invasion of the Devourer. The reader, alongside Sarah is starting to come to terms with the absoluter severity of the situation, particularly Sarah’s role in the survival of all the realms. I will say, I did get slightly annoyed with how so many people were insinuating and straight up telling Sarah that she could simply walk away from her destined role, even though it felt as though she really did not have a choice. After all, it seems like she is the only person in this entire world that fell from Earth and has all the prerequisites to fill the prophecy. It would be interesting to see the version of the story in which Sarah did not feel attracted to Ben, I wonder if she would have in fact walked away.

The world itself feels a bit larger since they do more traveling to different realms in order to sniff out the moon gates. It was interesting to see how different the strongholds look and feel. The final area in the book is a very fancy place that holds this festival every year. Per Ben being the heir, he is pretty much required to attend and participate in this highly dramatic pageant (not what you expect). This was my favorite scene in the whole book since all the romantic tension you have been feeling the entire book comes to a head, in a positive way!

There is a greater sense of danger for Sarah in this book. I highly enjoyed this since it led to a very climactic moment in which Sarah almost gets taken by the Devourer’s minions and Ben goes a bit insane when he thinks she dies. It is pretty great lol This scene alone does so much for the progression of the romance and plot.

Since this is a sequel, I will not focus too much on each individual character since they act very similarly like in the first book. I will say Yvera, Ben’s severe right wing, has a moment of development in this book. I figured it would happen like that and honestly, I was glad this finally took place so she can chill out a little bit for the remainder of the series since I found her to be extremely broody.

Kor acts the most similar to the previous book as his usual secretive and scheming self. He comes off as much gutsier in this book, particularly when it comes to getting Ben and Sarah together. He was infuriating at times with his seemingly overstepping, but his actions do make a bit more sense considering how much is riding on them getting together.

Sarah at times comes off as bratty once again in this book. However, it is understandable with how many more people begin to fuss over her which is something she is not used to at all. One of my favorite aspects with Sarah is how her magical abilities are showing more and more. She is not only able to feel where the moon gates are, but she discovers she has the same sort of connection to Ben. She also gets a hold of a projectile weapon which is super fun to read and is able to take advantage of some teleportation when it comes to both.

Ben is struggling with his feelings towards Sarah as expected. He is also struggling with his dad’s sickness and all the what-ifs effecting his future as the heir to the realms. Needless to say, he is under an immense amount of stress, so I understand his pause with furthering things with Sarah since he knows what all that would entail for her specifically. He remains supportive with Sarah and her increased magical abilities and connection for the Trees. He remains my favorite character in the series for his level headedness (most of the time), and his patience and partiality to Sarah. The protectiveness and loyalty he shows to her is truly heroic and swoon worthy.

The romantic relationship between Sarah and Ben take on a more prominent role than the previous book. The tension in particular becomes increasingly more difficult for them both to ignore until it culminates in the final scene of the book. I will say, there are multiple times in which they get interrupted by the same two people who just so happen to have the worst timing in the world. While I was beginning to get annoyed by the constant close calls, I was very happy to read the climax and did feel like it was the perfect timing for their relationship going further. Again, this is a clean romance so there is no physical stuff at all, just some steamier thoughts and tension.

All in all, this was a fantastic continuation of the ‘Blood of the Covenants’ series. You get so much more lore with the world as a whole and their own spiritual and government systems which deepens the overall meanings behind the plot. I greatly look forward to reading the next book as soon as I can get around to it.

-About the Author-

Hi, I’m Leah! I believe magical stories have the power make the world a brighter place, so I write clean, immersive, hope-filled romantic fantasy with authentic heroines and heroes who find the light inside despite the darkness around them (and, of course, find love and fantastical adventure along the way). On a scale of cozy-to-grimdark, you could say my books are cozy-adjacent—sometimes exploring depths of feeling and danger too heavy for cozy but never going near the dark half of the spectrum. Each series will always have a happy ending, even if the characters experience some low points along the way (as we all do in life).

I began crafting stories almost from the moment I learned to speak. One of my very first novels was a fantasy retelling of Robin Hood, emailed to my siblings and best friend chapter by chapter. Years later, I graduated from Brigham Young University (Provo) in 2016 with a degree in English language and a minor in editing. I then edited for seven years and pivoted to writing in 2023. I am based in the DC area, where I live with family and my handsome rescue Australian shepherd, Wes.