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The Chosen Series by Meg Anne

Reign of Ash (Book 2)

“You will damn us all.”

Kiri Helena Solene thought her trial was over. She was wrong. Prophesied to be the strongest of her kind, Helena is still coming to terms with the depth of her power and what it means to rule.

Unfortunately, there’s little time to learn.

“Without the tether you will fracture.”

As her soul mate, Von is Helena’s balance. Too bad he’s missing. When he disappears, her tenuous hold on her magic begins to slip. Helena must find Von, and soon, or risk losing control completely.

If only she knew where to look.

“You have a choice before you.”

A malevolent force has risen; threatening the lives of Helena and those in her Circle. What they don’t realize is that without Von she will become the thing they most fear. How do you choose between the people you’ve vowed to protect and the one person you can’t live without?

How do you choose when there’s no choice at all?

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Excerpt

The figure in the center moved forward. Long skeletal fingers appeared from the bottom of its sleeves to lift the hood back to reveal its face. There was a startled gasp behind her, but it was the only sound in the entirety of the clearing. Even the animals had decided to make themselves scarce for this particular meeting.

Helena couldn’t blame them. The Keepers were terrifying. There was no other word for the beings that stood before her. The other two followed the lead of the first and removed their hoods. She swallowed thickly, silently wishing they would put them back.

Their faces were gaunt, hairless, and a white so pale, she could make out the pulsing of purple veins beneath the thin skin. Their eyes were pits of black and their mouths were stitched shut, thick black cords woven in a crisscrossing pattern along the length of them. The only distinguishing marks between them were the swirling tattoos that covered almost every visible inch of skin. The markings were a deep navy blue, but as Helena stared at them, they seemed to shift and move in a serpentine fashion.

Without conscious thought, Helena decided the only way to get through this encounter was to brazen it out. “It would seem that Miranda got the looks in the family.”

Behind her Kragen and Ronan snickered with appreciation, while she saw Timmins close his eyes in dismay. Miranda’s own lips curled in an approving smile.

“Kiri, may I introduce you to the Triumvirate,” she said by way of introduction. “These are the oldest of the Keepers, those who have sworn their loyalty to the realm and have shaken off all vestiges of their past lives in order to lead and offer guidance without any of the bias of mortality.”

“One could argue that it is mortality that allows for the most valuable of guidance,” Helena murmured.

“Our Kiri is wise,” the voices hissed in her mind. It was hard to discern any type of emotion, but Helena could have sworn she sensed amusement.

“You will have to forgive my ignorance,” Helena replied, “I had not realized the head of the Keepers would be gracing us with their presence.”

“Nor had I, Kiri, or I would have better prepared you,” Miranda said drolly. There was a hint of censure in her voice, as though she was not pleased by the appearance of the Triumvirate.

 Make sure to check out both Mother of Shadows and Reign of Fire on Kindle. Mother of Shadows is free and Reign of Fire will be $.99 until 1/16.

My Review

5 stars

Helena is balancing on a knives edge. Von has disappeared and she is ready to go kick some serious butt. But she can’t. Without Von she is fractured and having a hard time keeping control of her power. So she meets Von’s family and help improve relations with them. But Von is truly in trouble and Helena can feel it. She is bound and determined to rescue him because without him how can she be the prophesied ruler.

There was so much happening in this story. I know, my little blurb makes it sound like a novella. Although I don’t this we got to see as much as I had hoped for, you do get to see one heck of a strong woman ready to do battle for her soul mate and her people. The chapters alternate between Helena and Von. This was a great insight into the story. I really like when the tension with the missing person is shown instead of just leaving them in la la land.

This is a great sequel to Mother of Shadows. The story is just getting better and better. I can’t wait to see what happens to Helena and Von next.

I received Mother of Shadow and Reign of Ash from the author for free. This has in no way influenced my opinion of these books.

Author’s Bio

Meg Anne has always had stories running on a loop in her head. They started off as daydreams about how the evil queen (aka Mom) had her slaving away doing chores; and more recently shifted into creating backgrounds about the people stuck beside her during rush hour. The stories have been there, they were just waiting for her to tell them.

Like any true SoCal native, Meg enjoys staying inside curled up with a good book and her cat Henry… or maybe that’s just her; sunburns hurt! You can convince Meg to buy just about anything if it’s covered in glitter or rhinestones, or make her laugh by sharing your favorite bad joke. She also accepts bribes in the form of baked goods and Mexican food.

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Mother of Shadows (Book 1)

Helena’s life had always been quiet. In fact, she liked it that way. When her childhood friend returns home and tells her that she is the prophesied ruler of the Chosen, those blessed with the gift of magic, her quiet life goes up in flames.

Suddenly Helena finds herself surrounded by a circle of protectors, each having sworn their loyalty to her since her birth. All except for one: her Mate.

It’s not enough that she learn how to use her magic and undergo a trial to prove her worthiness; in order to claim her title, Helena must also find the man who carries the other half of her soul.

Exiled due to a past he had no part in, Von is the last man the Chosen expect Helena to select. Despite their protests, his soul calls to hers and there’s no denying that he was made for her.

But the prophecy stands and all isn’t as it seems.

There’s an enemy lurking within plain sight who will stop at nothing to destroy her.

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My Review

5 stars

Helena always thought she was a plain farm girl with no magical abilities. Then her childhood friend Darrin returns from a trip to tell her that she is the leader of the Chosen. That she is going to need to learn how to use her powers quickly to pass the trials to get her role. But she also has to find her mate, the other half of her soul.

Von has been banished for something that he has not done. When he learns of Helena he initially plans on getting close to her for her powers. But then something strange happens and it seems that Von is Helena’s mate. Together they are going to have to work together to help Helena to fulfill the prophecy of the leader of the Chosen.

This is an amazing story. I was instantly sucked in and felt for Helena. The story of the Chosen had me cheering for Helena and hoping that this was not going to break her in the end. Von was all kinds of wrong but I loved how he was the last person that was going to end up being so important to Helena and the Chosen.

I have to say I loved everything but the ending. Talk about a major cliff hanger. I can’t wait to get into Reign of Ash.

Be sure to check out the giveaway and sign up here for the chance to win:

Signed Paperbacks of Mother of Shadows and Reign of Ash

Silk Magnolia Bloom Hairclip

Kiri Pendant

Magnolia Scented Solid Perfume

Magnolia Cream Bath Bomb

The Chosen Canvas Bag

The Chosen Mug

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