Review and Giveaway: The Secret of the Keepers: Kailmeyra's Strength by Elizabeth Isaacs

 The Secret of the Keepers: Kailmeyra's Strength by Elizabeth Isaacs

The Kailmeyra Chronicles: Book Two--
Life for Nora couldn't be better; she has married the man of her dreams and loves living in the pristine land of Kailmeyra.
That is, until the darkness threatens her perfect world.
Now war is upon the land. She and Gavin must strengthen their clan and prepare to fight. But the enemy has an ally—one that not only wields power, but holds knowledge of the ancients' secrets. Secrets that could destroy creation itself.
As the darkness grows, doubt seeps in ... protectiveness hinders progress ... and the unthinkable comes to pass.
Bewildered and alone, Nora shoulders the responsibility of leading an entire race to war. As she struggles with decisions that seem impossible to make, she is haunted by one choice.
"No one has ever doubted that you would die for those you love. The question then becomes ... would you live?"

Publishes in US: Nov 1st 2011
Source: Part of blog tour. Make sure to comment on this post, and the other tour stops for your chances to win a copy of ebook of The Secret of the Keepers.

2nd in Kailmeyra series, to see my review of 1st: Light of Asteria . Third is slated for release in fall 2012 (how will I EVER wait that long???)

My Review:
    The Secret of the Keepers starts right where LoA left off, and man, have I been waiting for this!!! We jump right back into their ride to their honeymoon, and Elizabeth gratefully does not make us wait long. She manages to beautifully balance the need for steam and a bit of detail with modesty and everything is appropriate.
    The lyrical flow of Nora's voice is still present, and reading her thoughts and following her journey is such a joy. Emotions are a big part of SotK too, and Elizabeth has such a gift, I feel lucky to get to share in this story. Everything seems so real, if the characters are joyous, so am I, and if they are worried or grieving, she manages to show their feelings and explain it so that it makes me think of a similar situation I was in and I'm able to experience things right along with them.
    So many things I was looking forward to was in SotK along with lots of unexpected. I was glued to my kindle and was a sad puppy when I had to put it down to do something else. Elizabeth beautifully continued her story, adding depth to the plot and opening up a whole new set of questions and issues for the next book.
    SotK left me bawling at times, laughing and snickering at others, and fanning myself a bit at others. I can feel the love and devotion between Nora and Gavin, and then towards their clan and friends, and for the land and people of Kailmeyra. Nora has so much to deal with, and has to make such hard choices, I really empathize with her, and admire her for the strength she finds and everything that she discovers.
    Of course, my favorites from LoA are present and there are some new characters to fall in love with, be suspicious of, and marvel at, from marvelous creatures to old ladies who I can never quite decide what to think about, and delightful children. And that is not even mentioning the "wild child:" she's amusing!
    If you've been reading this blog much, you know that Light of Asteria is one of my favorite books, and Secrets does NOT disappoint. I HIGHLY recommend!
 

Show Elizabeth lots of love:
Elizabeth's Blog- http://www.thelightofasteria.blogspot.com/

Facebook Page- https://www.facebook.com/pages/Elizabeth-Isaacs-author/107839445917029

Twitter- http://twitter.com/#%21/kailmeyra

Giveaway time:
My blog and each of the other tour stops is giving away an ebook of The Secret of the Keepers. Please leave a comment and a way to contact you as your entry! My contest will end Nov 30th 11:59 EST.