The King's Guard

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By Rae Carson

Publisher Description

“I love this series to pieces and so should you.”—Marie Lu, bestselling author of Warcross

This riveting prequel to Rae Carson's award-winning and New York Times–bestselling Girl of Fire and Thorns series introduces readers to Hector before he became the man Queen Elisa fell in love with.

At fifteen years old, Hector is the youngest squire in the most elite military force in the country. And his first day is disastrous. Everyone assumes the only reason he was recruited is his close personal association with King Alejandro, not because he's really earned it.

But Alejandro needs Hector for a secret mission, one that gives him the chance to prove to everyone—including himself—that he is worthy to be a Royal Guard. Hector must break into the ancient Fortress of Wind to retrieve something so important that the kingdom's future depends on it. What Hector finds in the fortress will stretch his bond of friendship with his king near to breaking. And it will prepare him to become the fearsome warrior and lord commander Elisa will never let go.

Don’t miss The Empire of Dreams, Rae Carson’s action-packed return to the world of The Girl of Fire and Thorns!

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172 Reviews

4.0

Kristina Lee

Created 3 months ago

Hadar Doron

Created 6 months ago

“I liked the book and the characters, the story give a bit of information that click some questions to place. On the other hand, I hated the changing in the writing style between 0.5 to 0.6 to 0.7 Merged review: I liked the book and the characters, the story give a bit of information that click some questions to place. On the other hand, I hated the changing in the writing style between 0.5 to 0.6 to 0.7”

Alex Rey

Created 6 months ago

“This was the only novella with a true purpose, the other two weren't necessary in my opinion, I already liked Hector but now I like him even more and what we learn in this novella shocked me I saw it coming as soon as hector saw Isadora but it still stunned me to find that out, now I'm really looking forward to crown of embers because I'm guessing this info might represent a problem later on Merged review: This was the only novella with a true purpose, the other two weren't necessary in my opinion, I already liked Hector but now I like him even more and what we learn in this novella shocked me I saw it coming as soon as hector saw Isadora but it still stunned me to find that out, now I'm really looking forward to crown of embers because I'm guessing this info might represent a problem later on”

Onetrooluff (Julie)

Created 6 months ago

“This didn't have quite the punch of the previous story (The Shattered Mountain) but it was very interesting. I'm impressed with Rae Carson's ability to come up with shocking, fascinating backstory elements that are still invisible enough to the plot that it doesn't matter if you skip this story and only read the main novels. It's adding a lot of depth to the characters and their background, though, so if you have any interest in the series at all, I'd highly recommend reading the three novellas. I realized, AGAIN, while reading this story that Rae Carson's stories have a definite dark edge to them. There are things that occur in these stories that I know would just never, ever occur to me were I a writer; things too dark, twisted and just downright sad for me to ever want to spend any time thinking about. The worldbuilding is fantastic, and I really like the characters, but I could really go without these little bits. I have to read the books with a little bit of an emotional shield up because I never know what she is going to do to these characters. I think that is what keeps me from giving them five stars, because I can't totally immerse myself in the story for fear of bawling my eyes out. (Yeah, I'm one of THOSE people, the people that don't often enjoy stories that make me cry.) All that said... I love you, Hector! Merged review: This didn't have quite the punch of the previous story (The Shattered Mountain) but it was very interesting. I'm impressed with Rae Carson's ability to come up with shocking, fascinating backstory elements that are still invisible enough to the plot that it doesn't matter if you skip this story and only read the main novels. It's adding a lot of depth to the characters and their background, though, so if you have any interest in the series at all, I'd highly recommend reading the three novellas. I realized, AGAIN, while reading this story that Rae Carson's stories have a definite dark edge to them. There are things that occur in these stories that I know would just never, ever occur to me were I a writer; things too dark, twisted and just downright sad for me to ever want to spend any time thinking about. The worldbuilding is fantastic, and I really like the characters, but I could really go without these little bits. I have to read the books with a little bit of an emotional shield up because I never know what she is going to do to these characters. I think that is what keeps me from giving them five stars, because I can't totally immerse myself in the story for fear of bawling my eyes out. (Yeah, I'm one of THOSE people, the people that don't often enjoy stories that make me cry.) All that said... I love you, Hector!”

Rebekah

Created 6 months ago

About Rae Carson

Rae Carson is the author of two bestselling and award-winning trilogies, as well as the acclaimed stand-alone novels Any Sign of Life and The Empire of Dreams. Her debut, The Girl of Fire and Thorns, was named a William C. Morris Award finalist and an Andre Norton Award finalist. Walk on Earth a Stranger was longlisted for the 2015 National Book Award and won the Western Writers of America Spur Award. Her books tend to contain adventure, magic, and smart girls who make (mostly) smart choices. Originally from California, Rae Carson now lives in Ohio with her husband. www.raecarson.com