Historical
The Chronicles of Alcinia Part 1 - The King's Daughter
By Katherine Petersen
Oct 1, 2008 - 12:00:59 PM

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Princess Tarabenthia’s of Alcinia (Tia), world turns upside down on the day her betrothal is to be announced. At eighteen, the sassy Tia wants what she wants and not what her father, King Vanus, decrees. No matter, the announcement never takes place. Instead, the Tumagis, an Alcinian arch enemy, have invaded the country and destroy everything and nearly everyone except the “high-Born” women.*

Taken into captivity, Tia becomes a slave and travels by ship to Omana, a country far to the south that broke a treaty with Alcinia in providing ships and battle gear for the Tumagis. Before leaving Alcinia, she vows she will return to save her people.

Tia has a penchant for finding trouble wherever she goes, and it is while a slaver seeks a buyer for her that she meets General Sergius Magistri, the one man her father ever feared. Magistri’s reputation as a fierce, half-mad general precedes him, so what he will do with Tia once he acquires her is left for you to find out. And will she ever return to Alcinia and her people?

Miriam Newman has created a masterful tale in THE CHRONICLES OF ALCINIA 1: THE KING’S DAUGHTER, including a fabulous job of world building, character development, pathos and dialogue. Newman has created a world that resembles medieval Europe in time frame with cavalry, no electricity, etc. and gives enough information about countries and peoples to make them eminently believable.

Newman started her writing career as a poet, and it’s easy to tell from her descriptions why she consistently published her work. She has drawn complex characters that we get to know better as we peel back the layers of personality. I adored Tia from the moment she was introduced: a feisty, outspoken heroine. She has just enough humanity, loyalty and spirituality to balance out some of her high-born arrogance especially as the book progresses.

While romance plays an important role in this novel, it is not the main focus. The plot concentrates on Tia, her relationships, opinions, thoughts and experiences and how they shape her and the decisions she makes.

The book flows beautifully with enough war, political intrigue, slavery, strategy and relationships of all kinds to keep one turning pages. The tale has a haunting reality to it as well, and I found myself caught in the characters’ emotions and feelings more times than I can count. The book has a spiritual feel to it, not only because of the importance of Tia’s Goddess-worship to her but also because it touches in both heart and soul with its beauty and its pain. I can’t wait to read THE CHRONICLES OF ALCINIA 2: HEART OF THE EARTH.