Heart of Red, Blood of Blue by Rebecca Belliston

A girl on the run. A kingdom to save.

Princess Gisela of Steinland was born without color. Albino. To add to this curse, her betrothal to Prince Jerrik of Kronga ends in his death and starts a ten-year war her father is determined to win, even if it means bringing her out of hiding to do it. Now the savage Krongon war commander, Bloodless Kristoff, seeks the hearts of the entire royal family, especially Gisela's.

Desperate, her father agrees to another alliance that involves her marrying an old brute of a king. Unwilling to be the sacrificial lamb, Gisela goes on the run. Thrown into the center of a battle between three kingdoms, she finds herself fighting for her life and the right to be truly loved.

Can the girl who started the war find a way to end it?

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Wow.  What a story!  It takes you on great journeys through neighboring lands who are all at war so the danger is everywhere.  There is an intensity bubbling from the very beginning of the story and it just keeps growing in strength throughout the whole book.  Since this book is so long, by the end of the book I felt half crazed with desperation!  Those intense moments just keep coming until the very, very end.

Gisela had an excellent growing arc.  She did a lot of growing up throughout the book.  She made mistakes, but she learned from them.  She also learned how to stand up for herself and became stronger and stronger as the story went on.  I love a strong female lead.  The author did a great job of making Gisela strong but never losing those inherent female qualities of compassion and empathy.  A female can be strong but soft too.  Gisela was a great representation of both of these things. 

There were so many players in this game but the author also did a great job in this regard.  I never felt overwhelmed or confused as to all the characters and who they were.  The plot was always moving forward.  I actually think this book would make such a great TV mini series or a movie series!  I could visualize everything just like a movie.  I really love when that happens.

Don't miss this great story of adventure, intrigue and even love.

Content:  Violence (especially war time violence), peril, abuse, some talk of mistresses in a general way, kissing

- I bought a copy of this book.  All opinions expressed are my own.

The Pursuit (Citizens of Logan Pond #3) by Rebecca Belliston

Let the chase begin . . . 

Six years ago, with the financial collapse of her country and the death of her parents, Carrie Ashworth swore to protect her siblings. She has fought to build a life for them in her illegal clan. Now home and recovering from a government-spread virus, she’s ready to pursue a little happiness of her own. With Greg.

Greg Pierce has no plan to join the growing rebellion or their “Live free or die” mentality. Even after compulsory military service deepened his hatred of President Rigsby’s regime, he wants nothing more than to leave it all behind and start a quiet life with Carrie in Logan Pond. But when word reaches them that Oliver, their patrolman friend and protector, is missing, Carrie and Greg are thrown into a race for survival. Chief Jamansky has discovered Oliver’s little secret and now he wants revenge, forcing their clan to consider abandoning Logan Pond forever.

In this battle for siblings and friends, for homes lost and freedoms stolen, the citizens must ask: How far would you go to pursue happiness?

The stakes are pushed to their boundaries in this highly-anticipated final book in Rebecca Belliston’s Citizens of Logan Pond trilogy, bringing her epic love story to an unforgettable end.

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This is the third book in the Citizens of Logan Pond series and definitely my favorite of them all.  Each book got progressively better and I'm glad I stuck with this series after the first book (which wasn't my favorite).  

In my review of the first book I mention that I don't like Greg at all.  I'm not sure I came out of this series loving him, but he definitely mellowed and became less abrasive in books two and three.  He has many redemptive qualities that came out more in the second and third books.  Thank goodness.

The pacing in this book is fast and constant.  The characters are all fighting for their lives and for the people that they love.  It was easy to get caught up in their plight for freedom.  This book is the climax of the series and it's full on.  The first two books have really built up to this final book and it doesn't disappoint.

Luckily anyone starting this series now, like me, can read the books one right after the other without waiting.  The benefit of coming into a series late, I guess.  😃  

Content:  some violence

- I received a copy of this book free from the author.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Liberty (Citizens of Logan Pond, #2) by Rebecca Belliston

Live free or die . . .

Chicago is burning, a rebellion rises, but that’s the least of Carrie’s concerns. Patrolman Simmons is assigned new partners who threaten the security and secrecy of Carrie's clan. Tensions are high, lines are drawn, and Carrie feels a wedge growing between her and Greg.

Haunted by past mistakes and impending tragedies, Greg knows he should distance himself from Carrie. He knows he should let her love the patrolman who can save her and her siblings, especially with money and resources dwindling. But knowing and doing are different matters. He's busy hatching a plan to salvage things when his citizenship backfires, and he’s asked to do the unthinkable. In this stunning follow-up to Life, loved ones are lost, allegiances are tested, and old enemies plot revenge. At every turn, the citizens of Logan Pond must ask:

What price would you pay for the liberty of those you love?

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This is the second book in the Citizens of Logan Pond series.  I would highly recommend reading the first book, Life, before you delve into this book.  The books are dependent on each other and you would be missing so much if you didn't read them in order.  This is a dystopian book, set in the future of America.

I had a hard time with the main character, Greg, in the first book.  I didn't like him very much.  I have to admit that he grew on me a bit in this book but he still isn't my favorite.  I am grateful for the gentle shift in his attitude though.  It was much easier to find and attach myself to those redemptive qualities in this book.

This book brings all kinds of hardship and struggle to the characters of Logan Pond.  The story line really picks up and tensions increase.  It was like the first book was completely meant to introduce characters and set the stage for this book.  I did enjoy this book more than the first and boy, did it leave off in a doozy of a way.  Talk about a cliffhanger!  I will be picking up the third book in this series for sure.  It's on my review schedule for the first week of January and I'm looking forward to the climactic conclusion!

Content:  Some violence but otherwise clean.

I was given a copy of this book by the author.  A positive review was not required and all opinions expressed are my own.

Life (Citizens of Logan Pond #1) by Rebecca Belliston

Her home. Her parents. Her freedom. Gone.
His dreams. His sister. Himself. Lost.
Two people.
One future.

The economy crashed, the country is floundering, and Carrie Ashworth struggles to keep her siblings alive. She has two jobs in her newly formed, newly outlawed clan: grow crops to feed thirty-six people, and maintain contact with Oliver Simmons, their local patrolman. Carrie's life is almost content when Greg Pierce shows up. A man with the ambition to help them survive. A man determined to hate her.

Greg sets to work devising systems to protect the clan from the new regime, but it doesn't take long to realize the true reason behind their safety. Patrolman Simmons has fallen for Carrie. When a government raid nearly wipes out their clan, Greg takes it upon himself to give the socially awkward patrolman what he wants. Only Carrie doesn't like Greg throwing her in Simmons' path, especially when Greg's brusque exterior melts, and she catches a glimpse of the real man underneath. Neither of them realize that Simmons' coworkers have grown suspicious. A clan the size of Logan Pond can't have 'slipped' past his patrols all this time. When their hidden loot goes missing, they want revenge, and the one thread holding Logan Pond together is about to break.

Carrie is forced to choose: follow her heart or save her clan. Life won't let her choose both.

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I always love changing up the genre a bit and delving into a good dystopian.  The thing that makes dystopian books so attractive to me is the idea that any of these things could happen.  They could be a distant reality.  Especially this book with the economic crash and a floundering country left to survive in it's wake.  All too real.

The setting is great.  What used to be a normal suburb is now the hiding grounds for a group of people who have band together to survive.  They have so little yet they make it work.  There were a lot of characters in this book but I felt like I knew them all which is so important in a book like this.  I enjoyed the sense of community and the roles that each person played within the group.

I guess my problem was that I really didn't like Greg.  At all.  By the end of the book he is finally displaying a couple redemptive qualities, but it was too little, too late for me.  I just didn't like him.  I didn't like his mean ways or his in your face way of talking and acting.  I liked Carrie a lot better than Greg but even I got tired of her apologizing all the time for everything.  Kindness is one thing, doormat is another thing.

I'm giving this a solid three stars out of five.  I'm going to be reading the next book and I really hope I like Greg better.  Connecting with the characters is so key for me.  I just didn't feel that in this book, but I really did love the whole premise so I'm going back for more.  Look for my review of the second book next month!  

Content:  some mild violence

- I received a copy of this book from the author.  A favorable review was not required and all opinions expressed are my own.