The Princess Knight continues the saga of The Blacksmith Queen through the eyes of Gemma, sister to both of the queens crowned in the previous book (Keeley, eldest sister and "good" queen, and Beatrix, younger sister and "evil" queen). As always in a GA Aiken/Shelly Laurenston book, there's over-the-top action, characters, plots, and kickass female leads.

Gemma is a War Monk, skilled both in killing people and in necromancy. In the previous book, she left her order to fight at her sister Keeley's side. In this book as Keeley continues to try to establish a kingdom that will provide a good life for all of its citizens, Gemma is right there with her, doing whatever is needed and killing whoever needs killing. I absolutely adore Keeley, and she made lots of appearances in this book. Gemma is a bit harder to warm up to in comparison. She's a lot angrier than Keeley (as befitting her background as a monk who worships a war god). Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed her adventures and the non-stop action.

As in the previous book, there's a side romance with a centaur, in this case, Quinn, brother to Keeley's centaur, Caid. Although the romance seemed a bit undeveloped, I felt that the connection between Gemma and Quinn was solid. It was pretty obvious right from the start that they were attracted to each other underneath their surface insults. The ending of the book was not a cliffhanger, but it did open a major plot thread with characters from GA Aiken's Dragon Kin series making an appearance, and I can't wait to see where the story goes next.

This was the first book in this series that I've read, I am a Shelly Laurenston fan, and under this alternative pen name she did not disappoint. I had been seeing reviews about how good this book was and they were not wrong. I absolutely loved this book! I'm going to go back and read the rest of the series now.

What a great word MS Aikens was able to create, The first book was a very big success in my branch cant wait for this book to join the collection. The story was able to capture both men and women with the world building the romantic element were enough for romance reader, It not often the we meet a women as strong as a man with the heart of a women.

Just like it's predesssor, the new novel by G.A.Aiken will have you laughing out loud from start to finish. The gripping story interwoven with humor will make you want to not put this book down!

Review excerpted from my blog post over at Titillated Termagant Romance Reviews (https://titillatedtermagant.wordpress.com/2021/01/27/the-princess-knight-by-g-a-aiken/)

My Rating: 4 stars

Library recommendation: Recommended for public library paranormal romance collections.

Warning: Hereafter, you chance spoilers. I will try never to reveal major plot points, but to review any book, you must reveal some parts of the story.

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Number of titles I have read by this author: 2

Love story speed: Medium burn

Relationship dynamics: The Royal War Monk (h) / The Nutty, But Charming Centaur (H)

Physical descriptions: As with the first book in this series, I found that the physical descriptions were very sparse, The focus is much more on the strength of the characters than their appearance (unless they’re covered in gore, in which case details abound).

Sexual content: A smidge; on-page and explicit

Triggers: extreme violence; gore; recounted rape

Grammar/Editing: My ARC had a few typos.

Review: The first thing to note about this book is that if you haven’t read the previous book (see my review <a href="https://titillatedtermagant.wordpress.com/2019/08/07/the-blacksmith-queen-by-g-a-aiken/">here</a>), you should do so before attempting to read this one. While the writing continues to be witty and the plot very interesting, a great deal of world building and character development occurs in the first book, and you will be lost if you try to read the books out of order, especially since this one picks up where the first left off.

The romance in this book doesn’t exactly feel central to the plot – especially with the number of different character points of view that are featured – but there is enough if it to keep this book classified as a fantasy romance, for me. Gemma and Quinn are the pairing in this novel. Their relationship really comes out of the blue and just kind of smacks you in the back and the head, making you go, “Huh. That escalated.” That’s not to say that the romance isn’t funny and quirky (because it is) – it’s just quite sudden. In terms of supporting characters, there are a lot in this book. I have to say that while I know that they all had separate names, if that information were to be removed, I’m not sure that I could tell some of the minor secondary characters apart. Even major secondary characters could be confused with at least one other character in the book so, in that regard, character development wasn’t as strong as it could have been.

All that being said, I definitely intend to read the next book when it becomes available.

Full disclosure: I received a free advance review copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book continues from the Blacksmith Queen and occurs in the same world as the Dragon Kin series.
It is beautifully written with plenty of action and humour that makes it hard to put down.
For fans of GA Aiken, there are more dragons coming!! Lots to look forward to..

4 Hearts
SJ, Romance Junkies

THE PRINCESS KNIGHT is G.A. Aiken's second in her THE SCARRED EARTH SAGA but can be read as a standalone novel. (Though for sheer enjoyment, start with THE BLACKSMITH QUEEN first.)

Gemma Smythe is a War Monk, a warrior dedicated to battle and the war gods. But now that her sister has become the Blacksmith Queen, Gemma's loyalty is to her queen. Period. No matter how much she and the queen still squabble, (and they sure do like to argue!) Gemma will do whatever she has to in order to protect the queen. To that end, she grudgingly works alongside the Amichai warrior. Quinn.

The Amichai are centaurs with the magical ability to shapeshift. And of course, Quinn's ability to constantly annoy his siblings and Gemma is a magic all its own.

Together, the two go on a mission to rally allies and defeat enemies. Through danger, intrigue, a lot of arguing, and battle, Gemma and Quinn find more than the mission but a connection that develops into something more.

As usual, the humor is front and center in Aiken's hilarious, magical, medieval fantasy series. The romance, however, is really on the backburner while all the action and arguing takes center stage. The story is a fun, laugh-out-loud adventure that adds to the excitement of the Blacksmith Queen's new reign. Fantasy lovers will find this delightful, but romance lovers might be wondering where all the romance went.

A must-read for G.A. Aiken and fantasy fiction fans.

Laurenston/Aiken takes readers on a rip-roaring adventure filled with outrageous characters, hilarious storylines, and a romance that makes you question everything, Set in the same world as her Dragon Kin series, Aiken expands her world with a new villain. Only this time, it's family., Fans will laugh themselves silly and cheer with abandonment as the Smythe sisters fight their way across the plains to ensure the self-proclaimed queen of the Hill Lands, and their younger sister doesn't keep her throne.

I’m totally loving this series! Filled with so much excitement, drama, humor and intrigue, once I began I couldn’t stop. I love this book the banter between sisters and friends are hilarious and I can't wait for another book about the Smythe girls since it's connected to the Dragon Kin series.

I love books with strong female characters. This book does not disappoint. Gemma is a War Monk. War Monks are fierce fighters with supernatural powers. This book weaves a story about family that is blood and family that is not. There are centaurs, witches, dwarves and elves that drive Gemma crazy. I loved this book and I am eagerly waiting the next book.

If you loved The Blacksmith Queen then you must pick up a copy of The Princess Knight. Although the story takes a direction I never expected or anticipated, I really loved it (maybe even more than the first book…and I loved that one already). What can I say G.A. Aiken is an amazing storyteller making prolific worlds for us to devour!

If it's high fantasy you love, you will not be disappointed. If it is science fiction you love, you will not be disappointed. If it is stories told with humor and heart, action and emotional connections then The Princess Knight will be a book for you as it was for me.

GA Aiken did it again! I love her work. She is an auto buy no matter what the story is about. I love the fact that in her new series as well as previous ones, that all her heroines are strong and capable. They are so able to deal with getting stuff done and the fact that Gemma is a warrior monk who kicks ass and takes names is so amazing to the little girl in me who was told I had to be the rescuee not the rescuer.

Aiken is one of my favorite authors and I Felt that her writing held up in this one same as her other books. I was really surprised that the romance took a bit of a backseat in this book, however, considering Aiken/Laurenston is marketed as a romance author. The friendships in The Princess Knight were wonderfully satisfying, with lots of banter and teasing. The author’s signature humor was everywhere.

My Review: I have really enjoyed Aiken's (Laurenston's) books in the past, and really loved the dragon series. If you follow her books at all you know to expect somewhat brutal worlds, a lot of banter and snark and a lot of steam, all of which make highly entertaining reads. I was excited to see a new series from her last year but struggled a bit with the first book but enjoyed it enough to want to continue. It took me a while to settle back into this world, I remember the main players and events but not all the details. This book focused on Gemma and she is a tough character to like, especially after the first book, but the constant banter kept the story moving along. It felt like there was a lot more action in this book than in the previous book. We get to see a bit more of the world and meet a lot of new characters, so there wasn't as much focus on the romance (I did miss that a bit). I did like the way she connected this book with others, and that is all I can say about that without getting into spoilers.

My Rating: I struggled to stay focused on this one, even more than the first. I don't know if I would continue with the rest of the series except for the little bit that happens in the Epilogue that is drawing me back in. For now I give this one a rating of Two Paws and a Stump Wag.

GA Aiken at their best! Fantastic, funny, unique, and so wonderful! YES TO THIS SERIES! I need more!

Oh, man, this book was just fantastic! Of course it's got G.A. Aiken (or Shelly Laurenston's) crazy over the top action and humour, as well as being in this excellent world that I'm enjoying learning more about. And we get to be with Gemma, cousin of the female lead for the first book, so that was really great! I don't know why, but I was thinking that Gemma was Keeley's cousin. But it's right there in the synopsis that she's her sister. Bah! My weird head!

I remembered that Gemma was a War Monk, but in this book, we did get to see more of it, given that she's a lead character. This was a great part of the world to explore! Plus her group backing her awful, betraying sister was a big chunk of this book. And combined with the fact that it takes place after Keeley has had time to settle in as Queen, there was plenty to do in this book!

Behind the scenes, really, was a relationship being created and developing into a romance. There was so much else going on with the politics of the remaining heirs of the other kingdom, as well as the Beatrix, that the relationship between Gemma and Quinn quickly snuck up on me. Sneaky sneak!

But that ending? I totally didn't expect it to go in that direction, it was totally wild and it really has me wanting to continue the Dragon Kin series, which chronologically takes place first. I just can't wait to see where it goes from here!

This book was an excellent read, and I can't wait to continue the series!

The Princess Knight continues from The Blacksmith Queen in the Scarred Earth series by G.A Aiken. Gemma Smyth, War Monk, worships the War Gods and quarrels with her sister Keeley, prophesied Blacksmith Queen. Both are busy trying to keep their sister soulless Beatrix, from taking over the world. Swashbuckling grand fantasy with lots of blood and gore and a little romance. Wonderful fae and devilish characters.

G.A. Aiken develops stories that have sass, kick butt women, and complex relationships. Other than a happy ending, the plots twist and turn and don't give away how they will get to the conclusion. The Princess Knight is a stellar example of the superb writing of G.A. Aiken and proves why she is one of my automatic downloads!

When you start a G.A. Aiken/Shelly Laurenston book, you know that you are in for a wild ride full of action packed excitement and bad assed crazy women. Needless to say, this book did not disappoint. You should definitely read the first book in the series before picking up this title.
This book takes place two years after the events in the last book. Like the previous book, this one has multiple POVs. I enjoyed the relationships a lot in this book. While Gemma is a completely different character from Keeley (the main character in the first book) I enjoyed her paranoid and angry personality. If you are not a fan of slow burn romances, this book might frustrate you. With the huge amount of action, political intrigue, and family drama, added in with the author's usual wacky sense of humor, I didn't really miss the romance which says a lot because I am a huge romance reader,
I really enjoyed this book and I am looking forward to the next one in the series!

4.5

It's been two years since Gemma left her order of War Monks to fight at her sister Keeley's side as Keeley fulfills the prophecy of the Blacksmith Queen against their younger sister Beatrix. In that time, Gemma has begun to lose faith with her god.

But she'll have to confront her wavering faith when she's called upon to investigate the decimation of various religious orders throughout the realm. Her thoughts immediately turn to Beatrix as the brain behind these horrific acts. Regardless, Gemma will have to reconcile her beliefs as well as the beliefs of others if she wants to make it out of this conflict alive.

I've been sitting on this review for a while now. Not because I didn't thoroughly enjoy this book, but because I sit here thinking of what to write and I feel like every deep thought I could have is just overshadowed by how just genuinely, hands down much fun this read was, and how G.A. Aiken's reads are just fun in general.

I feel like reading this book is an immersive experience. Like in order to really appreciate the flow of the plot and the banter you have to really fall into the characters and the story otherwise you miss the subtleties of a turn of phrase or dialogue. I felt like I was able to do this better with this second book probably because I knew the score, so to speak, after being familiar with the characters and their varying quirks. G.A. Aiken's writing is so vivid that I could picture every single expression and side eye glare administered by and toward each character.

I liked delving further into Gemma's story. In the first book she kind just appears (in the nick of time of course). We knew where she had been, we know that she's a war monk, but little to nothing about what pushed her back to help Keeley. Obviously the reason why is because that first book was Keeley's book. I loved that beyond giving us Gemma's side of things, we also get a continuation of what was started in that first book.

I felt like the eventual romance that develops between Gemma and Quinn was just, I guess, breezier. They clash on a few viewpoints which only adds to the comedic effect of the book, but overall I could feel the obvious friendship and regard they have for one another. So when these feelings deepened (because I don't think "changed" is really the correct word) it just felt natural for them. I felt their connection moreso than I did for Keeley and Caid from the first book.

The Princess Knight is a fun, fast, action-packed read. It was a perfect read for me, just hitting the right spot of what I needed at that moment. I think we all could use a little light-heartedness right now. And I think the topics of belief and faith which are heavily dealt with throughout as Gemma tries to reconcile both her role by her sister's side and within that of the War Monks are pretty apt message right now to. Having faith in yourself and your beliefs.

There are quite a few siblings left in the Smythe family so many opportunities to continue the series but no clear-cut path of which direction things will go next which kind of adds to the quirky, madcap quality of the series anyway. I look forward to when we can continue the journey.